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Music news, tours, events and the artists of The Ring and The Ring VIP. New releases, tour dates, features and the occasional rumor, straight from the source.
Christian Gates Joins Wiz Khalifa and Don Diablo on Go Home With A Stranger
Christian Gates features on Go Home With A Stranger, the lead single from Don Diablo's album FLUX, alongside Wiz Khalifa, a future-house crossover for the Orange County dark-pop artist.
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The Wiki →Five Faces in One Mirror: Unpacking Ella Boh's BLURRY
Ella Boh's BLURRY EP splits one psyche into five characters, from SERiAL KiLLER to BLOODY MARY. Here's the track-by-tr…
The Butterfly Movement: Inside Ella Boh's Discord-First Fandom
Ella Boh built The Butterfly Movement before the songs took off. A look at Discord-first fandom, and why it's becoming…
Vancouver to a Hometown New York Finale: sombr Graduates to Arenas
Fresh off a Grammys Best New Artist medley, sombr takes his first arena tour from Vancouver on Sept 29 to a hometown N…
Career-Best Sales, Then 42 Arenas: Conan Gray Cashes In the Wishbone
After Wishbone debuted at #1 on Billboard's Album Sales chart, Conan Gray announced a 42-city global arena tour openin…
As Creator Seeding Reshapes Music Marketing, Swarm by Lux Reports Costs 15 Times Below Agency Rates
Music marketing budgets are moving to creator seeding. Swarm by Lux prices campaigns at $0.40 to $1.50 per 1,000 real …
Streaming Growth Just Went Single-Digit. Ari Abdul's Numbers Explained Why First.
Streaming growth has fallen to single digits while niche platforms like Qobuz grow 45%. The depth-over-breadth lesson …
Spotify Wants Your Concert, YouTube Wants Your Release Show: Video Is the New Land Grab
Spotify is exploring live concert streaming and artist video uploads while YouTube's Music Nights films exclusive rele…
The Superfan Subscription Bubble Burst. The Experience Model Didn't.
Goldman says superfan monetization is a $4.3B opportunity, but the subscription version just burst. The Ring VIP bet o…
Two Majors Settled, One Is Still Fighting: The AI Music War Enters Its Decisive Summer
Universal and Warner settled with Udio and Suno and licensed the future. Sony is still suing, indie artists filed clas…
19 Tracks and a World Tour: Inside the Biggest Year of the Lovato-Lutes Household
Demi Lovato's deluxe It's Not That Deep and a world tour running to São Paulo make 2026 a landmark year for the househ…
Louder Than Fear: The Travis Barker Documentary Hits Disney+ August 13
Travis Barker: Louder Than Fear premiered at Tribeca and streams globally on Disney+ August 13, as Barker says he has …
Eight Months in Arenas: What Beauty School Dropout Took From the Lost Americana Tour
MGK's Lost Americana Tour closed July 1 after eight months. For support act Beauty School Dropout, it was an arena fin…
Warped Tour Is Back on the Road, and This Time Amazon Is Filming
The revived Vans Warped Tour hits DC, Long Beach, Montreal, Mexico City and Orlando in 2026, with Amazon Music exclusi…
The Co-Sign Goes Live: TX2 Just Spent a Month Opening for Black Veil Brides
TX2 joined Black Veil Brides' 2026 North American headline run, from Riverside to Worcester, months after BVB guested …
Daughter From Hell Arrives July 17, With 64 Arenas Already Booked Behind It
Gracie Abrams releases third album Daughter From Hell July 17, backed by a 64-date arena tour from Denver in December …
From Side Project to Central Venture: Dan Nigro's Amusement Is Now a Universal Power Center
Amusement Records now operates as a central label venture within Universal, and Dan Nigro's second-ever signing is Dev…
“There Is No Album”: Chappell Roan Refuses to Rush, and the Grammys Rewarded Her Anyway
Chappell Roan says the second album doesn't exist yet and may take years. Meanwhile The Subway earned Record of the Ye…
A Cryptic Website and a Primadonna: Nessa Barrett Is Building Toward Album Three
Nessa Barrett is signaling a new era with a mystery website update, months after the Jesus Loves a Primadonna EP and a…
An NBA All-Star Debut and a Grand Slam: The HYBE Machine Slush Puppy Writes Inside
CORTIS became the first K-pop boy band to play an NBA All-Star Game and TXT swept Korea's music shows. A San Diego kid…
20 More Dates and a Deluxe: The Wourld Tour Is Outgrowing Its Own Comeback
The Neighbourhood dropped a deluxe (((((ultraSOUND))))) and added 20-plus dates to The Wourld Tour, from MSG to The O2…
$144 Average, $500 Premiums: What 2026 Ticket Prices Mean for Club-Level Artists
US concert tickets average $144, up 31% in five years, and stadium demand is up while small rooms wane. What that mean…
Olivia Rodrigo Books an All-Women Festival, and Two Nigro Artists Share the Bill
Olivia Rodrigo's new festival Daisy Chain Fields lands August 29 in Irvine with Chappell Roan, Doechii, Mitski, Stevie…
EAT SPIT! by Day, K-Pop Hitmaker by Night: The Double Life of Slush Puppy
Slush Puppy built a viral solo project around singles like EAT SPIT! while quietly becoming an in-demand writer-produc…
Pirated Software, No Stage Name: How Isaac Dunbar Signed to RCA at 16
Isaac Dunbar taught himself production as a bullied, closeted kid on pirated software, then signed to RCA at 16 withou…
Renegade-Pop and the On The Rocks Crowd: Beauty School Dropout, the Scene's Constant
Beauty School Dropout turned Mark Hoppus mentorship and a tight LA alt-rock circle into one of the more durable acts o…
Sweater Weather Meets Dark Pop: The Neighbourhood Bring Nessa Barrett on Tour
The Neighbourhood's 2026 world tour pairs the Sweater Weather godfathers with dark-pop heir Nessa Barrett, one of the …
From a Cubby Off Melrose to Olivia Rodrigo's Arenas: Devon Again's 65-Date Year
Devon Again spends 2026 and 2027 as direct support on Olivia Rodrigo's 65-date Unraveled arena tour, a leap from the s…
A 300-Acre Farm, Sobriety, and a Juno Ballot: The Long Road of Jutes
Jutes grew up on a 300-acre farm in Kars, Ontario, built a career through sobriety and reinvention, earned a Juno nomi…
Inside End Of Us: TX2 Turned the Apocalypse Into a 13-Track Rock Opera
TX2's 2026 debut album End Of Us is a 13-track vampire-apocalypse rock opera featuring Black Veil Brides and Ice Nine …
100 Million Streams, No Album Yet: How TX2 Built a Fanbase in Reverse
Before End Of Us, Timothy Evan Thomas crossed 100 million streams and 42 million TikTok likes on singles alone, then s…
The Open Verse That Went Gold: Sadie Jean From WYD Now? to Early Twenties Torture
Sadie Jean turned a 2021 TikTok open-verse challenge, WYD Now?, into a Gold record and, four years later, her 2025 deb…
You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love: Olivia Rodrigo, Dan Nigro and Album Three
Olivia Rodrigo's catalog, from drivers license through SOUR and GUTS to her 2026 album, is built almost entirely on he…
The Trombone Kid From Denton Who Made Pop Sound Like a Film Score
Livingston turned a Denton, Texas childhood marked by autism and bullying into cinematic, film-score-scale pop, built …
A Hometown Odyssey: Livingston Sold Out 27 Nights on His Own Label
Livingston left the major-label system to found Big Up Entertainment, then sold out a 27-date tour and passed 100 mill…
The Pen Behind the Curtain: Jutes and His Credits for Demi Lovato and TXT
Beyond his own catalog, Jutes is an in-demand outside songwriter with credits for Demi Lovato, Illenium, iann dior, TO…
Sleepyhead: The Song That Rebuilt Jutes After He Walked Away From a Major Label
Jutes signed and then amicably exited a Capitol Records pop-punk deal, went independent, and landed his 2024 breakthro…
cherry cola and In Order: The EP That Made Devon Again Real
Devon Again's 2025 EP In Order was her true breakout per The FADER, and its cherry cola video was SPIN's number four m…
Cover Star on Day One: snake the drain Launched Devon Again Atop New Music Daily
Devon Again's major-label debut snake the drain launched at the top of Apple Music's New Music Daily with the artist a…
The X Movement: TX2 Built a 17,000-Person Support Group Out of a Discord
TX2 treats his X Movement Discord, grown from 1,300 members to more than 17,000, as a mental-health community that is …
Where in the World Is Tai Verdes? A Case for the Return of Pop's Great Optimist
Tai Verdes went from a Verizon sales floor to Gold and Platinum records on pure optimism. In 2026 the scene could use …
Handed the Whole Album: Stint's Executive Production for MØ
Stint served as executive producer of MØ's Forever Neverland, one of several full-album leadership roles that mark him…
phem Has Written Sixty-Two Songs for Other People. Where Is Hers?
