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Friday Finds: New music to check out – May 31, 2019

(Amber Ainsworth/WDIV)

DETROIT – Happy Friday!

5 songs we have on repeat this week:

Recommended Videos



The Search -- NF

Michigan native NF announced his newest album, dropped the title track, “The Search,” and announced a tour this week.

The rapper runs through quite a lot in the song.  He begins the track by speaking to himself.

Rather than following a traditional song structure, NF fires out line after line about his own anxieties, his mind and his plans for the future in the fast-paced freestyle-like track.

Like many of his songs, NF doesn’t shy away from sharing his struggles and the darker sides of his mind. In “The Search,” he opens up about having a breakdown and seeing a therapist.

It’s a raw, honest look at mental health and struggles that aren’t always visible, internal battles many people face.

“See, we've all got somethin' that we trapped inside / That we try to suffocate, you know, hopin' it dies / Try to hold it underwater but it always survives / Then it comes up out of nowhere like an evil surprise.”

He also released a video for the song. The new album, “The Search,” is slated to drop July 26.

NF will perform at the DeltaPlex Arena in Grand Rapids on Sept. 13 and Michigan Lottery Amphitheater in Sterling Heights on Sept. 14.

If you or someone you know needs help, click here for mental health resources.

If you like "The Search," here are some other songs by NF worth checking out:

Wait | Mansion | All I Do | 3 A.M. | 10 Feet Down |

Hurry On Home -- Sleater-Kinney

Rock band Sleater-Kinney released the first single off their upcoming album. "Hurry On Home" opens with a choir and melts into a hair-grabbing, emotion laden beat.

The band's new album is produced by St. Vincent and is expected to be released sometime this year. It'll be titled "The Center Won't Hold."

This release comes after their 2015 album, "No Cities to Love," which was released after a decade-long hiatus.

If you like "Hurry On Home," here are some other songs by Sleater-Kinney to check out:

JumpersModern Girl | A New Wave | One More Hour | Get Up |

SYCS -- Smallpools

Indie pop band Smallpools released their new single "SYCS," which stands for someone you can't save. The song seems to have a darker, more sexual vibe than some of their other poppier hits.

The aggressive beat, and emotional vocals pair well with the violent tinged lyrics.

"I'm someone you can't save / I'm someone you can't save / Blank your mind kid, blank your mind / Just blank your mind, it's killing time / Let the games become your friend / Blame them all, they did you wrong / They did you wrong, I'm telling you / Take 'em out, detach, repent"

If you like "SYCS," here are some other songs by Smallpools worth checking out:

Killer WhalesPassenger Side | Insincere | Million Bucks | Over & Over |

Center Point Road -- Thomas Rhett (feat. Kelsea Ballerini)

The title track off Thomas Rhett’s “Center Point Road,” out May 31, is a youthful run down memory lane.

The nostalgic song describes moments of loving and living without any regard for the future.

“We thought it would never end / Then watched it go like summer wind / When growin’ up was just a dream / And Friday night was everything.”

Between memoires and simpler times, Rhett sings about how people say life moves fast and it “suddenly hits you like thunder.”

“It’s about being young and thinking, ‘This is as complicated as life is ever going to get,’ not realizing one day you move on to the next chapter and it comes at you quickly,” he said in a press release.

Rhett will perform at DTE Energy Music Theatre on June 20.

If you like "Center Point Road," here are some other songs by Thomas Rhett worth checking out:

T-Shirt | Die a Happy Man | It Goes Like This | Life Changes | Look What God Gave Her |

Out of My Head -- Branches

Branches released a melodic single titled "Out of My Head" earlier this month. The slow moving, emotional song moves gently from the beginning to the end.

The haunting track focuses on an emotional strain in a relationship and the pain that's felt within when that tension takes its toll.

"All along you’ve been just as wrong as me / The same old song with a broken melody / And I can’t get you out of my head / No, I can’t get you out of my head"

If you like "Out of My Head," here are some other songs by Branches worth checking out:

Constellations | The Mess That We Made | All Along | After The War | Trumpets |

Other songs to check out:

Upcoming shows:

  • The Strumbellas at The Majestic in Detroit on June 4 (Tuesday)
  • Tech N9ne at St. Andrew's Hall in Detroit on June 5 (Wednesday)
  • Bob Seger at DTE Energy Music Theatre in Clarkston on June 8 (Saturday)
  • Hinder at Motor City Harley Davidson in Farmington Hills on June 9 (Sunday)
  • Dierks Bentley at DTE Energy Music Theatre in Clarkston on June 29 (Saturday)

Friday Finds: May 24, 2019 -- June 7, 2019


Email us with local music suggestions and events at aainsworth@wdiv.com or kclarke@wdiv.com


About the Authors
Kayla Clarke headshot

Kayla is a Web Producer for ClickOnDetroit. Before she joined the team in 2018 she worked at WILX in Lansing as a digital producer.

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