OLIVIA BARTON writes songs that sound like stream-of-consciousness journal entries . . . because they are. With grit and radical self-compassion, she asks and answers questions in real time, taking you through “a diary of the healing process” (Sound of Boston). The daughter of a writer and an English teacher, Olivia’s Floridian childhood was infused with songwriting giants—Patty Griffin, Indigo Girls, and Bruce Springsteen—who hooked Olivia on the power of storytelling through a single voice and guitar. She graduated from Berklee College of Music and now lives in a quiet neighborhood outside of Nashville, Tennessee with her partner and her dog Cubby.

A descendant of the essayist and transcendentalist Ralph Waldo Emerson, CHANCE EMERSON is the son of a Taiwanese mother and American father. When he moved across the world to Providence, Rhode Island to pursue his studies, it didn’t take long before a passion for singing and song-writing overtook his trajectory. He began performing up and down the Northeast corridor, headlining clubs to fervent followers and supporting established acts such as Johnnyswim, Brett Dennen, Eli Young Band, Lawrence, Ripe, Blues Traveler, and Nancy Wilson's Heart. On the heels of receiving the prestigious John Lennon Songwriting Award from BMI, Chance performed at the renowned Newport Folk Festival. Chance’s raw and honest approach to songwriting has resonated powerfully with listeners: His 2023 album, Ginkgo, with lead single “House We Share,” has already surpassed 2,000,000 streams and landed features on Spotify’s prominent Dinner With Friends and Next Gen Singer-Songwriter playlists.

One to watch in the Americana scene, dynamic singer-songwriter TAYLOR RAE enchants and connects with audiences through honest vocals, compelling songwriting, and endearing storytelling. The Santa Cruz, California native swiftly made her mark on the Americana music scene with her debut album, Mad Twenties, released in 2021. The record became a fixture on the Americana Radio charts (AMA/CDX) for 31 weeks, marking the longest duration for any independently released album in 2022. The single, "Home on the Road," which embodies her “Soul & Roll” sound, remained in the Top 10 of the Americana Music Singles Chart for five consecutive weeks.

If you mixed Elton John's timeless melodies, Randy Newman's witty lyrics, Chris Martin's silky vocals, and then put them all together on a baseball diamond, you'd get KIERAN RHODES. As a high schooler, Kieran was on track to play serious college baseball when he discovered a love for music. He taught himself piano and began writing songs. To date, the prolific and playful piano man has released eight singles and an EP, On the Corner of Somewhere Street. He is most recently known for his viral audition on season 17 of America’s Got Talent. Kieran won the hearts of millions around the world with his original song, “Disengage” which chronicles a struggle with depression. With over 40 million views, the audition was praised by many including Billboard, Goldderby, and Simon Cowell himself. This past fall, Kieran was one of the artists at Sound on Sound Music Festival alongside greats, such as Red Hot Chili Peppers, John Mayer, Hozier, and more. He is set to hit the Boston Calling stage in May.

Accomplished vocalist, bassist, and songwriter, TONINA is based in Los Angeles, but her musical journey began in St. Louis. Blending Black and Sicilian heritage, her upbringing fostered a deep connection to music, with her introduction to upright bass at just 8 years old. Tonina's musical prowess flourished as she joined the St. Louis Symphony Youth Orchestra at 14, followed by fruitful years at Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA, and Valencia, Spain. These experiences endowed her with an unparalleled musical scope; she traverses genres with ease while infusing each with her distinctive touch. Her innate sense of rhythm, captivating melodies, extraordinary vocal prowess, and profound song interpretation collectively create performances that are nothing short of thrilling. Tonina was recognized as one of NPR's favorite new artists of 2018, and her rendition of "Historia de un Amor" found a place on former President Barack Obama's top songs list for that year, further cementing her as an artist of remarkable distinction.

