Tomorrow’s Five: greek, Yuki Chiba, Nia Smith, Mabe Fratti, and Christian Lee Hutson

Third Bridge Creative -

By Brandon Ousley, Kemet High, Jaelani Turner-Williams, Michelle Hyun Kim, and Will Schube of Third Bridge Creative

In this week’s installment of our column featuring emerging artists, we’re listening to Virginia’s eclectic R&B savant, Japan’s next big rap star, London’s soul-stirring songstress, an experimental cellist from Mexico City, and a folk-rock virtuoso hailing from Missouri.

greek

Chartmetric Artist Rank: 19,891
Genre: R&B/Soul
Country: U.S.

Michael Davie, better known as greek, weds his introspective storytelling and layered vocals with evocative soundscapes that draw from R&B, dance, hip-hop, and lo-fi pop. Two years after breaking out on the indie R&B scene with his 2022 debut LP, EXTC, the Virginia-based polymath returns with ACCELERATOR. Released on June 28, the eclectic LP’s three pre-released singles, the nu-disco groover “VIRGINIA CREEPER” (2 million Spotify streams), the ‘70s-styled soft rocker “THERE FOR YOU” (775k streams), and the smooth love song “SOMEDAY” (232k streams) continue to rise among his top-streamed songs. Along with placements on editorial playlists like Lowkey and Chilled R&B, his wide-ranging music earned him 33.4K new Spotify monthly listeners since the start of June, bringing his monthly listenership to a total of 314k while establishing his place as one of indie R&B’s boldest auteurs.    

Yuki Chiba (千葉雄喜)

Chartmetric Artist Rank: 263
Genre: Hip-Hop/Rap
Country: Japan

Tokyo native Yuki Chiba, formerly known as KOHH, changed his moniker in 2021, and ushered in a new era this February on “Team Tomodachi.” The viral anthem spawned several remixes that featured artists like Duke Deuce and Bun B and preceded his feature on Megan Thee Stallion’s song “Mamushi” in June. The track is an internet mainstay on TikTok, where an accompanying dance has led to the creation of over 617k videos and allowed the song to climb up to No. 6 on the app’s Viral 50 chart. It’s wider than the web as well, as the heavily streamed record (over 34 million streams) emerged last week at No. 68 on the Billboard Hot 100, and rose to No. 45 this week. These feats are contributing to overall growth in Yuki Chiba’s explosive momentum as a rising global sensation, who has netted over 259k new Spotify monthly listeners since March 10, 2024.

Nia Smith

Chartmetric Artist Rank: 6,819
Genre: R&B/Soul
Country: U.K.

R&B and soul singer-songwriter Nia Smith represents the finest of the genres without releasing an official project. The London-based act made a lofty debut on motivating midtempo ballad “Give Up the Fear” (160k Spotify streams, released May 10), followed by breakup anthem “Personal” (433k Spotify streams, released June 28). Originally known for her TikTok covers of Adele, Bruno Mars, Bob Marley, Daniel Caesar, and more, the 20-year-old’s Spotify listenership has increased from 34.5k to 303k monthly listeners in the last month. With a gentle, full-bodied tone, and commanding songwriting ability developed through years of music courses, Smith continues to make a name for herself with a presence on editorial playlists R&B Weekly, Summer Sunshine Reggae, and Riffs & Runs.

Mabe Fratti

Chartmetric Artist Rank: 100,895
Genre: Alternative
Country: Mexico

The next breakout star in experimental music is Mabe Fratti, the Guatemalan-born, Mexico City-based cellist and vocalist who has stunned critics and earned fans with her new album, Sentir Que No Sabes. Not only did the LP earn Best New Music from Pitchfork and a five-star rating from The Guardian, but Fratti has more than quadrupled her Spotify monthly listeners in the past three months, bringing her just shy of 100k. After playing North American dates this summer, she'll bring her hypnotic compositions to festivals across Europe this fall, including Pitchfork Fest London and Paris, Le Guess Who?, and C2C, which will only bring new ears to her spell-binding, left-of-center sound. 

Christian Lee Hutson

Chartmetric Artist Rank: 8,917
Genre: Folk Rock
Country: U.S.

Christian Lee Hutson has lived many musical lives, first as a member of folk group The Driftwood Singers before embarking on a career as a songwriter, touring musician, and, eventually, a solo artist. After a few under-the-radar releases, he broke through with 2020’s Beginners and 2022’s Quitters, contemplative indie rock albums that helped illustrate why he was recruited to work with Phoebe Bridgers, Jenny Lewis, Okkervil River, Conor Oberst, and more. “After Hours,” the first single from his forthcoming Phoebe Bridgers co-produced album Paradise, Pop. 10, is a slow-burning folk opus that builds and subsides with patient fervor. Fans gave the song a warm reception, racking up over 50k Spotify streams in its first five days of existence.

Portions of this piece are included in Sound Signal, a bi-weekly newsletter from Third Bridge Creative. Sign up here. 

Visualizations by Nicki Camberg and cover image by Crasianne Tirado; data as of July 18, 2024.