On Friday (Dec. 1), KAYTRANADA dropped off a two-song EP titled Lover/Friend. The short play boasts assists from Compton emcee Channel Tres and Canadian songstress Rochelle Jordan, the latter of whom contributed her vocals to the title track.

“Waitin’ for me, I’m waitin’ for you, why we pause when we feel the emotion? This attention, that affection, if you throw it, I’ll hit it back to you, if you want it, you know it wasn’t out the blue, when you felt that, we ain’t even got to choose, if you want it, oh, got to tell me now, oh, yeah, good to know, ’cause I heard you wanna be my lover, wanna be more than friends, heard you wanna be my lover, and you can’t pretend…”

Lover/Friend followed the May release KAYTRAMINÉ, KAYTRANADA’s collaborative album with Aminé. That project consisted of 11 songs with additional appearances from Pharrell Williams, Freddie Gibbs, Big Sean, Amaarae, and Snoop Dogg. 2023 also saw the Montreal DJ-beatsmith cooking up infectious cuts for others, including Ella Mai, Don Toliver, Maeta, Victoria Monét, Mariah The Scientist, Tkay Maidza, and KayCyy.

It’s been four years since KAYTRANADA liberated his sophomore solo LP, Bubba, which received critical acclaim. In addition to a Billboard 200 placement, the 17-song album debuted at No. 1 on the Top Dance/Electronic Albums chart.

In an interview with Clash, the “10%” talent opened up about the importance of working with rappers and singers on wax. “I seek out collaborators because I want my beats to feel complete,” he says. “I got that from listening to the Neptunes as a kid. As a kid learning production, the beat was the focus — but the vocal helped frame that. And that’s why I chose this platform – it’s trial and error because I want artists to be fully themselves on my records. We have to communicate and collaborate.”

Press play on Lover/Friend below.