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.
Hope is hard to come by these days, and Typhoon knows. The world-class indie rockers out of Portland, Oregon, are back with Welcome to the Endgame, their first new release since 2018s Offerings. Frontman Kyle Mortons vocals shine over delicately evocative instrumentals and with lyrical motifs like plagues, straw men, and going back into the streets, its easy to draw parallels to the seemingly never-ending chaos of 2020. Morton concludes with a promise: Summers gone, had a good one / Now the season of the witch hunt / Here we go into the cauldron / I’ll see you on the other side. Sam Manzella
The sweet guitar-strumming courtesy of songwriting prodigy Omer Fedi is the base for 24kGoldn and Iann Dior’s moody smash. This slick remix veers further into pop with the addition of quippy verses from industry titans Justin Bieber and J Balvin. “The song’s come a long way,” Goldn told Billboard in October. “But this journey is definitely not over.” Coco Romack
In the year where I didnt think there could be any more surprises, RuPauls Drag Race star Katya Zamolodchikova decides to release her first-ever single. Come in Brazil, which features fellow drag superstar Alaska Thunderfuck, is a satirical love letter to fans in Brazil inspired by their incessant pleas for drag queens to perform in their country. Katyas layered, airy chorus (performed entirely in Portuguese) balances Alaskas classic rasp and spitfire verses effortlessly, creating an unusual, yet cohesive soundscape. The heavy bass and electro-pop feel, along with the occasional beat drop, ensures that Come in Brazil will be heard at every gay bar from New York to L.A. Sarina Bhutani
In the age of streaming, TikTok, and attuned algorithms, its a lot harder for up-and-coming artists to creep up on me the way that they used to. I wasnt seeking out new music when I stumbled upon Joseph Signa while doomscrolling through Instagram, but Im so glad I did. His flamboyant, Auto-Tuned take on ABBAs When I Kissed the Teacher is a treat especially for anyone whos secretly thirsted over Mr. Schue and his emo cover of Gwen Stefanis severely underrated track Cool is another personal favorite. But its his most recent spin on Dolly Parton that had me sold. With perfectly curated outfits and visuals, Partons My Tennessee Mountain Home gets an electro folk-pop twist, and its just as infectious as youd imagine. As his quirky green-screen effects suggest, perhaps countryside solitude is less of a state than a state of mind. Regardless, Signa is more than worth the follow. Carson Mlnarik
The British-born, New York-based artist Anohni has often transformed stadium pop hits into somber, piano-led ballads. With Antony and the Johnsons, she reimagined Beyoncé’s “Crazy in Love” with brass and ivory and brought Bob Dylan’s “Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door” to a slow boil. Punctuated by tearful violins and the singer’s own beguiling, rumbling moans, Gloria Gaynor’s classic empowerment anthem is almost bereft, like a rage-filled lament for a climate at the brink of decimation, for “all endangered Black trans lives.” Coco Romack
In this intercontinental collaboration, British-Albanian pop-diva Dua Lipa teams up with Belgian singer-songwriter Angèle for their new single, Fever. The song encompasses all we love about Dua – a nostalgic, synth-pop, dance-club vibe, but this time with a twist. Similar to Angèles past work, especially on her 2018 hit Tout Oublier, Fever has a more mellow, less aggressive pop sound that is constantly palatable and sonically gorgeous. The lyrics transition effortlessly from English to French and back again, creating a piece of art that can literally transcend borders. The point of music is to connect people. Fever does just that. Sarina Bhutani
With the world locked down, songwriter Clay Priskorn got to work creating Claymation visuals for the folky, autumnal pop-rock he releases under the moniker Friends of Clay. His latest, Livin Time, is as psychedelic as stop-motion trips can get, a druggy Las Vegas trek that would make Hunter S. Thompson proud. Patrick Hosken