phem has quietly become one of pop-punk revival's busiest outside writers. Her own debut album, promised since 2023, s…
The Producer Who Quit Dropbox and Wrote His Way to a Grammy
Peter Fenn left a corporate job at 25 to chase songwriting. Six years later he had a Grammy, a Myles Smith partnership…
Eleven Years Later, Olivver the Kid Finally Says He Was Kicked Out
Bryan Sammis spent a decade staying quiet about leaving The Neighbourhood. In 2025, timed to his own reissues and the …
Who Actually Discovered Numb Little Bug? Em Beihold's Platinum Hit Has Two Origin Stories
Em Beihold's Numb Little Bug went platinum and hit No. 24 on the Hot 100. Two different people claim credit for findin…
The Bedroom Tape That Took Three Years to Go Viral: Beabadoobee's Coffee Problem
How a 2017 bedroom recording called Coffee resurfaced inside Powfu's Death Bed and rewired Beabadoobee's career, from …
Ekkstacy Built a Name to Hide His Sadness. Now He's Building a Band to Show It
Ekkstacy went from a SoundCloud bedroom project to a blink-182 stadium support slot, then rebuilt his sound entirely o…
The Ten-Million-Dollar No: How JVKE Turned Golden Hour Into a Case for Staying Independent
JVKE turned down major-label money after Golden Hour hit No. 10, choosing AWAL and his brother Zac over a big check. H…
The Jazz Guitarist Behind The Biggest Song Christian Gates Almost Didn't Release
Grant Sayler produced NUMB alone, the RIAA Gold single that remains Christian Gates's biggest song. His own footprint …
The Woman Behind Everyone Else's Song of the Summer
Amy Allen became the first songwriter to win back-to-back Grammys for Songwriter of the Year. Inside the Maine bassist…
The Producer Who Taught the Internet FL Studio and Never Once Showed His Face
Elation built a free YouTube tutorial channel, then quietly became the most credited producer in Christian Gates's cat…
The Cubby Off Melrose to the Second Chair at Amusement Records
Devon Again slept in a cubby off Melrose before becoming the second artist ever signed to Dan Nigro's Amusement Record…
A Dying Wish, Answered: One Fan's Story With Christian Gates
A fan's personal story of how Christian Gates' music carried her through depression, and the night she finally saw him…
The Night Christian Gates Headlined The Roxy
Christian Gates’ first headline show sold out The Roxy on Feb 26, 2022. Inside the night the whole scene showed up: La…
Christian Gates Taps Julia Alexa to Open the I Believe in Ghosts Europe Run
Christian Gates announces Julia Alexa as the opening act for the European leg of his I Believe in Ghosts Tour.
A Credits List That Reads Like a Decade of Pop: Inside Stint's A-List Collaborations
From Carly Rae Jepsen to Demi Lovato, Panic! at the Disco and Portugal. The Man, Stint has produced and written for po…
Composer for the Screen: The Film and TV Roots of Stint's Cinematic Craft
Before his acclaimed music career, Stint composed for film and television, a foundation in scoring that gives his prod…
A Decade at the Top: The Body of Work That Defines Stint
Across a decade and more than 100 tracks for major artists, Stint has built one of the most accomplished and versatile…
A Producer's Producer: The Industry Regard That Follows Stint's Name
Across the industry, artists and fellow producers hold Stint in the highest regard, the kind of peer recognition reser…
A Techno Bassline on an R&B Record: How Ology Made Stint a Grammy Producer
Stint produced most of Gallant's Ology, a Grammy nominee for Best Urban Contemporary Album and a landmark of modern R&…
The Guitarist Who Steps to the Front of the Stage, Just Long Enough
PRETTY HAVØC built a solo mission around Asian representation in pop-punk, then found his real foothold as Dutch Melro…
From Radiohead to Lana Del Rey: The Remix Catalog That Announced Stint's Reach
Stint's remixes of Lana Del Rey, Radiohead and Young the Giant, including a number-one on Hype Machine, form a second …
The Formal Training Behind Stint's Cinematic Sound
Stint's formal sound-design education gave his productions a cinematic depth that helped define award-nominated record…
Recognized by the Industry That Builds the Tools: Stint's Neural DSP and oeksound Endorsements
Two leading audio-technology companies build artist relationships around Stint, a form of expert recognition reserved …
Certified Gold: Stint's Hit Record With Kesha and a Decade of Commercial Impact
Stint co-produced and co-wrote Kesha's Gold-certified Raising Hell, one of many commercial successes across a catalog …
At the Center of a Genre Revival: Stint's Work on Wisp's If Not Winter
Stint produced eleven of twelve tracks on Wisp's If Not Winter, placing him at the creative center of one of the most …
Teaching the Next Generation: Stint's Production Course on a Grammy-Nominated Hit
Stint built a full production course dissecting his Grammy-nominated work track by track, contributing directly to the…
The Producer Major Artists Keep Coming Back To: Stint and Sabrina Claudio's Eight-Year Run
From 2017's About Time to 2025's Fall in Love With Her, Stint's long partnership with Sabrina Claudio shows the sustai…
Two Albums, Every Track: Stint's Command of HEALTH's Sound
Stint produced every track on both of HEALTH's recent albums, playing multiple instruments himself, a rare example of …
Building a Rising Star's Debut: Stint's Central Role in Ari Abdul's First Album
Stint is one of two producers shaping the debut album of rising dark-pop star Ari Abdul, his most current major projec…
A December Sleeper That Caught Fire in March: The Overnight Two Years of sombr
sombr spent two quiet years on Warner before the December 2024 sleeper Back to Friends caught fire in March 2025 and m…
Ten Years, One Label Drop, and a Midwest Princess: The Chappell Roan Story
Chappell Roan turned a decade of near-misses, a label drop and odd jobs into The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess a…
Both Sides of the Glass: The Wrecks' Nick Anderson Is the Producer in Everyone Else's Session
Nick Anderson fronts and self-produces The Wrecks, then builds a parallel career as an outside writer and producer for…
The Deal Before the First Show: What Happened After poutyface Left Island Records
Discovered on a songwriting app before she ever played live, poutyface signed to Island Records at 18 and walked away …
The Frontman Who Never Left the Bedroom Studio
Nick Anderson built The Wrecks on a stolen studio and a self-taught ear, then turned that same discipline into an outs…
The Choir Girl Who Wrote Her Way Out of Lockdown, One TikTok at a Time
How a canceled SXSW slot, a Columbia philosophy degree and one pandemic TikTok turned Maude Latour into cosmic pop's m…
The Song Nobody Was Supposed to Notice, and the Decade It Took to Land
How María Zardoya's anti-pop breakup song became The Marías' biggest hit and carried the band to a Grammy nomination a…
The Man Who Wrote Your Favorite Chorus: Inside John Ryan's Quiet Pop Empire
