NEW YORK, Dec. 12, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- SiriusXM and
Pandora today announced the lineup of emerging artists they predict
will make it big in 2020. Selected by the combined company's music
editorial, programming, and curation teams, the 24 artists spanning
genres including country, rock, pop, hip hop, Latin, dance, and
more.
"This list represents an exciting and fascinating range of
music, and we look forward to our listeners discovering and
listening to these new artists in 2020 and beyond on SiriusXM and
Pandora," said Scott Greenstein,
SiriusXM's President and Chief Content Officer. "Our platforms are
the best place to discover new music and we look forward to
introducing and promoting these talented artists to our listeners
across both services."
SiriusXM and Pandora's 2020 Predictions:
Ali Gatie: Ali Gatie is no stranger to Pandora's
Trendsetters and Predictions charts and understandably so. His
heart-wrenching lyrics coupled with his moody, lo-fi production
truly gives us all the feels. His hit single "It's You" debuted
earlier in 2019, and definitely got the world's attention and
garnered tens of millions of streams. Ali Gatie's music is a refreshing reminder of
how necessary it can be to lean into heartache from time to
time.
Arin Ray: Arin Ray first took his shot at stardom as a
contestant on The X Factor back in 2012. Since then, he's been
writing hits for several artists like John Legend, Chris Brown, Nicki Minaj and Jeremih. While
currently signed to Interscope/Universal, Arin has so far cracked
the Pandora Predictions Chart Top 10 with "A Seat," his biggest
single to date.
Arizona Zervas: Within a month of its release on October 10, 2019, this Maryland-born rapper, singer and songwriter's
song "Roxanne" began receiving SiriusXM airplay support on multiple
channels including The Heat, Hip Hop Nation and Hits1. In the wake
of SiriusXM's support, the song has gone on to be streamed more
than 100 million times and has landed in the top 25 on the Top 40
chart and top 15 on the Rhythmic chart. In mid-November, Zervas
signed with Columbia Records.
BENEE: New Zealand-born Benee,
a shortened version of her name, Stella
Bennette, first grabbed our attention back in 2018 with her
single "Soaked," which is certified gold in NZ. Since then, she's
gone on to release her debut EP where she blends nostalgic sounds
with uptempo moments where she completely bends genre.
Doja Cat: This Southern California singer, songwriter, rapper
and producer's song "Juicy" received its first national airplay on
SiriusXM's Shade 45 in early March, and has since gone on to
receive major playlist support on The Heat. The song is currently
in the top 15 on both the Rhythmic and Urban radio charts.
Doja will wrap up 2019 by taking part in SiriusXM's exclusive live
coverage of the Rolling Loud Festival in LA.
Ekali: Ekali, the Canadian-born producer and DJ, was first known
for early production credits on Drake's If You're Reading This,
It's Too Late, along with high-profile collaborations with
Denzel Curry, Yuna, K. Flay,
Medasin, and ZHU. Since then, Ekali has been out slaying Festivals
like Coachella, Lollapalooza, Life is Beautiful, EDC and Ultra
while his 2018 EP Crystal Eyes was nominated for a Juno
award. We're so excited for his new music next year, and so far
we've gotten a taste of his new album with collaborations from
Au/Ra, Wafia, and Illenium.
Fire From The Gods: Hailing from Austin, Texas, Fire From The Gods received
their first radio play of their career in 2016 when SiriusXM's
Octane played "Excuse Me." Since then, the band was signed to a new
label, Better Noise, and their new song "Right Now" made its World
Premiere on Octane. In the following weeks, Octane also identified
the song as an "Octane Accelerator" when it was the first national
radio outlet to play the song in a regular rotation. The song has
since been on Octane's "Big Uns" top 15 weekly countdown for more
than 10 consecutive weeks.
Gabby Barrett: SiriusXM's The Highway selected Gabby Barrett as
a "Highway Find" artist after the success of her single "I Hope" in
February 2019. Four months later,
Gabby signed with Warner Music Nashville and "I Hope" reached #1 on
The Highway's Hot 30 Countdown.
girl in red: 20 year old Norwegian singer Marie Ulven seemed to come out of nowhere with a
dreamy new take on bedroom indie pop. Her music sweetly sums up all
too relatable misgivings of heading into adulthood like depression,
insecurity, and unrequited love. Considering she's only been making
music for a little under three years and already making major
waves, there is no doubt that this is just the start of something
big.
Hailey Whitters: Hailey Whitters is a rising force in country
music. This independent artist spent 2019 on the road opening for
Maren Morris, and has written hits
for Little Big Town, Alan Jackson
and Martina McBride. In a time where
the sonic breadth of country music continues to grow, Hailey Whitters is a refreshing reminder of what
its true roots sound like with the 2019 release of her EP The
Days.
Isabela Merced: Isabela Merced's catchy single "Papi," where she
makes it clear that relationships will be on her terms and she
stands on her own, flew up the US top 40 charts. So in addition to
her being a movie star (she acted in Instant Family and Sicario:
Day of the Soldado), we can add bad-ass pop star to her resume as
well.
Koffee: In a brief span of time, 19 year old Koffee (aka
Mikayla Simpson) has risen from
social media sensation to one of the most heralded artists in
reggae. After some immediate buzz around her first few singles, she
released "Toast" late in 2018 - an anthemic song that has resonated
with audiences worldwide. Her Rapture EP followed in 2019,
along with tours in the UK and opening for Daniel Caesar's US tour. Her EP was included in
this year's Grammy nominations for Best Reggae Album, earning
Koffee the accolade for the youngest artist ever nominated in the
category. With a new album on the horizon and a new single "W"
featuring Gunna already bubbling up, 2020 looks to be a huge year
for Koffee.
