The weather’s warming up, so why not warm up your playlists with some new tracks from your favorite queer artists? Billboard Pride is proud to present the latest edition of Queer Jams of the Week, our roundup of some of the best new music releases from LGBTQ artists.
From Romy’s euphoric new single, to Rainbow Kitten Surprise’s retrospective new song, check out just a few of our favorite releases from this week below:
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Romy, “Enjoy Your Life”
Have you ever re-listened to an old song and just felt one lyric harder than you ever did before? That’s what happened for Romy when she heard Beverly Glenn-Copeland sing his track “La Vita” on a night out with pop sensation Robyn. Taking Glenn-Copeland’s refrain of “my mother said to me ‘enjoy your life'” to heart, Romy created her own song “Enjoy Your Life” — a grooving, thrilling dance track that sees the DJ and singer embracing all the ephemeral parts of life. With a sample of Glenn-Copeland’s song and production from Fred Again.. and Jamie xx, “Enjoy Your Life” is an instant classic you’ll want to remember.
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Rainbow Kitten Surprise, “Drop Stop Roll”
On their sentimental new single “Drop Stop Roll,” beloved indie band Rainbow Kitten Surprise wants to take you on a pleasant trip back through rock music. Over twinkling guitar strains and a clacking drum beat, lead singer Ela Melo fondly nods to rock legends throughout the song’s lyrics, including Chuck Berry, Muddy Waters, The Police, the Eagles and more, before finally reflecting on RKS’ place in that grand tapestry; “You’re in for it,” she sings. “You’re in forever.”
Shygirl feat. Erika de Casier, “Crush”
While Shygirl’s new deluxe re-release (Nymph_o) of her 2022 album (Nymph) is packed to the gills with star-studded reimaginings of tracks off the original, it’s on one of the album’s brand new tracks that the UK rapper/singer shines brightest. “Crush,” featuring special guest Erika de Casier, is Shygirl at her most emotionally intimate, stripping back the veneer of confidence she puts on in other tracks while she wonders whether her secret flame feels the same way for her. The mesmerizing production and vocals only further add to this atmospheric R&B jam, making “Crush” an absolute must-listen.
MORGXN, “Beacon”
Amidst what’s turning out to be a dark time for queer folks, alt-pop artist MORGXN is here to offer a beam of light. “Beacon,” the star’s latest track and his debut under new label Nettwerk, is a bombastic hymn of hope, where MORGXN promises “a place we can go/ Somewhere I may never know,” even if he’s not 100 percent certain that it exists. Yet the heartening melody and driving drums sell you on his vision almost immediately, as he declares that “sometimes we’re the boat/ And sometimes we’re the beacon.”
Miya Folick, “So Clear”
Sometimes, it takes hitting rock bottom to get any real perspective on your life. And if there were a song to soundtrack that moment, it would sound a lot like Miya Folick’s latest, “So Clear.” As plinking synths adorning the track with a lightness to offset some of the heavier lyrics, the singer-songwriter pulls herself out of oblivion to face another day, this time filled with a sense of assuredness that she can handle whatever gets thrown at her.
Angel Olsen, Forever Means
The only place where “happily ever after” truly exists is in fairytales – for the rest of us, it’s about moving from one struggle to the next. Where Angel Olsen’s 2022 album Big Time saw the singer-songwriter embracing the truest version of herself and embracing a “happy ending,” her new EP Forever Means keeps following her, as she contends with newer, more cosmic problems like self-actualization (“Nothing’s Free”) and the infinite concept of “forever” itself (“Forever Means”). But as with Big Time, Olsen does so with a heartwrenching penchant for incisive songwriting and simple-but-effective productin.
A Kid Named Rufus, “The Cute Girl From Brewster Hall”
Ah, young love, so simple and sweet. That’s the ethos behind A Kid Named Rufus’ latest delicated indie-pop single “The Cute Girl From Brewster Hall.” Written for the titular girl back when the rising singer-songwriter was a sophomore in college, “Cute Girl” is the kind of uncomplicated, delightful love story that’s just here to make you feel as nice as Rufus did when meeting said girl.