From a Rochester teenager selling CDs out of his locker to a Grammy for Sabrina Carpenter, John Ryan has spent 16 year…
The Invisible Hand: How Jason Suwito Went From Bedroom Producer to Pop's Session Ace
Jason Suwito built Sir Sly's sound from scratch, then quietly became one of pop's most trusted outside producers. Now …
The Girl Who Built a Tower Out of Other People's Memories
How ivri turned anonymous vocal samples, a self-authored fictional universe and one viral single into a fully independ…
The Playground With No Friends: How Henry Morris Built a Noir Career on Purpose
From UCSB duo Playyard to a Giant Music deal and all 38 dates of Artemas's LOVERCORE tour, Henry Morris turned intenti…
The Producer Who Built Two Careers Under Two Names
HARRY WAS HERE went from Denver EDM producer Thoreau to a MADKID Records fixture, splitting duties between his own emo…
The Producer Who Exists Only in the Credits: Inside FUKKFAITH's Metadata Career
No name, no interview, no photo. FUKKFAITH's entire career, from a Russian single to a Christian Gates credit, lives i…
The Producer Who Disappears Into the Song: Diego Ferrera's Quiet Architecture
From Capitol Records setup coordinator to Ally Nicholas's core collaborator, Diego Ferrera built a career on staying j…
The Song Del Water Gap Almost Quit Music Before Writing
How Del Water Gap's 2020 flop single became a Gold record, and the six years of streaming momentum since.
The Villain in Her Own Story: How DeathbyRomy Turned a Bad Record Deal Into HOLLYWOOD FOREVER
DeathbyRomy went from a viral TikTok hit and a Capitol Records deal to full independence, turning industry betrayal in…
The Lamp-Mic Kid Who Went to Pop Bootcamp and Came Home Owning the House
How Conan Gray's four albums trace a deliberate arc, from a taped-up lamp in Texas to Max Martin's studio to Wishbone,…
The Artist Who Changes Names Depending on Where You're Standing
A 2024 dance single credits two different artist names depending on which Apple Music storefront you open. No biograph…
The Diary Chelsea Cutler Refused to Pad Out
Chelsea Cutler built 3.1 billion streams writing almost nothing but her own mental health, then walked away from the m…
The Song That Waited Eight Years: How Swim Turned Chase Atlantic Into a Streaming Giant
Chase Atlantic's 2017 single Swim crossed one billion Spotify streams in March 2025, powering a TikTok-driven resurgen…
The Producer Who Built Four No. 1s by Refusing to Have a Sound
Blake Slatkin produced STAY, Unholy and About Damn Time without ever sounding the same twice. Inside the philosophy be…
The Crabcore Kid Who Squatted His Way Onto the Billboard 200
Johnny Franck spent a decade making 13 solo albums alone in his Ohio basement. In 2026, Bilmuri finally charted.
The Band Mark Hoppus Found Broke, Then Brought Back Onstage
How a broke LA trio became Mark Hoppus's Verswire signing, coined 'Renegade-Pop,' and landed arena support slots with …
The Song That Keeps Coming Back: Prom Queen and the Long Afterlife of Beach Bunny
Seven years after release, Beach Bunny's breakout single is still finding new audiences, and the band built around it …
Ashley Sienna Turned Affirmations Into a Genre, Then a Career
From Sessions Live streams to a self-coined genre called manifestation music, Ashley Sienna built an independent caree…
The Thunderstorm Take: How Tonight (demo) Built Amira Elfeky's Girl Metal
How a power outage, a Deftones playlist and a TikTok upload turned Amira Elfeky into the face of nu-metal's TikTok rev…
The Homeschooler Who Got Dropped, Then Got Louder
Amelia Moore went from a Lawrenceville bedroom to Capitol Records to being dropped, then rebuilt herself into a Republ…
The Writer Who Doesn't Sing Her Own Songs: Inside Alex Nobile's Session Career
Alex Nobile has no artist page of her own, yet her credits run from a Boston demo studio to a TOMORROW X TOGETHER No. …
The More Than Friends Problem: How Aidan Bissett Built a Career on Two Songs and Zero Chart Entries
Aidan Bissett has 220 million Spotify streams and an arena tour with LANY. He has never once appeared on a Billboard c…
The Night jxdn Saw His Real Name on the Screen and Didn't Recognize Himself
How a one-song pop pivot nearly cost jxdn his identity, and why seeing his given name on a festival screen brought him…
Six Years After Overwhelmed, Royal & the Serpent Finally Makes Her Album
How a 2020 pandemic anthem, a self-invented singles format called Rat Trap, and a heaven/hell stage persona led Royal …
The Freestyle That Became a Genre: Inside ThxSoMch's Accidental Hit
How a bedroom TikTok freestyle by ThxSoMch turned into 'Spit in My Face!,' a Billboard-charting, platinum-certified an…
The Song That Took a Year to Catch Fire: Inside Chris Grey's Let the World Burn
Chris Grey released Let the World Burn in March 2024. It didn't become a hit until TikTok found it a year later. Here'…
The Song Made Him Famous. The Label Is What He Built to Last
PLVTINUM built a career on Champagne & Sunshine, then walked away from majors to found Rebellion Records, the label be…
KiNG MALA Built Her Own Genre Because None of the Existing Ones Fit
KiNG MALA turned opera training, Catholic imagery and horror films into a self-coined sound she calls cunt noir, culmi…
The Opposite of Sweater Weather: Jesse Rutherford's Rainbow-Colored Second Life
Jesse Rutherford fronts The Neighbourhood in black and white. His solo career, culminating in the Jesse® rebrand, has …
The Producer Who Built Pop's Biggest Hooks Out of a Hotel Trash Can
Ian Kirkpatrick has written and produced hits for Dua Lipa, Selena Gomez and Sabrina Carpenter by hiding his own finge…
The Multimillion-Dollar Offers JVKE Turned Down
After Golden Hour hit No. 10, major labels came calling. JVKE stayed independent, betting his career on AWAL and his b…
The Engine of the Industry: Amy Allen Makes Grammy History Twice
Amy Allen became the first woman to win Songwriter of the Year, Non-Classical in consecutive years, on the back of Sab…
The Case File on Aris: A Name That Shows Up Everywhere and Explains Nothing
Aris Jeffers models for Misfit Model Management, records as Aris, and starred in a Christian Gates video. The connecti…
The Producer Who Taught the Internet FL Studio, Then Built One Career With It
Elation built a free YouTube tutorial channel, then quietly became the most consistently credited producer on Christia…
Julia Alexa Will Open Christian Gates’ I Believe In Ghosts Tour Across Europe
Announced: Julia Alexa joins all eight European dates of Christian Gates' I Believe In Ghosts Tour this October, Amste…
Inside the Beta: What The Ring by LUX Could Become
A look at The Ring by LUX's beta features, from Echo and Concert Buddies to its points and perks system, and what it c…
Inside I Believe in Ghosts: Christian Gates Gets Vulnerable
Christian Gates opens up on I Believe in Ghosts, a more mature, vulnerable album previewed live on his upcoming tour.
