Looking for some Monday motivation to help power you through the start of another week? We’re right there with you, and with some stellar new pop tunes, we’ve got you covered.
These 10 tracks from artists like Victoria Monet, MisterWives, Jessie Ware and Cautious Clay will get you energized to take on the week. Pop any of these gems into your personal playlists — or scroll to the end of the post for a custom playlist of all 10.
Jessie Ware, “Ooh La La”
British pop great Jessie Ware has been diligently dropping banger after banger to break up our quarantine doldrums in advance of her upcoming album What’s Your Pleasure?, with the righteous disco-camp of “Ooh La La” most recently translating her lilting vocals to the dance floor.
Tom Misch & Yussef Dayes, “Last 100”
Guitar great Tom Misch and in-demand drummer Yussef Dayes recently teamed up for a collaborative full-length, What Kinda Music, that fittingly hops across genres and is highlighted by this soulful space-jazz anthem that fills its empty corners with a kicky piano line and some squealing riffs.
Victoria Monet, “Dive”
Producer-songwriter Victoria Monet is best known for her studio work alongside Ariana Grande, yet new single “Dive” is her most magnetic solo offering to date, a steamy R&B-pop track that relies on various euphemisms and canned horns to capture sexual elation as Monet demonstrates her own riveting voice.
Lennon Stella, “Much Too Much”
The first track on Lennon Stella’s debut studio album Three. Two. One. demonstrates why the singer-songwriter cannot be slept on: moving on from her TV roots on Nashville, the 20-year-old is making commanding indie-pop with enough production flourishes and vocal fragility to keep listeners entertained.
Joan, “Love Me Better”
Ready for a shot of New Jack Swing? Indie-pop duo Joan are dripping with finesse on “Love Me Better,” which doesn’t try to reinvent the wheel as a pastiche of late-80s touchstones, and contains a hook that helps pull off the homage masterfully.
MisterWives, “Rock Bottom”
“I fall just to get back up/ I fall just to get back up!” Here, MisterWives frontwoman Mandy Lee shares a vulnerable message about emerging from a low place, but an upbeat melody — that sax! — makes it more rad than sad. In the video, Lee heads to the desert for a cathartic dance party, donned in tulle. Chumbawamba’s “Tubthumping” for the new generation.
Cautious Clay, Still Woozy, Sophie Meiers, Remi Wolf, Claud, Melanie Faye and HXNS, “Cheesin’”
Singer-songwriter-producer Cautious Clay has some very cool friends, and he’s rounded them all up here for a delightful collab with profits benefiting the MusiCares COVID-19 Relief Fund. The track was written over FaceTime, with each artist pitching in.
Tove Styrke, “Supalonely” (BENEE & Gus Dapperton cover)
One of Sweden’s finest took on a certain New Zealander’s sleeper hit for a live radio session, and now we’d very much like a collaboration between the two of them, thanks.
Pvris, “Gimme A Minute”
Give Lynn Gunn a minute, please — she’s busy crafting thrilling electro-rock bangers, preparing for Pvris’ upcoming album Use Me. “Gimme A Minute” is a hypnotizing plea for space, lovingly dispensed during a crisis when there is often none.
Cher Lloyd, “Lost”
Cher Lloyd’s ballads are as pristine as her bubblegum anthems. On the followup to 2019’s “M.I.A,” there’s some fun “lost/lots” wordplay, plus this zinger: “If you think you’re so hot, go back to hell.” “Lost” is also a great lesson in social distancing, as the singer luxuriates in a neon-lit bedroom by herself in the one-shot video, directed by Raja Virdi.
