Hello World Wide Web!
Want to make your music library a little cooler than it is right now? Well then, here are some LEGIT artists you need to add from the indie world. Who am I and what do I know, you ask? I'm Victoria Yip, Artist Relations Manager here at MAX. I've been with MAX for two years managing the artist side of our brand campaigns, and finding new music (and sharing it) is one of the my absolute FAVORITE things in the entire world. Check out my picks below and happy listening!
Foreign Air are Washington D.C./New York super duo Jesse and Jacob, taking over the world one FIRE track at a time (insert flame emoji here). I can't speak highly enough of them, they're so freaking talented. As a long-time avid hater of the term "indie," I'm hesitant to even place them anywhere specific under that umbrella, but if I had to I guess I would place them as "indie alternative." They're an amalgamation of so many different sounds that it's really difficult to describe in words.
Foreign Air carefully curates every single aspect of their brand, from how they release new singles, their music videos, merch, etc. They consistently dominate Spotify Indie playlists (with singles in the millions of streams), have had multiple songs featured in TV placements (Shameless, You, How to Get Away with Murder), have built a DEVOUT fanbase (even Lindsay Lohan is a fan), and have toured with the likes of artists such as Misterwives, HONORS, Alice Merton, and Bishop Briggs — all while remaining unsigned with no major album release. Impressive AF.
You know those songs where you remember exactly where you were the first time you ever heard them? I've been obsessed with MOSSS for a bit now, ever since my Spotify algorithm caressed me with his indie-alt single "Here If You Want (Pale Blue)" late one night in early spring last year. Not much is known about the LA-based, Washington-native Rob McCurdy, other than he's a songwriter/producer and was in a band as well. I'm of the opinion that he probably prefers to be under the radar...but you won't be able to hide from me Rob.
Go follow him on Instagram, where he'll sometimes grace you with a late-night, West Coast jam session on Instagram Live from his room, complete with appropriate mood lighting.
Love, love, LOVE DRAMA. Independent R&B/electronic duo Na’el Shehade (DJ) and Via Rosa (vocals) met in Chicago, after having independently cultivated their own music careers well before working together.
What I love about DRAMA is that these two started making music hardly knowing each other, specifically dictating a "no rules" collaboration to see where that process would take them. Their artistic backgrounds/styles, and the authentic nature of their collaboration, is reflected in the two albums they've produced since 2016 — leading to sold out tour dates that saw them opening for artists like SG Lewis. I was so, SO excited for their 2020 tour (which would have brought them into my backyard of Dallas) before COVID swiftly put an end to that. However, they've been doing quite a few Facebook livestreams from their Chicago studio, which helps ease the sting of tour heartbreak. If you're reading this @DRAMA, I am your #1 fangirl.
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Victoria Yip