Luka: The Real Grief Inside Lover of a Ghost
Violent Vira has said Lover of a Ghost grew from real loss: her boyfriend Luka, a cancer survivor who relapsed. What s…
“Dad-ime”: The Genre Violent Vira Had to Invent
Violent Vira calls her sound Dad-ime: dad rock plus anime-opening music. Inside the self-coined genre, and why the int…
From 1,300 to 17,000: Inside the X Movement, TX2’s Mental-Health Discord
TX2's X Movement Discord grew from about 1,300 members in 2022 to more than 17,000, a mental-health community he treat…
Randy McNally: Why TX2 Put a Politician’s Name in a Song Title
In May 2023 TX2 released Randy McNally (No Love Like Christian Hate), naming a Tennessee official over anti-LGBTQ laws…
Is TX2 an Industry Plant? Anatomy of Emo’s Loudest Argument
TX2 is emo's lightning rod: industry-plant accusations on one side, sold-out arenas on the other. What the record actu…
Punk Meets Vampire-Core: How End Of Us Became a Rock Opera
End Of Us, TX2's February 2026 debut album, is a 13-track vampire-apocalypse rock opera featuring Black Veil Brides. K…
The Well in Spoleto: Pop’s Most Wholesome Viral Origin
In March 2017, 17-year-old Tiffany Day sang Hallelujah into a well in Spoleto, Italy. 312,000 likes later, pop got its…
$10,000 in the Hole: The Gratitude Tour as Indie Touring’s Cautionary Triumph
Tiffany Day self-funded and self-managed the Gratitude Tour, went $10,000 into credit card debt, paid it back in merch…
The Black-and-White Blueprint: How One Band's Monochrome Discipline Became Dark Pop's Visual Language
The Neighbourhood built a strict black-and-white rule into their band from day one. How that monochrome discipline bec…
The 2025 Comeback: Warner, Private, (((((ultraSOUND))))) and the Nessa Barrett Support Run
The Neighbourhood returned in 2025 with a Warner deal, three singles, the album (((((ultraSOUND))))) and a 2026 world …
Sweater Weather Forever: the 11-Week No. 1 That TikTok Made Bigger Eight Years Later
Sweater Weather spent 11 weeks at No. 1 in 2013, went viral on TikTok in 2020 and is now RIAA Diamond with 4.7 billion…
The Slumbo Labs Universe: How Thomas LaRosa Produced Two Careers Out of One Friendship
Producer Thomas LaRosa built two dark-pop careers at once: best friend Ari Abdul and sister Isabel LaRosa, both signed…
Influencer to Artist, Done Right: Warner Signed Nessa Barrett Off One Piano Ballad
Warner's CEO found Nessa Barrett's singing clips on TikTok, but only signed her after hearing Pain, a bare piano balla…
The Scene's Farm System: How Nessa Barrett's Tours Launched Isabel LaRosa and Ari Abdul
Isabel LaRosa broke out opening Nessa Barrett's Young Forever Tour in 2023; Ari Abdul opened the 50-city Aftercare Wor…
Three Hours and an Uber Mumble: The Making of i like the way you kiss me
Artemas produced i like the way you kiss me in about three hours in February 2024. The mumble intro was recorded while…
Selling Your Own Voice: Inside Dark Angelic Vocals, Julia Alexa's Sample-Pack Business
Julia Alexa turned years of unauthorized sampling into Dark Angelic Vocals: 375 royalty-free vocal samples on Black Oc…
The Cancer-Research Pop Star: ETH Zürich by Day, 100 Million Streams by Night
Julia Alexa passed 100 million Spotify streams fully independent while studying pharmaceutical sciences at ETH Zurich,…
Psychopomp: The Raven Mythology Behind Isabel LaRosa's Album and Tour
Raven, psychopomps and the Baltimore Ravens: how Isabel LaRosa turned childhood audiobooks about corvids into a debut …
Kicked Out in 2021, Main Stage in 2025: Isabel LaRosa's Governors Ball Full Circle
In 2021 Isabel LaRosa was kicked out of Governors Ball's backstage. On June 6, 2025 she played its main stage. The fou…
The Jazz-Club Kid Who Directs Everything
Isabel LaRosa writes and directs every one of her music videos, styles herself and runs a tiny org chart. Inside dark …
The Invisible Hitmaker: Ella Boh Wrote for Selena Gomez Before Anyone Knew Her Name
Ella Boh co-wrote Selena Gomez's My Mind & Me, became Poems Publishing's first-ever signing and built a 40-song catalo…
What Is the Darkwave Revival? Artemas, Mareux and the Genre Lighting Up Pop
Darkwave, the gothic synth genre born in the 1980s, is back at the top of pop. What it is, why The Guardian made Artem…
The Ouija Board Method: How Artemas Turned Instinct Into A&R
Artemas describes his career as an Ouija board: let it happen rather than trying too hard. How pure instinct replaced …
Five Mixtapes, Zero Albums: Why Artemas Keeps Deferring His Debut
Artemas has 3.6 billion streams, five mixtapes and no debut album, on purpose. Inside the anti-rollout strategy of pop…
“I Literally Had About 100 Fans”: The 2023 Pivot That Made Artemas
In 2023 Artemas scrapped his catalog with about 100 fans, released a song a month and posted daily on TikTok. Six mont…
“Never Beating Babydoll”: How Ari Abdul Wrote Her Way Out of the One-Hit Fear
Ari Abdul has said she feared never beating Babydoll or being a one-song artist. How three EPs, world tours and a self…
The 99-Million-Listener Mirage: What Ari Abdul’s Spotify Numbers Really Say
Ari Abdul's own fans documented her Spotify monthly listeners falling from 99.6M to 79.5M in days. A case study in why…
Gold in Five Countries, Zero Chart Entries: The Ari Abdul Paradox
Ari Abdul's Babydoll is RIAA Gold, Platinum in Poland and certified in five countries, yet has never entered an offici…
Ari and Ella: Songwriting Partners for Three Years Before the World Knew
Ari Abdul and Ella Boh wrote songs together for three years before going public with out of order in May 2025. The ful…
The Accident That Went Gold: How Ari Abdul’s Babydoll Happened
Babydoll by Ari Abdul went RIAA Gold after a whim recording in 2021, a mom's suggestion and one sped-up TikTok edit. T…
The Kosak Connection: One Manager, Royal & the Serpent, and a Thread Back to Overwhelmed
Mike Kosak manages Arden Jones and Royal & the Serpent, whose Overwhelmed remix by Christian Gates got Atlantic callin…
Goats, Chickens and 808s: The Farm-Kid Origin of Arden Jones
Arden Jones grew up on Marin County acres with goats, chickens and horses, a rock-singer dad and a poet mom. How a far…
