XXL's Songs Of The Week

Because time is a flat circle, this week once again belonged to Young Thug. Not only did the Atlanta savant turn in a stellar guest turn on Jamie xx's "I Know There's Gonna Be (Good Times)," but he spun a disastrous rash of leaks into another hit with the buoyant "That's All." Of...

As spring turns into summer, we promise to not say things are "heating up," because this is 2015 and we've moved beyond that. In any event, Long Beach's Vince Staples announced that he will follow last year's Hell Can Wait EP with his official Def Jam debut, Summertime '06. This wee...

It's Friday; your head hurts, your back hurts, your boss is breathing down your neck and you're not sure if your boyfriend's friends are worth the $35 Uber to the bar. You might be looking for a rapper to whom you can relate, an artist speaking for the Sisyphean struggle you endure week in and week out to pay your rent, your student loans, your unused gym membership...

  While 2015 has introduced the rap listening public to a long list of promising up-and-comers, this week was about the veterans. Be they hallowed legends (De La Soul, Nas, Raekwon), quietly competent workmen (Curren$y, Wiz Khalifa) or those who have started to come into their own in their 30s (Open Mike Eagle), the past seven days have been a goldmine for gripping rap music from people on the wr

This week was about Young Thug. The inscrutable Atlantan's Wayne-baiting Barter 6 mixtape is finally available, the first proper full-length project since he became a household name last summer with Rich Gang's "Lifestyle." But beyond Thugga's stellar tape, there were other exciting happenings on each coast--from Jadakiss being rustled awake over some Jay Z classics up in Yonkers to Long

While the music press is embroiled in a debate about the practicality, morality and financial specifics of music streaming, the deluge continued, with gripping new cuts from Freddie Gibbs, Tyler the Creator and Chance the Rapper--three of today's most engaging artists, each of whom has operated outside of most major label apparatuses...

As always, the XXL staff has come together to pick the best hip-hop songs of the last seven days. This week, it's about love. With new cuts from the best friends in rap, Rich Homie Quan and Young Thug (do you think they watch Miami Vice together?) as well as dynami...

This week was the first of 2015 to truly crowd retail shelves and RSS feeds. Kendrick Lamar's To Pimp a Butterfly, Action Bronson's Mr. Wonderful and Earl Sweatshirt's I Don't Like Shit, I Don't Go Outside all saw release this week; Lamar's sophomore effort not only moved over 350,ooo physical units, but shattered the single-day album streaming record. Twice. As for Bron...

It feels like only one thing happened this week, right? The impending physical release of Kendrick Lamar's To Pimp a Butterfly feels like a formality; check Twitter, check Metacritic, check the stereo systems of passing cars. But there wer...

After a hectic month or so, things slowed down in the hip-hop world this week. As we gear up for releases from Kendrick Lamar, Action Bronson, Kanye West and others, this was a seven-day span that allowed more breathing room and, with it, chances to appreciate gems from newcomers like Post Malone and members of the old guard, like AZ...

This last week of February has seen ferocious new cuts from a host of acts who are milling about the fringes of mainstream success. Some, like G-Unit, are on the back nine of their runs as superstars; on the other side of the coin, Inglewood's Skeme and Atlanta's EarthGang are ramping up for their own shots at the pop charts...

This week kicked off with Valentine's Day, but as a great man once said, ain't nothing nice. The last seven days saw acid-tongued releases from some of the genre's most vicious young misanthropes: Action Bronson and Earl Sweatshirt each blessed the net with barbs...