2025 (in music) is off to a great start

ft. Japanese Breakfast, Lucy Dacus, The Lonely Island, and playlists galore

Hey everyone, it has been quite a month — hope everyone is holding up alright in these bleak times. At least the year in music is off to a wonderful start, with a steady stream of invigorating new tunes from top-tier artists.

Of course, music can provide hope, joy, and community when we need it most! Call me corny (I am) but the SNL50 festivities have been a balm of distraction and light this weekend — from Robyn and David Byrne’s joint performance, to victory lap medleys for The Lonely Island (ft. Lady Gaga and Bad Bunny) and Lil’ Wayne (with The Roots), to Sir Paul McCartney still rocking at age 82.

Last week’s halftime show from Kendrick Lamar & SZA also served as a welcome diversion, albeit one “rich with subtext and loosely political,” according to Pitchfork’s Clover Hope in an insightful column. (The set inspired more great writing from The New Yorker’s Doreen St. Félix and Vulture’s Craig Jenkins.)

And while The Grammys already feel like an eternity ago, the show put a spotlight on wildfire recovery efforts in LA alongside elaborate performances. (I especially loved Chappell Roan, Doechii, and Dawes.)

In that spirit, here’s a running thread of benefit albums for LA relief from NPR Music’s Lars Gotrich. (Shared on Bluesky, a social media platform that doesn’t let Kanye post swastikas! If you’ve been looking for an easy way to try it out, I made a handy starter pack of music folks to follow.)

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6 reliable artists gearing up for a big 2025

As always, follow the Hear Hear playlist to listen as you read.

Hamilton Leithauser returns with his signature howl. The Walkmen frontman-turned-singular solo artist is back with two stellar tracks: “This Side Of The Island” and “Knockin’ Heart.” The former is timely, all about “disillusionment, acceptance, and resolve” RE: the state of America. But despite that heavy theme, the song’s warm, swelling production — courtesy of Aaron Dessner and Leithauser’s wife Anna — and memorable singalong climax keep bringing me joy. The second single is a “power trio song like Nirvana” that’s been a perfect burst of energy to pair with cold morning walks in NYC.

Japanese Breakfast swoons back with the orchestral “Orlando In Love.” Four years after her breakout album Jubilee, paired with the success of her memoir Crying in H Mart, Michelle Zauner is back with this short-and-sweet track, “Orlando In Love.” (Debuted live with a fittingly symphonic Tonight Show performance.) In the opening lines, she teases a gloomier batch of songs ahead, singing the phrase that gives her new album its title: For Melancholy Brunettes (& Sad Women).

Julien Baker + Torres team up for a country-rock stunner. “Sugar in the Tank” (which also got a Tonight Show debut) is a fantastic fusion of both artists’ strengths, pairing Torres’ punchy rock with Baker’s penchant for soaring harmonies — the kind she’s perfected with boygenius.

Lucy Dacus continues her ascent. This boygenius member is primed for a huge year as a solo artist. She’s already announced a headlining show at Radio City and yep, she played the Tonight Show too. (Nice work, Tonight Show booker!) From 2018’s Historian to 2021’s Home Video, her albums have always carried a widescreen ambition, and that clearly won’t change with Forever Is A Feeling, which already has a distinct visual aesthetic — brought to life with the lovely music video for lead single “Ankles.”

Perfume Genius turns to twang. Back in September, I caught a special Perfume Genius show at Music Hall of Williamsburg celebrating ten years of Too Bright. After tearing through the intimate 33-minute album, Mike Hadreas’ encore flexed his knack for crafting grand, crowd-pleasing jams — first with 2017’s electrifying movie-soundtrack-staple “Slip Away” then with 2020’s “On The Floor,” an oddly comforting pandemic-era anthem. Now, with the eerie, hypnotic, and ultimately cathartic “It’s a Mirror,” he’s added another gem to his catalog. Pitchfork’s Walden Green stamped it as a Best New Track, praising its “muscular and direct sound” as a decisive swing from the “diffuse ambiance” of 2022’s Ugly Season.

Bad Bunny’s “most Puerto Rican album yet.” I’ve been loving the infectious energy of Debí Tirar Más Fotos (“I Should Have Taken More Photos”) — loaded with live horns and percussion for a rich, dynamic sound in the context of today’s pop. As the NYT covers in a great feature: “The 17-track LP was recorded wholly in Puerto Rico, and features a host of young collaborators representing a range of his homeland’s styles dating back generations.” (My favorites rn are the big hits: “NUEVAyol,” “DtMF,” and “BAILE INoLVIDABLE.”)

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2 emerging artists to know

• Junior Varsity channels the mid-2000s indie sound. This LA-based trio wears their influences proudly, as Stereogum’s Tess Growney writes in a Band To Watch profile: “They took notes from the xx’s use of interchanging verses and the Ting Tings’ sprightly tone... with dancey drum-synth rhythms, buzzy garage-rock guitars, and catchy chant-like melodies, reminiscent of acts like Two Door Cinema Club and the Go! Team.” Naturally, their top three songs — “Cross The Street,” “Give My Heart,” and “New York” — have all lodged their way into my head, unlocking core nostalgia for windows-down suburban drives.

• Saya Gray takes her voice in unexpected directions. Thanks to Bob Boilen’s Tiny Morning Show for introducing me to this remarkable sound, from a Toronto singer whose music is “often unpredictable,” Boilen says. “There’s crazy shifts in tone and shifts in character as she uses samples and technology to tell her stories.” “SHELL (OF A MAN)” instantly caught my ear as something special, and her newest single “LIE DOWN” followed suit, with shades of Nilüfer Yanya, Laura Marling, and Hannah Frances alike.

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Playlists for Winter 2025

winter! winter! ‘25 // Music supervisor Jules Zucker continues crafting essential seasonal playlists, always featuring an exciting batch of emerging artists. (In this edition: screenager, Quiet Light, Ally Evenson, runnner, Daneshevskya, and Blondshell)

This Modern Love // In honor of Valentine’s Day, Jared Smith — curator of vinyl discovery newsletter The Wax Museum — picked his 25 favorite love songs of the 2020s. It’s a treat, featuring gems from Clairo, Alvvays, The Lemon Twigs, Local Natives, Michael Kiwanuka and more!

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Playlists to keep up with the year’s best songs

I try to use this newsletter to “curate the curators,” highlighting the blogs, publications, and influencers who introduce me to new tunes. Many of them keep running playlists throughout the year to track their favorites — they’re great ones to bookmark if you’d like to follow along, too.

• Gorilla vs. Bear’s best songs of 2025 // ft. the latest single from Panda Bear, a playful, psychedelic earworm from his upcoming album

• Josh Terry’s 2025 - Favorite Tracks (So Far) // shared in his weekly No Expectations newsletter, ft. new songs from Goose & Cactus Lee

• Matt Perpetua’s FluxCaviar New Music 2025 // shared in his Fluxblog newsletter, with recent additions from Oklou, Bartees Strange, and Fernette

A few more curators compiling their favorite songs of the year: Margeaux Labat (aka @marg.mp3), music critic Maura Johnston, WXPN legend Bruce Warren, and Carefully Curated’s Patrick Mahan

I’ve got one, too — here’s where I’m tracking my fave 2025 tunes!

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Bonus track: Bon Iver released a new single on Friday, with a music video directed by John Wilson, and it plays like a nice warm hug.