The Future of Music 2024
2024 Album Releases2024 Breakthrough Artists2024 MusicFuture of MusicFuture of Music 2024+-
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2024 Breakthrough Artists
2024 Album Release Schedule
The Future is Female, The Future is Beats!
This article is mostly about Breakthrough Artists - or those that will hopefully rise to prominence in 2024 - not necessarily become global superstars - but certainly make their mark on the world and get a proper footnote in the history of music!
As usual I’ve trawled through over 100 breakthrough artists across a wide variety of sources - to select my favourite 24! And indeed my favourite one - who is already a global superstar on the back of just one song really - and has that essential mononym brand mark. I love that Tyla Laura Sythal is a symbol of multiculturalism - coming from Johannesburg, South Africa, and having a mixed - Zulu, Indian, Mauritian, and Irish heritage / lineage. All those influences are very evident in her superb distinct singing voice - and she has supreme dance chops and on point body movement and facial expressions. She is a symbol for world togetherness - and hopefully an ambassador for brighter days!
There’s a lot of Crossover / Fusion / Genre-Defying music around these days - where it’s really all about mixing up different influences and genres - to create something new and exciting. The list leans fairly heavily towards female artists - those were the ones that captivated me the most this year, and ’Beats’ are very evident in a lot of this music - Afrobeats in particular, Drum & Bass, and various Hip-Hop and polyrhythmic influences.
There’s definitely a trend for music coming out of Africa - Benin, Ghana, Nigeria, and South Africa in particular. Where I’ve long been a fan of Afrobeats, Kwaito House, and the more recent Ampiano styles.
A lot of the jingly jangly alternative indie stuff still sounds very samey to me this year - while there are odd exceptions.
I’m genuinely very pleases with this year’s New Artist selection - it’s properly eclectic overall - even though there are certain slants / trends.
As for the Release Calendar - this does not look to be a particularly vintage year - but there are still some killer albums on the way in - including a new one from The Cure - happier times ahead for sure!
Here in the UK we need to weather a few storms - including a recession - while I’m hoping that this will be a turnaround year - and things will start gradually improving. The world is in such a state at the moment - surely we are bound for better days ahead - let’s all manifest that!
10 Favourite Albums from 2023
- Romy - Mid Air
- Amaarae - Fountain Baby
- Caroline Polachek - Desire, I Want To Turn Into You
- Tkay Maidza - Sweet Justice
- Debby Friday - Good Luck
- U.S. Girls - Bless This Mess
- Overmono - Good Lies
- 100 gecs - 10,000 gecs
- Fever Ray - Radical Romantics
- Slowdive - Everything is Alive
10 Favourite Songs from 2023
- Caroline Polachek - Dang
- Romy - The Sea
- Amaarae - Angels in Tibet
- Hannah Wants - Cure My Desire
- Dua Lipa - Dance the Night
- 100 Gecs - Dumbest Girl Alive
- Reysha Rami — TURNMEON.virus
- Brittany Howard - What Now
- Lola Young - Don't Hate Me
- Chase & Status - Baddadan
Breakthrough Artists for 2024 / BBC Sound Of etc.
