From soulful boys to pop girls, jazz singers to art-rockers, our music critic ADRIAN THRILLS picks the rising stars set to shine in 2024…
LAUFEY
Her swooning vocals sound as though they might have come straight from the 1940s, but Icelandic-Chinese singer Laufey Lín Jónsdóttir is a jazz star for the digital age.
The 24-year-old (her name is pronounced Lay-Vay) is aiming to make jazz and classical music accessible to younger fans, and there are hints of Billie Eilish in her lovelorn, playful songs.
She’s an accomplished musician, too, having studied at Boston’s prestigious Berklee College of Music and played cello in a symphony orchestra.
Her swooning vocals sound as though they might have come straight from the 1940s, but Icelandic-Chinese singer Laufey Lín Jónsdóttir is a jazz star for the digital age
Her second album, Bewitched, is up for a Grammy next month, while her upcoming UK tour includes a May 16 concert at the Royal Albert Hall.
‘It’s a venue that has brought different worlds together, which I strive to do as a musician,’ she says (laufeymusic.com).
THE LAST DINNER PARTY
The big question surrounding the winners of Radio 1’s Sound Of 2024 poll and the BRITs Rising Star award is whether The Last Dinner Party can live up to the hype.
The female quintet have released only five singles, but they’ve also paid their dues by supporting Florence + The Machine and Lana Del Rey.
Their ornate but melodic art-rock owes something to Kate Bush and Bowie, while their stage attire — period dresses, lacy tops, corsets — lends a distinctive visual edge.
Their creative partnership with Jessie Ware’s producer James Ford augurs well for next month’s debut album, Prelude To Ecstasy, with the band marking its release with gigs in Bristol on Jan 30 and London’s Roundhouse on Feb 1 (thelastdinnerparty.co.uk).
The big question surrounding the winners of Radio 1’s Sound Of 2024 poll and the BRITs Rising Star award is whether The Last Dinner Party can live up to the hype
ELMIENE
Inspired by Stevie Wonder and the 1990s neo-soul of Erykah Badu and D’Angelo, Oxford singer-songwriter Abdala Elamin — aka Elmiene — is the most authentic British R&B voice to have emerged in years.
Blessed with a beseeching falsetto, the 22-year-old (whose stage name is pronounced ‘El-Mean’) began devising his own music while studying creative writing at Bournemouth University, fleshing out his songs with piano and percussion.
He has since released two EPs and, showing his versatility, his latest release puts a soulful spin on Jeff Buckley’s epic Lover, You Should’ve Come Over, a track he has described as ‘the perfect gateway’ to his own material (polydor.co.uk/artist/elmiene).
CAITY BASER
With her irreverent but true-to-life songs about ‘nonsense from boys, and the amazing times I’ve had with my best mates and fans’, Caity Baser is the perfect Generation Z pop star.
The 21-year-old singer from Southampton certainly ticks the right boxes. Before signing to major label EMI, she honed her craft by posting songs on TikTok, building up an army of fans who call themselves her Slaysers.
She’s since taken her show on the road, graduating from club dates to festival stages, and she starts a UK tour on March 26 at O2 Academy, Leeds, capping ticket prices to make the gigs affordable.
Recent single I Love Making Bad Boys Cry is one of 14 self-penned tracks on her forthcoming ‘mixtape’ Still Learning (caitybaser.com).
Caity Baser is the perfect Generation Z pop star
NOAH KAHAN
Vermont singer-songwriter Noah Kahan was a slow-burning success until his 2022 single Stick Season — its title a reference to late autumn in his native New England — suddenly picked up momentum last year after being covered by Olivia Rodrigo (on Radio 1) and Maisie Peters (on TikTok).
The ballad became an unlikely rival to Wham! for the Christmas No. 1, and is finally set to top the UK singles chart today, 18 months after its original release.
With his February arena tour sold out and a Grammy nomination under his belt, the bearded storyteller, 27, will be hard to avoid in the coming months.
With Ed Sheeran abandoning his penchant for folk-pop earworms, at least for now, Kahan has stepped into the breach (noahkahan.com).
KENYA GRACE
Raised, like Caity Baser, in Southampton (maybe there’s something in the Hampshire water), Kenya Grace Johnson is the rising star of British dance music.
When she reached No.1 last October with Strangers, a dreamy club anthem, she became only the second female artist to top the UK singles chart with a song written, performed and produced completely solo.
Raised, like Caity Baser, in Southampton (maybe there’s something in the Hampshire water), Kenya Grace Johnson is the rising star of British dance music
The only other woman to do so is Kate Bush, with Running Up That Hill in 2022, placing South African-born Johnson, 25, in elite company.
Having taught herself music production via YouTube, she honed her sound at her parents’ home during lockdown. Her debut EP is due this year (instagram.com/kenyagrace).
SEKOU
A small-town boy with the world at his feet, Leicestershire teenager Sekou Sylla is another ascendent UK soul voice.
Inspired to sing after his mum played him Whitney Houston’s version of The Greatest Love Of All, he posted cover versions on Instagram from the family home in Ashby-de-la-Zouch before making his first live appearance in the BBC Introducing tent at Glastonbury in 2022.
Last year’s debut single, Better Man, was a piano-led ballad that showcased his rich, gospel-tinged vocals, although he’s equally adept on breezier, up-tempo material.
Still only 19, he takes to the road next month, supporting Reneé Rapp on her Snow Hard Feelings tour (shop.sekoumusic.com).
OLIVIA DEAN
Olivia Dean got her early break singing with dance act Rudimental, and the smoky-voiced East Londoner, 24, has since won plaudits as a solo act.
Last year’s soulful debut album, Messy, addressed her romantic woes in a down-to-earth manner, winning her a place on the Mercury shortlist, while fans include Elton John, who hails her as ‘a fabulous singer’.
She launches her biggest UK tour in the spring, opening in Glasgow on April 25 (oliviadeano.com).