Audio

Dave took home a Brit award and the Mercury Prize for his previous album, Psychodrama. Here he’s joined by Stormzy on lead single Clash for a seriously heavyweight pairing on what will doubtless be another garlanded release. 

Lately Drake’s been best known for his deep and soulful – some might even say mournful – raps. But teaming up with 21 Savage seems to have released his more aggressive side and the resulting album is a much rawer, more combative affair – and is all the better for it. 

Picking up where the 2005 greatest hits package Curtain Call left off, number two includes music from all Eminem projects from Relapse forward, including side-projects, guest appearances, film soundtrack songs and, of course selections, from his solo albums. 

Prior to the release of this third album, Ezra laid bare his experiences with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and anxiety. What follows is his most personal record yet. The fact that he opens up without sacrificing his ear for a hook just goes to show what a talented dude he is. 

A Grantham childhood proved to be an inspiring experience for singer-songwriter Humberstone. ‘There was no music scene growing up in rural Lincolnshire,’ she says, ‘so I just did my own thing.’ Her own thing, as this third EP proves, is a very good thing indeed.

A rising star in the neo-soul and alt-R&B scenes, London-born Crookes cites Black Uhuru, Marvin Gaye, The Pogues, Sinéad O’Connor, Kendrick Lamar and Gregory Isaacs as influences. This, her debut album, is an autobiographical look at heritage, identity and heartbreak.

Singer-songwriter Koffee is behind a gorgeous, uplifting brand of reggae that showcases her big heart and her open mind. She’s selling a world of sun and smiles, and when it’s this good, we’re buying. 

Not exactly prolific – their last album was in 2015 – Leftfield make up for it in sheer class and quality. On This Is What We Do they once again provide ample evidence that when it comes to bass-heavy, stadium dance there really is nobody better. 

Little Simz was already highly rated before this 2021 album, but after snaffling a host of awards (including a Best Album Brit) her career went stratospheric. Her secret? Deeply soulful, highly intelligent hip hop delivered with considerable style and panache. 

UK rapper Carner employs a trademark languid rapping style, while his lyrics veer towards the vulnerable and confessional. Both are qualities that lend his laidback, jazz-inflected tracks an enormous depth, making him one of the most exciting UK talents at work today. 

Combs dropped out of school and moved to Nashville to pursue his dreams of country stardom. Lucky for us he did. This, his third album, confirms his status as one of the genre’s brightest young talents.

Neneh Cherry’s daughter was always going to have a future in music. The question was, what genre would she choose? The answer comes courtesy of this album, packed as it is with dance bangers.

Texas-born Morris plays a type of country that invites pop, R&B and hip-hop into the mix. This is her third album, and critics and fans alike are agreed that not only is it her best but that it also raises the bar of the genre as a whole. 

Raised on an eclectic mix of classical, jazz, pop and folk, and classically trained at The Juilliard School and the Royal College of Music, pianist Gjeilo’s distinctive soundworld is often described as cinematic and evocative, lush and harmonious.

Straight out of Dublin, rocking four-piece Pillow Queens have been championed by Steve Lamacq who called them ‘deceptively infectious, with sharp hooks and sharp nails’. This is their second album, and you know what? Lammy’s not wrong. 

After a quiet few years, French indie-dance outfit Phoenix return with a seventh studio album that finds them cranking up the energy levels to 11 on a series of bona-fide disco bangers. Trust us, dance music doesn’t get much more euphoric and life-affirming than this. 

The symbiotic relationship between jazz, hip-hop and R&B continues to blossom, and much of that is down to producer Glasper whose works has been compared to that of Kamasi Washington, Thundercat and Kendrick Lamar. This album, he says, represents his most direct statement yet. 

The Zambian singer, rapper and poet unveils her many sides for the first time on this album. Funny, serious and sensual, this is Sampa revealing the most authentic version of herself, and as you might expect, it’s an upbeat yet always thought-provoking experience.

Expectations are always high when it comes to Stormzy. Why? That’ll be his status as a true figurehead for UK rap then. What’s more, he never disappoints, and this album, which finds him ruminating on romance and race, may well be his most cohesive yet. 

You thought Swedish House Mafia had broken up, right? Well ten years after calling it a day, they’re back. Expect pop bangers alongside longer, progressive house workouts – all done in the infectious, inimitable Swedish House Mafia style. It’s a party in a box, and then some. 

Taylor’s tenth album is, as usual, packed with significance, meaning and copious Easter Eggs as she uses the songs to reflect on ‘13 sleepless nights scattered throughout my life.’ The result is genius, obviously.

Every year the world-famous Ministry of Sound compiles the biggest dancefloor fillers of the last 12 months on its legendary Annual. Whether you’re a retired cheesy Quaver or a fully paid-up club bunny, this is where you get your bangers. 

Not many can boast to having produced some of the world’s most influential musicians. Scotland can and they continue pushing out great forward-thinking artists across the musical landscape. Collected here are our favs. 

With his blend of pop, R&B and afrobeat winning new fans everywhere, Nigerian singer Wizkid returns with a fifth studio album. ‘I’m still trying to shed my ego,’ he says of the album, a process which, according to the NME, has produced ‘a masterful concoction’.