There is one mantra I can always get behind: New year, new music!
Music has been a saviour throughout this pandemic, hyping us up and bringing us comfort during the seemingly endless days of isolation. Thankfully, we are only three New Music Fridays into the year and my January playlist is already giving me everything I need. But to sweeten the deal, I am beyond ready to keep absorbing every new single, album and artist discovery 2021 has in store (and I’ll bring the hottest new releases to you every Friday at 12AM EST on my Instagram!).
Check out five artists who are already showing great potential for making it big in the year ahead.
Zoe Wees
German singer-songwriter Zoe Wees lost all “Control” of her debut single’s promo circuit when much of the world went into lockdown just days after its March 2020 release. But such a beautiful song couldn’t go unnoticed and “Control” has since made quite the impact, garnering over 110 million Spotify streams. No big deal!
Zoe can now count Jessie J (her childhood music idol) and Sam Smith among her biggest fans; in fact, Zoe was tapped to open Sam’s Love Goes album release livestream concert filmed at the historic Abbey Road Studios in October. Best of all, Zoe just kicked off 2021 with her debut U.S. television performance on The Late Late Show with James Corden. She is one artist I’d love to see live as soon as concerts resume!
Watch the music video for her empowering new single “Girls Like Us” now and look out for much more music dropping soon!
Sinéad Harnett
You know you’ve made it once you have your own billboard. Sinéad Harnett checked off that major milestone just days into the new year while promoting her Amazon Original single, a cover of ’70s hit “At Your Best (You Are Love).”
there’s a little girl crying inside of me! she didn’t think she deserved anything like this. she didn’t think she was worthy of love. but you know what. she fucking is. and so are you!
The London-born songstress built an early following in 2013 through collaborations with big-name producers like Disclosure (“Boiling“) and Rudimental and MNEK (“Baby“). But it was her 2016 release “If You Let Me” that truly amplified her global profile, racking up 70 million Spotify streams and counting. Inspired to create in isolation, Sinéad recently found a new audience through Instagram, posting covers, comedy skits and even a special track aptly titled “Quarantine Queen.”
Heading into 2021, Sinéad has been putting the finishing touches on an eagerly-awaited new album. If she had a billboard in January, I can only imagine what she can accomplish by December. It’s only up from here.
Tate McRae
Canadian-born Tate McRae paved her path to success in 2020 with the release of her debut EP ‘all the things i never said’ and its self-mocking lead “stupid.” After a string of one-off singles, including collaborations with Lil Mosey (“vicious“) and Ali Gatie (“lie to me“), her heartbreaking song “you broke me first” suddenly picked up global steam. It helped Tate secure a spot in the Top 5 on Billboard’s Emerging Artist Chart and Top 20 on the Canadian Hot 100 Chart, as well as performances on Jimmy Kimmel Live! and the MTV Video Music Awards Pre-show. Released in December, Tate’s sassy new single “r u ok” is already keeping the momentum alive.
Tate is definitely one to watch this year, but don’t just take my word for it. The 17-year-old triple threat (singer, songwriter, and dancer first) was ranked among the top 50 most streamed female artists on Spotify globally at the end of 2020 and was the youngest musician named to Forbes’ 30 Under 30 List for 2021. She also just scored her first platinum certification with “you broke me first.”
Once you’re caught up on her catchy discography, get excited for Tate’s first new project of the year, slated for release Jan. 20.
iann dior
When the world slowed down, Puerto Rican rapper iann dior went full speed ahead—and the industry took notice. In what was nothing short of a massive year for the rising star, iann dior landed a major feature on 24kGoldn’s viral summer hit “Mood,” collaborated with Machine Gun Kelly, Travis Barker and Lil Baby, and surpassed 36 million monthly listeners on Spotify.
Setting the stage for what’s ahead in 2021, the 21 year old just dropped a new music video and has started teasing a new album on Instagram. Make sure to hit that follow button and keep iann dior on your radar!
Olivia Rodrigo
Olivia Rodrigo’s official debut single “drivers license” has landed the High School Musical: The Series actress in the fast lane to young pop royalty — and it could easily (and already) be one of the biggest releases of 2021. It went viral on TikTok (today’s top hit maker), has A-list endorsement from the likes of the Jonas Brothers, Taylor Swift and Niall Horan and has smashed all sorts of records, including breaking its own record for the biggest single day streams for a non-holiday song in global Spotify chart history (#1 with over 13.628 million). The song’s unprecedented success prompted the streaming platform itself to respond, with a representative telling Billboard, “I truly do think this is just a lightning-in-a-bottle moment that sort of brought together a number of factors in a way that they haven’t really been brought together recently. But I can’t say that the pop audience wasn’t hungry for a big pop song as well.” So… no pressure for that sophomore single, right?!
The real test of Rodrigo’s reign will depend on her new fans (all 4.3 million of them on Instagram alone) and TikTok stans rallying behind her future projects. But if the success of “drivers license” and her contributions to the High School Musical: The Series soundtrack are to be trusted, this is just the beginning of Olivia’s story.