{"id":660563,"date":"2026-08-28T07:05:09","date_gmt":"2026-08-28T07:05:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/660563\/"},"modified":"2026-08-28T07:05:09","modified_gmt":"2026-08-28T07:05:09","slug":"olivia-rodrigo-alex-warren-lead-best-new-music-friday-music-guide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/660563\/","title":{"rendered":"Olivia Rodrigo & Alex Warren Lead Best New Music: Friday Music Guide"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tBillboard\u2019s Friday Music Guide<\/a> serves as a handy guide to New Music Friday\u2019s most essential releases each week \u2014 the key music that everyone will be talking about today, and that will be dominating playlists this weekend and beyond.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tExplore\t\t<\/p>\n

See latest videos, charts and news<\/p>\n

\n\tLast week<\/a>, we featured Sam Smith, Stella Lefty, Weezer and more.<\/p>\n

\n\tThis week, Olivia Rodrigo shares a previously-released-CD-exclusive song digitally; Alex Warren releases his second album; JENNIE\u2019s three-track EP arrives; and Rod Wave drops his mega 24-track seventh album, Don\u2019t Look Down\u2026 plus much more. Check out all of this week\u2019s picks below:<\/p>\n

\n\tOlivia Rodrigo, \u201cSerena Joy\u201d <\/strong><\/p>\n

\n\tDays before headlining her very own inaugural Daisy Chain Fields festival in Irvine, Calif., superstar Olivia Rodrigo dropped a new song (which was originally cut from her third album, this June\u2019s You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love) that will surely make its way into her setlist. \u201cSerena Joy\u201d \u2014 named after the antagonist from Margaret Atwood\u2019s The Handmaid\u2019s Tale novel \u2014 is expectedly inspired by the character\u2019s complexities. And while the dystopian-sounding song ends with Rodrigo repeating \u201ceverything is just fine,\u201d it\u2019s unclear if she means it \u2014 or just wants to believe it. \u2014 LYNDSEY HAVENS<\/p>\n

\n\tAlex Warren, WILDCHILD<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n\tAlex Warren\u2019s second album swiftly follows last year\u2019s You\u2019ll Be Alright, Kid that included his breakout hit and Hot 100 No. 1 \u201cOrdinary.\u201d And while WILDCHILD does include some downtempo pop ballads (\u201cFine Place To Die,\u201d \u201cI Miss You More\u201d), his signature soaring vocals are best highlighted on the album\u2019s more punchy uptempo songs (\u201cFever Dream,\u201d \u201cEmerald Eyes\u201d). As the project\u2019s title implies, Warren is living it up a bit more this time around \u2014 or should I say, getting a bit wild by his standards \u2014 and as a result, sneaks in a final few summer smashes. \u2014 L.H.<\/p>\n

\n\tJENNIE, Fallen Angel<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n\tImagine the bite of \u201clike JENNIE\u201d only stripped down and ethereal \u2014 that\u2019s \u201cHeaven.\u201d JENNIE sounds entirely self-assured on the song, even if she\u2019s singing of a toxic relationship: \u201cIf not crazy, then what fun would it be?\u201d The song accompanies the acoustic-led title track and previously-released single \u201cLess than a Lover.\u201d Fallen Angel is JENNIE\u2019s first solo project since the release of her solo debut with last year\u2019s full-length Ruby. \u2014 L.H.<\/p>\n

\n\tRod Wave, Don\u2019t Look Down<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n\tThe prolific rapper-singer-songwriter puts all three to their best use across his new album, tapping R&B singer-songwriter Summer Joy, R&B artist Luv Von, Irish singer-songwriter Aimee Carty and Australian indie-folk artist Hazlett as the project\u2019s only features. Don\u2019t Look Down is Rod Wave\u2019s seventh album, having only released his debut full-length (Ghetto Gospel) in 2019. \u2014\u00a0L.H.<\/p>\n

\n\tBilly Strings, So Much for Goodbyes<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n\tAs Eric Renner Brown writes of the bluegrass virtuoso\u2019s new album, it is \u201ca profound meditation on grief inspired by the recent death of his mother.\u201d As Strings shared himself in a statement along with the album\u2019s announcement, he made the record to honor her: \u201cTo notice and embrace this very significant period of grief in my life and make art from it. To turn my heartbreak into songs while using my guitar as a coping mechanism as I always have. It\u2019s always been there for me to lean on through the hard times, and I figure it always will\u2026 until it\u2019s my time to say goodbye.\u201d Read Billboard\u2018s tracks ranked here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n\tflowerovlove feat. Willow, \u201cgirls will be girls\u201d <\/strong><\/p>\n

\n\tRising indie-pop singer floweroflove shares her debut album, Mini Skirt Warrior, led by focus track \u201cgirls will be girls\u201d with the project\u2019s sole feature Willow. While the uptempo song is the album\u2019s 12th and final, it\u2019s also one of its standouts alongside previously-released singles like \u201cAmerican Wedding\u201d and \u201cI\u2019m your first.\u201d \u2014 L.H.<\/p>\n

\n\tAlabama Shakes, I Must Be Dreaming<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n\tGrammy-winning bluesy rock band Alabama Shakes is back \u2014 and with its first album in over a decade. I Must Be Dreaming is the act\u2019s first full-length since its breakout second album Sound & Color, which debuted atop the Billboard 200 upon its 2015 release. Previously-released single \u201cAnother Life\u201d remains a standout for vocalist Brittany Howard\u2019s urgent vocals, as does \u201cWaist Deep.\u201d The band is currently on tour through the end of September, with a date at Radio City Music Hall Sept. 2. \u2014 L.H.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Billboard\u2019s Friday Music Guide serves as a handy guide to New Music Friday\u2019s most essential releases each week…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":660564,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[264],"tags":[18,117,24838,10433,5266,1883,22921,19,17,337],"class_list":["post-660563","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-music","tag-eire","tag-entertainment","tag-friday-music-guide","tag-genre-country","tag-genre-hiphop","tag-genre-pop","tag-genre-rb","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-music"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/117171868868714959","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/660563","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=660563"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/660563\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/660564"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=660563"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=660563"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=660563"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}