Drawing inspiration from retro soul and classic country, Micah Edwards is a singer-songwriter from Houston, Texas. A daring explorer, Micah has created a unique fusion of retro and contemporary elements to define a new genre: Texas soul. Recently reaching over 1M monthly Spotify listeners, he was also featured on Tiny Desk Contest’s 2022 Top Shelf, showcased at SXSW 2023, and opened for Mac Ayres, Kam Franklin, Madeline Edwards, David Michael Wyatt, and Little Moon on the Tiny Desk Contest On The Road tour.

New Jersey native Claire Ernst is a pop/R&B artist now based out of Nashville, Tennessee. Accumulating over 5 million streams on Spotify alone, Claire Ernst has been evolving constantly since she began releasing at age 14. With the lyrical influences of Kacey Musgraves and Allen Stone, and the melodic influences of Yebba and PJ Morton, her unique, soulful sound is waiting to fall on the right ears. During Covid, Claire won the recognition of R&B star “H.E.R”, and has been growing her TikTok community ever since, garnering praise there from stars Jacob Collier, Jojo, Jason Derulo, and Andy Grammer. A recent EP release under her belt, she is working on her debut full-length album and can’t wait to share it with the world.

Julia Pratt is a 22 year old singer-songwriter based in Philadelphia. A songwriter at heart, Julia’s music blends pop, jazz, R&B, and folk, with flashes of electronic production. Grounded in poignant lyricism inspired by Kevin Garrett, Amy Winehouse, and Hozier, Julia writes about family, love, betrayal, and grappling with the concept of “the self.” She kicked off 2023 opening for Hozier, The Head and the Heart, the Revivalists, and Adam Melchor; embarked on a national tour opening for Australian ambient pop artist Vancouver Sleep Clinic; and was runner-up for NPR’s Tiny Desk Contest On The Road tour in Philadelphia. Julia is gearing up for a series of releases extending through 2024, starting with her new EP Two To Tango, featuring her hit collaboration with Matt Quinn of Mt. Joy, “A Little Love.”

Folk singer-songwriter Alex Blue is making music that softens the noise. Alex got her start as an artist (known then as "Alex G”) during YouTube’s ‘Golden Era,’ where at one point hers was the fastest-growing music channel on the platform. The success was fast, but it was also costly. After a few years, she found herself completely drained by the pressure and demands of maintaining it, and so stepped away from the artist she had been to create something new. Over the years that followed, Alex worked to cultivate her strengths as a songwriter—poetic lyricism, truthful storytelling, stirring melodies—and to integrate those into an artist identity that is authentic and sustainable. She now aims to make music that is grounding, transparent, and connective, that doesn’t demand attention but invites listeners into an experience that is gentle and generous. Alex's upcoming record, Kin, orbits themes of family, grief, diaspora, and queer motherhood. She currently lives in Michigan with her wife, Torri, and son, Auden.

Farayi Malek has traveled the world as a Grammy-nominated vocalist with Danilo Perez and the Global Messengers; now she’s returning to her musical roots. The child of a Zimbabwean immigrant and a white American mother, Farayi grew up in a small, rural town in Southern Idaho, playing the fiddle and absorbing the culture of seemingly conflicting communities. Striving to bring the diverse sounds and experiences of her life into her music, she weaves the Gospel of her childhood church and the blues and jazz of her student years into pure, resonant songs that allow her effortless vocals to shine.

Fans are elated to see Farayi step out as a solo artist on her much anticipated, debut roots project produced by Alain Mallet (Phil Woods, Paul Simon, Paquito D'Rivera, Marc Johnson, and Madeleine Peyroux). Her writing showcases accessible themes with a unique compositional intelligence as demonstrated in songs like “Tonight.”

Farayi is a Salt Lick Incubator award-winner alongside peers such as Tiny Habits and Alisa Amador. The Incubator is shepherded by an artist advisory board that includes T-Bone Burnett, Jon Batiste, Harvey Mason Jr., and Patrice Rushen.

When she is not performing and recording, Farayi shares her expansive musical knowledge through professorships at Berklee’s City Music Boston High School Academy, New England Conservatory, and Berklee College of Music. In an interview with The Boston Globe Farayi shared, “Seeing my students be so brave and confident, so artistic and free […] they’re the ones who actually inspired me to pursue my artistic career.”

