EW's Friday Five: Billie Eilish confronts fame, Weezer meets Disney, and more of the best songs of the week
Every Friday, EW’s music team runs down the five best songs of the week. In today’s edition, Billie Eilish looks back on her year with a wary eye, Jewel returns with her first song in four years, Weezer heads to the Frozen universe, Camila Cabello finds a miracle, and Pusha T throws a warning shot.
Billie Eilish — “Everything I Wanted”
Having a breakout year and becoming a pop star won’t erase the existential dread that comes with the attention. In “Everything I Wanted,” her first single since her breakout debut When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?, Billie Eilish ruminates on the effect her sudden success has had on her psyche. “I had a dream I got everything I wanted, not what you’d think/ And if I’m being honest, coulda been a nightmare,” she sings over lonely, stuttering piano chords. In the hook, someone close is talking her off the edge — “If I could change the way that you see yourself, you wouldn’t wonder why you’re here/ They don’t deserve you” — but it’s not enough to quell her doubt. “If I knew it all then,” she says, “would I do it again?” She doesn’t have an answer yet but seems determined to find one. —Alex Suskind
Weezer — “Lost in the Woods”
Whoever at Disney tapped Weezer to cover Frozen 2’s best (and most surprising) song deserves an ice palace of their own, because Rivers Cuomo and company are clearly having a blast on this retro tune (performed in the film by Jonathan Groff’s Kristoff). The band’s cover doesn’t lose a shred of the inherent humor or spirit of the tongue-in-cheek power ballad, but perfectly magnifies the precise blend of melodrama and electronica that clearly helped so many singers process their feelings in the ’80s. Only the best satire becomes successful art in and of itself, and Weezer’s wild slow-jam winner is more than deserving of some radio representation this winter. —Marc Snetiker
Jewel — “No More Tears”
The singer-songwriter’s first song in four years — recorded for the documentary Lost in America — is not, in fact, a cover of Ariana Grande’s “No More Tears Left to Cry.” Instead, Jewel turns in a powerful, elegiac ballad — one about love lost and time healing all wounds. The lyrics are predictably raw. “You see love is a mystery and I still see its shining face,” she sings. “There are no more sad songs, just blue skies. And no more tears to cry.” By the time Jewel hits the bridge, she’s doubling down on that sentiment with a mantra: “I will, I will, I will, I will” —AS
DJ Shadow feat. Pusha T — “Been Use Ta”
The iconic producer/DJ recruits hip-hop’s preeminent coke rapper for this X-Files-theme-sampled track that tackles legacy and longevity. After kicking things off by quoting a line from Biggie’s “Going Back to Cali,” Push goes to work, calling out rappers who copy his flow and warning of the dangers of taking on those who inspire you. “It’s proven suicidal when you turn your idols into rivals,” he snarls, before dropping one of his trademark hyperbolic threats: “Jealousy breeds hate, you know what that’ll do/ Set me off, have these bullets chasing after you.” —AS
Camila Cabello — “Living Proof”
Yes, Camila Cabello is very much in love (see: her upcoming album Romance, also her very public relationship with Shawn Mendes), and now the 22-year-old singer wants to give you “living proof” in the form of her newest single. “Tell me something, but say it with your hands, slow/ When you touch me, paint me like a Van Gogh,” she sings as handclaps flutter in the background. Further proof of her happiness lies in the hook, as she drops the same falsetto she used to devastating effect on 2018’s “Never Been the Same,” crooning, “Were you sent to save me?” Cabello seems to think so. —AS
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