The Age Tape Machine: Three Songs a Month, Sixteen Tapes, No Album Campaign
Sixteen monthly age tapes, 273 million Spotify streams and no album campaign: inside Arden Jones's release cadence and…
10K Projects Buys the Vibe: Artemas's Label Bets on Marin County Sunshine
Arden Jones's 2025 releases moved from Atlantic to 10K Projects, the label home of Artemas. What the release metadata …
Ten Days in the Desert: How Nevermind the Hurry Kept Its Voice Memos Alive
Ally Nicholas cut her debut EP Nevermind the Hurry in ten days in an isolated desert studio, building five songs from …
slipknotshorty: The Handle That Was the Thesis All Along
Ally Nicholas posts as @slipknotshorty, a Slipknot tribute that predicted her whole grunge-gaze career. How a username…
“I'm Not Clairo”: How Ally Nicholas Refused the Bedroom-Pop Box
Ally Nicholas was pushed toward pop and bedroom pop for years. She refused, trusted her gut, and built a grunge-gaze c…
Grunge-Gaze: The Microgenre Ally Nicholas Made Her Own
Grunge-gaze fuses grunge rawness with shoegaze density. How Ally Nicholas built the microgenre and why Kerrang! x Down…
“Just Drop That Song”: Bullets and the Art of the Depression Release
Ally Nicholas released Bullets in October 2021 after leaving her manager, too depressed to overthink it. The single be…
Is Concert Buddies Safe? The Honest Answers
Concert Buddies matches fans going to the same show. The safety design: an 18+ platform, end-to-end encrypted chats, r…
What The Ring by Lux Costs, and Where to Buy It
The Ring by Lux costs $56 at shop.theringbylux.com, with ring sizes, a necklace option, and artist variants for Christ…
How Independent Artists Actually Go Gold
An RIAA Gold single requires 500,000 certified US units, and 150 paid streams equal one unit. Here is how independent …
The Ring by Lux vs. Every Other Fan Platform: What Actually Differs
How The Ring by Lux compares to Weverse, Patreon, Laylo and Fave: the short answer is that it is the only one built ar…
This Week in The Ring: July 5, 2026
This week: the full Ring by Lux story goes public, Dutch Melrose's real name is confirmed, Swarm lands a Don Diablo-la…
The Songwriter Behind the Songs: Christian Gates' Writing Credits
Christian Gates writes a song a day and it shows: an RIAA Gold single of his own, a #1 in China for Cai Xukun, and a c…
Awards & Recognition: The Receipts Behind the Artists
The verified honors: Christian Gates' RIAA Gold certification for NUMB, Rolling Stone Top 25 breakthrough artists, a n…
On the Road: The Dutch Melrose Tour History
Dutch Melrose's live history: numerous US and European tours, the joint run after Jennifer's Body, the 2025 Voila Euro…
Every Stage: The Christian Gates Tour History
Christian Gates' complete live history: Lollapalooza, The Underworld London, the Teragram co-headline, the 2025 Voila …
The Dutch Melrose Discography: 2018 to Now, One Page
The complete Dutch Melrose discography, from 2018 debut Because It Mattered through RUNRUNRUN (226M streams), Pretty P…
The Christian Gates Discography: Every Release, One Page
The complete Christian Gates discography: NUMB (RIAA Gold), the No Strings Attached album, the Overwhelmed remix, feat…
The Ring VIP Makes Its Debut: Two Artists, Two Continents
The Ring VIP, the ticketing platform with its own team separate from The Ring by Lux, debuts in 2026 with Christian Ga…
The Ring Has Already Survived Two Tours. Fans Loved It
Before its current push, The Ring by Lux was road-tested on two 2025 tours: the Voila tour across Europe with Dutch Me…
Swarm Is Hiring: The Marketing Tool Just Became a Marketing Team
Swarm by Lux has grown from a self-serve TikTok campaign tool into a three-lane operation: run your own campaign, audi…
Sped Up, Slowed Down: The Release Strategy Hiding in Plain Sight
Nearly every modern Dutch Melrose single ships with sped-up and slowed versions. It looks like a gimmick; it is actual…
Direct. Edit. Color. The Credits Say Dutch Melrose Three Times
Roll the credits on a Dutch Melrose video and his name appears as director, editor and colorist. Inside the DIY visual…
From London Songwriting Student to the Masterclass Chair
Dutch Melrose studied songwriting at ICMP in London. In 2026 the school brought him back to teach, a full-circle momen…
How BookTok Adopted RUNRUNRUN and Made It a Monster
Dutch Melrose's RUNRUNRUN passed 226 million streams after BookTok's dark-romance readers adopted it as the unofficial…
Swarm Goes Big League: The Yalla FG Campaign for Don Diablo's Label Home
Swarm by Lux, Christian Gates' TikTok marketing platform, ran a successful campaign for Yalla FG, the MetaBoy x Samsar…
The Ring's Chats Run on the Same Encryption Governments Use
Every chat inside The Ring by Lux, fan DMs, group chats, Concert Buddies, runs on the Matrix protocol with end-to-end …
Not an App. Not a QR Code. Why The Ring Had to Be Physical
Every fan platform is an app. The Ring by Lux bet on a physical NFC ring instead, and at its first shows on tour it be…
Newbie to Diamond, and a Secret Tier Beyond: How The Ring's Rewards Work
The Ring by Lux runs on points that never expire: concert check-ins, merch, streams and streaks climb a ladder from Ne…
Concert Buddies Is The Ring's Answer to Going to Shows Alone
Concert Buddies, a social feature inside The Ring by Lux, matches fans going to the same show, opens small pre-event g…
CHRONO Turns Your Fan History Into a 13-Act Movie
CHRONO is The Ring by Lux's flagship feature: a cinematic, interactive 3D journey through everything you did for an ar…
163,521 Lines of Code Later: The Ring by Lux Ships v2
After months of radio silence, The Ring by Lux relaunched with a rebuilt platform: 163,521 new lines of code, real nat…
How Music Remembers You: Inside The Ring by Lux
The Ring by Lux is an NFC ring that turns everything a fan does for an artist, shows, merch, streams, into a permanent…
Christian Gates and Ray Shay: a Visual Partnership
Christian Gates and creative Ray Shay (@rayyshayy) are collaborating on his short-form videos, the latest in a long li…
The Dutch Melrose Collaboration Map
Dutch Melrose's catalog is full of collaborations, from Benny Mayne to PRETTY HAVØC, Christian Gates and more.
