Life Listens: New music from G-Dragon, The Weeknd, Selena Gomez, Drake and Amateur Takes Control

In this monthly column, The Straits Times curates the most buzz-worthy music you need to know about that was released in the past month.

Stream This Song: G-Dragon – Drama

After an eight-year wait, K-pop superstar G-Dragon has finally returned with new studio album Ubermensch.

The release has been teased since late 2024, with the singles Power dropping in October and Home Sweet Home in November. Both were part of his comeback set at the Mama Awards in November, which quickly went viral and now has more than 52 million views on YouTube.

In the eight-track Ubermensch, the 36-year-old leader of K-pop boy band BigBang gives two wildly different numbers the music video treatment – the haunting ballad Drama and the funky Too Bad, featuring American singer-rapper Anderson .Paak.

Drama gives fans a full-bodied taste of G-Dragon as a raconteur. His peculiar style of singing – with a nasal drawl – brings, well, a sense of drama to an atmospheric love song describing a volatile relationship fuelled by arguments.

The number is almost entirely in English, except three lines – in Mandarin, Japanese and Korean – punctuating every verse.

The Mandarin line – “You always ask me how much I love you” – is a surprising reference to the opening line of the classic The Moon Represents My Heart, made famous by the late Taiwanese diva Teresa Teng. – Jan Lee

Ace Album: The Weeknd – Hurry Up Tomorrow

Canadian pop star-actor The Weeknd has said that his sixth album will be the last under his current moniker.

It marks the end of an era for one of streaming’s most successful artistes.

The singer, whose real name is Abel Tesfaye, is going out with a bang. Hurry Up Tomorrow is an expansive album that spans 22 tracks stretched over one hour and 24 minutes. The movie-length release is designed to be consumed in a single sitting, with songs and interludes that blend seamlessly into one another.

The third in a trilogy of albums that includes the highly successful After Hours (2020) and Dawn FM (2022), it expands on its predecessors’ synth-pop palette and amps up the drama with tunes that take on themes of excess, regret and, ultimately, redemption.

It feels indulgent at times, but the cross-genre experimentations – most prominently in Sao Paulo, a Brazilian funk song with Brazilian singer Anitta – help to make the album a compelling listen.

The other features – such as American singer Lana Del Rey’s haunting voice in The Abyss, Italian disco godfather Giorgio Moroder in Big Sleep and American rapper Playboi Carti in Timeless – add to the sonic density without taking away the shine from the man himself.

There will be more to this project than the album alone. In May, The Weeknd – who was the male lead in drama series The Idol (2023) – will release a musical thriller film of the same name, in which he stars as a fictionalised version of himself. – Eddino Abdul Hadi

Must-See MV: Selena Gomez, Benny Blanco and Gracie Abrams – Call Me When You Break Up

The concept for this music video – by the American music trio of pop star-actress Selena Gomez, her fiance-producer Benny Blanco and singer Gracie Abrams – is simple yet effective.

Styled like a video call from Gomez, it feels like she is personally reaching out to viewers, offering comfort to those in the throes of a relationship breakdown.

Sitting up in bed in what looks like a cosy bedroom, she is joined by Abrams, who takes on the second verse before both launch into the catchy chorus. Watch it until the end to see a smiling Blanco make a short cameo.

The raw and relatable aesthetics is a refreshing antidote to overproduced, big-budget videos. It is perhaps an indication of how TikTok’s preference for playful, stripped-down authenticity over polished seriousness is making its mark among pop music’s A-listers.

The upbeat dance-pop track is the second song from Gomez and Blanco’s collaborative album I Said I Love You First, set to be released on March 21. The couple, who have been dating since 2023, announced their engagement in December 2024. – Eddino Abdul Hadi

Chart Champ: Drake – $ome $exy $ongs 4 U

The Canadian rapper-singer may be perceived as being on the losing end of his high-profile beef with American rap star Kendrick Lamar. This is especially since Not Like Us, the latter’s vitriolic diss track against Drake, scored a major victory at the 2025 Grammy Awards and was a highlight at the recent Super Bowl half-time show.

But make no mistake, Drake still has massive pull among his adoring fan base and is one of the world’s most popular hip-hop stars.

Instead of putting out any retaliatory tracks against Lamar, he dropped $ome $exy $ongs 4 U, an amorous collection of R&B-leaning tunes on, appropriately enough, Valentine’s Day.

A collaboration with Canadian singer, songwriter and producer PartyNextDoor, it went straight to No. 1 on the Billboard album charts.

It is Drake’s 14th album to top the charts. He now ties with American superstars Taylor Swift and Jay-Z as the solo artiste with the most No. 1s on Billboard’s album charts. The only act to top that is The Beatles, who have 19.

And while Drake has filed a federal lawsuit against Universal Music Group – the record label he and Lamar are signed to – for defamation over Not Like Us’ accusatory lyrics, $ome $exy $ongs 4 U contains a hint that he might be over the whole drama.

In the song Gimme A Hug, he raps: “F*** a rap beef, I’m tryna get the party lit”. – Eddino Abdul Hadi

Singapore Scene: Amateur Takes Control – A Pale Decrepit Dot

Home-grown instrumental band Amateur Takes Control’s new album A Pale Decrepit Dot is a splendid showcase of how far they have come since they started out as a solo project by guitarist Adel Rashid in 2006.

While early works stayed close to post-rock templates of the 2000s, their current batch of songs, the first since the 2017 EP ATCEP2, does away with genre restrictions.

Now a quintet that also include guitarists Ahmad Ariff and Field Teo, bassist Isa Ong and drummer Hydhir Ramli, tracks such as non-zero and Gobekli Tepe are meticulously crafted with unexpected twists and turns.

Ferocious riffs give way to shimmery and melancholic soundscapes, while rapid fire drums merge seamlessly with off-kilter, odd time signatures.

All this keeps the listener engaged and on their toes – you think you know where the song is going, but the band always manage to surprise.

The album title, a press statement explains, is a nod to earth and the ills that humans have inflicted on it, “a mere point of pale blue against the backdrop of an ever-expanding universe”. – Eddino Abdul Hadi