First Listen Fridays (17/4/2025) – Honey Dijon, Olivia Rodrigo, and More New Music

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It’s the return of First Listen Fridays – your home of the freshest music that has dropped today. Every week, Editors Tom and Kloe team up to pick their top five picks each. This week, we’re coming in hot with new tracks from Honey Dijon, Benny The Butcher, and Olivia Rodrigo. Do you agree with Tom that Natanya’s latest is a banger, and are you feeling the new Jessie Reyez track Kloe picked out? Read on and see if you agree!

Tom’s Picks

Olivia Rodrigo – drop dead

Almost 3 years since her last album, it is time for album no. 3 from one of pop’s biggest stars. ‘drop dead‘ is the first taste of this new era with Olivia once again working with Dan Nigro. The synth-heavy production creates a real atmospheric feel, against our lead’s melancholic delivery. The musicality has definitely taken a step up from her previous work, as she expresses her fantasising about this person. A good start, and I am interested to hear more from ‘you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love‘.

Buy the track here.

Tyla FT. Zara Larsson – SHE DID IT AGAIN

Two artists who are at the height of their popularity and know how to make catchy bangers, this is a collaboration that makes total sense. The production has a real energy to it that will allow the listener to get their groove on. Both Tyla and Zara bring their vocals and passion, meeting the criteria for a fun and vibrant track. Suffice to say, I think this one will be a hit.

Buy the track here.

Lana Del Rey – First Light

Usually, a Bond theme is made for the cinema. However, this time, Lana Del Rey is singing for ‘007 First Light‘. The video game, which drops next month, will have fans excited, while this will have Lana’s fanbase equally ecstatic. It has everything you’d expect, great orchestration, smokey vocals, and a real atmospheric feel. As far as songs go for 007, it is certainly a good one.

Buy the track here.

Natanya – DON’T ASK!

After a huge 2025, we have the first taste of new Natanya this year, and it certainly delivers. Alongside Oscar Scheller, this erratic and bubbly instrumental is a lovely slice of gorgeous poppy R’n’B. It complements her vocals very nicely, as she commands attention and takes control lyrically. This is an artist who knows their the s**t both as a musician and as a person. The mixing of the vocals and the beat at the end, as the intensity builds up, is a particularly great moment. I’m sure it has been said before, but this is a star in the making.

BINA. – Zombies

You can always rely on this artist to drop good music, and that doesn’t change today. Those indie-rock-esque guitars provide the foundations for the beat, as she delivers her tale of hitting rock bottom. Her mellow, melodic vocals are very soothing, before hitting the high notes to show that intensity of feeling. I particularly love the instrumental passage where you hear her repeating vocals fade into the background. Another great track from a singer who knows how to use musicality and emotion to the best of their abilities.

Buy the track here.

Kloe’s Picks

Benny The Butcher & Fuego Base FT. OT The Real & Rick Hyde – Warehouse 4

It’s so refreshing to hear rappers who remind us of the essence of hip-hop. Benny has always been one of my favourite MCs of the last decade for that very reason. Here, you can enjoy four verses from some top-tier spitters delivered over a beat that has that Griselda grit. Whilst all features deliver passionate performances, Fuego Base’s verse is both laugh-out-loud funny and raw. “I take a lil’ off the top like Tyson did Evander ear.” is an example of the lyricism I live for.

Kacey Musgraves – Middle of Nowhere

Hard pivoting into the world of country, Grammy-award-winning cowgirl Kacey Musgraves has delivered another single. This time, it’s the titular track off her upcoming album, and it is a slow-paced self-love jam. This meditative single sees her trying to find her peace in isolation, free from pain and ‘reckless men’. I hear inspiration from Carpenters here, as I remind myself why her voice is so beloved. It’s clear, subtle, and soft with that country twang that feels like home.

Buy the single here.

Jessie Reyez – N.Y.F.F.

This one hit me right in the chest out of nowhere. Jessie Reyez is no stranger to frank lyricism, and today she takes it to a whole other level. She is too smart for any two-timing player, and whilst that might leave her lonely, that just means she’s not about to be trampled on. If you are full of vitriol for a relationship right now, her explicit-laden chorus will feel like the ultimate catharsis.

Buy the track here.

Honey Dijon FT. Rochelle Jordan – New Wave Groove

She’s. finally. here. House music fans can rejoice as Chicagoan producer and DJ Honey Dijon has just dropped a bomb. Moving swiftly on from her last official album ‘Black Girl Magic‘, she recruits even more Black girl magic in the form of Chlöe, Mahalia, and Bree Runway. Plus Greentea Peng is by her side for a hypnotic trip with some stunning horns. However, it’s the second of two tracks with Rochelle Jordan that has given me energy today. It’s giving Beyoncé ‘Renaissance‘ all over again. If you don’t ‘vogue’ to this one, what are you doing?

Buy the track here.

Amma – If You Don’t Love Me

If you think Amma is just RAYE’s sister, you’ve played yourself. This rising star has just dropped her album ‘Middle Child‘, and it is a tour de force of her heart. Whilst I’ve still got to delve into the LP fully, the track that is making waves is the heart-wrenching ‘If You Don’t Love Me‘. I’d recommend some tissues when you press play on this one, as she realises that the person she’d give her life for does not love her, and how does one continue when that’s the reality?

Follow IndustryMe on Instagram, Threads, X, or YouTube. Press play on our First Listen Fridays playlist below to enjoy all our top picks. Don’t forget to follow the playlist on Spotify below or on Apple Music.

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