R&B/Hip-Hop Fresh Picks of the Week: Latto, Jvck James, Savannah Ré, Rome Streetz & More

As Joey Bada$$ handles California cats like Ray Vaughn, Reason, AzChike and Daylyt on his lonesome, it looks like the West Coast isn’t giving up last year’s “Not Like Us” and GNX-feuled momentum without a fight. Over the past few months, Joey has been heralding his return to the rap game with slick boom-bap tracks that have given way to a legitimate coast vs. coast battle. Although his real target is Kendrick Lamar, Joey — and his West Coast adversaries — have helped maintain the competitive, bars-focused spirit of hip-hop at the forefront of the genre as 2025 rages on.

While that battle has largely been kept on wax and in good faith, other hip-hop/R&B stars have courted more sinister controversy over the past week. On Thursday (May 15), a court granted Grammy-nominated singer and actress Halle Bailey temporary physical and legal custody of her son Halo, whom she shares with her streamer-rapper ex-boyfriend DDG. The ruling came one day after Bailey secured a restraining order against DDG, alleging physical and verbal abuse.

On Friday (May 16), Drake shared a petition urging Calif. Governor Gavin Newsom to pardon Tory Lanez, who’s currently serving a 10-year prison sentence after being convicted on three felony counts tied to his shooting of Megan Thee Stallion in July 2020. That same day, Chris Brown was denied bail during a court hearing for his assault charge in Manchester, England; he remains in police custody with an “inflicting grievous bodily harm” charge, which has been tied to a February 2023 London nightclub attack allegedly involving the Grammy-winning singer.

In other news, Trey Edward Shults’ Hurry Up Tomorrow, a psychological thriller film that serves as a companion piece to The Weeknd‘s Billboard 200-topping album of the same name, opened with a paltry $3.3 million at the domestic box office.

With Fresh Picks, Billboard aims to highlight some of the best and most interesting new sounds across R&B and hip-hop — from Latto’s new summertime banger to Jvck James’ first release after a two-year hiatus. Be sure to check out this week’s Fresh Picks in our Spotify playlist below.