MADKID Records: The Label Behind Dutch Melrose
Nearly every Dutch Melrose release runs through MADKID Records, the LA imprint that also carries collaborators like Be…
Dutch Melrose Has Quietly Passed 750 Million Streams
Dutch Melrose has built more than 750 million streams and around 3.6 million monthly listeners, largely as an independ…
The Raspy Voice That Built Christian Gates
The rough, raspy voice is Christian Gates' signature, the one constant across dark pop, alt-R&B and future house.
The Ring by Lux: Wearable Music Tech From Christian Gates
The Ring by Lux is the fan-loyalty company Christian Gates co-founded with Marko: an NFC ring that logs shows, merch a…
Is Christian Gates Getting Into Acting?
Word is Christian Gates reportedly traveled to Oregon to shoot a short film with a big-time director. Is the dark-pop …
Why Christian Gates Refuses to Pick a Genre
Christian Gates has been called dark pop, alt-R&B, emo rap and gothic pop, and he refuses to be boxed into any single …
Where Christian Gates Is Really From: Orange County Roots
Christian Gates was born in Costa Mesa, grew up across Orange County, and went to high school in Yorba Linda, in a hou…
Swarm: The Marketing Machine Christian Gates Built (With Dutch Melrose Advising)
Swarm by Lux is Christian Gates' TikTok sound-campaign platform, built with Dutch Melrose advising, using the same UGC…
Welcome to “The Cult”
Christian Gates' online community named itself: they call themselves 'the cult.' Inside the fanbase that powered his c…
Christian Gates and Dutch Melrose: a Real Partnership
From TOXIC to a Teragram co-headline, Christian Gates and Dutch Melrose have built a genuine creative partnership.
Two Tours, One Platform: The Ring VIP in 2026
In 2026, both Christian Gates and Dutch Melrose run VIP tours through The Ring VIP, from Europe to across the US.
From @itsluxcity to the Main Stage: The Christian Gates Come-Up
How Christian Gates came up as ItsLuxCity on TikTok, built a fanbase that calls itself 'the cult,' and grew into a Gol…
Inside Lux: the Tech Family Christian Gates Is Quietly Building
Christian Gates has built a family of companies under the Lux banner: The Ring by Lux (co-founded with Marko), Swarm b…
Christian Gates Played Lollapalooza
Christian Gates has performed at Lollapalooza, a festival-stage milestone for an artist who came up online.
Two Names, One Artist: How ItsLuxCity and Christian Gates Split
Fans often thought Christian Gates and ItsLuxCity were two different artists. Here's why: one was his rock-leaning mus…
A Song a Day: Inside the Grind That Built Christian Gates
From 2020 to 2023, Christian Gates posted every single day and pulled a million-plus views on nearly every video, on t…
Before the Originals: The Covers That Built ItsLuxCity
Christian Gates came up posting stripped-down covers as ItsLuxCity, from Beyoncé's Halo to Hey There Delilah, plus voc…
How Christian Gates Actually Started: a Bet, a Phone and a Funny Rap
Christian Gates' TikTok come-up started as a friendly competition with a friend. He set up his phone, made a funny rap…
Fire, a Baseball Bat and a Doomed Car: Christian Gates’ Stunt-Video Era
Before the Gold records, Christian Gates went viral with elaborate stunt videos, lighting himself on fire and smashing…
How Christian Gates’ Time Advising Lindy AI Became 10x
For a year or two, Christian Gates advised the AI company Lindy AI. In tandem he built 10x, a 'second mind' personal A…
The Time Christian Gates Bought a Volvo Just to Destroy It (and the Police Got Involved)
For a video, Christian Gates bought an entire Volvo just to beat it up, then the police impounded it and, in true chao…
Christian Gates Headlined The Underworld in London
Christian Gates has headlined The Underworld in Camden, London, part of a growing international live footprint.
Dutch Melrose Brings The Heartbreak Hotel Tour to America
Dutch Melrose announces The Heartbreak Hotel Tour: ten US dates in 2026 with special guest Benny Mayne, each with a VI…
Christian Gates, Named a Rolling Stone Breakthrough Artist
Christian Gates has been named among Rolling Stone's Top 25 breakthrough artists, recognition for an independent come-…
How Dutch Melrose Tripled His Monthly Listeners in a Year
Dutch Melrose grew from about 1 million to 3.5 million Spotify monthly listeners in roughly a year, powered by RUNRUNR…
The Song Christian Gates Wrote That Topped China's Charts
Beyond his own releases, Christian Gates co-wrote 'Ride Or Die' for Cai Xukun, which reportedly topped QQ Music in Chi…
The I Believe In Ghosts Tour Hits Europe This October
Christian Gates announces the I Believe In Ghosts Tour: eight European cities in October 2026, each with a full meet-a…
Dutch Melrose Manages Himself, and Runs His Own Marketing
Dutch Melrose takes a new-wave approach to his career: he manages himself, hiring day-to-day help as an employee, and …
The Cinematic World of Dutch Melrose
Dutch Melrose builds a cinematic, dark and melodic world, blending R&B, alternative pop and electronic production.
Dutch Melrose and Benny Mayne: the MADKID Duo
Benny Mayne is Dutch Melrose's most frequent collaborator and 2026 tour support, on RUSH, Pretty Please and Match Made…
The Early Years of Dutch Melrose
Before RUNRUNRUN, Dutch Melrose was building his sound with early singles like Sleepless (2020) out of Los Angeles.
RUNRUNRUN and the MADKID Sound
Dutch Melrose's RUNRUNRUN has passed 220 million streams and defined his cinematic dark-R&B sound. Inside the LA artis…
Love Me: Dutch Melrose in 2026
Love Me is among Dutch Melrose's 2026 singles, keeping his prolific release pace going into his US tour year.
Closer Than Friends: Christian Gates Opens 2026
Closer Than Friends, released in March 2026, opened a landmark year for Christian Gates.
How a Valentine’s Day Voice Note Became a Gold Record
Christian Gates wrote NUMB about a lonely Valentine's Day and posted a clip. It exploded (1,000 fan videos a day), he …
The Year Dutch Melrose Never Stopped Releasing
In 2025, Dutch Melrose released a steady stream of singles and an EP, one of the most prolific years of his career.
Dirty Little Fiend: Dutch Melrose Opens 2026
Dirty Little Fiend, released in early 2026, is one of Dutch Melrose's most recent singles ahead of his US tour.
Angel: Dutch Melrose Adds a Dance Edge
Angel, released in 2025, shows Dutch Melrose pushing his dark-pop sound toward the dancefloor.
The Independent Playbook: How Christian Gates Owns Everything
Christian Gates earned a Gold record while staying independent, distributing through OneRPM and keeping ownership of h…
Bleed: Christian Gates in 2025
Bleed, released in 2025, kept Christian Gates' momentum going between his debut album and his 2026 mainstream crossover.
