@Tatyanna Roy

Discover new music from artists we think you'll like. Refreshed every Friday.

Whether it’s a weekday morning or Saturday night, get going with this personalized set of upbeat music. Refreshed every Monday.

Songs to help you relax and unwind. Updated every Sunday.

Bold. Energetic. Empowering. Swaggering. Featuring the most notable female artists within hip-hop and R&B, this is the soundtrack for people who know what they want and refuse to settle for less than they deserve. These tracks will help you build the confidence to be your best self.

In the more than four decades since Kool Herc birthed breakbeats amid the ruins of the South Bronx, a lot has changed: Gentrification has transformed many of the city’s traditional hip-hop hotbeds, and the music has exploded from a small, thoroughly local, DIY scene to the world’s preeminent youth culture. But after years of watching other cities, from Los Angeles to Atlanta, leave their respective marks on the sound it created, New York is showing it never lost its Yankee-hat swagger—often by looking to other regions for inspiration just as much as its own hard-edged boom-bap traditions. The Bronx’s A Boogie wit da Hoodie is blowing up with a thoroughly Highbridge take on the moody Auto-Tuned melodies often associated with post-Drake Toronto; Chicago and London’s nihilistic drill sounds influenced Young M.A and birthed a rowdy Brooklyn scene that continues to bubble even after the death of breakout star Pop Smoke. Way upstate, Buffalo’s Griselda collective is resurrecting the grimy sounds of classic Wu-Tang even as they collaborate with rappers in London and Paris and high-end fashion brands. Check out this playlist featuring the latest wave of hip-hop artists from New York and the whole tristate area (hi, New Jersey). Our editors regularly update this—if you hear something you like, add it to your library.

Kanye West made his name in Chicago chopping up classic soul sounds the city was known for, then provided career-making assists that took a few of the artists on this playlist from South Side to worldwide. But his more crucial work was becoming a model for a generation of rappers who share his ambitious DIY spirit—a clear product of his hometown. Historically, Chicago hip-hop hasn't had much industry or infrastructure, so the scenes these artists have built up are a result of collaboration (Chief Keef and Vic Mensa, Chance the Rapper and Jeremih, Dreezy and Queen Key), as well as the ingenuity to build, rung by rung. From the gritty South Side realism that spans Valee and Keef to G Herbo, to the influence of Chicago house and juke on Vic and Chance, what defines and unifies Chicago hip-hop is not a style, but how its artists reflect all that the Chi is, and can be. Our editors regularly update this playlist—if you hear something you like, add it to your library.

Succeeding as an independent musician outside of the traditional industry power structure is a lot like being on the basketball court: Sometimes you need to create your own shot. This playlist will surface the best emerging, independent talent bubbling up from outside the system. “When you are an indie artist, having your music on the right playlist at the right time is key,” says Apple Music's Ebro. “BASE:LINE is designed to be that key.” We regularly update this playlist. If you like a track, add it to your library.