Editors' Picks

"Love War" marks Fiaa Hamilton's debut as a fully-formed artist. Set against a backdrop of dramatic, full-intensity electro-tinged pop, her voice exudes a finesse that instantly feels like an old favorite. With a compelling backstory, Fiaa has plenty of tales to tell.

Cassa Jackson is an independent artist who demonstrates that rising artists can carve out a name for themselves and achieve significant success without major backing. With 15 million streams under her belt and notable performances at venues like Wembley Arena, as well as opening for The Jacksons, things are certainly looking up for the artist. With a new single just released, I caught up with Cassa to ask her a few more questions.

Harleymoon Kemp, a fixture in the UK country music scene, has roots in a renowned musical lineage. Her father, Martin, is known as a member of Spandau Ballet, and her godfather was the late George Michael. Despite these connections, she modestly remains firmly grounded in her country roots. Today, she unveils her newest single, 'What Good Looks Like'. 

Today, Maya Lane unveils her latest folk-pop infused single, 'Heart for a Heart,' marking another milestone in her career. Positioned as the UK's answer to the illustrious pop/country crossover stars of the US, Lane has been steadily carving her path in the industry. With her music already gracing the airwaves of BBC Radio 1 and earning accolades from major press outlets, she has proven herself as a force to be reckoned with. With these achievements in mind, we seized the opportunity to delve deeper into Lane's artistry and aspirations in an interview.

Millie Manders and The Shutup, the cross-genre punk phenomenon, are gearing up for a season of music releases and live performances. Ahead of their double AA-side 7” single release and UK tour, culminating in a highly-anticipated London gig on May 16th, we caught up with Millie Manders to delve deeper into their upcoming projects and plans.

Karley Scott Collins has recently unveiled her newest single, "Marlboro Reds". Building on this latest release, she unmistakably infuses this country tune with a rockier edge, fuelled by her soulful and gritty energy. Hailing from Florida, she has earned a spot in CMT’s Next Women of Country Class of 2024, solidifying her status as one of the most promising emerging female artists. As Karley gears up for her upcoming European tour next month, including a debut at the C2C Festival, we were intrigued to learn more about her artistic journey.

Corey Kent, originally from Oklahoma and now based in Texas, is a rising star in the country music scene. With over 625 million career streams and a Platinum selling status, Kent is gathering momentum with both industry insiders and fans alike. In 2023, he earned recognition as a CMT Listen Up Artist and was named a Pandora Artist to Watch. He also secured spots in The Opry Next Stage Class of 2023 and the Sirius XM Class of 2022. His impressive achievements include a nomination for the AIMP Nashville Country Awards in the category of AIMP Rising Artist-Writer of the Year.

KillerStar seamlessly merges elements of modern and classic rock to craft a distinctive sound characterized by sophisticated harmonies, infectious hooks, and hints of art rock. Their latest album showcases a collection of unforgettable tracks that marry crunchy guitars with layered synths, gripping vocals, and dreamy harmonies.

Billboard charting Chapman Stick® artist Michael Kollwitz has recently shared his new compilation LP, "Best of Serenity," a remaster from his award-winning trilogy of "Serenity" albums.

From his early years, Owen Rivera demonstrated an innate musical gift. His extraordinary talents led him to share stages with musical stars like Jason Mraz, Mavis Staples, and Graham Nash. Astonishingly, his journey began with endorsement deals from esteemed brands like Soultone Cymbals, SJC Custom Drums, Tycoon Percussion, and Ernie Ball when he was just five years old.

Causier, a Leicester native, recently unveiled his latest single, 'So Far,' featuring his labelmate Erin LeCount. Following the release of this collaborative track, we had the opportunity to interview Causier and delve deeper into his journey as an artist.

In a fresh musical venture, two accomplished musicians, Ashley Campbell and Thor Jensen, bring their expertise across a wide range of genres, including Americana, country, bluegrass, gypsy jazz, and rock. Ashley Campbell, daughter of the legendary Glen Campbell, boasts a remarkable resume, having supported luminaries like Kris Kristofferson and The Bellamy Brothers. She also took to the stage as a part of Glen Campbell's band. With their eagerly anticipated debut album set for release in November, I had the opportunity to ask this dynamic duo some questions and delve deeper into their musical journey.