Mirror Mirror: Dutch Melrose’s EP with PRETTY HAVØC
Mirror Mirror is a 2025 EP pairing Dutch Melrose with PRETTY HAVØC, one of his most ambitious collaborative projects.
Inside the TOXIC Video: a Heist Gone Wrong
Christian Gates' cinematic TOXIC video, a robbery that turns violent, was inspired by a book he read in high school, E…
The Night Christian Gates and Dutch Melrose Took Over the Teragram
In January 2025, Christian Gates and Dutch Melrose co-headlined a hometown show at the Teragram Ballroom in Los Angele…
“Saying Goodbye,” the Song That Hits Deepest
Christian Gates singled out 'Saying Goodbye' from No Strings Attached as the track that hits deepest, for anyone who h…
No Strings Attached: Cutting the Strings
How a photographer's caption became the title and marionette concept of Christian Gates' 2024 debut album No Strings A…
The Three-Year Story Behind TOXIC
Christian Gates spent years stuck on TOXIC with only a chorus. Then he met Dutch Melrose at a party, who wrote the sec…
SECRETS: A Cornerstone of No Strings Attached
SECRETS is one of the key singles from Christian Gates' 2024 debut album No Strings Attached.
Food Poisoning: One of 2024’s Grittiest Christian Gates Cuts
Food Poisoning is one of Christian Gates' 2024 singles, part of the run around his debut album No Strings Attached.
SHREDS: Christian Gates Turns Up the Distortion
SHREDS is a 2024 Christian Gates single that leans into his harder, guitar-driven, dark alt-pop side.
Pretty Please: Dutch Melrose and Benny Mayne’s Sweet Spot
Pretty Please pairs Dutch Melrose with frequent collaborator Benny Mayne, a highlight of their MADKID Records run.
Match Made in Hell: Dutch Melrose Leans Into the Dark
Match Made in Hell is a 2024 Dutch Melrose and Benny Mayne single that fully embraces his cinematic, dark-pop aesthetic.
RUSH: An Early Dutch Melrose and Benny Mayne Team-Up
RUSH, released in 2023, is one of the earlier Dutch Melrose and Benny Mayne collaborations on MADKID Records.
Why Do I Hear Breathing?: The EP Before the Album
Before his debut album, Christian Gates released the EP Why Do I Hear Breathing? in 2023, a step toward No Strings Att…
“I Won’t Beg For You” Is Secretly About a Lamborghini
Christian Gates wrote 'I Won't Beg For You' about a red Lamborghini as if it were a girl, after a rental-car venture n…
Dangerous State of Mind: Christian Gates in 2022
Released in 2022, Dangerous State of Mind captured Christian Gates deep in his emo-leaning, confessional run.
The “Overwhelmed” Remix That Got Atlantic to Call
Christian Gates' remix of Royal & the Serpent's 'Overwhelmed' went so viral that Atlantic Records reached out. The off…
The Artists
All artists →Christian Gates
Orange County alt-pop, aka ItsLuxCity. Gold-certified for “NUMB” and founder of The Ring by Lux.
Dutch Melrose
LA dark-R&B and alt-pop behind RUNRUNRUN, releasing through his MADKID Records.
benny mayne
Platinum-selling songwriter turned artist. Dutch Melrose's right hand and 2026 co-headliner.
Ari Abdul
Brooklyn dark pop. Babydoll went Gold by accident; the career stuck on purpose.
Ella Boh
Wrote for Selena Gomez in the shadows; now the dark-pop artist the scene watches.
Isabel LaRosa
Annapolis jazz kid turned dark-pop auteur. 3.5 billion streams, every video self-directed.
Artemas
Three hours to make, two weeks as the most-streamed song on earth. Darkwave's flagship.
Julia Alexa
100M streams from a Swiss bedroom, no label, and a cancer-research thesis on the side.
TX2
Emo's lightning rod: vampire rock operas, the X Movement, and a mission against loneliness.
Ally Nicholas
Grunge-gaze from the North Shore: sweet voice, morbid pen, signed on her own terms.
VIOLENT VIRA
Boise trailer park to Mom+Pop: 99M streams and a grief opera called Lover of a Ghost.
Devon Again
Chappell Roan's labelmate-in-waiting since 2022. Blue hair, big feelings, Rodrigo's opener.
Nessa Barrett
16M TikTok followers turned real catalog. Her tours launched Ari Abdul and Isabel LaRosa.
The Neighbourhood
The godfathers: Sweater Weather, 4.7 billion streams, and the B&W blueprint for dark pop.
Tiffany Day
Sang into an Italian well, went viral, stayed independent for a decade, then went hyperpop.
Arden Jones
The hook machine: 16 monthly age tapes, 273M streams, Marin County sunshine with an 808.
JVKE
The pastor's son from Cranston who took Golden Hour to No. 10 on the Hot 100 without ever signing to a major.
Chris Grey
Toronto's self-taught dark-pop auteur, whose slow-burn TikTok hit Let the World Burn turned a JUNO nomination into a 2026 headline tour.
Jesse Rutherford
The Neighbourhood's frontman runs a rainbow-coded solo world of his own: Columbia, then Atlantic, then the Jesse® rebrand.
KiNG MALA
El Paso-raised alt-pop artist behind "she calls me daddy" and the horror-concept album And You Who Drowned in the Grief of a Golden Thing.
PLVTINUM
Dark-pop hitmaker behind "Champagne & Sunshine" who became the founder and CEO of Rebellion Records.
ThxSoMch
Toronto's viral-to-platinum darkwave export. "Spit in My Face!" turned a bedroom freestyle into a Billboard entry and a scene alongside Artemas.
Landon Barker
From OTG Landon to a Machine Gun Kelly feature to Big Loud Rock: the solo career built alongside a famous last name.
Royal & the Serpent
The RIAA-Gold 'Overwhelmed' singer turned concept-album auteur, from Jersey bartender to Atlantic Records mainstay.
Jaden Hossler
TikTok-to-rockstar breakout who became Travis Barker's first DTA Records signing and a face of the 2020s pop-punk revival.
Ekkstacy
Vancouver post-punk star behind 'i walk this earth all by myself,' the GQ-anointed King of Sad Punk who supported blink-182 and rebuilt his sound on Forever.
Jutes
Kars-to-LA singer-songwriter behind Sleepyhead, a Position Music signee, Demi Lovato's outside co-writer, and her husband as of 2025.
Aidan Bissett
TikTok-discovered indie-pop singer-songwriter behind 'More Than Friends,' now touring arenas with LANY after his 2025 debut album shut up and love me.
Alex Nobile
Behind-the-scenes songwriter and topliner: TXT's "Dance With You," Cassadee Pope's Hereditary, and a multi-year Dutch Melrose co-writing partnership.
Allegra Jordyn
Toronto-born dark-pop singer-songwriter and Disney Music Group staff writer, best known for "MINE" and her long creative partnership with Chris Grey.
Amelia Moore
Homeschool-to-Hollywood alt-pop singer-songwriter behind 'next door' and 'see through,' from Capitol Records to independence to Republic Records.