1 : Tyla [R&B / Soulful Pop / Amapiano] (BBC Sound of #4)
2 : Ayra Starr [R&B / Afrobeats / Alté]
3 : Kenya Grace [Electropop / Drum & Bass]
4 : A Little Sound [Drum & Bass]
5 : Lola Young [Alt-Pop / R&B]
6 : Yuné Pinku [Dance / Electronic / House]
7 : Charlotte Plank [Drum & Bass / Dance / Electronic]
8 : Aziya [Post Punk / New Wave / Alt Rock]
9 : Brazy [Afrobeats / Ampiano / Afro-Future]
10 : Big Special [Alternative / Indie / Post-Punk]
11 : Frozemode [UK Rap / Rap Rock]
12 : ALT BLK ERA [Nu Metal / Rap Rock]
13 : safesp8ce [Alternative / Indie]
14 : Peggy Gou [Deep House / House] (BBC Sound of #3)
15 : Natalie Red [Electronic / Dance / Pop]
16 : The Last Dinner Party [Indie Rock / Art Rock / Baroque Pop] (BBC Sound Of #1)
18 : Chappell Roan [Dark Pop]
19 : Olivia Dean [Pop-soul / Neo-soul] (BBC Sound Of #2)
20 : SkyDxddy [Hip-Hop / Rap / Pop]
21 : Caity Baser [Pop / Dance Pop] [2023 also]
22 :Sekou [Pop-soul / Neo-soul]
23 : CMAT [Folk / Pop / Country]
24 : Elmiene [R&B / Neo-Soul] [2023 also] (BBC Sound Of #5)
The Longlist / Missed the Cut - Alphabetical
- AntsLive [UK Rap]
- As December Falls [Alternative / Indie]
- Beatrice M [Dubstep]
- Borough Council [Rock / Alternative / Post-Punk]
- Cardinals [Rock / Alt Rock / Shoegaze]
- Clavish [UK Rap]
- Coffin Mulch [Death Metal]
- Cristale [UK Rap]
- Cwfen [Occult Metal]
- Delilah Bon [Nu Metal]
- Destrata [Techno]
- Discovery Zone [Pop / Experimental Pop / Electronic Pop]
- Dream Phone [Punky Pop / Electronic Pop]
- English Teacher [Alernative / Indie]
- Eunuchs [Alternative / Indie]
- Fat Dog [Alernative / Indie]
- Florentina [German Hip-Hop / Hip-Pop]
- Flying Boss [Hip-Hop]
- Flytrap [Alternative / Indie / Rock]
- Fridayy [R&B]
- Friko [Alternative / Indie / Rock]
- gglum [Alternative / Indie]
- Grove Street [Metal Core / Crossover]
- Hailey Knox [Alternative / Indie / R&B]
- Halflives [Alternative / Indie]
- Highlyy [Afrobeats]
- HotWax [Post-Punk / Alt-Rock / Grunge]
- Hemlocke Springs [Pop]
- Henry Moodie [Pop]
- Heriot [Metalcore / Grindcore]
- Holy Wars [Alternative / Indie]
- Hotline TNT [Indie Rock / Shoegaze]
- Jazzy [Dance Pop / Hip-Hop]
- Jordan Ward [R&B / Soul]
- Judeline [Latin Urbano / Pop]
- Khamari [R&B / Soul / Pop]
- KickBoy [Post-Punk]
- Kiimi [Dance / Electronic]
- King Isis [Alternative / Indie]
- Lambrini Girls [Alternative / Indie]
- Libianca [Afrobeats / R&B / Afro-soul]
- Lola Brooke [Hip-Hop]
- LØLØ [Alternative / Indie / Pop]
- Lovejoy [Indie Rock / Pop-Punk]
- LU KALA [Pop]
- LVRA [Alternative / Indie / Pop / Electropop]
- Lynks [Electro-Punk]
- Mae Stephens [Pop]
- Man/Woman/Chainsaw [Pop-Punk / Post-Punk]
- Mette [Pop]
- Militarie Gun [Alternative Rock]
- Moistbreezy [Dance / Electronic / Pop]
- Moses Sumney [Indie Rock / Electro-Soul / Art Rock / Baroque Pop]
- Mouth Culture [Alternative / Indie / Rock]
- Nemzzz [UK Rap / Trap]
- No Guidnce [R&B Boyband]
- Pest Control [Thrash Metal]
- Picture Parlour [Indie Rock]
- Qing Madi [Afrobeat / Pop / Soul / R&B]
- Rats-Tails [Dream Rock]
- Rose Droll [Alternative / Indie]
- Rosey Gold [Amapiano / Nigerian R&B / Dance / Electronic]
- Sailor Honeymoon [Alternative / Indie]
- Sarah Kinsley [Alt Pop]
- Scarlett Woolfe [Alternative / Indie]
- ScarLip [New York Hip-Hop / Gangsta-Rap]
- Shooting Daggers [Queercore Punk]
- Snayx [Rock / Post-Punk]
- Sol ChYld [Hip-Hop / Rap]
- Spider [Alternative / Indie]
- Spiritual Cramp [Alternative / Indie]
- Strandz [UK Rap]
- Strawgirl [Indie / Grunge / Noise Rock]
Sulk [Psychedelic Rock / Shoegaze / Post-Punk] - Tara Clerkin Trio [Experimental / Acid Jazz / Alternative / Indie]
- Teezo Touchdown [Alternative Hip Hop / Rap Rock]
- Tiger Really? [Rock]
- Unpeople [Alt-Metal]
- Urban Heat [Alternative / Indie]
- Zeph [Alternative / Indie]
Known Named Albums I'm Looking Forward To in 2024 (by release month)
- The Smile - Wall of Eyes [January]
- Allie X - Girl with No Face [February]
- Chromeo - Adult Contemporary [February]
- Jacob Collier - Djesse Vol. 4 [February]
- The Last Dinner Party - Prelude to Ecstasy [February]
- MGMT - Loss of Life [February]
- Nouvelle Vague - Should I Stay or Should I Go? [February]
- Everything Everything - Mountainhead [March]
- Lenny Kravitz - Blue Electric Light [March]
- Tyla - Tyla [March]
- Azealia Banks - Fantasea II: The Second Wave [TBA]
- Bat for Lashes - The Dream Of Delphi [TBA]
- The Cure - Songs Of A Lost World [TBA]
- Grimes - BOOK 1 [TBA]
- Kasabian - Happening [TBA]
- Nero - Into the Unknown [TBA]
- Rihanna - R9 [TBA]
- Sia - Reasonable Woman [TBA]
- Sky Ferreira - Masochism [TBA]
2024 Album Release Schedule Highlights
A curated release schedule for the year - featuring yet more of my favourite artists!
