February

“Pray for Me” by The Weeknd and Kendrick Lamar

Lamar and Abel Tesfaye link up again (following Starboy‘s “Sidewalks” in 2016) for a new release from the upcoming Black Panther album, inspired by the highly-anticipated superhero film. The result is a seamless combination of the artists’ strengths—Kendrick’s crisp flow and The Weeknds signature falsetto, over a fast-paced track with a rhythm reminiscent of “Starboy”‘s.

“June 12th” by Blood Orange

Dev Hynes surprise-released two tracks at the beginning of February in honor of Black History month. (The songs won’t be on his next album, however.) On “June 12th,” he preaches an undeniable message of self acceptance—”You must love yourself”—with a near-monotone voice over a synthy beat. Listen to both tracks above.

“Still in Love” by Thirdstory feat. Eryn Allen Kane

The harmonizing trio went from posting YouTube covers to touring with and singing backup for Chance the Rapper in the span of about a year. This collab with soul powerhouse Eryn Allen Kane has been a long time coming for Thirdstory fans; they first sang it in 2016 in a live video and it instantly went viral. Now, the song finally gets a polished, official release. (There’s also a more upbeat, produced rendition sans Kane.)

“Get It” by Busta Rhymes feat. Missy Elliott and Kelly Rowland

Fans of the ’90s rap icons will be glad to know that a new Busta-Missy collab goes father than a Doritos Super Bowl commercial. The punchy track, featuring Kelly Rowland, is the follow-up to Rhymes’ 2017 collab with Tory Lanez and Vybz Kartel, “Girlfriend.”

“Nautical Depths” by Czarface feat. MF Doom

Esoteric, 7L, and Wu-Tang’s Inspectah Deck joins forces with Doom again, following their last collab on their 2015 album, Every Hero Needs a Villain. This epic collab is just a tease of what’s to come on their joint LP, Czarface Meets Metal Face, dropping March 30. As Deck rhymes in his verse, “Yeah, as long as Czarface wins / We’ll be more talked about than Beyonce’s twins.”

“Wild Love” by James Bay

The Brit singer-songwriter returned nearly three years after his debut, Chaos and the Calm, with a new single, synth-friendly sound, manipulated vocals (reminiscent to Bon Iver’s 22, a Million era), and influences ranging from LCD Soundsystem to Frank Ocean. It’s a new direction from his guitar-heavy first album, but Bay explained to BAZAAR.com, “If I’m not moving forward, I’m standing still.”

“X” by ScHoolboy Q, 2 Chainz, and Saudi

Kendrick already had our attention with the singles from the Black Panther Album, but when the full-length released, delivered even more collaborations and harder-hitting tracks. This one is a hyped standout.

“Opps” by Vince Staples, Yugen Blakrok, and Kendrick Lamar

This marks the second collaborations between Staples and Lamar (which was featured in one of Black Panther‘s trailers) but they get outshone when South African rapper Yugen Blakrok hits the third verse. She’s quick and hard-hitting, delivering lines like these: “I’m half machine, obscene with a light sword / Look inside the brain, it’s a ride in the psych ward / What you standing on the side for? / Roar like a lioness, punch like a cyborg.”