ARIA Singles Chart New Entry Review: April/May. A serving of nasty ugly rap beef.

 "Like That" by Future and Metro Boomin feat. Kendrick Lamar

This is a diss track aimed at Drake where Kendrick Lamar pretty much goes off on Drake which has triggered one hell of a rap beef with it feels like everyone in rap piling in on Drake (we'll get to one such song later) and the song really does circulate around that one verse from Kendrick where he just takes aim at Drake and J Cole's song "First Person Shooter" and sets in train for what was to come. Overall not bad but it really does now feel like a scene setter...

"Million Dollar Baby" by Tommy Richman

Ahh here we go, Tik Tok blasts another one to chart success, this time, Tommy Richman who is an American rapper, singer and songwriter with this being his break out hit and look, I do actually get the appeal of this, it sounds like a song that has been around for years and could have come out in the 60s or 70s but man, does it sound like it was made with the TikTok crowd in mind. I don't hate this but I also don't really love it, not going to complain if this disappears to be honest.

"Good Luck, Babe!" by Chappell Roan

I've known about Chappell Roan for awhile now, she's an American midwest pop act who definitely has a bit of that theatre burlesque type presence who released her debut album "The Rise and Fall of a Mid West Princess" last year to a lot of critical praise and since toured with Olivia Rodrigo (they share the same producer in Danuel Nigro) with this song appearing to be a loose single to capitalise on attention from touring with Olivia and...yeah, while this is not better than "Red Wine Supernova", "Pink Pony Club" or "Casual", it's still really damn good with Roan looking back on how a secret relationship with another woman fell apart because of this idea of enforced heteronormativity aka man and woman. 

Also does anyone else hear the Kate Bush influence in this song? I sure do, Check this song out. 

"Euphoria" by Kendrick Lamar

So for the next few songs we are dealing with songs from the biggest rap beef possibly ever with Kendrick Lamar firing this shot at Drake and honestly...it might be the best of the disses that charted as Kendrick switches up his flow to warn Drake that if he continues to lie about Kendrick's family and Kendrick himself than the truth about Drake will be put out there and it won't just be subs thrown either as these two have been doing for years now. The atmosphere around the production from here also feels truly menacing and a definite sign that things were about to get quite real...

So low and behold...

"Family Matters"  by Drake

And from here, this is where the beef gets uncomfortably nasty because holy hell, do the accusations fly here and there are some really funny bars but Drake really isn't beating around the bush with the allegations of domestic abuse aimed directly at Kendrick  but along the way hitting out at Future, Metro Boomin, Rick Ross and The Weeknd to the point that instead of being laser pointed on Kendrick, it has the feel of Drake firing at all comers from the corner and while it's not bad and Kendrick hasn't really responded to the claims Drake made...Drake could have done better with a more focussed and refined verse,

"Meet The Grahams"  by Kendrick Lamar

Less than an hour after Drake released "Family Matters", Kendrick fired back with a murky piano sample where he addresses Drake's family one by one including his son, parents, a secret daughter and then Drake himself and this song gets really uncomfortable right from the get go because Kendrick opens the song with "Dear Adonis, I am sorry that that man is your father, let me be honest"...like whoa if somebody come up to me and said that about my dad, I'd be horrified but that's not the worst of it as Kendrick goes in hard on these accusations that Drake takes drugs and is a paedophile on verses aimed at Drake's parents, directs a lot of sympatby to a daughter that Drake apparently has before addressing Drake himself and accusing Drake of lying about everything from his religious views to the existence of this child, It's a song that I honestly skip because it's not an easy song to listen to at all. 

"Not Like Us" by Kendrick Lamar

So I am going to stress this because I think it bares so worth saying for as much as I love Mustard's beat here and some of the quotable lines here, I am not comfortable with this song at all especially as Kendrick doubles down on the allegations of Drake being a paedophile. hanging out with a crew of alleged paedophiles in the OVO bubble and how Drake rode on the backs of other rappers to get where he is now. The funny bars are rampant here with "certified lover boy, certified paedophiles", "why you trolling like a bitch, ain't you tired, tryna strike a chord and it's probably a minor" and "Lemme hear you say Ovhoe" but yeab, this song is still nasty and creates this discomfort watching people party to this song given its content. Don't be a surprised if even for as much as I like it, it's not on my best list at the end of the year, just saying,

"I Had Some Help" by Poat Malone and Morgan Wallen

Now we're out the other side of the rap beef, lets deal with the big new hit from Post Malone who is going country and bringing with him the chairs of the roofs of bars slinger Morgan Wallen with him and I have to be honest here because this song is just mediocre at best, it's a song all about how this other person in their lives is enabling their alcohol addiction, shame the verses are sing songy to the point of annoying and Morgan Wallen still sounds distractingly nasal on any song he is on, Yeah, I am going to hope for better from Post Malone. 

"Stargazing" by Myles Smith

Myles Smith is a British folktronica singer and songwriter with this song being his break out and hit and...I wish I cared for it as much as everyone else does, I mean it's fine but it just does nothing for me. I'd rather Avicii instead. 

"Lunch' by Billie Eilish

You know, it's interesting to remember how scandalised certain sections of the world were by Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion's "WAP" back in 2020 that I was expecting far right Christian fundamentalists lash Billie Eilish for this great and very funny song dedicated to eating this girl out for lunch and that she dances on  the tip of Billie's tongue. I guess when its as fun and as catchy as this...I don't blame the fundies for grooving to this. 

"Birds of a Feather"  by Billie Eilish

This is one of my favourite songs from that new Billie Eilish album because I just love how good Billie sounds over this production. Just a pretty song that leaves me with not much toi say to some degree except that the lyrics play to the notion that Billie wants this other person to stay with her until they die except unlike James Arthur in 2017, she doesn't overplay her hand. Damn good song that I am glad is sticking around.

"Ain't No Love in Oklahoma' by Luke Combs

So for some reason the culture has decided we need a new Twisters movie with this song being the first from the very country line up to be released by Luke Combs and look it's a respectfully good stab at coimtry rock song however this makes me think the people behind the soundtravk really wanted Chris Stapleton

Worst of the Month: Nothing too terrible this month. I'll give it to "Stargazing" by Myles Smith I guess.

Honourable Mention: "Birds of a Feather" ties with "Lunch" both by Billie Eilish

Best of the Month: "Good Luck, Babe" by Chappell Roan