JANUARY
- Alkaline Trio - Blood, Hair, and Eyeballs
- Angry Blackmen - The Legend of ABM
- Anna Calvi & Nick Launay - Peaky Blinders: Season 6
- * Armin van Buuren - Breathe In
- Astrid Sonne - Great Doubt
- Bad Gyal - La Joia
- Benny the Butcher - Everybody Can't Go
- Bill Ryder-Jones - Iechyd Da
- Boldy James and Nicholas Craven - Penalty of Leadership
- Brion Gysin - Junk
- Bring Me the Horizon - POST HUMAN: NeX GEn
- Casey - How to Disappear
- Chatham County Line - Hiyo
- Courting - New Last Name
- Craig Wedren - The Dream Dreaming
- D-Block Europe - Rolling Stone
- Dead Poet Society - Fission
- Donato Dozzy - Magda
- Ekkstacy - Ekkstacy
- Fabiano de Nascimento and Sam Gendel - The Room
- The Fauns - How Lost
- Frank Carter & the Rattlesnakes - Dark Rainbow
- French Montana - Mac & Cheese 5
- Future Islands - People Who Aren't There Anymore
- (G)I-dle - TBC
- Ghetts - On Purpose, with Purpose
- Glass Beach - Plastic Death
- Green Day - Saviors
- Gruff Rhys - Sadness Sets Me Free
- Infant Island - Obsidian Wreath
- Itzy - Born to Be
- James Arthur - Bitter Sweet Love
- Kali Uchis - Orquídeas
- Kanye West and Ty Dolla Sign - Vultures
- Katy Kirby - Blue Raspberry
- Kid Cudi - Insano
- Kula Shaker - Natural Magick
- Lou Reed - Hudson River Wind Meditations
- Lyrical Lemonade - All Is Yellow
- Magnum - Here Comes the Rain
- Marika Hackman - Big Sigh
- Nailah Hunter - Lovegaze
- Neck Deep - Neck Deep
- Nicholas Craven & Boldy James - Penalty of Leadership
- Packs - Melt the Honey
- Philip Glass - Philip Glass Solo
- Playboi Carti - TBC
- Radical Redemption - The Solo's
- The Reytons - Ballad of a Bystander
- Robby Krieger and the Soul Savages - Robby Krieger and the Soul Savages
- Robyn Ottolini - Growing Up to Do
- The Rods - Rattle the Cage
- Sarah Jarosz - Polaroid Lovers
- Saxon - Hell, Fire and Damnation
- SF9 - TBC
- Sleater-Kinney - Little Rope
- * The Smile - Wall of Eyes
- Static-X - Project: Regeneration Vol. 2
- Torres - What an Enormous Room
- Touché Amoré - Is Survived By
- Ty Segall - Three Bells
- The Umbrellas - Fairweather Friend
- The Vaccines - Pick-Up Full of Pink Carnations
FEBRUARY
- Ace Frehley - 10,000 Volts
- * Allie X - Girl with No Face
- Amaranthe - The Catalyst
- Amigo the Devil - Yours Until the War Is Over
- Belly - 96 Miles from Bethlehem
- Blackberry Smoke - Be Right Here
- The Body and Dis Fig - Orchards of a Futile Heaven
- Brittany Howard - What Now
- Cast - Love Is the Call
- Chelsea Wolfe - She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She
- Chief Keef - Almighty So 2
- * Chromeo - Adult Contemporary
- Corb Lund - El Viejo
- Darkest Hour - Perpetual | Terminal
- The Dead South - Chains & Stakes
- Declan McKenna - What Happened to the Beach?
