Memphis music is truly unstoppable. Each month welcomes more and more incredible new projects. Here are just 5 we’re highlighting for June that we’ve had on repeat:
Lawrence Matthews ft. Idi x Teco – “Once More & Again (Our Mourning)”
We told you back in January that Memphis musician Lawrence Matthews’ forthcoming album was something not to be missed, and every subsequent single he releases just reinforces why. “Once More & Again (Our Mourning)” is his latest tour de force, a stunning and poignant song that pays homage to Southern traditions. Helping to deliver Matthews’ message is Memphis duo Idi x Teco, who each masterfully open and close the track with powerful verses. You won’t be able to play it (or watch the visuals) just once. It’s haunting in the best way possible.
Blvck Hippie – Basketball Camp
Have you ever wished someone made an album that perfectly encapsulated your high school experience? Blvck Hippie frontman Josh Shaw did, so they went about making it themselves. Basketball Camp is the Memphis band’s newest album and it doesn’t disappoint. The group blends their wide range of influences (part pop, part rock, part punk, part jazz, part everything else) and impressively makes one cohesive soundtrack over which Shaw layers his raw and visceral storytelling. Conjure up your teenage angst and let this one rip.
Rose A. – S4U/GDL/SOS
It’s been a minute since Memphis songstress Rose A. has dropped new music, but this summer she’s gifted us not one, not two, but three new tracks. All three songs feature slithering sensual production courtesy of producer Spek Was Here, over which Rose A. layers her saccharine and delicate vocals. The whole project is impressive, but where Rose A. truly shines is on “S4U,” an intimate reworking of the Britney Spears’ classic “I’m a Slave 4 U”. Her arrangement is like someone stripped away the original production and instead seductively purred the lyrics into your ear. It’s *chefs kiss*.
Marco Alexander – “Wiseman” (Acapella: TRIBE Arrangement)
Choosing to cover another artists’ song is never an easy feat, but choosing to cover a Frank Ocean song? Wheww…that’s not for the weak. It’s safe to say that Memphis musician Marco Alexander understood this though because his version of Ocean’s “Wiseman” is utterly breathtaking. Backed by the talented “TRIBE”, he reimagines the track and flips it into an acapella masterpiece. “This feels like the ‘Amen’ to a prayer” Alexander wrote of the arrangement on Instagram, and honestly, there’s not a better way to describe it.
Gloss Up – Not Ya Girl: Act 1
After dropping her debut album Different Shades of Gloss in 2019, Gloss Up garnered major attention after her appearance on Hitkidd’s hit posse cut “Set the Tone” with fellow Memphis rappers GloRilla, K Carbon, Slimeroni, and Aleza. She hasn’t taken her foot off of the gas since, which begs the question: If you’re outside and not listening to Gloss Up’s new album Not Ya Girl: Act 1 at full blast, then what are you doing??? It’s summer, Memphis! Turn this shit up.
