10 Cool New Pop Songs to Get You Through The Week: Khalid, 5 Seconds of Summer, Shania Twain & More

Jason Lipshutz and Joe Lynch
·4 min read
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Looking for some motivation to help power you through the start of another work week? We feel you, and with some stellar new pop tunes, we’ve got you covered.

These 10 tracks from artists including Khalid, 5 Seconds of Summer, Shania Twain and JP Saxe will get you energized to take on the week. Pop any of these gems into your personal playlists — or scroll to the end of the post for a custom playlist of all 10.

More from Billboard

Khalid, “Satellite”

Khalid has released a slew of singles in the three-plus years since his sophomore album Free Spirit, and his latest, “Satellite,” may be the most impressive of the bunch: built around a shimmering guitar strum and an echoing whistle, the track challenges the R&B-pop star to operate at a different tempo and flaunt his falsetto in new ways, and Khalid passes the test amiably. – Jason Lipshutz

FLO, “Not My Job”

During the same week in which Blackpink scored the first No. 1 album for a girl group in over a decade thanks to a futuristic approach to global pop, London’s FLO dropped a winning track that recalls the beguiling rhythms of turn-of-the-century girl group hits. Kelly Rowland actually stopped by the trio’s studio as they were finishing “Not My Job” — another bit of serendipity, considering how the grow-up-or-get-out anthem sounds like a spiritual sequel to Destiny’s Child’s masterful “Bills, Bills, Bills.” – J. Lipshutz

JP Saxe, “When You Think of Me”

JP Saxe’s musical ideas ring out most clearly within the intimacy of his wordplay — the way in which he uses the phrase “disrespectful oversimplification” in the opening line of new single “When You Think of Me” to describe a reason for a breakup — but the ballad also benefits from the sense of space in the production, with Saxe’s vocal fragility given ample room above the somber keys for maximum emotional effect. – J. Lipshutz

Kito feat. Banks, “Sad Girl Music”

The title “Sad Girl Music” may be a wink toward the alt-R&B style that Banks has thrived in for nearly a decade, but her team-up with Australian producer Kito works due to a surprisingly rapid pace: the murmured hums that open the song eventually give way to brisk, tropical beats, and Banks strikes a keen balance between blurted-out confessions and bright, sing-along-ready commands. – J. Lipshutz

5 Seconds of Summer, “Bad Omens”

As they’ve fully embraced their identity as a synth-fueled power-pop band, 5 Seconds of Summer have made some of the best arena-ready songs of the past three years, and “Bad Omens,” from just-released album 5SOS5, is among them. With gargantuan drums, sky-high harmonies but pockets of quiet grace in its first half, “Bad Omens” showcases the quartet’s ability to aim at the masses without sacrificing any details. – J. Lipshutz

Yaeger, “Can’t Get the Best of Me”

Summer may have just come to an end, but Yaeger’s new single contains the type of sunny guitar lick and bouncing melody to trick you into thinking that beach season has only just begun. “Can’t Get the Best of Me” finds Yaeger shrugging off melodrama (“I’ve been falling for your tears, but now I know what I believe,” she sings) and moving toward a promising future, which hopefully will include a bigger U.S. fan base for the Swedish star. – J. Lipshutz

Saleka, “Echo”

Saleka wrote the breathtaking vocal showcase “Echo” about Greek mythology — specifically an imagined exchange about not being able to speak your truth between the wood nymph Syrinx and the mountain-dwelling Echo — but even if that context doesn’t come across during a casual listen, “Echo” sounds like a breakthrough for Saleka, the daughter of director M. Night Shyamalan who displays excellent control of her range here. – J. Lipshutz

Alvvays, “Belinda Says”

Canadian indie-pop troupe Alvvays took five years to finish their third album, the upcoming Blue Rev, but if the project sounds half as engrossing as the spectacularly sized “Belinda Says,” it will be well worth the extended wait. An homage to Belinda Carlisle that expands its ambitions in its final minute in order to match their subject’s radio appeal, “Belinda Says” captures a reliable band reaching new heights. – J. Lipshutz

Tom the Mail Man, “You’re the One I Like Now”

A genre-blurring creative force from Atlanta, Tom the Mail Man has remained busy in 2022, following his new album Sunset Visionary, Vol. 2 with a string of singles. The latest, “You’re the One I Like Now,” is a coy emo ode to rushing into love (or in this case, “like”) boosted by a punk-pop Wall of Sound on the irresistible chorus. – Joe Lynch 

Shania Twain, “Waking Up Dreaming”

Over a jubilant beat you could imagine the cast of The Breakfast Club bopping to, country legend Shania Twain — sounding more Katy Perry than Nashville here — delivers the anthemic “Waking Up Dreaming” about reaching for your wildest goals: “We won’t stop at the ceiling / let’s keep waking up dreaming.” – J. Lynch

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