- Dhani Harrison - INNERSTANDING
- Donny Benét - Infinite Desires
- Ducks Ltd. - Harm's Way
- El Perro del Mar - Big Anonymous
- Elephant Stone - Back Into the Dream
- Erick the Architect - I've Never Been Here Before
- Gabby Barrett - Chapter & Verse
- Grandaddy - Blu Wav
- Helado Negro - Phasor
- Honeymoon Suite - Alive
- Hurray for the Riff Raff - The Past Is Still Alive
- I Dont Know How But They Found Me - Gloom Division
- Idles - Tangk
- Infected Rain - Time
- Ihsahn - Ihsahn
- J Mascis - What Do We Do Now
- J. Robbins - Basilisk
- * Jacob Collier - Djesse Vol. 4
- Jazmin Bean - Traumatic Livelihood
- Jennifer Lopez - This Is Me... Now
- Jessica Mauboy - Yours Forever
- Job for a Cowboy - Moon Healer
- Kelela - Rave:N, the Remixes
- Kirin J. Callinan - If I Could Sing
- L Devine - Digital Heartifacts
- Lætitia Sadier - Rooting for Love
- Laura Jane Grace - Hole in My Head
- * The Last Dinner Party - Prelude to Ecstasy
- Lee "Scratch" Perry - King Perry
- Les Amazones d'Afrique - Musow Danse
- * MGMT - Loss of Life
- Madi Diaz - Weird Faith
- Mary Timony - Untame the Tiger
- Meth Math - Chupetones
- Mick Mars - The Other Side of Mars
- Middle Kids - Faith Crisis Pt 1
- Mother Mother - Grief Chapter
- Nadine Shah - Filthy Underneath
- * Nouvelle Vague - Should I Stay or Should I Go?
- The Obsessed - Gilded Sorrow
- Omni - Souvenir
- The Once - Out Here
- Paloma Faith - The Glorification of Sadness
- Philip Sayce - The Wolves Are Coming
- The Pineapple Thief - It Leads to This
- Pouty - Forgot About Me
- Pylon Reenactment Society - Magnet Factory
- Real Estate - Daniel
- Rod Stewart and Jools Holland - Swing Fever
- Royel Otis - Pratts and Pain
- San Fermin - Arms
- Serpentwithfeet - Grip
- Sleepytime Gorilla Museum - Sleepytime Gorilla Museum of the Last Human Being
- The Snuts - Millennials
- Sonic Youth - Walls Have Ears
- Steve Hackett - The Circus and the Nightwhale
- The Strumbellas - Part Time Believer
- Tinlicker - Cold Enough for Snow
- Usher - Coming Home
- Vera Sola - Peacemaker
- Vijay Iyer Trio - Compassion
- William Doyle - Springs Eternal
- Zara Larsson - Venus
MARCH
- Another Sky - Beach Day
- The Bevis Frond - Focus on Nature
- Big Big Train - The Likes of Us
- Bleachers - Bleachers
- Bolis Pupul - Letter to Yu
- Brittany Davis - Image Issues
- Bruce Dickinson - The Mandrake Project
- Chastity Belt - Live Laugh Love
- Chuck Strangers - A Forsaken Lover’s Plea
- Coco - 2
- David Reece - Baptized by Fire
- Deadman - Genealogie der morale
- Dion - Girl Friends
- DragonForce - Warp Speed Warriors
- Ed Harcourt - El Magnifico
- * Everything Everything - Mountainhead
- Gossip - Real Power
- The High Llamas - Hey Panda
- Jahari Massamba Unit (Madlib and Karriem Riggins) - YHWH Is Love
- The Jesus and Mary Chain - Glasgow Eyes
- Judas Priest - Invincible Shield
- Kahil El’Zabar & Ethnic Heritage Ensemble - Open Me, a Higher Consciousness of Sound and Spirit
- Kaiser Chiefs - Kaiser Chiefs' Easy Eighth Album
- Kita Alexander - Young in Love
- Lauran Hibberd - girlfriend material
- * Lenny Kravitz - Blue Electric Light
- The Libertines - All Quiet on the Eastern Esplanade
- Mannequin Pussy - I Got Heaven
- Master Peace - How To Make A Master Peace
- Meatbodies - Flora Ocean Tiger Bloom
- Mildlife - Chorus
- Ministry - Hopiumforthemasses
- New Years Day - Half Black Heart
- Odetta Hartman - Swansongs
- Paula Cole - Lo
- Peter Garrett - The True North
- Rage - Afterlifelines
- Rhodes - Un-finished
- Ricki-Lee - On My Own
- Saint Saviour - Sunseeker
- San Cisco - Under the Light
- Sarah Shook & the Disarmers - Revelations
- Scott Stapp - Higher Power
- Sheer Mag - Playing Favorites
- Sheryl Crow - Evolution
- Sonata Arctica - Clear Cold Beyond
- Starsailor - Where the Wild Things Grow
- The Staves - All Now
- Sultan & Shepard - Endless, Dawn
- Sum 41 - Heaven :x: Hell
- * Tyla - Tyla
- The Veronicas - Gothic Summer
- While She Sleeps - Self Hell
- Yard Act - Where's My Utopia?
