It's Friday

And it’s taken five years for the three women of BOYGENIUS to get around to releasing their debut album, but it can take time when the three women in your band have their own careers to tend to, at least one of which is already veering toward serious rock stardom, and maybe a little additional time when you’re carrying the burden of a Rolling Stone cover story calling you “the world’s most exciting supergroup” 10 weeks before the album’s scheduled to see the light of day, and when you’re trying to create a safe space around you for voices like yours while at the same time making a point to “refuse the press-appointed responsibility of being the women rock band,” which might sound difficult and contradictory but which should be really simple: “More than anything,” ANGIE MARTOCCIO writes in that Rolling Stone story, “they just want to be treated like famous bands of dudes.” Hear, hear. And maybe that can happen now that THE RECORD, an old-school, richly and quirkily detailed, literate, confessional, singer-songwriter rock album with three distinct but sympathetic voices, as often as not singing for and about each other, sometimes with drums and sometimes without, is here.

LONDON BREW is the sprawling, improvised work of a stellar group of British musicians—including Nubya Garcia, Shabaka Hutchings, Theon Cross and DJ Benji B—who assembled during the pandemic to pay tribute to the 50th anniversary of Miles Davis’ “Bitches Brew,” not by covering its music but by recreating its spirit. There’s no trumpet on the album, executive producer Bruce Lampcov told the New York Times, “because how could you do that?”... SUNDOWN is the second album made by EDDIE CHACON, of ‘90s R&B stars Charles & Eddie, since he returned to music after a two-decade hiatus, and is part of a continuing attempt to address “this unanswered question: What happens to talent as it sits and is underutilized and not given a purpose? Does it mature like wine? Or does it fade with time?”

TYLER, THE CREATOR has added eight songs to his acclaimed 2021 album, “Call Me If You Get Lost,” with the help of Madlib, A$AP Rocky and YG, for what he’s calling CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST: THE ESTATE SALE. The original he tweeted earlier this week, “was the first album I made with alot of songs that didn’t make the final cut. Some of these songs I really love”... B. COOL-AID is the duo of rapper/singer Pink Siifu and producer Ahwlee teaming up for a neo-soul album with help from L.ive, Quelle Chris, Fousheé, Ladybug Mecca and others, and “soundgood” is a perfect description of the results.

Also this week: Albums from Davido, Nakhane, Baaba Maal, DJ Drama, Conway the Machine, Luh Tyler, Chlöe Bailey, Jisoo (of Blackpink), the Hold Steady, New Pornographers, Molina Talbot Lofgren & Young (Neil Young and friends, generally working independently of each other), Rob Mazurek/Exploding Star Orchestra, Wadada Leo Smith & Orange Wave Electric, Ingrid Laubrock, Phil Minton/Pat Thomas/Dave Tucker/Roger Turner, Yayennings (aka Jay Jennings of Snarky Puppy), Larry June & the Alchemist, Lucki, James Holden, Ric Wilson/Chromeo/A-Trak, Katie Gately, Alan Braxe/Fred Falke, A Certain Ratio, Tzusing, Deerhoof, William Tyler & the Impossible Truth, Kalia Vandever, Altin Gün, Mystic 100, Scott McMicken & the Ever-Expanding, Murray A. Lightburn, Elderbrook, Sondre Lerche, Piotr Korek, Steve Gunn & David Moore, Noia, Höhn, Spirit Possession, Ad Infinitum, Kommand, Rotten Sound, City and Colour, the Zombies, the No Ones, Andy White & Tim Finn, Lies (synth-pop album from Mike and Nate Kinsella of American Football), Barrie, Damien Jurado, Leggy, Packs, Gel, Samiam, Laurel Canyon, DMA’s, Buzzy Lee, Melanie Martinez, Lauren Morrow, Ethan Setiawan, Mighty Poplar and David Kitt.

Radio on the TV

The six-episode docuseries RAPCAVIAR PRESENTS, inspired by the SPOTIFY playlist and looking at issues in hip-hop culture through the lens of TYLER THE CREATOR, COI LERAY, CITY GIRLS and others—one featured artist per episode—is now streaming on HULU. Shoutout showrunner STEVE RIVO... SPINNING GOLD, the decades-in-the-making biopic about NEIL BOGART, the flamboyant founder of CASABLANCA RECORDS, is in theaters today. His son TIM wrote, directed and produced, and his son EVAN co-wrote the score. “It’s actually factually accurate,” Tim tells Variety, except for a handful of scenes, including one that originally had the ISLEY BROTHERS’ RUDY ISLEY peeing out a Times Square window, that were changed because “some people in the focus group said it wasn’t believable, even though it was 100% true”... JONI MITCHELL: THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS GERSHWIN PRIZE FOR POPULAR SONG, premiering tonight on PBS, captures performances by Mitchell, BRANDI CARLILE, CYNDI LAUPER, HERBIE HANCOCK and others at Mitchell’s Gershwin Prize tribute concert earlier this month in Washington, D.C.... LAINEY WILSON is the leading nominee at the CMT MUSIC AWARDS, which air live from Austin Sunday night, with KELSEA BALLERINI and KANE BROWN hosting.

Rest in Peace

RUSSELL WASHINGTON, founder of Houston rap label Bigtyme Recordz, who was instrumental in the careers of H-town giants UGK and DJ Screw. Washington “knew how to walk that line between being a businessman and somebody who wanted to do good for the culture,” said Lance Scott Walker, author of “Houston Rap Tapes”... BRIAN "BRIZZ" GILLIS, a founding member of '90s boy band LFO... James Brown bassist and music director SWEET CHARLES SHERRELL... Piano-playing political satirist MARK RUSSELL.