Farayi is driven by her desire to make people feel seen and at home in their otherness, always evident in her warm, soulful voice as she engages with her students and audiences.

Shanghai-born Toronto transplant PIAO emerges as the pop artist you’ve been longing for. With a captivating fusion of heartfelt lyrics and an awe-inspiring vocal range, PIAO fearlessly paves her own artistic path. Her relentless pursuit of musical growth has granted her collaborations with esteemed artists, producers, and industry giants including T-Pain, Don Cannon, 88 Rising, AVEX, and Seeker Music Group. Her debut EP, Tissues, swiftly captured the attention of listeners and industry tastemakers alike. Featured on prominent Spotify editorial playlists—New Music Friday, Next-Gen Singer Songwriter, Sad Hour, Jasmine, Fresh Finds (featured), and more—PIAO's poignant melodies and evocative storytelling strike a chord with audiences worldwide.

LÉA THE LEOX (“Lay-Uh”) learned the ins and outs of the music industry by her father’s side—Leon Silva of the Regiment Horns—and began her musical journey on the trumpet in the 4th grade. At 15, she had a pivotal moment singing a solo song during Kelly Clarkson's Piece by Piece tour, performing to an audience of over 10,000. The singer recalls, “I knew that was exactly what I wanted to do with my life,” and went on to attend Berklee College of Music where she graduated with a BA in Music Business. Shortly after, she moved to L.A. and released her single “Feel The Same” along with a music video openly expressing her sexuality for the first time. “As a bisexual woman of color in this industry, it can be intimidating to just be yourself.” Yet LÉA herself is quickly emerging as one of the voices in the next generation of R&B. Already a standout, LÉA was selected to participate in the Dolby Atmos Music Accelerator at SXSW 2023, and has been connecting with new audiences and proving her undeniable star power through captivating live performances.

Alabama indie-pop-rockers Carver Commodore are on a mission to claim their spot in independent-music history. Founding members Payton Pruitt and Phillip Blevins formed the group in 2017 after their college band parted ways. Adding bandmates Noah Freeman, Clayton Christopher, and David Smith, Jr., the tunesmithing tribe developed a determination to choose quality over quantity, even in a metrics-driven world. The latest result? Their EP If Nothing Happens—a shimmery, wistful take on the aesthetic-heavy music of the modern indie pop world, bolstered by Pruitt’s substantive songwriting. Stick around. Something may happen yet ….

Floridian alt-pop artist Bela Pierce takes her inspiration from Joan Jett, the 1975, Santigold, and Clairo. She combines somber storytelling with angsty production to build unflinching anthems for all of life and every aspect of the human condition. Her mesmerizing releases have landed editorial placements in All New Rock, Young and Free, Morning Coffee, Fresh Finds, New In Alternative and more. Bela is at work crafting her debut EP. The project explores themes of mental illness, growing pains, and the raw emotions felt along the journey to healing. Direct and honest, Bela can’t wait to get this collection of music to her listeners.

As a kid, Phillip-Michael Scales didn’t understand what it meant that his aunt’s close friend, the guitar player who called him “nephew” was B.B. King. Once Phillip-Michael began guitar lessons, the significance became so clear that he shied away from soloing and most things blues. Instead, he fell in love with songwriting when an English teacher told him, “A great writer can make their reader identify with anyone.” With a fierce independent streak and a passion for performing, Scales fronted bands, wrote and recorded music, and worked to make a name for himself on his own terms. When his Uncle B passed away, Scales began incorporating more of the blues into his music as a way to honor him. The result is a sound he calls “Dive Bar Soul” which takes a bit of indie rock storytelling and couples it with the passion of the blues. His single “Find a Way” attracted national radio attention in 2022 and an invitation to perform on the Ellen Degeneres Show. His music has taken him all the way to the Middle East, as well as festivals across Europe and North America. He has opened for Milky Chance, Jerry Cantrell (Alice In Chains), Caravan Palace, Fantastic Negrito, The New Respects, Guster, The Record Company, and Cory Brannan.

