New Music Friday: 7 essential albums from Sudan Archives, Carlos Dafé & Adrian Younge, Curren$y and more

New Music Friday brings seven tightly focused releases that cut across hip-hop, R&B, jazz/soul, and global grooves. Headliners include Ty Dolla $ign’s radio-ready “Tycoon,” Sudan Archives’ club-leaning “The BPM,” and Curren$y’s timestamped capsule “10/15,” alongside archival-minded curation and underground standouts. 

Sudan Archives — “The BPM” (Stones Throw)

Sudan Archives’ third album pivots decisively to the dance floor without losing her arranger’s ear. Recorded between Los Angeles, Chicago and Detroit, “The BPM” channels those cities’ club lineages into tightly wound, four-on-the-floor cuts and chopped-vocal experiments, while her violin often slips into textural cameos rather than center stage. Notable pre-release singles “Dead,” “My Type,” and “Yea Yea Yea” set the palette; deeper album cuts like “Touch Me” and “A Bug’s Life” lean into tension-and-release that reads as both post-breakup catharsis and futurist swagger.

7xvethegenius — “Self 7xve 3” (Broadband Sound) 

Buffalo’s 7xvethegenius closes her “Self 7xve” trilogy with a concise, feature-sprinkled set that marks her first full-length since leaving Drumwork earlier this year. The LP arrives via Broadband Sound and folds in cameos from Reuben Vincent, Monie Love, Sol ChYld, Lil’ Sos, Flames Dot Malik, and more—deployed sparingly against her cool-hand delivery and diaristic writing. Rollout singles and posts announced the date and pre-save; the album page confirms label and running time. Start with “Windows” for a clear snapshot of the thesis, then “Worthy” (with Flames Dot Malik) for a tempo switch that still keeps the pen sharp. 

Various Artists — “Soul In The Horn: The 10 Year Anniversary Deluxe Edition” (SITH Records)

Born from DJ Natasha Diggs and DProsper’s horn-forward NYC party and platform, this 27-track, 3xLP anthology spans soul, house, jazz and hip-hop with an emphasis on horn-driven arrangements. The deluxe set pairs new anthems with scene-defining collaborators—think Bilal, Kendra Foster, Kamasi Washington, Dead Prez, Jay Phelps and more—while codifying a decade of dance-floor culture through the SITH lens. Spin Ben Williams’ “Keep On [Power to the People Remix]” (with Dead Prez, Kendra Foster, Kamasi Washington) alongside Bilal’s “Live On” and Jay Phelps’ “I Get a Kick Out of You” to hear the range. Official pages and retailers confirm the concept, curation, track list and street date.

Curren$y — “10/15” (Jet Life Recordings)

True to form, Spitta drops another timestamped capsule: nine songs, no features, pure cruise-control storytelling over elegant, unhurried production. Apple Music lists the project at 25 minutes on Jet Life; coverage around the drop notes the no-guest approach, which puts his ad-libbed wit and parking-lot imagery front and center. Cue up the opener to hear the tape’s mood and sequencing logic—tight turns, short runtimes, and an emphasis on replayable transitions. 

Carlos Dafé & Adrian Younge — “Carlos Dafé JID025” (Jazz Is Dead) 

The Rio de Janeiro soul legend reunites with the Jazz Is Dead ecosystem for a set that bridges samba-soul lineage with Younge’s analog, low-end-rich production. Positioned as entry JID025 in the series, the album arrives with advance singles such as “Bloco da Harmonia” and a track list that nods explicitly to Dafé’s history (“Amor Enfeitiçado,” “Jazz Está Morto,” “O Baile Funk Vai Rolar”). Start with “Amor Enfeitiçado” for Dafé’s velvet baritone against warm Rhodes and bass, then “Bloco da Harmonia” for percussion-led uplift. 

JazzZ & Eye Traveler — “Lapis Lazuli” (independent/WHOBEJAZZZ)

 A cross-continental rap collaboration with dusty-palette beats and writerly detail, “Lapis Lazuli” finds MC JazzZ and producer Eye Traveler threading classic sample science with guest verses from BLU and Flashius Clayton. Multiple rollout posts and Bandcamp Daily’s weekly essentials stake the date; social credits note “all tracks written and recorded by JazzZ,” “all production by Eye Traveler,” and mixing by @martchemusica. Cue “Afterworld (Happy Hour)” featuring BLU for the cipher-style sparring, and “Second Nature” for a lean, head-nod pocket. 

Ty Dolla $ign — “Tycoon” (Atlantic)

Ty’s first solo LP in five years doubles as a business-minded mission statement and a flex of his A-list Rolodex. Apple Music lists 15 tracks for 41 minutes under Atlantic; reporting around the release highlights collaborations with Quavo, Kodak Black and YG, among others, with “SMILE BODY PRETTY FACE” and “All In” as immediate calling cards. It’s sleek, hook-first R&B/rap designed for rotation, with just enough left-turns in the production to keep longtime fans leaning in.

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