2024 has been an exciting year for new music, and acts like Michigander and Jelly Roll who began as indie artists self-releasing music on TuneCore started to become household names. And there’s always more rising DIY stars on the horizon, ranging from rock to funk to pop to neo-soul. Here are the SPIN x TuneCore Accelerator independent artists you should catch up on as we head into 2025.
SNACKTIME
SNACKTIME formed in 2020 in Philadelphia, a city that’s well known for silky soul, but the septet spike their funk with punk and hip-hop influences. The band’s raucous free shows in Rittenhouse Square helped them build a rabid following, which led to the unorthodox move of releasing a live album, 2022’s Sounds From the Street, as their debut release. SNACKTIME’s energetic and creative fusion of genres on their 2024 EP, This Is Dance Music, has won famous fans, and they’ve toured with Portugal. The Man and performed at comedian Eric Andre’s 40th birthday party. For the second year in a row, SNACKTIME will headline Brooklyn Bowl Philadelphia on December 31st, ringing in a new year that will bring more national touring for the band.
World News
Singer/guitarist Alex Evans, who possesses the deep voice and jangly guitar tones that are the most striking features of World News’s songs, formed the band with his brother Rory on bass in 2020. The South London quartet bring to mind a whole variety of great British bands that came before them, from the Clash to Dire Straits, on the two EPs they released in 2024, May’s Escape and November’s Mindsnap. After selling out shows in the UK, World News are preparing to live up to their name and go global in 2025, recording their first full-length album at RAK Recording Studios and preparing to tour internationally for the first time.
Madelline
Madelline Harvey, who performs under the mononym Madelline, is a dark pop chanteuse from Connecticut who now lives in Montreal, singing in both English and French. In fact, her single “Dopamine,” originally released in 2023, became bigger than ever in 2024 when she released the ‘Split Brain Version’ that featured Madelline singing the lyrics in English in the left speaker or headphone and in French on the right. With subsequent singles like “Crazy Bitch,” “Uh Oh (Outside),” and “Make More Money,” Madelline is pushing the envelope on the sound and lyrical subject matter of her cabaret-inspired dance-pop, going viral on TikTok and amassing 15 million plays on streaming services.
Lizzie Berchie
Lizzie Berchie signed to the London independent label Tru Community in 2022 and released her debut single, “Pass Time” featuring labelmate Kofi Stone. Since then, the East London native established herself as a promising new voice in British soul, following in the footsteps of Sade and Cleo Sol. In 2024, Berchie toured with Chicago rapper Noname and performed at the Early Birds Festival in Belgium, earning comparisons to her early inspirations like Jill Scott and Ella Fitzgerald. Berchie’s second EP, 2023’s Am I an Adult Yet? continued to win over new listeners throughout 2024, particularly the slow and yearning fan favorite “I Hope.”