Throwing back to the week of October 18, 2003, we find two repeats in the top spot of Billboard’s Hot 100. At #1 is Beyoncé’s ‘Baby Boy,’ which spent a total of nine weeks in that position. And in the second spot was ‘Shake Ya Tailfeather,’ a collaboration by Nelly, P. Diddy, and Murphy Lee.
That brings us to #3, and another ode to shaking one’s ass: ‘Get Low,’ the debut single by Lil Jon & The East Side Boyz. This pioneering crunk track eventually made it to #2 on the chart.
I started the week with a song by Daniel Gallup from his upcoming EP, and I thought it fitting to close the week out the same way.
‘Solid Ground’ is a beautiful song, and my favorite thing Daniel has recorded in his young career. It fires on all cylinders, both musically and lyrically, and in its back half achieves a moment of transcendence that takes it to another level. This is a first class effort, from writing to performance to production.
The most exciting new release in the past month or so was definitely Olivia Rodrigo’s latest effort, Guts. I’ve been looking forward to her next move ever since her 2021 debut album Sour made such an impact.
I’m happy to report that Guts tops its predecessor. Rather than suffer a sophomore slump, Rodrigo has refined and sharpened her sound and delivered a batch of songs even more confident and electric.
It’s crazy to think that Nicki Minaj has seemingly graduated to an elder stateswoman of rap. It’s been only a little more than a decade since her breakthrough album, Pink Friday, made her the hot new thing.
Her success and unique style influenced a whole generation of young women, artists who names now populate the charts and soundtrack our social media: Doja Cat, Megan Thee Stallion, Latto, Coi Leray, Saweetie, and Ice Spice, to name just a few.
Maren Morris, unapologetically liberal and unafraid to speak her mind, has never been a great fit for country music. Now, ten years and three successful albums after she first arrived in Nashville, she is leaving behind the genre for good.
‘The Tree,’ a track from a new EP titled The Bridge, is about that decision. She describes taking an axe to a metaphorical tree with rotting roots and heading to greener pastures. In her case, that means working on a new album with Jack Antonoff, who produced another track on this EP.
Meet Me In Montauk 