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The search for the ever-elusive “bop” is difficult. Playlists and streaming-service recommendations can only do so much. They often leave a lingering question: Are these songs really good, or are they just new?
Enter Bop Shop, a hand-picked selection of songs from the MTV News team. This weekly collection doesn’t discriminate by genre and can include anything — it’s a snapshot of what’s on our minds and what sounds good. We’ll keep it fresh with the latest music, but expect a few oldies (but goodies) every once in a while, too. Get ready: The Bop Shop is now open for business.
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Ryan Beatty: “Casino”
Look out, sad boi singers: Ryan Beatty comes for the crown with “Casino,” the latest melancholic taste of his sophomore album. The L.A. singer creates a dreamy, cloudy atmosphere out of falsettos and acoustic guitar as he reminisces over an ex, begging his own mind to forget the heartbreaking details that past lovers tend to leave behind. “Hood on, hand in my pocket, walk away,” Ryan recites to himself, before resigning himself to the track’s sticky refrain, “Love me to death, or don’t give me anything.” The visual follows Ryan as he traverses the corners of nature and his mind, inviting us to bask in a moment both psychedelic and sad. His sophomore album, Dreaming of David, drops today. —Carson Mlnarik
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Donna Missal: “Hurt By You”
Donna Missal is an artist with the kind of old soul and powerhouse voice that can absolutely tear you to shreds (see: her knockout cover of Goo Goo Dolls’s “Iris”). On her latest single, she uses that power for good by contending that change is a means of freedom, not of loss. “I’m in love with what we were / But not with you,” she sings with zero bitterness or blame in her voice. “Now I’m way too far away to be hurt by you.” In a note to fans, Missal shared that she’s been making her sophomore album while touring (she supported King Princess last year and will join Lewis Capaldi’s European trek this spring), and that “Hurt By You” is “just the start.” She added that she wants this song to help fans “stand firmly in your self-preservation”: a noble goal we can all get behind. —Madeline Roth
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Shopping: “For Your Pleasure”
Shopping‘s ode to the woes of consumerism and the feeling of dissatisfaction is manic and unrelenting — an ’80s synth-driven piece of dance music that feels both nostalgic for another time and hopelessly tangled up in the present. But my favorite thing about “For Your Pleasure” is its slightly imperfect rhythm. Every other measure, the third beat hits a tom before the snare, offering a sensation that almost feels like a stumble. It’s this unease that permeates throughout the song, encouraging listeners to have their fun but only if it’s paired with a sprinkle of dread. Shopping’s fourth album, All or Nothing, is out February 7. —Bob Marshall
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Röyksopp: “Follow My Ruin”
Sometimes it’s impossible to cease clinging to something you know you need to. Nostalgia feels good, but too much of a good thing can turn toxic. Röyksopp laments a past relationship in “Follow My Ruin,” expressing a wish to “hold on,” but realizing there’s no way to let go. We’ve all been there, but this smooth and funky EDM banger somehow perfectly encapsulates the feeling of being completely unable to forget the past and move on, as you’re stuck in a kind of painful limbo that feels simultaneously comforting and destructive. Love rarely makes sense, especially the kind that doesn’t work out. —Brittany Vincent
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Impact RH: “No 1”
Las Vegas artist Impact RH’s hip-twirling new single, “No 1,” is for the first dance at the bar after a serious bout of wooing. The smile on the other person’s face, the blush, and the warm atmosphere of the environment can be felt through this Afrobeats-influenced invitation to dance that, through its lyrics, more or less confirms that this is what it’s designed to do. Impact RH’s voice cuts through the instrumental with a sharp edge, delivering a clear and concise message about what he wants to do. Flirty songs like this always leave you feeling giddy after they go off. “No 1” comes from Impact RH’s new project, Norf Pole. —Trey Alston
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Snarls: “Marbles”
Columbus, Ohio’s Snarls are no stranger to Bop Shop, having last year’s emo-tinged alt-rock earworm “Walk in the Woods” in an October edition of this column. While that track is marked by a long crescendo into an cathartic resolution, their newest single, “Marbles,” is in contrast an explosion of distorted guitar and yelled vocals. “I didn’t shower today / But always put on my gold chain,” guitarist Chlo White declares, outlining how coping with loneliness sometimes means trying to ignore it. It’s a feeling and sentiment you want to belt out at bar karaoke as much as you do when you’re alone, giving into emotional instability and allowing yourself to just go sort of crazy. Snarls’s debut album, Burst, is out March 6. —Bob Marshall
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Meek Mill ft. Roddy Ricch: “Letter To Nipsey”
Death affects those close to the departed in immense and painful ways, creating wounds that aren’t often healed by time, but forever bandaged. For those watching from afar, death has a similar impact, but it’s often not talked about so much. It’s a weird thing: vocalizing your experience when you’re not exactly close with the person often feels insensitive. But in Meek Mill and Roddy Ricch‘s new collaboration “Letter to Nipsey,” the two rappers work successfully to mesh their different proximities to Nipsey Hussle into a genuine and heartfelt tribute to the rapper’s legacy.
Meek kicks off the track by revealing that he wasn’t that close to Nipsey. Rappers often bump into each other in passing, offering words of wisdom to each other behind closed doors because that’s the nature of the game. That said, Nipsey’s death fucked him up. “And I ain’t finna sit here, act like I’m your main homie / But when we lost you, it really put some pain on me,” he spits honestly. He then opens up about the fear that it instills in him in regard to his own safety. Roddy Ricch then takes the baton for Nipsey’s marathon, exploring just how close he was to the late rapper. Ricch’s melodies sting because he sounds close to tears. Together, the two rappers do justice to Nipsey’s memory. Long live Nip. —Trey Alston
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Half Waif: “Ordinary Talk”
Something special happens about halfway through Half Waif‘s stately “Ordinary Talk,” when Nandi Rose lists off 11 mundane activities, including “folding up the laundry” and “walking to the lake.” All the simmering emotional groundwork she lays throughout the first half of the song finally boils over — and the release feels downright euphoric. “There’s a depth of experience that comes from feeling emotions at their extremes,” Rose said in a statement. That’s what makes us human. It’s what turns ordinary talk into something quite extraordinary. —Patrick Hosken
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Braids: “Young Buck”
The latest from Montreal-based Braids is, in a word, a vibe. “Young Buck” is about “the nervous anticipation of desire, the delicate chase of seduction, the highs and lows of obsession, and the humor in between,” says singer Raphaelle Standell-Preston in a statement. And the song’s structure matches that progression of emotions: Seductive verses eventually resolve with Standell-Preston exasperatingly declaring “Pointless!” repeatedly before confessing that “it’s seeming so hard to be loved by you.” And as music video’s star, she proves herself to be a hero of the lovelorn — the kind of lustful, thrust-y, and goofy protagonist that you can’t help root for. Braids’s new album, Shadow Offering, is out April 24. —Bob Marshall
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$not: “Stranded”
There’s a reason that $not earned a cosign from pop princess Billie Eilish and had his music featured on HBO’s Euphoria. The rapper’s hushed music is stirring through his one-of-a-kind mumbling that brushes against being melodic on occasion. His new release, “Stranded,” encapsulates everything that fans love from him. He’s kind of like Solid Snake from the Metal Gear franchise: He goes into the song quietly, sneaks around for two minutes, then he’s out just as the mission is getting good. It’s a short but infectious listen that’s bound to be as viral as his breakout hit “Gosha.” —Trey Alston
