R&B/Hip-Hop Fresh Picks of the Week: Lexa Gates, Real Boston Richey & Leon Bridges

Nobody drew higher approval ratings than Snoop Dogg in his employee of the month campaign as a correspondent for NBC at the 2024 Summer Olympics.

The Doggfather put a bow on his Olympic debut in Paris this weekend when hitting the stage at the Closing Ceremony where he performed Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 hit “Drop It Like It’s Hot” and brought out his former Death Row Records running mate Dr. Dre as a special guest for “The Next Episode.”

H.E.R. sang the National Anthem at the ceremony, which served as the first transfer of power as the United States gears up to switch the scene to Los Angeles for 2028. Billie Eilish and Red Hot Chili Peppers also performed.

Elsewhere in the hip-hop world, Ye’s No. 1 album streak came to an end when Taylor Swift’s The Tortured Poets Department held atop the Billboard 200, with West and Ty Dolla $ign’s Vultures 2 album debuting at No. 2 on the chart with 107,000 total album units moved in its first week.

Meanwhile, Latto delivered her Sugar Honey Iced Tea album on Friday (Aug. 9), which is loaded with 17 tracks and star-studded features to go along with some more apparent shots at rival Ice Spice on the project closer. And August isn’t going to slow down for the rap world, with albums still on the way from Big Sean and A$AP Rocky later this month.

With Fresh Picks, Billboard aims to highlight some of the best and most interesting new sounds across R&B and hip-hop — from Monaleo and Rob49’s tequila-fueled block party to Real Boston Richey and GloRilla’s raunchy strip club anthem. Be sure to check out this week’s Fresh Picks in our Spotify playlist below.

Freshest Find: Lexa Gates, “Provider”

On the heels of the evocative “I Just Can’t Be Alone,” Lexa Gates returns a month later with her soulful “Provider” single. While the wins stack up in her ascension, the Queens rapper-singer candidly expresses the pressure that comes with being the family bread-winner. “I’m a provider/ Pay my mama rent, pay my sister phone bill,” she divulges. “Heat, gym, and electric plus the Wi-Fi.” A teaser for the track caught SZA’s eye, who lent her stamp of approval to Lexa: “Ionno what’s going on but yes to her,” the intrigued superstar singer captioned a repost of the clip to her Instagram Story. Gates will hit the stage for a one-off concert in Los Angeles this week. 

Monaleo & Rob49, “Don Who Leo (Añejo Remix)”

Monaleo turns the Texas heat up a couple notche,s with Rob 49 torching the new Añejo Remix for her viral hit “Don Who Leo.” The 23-year-old throws a block party for the visual, which doubles as a commercial for the semi-titular premium tequila company Don Julio. Monaleo’s boisterous chorus remains the same which somehow welds 2Pac, Yu-Gi-Oh! and Judge Judy into consecutive bars. 49 flies in from New Orleans to match her freak with a steamy assist. “Ain’t gon’ lie, that p—y extra bald, look like 2Pac owned it,” he quips. The liquor-friendly video remained inside the top 30 of YouTube’s trending section all weekend. 

Real Boston Richey feat. GloRilla, “Get in There”

For artists looking for a hit record, there’s no better call to make right now than heading to Memphis and banging GloRilla’s line. Real Boston Richey hopes to make it two-for-two on the charts after “Help Me” made the Freebandz rapper’s Billboard Hot 100 debut earlier in 2024. Richey throws on his Cartier shades and lets any girl dealing with him know they gotta treat him like a king. Big Glo takes the baton to continue her hot streak while riding the gloomy production and keeping things raunchy, but still maintaining a street edge. “I be ready to get down on one knee, a n—a make me squirt,” she admits in candid fashion. It’s only right the duo made it rain dollar bills in the famed Magic City strip club for the music video. 

Lynda Dawn, “Where You Are”

Blending the worlds of soul, jazz and funk, R&B singer Lynda Dawn has opened a new portal to her artistry. The North West London native launches into a groovy era with the arrival of her luscious “Where You Are” single, where Dawn teams up with producer and co-writer Al Dobson Jr. to capture the essence of a sun-kissed summer afternoon stroll in Hyde Park alongside her soulmate. “If I lived a thousand lives, I’d never find no better,” Dawn coos. “Where You Are” will land on Lynda Dawn’s forthcoming 11th Hour EP slated to arrive on Sept. 27.

Leon Bridges, “Peaceful Place”

While much of Leon Bridge’s upcoming Leon album was recorded in Nashville, the Grammy-nominated singer packs a punch of nostalgia taking it back to Bridges’ Forth Worth roots. As evidenced by the cover art featuring Bridges hanging lakeside in the open fields, the 35-year-old is in a “Peaceful Place.” A delectable guitar riff meshes with Bridges’ honeyed vocals for a serene lead single heading into the eponymous project, which is set to land via Columbia Records on Oct. 4.

Skylar Blatt, “Hold Me Down”

Skylar Blatt is always cool, calm and collected. No matter the tempo of a track, the Cincinnati-bred artist remains in control of the steering wheel. Blatt follows up her Chris Brown-assisted “Wake Up” with the contemplative “Hold Me Down,” which finds her in cruise control while dishing out a hypnotic chorus about the power of the dollar. “You know they say that money make the world go ’round/ You know that I be up until you holding me down,” she sings.