The self-proclaimed "Appalachian country soul music" band, 49 Winchester, has recently played a crucial supporting role for one of the biggest names in the country music scene, Luke Combs. Last week, I had the opportunity to connect with their frontman, Isaac Gibson, via Zoom, where he delved into various topics, such as the surge in country music's popularity in Europe and their experience touring with Luke Combs.

Originating from modest roots in the working-class regions of Wales, the Los Angeles-based artist Jamie Miller has risen to prominence as a breakthrough pop sensation, achieving remarkable international success. With just a single EP and a handful of singles to his name, he has garnered over a billion streams, with 'Here's Your Perfect' alone amassing more than 500 million streams and reaching #2 on Spotify's Global Viral chart. His talent has earned him praise from notable artists such as Sam Smith, BLACKPINK, Kelly Clarkson, P!nk, and Jennifer Hudson.

Just last week, Lucas Watt took centre stage at The Deaf Institute in Manchester for his headline show—a milestone reminiscent of his idols, such as The 1975, in their early days. Building on the success of his sold-out Gullivers Manchester headline show earlier this year, The Deaf Institute marked a significant step forward in Lucas's journey. Not only did he rise to the occasion, but he also delivered a standout performance that fostered remarkable crowd engagement and interaction.

This summer, Kevin Davy White has taken his unique mix of blues, funk, soul, and rugged classic rock on a journey. He's rocked massive outdoor stages alongside Lionel Richie and Gabrielle, as well as playingh festivals from Montreux Jazz Festival to Weyfest. With popular singles like ‘Honey’, ‘Thousand Stars’, and ‘Tomorrow’, Kevin's lifelong dream comes true as he drops his debut album 'Keep Dreaming Wild', featuring the standout track ‘It Will Come’.

Lauded for his devotion to country traditions, Tyler Booth took to the stage at the UK's C2C earlier this year. His next appearance will be at The Long Road Festival on August 26th, followed by his inaugural UK Headline tour, featuring performances in Manchester, London, and Glasgow. Booth's talent has also seen him share the spotlight with notable names like Darius Rucker, Jon Pardi, Brooks & Dunn, and Cody Johnson. Excitingly, he is slated to kick off Jake Owen's "Loose Cannon Tour" in the upcoming US autumn season. Through his relentless touring efforts, Booth has cultivated a dedicated fanbase, bolstered by his impressive following of over a million on social media. 

Norwegian artist Herkedal has already made a name for himself in his homeland, where he won the TV show IDOL with a mix of original material and inspired covers of songs by RY X and Tom Odell. A big attraction of Herkedal is his ability and range of vocals, shifting from Baritone to soulful high notes.

This week we had the chance to catch up with pop artist Arum Flowers. Her new single “No Quieres” reflects her Spanish roots, showcasing R&B and latin influences.

Dublin, Dance/Electronic duo Obskür have made their way onto the scene with popular productions like 'Bayside,' which has gathered worldwide attention. Their tracks have gained around 80 million streams collectively on Spotify alone. They’ve played shows with some of the UK and Ireland's biggest clubbing brands, including The Warehouse Project, Creamfields, Reading & Leeds Festival, XOYO in London, as well as Amnesia alongside Sonny Fodera and Danny Howard. They’ve also expanded onto the worldwide circuit. Recently, we managed to catch up with them at the Beat-Herder Festival in Lancashire, UK.

Izo FitzRoy, the talented gospel, blues, and jazz singer-songwriter, distinguished herself from her peers with her first two albums, 'Skyline' (2017) and 'How The Mighty Fall' (2020). Her music featured uplifting harmonies, powerful lead vocals, and impressive live performances, which garnered widespread critical acclaim worldwide. As a result, she earned plays on various BBC radio stations, including BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio 1, BBC 6 Music, and BBC London JazzFM. Additionally, she received accolades such as the FIP Selection award and was featured on NPR's 'Heavy Rotation' in the US. On top of that, her Spotify listenership reached almost half a million monthly listeners.

