Ky Voss

I discovered Ky Voss when I first heard her song “Sorry to Bother You” and was impressed by the production. She makes 80s-inspired electropop with heavy reverb on her vocals, causing the lyrics to often fade into the background behind the sweeping instrumentals. The sound is intoxicating.

Her 2022 album “The After” is her best work, with “Night Drives,” “Vendetta,” and “N.E. Thing” being particular highlights. Other highlight tracks are “Funeral Dream” and her shimmering masterpiece “Masochism.”

Joey Valence & Brae

Joey Valence and Brae are a rap duo evolving the Beastie Boys formula in 2026 and it is fucking awesome. They make extremely fun and well-produced rap music full of dorky cultural references said with so much confidence that it still goes hard. Some of my favorite tracks are “Hooligang,” “THE BADDEST,” “WASSUP,” and “push the pipe.”

Sophie Hunter

I recently learned of the Brooklyn-based rapper and pop artist Sophie Hunter and was surprised to learn she isn’t popular. She makes New York-style rap with a curious fusion of the typical braggadocio expected of the genre with frank explorations of her self-destructive tendencies and self-loathing. Most of her music is only released as singles and features, but she does have a “real” project available on streaming platforms in her 2024 EP “WAIL!”. The song “Cha Cha” from that EP is a perfect distillation of what she does. I also love her verse in “Walk,” a single she released last year with Rob Apollo.