Amira Elfeky
The Connecticut-raised voice behind "Tonight": viral TikTok breakout turned Atlantic Records nu-metal revivalist, with EPs Skin to Skin and Surrender and features alongside Architects and I Prevail.
Ashley Sienna
Toronto's self-styled manifestation-pop artist, from viral hit 'What You Need' to a MADKID Records collaboration with Dutch Melrose.
beabadoobee
The Dirty Hit signee behind "Coffee" and "Death Bed," now a Rick Rubin collaborator, Eras Tour opener, and first-time UK No. 1 album artist heading into her first arena tour.
Beach Bunny
Chicago indie-rock band led by Lili Trifilio, whose 2018 song 'Prom Queen' became a defining TikTok anthem and whose catalog now includes two platinum singles and three studio albums.
Beauty School Dropout
LA "Renegade-Pop" trio signed to Mark Hoppus's Verswire, from Warped Tour to opening for Machine Gun Kelly and Wiz Khalifa.
Bilmuri
Former Attack Attack! member turned solo genre-scrambler. Columbia Records artist behind American Motor Sports and Kinda Hard.
Chase Atlantic
The Cairns trio behind billion-stream single "Swim" and the 2024 breakout Lost in Heaven, alt-R&B built for a decade of streaming and sold-out arenas.
Chelsea Cutler
Connecticut-born singer-songwriter who left Amherst mid-degree for a tour slot and built a 3.1-billion-stream catalog, including three solo LPs and the brent trilogy with Jeremy Zucker.
Claire Rosinkranz
The TikTok-born voice behind "Backyard Boy" who grew into a Maroon 5 tour opener and 10K Projects/Atlantic artist.
Clairo
From a 2017 bedroom-webcam video to a 2025 Grammy nomination: the singer-songwriter behind Immunity, Sling and Charm.
CLIFF HUNDO
The credit name behind the 2024 dance single HUNDO, alternately billed as Hot Intent, featuring Dutch Melrose. No independent artist profile has been documented.
Conan Gray
From a lamp-taped bedroom mic in Georgetown, Texas, to four straight top-ten Billboard albums and a Max Martin-produced synth-pop pivot.
David Hugo
Carmel and Ventura-raised pop singer-songwriter whose 2020 TikTok hit "Dangerous" led to a Face profile, the album Blossom Hill, and a 2022 Columbia-distributed duet with Nicky Youre.
DeathbyRomy
The 'Problems' breakout who left Capitol Records to build HOLLYWOOD FOREVER on her own terms, corpse-paint, sold-out headline tours, and all.
Del Water Gap
The Brooklyn singer-songwriter behind Gold-certified 'Ode to a Conversation Stuck in Your Throat' and a decade-long musical partnership with Maggie Rogers.
Em Beihold
The voice behind "Numb Little Bug," a Platinum, Hot 100 single that turned a pandemic-era TikTok following into a Republic Records career.
Gracie Abrams
Confessional whisperpop singer-songwriter behind Good Riddance, The Secret of Us and the breakout hit That's So True, built on a three-album partnership with producer Aaron Dessner.
HARRY WAS HERE
MADKID Records artist and former Thoreau, HARRY WAS HERE blends emo and alt-pop across a decade-spanning catalog with Dutch Melrose and benny mayne.
Henry Morris
Former Playyard singer-producer whose noir-pop solo run led to a Giant Music deal and a slot supporting Artemas's full 38-date LOVERCORE world tour.
Hot Intent
Two dance-pop singles, one Dutch Melrose feature, and no confirmed label, bio, or social presence found anywhere as of July 2026.
Isaac Dunbar
Self-taught bedroom producer turned RCA artist and GLAAD Media Award nominee, from pirated FL Studio to Beep Beep Repeat.
ivri
Independent Brooklyn artist whose "tower of memories" turned a TikTok gaming-nostalgia trend into a global viral moment.
Kevin White
The low-profile producer behind Bazzi's biggest hits, Chelsea Cutler's Stellaria, and Artemas's viral "i like the way you kiss me."
Kim Dracula
Tasmanian singer who turned a viral Paparazzi cover into a Columbia Records deal, a Jonathan Davis feature and a debut Europe/UK headline tour.
Livingston
TikTok-to-Elektra pop artist turned independent label boss behind the sold-out A Hometown Odyssey.
Mareux
The LA darkwave producer whose 2015 bedroom cover of The Cure went viral six years later and became a platinum record.
María Zardoya
The Marías frontwoman turned Not for Radio solo artist, Grammy-nominated a decade into her career on the strength of "No One Noticed."
Maude Latour
TikTok-viral, Columbia-educated singer-songwriter whose 2024 debut Sugar Water made 'cosmic pop' a genre of its own.
Olivia Rodrigo
The drivers license phenomenon: Grammy-winning singer-songwriter behind SOUR and GUTS, built almost entirely on her partnership with producer Dan Nigro.
Olivver the Kid
The Neighbourhood's founding drummer who left in 2014 to become Olivver the Kid, an indie singer-songwriter with a parallel career writing hit sync music.
phem
LA singer-songwriter behind how u stop hating urself and pheelings pt. 1, and a prolific outside writer for Machine Gun Kelly and jxdn.
Chappell Roan
Grammy-winning singer-songwriter behind Pink Pony Club and Good Luck, Babe!, from Atlantic drop to Best New Artist.
poutyface
App-discovered singer-songwriter behind DEATHWISH and Cherry Picking who toured with YUNGBLUD before going independent.
Powfu
The Mission, B.C. artist behind the billion-stream TikTok phenomenon "Death Bed (Coffee for Your Head)," and one of lo-fi hip-hop's defining voices.
PRETTY HAVØC
Singaporean pop-punk artist and Dutch Melrose's touring guitarist, known for ATOM BOMB and MIRROR MIRROR.
Renée Rapp
Broadway's Regina George turned pop chart-topper: Snow Angel, Bite Me, and her first arena tour.
Sadie Jean
TikTok's open-verse phenomenon turned RIAA Gold artist, from a secret Orange County songwriter to a full debut album.
Slush Puppy
San Diego-to-LA singer, songwriter and producer behind "EAT SPIT!" and K-pop credits for CORTIS and TXT.
Sombr
Lower East Side singer-songwriter behind "Back to Friends" and I Barely Know Her, a Grammy-nominated breakout who went from bedroom demos to sold-out arenas in under two years.
Suki Waterhouse
Model and actress turned singer-songwriter whose 2017 song "Good Looking" went Platinum after a 2022 TikTok revival; opened Taylor Swift's Eras Tour at Wembley and signed to Island Records for 2026's Loveland.
Tai Verdes
From a Verizon Wireless counter to Arista Records: the TikTok dare that became "A-O-K."
Toby Daintree
Artemas's jazz-trained co-writer and producer behind "I Like the Way You Kiss Me" and BTS's "Like Animals."
Two Feet
The bodega cashier whose SoundCloud rant became a No. 1 Alternative Airplay hit, now independent and touring sober behind 477 Records.
Wallice
Jazz-school dropout turned indie breakout. "Punching Bag," "23" and a Dirty Hit run that took her onto arena stages with The 1975.