Yahoo Finance The best new songs we heard this week: CupcakKe stars as Marge Simpson, Vic Mensa's tasteful summertime ode
Brian Ziff Photo; CupCakke/YouTube; Joyful Noise Recordings; UNIIQU3, Courtesy of Vic Mensa CupcakKe, Vic Mensa, UNIIQU3, Giveon, and Deerhoof
Every Friday, EW's music team runs down the five best songs of the week. In today's edition, CupcakKe does Simpsons cosplay, Vic Mensa and BJ the Chicago Kid make summer last just a bit longer, Deerhoof pay homage to "La Bamba," Giveōn has one last fling, and UNIIQU3 goes full Fatal Attraction.
"Marge Simpson" — CupcakKe
While rap's reigning queen of smut is always on the prowl for a big one, this time it's the big bucks she's after. "Money stack up tall, look like the hair on Marge Simpson," the Chicago firebrand spits, making it loud and clear she'll only give it up if Homer shows her the real bling: "I want everything locked in a glass/Then we f---in' fast/Take him to the back of the store/Then he bustin' a hole in my mask." The wink to a Jay-Z classic is perfectly played, the dash of Spanish guitar surprising and sexy, the lyrics some of her funniest and finest ("I done sat up on his sack five times/After he done bought me the whole damn Saks Fifth"). Then there's the video: a hysterical, raunchy mash-up of cartoon and cosplay — one of 2021's best. This is the sort of nasty escapist hip-hop fantasy that towers well above the competition. —Jason Lamphier
"The Taste" — Vic Mensa, BJ the Chicago Kid, and Papi Beatz)
We're two days into decorative gourd season, but Vic Mensa and BJ the Chicago Kid are intent on making summer last longer than that bag of tightly coiled spliffs you've had since August. "Girl, you sweeter than a Baba's lemonade/Right when the sun's 'bout to fade," sings Mensa, flipping into rare R&B crooner mode to reminisce about Chicago summers past. "We could light up the night, like it's the Fourth of July." BJ's hook follows the same sugary thread: "You taste like Chicago," he says over a springy guitar riff that echoes off into the distance. "Rollin' up something good, smokin' on hay." "The Taste" is refreshingly light — and will have you forgetting it's almost October. —Alex Suskind
"Scarcity is Manufactured" — Deerhoof
Richie Valens' legendary 1958 cut of "La Bamba" sits at the heart of the new Deerhoof single. The idea originated with guitarist Ed Rodriguez, who was looking for a way to showcase his family's roots and decided to channel it through the late artist's "declaration of Mexican pride." Rodriguez and fellow guitarist John Dietrich flip the original riff by injecting it with a thrashing hair-metal tone. Add in a flailing backing beat and Satomi Matsuzaki's high-pitched lilt ("I thought it was night, but it's day! It's every day at once! Behold my house of light! Bankruptor of the rainbow!," she sings), and this tribute to identity and culture turns into something unexpected, equal parts abstract and heartfelt. —Alex Suskind
"Unavailable" — UNIIQU3 (feat. R3LL)
On "Unavailable," UNIIQU3 is your worst nightmare. Not only does she have the audacity to call rather than text, but she does so repeatedly, relentlessly, aggressively. "You don't wanna pick up the phone," she sings, lamenting a lost connection. "Addicted, I can't leave you alone." As the chaotic drum 'n' bass cut swells into a furious storm of throbbing beats, stuttering snares, and "out of service" replies — reflecting an almost stalker-like obsession — she and fellow Jersey club kid R3LL pull off some impressive tricks, weaving in record scratches and retro nods to hotlines and *69. When it comes to production, the rising star proves she's a real magician — though maybe one more likely to drop a rabbit into a pot of boiling water than pull it out of a hat. —Jason Lamphier
"For Tonight" — Giveōn
Giveōn has come a long way from being the mystery voice on Drake's "Chicago Freestyle," having scored a No. 1 hit with Justin Bieber and getting massive festival crowds to sing along with every word of his breakout track, "Heartbreak Anniversary." This stirring new single taps into the latter's sensibility, as the conflicted singer declares "for tonight, I'm yours" in a way anyone who has been at the tail end of a failed relationship can relate to. As sweeping strings help bring it to a sentimental close, it becomes clear this song is tailor-made to soundtrack the third act of any romance flick. —Marcus Jones
Listen to our five favorite new tracks this week — and all the Friday Fives of 2021 — in the playlist below.
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