April 20th, 2017

By Abbey Soltis & Molly Swartz   

     Music is an essential part of life- whether you listen to blues, classical, country, pop, rap
or R&B, we think that music is the key to being happy and finding an outlet for the many
stresses of your everyday life. Despite having different music tastes, we can probably all admit
that we have heard of modern legends like Beyonce, Luke Brian, Panic! At the Disco, or J.Cole.
They have a huge influence on society and have truly set modern, new music standards. Now, we
are trying to bring to light the new artists, who so far in 2017 have shown the world that they are
ready to rise above these music standards with everything from interesting and profound lyrics to
new sounds and beats.

     The first artist on our list began her fame on the America’s Got Talent , as a part of a
group called Poplyfe. However, her claim to fame was through her debut of “Gangsta”, a song
played in the box office hit Suicide Squad . Kehlani has released several albums, but we think that
her best release so far is her album of 2017, SweetSexySavage . This album incorporates a huge
variety of songs both fast and slow, with truly catchy beats and lyrics. Her music has a very
relaxed vibe, with insightful lyrics about the loss and love in her life.

     If you’re looking for a softer tone, a calm beat with an R&B vibe, then artists such as
Russ, Khalid and Daniel Caesar are ones to look out for. You may have heard of Russ due to his
hit song “What They Want”, but we think he should be known for some songs in his earlier
albums, such as “Pull the Trigger”, which has a cool mix of orchestral instruments and modern,
synthetic beats. We asked some students at Glenelg High School if they had heard of Russ, and
75% of the students responded that they have listened to his most popular song “What They
Want”, but have not heard any of his other music. Morgan Adams, a Junior at Glenelg, said
“Russ is more of a pop rapper. I don’t like this style as much, but I definitely like the song. Now
that I know he has more music, I’ll definitely add him to my workout playlist.” All of the other
reviews coincided with Adams’ opinion: Russ has really catchy music.

     Another widely popular song, “Location”, was released in 2016 by Khalid. This song has
been put on playlists worldwide for its slow, rhythmic beat and Khalid’s intriguing voice. While
Khalid started as a less popular artist on Soundcloud , his rise to fame has been almost inevitable,
especially after his release of more music such as “Coaster”, and “Saved”. Morgan Adams also
contributed to the review of Khalid, with his statement “ “Location” has a nice rhythm. It has a
lot of repetition: he repeats the same lyrics over and over again. It’s still catchy though, and he’s
gonna make a break one day.” Overall, we think that Khalid will continue his rise to fame with
his new music in 2017.

     One of our favorite new artists is Daniel Caesar. Some of his more popular songs include
“Get You” and “Japanese Denim”. His music has a very calm vibe, and we think everyone would
agree that this is the perfect music for chilling out and studying - discovering this lesser-known
artist can be key for the students that cannot listen to loud music while studying.
If you are into modern blues, “Perfect” by Bibi Bourelly and Earl St. Clair is the song for
you. This song, with its insane vocal range, intense organ sounds and old school tune, is
absolutely mind blowing. Even if you do not usually listen to this style music, we recommend
you listen to it, just for the goosebumps effect.
​
     For a shift in genre, Sam Hunt is a very unique country artist. This musician embodies
casual, fun tones with his song “Body Like a Back Road” . He found a way to break free from the
stereotypical country sound and transform it into something even more catchy and meaningful.
When asked about Sam Hunt, Adam Clotier, a Senior at Glenelg, said that “ “Body Like a Back
Road” is a great song. It’s got a nice beat to it.” His description is what many other people agree
about Sam Hunt’s song, and although they admitted that they had not heard his other music, they
agreed to look him up and appreciate his other songs.

     Dua Lipa is our next artist, who has released songs like “Blow Your Mind (Mwah)”. Her
songs are amazingly innovative and equally as catchy as the others on this list. She utilizes funky
beats, and a strong sounding voice to make her songs hits.

     Another pop artist, Elohim, is a lesser known figure whose songs are light and fun.
“Hallucinating”, her most popular song, completely embodies the rest of her works. The song is
a roller coaster, full of slow and fast parts, different voices and noises including violins and
modern synthetics, and is truly fun to listen to.

     Our last genre is rap. These artists have risen to fame through their profound lyrics and
partying beats. 6LACK, KYLE, and Amine are three rap artists worth discovering in 2017, due
to songs such as “Prblms”, “iSpy”, and “Caroline”. Although these three songs are more popular,
it is definitely worth it to check out the rest of their albums. These hype-up songs are perfect for
listening to music in the car with your friends or exercising.

     After listening to these artists and asking the students of Glenelg High School what their
opinions are on these songs, it should be clear to see that you should put these songs into your
playlists. By interviewing students at lunch, we found that about 50% of students knew certain
songs, but were still unaware of the actual artists of these songs. Furthermore, based on our surveys, we found that most students did not know the artists such as Daniel Caesar, Bibi Bourelly and Earl St. Clair. Despite the lack of knowledge of most of these artists, we believe that they will gain popularity throughout this year. From everything like running to studying, these songs are perfect to listen to, and we encourage you to listen to them, and to expand your music repertoire with the new sounds of 2017.

Disclaimer: Some of these songs have explicit lyrics.