Welcome to Songs You Need to Know, our weekly rundown of the best music right now. The Rolling Stone Philippines team is constantly sharing things to listen to, and each week, we compile a ragtag playlist of songs that we believe every music fan today needs to know. Whether it’s the hottest new single or an old track that captures the state of the present, our hope is that you discover something for your musical canon.
This week’s songs include effective trance and trap mutations, electronic music where they joke about tech bros, and a hard-hitting comeback from one of the country’s most talked-about rock bands. The list goes on from Mayonnaise journeying through rock overdrive in their latest single, “Hindi Ka Nagsasabi,” NAIA crafting one of the most flirtatious techno track in “atenean tech bro,” and Ligaya Escueta exploring the fuzzy atmosphere of shoegaze in “June.”
A welcome hard turn from a hip-hop-R&B extraordinaire
Zimbabwean-Australian artist Tkay Maidza has long flirted with the sleek edges of R&B and electronic pop, whether on her own track “Out of Luck” or Snakehips’ “Show Me The Money.” But “Must Be,” her first single since the 2023 album Sweet Justice, finds her in a far sharper mode. Released March 27, the track rides a bouncy, tightly coiled beat as Maidza delivers staccato bursts in the chorus. It’s only at the bridge where she loosens her grip, synth pads bloom and stretch, ushering the listener into a trance-like drift. —Pie Gonzaga
Absolute nu-metal madness and Gregorian chants all over
In a surprising turn, one of the country’s favorite rock bands, Mayonnaise, goes harder into alternative rock, heavier, meatier, with a biting nu-metal edge on their latest single, “Hindi Ka Nagsasabi.” The Gregorian chant-like vocal and guitar riffage open the floodgates to a moshpit-inducing chorus and verse exchange that is partly refreshing and reinvigorating. Frontman Monty Macalino keeps the track exciting with his vocal presence, proving time and time again that they aren’t over. Mayonnaise proves that the idea of being “past their prime” does not hold up in a comeback single like this. —Elijah Pareño
No Atenean tech bro deserves flirty music like this
On Pathways II, the latest electronic compilation from Manila-based label Twelve Points, drag artist NAIA makes a striking debut with “atenean tech bro,” produced by DJ and musician D Waviee. Built on buoyant, percussive techno and a relentlessly thumping bass, the track pulses with euphoric energy. Its hook, “Stop, drop, and roll,” is recited in a cadence that nods to Technotronic’s classic “Pump Up the Jam.” Flirty lyricism collides with zingy, almost 8-bit synth lines, giving the song a playful, irreverent charm. If anything, it might be a little too nice to its titular subject, the Atenean tech bro, but maybe that’s part of the joke. It’s not on Spotify, but you can listen to the track on Bandcamp. —Pie Gonzaga
In shoegaze we trust —Gen Z
The 19-year-old indie rock neophyte Ligaya Escueta moves away from the innocence of garage rock witticisms toward the wondrous and drowning fuzz of shoegaze on the latest single “June.” Taking cues from San Francisco shoegaze artist Wisp and Canadian mallgoth duo Softcult, Escueta switches lanes to address teenage angst through RAT pedals and heavy reverb. What comes through is a growing understanding of pop writing under layers of atmosphere, marking them as another act to watch in terms of artistic growth. —Elijah Pareño
Nice Canadians with good twee pop energy
Toronto, Canada’s premiere Gen Z twee pop band cootie catcher (yes, a good band name indeed) delivers a sugar rush on its fourth album Something We All Got, with “Straight drop” standing out as one of the clearest highlights of their creative and sonic direction. At a time when twee pop is seen as an almost archaic subgenre style of indie pop, this track goes right into jangling guitars, wobbly synth keys, and self-deprecating lyrics. We could use more of this in the popsphere, if you catch my drift. —Elijah Pareño
A sweet and sensual pop cut evoking ‘90s Janet
Thrice in her career, British actress Naomi Scott has sung for movies: in Disney’s 2011 musical television film Lemonade Mouth, in the 2019 live-action remake of Aladdin, and in the 2024 psychological horror Smile 2. Now, with her debut album F.I.G, Scott is more than ready to prove her capabilities as an artist off-screen. Released in September 2025, “Cherry” is the second single to herald F.I.G’s March 20 release.
From the pre-chorus onward, Scott deploys a soulful, warm soprano over a velvety yet upbeat R&B-inspired pop production. There’s a breezy, effortless sensuality to “Cherry,” the lyrics (“And if the cherry’s sweet, it comes right off the bush”) sprinkled with spoken ad-libs in which Scott talks us through it. In many ways, the track evokes ‘90s Janet Jackson, and it’s no surprise Stan Twitter has chosen to crown a new pop girl on the rise. —Pie Gonzaga
