The Man, single by Kirby. A cross between blues and gospel, this song gets to you in your gut. You listen to the beat and snap your fingers, and feel the emotion in your belly when she hits the high notes. The lyrics praise the unsung and often abused people who built America. It is lilting, bluesy, and definitely a hit-replay song. Stream on Spotify and major platforms.
What’s love?, single by Sara Angel. Soft, intense, sweet, powerful – she manages to cram all of that into one song. Born in Mexico and raised in Texas, she has created a haunting indie pop ballad about love’s afterglow. It is raw, vulnerable, but strong and intense. If you have sat alone and devastated after what you thought was the relationship to sustain the rest of your life slips away, you will relate to this song. Stream on Spotify and major platforms
Sumber Party, single by Whitney Tai. A different Witney Tai confronts us in Slumber Party. Lush, luxurious, angelic, the second single from her upcoming album American Wasteland, is moody pop-rock but positive and inspiring, urging you to release past trauma, grief, and reclaim control over yourself As with all of her music, it is hypnotic, ethereal, but more grounded in pop rock than her earlier starlight travels through space. The line “waking up to things that are harming you, getting rid of past trauma that’s keeping you stuck, and not being a slave to information” resonates deeply. Stream on all major platforms.
Chica de cristal, single by Judeline. Heavenly, melodic, apart, yet close. The Spanish singer Joedeline, whose real name is Lara Fernández Castrelo, has given us a song that is vulnerable both in lyrics and her voice, but so emotionally deep that you cannot tear yourself away, whether or not you understand the Spanish lyrics. The production is atmospheric, but the song is down-to-earth. Stream on all major platforms. Spanish.
El Camino by Buscabulla. The Puerto Rican indie pop duo, made up of Raquel Berrios and Luis Alfredo Del Valle, has released this song from the album Se Amaba Asi, and it is so much fun. A kind of disco beat/indie pop style, paired with echoing vocals, narrates a try to regain a loving relationship. Wild, stratospheric accents carry you along past the central groove but never interrupt the cinematic flow. It feels like a fantasy movie, but it is rooted in real experience. The chemistry between the two life partners in this song is a striking contrast to the story it tells in Spanish. Stream on Spotify and major platforms.
Ex Ex Ex single by Kenia OS. Kenia OS – Kenia Guadalupe Flores Osuna, from Sonora, Mexico – gives us lyrics that reflect moving on from a relationship, but still feeling a lingering curiosity but with empowerment. The song is remarkably catchy, high tempo, poppy, given the lyrical topic. She is out there, herself, well-put together and feeling it. You can dance to it, snap your fingers, or just head-bob while you go about your day. Spanish. Stream on all major platforms.
