Best New Music This Week: Gucci Mane, NLE Choppa, Ghostface Killah, and More

As we look forward to the fall’s packed music release schedule, this week held us down with a number of great new singles: Gucci Mane traded bars with DaBaby and YoungBoy Never Broke Again on “Richer Than Errrybody”; DaBaby hopped on the remix to Lil Nas X’s “Panini”; French Montana linked up with drip king Gunna on “Suicide Doors”; Ghostface Killah returned with Method Man and Capadonna on “Me, Denny & Darryl”; Conway the Machine, Westside Gunn and Benny the Butcher joined forces on Tito’s Back”; and Ariana Grande, Miley, and Lana Del Rey came together on “Don’t Call Me Angel.” 

This week, we’re also introducing an accompanying Complex Best New Music Spotify playlist, which you can follow here. These are the best new songs this week.

FKA Twigs f/ Future, “Holy Terrain”

FKA Twigs’ “Holy Terrain” is a romantic, slow-burning record with hints of trap sounds scattered throughout. Sonically speaking, Future is the perfect artist to tap for the single, but what makes this one worth listening to is the vulnerability that is pulled from both artists. FKA is a woman in search of a lover who treats her right, and on the track, Future plays that love interest, a man who is broken and empty. He taps into his emotional bag, confessing his insecurities and weaknesses, in an attempt to ask forgiveness and be worthy of Twigs’ love. “Pray for my sins, make me stronger where I’m weak, yeah (pray for)/We die, we die together, the prophecy complete, yeah,” he raps. In addition to Future’s memorable verse, the track includes production by Jack Antonoff and Skrillex. —Jessica McKinney

Lil Nas X f/ DaBaby, “Panini (Remix)”

Lil Nas X knows how to extend a “moment.” The record-breaking artist has breathed new life into his pre-released single, “Panini,” by adding DaBaby on the remix. DaBaby is undeniably one of the most sought after features this year and with good reason. If you weren’t necessarily a fan of Lil Nas’ original single, this version may change your mind. DaBaby adds a certain maturity that may have been lacking before. I’s still playful and funny, but the Charlotte native also incorporates raunchy lyrics with a little southern flair: “I be like, ‘Girl, hush your mouth.’ You know I ain’t got time for nothin’ but sex/She know I injured my right hand so when I get behind I use my left.” —Jessica McKinney

Drake, “Behind Barz”

OVO may be responsible for curating the music on the Top Boy soundtrack, but it’s in no way a compilation album for Drake’s label. In fact, the only OVO artists who make an appearance on Top Boy are Baka Not Nice (“My Town”), Popcann (“Billions”), and The Boy himself, who shows up on the bonus track, “Behind Barz.” Worse yet, the lone Drake track is merely a re-purposed, more polished version of his Link Up TV freestyle from last summer. That said, it’s filled with subliminals and Toronto slang, which, more often than not, is exactly the kind of talk that brings out the best in Tough Guy Drake. —Brad Callas

NLE Choppa, “Camelot”

Since dropping his breakout single “Shotta Flow” at the top of year, NLE Choppa has spent the past few months trying to find his next hit. It looks like he might have just done that with his latest offering “Camelot,” which arrived alongside a Cole Bennett-directed music video. Once again, the 16-year-old Memphis spitter proves his skill set with rhymes that are tight, hard, and menacing. —Brad Callas

Gucci Mane f/ DaBaby & YoungBoy Never Broke Again, “Richer Than Errybody”

Gucci Mane’s latest track, “Richer Than Errybody” excels because of its catchy hook (“one brick he think he richer than errybody, two bricks he thick he richer than errybody”) and its two guest features, YoungBoy Never Broke Again and DaBaby. Each artist glides over the Lex Luger-produced trap beat, easily handing off to each other on the next verse. While YoungBoy kicks the track off with a bang, DaBaby wraps it up with cocky and rambunctious raps. Tracks that boast a handful of features sometimes feel off-balance, but Gucci Mane expertly enlisted artist that wouldn’t overpower one another on this one. They all shine in their own lane. —Jessica McKinney