This week, we had the pleasure of catching up with the talented singer/songwriter, Callum Spencer, as he graced the stage at The Mess Room in Skipton for a sold-out full band gig. As an Indie-Folk artist, Callum delivered a great performance, showcasing his remarkable vocals, powerful voice, and an array of captivating, well-crafted songs that left the audience thoroughly enthralled. Notably, his recent successful tour in Poland has further cemented his presence on the music scene, with a string of impressive gigs and coveted festival slots, solidifying his position as a rising artist to watch.

Ada Morghe's recent album, titled 'Lost,' skillfully wove together a captivating blend of refined expressive vocals, an ambitious and uplifting concept, and expertly executed musicianship. In a testament to her diverse creative abilities as an actress, author, and director, Ada now unveils an exciting twist by presenting 4hero's fresh remix of the title track. 

Embark on a thrilling journey as Kris James ascends to new heights in his musical career. Recently, he had the incredible opportunity to support acclaimed artists Will Young and Anastacia during their UK and European tours. Now, the talented singer-songwriter from Liverpool is ready to captivate audiences once again with his first release of 2023 - the soul-stirring summer single 'Caught Feelings'. With this latest track, Kris invites fans to delve into the depths of his true essence, providing an intimate glimpse into his raw emotions and genuine self. Fearlessly embracing his authenticity, he unleashes a symphony of unfiltered thoughts and heartfelt sentiments. As his latest song takes flight, we sat down with Kris to learn more about his journey as an artist and discover what inspires his craft.

The enchanting Belle Roscoe, a talented sibling duo from Australia, captivate their audience with a mesmerizing blend of contemporary Americana and timeless folk-rock reminiscent of the '70s. Their latest single, "The Birds," showcases their unique style, and now they unveil the eagerly awaited music video for the song, just in time for their performance at the esteemed Black Deer Festival on June 17th. In our recent interview with Belle Roscoe, we delved deeper into their story, asking them a series of questions.

Singer-songwriter Dave Hause is currently on his European tour to showcase the upcoming release of his album, "Drive It Like It's Stolen," due at the end of April. On his latest release, the punk rock turned Americana artist delves into a more fictional type of storytelling to create what he terms "post-apocalyptic Americana."

As this year's Sunday headliner at the Country to Country festival in London, the multi-platinum, Grammy Award-winning, Southern rock group led by frontman Zac Brown offered UK country music fans the chance to once again experience their outstanding, dynamic live performances that often defy genre boundaries.

Skerryvore's unique blend of Scottish traditional music and contemporary alt-pop has been captivating audiences both at home and abroad. Their upcoming album 'Tempus', set to be released on April 28th via Cooking Vinyl, showcases the band's evolution with an intoxicating mix of anthemic highs, strident rock, stadium-folk thrills, and subtle dance beats. To kick off 2023, Skerryvore has shared the album's first official single 'Everything You Need', which debuted on Zoe Ball's Radio 2 Breakfast Show.

The Kingdom Choir have made their return with a brand new single ‘Not Giving Up’. Founded in 1994 by Karen Gibson MBE (the Godmother of Gospel), The Kingdom Choir have continued to win hearts since their unforgettable performance at the 2018 Royal Wedding in front of a global televised audience of 2 billion people. This boost of exposure has since given them a range of opportunities and exposure they could only have dreamt of. 

Tide Lines are a Scottish four piece band established in 2016. They’ve built a keen fan base and have been releasing music totally off their own back. Eye of the Storm was the band's last album, and the self-produced, self-released LP entered at #12 in the Official Album Charts - some feat for a DIY release. 

After leaving his homeland of Scotland for the epicentre of the music scene in Nashville, Tennessee, Sean C Kennedy has set his gaze towards his sonic signature of 2022. As an entirely independent artist, Sean C Kennedy has built a strong foundation to his career, achieving over 5 million streams at Apple Music. With that groundwork in place, Sean is now primed for visionary opportunities beginning with last week's release of his newest single, ‘Hurts To See You Go’.

Aphir’s heavenly electronic artististry is equally inspired by 17th century choral arrangements, as it is by modern hyperpop. 

With great vocals and honest lyrics, Matt Stell has quickly made his mark on the country music scene.

Jade Helliwell is firmly establishing herself in the UK country music scene. Born in Yorkshire, Jade crafted that Nashville sound, and added her own take drawing influences from Carly Pearce, Tenille Arts and Maren Morris. 

Dutch artist Gildor has just introduced himself to UK audiences with his latest single and video ‘Thinking Back’. The folk-pop singer-songwriter is emerging from a niche scene of musicians in the Netherlands that is slowly growing, and he’s already starting to establish his name further afield. 

Aaron Raitiere is one of Nashville’s most respected songwriters with cuts by Maren Morris, Miranda Lambert, Ashley McBryde, Anderson East, The Oak Ridge Boys, Midland, Shooter Jennings, Brent Cobb, Hayes Carll and many more.

Canadian folk band Wild Rivers have already amassed over 200 million streams and built a strong following on Spotify. With their album release this Friday 4^th Feb, they’re set to follow this up with a UK and European tour in May 2022.

Claudillea is known for her stunning operatic voice that blends pop, trap, hip-hop and electronica - a genre she calls OPPOP. In 2020 she rose to recognition on The Voice with Team Meghan.

Freddie Long is a rising singer-songwriter from Sussex who's been quietly gaining the attention of some big names, and got the likes of MTV UK mentioning him in the same breath as Tom Grennan and Lewis Capaldi.

Drew Sycamore is a name that’s already established in her homeland of Denmark. With three consecutive #1 singles under the belt (including a 16 week run at the top for ‘I Wanna Be Dancing’ and another 7 for ‘45 Fahrenheit Girl’) on the official Danish Radio Chart.

Multi-platinum singer-songwriter Vance Joy first gained recognition with his worldwide megahit “Riptide.” Since his debut album Dream Your Life Away, the Australian artist released a second album Nation of Two, which has now gained over 500 million streams. 

In times saturated by independent artists trying to make that break, on a plethora of different streaming and viewing platforms - gaining recognition, and even a modest amount of streams becomes an almost impossible task alone.

L.A based singer-songwriter GoldFord is back with a relatable anthem which couldn't be more fitting. When ‘Walk With Me’ was recently shared on major platforms, the catchy number had already been used on several large advertising campaigns and TV programmes.

Philippe Cohen, the million-selling artist, producer and composer who co-founded Gotan Project has teamed up with Mike Lindsay from band Tunng to release the album ‘OUTSIDER’. 

Charlotte Jane is a name that you'll probably be hearing a lot more about in the near future.

Flawes are a dynamic electro-pop trio consisting of JC (Josh Carruthers), Freddie Edwards, and Josh Hussey, all of whom come from a session musician’s background.

Pete Greenwood & the Dark Stars is the current band of the British singer-songwriter from Leeds. Over the years he’s toured in several groups including Starsailor and Mojave 3. In addition, he has also worked with psychedelic rock band The See See and country rock band The Loose Salute. 

Passenger is an English singer-songwriter and musician primarily known for his massive hit 'Let Her Go,' which gained multi-platinum status in numerous countries around the world. After hitting platinum four times in the U.K., and six times in the U.S., the song then went on to gain 19 #1 chart positions. Additionally, it has now reached over three billion Youtube views and similar figures in Spotify streams.

Josh Groban is a multi-platinum selling singer, songwriter, musician and actor from California, who's known for his distinctive baritone voice. He has sold over 25 million records worldwide, charting as the best selling USA artist back in 2007. In addition to a successful music career, he has also appeared in a substantial amount of popular movies and TV shows.

Amy Macdonald is one of the most successful international touring artists to emerge from Scotland, with over 12 million records sold, and accumulation of over 200 million Spotify streams. Her breakthrough was in 2007 with her debut album ‘This Is The Life,’ which reached number 1 in four countries, including the UK. The eponymous single from the album became her most successful, having reached number one in six different countries. 

Irish singer-songwriter Flynn has recently found himself featured on many key Spotify playlists, accelerated by his involvement in Lost Frequencies track ‘Recognise’ (over 40 million streams). Now with his latest track ‘B-Side' generating 300K+ streams in only a few weeks, and the likes of Niall Horan sharing his previous track 'One Of Us', it seems he's setting great foundations for the future.

At just 19 years of age, Caroline Romano has already achieved what most would dream of. From supporting artists such as Shawn Mendes and Kelsea Ballerini, to racking up millions of views/streams - the future looks bright for this Nashville based pop artist. Having recently shared a remix with R3HAB, we caught up with Caroline to ask some further questions.

Today sees the release of ‘Make Do’ from Jerry Castle, a song sure to heat up many playlists. His style described by himself as “Cosmic Country meets Appalachian Soul” offers a sound that will appeal to a wide audience. 

Sporting a rather unfortunate name, The Coronas have recently been labelled "Ireland’s most famous contemporary pop act right now". With a spike in media interest surrounding their title, a recent song release with Gabrielle Aplin, and an upcoming album on 31st July - I caught up with Danny from the band to ask some further questions.

Vic Allen is a rising British country artist who’s been stirring regular interest with her stunning vocals and songwriting talent. From catching the attention of the BBC’s Bob Harris whilst part of the “Write Like a Girl” tour, to reaching top positions on the iTunes UK Country Chart, plus supporting Sarah Darling - Vic is becoming an interesting artist on the UK country scene.

Singer-songwriter Daisy Clark has already wowed audiences with her breathtaking vocals, and garnered millions of views/streams between Youtube and Spotify. With receiving praise from the likes of Billie Eilish and being tipped as 'one to watch' by the BBC, we caught up with her to talk about her new single ‘Battle Scars’ and life as an artist.

Actor, singer, former Disney star Asher Angel has taken over the scene in a big way this year. His early 2020 single ‘Chills’ claimed its place on over 22 playlists, including  Apple’s Breaking Pop, Spotify’s New Music Friday and YouTube’s Pop on the Rise.

Gavin James is a talent which has emerged from Ireland and proved to be another success story. With over a billion online streams, sold-out arena gigs totalling 250,000 ticket sales, plus supporting Niall Horan, Sam Smith and Ed Sheeran - he’s got plenty to talk about.

Jazz/soul artist Ada Morghe recently shared her latest song 'Oh My Love' off her forthcoming album 'Box' due in August. Being an actress, a scriptwriter, a children’s author and a jazz singer, Ada has plenty of experience and this was reflected in her debut album 'Pictures' which gained over 1 million streams.

Irish singer-songwriter Miles Graham, who’s known for his involvement in high profile Billboard Dance hits with Don Diablo and L’Tric, and also hitting Radio 2’s playlists will be hoping his latest single ‘Don’t Change’ gets similar treatment. As a talented rising singer-songwriter, I caught up with Miles to ask him some further questions about his music. 

Folk-pop singer/songwriter Lucy May Walker got a surprise boost from the BBC's Jeremy Vine when he discovered her busking at a train station. With an interesting story behind her, Lucy continues to sell-out headline tours and share the stage with some great names in music.

Nashville-based country star Sarah Darling, who's known for making regular appearances on BBC radio and TV is becoming a popular name within the British country music circles. Having played at C2C London and an official UK country album #1 under her belt, this Billboard charting hot US act welcomes Britain as her second home.

Nashville-based country duo Haley & Michaels are on the rise with over 40 million online streams. Making regular TV appearances, they continue to share the stage with some of the biggest names in country music, receive praise from Rolling Stone, plus features in TIME, The New York Times, Washington Post and USA Today.

Dubbed as one of Ireland's fastest rising new talents, and already gaining rave reviews from the likes of The Independent, Clash, Wonderland and Atwood Magazine - Lilla Vargen is establishing her name firmly as an artist. 

Yael Naim, who built a global following from her song being personally selected by Apple's Steve Jobs for a high profile ad campaign, is back with her fourth album 'Nightsongs', due next month. 

On the 31st July, we managed to catch up with Northern Irish Country singer Catherine McGrath for a quick interview in the green room of Manchester HMV.