APRIL
- Blacktop Mojo - Pollen
- Bob Vylan - Humble as the Sun
- Cock Sparrer - Hand in Heart
- Feeder - Black/Red
- Hawkwind - Stories from Time and Space
- Jebediah - Oiks
- Novelbright - Circus
- The Rifles - Love Your Neighbour
- Riot V - Mean Streets
- Still Corners - Dream Talk
MAY
- GIRLI - Matriarchy
- Momoiro Clover Z - Hydra
- Satyricon - TBC
JUNE
- Sea Girls - Midnight Butterflies
TBC / Release Dates and Titles Still To Be Announced / Confirmed
- Adrianne Lenker - TBA
- Alec Benjamin - TBA
- Ariana Grande - TBA
- Anitta - Funk Generation
- * Azealia Banks - Fantasea II: The Second Wave
- Backxwash - Black Sailor Moon 2
- * Bat for Lashes - The Dream Of Delphi
- Becky Hill - TBA
- Blossoms - TBA
- Boeckner - TBA
- Brad Paisley - Son of the Mountains
- * Brandon Flowers - TBA
- Bring Me the Horizon - Post Human : Nex Gen
- Broadcast - Spell Blanket : Collected Demos 2006–2009
- Cardi B - TBA
- Chance the Rapper - Star Line Gallery
- Chevelle - TBA
- Coldplay - Moon Music
- * The Cure - Songs Of A Lost World
- Deap Vally - Sistrionix 2.0
- Deicide - Banished by Sin
- Delta Heavy - Midnight Forever
- The Distillers - TBA
- Diddy - No Way Out 2
- * Dua Lipa - TBA
- Eartheater - Aftermath
- Elbow - TBA
- Exodus- TBA
- Fear Factory - TBA
- Gallagher/Squire - TBA
- * Grimes - BOOK 1
- GZA - Dark Matter
- High on Fire - TBA
- * J Balvin and Ed Sheeran - TBA
- Janet Jackson - Black Diamond
- Justice - TBA
- Justin Timberlake - TBA
- KMD - Crack In Time
- * Kasabian - Happening
- Katy Perry - TBA
- Kid Cudi - TBA
- Korn - TBA
- Laura Jane Grace - TBA
- Liam Payne - TBA
- Lorde - TBA
- Ludacris - TBA
- MC5 - TBA
- Maxwell - blacksummers’NIGHT
- Miguel - Viscera
- Mike Will Made It - Michael
- Morrissey - Bonfire Of Teenagers
- My Bloody Valentine - TBA
- Nails - TBA
- Nasty Savage - TBA
- Neon Indian - TBA
- * Nero - Into the Unknown
- Nightwish - TBA
- Onslaught - TBA
- Orlando Weeks - TBA
- Pallbearer - TBA
- Phantom Planet - TBA
- Radical Redemption - The Collabs
- Radical Redemption - The Orchestra of Eternity
- * Rihanna - R9
- Sacred Reich - TBA
- Sam Fender - TBA
- * Sia - Reasonable Woman
- Showtek - TBA
- * Sky Ferreira - Masochism
- Snoop Dogg - Missionary
- Sugababes - TBA
- Testament - TBA
- Toadies - TBA
- Tones and I - TBA
- Travis Barker - TBA
- Urban Heat - TBA
- The Veronicas - GOTHIC SUMMER
- W.A.S.P. - TBA
- Zack de la Rocha - TBA