The Arcadian Wild is an indie folk/pop group from Nashville. Led by songwriters Isaac Horn and Lincoln Mick, with Bailey Warren on fiddle, the trio confidently combines elements of progressive bluegrass, folk, and formal vocal music to offer up songs of invitation—calls to come and see, to find refuge and rest, to journey and wonder, to laugh and cry, and to share joy and community. The band’s 2023 album Welcome marks the start of a captivating new chapter, blurring the lines between chamber, folk, and progressive bluegrass; and drawing on everything from country and classical to pop and choral music with lush harmonies and dazzling fretwork. It’s an arresting collection from a band known for its ability to stop listeners dead in their tracks.

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Detroit-born artist Jax Anderson has a reputation for writing indie-alt anthems that speak boldly to overcoming the forces in the world that try to keep us from loving ourselves and actualizing our full potential. She creates music, “Because growing up I didn’t have anyone like me–openly gay, unashamedly obsessed with good pop songs, a female creative who directed and edited her own visuals, content, and designs. I didn’t have anyone to look up to that was a total creative boss. So I became one.”

In 2020, Anderson toured with Bishop Briggs and Miya Folick and knocked out a short headline tour of sellout shows in Detroit, Chicago, and Indianapolis. With a collaborative track with Misterwives under her belt, she toured North America and Australia with artists like Foster The People, SIGRID, and PVRIS, and played Lollapalooza, Bonnaroo, and Sasquatch.

Kaovanny (aka, “La Caoba”) seamlessly fuses the sounds and rhythms of her Latinx upbringing with the multi-genre influences of the Black artists who raised her. One in a lineage of bold authors, Kaovanny speaks to the dualities in culture, religion, identity, and sexuality. Using music to celebrate, communicate, and worship, Kaovanny naturally floats between her masculine and feminine energies in her delivery, to connect, educate, and then entertain. Although performance is her main medium, Kaovanny is a creative entrepreneur and educator with a focus on healing and on developing and advancing black and brown communities through natural medicine, sports, movement, and music. She has toured in Colombia, Brazil, and the U.S., hosting workshops by day and performing at night. Her latest single, “War Cry,” and EP, Tres, are available on all streaming platforms.

Songwriter, arranger, and powerful lyricist Elizabeth Moen wrote her first songs while a student at the University of Iowa. In this small but artistically diverse community the traditional songwriters, alternative rockers, and avant-garde enthusiasts were playing the same house shows, talking at the same bars, and dancing in the same clubs. It was in this melange that Moen shaped the aesthetic of her first albums.

Street-wise and self-aware, Moen mines the emotional hangover of our turbulent times for the vignettes and metaphors that distill and decode our experience. Her album, Wherever You Aren’t, deftly rolls all her generation’s anxieties and self-doubts into one. Moen reflects, “These songs are about mental health, joy, panic attacks, falling in love, falling out of it, and accepting that sometimes it will stay with you forever.”

Committed to her audience and career, Moen shows up again and again through her ability to perceive the truth and send it back into the world in song. Surrounded by swirling harmonies and ascendant strings, Moen sings she’ll meet you, “Wherever you are, wherever you aren’t … That’s okay,” and she means it.

Canadian-American indie rockers Curtis Heimburger, Wilson Reardon, and Tara Maggiulli joined forces to form Mom Rock in Boston in 2018. They quickly took the city’s college party scene by storm, and have since stolen the hearts of show-goers with electric live sets, infectious original tunes, and signature themed get-ups.

Mom Rock’s discography is a whip-smart and poignant Bildungsroman, written in real time as the band kicked their way through a pandemic, an unprecedented global recession, the creeping influence of the metaverse, and—perhaps most daunting of all—college. Altogether, their catalog is a crash course in young adulthood and all that comes with it—friendship, heartbreak, self-love, self-loathing, and the very human need to belong.

