One of TIDAL’s founding principles is that we do not rank creativity. To each their own, in terms of what constitutes a great song or makes one song “better” than another. However, each week there are a few tunes that really test our belief system, and we can’t help but elevate them above the thousand-plus tracks we’re pitched across genres. So keep checking this space on Fridays for a list of new songs that are sitting atop our own personal playlists. Maybe yours are different. That’s cool. After all, if you are part of the TIDAL family, your opinion matters and, also, you clearly have better taste in music than your friends. That’s one ranking we can make with certainty. - Tony Gervino
Azymuth
“O Mergulhador”
Bouncy and cathartic, “O Mergulhador,” from Brazilian jazz-funk legends Azymuth, transports us to the vocoder-y future we deserve. It’s off Marca Passo, their first album to be fully helmed by bassist and sole original member Alex Malheiros. - Brad Farberman
Brògeal
“Vicar Street Days”
Falkirk indie-pop-ers Brògeal serve up a nostalgic Britpop treat. “Vicar Street Days” is a perfect little tune — cheeky, remember-those-glory-days lyrics on top of a sweet melody and jangly guitars. It’s like the La’s and the Stone Roses never went away. - Christer Alexander Hansen
Miley Cyrus
Something Beautiful
Miley Cyrus’ new album, Something Beautiful, feels like her most personal and experimental work yet. She blends everything from soul to disco to folk-pop, and somehow it all fits. It’s bold, emotional and, honestly, one of her most authentic LPs so far. - Amberliz Mateo
Lil Wayne
Tha Carter VI
Lil Wayne was just 15 years old when he appeared on Hot Boys’ “Block Burner” in 1997. Nearly three decades later, he’s still rapping with the hunger of a newcomer. Tha Carter VI is the latest installment in his defining album series, which stands as a bold reminder that Wayne’s pen can still be elite. Wayne builds on nostalgia with this album — on “Bells,” he reimagines LL Cool J’s classic “Rock the Bells” through his own lens. “Banned from NO” brings him back to the “Banned from T.V.” instrumental that he obliterated on the No Ceilings mixtape, and this time he weaves in a clever interpolation of N.O.R.E.’s verse: “Used to be on Section 8, now my section is good.” There’s also experimentation on the album — he enlists Bono for the energetic pop-rock ballad “The Days,” and Andrea Bocelli’s vocals are placed in the background of “Maria.” And then there are the signature Wayne one-liners, like the winking “No words, Kenny G” on “Maria.” It’s classic Weezy. The album has star-studded features from 2 Chainz, Big Sean and BigXthaPlug, plus he finds time to put on his family — his son Kameron Carter joins him for the playful “Rari” and Lil Novi appears on “Mula Komin In.” One of the album’s most satisfying surprises is a reunion with Mannie Fresh on “Bein Myself.” But rather than recreating the N.O. bounce-heavy sound of their Cash Money heyday, Mannie focuses on a soulful sample for Wayne to rap over. Whether you believe that Wayne still has it, or you question if his time in hip-hop has passed, he recalls the sentiment of his “best rapper alive” campaign days on “Written History” when he says, “I ain’t gotta say this to remind folks / they know I’m the greatest, even God know.” And we have to respect that. - Juan Navarro
Myke Towers
“Baja California”
One of Myke Towers’ innate artistic qualities is his flow. Yes, he’s a lyrical acrobat, but it’s the manner in which he spits — the brother can make a rookie producer feel like Dr. Dre — that truly makes him a top-tier MC. On “Baja California,” over an interpolation of Black Sheep’s “The Choice Is Yours,” Towers rhymes like he was tossing bars with Dres himself. (The track is off the F1 film soundtrack.) Adding to the nostalgia vibe, the hook is borrowed from Cypress Hill’s “Loco en el Coco,” the Spanish version of “Insane in the Brain.” As an MC, Towers could live in, and dominate, any era. Yet aren’t we lucky he’s thriving in 2025? - Jesús Triviño Alarcón
Sudan Archives
“DEAD”
Three years after her victorious sophomore album Natural Brown Prom Queen, and following tours with the likes of Caroline Polachek and André 3000, singer and violinist Brittney Parks — aka Sudan Archives — issues the first single from her upcoming album. “DEAD” marks a musical rebirth from an artist who’s impossible to pigeonhole. The track’s “orchestral Black dance music” sound cleverly builds from artsy synth-pop to a full-blown dance floor banger, leaving us breathless at the end, just begging for more. - Bjørn Hammershaug
Lee Vasi
“Love Me Anyway”
There’s a fresh voice rising in the world of Christian R&B, and her name is Lee Vasi. Her debut album, Love Me to Life, makes a statement with the title being a clever play on the phrase “love you to death,” flipping the script to highlight the transformative, life-giving love of Christ. The standout track, “Love Me Anyway,” serves as a reminder that even when we drift, there’s always a love strong enough to meet us where we are and bring us back. - Tonya Nelson
