Liza's rom-com-inspired bop, and 5 more songs you need to hear this week

Here at CBC Music, we're always on high alert for new songs by Canadian artists.

This week, we're listening to new tracks from:

• Liza.
• TheHonestGuy.
• Idman.
• Jenn Grant featuring Kevin Drew.
• Aviv.
• Cube.

Scroll down to find out why you need to listen, too.

What new Canadian tunes are you currently obsessed with? Share them with us on Instagram @cbc_music.

To hear more about these standout songs, tune in to CBC Music Mornings every Thursday (Canada-wide) with producer Ryan Chung and host Saroja Coelho, and Here and Now with Gill Deacon every Wednesday afternoon (in Toronto). Both are available via CBC Listen.

'Give In,' Liza 

Liza is tired of heartbreak. Having explored enough breakups on her 2021 EP, Done is Done, the Toronto R&B artist now wants to bask in a rom-com-fuelled fantasy of love instead. "Give In," the first single off her upcoming sophomore EP, immediately gives off a light and airy vibe, like butterflies fluttering in one's stomach. But Liza is hesitant at first to give into the reverie, still feeling the sting of past relationships, singing in the opening verse: "This came too soon/ And I'm not too sure what to make of you." It doesn't take long for her to fall head over heels, though — by the chorus, Liza's admitting, "I'm breaking all my rules/ I can't help but give in to you." "Give In" is a soundtrack-ready hit co-produced by Michael Stoner (Noah Cyrus) and Colin Munroe (Kendrick Lamar, Drake). — Melody Lau

'Hanging With You,' TheHonestGuy

TheHonestGuy, whose knack for fusing classic R&B with a neo-soul esthetic earned him a Juno nomination earlier this year, returns with "Hanging With You," a gorgeous single from his EP Velvet Soul, coming out in October. It's not only a mid-tempo meditation on the importance of putting in the time with the person you love, but also a vehicle for TheHonestGuy's mellifluous vocals — so natural and effortless, without a trace of tension in his sound. Like most of the songs to be released on Velvet Soul, this one was produced by Yogic, a U.K.-based beatmaker, whom TheHonestGuy met virtually. "I stumbled on his beats randomly on YouTube and it seemed like a marriage because his influences are my influences, like d'Angelo and Erykah Badu," he told CBC Music. "He delves deep in his production and creates lush sounds." — Robert Rowat

'In My Feels,' Idman

Idman's debut EP, Risk, is full of glittering R&B songs about falling in and out of love, and one of the standout tracks is "In My Feels," which details Idman being stuck in stasis. Unable to move on from a relationship, she admits she's tangled up in her emotions: "Stuck on the memories of us/ Wish it was what it was," she sings. She tentatively tries to convince herself to move on, before falling back into a washing machine cycle of rinsing off the pain, washing away the heartbreak and then repeating it all over again. A catchy melody and glossy layered harmonies tie the song together and inject it with a dose of '90s-flavoured nostalgia. — Natalie Harmsen

'Lion's Mane,' Jenn Grant feat. Kevin Drew

For a song about her fraught relationship with her father, "Lion's Mane," off Jenn Grant's eighth album, Champagne Problems, comes off as surprisingly serene. The Nova Scotia-based singer-songwriter draws you in with rich and supple vocals. But listening more closely to the lyrics, co-written by Grant and Kevin Drew, opens up the heart of the song: "She cut you like stained glass/ Til you fell out of the frame," Grant states plainly. "I was just a kid then/ But I wanted more daddy."

Far from clashing with her subject matter, Grant's composure is the point. "Lion's Mane" is about acceptance and hoping for better futures. It may be a simple sentiment, but her song embodies it in every sense, from the gentle guitar backdrop to the background vocals that soar in the final verse. Sometimes the most impactful songs aren't necessarily the most exuberant ones; they impress with how much they can reveal within their constraints and in what they leave unsaid. — Alice Wu

'Blue Eyed Boy,' Aviv

A nine-month relationship may not feel long, but when you break it down to the number of days you spent with that person, it can feel like a much longer journey. On Aviv's newest single "Blue Eyed Boy," the 17-year-old indie-pop artist looks back at a 300-day roller-coaster relationship and its many ups and downs. "Day 75/ Smile on your face/ and you say you're fine/ but I feel you fade away," she sings, documenting pivotal moments like intimate diary entries being soundtracked by dreamy guitar riffs. If you're a fan of the confessional songwriting of acts like Olivia Rodrigo or Lana Del Rey, Aviv's latest will easily tug on your lovesick heartstrings. — ML

'Simple,' Cube

Sometimes the most complex decisions can actually be the easiest, a notion that Jonathan Renaud (better known as Cube) articulates in his new single, simply called, well, "Simple." The song explores temptation, with the singer, songwriter and producer hanging in the balance of falling for the right (or wrong) type. On one hand, he doesn't want to indulge in the pleasures of love, but on the other, he quickly catches himself: "It's sinful…. that it's simple."

"Do I do it?," goes his internal monologue. "If so, what are the effects of my decisions?" Beyond the decision-making, Cube wraps the hard-fought battle of love and the mind in eloquent vocal arrangements, pounding bass drums and synth chords that will have you putting this song on a nonstop loop. With each play, you'll find something new. — Ryan Chung