Welcome to “Cut Through the Noise,” an Entertainment column from the St. Louis Park Echo covering new music releases. Every week, a different Echo staffer takes on the role as writer, reviewing recent single releases from a variety of artists.

Money – Cardi B ★★☆☆☆

When I first heard Cardi B was dropping a new single, I was super excited. “Invasion of Privacy” was a great album and I was hoping “Money” would follow the same bass heavy trap sound that she always does. Although “Money” did have some classic trap sounds, it was overall very underwhelming. “Money” reminded me of “Bodak Yellow” for its similar beat, but no lyrical content worth listening to. Cardi B barely rhymed and didn’t maintain any type of flow or rhythm. The only consistency through her rapping was about how much money she has or how much she loves money. This song was definitely a very below average rap song lyrically, but the beat kept the song afloat for a trap song, probably danceable. Overall this song was pretty bland and I would recommend to just play Cardi B’s other songs on repeat, instead of listening to this one.

Mariners Apartment Complex – Lana Del Rey ★★★★☆

One of Lana Del Rey’s dual-singles  “Mariners Apartment Complex” is the chill song of my dreams. “Mariners Apartment Complex” is so fresh-sounding, but still holds with Del Rey’s usual breath alternative sound. The track starts off with a beautiful piano riff, that then goes into her deep voice singing about a love lost. The song has the same vibe and sound of a ‘60s slow rock song — think Stevie Nicks — but just a little more modern with the times. “Mariners Apartment Complex” flows so nicely and makes me feel like I should hop into a vintage car and drive on the Pacific Coast Highway with the wind in my hair. I usually don’t feel this about songs, but this song is a perfect road trip jam. For me, this song is a very pleasant surprise because I usually am pretty indifferent about Del Rey. I like a few songs here and there, but never have I called myself a fan. But to my surprise this song might just switch me over, if this is the new sound Lana is going within her next album, I will definitely tune in.

Checklist – Normani & Calvin Harris feat. Wizkid ★★★☆☆

Ever since Fifth Harmony went on break, the ex-members have been consistently coming out with new songs as solo artists. Ex-member Normani’s new release “Checklist” is honestly not very memorable. The beat and overall vibe of the song is actually pretty good, it has a different mix of dancehall and electronic music, but oddly it works. But the lyrics in this song are nothing special and not catchy at all. The lyrics are so incomprehensible I couldn’t pick up on a single word throughout the entire song.  The voice and the vibe she’s trying to convey sounds like a Rihanna wannabe. The only good part, lyrically, of this song is WizKid’s verse. The Nigerian singer/songwriter adds a very cool dancehall vibe with some tropical sounding