Spotify gives New Music Friday a makeover. With 3.5 million followers, the playlist remains one of the most popular which highlights tracks by established artists and emerging talent.
The playlist which launched in 2014 will be given a celebration with new cover art and New York and Los Angeles billboards. Spotify’s New Music Friday Playlist became a-much-needed-force that helped artists reach a new level of audience. The playlist helped launch Billie Eilish, Tones and I, Lil Tecca, as well as Lizzo – after these artists appeared on the playlist, their stream count went through the roof.  In fact, I remember when I first discovered Lewis Capaldi’s ‘Bruises’ on NMF.

Per the doctors order, Lana Del Rey is cancelling her European Tour. Sorry to let everyone down so last minute but this illness has taken me by surprise and have totally lost my singing voice,” she said. Currently, future dates have not been re-scheduled. Lewis Capaldi also had to cancel dates after he lost his voice.

I can’t get enough of the track People Say by Ben Wylen and you probably won’t either despite what genre you love. The LA based singer takes cues singer-songwriters like Springsteen and Coldplay which is refreshing from beats with a topline.  The mid-tempo piano track which comes off his forthcoming album was crafted by a dream team – string arranger Audrey Riley (The Cure, The Smiths, Smashing Pumpkins), and mixer Steve Fitzmaurice (Sam Smith, Lewis Capaldi). Check out the video here.
Upcoming Dates:
SXSW – Austin, TX

April 2nd – Rockwood Music Hall, New York, NY
April 7th – The Hotel Cafe, Los Angeles, CA

Justin Bieber is eyeing a seventh No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 chart. Forecasters are estimating 250,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in the week ending Feb. 20th. He’s fully back in the game promoting his latest album with a YouTube series documentary and upcoming world tour – and he’s posting on his socials like every 15 minutes.

Look out for London based artist Marie Dahlstrom. She just released the track Like Sand (feat Beau Diako) which comes off her soon to be released debut album.  She mashes R&B, soul and jazz. I like it because it’s not pop, it’s experimental, with no big hooks, but tons of vibe. Listen to the album in the background and let it do its work. She’s won support from blogs like Complex, Line of Best Fit, EarMilk, and Wonderland – and playlisted on Spotify’s Bedroom Jams, R&B UK, and Spotify and Chill. Give it a stream.