By Colin Joyce, Austin Cox, Jaelani Turner-Williams, Brandon Ousley, and Leah Mandel of Third Bridge Creative
Nali
Chartmetric Artist Rank: 17,239
Genre: R&B/Soul
Country: U.S.
On her debut mixtape, I Love Nali, Brooklyn-born R&B vocalist Nali offers her spin on jazz-centric soul sounds roughly three decades after the neo-soul movement began. The Gen-Z singer released the project on August 22, one year after her buzzy lo-fi single “4U” (903K Spotify streams) garnered attention on TikTok. I Love Nali continues a similar mellowed-out essence, where the singer adopts improvisational jazz and progressive R&B backdrops against diaristic lyrics that reflect her coming-of-age. Among these tracks are the guitar-led “crossfaded” (379K Spotify streams) and the warmth of midtempo love song “journal entry” (139K Spotify streams). Having landed placements on Spotify playlists ‘Lowkey’ and ‘Fresh Finds,’ Nali is solidifying her position as a must-know R&B act of tomorrow.
Dev Lemons
Chartmetric Artist Rank: 76,038
Genre: Pop
Country: U.S.
Devon Schmalz has worn many different hats on the internet, but she’s always been working with music. Her TikTok account SongPsych—which offered analytical breakdowns of popular music—kicked off her rise. But after a few years making videos, during which she garnered over 805K+ followers, she wanted to lean more into her personality. Her home for these videos was Dev Limes—an account on YouTube—on which she created funny and creative videos, including recreating songs on mute and analog horror-inspired sketches. All along her content creation journey, she’s also released music as Dev Lemons. She’s typically treated it as just another arm of her output, releasing singles, EPs, and comedy albums whenever inspiration struck. But her recently released debut album SURFACE TENSION feels a little more focused, while still displaying her all-over-the-map tastes and her inclination for pushing the boundaries of pop music. She’s garnered a robust following with this project already, garnering over 134K listeners on Spotify and landing on popular playlists like ‘ANTI POP!’, a rise that shows there’s no single path to pop stardom.
The Creekers
Chartmetric Artist Rank: 16,429
Genre: Bluegrass
Country: U.S.
Though they hail from Eastern Kentucky, the bluegrass band The Creekers have scored a viral hit with an ode to The Volunteer State. “Tennessee” is a sentimental, banjo-forward ballad about a love they left in the state where “Rocky Top’s their song.” It’s traditional and swooning, a rare sort of song to take off in a more pop-oriented ecosystem, but similar to Zach Bryan or Tyler Childers, their earnest emoting is resonating. They’ve garnered playlist placements on a number of Spotify’s big country playlists, including ‘Hot Country,’ ‘homegrown,’ and ‘Breakout Country,’ and they’ve gathered over 785K listeners on the platform, making for a real streaming success story in a genre that is still closely tied to the traditional starmaking power of terrestrial radio.
PARTYOF2
Chartmetric Artist Rank: 7,739
Genre: R&B/Soul
Country: U.S.
With just four singles, Los Angeles-based music duo PARTYOF2 (1M Spotify monthly followers) recalls 1980s hip-hop in their exhilarating material. Born from the quartet Grouptherapy, which released five albums, members Jadagrace and Swim broke out on their own earlier this year, amping up their sound from chill alternative rap to dance-centric and experimental hip-hop. Beginning in February, PARTYOF2 dropped multiple tracks in the lead-up to their first LP, AMERIKA’S NEXT TOP PARTY!, slated to release on October 17, as well as a three-song EP, we owe you an explanation.
On the project is their highest-streamed song, “POSER” (13M Spotify streams), a raging anthem where the duo scolds their rivals. Other singles, like “JUST DANCE 2” (608K Spotify streams) and “FRIENDLY FIRE” (224K Spotify streams), are equally hype, as Jadagrace and Swim deliver throwback rhymes over skittering breakbeats and old-school samples. While the duo has also established a following of 946K on TikTok, where they take fans behind the scenes of their music video shoots, they’re gaining new listeners through editorial playlists like ‘Jazz Rap’ and ‘Alternative Hip-Hop.’
EsDeeKid
Chartmetric Artist Rank: 2,301
Genre: Hip-Hop/Rap
Country: U.K.
Amid the global rise of UK underground rap, Merseyside has found its representative in EsDeeKid. The young scouser shows off his city’s grit and determination with gruff lyrics over chest-rattling beats. Little is known about the young rapper, always hiding his face under his signature balaclava, but there are some rumors: mainly that he previously released music under the name dualspines. Either way, his recently released debut album Rebel, has grown extremely quickly. He’s already even outpacing other up-and-comers from the scene like Rico Ace and fakemink on monthly listeners (he now has over 2.3M on Spotify). It’s exciting to think about what more he and the rest of the British underground can do with their signature blend of cloud rap, trap, and drill. Look for them to continue to make it big on both sides of the Atlantic.
