Check out the BBC Sound of 2024 longlist
The BBC Sound of 2024 longlist has been published, with names including The Last Dinner Party, Tyla and Peggy Gou being tipped for success next year.
The other acts rounding out this year’s list are Aya Starr, Caity Baser, CMAT, Elmeine, Kenya Grace, Olivia Dean and Sekou.
This year’s longlist is largely dominated by female solo acts, with strong showings for British soul and R&B and artists from Africa. It was voted for by a panel of 140 music industry experts, including representatives from Spotify, Apple Music, Glastonbury Festival, the BBC and former nominees including Jorja Smith, PinkPantheress and Tom Grennan.
The winner will be revealed in the new year on BBC Radio 1, with the top five revealed in reverse order between January 1-5. The longlisted artists will all be performing in a gig organised by Radio 1 at London’s Maida Vale Studios on January 8.
BBC’s Sound Of… list is now in its 22nd year and has been a predictor of success for a wealth of big-name artists, including Adele, Stormzy and Wet Leg.
Last year’s list was won by FLO, with Fred Again.. and Nia Archives finishing second and third respectively.
Meanwhile, The Last Dinner Party are the latest band to grace NME‘s The Cover, in which they discuss their rapid rise to fame, industry plant accusations, and their forthcoming album ‘Prelude To Ecstasy’, which will be released in February.
“Our whole mission statement is very theatrical,” guitarist Lizzie Morris said. “We love being intentional and indulgent. I mean, we have a composer! We want to flex that!”
“The glam rock, the historical fashion… It all comes from the ‘magpie’ visual culture we grew up with in the age of Tumblr,” added bassist Georgia Davies. “You’d be scrolling through this dispassionate list of random shit all the time, just this massive blob of stuff. It would go from Pride & Prejudice to David Bowie to Effie Stonem from Skins, and you could pick up anything that looked interesting.”
The band also recently covered Sinéad O’Connor’s 1987 classic ‘Mandinka’ for Apple Music’s London Sessions.
The post Check out the BBC Sound of 2024 longlist appeared first on NME.
Emma Wilkes
NME