French Montana f/ Gunna, “Suicide Doors”

When discussing the best producer tags in the rap game, Harry Fraud’s “La musica de Harry Fraud” gets criminally overlooked. Sure, it’s not as recognizable as Metro Boomin’s (“If young Metro don’t trust you, I’m gon’ shoot you), as urgent as Tay Keith’s (“Tay Keith, fuck these n****s up!”) or as inviting as Pi’erre Bourne’s (“Yo Pi’erre, you wanna come out here?”). But there’s nothing more pleasantly appealing than hearing Fanesha Fabre deliver “La musica de Harry Fraud,” followed by Fraud’s signature dusty soul samples and ‘80s-influenced production—which, I can only imagine, sounds best when flying down South Beach in a Miami Vice-esque speedboat. On his latest single, “Suicide Doors,” French Montana taps longtime collaborator Harry Fraud for a lush beat reminiscent of his Coke Boys era, as the drip king Gunna steals the show with another stellar guest verse. —Brad Callas

Ghostface Killah f/ Method Man & Capadonna, “Me Denny & Darryl”

Ghostface is a conflicting artist for me, a Washed Person. Ironman and Supreme Clientele rank among my favorite albums of all time. Anything he’s done since More Fish does not. Ghostface Killahs, the album he dropped today, has a couple of songs that approximate classic Wu shit, absence of hooks and all. The best might be “Me Denny & Darryl,” featuring Cappadonna and Method Man. Ghost sounds like himself, riding hard drums and horns in full criminology mode, while Cap appears revitalized, even if bars like “I’m coming off the bench like I’m blowing the bench up” don’t. Meth closes things out with the puns, wordplay, and pop culture references you loved (or hated) 25 years ago, delivered with an unassailable flow. It’s been a long time since you’ve heard something like this. And it may be a long time until you hear it again. —Lucas Wisenthal

Conway the Machine f/ Westside Gunn & Benny the Butcher, “Tito’s Back”

Since the top of the decade, three rappers have been at the center of Buffalo’s own golden age moment: Conway the Machine, Westside Gunn, and Benny the Butcher. Together, they’ve spearheaded the resurgence of mafioso rap. And, despite hailing from a city that the Boogie Down Bronx would refer to as “some place in Canada,” Griselda Records’ three-headed monster is nothing to fuck with. “Tito’s Back,” the first single from Conway the Machine’s new album Look What I Became, features all three MCs flex their lyrical expertise, dropping grimy bars over menacing production. —Brad Callas

Euro f/ Lil Wayne, “Talk 2 Me Crazy”

Ten years ago, a Lil Wayne feature practically guaranteed you a Top 40 hit. Of course, this usually meant sacrificing your pride and becoming just the latest rapper to get murdered on your own shit. Nevertheless, a hit is a hit is a hit. Unfortunately, in 2019, a Lil Wayne feature doesn’t mean as much. But every so often, the former Best Rapper Alive drops on a song and shows flashes of peak Mixtape Weezy. Although Euro’s new single “Talk 2 Me Crazy” isn’t quite one of those times, Wayne’s guest spot proves why his B-game is better than your favorite rapper’s A-game. Euro should consider himself fortunate that the self-proclaimed “rapper eater” stepped into the booth with a full stomach. —Brad Callas

Ariana Grande, Miley Cyrus & Lana Del Rey, “Don’t Call Me Angel”

The Avengers of pop, Ariana Grande, Miley Cyrus, and Lana Del Rey assembled on the highly-anticipated single, “Don’t Call Me Angel.” The single and music video arrives nearly two months before the forthcoming blockbuster, Charlie’s Angels, hits the box office. “Don’t Call Me Angel” is exactly what you’d expect from the trio—an empowering women’s anthem with a scoop of badassery—but even as they join forces, Grande, Cyrus, and Rey manage to show off their distinct styles and approaches. The track definitely runs parallel to the new class of angels in the film, which includes Kristen Stewart and Aladdin’s Naomi Scott. —Jessica McKinney

Follow along on our accompanying Best New Music playlist below.