Layton Greene: Layton Greene is the first R&B artist signed
to Quality Control (home of Migos, Lil Yachty, Lil Baby & City
Girls). Her QC debut song "Leave Em Alone" has garnered nearly 100
million streams on Pandora and over 350 million worldwide.
Lil Keed: Lil Keed had the streets buzzing with his single
"Nameless." Born and raised in Atlanta, Keed grew up in the same neighborhood
as fellow ATL rapper Young Thug and is signed to Thug's label YSL
Records in a joint venture with 300 Entertainment. On top of
releasing his own critically acclaimed projects, Lil Keed has appeared on tracks with Future,
Young Thug, Gunna, Jacquees just to name a few.
Lil Tjay: Lil TJay represents the new wave of NYC rappers.
Hailing from the South Bronx, TJay
combines witty lyrics with a unique style and melodic flow. At only
18 years old, he's grabbed the attention of the entire industry,
especially after his feature on Polo G's "Pop Out" and his own
track "Brothers."
Mahalia: Mahalia has a sound that has transcended beyond the UK.
Named after gospel great Mahalia
Jackson, this young lady started writing and recording music
back in 2015. Each release pulled her deeper into the R&B
spotlight that she now shares with fellow Brit, Ella Mai. "What You Did" is Mahalia's first
single to debut on the US Billboard R&B charts.
Mallrat: Brisbane-based indie
pop sensation Mallrat has been slowly garnering a buzz for the past
several years. Already a household name in her native country of
Australia, she has secured opening
slots for big names like Post Malone and Maggie Rogers. Take into account her uber catchy
upbeat tracks that showcase her affinity for the 90s that
undoubtedly put you in a good mood and have you bobbing your head
and singing along only shows her mainstream success here in the
states is imminent.
NLE Choppa: NLE Choppa is the next big thing to come out of
Memphis, a city which has a
tradition of producing dope rappers. At the young age of 17, Choppa
only started taking rap seriously a few years ago, but once he got
serious he's been a force to be reckoned with. His breakout song
"Shotta Flow" went viral, helping NLE Choppa leverage his own
record label in partnership with Warner
Records.
Paloma Mami: Palomi Mami began
buzzing at the end of 2018, and the interest continues to grow
since debuting on the Pandora Predictions chart in March of this
year. The 20 year old Chilean-American singer is taking full
advantage of her bi-cultural upbringing, with her signature brand
of moody Latin urban/R&B, anchored by a convincing combo of
voice and lyricism that is equally adept in both English and
Spanish.
Pink Sweat$: Pink Sweat$ actually wears pink sweats a lot. It's
a part of his brand as well as being a descriptor of his laidback
soulful sound. His independently-released single "Honesty"
catapulted Pink to the forefront of the R&B landscape at the
end of 2018. He's newly-signed to Atlantic Records, releasing the
remix to "Honesty" with Jessie
Reyez.
Roddy Ricch: SiriusXM's Hip Hop Nation world debuted his track
"Die Young" and named it a "Hip Hop Nation First Alert" record in
mid-July 2018, since then the channel
has gone on to support his songs, "Die Young" and "Tip Toe" as well
as his recent collaborations with Marshmello and DJ Mustard. Roddy
spent part of summer 2019 opening for Post Malone, and wrapped up
the year by releasing his debut full length album, Please Excuse
Me for Being Antisocial, on December
6th.
Tones And I: Tones and I hails from Byron Bay Australia and
hopped on the scene in early 2018. After quitting her day job, she
lived out of her van for a year and tried her hand at busking. Fast
forward about a year, her smash single "Dance Monkey" hit #1 on
Pandora's Predictions chart and Shazam, is certified 3x platinum in
Australia and let's just say, she
puts on an amazing live show.
Tyla Yaweh: There's no denying Tyla Yaweh's star appeal. His
talent, high energy and charisma caught the attention of Post
Malone and Dre London causing the
duo to sign Yaweh to their label London Entertainment. The
Florida rapper has been tearing up
the festival stage circuit, performing everywhere from Rolling Loud
to SXSW, as well as Post Malone's European Tour.
Yemi Alade: Yemi Alade has been one of the biggest female
voices in Africa since breaking
out in 2013, but over the last year she's made some amazing inroads
into the US mainstream via her work on the Lion King
soundtrack and her collaboration with Rick
Ross. As her male counterparts continue to dominate
the conversation around Afropop, Yemi has quietly positioned
herself as one of the most consistent artists to come out of the
continent and a true contender to solidify the Afro Pop crossover
into the US.
SiriusXM and Pandora's list of predictions are based on a
combination of musical expertise, cultural knowledge, industry
insights, and data. These 24 exciting artists are comprised of the
SiriusXM's Future Five and the Pandora 2020 Artists to
Watch. Listen to the Pandora playlist highlighting their music
HERE.
About Pandora
Pandora, a subsidiary of SiriusXM, is
the leading music and podcast discovery platform, providing a
uniquely-personalized listening experience to approximately 70
million users each month with its proprietary Music Genome Project®
and Podcast Genome Project® technology - whether at home or on the
go - through its mobile app, the web, and integrations with more
than 2,000 connected products. As the largest streaming music
providers in the U.S., with an industry-leading digital audio
advertising platform, Pandora connects listeners with the music and
podcasts they love the most.
About SiriusXM
Sirius XM Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRI)
is the world's largest audio entertainment company, and the premier
programmer and platform for subscription- and advertising-supported
audio products. With the recent addition of Pandora, the largest
streaming music provider in the U.S., SiriusXM reaches more than
100 million people with its audio products. For more about the new
SiriusXM, please go to: SiriusXM.com.
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