With nothing but organic grassroots efforts, Mom Rock have surpassed 5,000,000 streams on Spotify alone and have reached a global audience of over 600,000 listeners. They’ve released four EPs to date, and have been slated to play on stages of festivals like Shaky Knees, Music Midtown, and Osheaga, as well as having recently been featured as Rolling Stone’s Hot Band in their 2022 Hot Issue. Mom Rock are currently based in Austin, Texas and are available for any Little League games you need players for.

“I always wondered what my thoughts would sound like” says 22 year old Jazelle.

An only child from a musical family, Jazelle began learning drums, piano, and guitar, before discovering her true passion for the bass. She quickly joined a funk/pop-infused band and put her craft to work.

Like many artists, the inspiration behind her music comes from personal struggle: “High school was a really difficult time. I had normal experiences, but I felt like I was still trying hard to fit in.”

With influences from her Filipino-American and spiritual communities as well as artists such as BELOVED, Lizzy McAlpine, Chelsea Cutler, and John Mark McMillan, Jazelle hopes her music will connect with people and leave them knowing they are loved.

Alisa Amador’s music is a synthesis of the many styles she’s voraciously absorbed: rock, jazz, funk and alternative folk, all wrapped in the spirit of the Latin music she grew up with. She is the winner of the 2022 NPR Tiny Desk Contest, and NPR's Bob Boilen calls Alisa "a powerful voice whose tender performance commands attention and fosters connection." Alisa’s specialty is sparking connection, across both listeners and musical styles. “Some musicians really love recording music, even more than performing,” she says. “I feel most at home, and most purposeful, when I am performing live.” Alisa has opened for such artists as Lake Street Dive, Madison Cunningham, Watchhouse, and countless others, and her soulful singing, poetically incisive lyrics, and syncopated rhythms are likely to make you cry, laugh, and dance all within one set. Alisa released her debut EP, Narratives, in 2021. Her 2022 grant award will support a vinyl pressing of her next album..

Beane is a 25-year-old artist who cuts to the heart of the matter. His songs minimize the distractions and detritus of daily life and go straight to the hopes we hold and the burdens we carry. He has a soulful voice and writes music that connects us to our common humanity. Taking up dual residency in New York and LA, Beane is building a bi-coastal community of lovers and dreamers.

Beane was a standout on American Idol, has appeared on Ellen, has performed with Justin Timberlake, and played venues across the country. In addition to a lengthy release plan that will stretch into 2023, he is a Salt Lick Incubator Artist Award Recipient and hosts the Salt Lick Sessions YouTube channel.

PAMÉ is a fusion crossover artist who is captivating the music industry with her mesmerizing vocals and unique brand of genre-blending music. Her sound melds tropical Caribbean rhythms, Dominican Palos, Bali-funk and soaring vocals. Flowing seamlessly between English and Spanish, PAMÉ redefines what global music can be in 2022.

Born in the Dominican Republic and raised between the Bronx and Connecticut, both cultural influences are felt in her sound. As the daughter of a percussionist and choir leader, PAMÉ was always surrounded by rhythm and harmonies. Now PAMÉ has captured the imagination of social media with her once-in-a-generation vocal prowess, drawing comparisons to Whitney Houston, Adele, and Etta James. She cites Celia Cruz as a career inspiration and, like Cruz, she hopes to create space for Afro-Latinos in the entertainment industry and beyond.

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Tiny Habits is an acoustic folk-pop trio, formed in Boston, MA by artists Maya Rae, Cinya Khan and Judah Mayowa. Focusing on three-part harmonies and a beautifully intimate vibe, the trio's enticing signature sound has already helped drive them to viral success.

The three singer-songwriters met at Berklee College Of Music and the band was born at the beginning of 2022. They sing covers that are stunningly re-arranged to highlight their lush harmonies. The trio received praise and comments early on, from artists such as J. P. Saxe, Andy Grammar, Ben Platt, Justin Timberlake and Lizzy McAlpine.

Tiny Habits are currently writing and recording their first original material. The music will be a reflection of their personal experiences, highlighting deep human connection and emotional journeys.