New Music Friday: Five Songs to Spice Up Your Weekend Playlists

It’s the weekend! And you know what that means. A chance to plug in your earphones at the close of work, or even right as you step into your work station, to listen to the best new music released today and from earlier in the week. Even better, a chance to do so from Culture Custodian’s selection.  If you’re like us, and often get overwhelmed by the sheer number of releases, then this is for you. Same thing if you’d  like to spice up your playlists a bit. 

Ahead of International Women’s Day on Sunday, we’ve taken special  care to include top records released by Africa’s femme fatales.  Have a lovely weekend! And cheers to your jam sessions.

1. “OMO TI O COMMON” – Lovn

Fuji’s hold on the Nigerian music industry in the past three years is nothing but impressive. The latest entrant into this canon of artists fusing the indigenous sound into mid-tempo Afro-pop is none other than Mavins newcomer, Lovn. On “OMO TI O COMMON,” he channels his inner Adekunle Gold cadence-wise, singing about ballin’, sprinkling proverbs amidst his appeal to a love interest. 

The production on here is crisp; Sákárà, Ṣẹ̀kẹ̀rẹ̀  and Gángan drums serving as a fitting receptacle for his vocal riffs. There’s just the right amount of lamba too. We see this staying in rotation at owambes. 

 2. “Toss It” – VvPete, DEELA, Lisha G, UTILITY

Come for DEELA, stay for the whole squad. This is a dance record you want to hear at 3 AM on a Friday rave after enduring a hectic week without power supply or steady network. It’s fun. Chic. Airy. The bars are light-hearted but also enough to know that these ladies are not to be tested. VvPete is feisty. DEELA’s delivery is more laidback than usual but carries her usual charisma. Lisha G brings Carolina swag. UTILITY wraps up the posse cut without much fuss. Prepping for a night out? This is your jam!

3. “Fall On Me” – Angelique Kidjo feat. PJ Morton

“Fall On Me” is the latest single off  Angelique Kidjo’s forthcoming 19th studio album Hope!! You read that right. 19. The track is a lighthearted Afro-pop duet between both artists, admonishing support and calling for love and trust. As a bit of a background, this is the Beninoise singer’s first album since the Grammy Award-winning Mother Nature. It’s also dedicated to the memory of her late mother, Yvonne, making it equal parts inward-looking, but also a celebration of humanity, much as her work is wont to do. PJ Morton sings with the simplicity required to pull off ITS emotional heft. 

4. “Mofe” – Mavo

At long last, as it was promised a hundred snippets ago, “Mofe” is here. And it’s every bit as wavy as we expected. Open up your Bizzypedia and point out all the lingo you hear on the record. Ten points for every ‘my baby’, ‘kilolo’, ‘casamigos’, ‘balenciaga’ and ‘guap.’  A hundred points for predicting what his expected out-of-place word on this song is (it’s ‘aesthetic’). “Mofe” is the quintessential Mavo lifestyle record.

5. “Where Do We Go” – Ayra Starr

Nothing satisfies dancefloor cravings like a Dancehall/Ragga break-up song couched in sugary pre-choruses and R&B sensibilities. On “Where Do We Go,” Ayra sings about closure, but not forthrightly, opting for euphemisms about drunken automobile trysts, and questions about the next steps. Simply put, she asks “What are we?” over lush ILYA production. Interestingly, her voice appears stripped back; a downer for fans waiting to belt along in the showers and elsewhere. 

Bonus Picks

“Personal” – Juno

The last time some of you listened to this songstress was on “TOY GIRL” off Odumodublvck’s 2025 album THE MACHINE IS COMING. Now, she’s back with a sultry Ozedikus-produced number, employing metaphors about pulling guns out of holsters and daredevil “let me pull your trouser” lyrics to drive her point home about just what’s on the table. 

‘Second Thoughts” – Aylø, Le Mav, Naya Akanji

All three Alté acts combine on this R&B banger about past relationships and sustained doubt. Le Mav’s atmospheric bridge here is sure to quench a lot of thirst. Or trigger recollections of sour relationships; no in-betweens. 

“Wife Material” – Dremo

Fresh off the viral #Man2Man Challenge, Dremo is back in his loverboy bag, rapping about growing older with mature knowledge of the kind of woman he wants.  Time is running out – for him. But don’t be fooled by the title, his ideal partner is still a “baddie with ibadi.”