The COVID-19 pandemic continues to affect a number of industries, however, one industry continues to prevail - the music industry. Artists, like Lana Del Ray, Drake, Justin Bieber and others have recently released new singles and albums. Here is some new music that Seton Hall students are currently enjoying:
- “Chemtrails Over the Country Club” by Lana Del Rey
Lana Del Rey released “Chemtrails Over the Country Club,” her sixth studio album, on March 19. Maddie Mindham, a sophomore business management major, said she enjoyed Del Rey’s album.
“I had to listen to it twice because at first, I was okay with it, but after a second time, I thought it was perfect,” Mindham said.
Del Rey’s album has 11 songs with a total play time of 45 minutes. “Chemtrails Over The Country Club,” is currently the album’s most popular song on Spotify with more than 42 million streams.
- “Justice” by Justin Bieber
Justin Bieber dropped his studio album “Justice” on March 19.The deluxe version of the album, “Justice (Triple Chucks Deluxe),” was released a week later with six extra songs.
Emilee Turner, a sophomore finance major, said she liked Bieber’s album. “I’ve been listening to it on repeat since it came out,” Turner said.
Turner added that “Ghost” is her favorite track off the album.
“Justice” has also been in the news drawing criticism for sampling audio of Martin Luther King Jr’s voice in a manner that some deemed disrespectful. However, King’s daughter, Bernice King, thanked Bieber for his “support” in a tweet on March 18.
- “Leave the Door Open” by Silk Sonic
New music duo Silk Sonic, made up of Bruno Mars and rapper Anderson Paak, released their single “Leave the Door Open” on March 5. The song debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and has over 136 million streams on Spotify as of April 11.
The artists performed the song at the Grammys, and it will featured on the duo’s upcoming album, “An Evening with Silk Sonic.” Thomas Donnelly, a freshman accounting and sports management double major, said that he loves the song.
“Two of music’s best singers currently on the same song? Incredible,” Donnelly said. “It just makes me happy listening to it and singing along.”
- “Obsessed” by Addison Rae
Tik Tok star Addison Rae made her music debut with her single “Obsessed,” which has reached over 8 million plays on Spotify. She also performed the song on Jimmy Fallon’s “The Tonight Show.”
In a Vogue interview, Rae shared that the song is about self-love and loving herself as much as her fans do.
Julia Gallo, a freshman diplomacy major, said she had mixed feelings about Rae’s song.
“It wasn’t horrible but it definitely was not the greatest,” Gallo said. “[There] wasn’t much of a vocal range whatsoever, so it was pretty plain to me.”
- “Scary Hours 2” by Drake
Drake dropped his new EP, “Scary Hours 2,” which featured three songs in early March. All three songs entered the Billboard Hot 100 at the top three places—a historic first.
Heaven Hill and Wilnir Louis, co-hosts on WSOU’s specialty show “Whatchu Been Missin,’” shared their thoughts on Drake’s new songs.
Hill, a sophomore journalism major, said that “What’s Next” sounds like it came straight from a video game soundtrack and is an example of Drake experimenting and displaying his versatility.
“Drake does not miss,” Louis, a senior sports management major said. “Those three songs are setting the bar high for Drake, and I think he’s going to drop something hopefully over the summer.”
Ellen Paul can be reached at ellen.paul@student.shu.edu.
