Queer Jams of the Week: New Music From Tove Lo, Claud, Lava La Rue & More

April has showered, and the May flowers are here — and so are some new tunes from your favorite queer artists! Billboard Pride is proud to present the latest edition of Queer Jams of the Week, our roundup of some of the best new music releases from LGBTQ artists.

From Tove Lo’s back-to-basics re-release to Claud’s lovesick ode to insecurity, check out just a few of our favorite releases from this week below.

Tove Lo, Dirt Femme (Stripped)

Ever wanted to revisit one of your favorite recent albums, but from a completely different perspective? Tove Lo is giving you the opportunity to do just that with the release of Dirt Femme (Stripped), a 7-track EP taking fan-favorite songs off of the singer’s excellent 2022 album and stripping them down to their bare essentials. The result is an unflinching, soul-bearing project that underscores the careful craft with which Lo assembled her original work, now focused on making you feel every emotion from Dirt Femme all over again with even more intensity than before.

Claud, “Every F–king Time”

For their new single “Every F–king Time,” Claud decided to pull on your heartstrings. Written and performed like a tender indie love song, the new track details a relationship that appears doomed to fail — but the person at fault is in question. Lines like “Anyways, stop changing the subject,” and “Are you done rehearsing lines” point to Claud’s significant other. But by the time you reach the heart-wrenching track’s conclusion, the thought that “Maybe it’s all sincere/ And I can’t hold back from running when I hear it.” It’s a painful twist that further proves what a powerful force of songwriting the up-and-coming star is.

Lava La Rue, “Renegade”

Ready to rage? Lava La Rue certainly is with their rocked-out new track “Renegade,” their debut single on Dirty Hit. At the song’s start, the UK singer-songwriter sounds like they’re in a similar mode as they were on the groovy Hi-Fidelity from 2022. But by the time the chorus kicks in, La Rue shows that they’re ready for a brand new sound — amped-up and rocked out, “Renegade” is a bombastic re-introduction to an artist that so many more people should already know about.

Pussy Riot & Boyz Noise feat. Alice Glass, “Chastity”

Pussy Riot are not new to the concept of protest songs, which is why “Chastity” works just as well as it does. From the moment it begins, Pussy Riot’s uproarious collaboration with Boyz Noise and Alice Glass seizes your attention by declaring that they want you to “put it in a d–k cage” — and after the first minute, the satirical point being made about the unfair standards of sexualization sinks in, just as the group intended.

Miki Ratsula, “What Would the Neighbors Think”

No, Miki Ratsula’s latest single is not about NIMBYs — not really, anyways. “What Would the Neighbors Think,” the latest from the rising singer-songwriter, is instead a painful ballad to love lost thanks to societal expectations of what is and is not “acceptable.” Ratsula’s songwriting remains as evocative as ever; it’s their voice that pierces through this doleful song, delivering each line with world-weary vocals that will leave you a little breathless once it’s over.

Chloe Moriondo, Split Decision

Even at just 20-years-old, Chloe Moriondo has already built two very distinct musical universes with their albums Blood Bunny and SUCKERPUNCH. So, why not create some parallel universes? That’s exactly what they did on Split Decision, the new double single from the star that takes a track from each album and reinterprets it into the musical language of the other. What you get is a more indie-rock twinged “Celebrity,” a hyperpop-fueled version of their pop-punk track “I Wanna Be With You,” and a good feeling that you’re gonna go listen through Moriondo’s discography one more time.

Phem, “I Love My Dog”

In a world that lately feels determined to break down every last source of happiness for queer folks, Phem is here to celebrate the one thing the world can’t take away; how much dogs rule. “I Love My Dog,” a genuinely sweet new song from the alt-pop singer, is exactly what it sounds like. Toasting every little detail of what makes her sweet pup so great, Phem puts the problems around us to the side for a second, celebrating our canine friends that are here to help us get through it.

Check out all of our picks on Billboard’s Queer Jams of the Week playlist below: