If you’ve been following the blog for a while, you should already know that I’m a huge fan of music in general: I listen to a lot of it daily and the only thing I don’t feel bad spending money on is going to gigs. For me, it’s been one of those things I was inexplicably attracted to since I was a child. I wasn’t much into watching TV back then, but I would spend hours watching music video after music video on MTV and VH1, a pastime I would wake up significantly earlier for so I would do it before I did my homework. As years went by, my tastes in music have changed and shifted, I also picked up a guitar for the first time and started writing songs, and I’ve finally started going to concerts regularly. Here on the blog, I’ve already told you about my experience with synaesthesia, and I attempted to write two album reviews (here and here).
I guess if one thing hasn’t changed about what I like in music, that would be my admiration for women’s contribution to music. Every decade’s had its share of brilliantly talented, insanely hard-working and shockingly progressive female artists that have changed the music industry in their own way, but most of all, made it go forward. Not only have they changed the style of their time and encouraged genuine, raw lyricism with their songs, but they have also opened important social conversations that eventually elevated women’s status within the musical community. I do feel, though, that it would be silly of me to explain why artists like Patti Smith, Madonna, Alanis Morissette and many others have changed music – you can see their influence wherever you look.
Instead, I thought it would be a better idea if I pointed you guys at some newer, younger female artists who have only recently swept the public off its feet and who, I predict, will continue to impress and surprise in the near future. Admittedly, they are all pop artists but their take on the genre is widely different from one another, and essentially shows how diversified pop music can actually be. It also shows that pop music can have a strong, meaningful message, that it can be about having an important discussion, too, and last but not least, that music can and will contribute to be an avenue for female empowerment.
So without further ado, here you have, in no particular order, my personal list of female artists to look out for.
Hayley Kiyoko
(source: official Facebook page, link on picture)
I discovered Hayley Kiyoko in July 2015, shortly after the release of the music video for Girls Like Girls, an emotional electropop track that soon enough went viral and became an anthem for the Tumblr-based lesbian community. It was only a year later that I went back to her 2015 EP This Side of Paradise, and fell in love with Kiyoko’s impassioned, yet melancholic dream pop sound and bold songwriting. Three years later, Hayley Kiyoko is a name on everybody’s lips: the mixed-race American songstress released her debut album, Expectations, in March of this year, toured with Panic! At The Disco and is set to embark on her first European Tour this autumn, and recently joined Taylor Swift on what was her first stadium performance. She has become a spokesperson and a symbol for the LGBTQ+ community, and has even been dubbed ‘Lesbian Jesus’.
There are various reasons why Hayley Kiyoko is an a artist worth talking about. It’s refreshing and encouraging to see a young woman make it after years’ worth of hard work and commitment and continuous craft: Kiyoko has balanced both an acting career and a musical career for approximately eleven years. She recorded This Side of Paradise, which I hold so dear to my heart, in a freaking garage. She confessed to barely getting 3 to 4 hours of sleep a night, just so she can perform, travel, record, attend interviews and make her dream a reality. And all this work is going towards the birth of a peculiar musical style and a supportive message towards the LGBTQ+ community. I love that she is original, she actually makes good, catchy music and she isn’t the toast of the town just because she writes about being gay. Of course, I find that important as well, and I’m especially excited because her goal is to normalise lesbian relationships and bring them to the same level with heterosexual relationships, which are written about in music all the time. Do I think she will succeed in doing that? I think she’s done it already. As for the future, I’m certain this is just the start for Hayley Kiyoko.
Charli XCX
(source: United Singers International, link on picture)
On her real name Charlotte Aitchison, Charli XCX rose to fame in 2014 when she was featured on Australian rapper Iggy Azalea’s song Fancy, and her own song, Boom Clap, was featured on the soundtrack of the movie The Fault in Our Stars. As a result of that, her late 2014 studio album Sucker was met with a lot of public attention and received widely positive reviews. Charli’s discography is a bit larger than one would expect, including two studio albums, four mixtapes, two EPs and a total of 24 singles, ten out of which she is a featured artist on. The Essex-based singer, songwriter and producer has headlined four tours and opened for another ten, for artists such as Coldplay, Ellie Goulding, Katy Perry and Sia. At the moment, Charli is promoting her fourth mixtape, Pop 2, released in December 2017 and is the first opening act for Taylor Swift’s reputation Stadium Tour.
I was immediately attracted by the playful pop sound and gutsy, sometimes tongue-in-cheek lyricism of Charli’s music. It was very appealing for me as a synaesthete, as well: I was fascinated by the versatility and emotional depth of her records, which all sounded like complementary colours. (As I was doing my research for this post I found out that she has synaesthesia too, why am I not surprised??) I was lucky enough to see her opening up for Taylor Swift, as she knows how to put on a show and engage the crowd, and she has a lot of energy and good vocal quality, as well. But more than anything, Charli is an insane musical powerhouse: having started writing songs at the age of 14, she’s been recording, putting out music and performing since 2008. Despite being a well-known industry name, Charli has switched to creating music independently and putting out mixtapes on which she has a wide variety of guests such as MØ, Tove Lo, Carly Rae Jepsen and Cupcakke. She seems determined to have complete control over her style and craft and she wants to make sure that is known through the way she represents female empowerment in her music. Given the immense amount of success she’s had in the last year, I’m fairly certain that Charli XCX is here to stay.
Tessa Violet
(source: official Facebook page, link on picture)
You might not know Tessa Violet, but you’ve probably watched the unofficial music video for the song SAIL, by AWOLNATION – well, she is one of the gals in the video. Tessa started video blogging in 2007, at the age of 17, and under the username Meekakitty, she posted several gone-viral comedy music videos. But now it’s 2018 and Tessa has given up her online alias and currently has one album, three EPs and several singles under her belt. She is no longer a full-time YouTuber and she is rather focusing on her musical career, preparing for opening up for Dodie Clark’s American autumn tour and the release of her second record, Bad Ideas. The first single off the album, Crush, has already amassed almost two million streams on Spotify and has been added to several popular featured playlists. What else does Tessa have up her sleeve? We’ve got to wait and see.
Although I appreciate Tessa as a video creator, that’s not the way I’ve got to know her at all. Halfway through my first year of university, I stumbled upon Tessa’s 2016 EP Halloway, and that’s the only thing I’ve listened to that month (senior readers of the blog will remember it was actually my first featured Album of the Week). I related so much to the raw emotion, mellow sound and heartbreaking poetry of Tessa’s music, especially at that time in my life. As I gradually discovered more of her music, I fell in more awe with her ability to write about complex themes such as love, mental health and self-worth. I was so happy that someone with such a large online public chose to shift towards opening a conversation about important things that are on pretty much every young girl’s mind, and therefore need to be talked about. I also thought it was so courageous of her to pursue music independently, despite it being an irregular source of income, and I am honestly so glad to see that her dreams are coming true. And of course, I am so looking forward to listening to the new album.
Marina and the Diamonds
(source: official Facebook page, link on picture)
She is the latest addition to my Spotify library, but clearly, the artist I’m listening to the most right now. Making her debut in 2009 under the stage name Marina and the Diamonds, Welsh singer and songwriter Marina Diamandis has so far released three studio albums and one extended play, headlined three tours of her own and opened up for Coldplay and Katy Perry. Following the success of her EP The Crown Jewels and her performances at important English festivals, Marina put out her first album, The Family Jewels, which performed well in the UK charts, but it wasn’t until her sophomore album, Electra Heart, that she attracted an American audience. After releasing her third album Froot and performing a cycle of festivals all over the world, Marina took a break from being in the public eye and focused on writing her next record, and sure enough, last month she broke silence to announce that the new album is due this autumn. And good golly, I’m so excited to hear it.
The first thing that appealed to me in Marina’s music was the unique indie pop vibes, different from anything else that’s out there. Although sonically cohesive overall, her music is very fluid and each of her albums is a true ride on its own. Having listened to her songs time and time again, I got to see a certain pattern to her lyrics and their message, as well: more than anything, Marina writes about being a woman, being in love and being heartbroken. Her songs harbour a striking sincerity and her use of words is simple, yet disarming. She likes using metaphors and plays on words, which I am a fan of, and her goal seems to be creating a story within an album rather than just clustering songs together. Listening to any of her records is like watching a movie, so if you haven’t tried yet, I urge you to do it. Lastly, I would say that Marina impresses through being a successful, yet resilient female artist. She is doing her own thing, she doesn’t take crap from anybody. Her music paints her sensitive, yet strong. I can say that I’m only pumped to see what stories she has to tell next.
There are so many other young women in music that are killing it right now, but this post would become a book if I were to write about them all. Some of them I might not even know yet, and that’s where you guys come in! Who would you think should be added to the list? Which female artists do you like listening to and why? Let me know in the comments section down below!
And since this is the perfect occasion for me to plug my Spotify profile, I’ve made a playlist over there called everybody messes up sometimes, entirely dedicated to the female artists and voices that I like the most and deserve exposure. Check that out for songs from the brilliant ladies I talked about above, and so many others!
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Photo sources:
Hayley Kiyoko - Official Facebook page (link on picture)
Charli XCX - United Singers International (link on picture)
Tessa Violet - Official Facebook page (link on picture)
Marina and the Diamonds - Official Facebook page (link on picture)