Shygirl
“There’s no space in between music and fashion,” says 31-year-old south Londoner Blane Muise, oozing an awe-inspiring confidence you might not necessarily expect from an artist with the moniker Shygirl. “You can’t have one without the other.” With her latest siren-like EP, Club Shy, currently setting headphones on fire across the globe with its hyper-pop dance beats, it was her Mercury Prize-nominated debut album, 2022’s Nymph, that took her from your favourite musician’s favourite musician to the most in-demand act in town. Where does she find inspiration? “Love in all its forms.”
Jyoty
DJ, producer and radio host Jyoty has played the biggest stages in the world. (Glastonbury was a favourite; Coachella didn’t even rank – “I turned the offer to play down this year,” she says. “My manager won’t like this but… you don’t build memories at Coachella.”) And yet, it’s the spontaneous sets in “unlikely spaces” that make her feel most electric. “I play the best and I’m the happiest when it’s ‘no stage’ energy,” says the 33-year-old, who has risen from club door girl to being one of the most in-demand DJs thanks to her infectious, eclectic mix of global club sounds. “British music has shaped my artistry all the way from the start, when I heard Shy FX’s “body groove” for the first time,” she says. “There’s not a better example than the UK when it comes to music that is only found here, but [it] has its origins all over the world.”
Flo
It was two years ago that vocally blessed trio Flo (Stella Quaresma, 22, Jorja Douglas, 22, and Renée Downer, 21) exploded onto the scene with a viral debut single, “Cardboard Box”, that has, to date, had 50 million plays on Spotify. Though their melismatic runs and three-part harmonies are reminiscent of the girl groups of the ’90s they cite as their inspirations – “We wouldn’t be standing here if it wasn’t for Destiny’s Child,” they say – Flo’s compatibility doesn’t end with the music. They formed in 2019 after auditioning at a girl group call-out from their label, and five years on, two successful EPs and bucket-loads of fans later, festival season awaits and so does the release of a debut album. Their pre-show ritual? “We look each other in the eye, slap a bum and hold hands.”
Ezra Collective
The reigning Mercury Prize winners are a sociable, energetic bunch. Between takes on their Vogue shoot in south London, they strolled about, often in opposite directions, popping into local hair shops to say hello to family, checking out nearby restaurants where they might put on an event. “We’re just friends who play different instruments,” says Femi Koleoso, 29, the jazz outfit’s drummer and de facto leader. For more than 10 years, Koleoso, alongside his bassist brother TJ, 28, saxophonist James Mollison, 31, trumpeter Ife Ogunjobi, 23, and 31-year-old keyboardist Joe Armon-Jones, have been redefining London’s jazz scene through their rhythmic sound and advocacy for access to music. Drawing inspiration from genres far and wide, they have collaborated with some of the city’s brightest talents (Steve McQueen via a stirring phone call interlude on their album, Sampa the Great, Nao). Who’s next on their wishlist? They roll off a tonne of names: Erykah Badu, Skepta. “Little Simz, if you’re reading this…”
Olivia Dean
In the 12 months since her debut album, Messy, was released last June, the south London-raised Olivia Dean has been up for three Brit Awards, the Mercury Prize, is in the midst of a mega tour and is being courted by fashion’s major players to boot (front row at both Chanel and Gucci, no less). Above all, though, it’s the 25-year-old’s amalgam of neo-soul pop with a shade of motown that’s captured the hearts of her now legion of fans. Suffice to say, Dean’s days of anonymity are behind her, not that it has her fazed. “I’m being recognised for something that I love to do, so I couldn’t be happier really,” she says with a smile.
Holly Humberstone
“I perform better when I’m a little bit nervous,” says Holly Humberstone, whose soothing indie pop and rock-tinged tunes saw the Grantham-born 24-year-old crowned the Brits Rising Star in 2022 – and unofficial anthem-maker for Gen Z. In the two years since, she’s headlined a monumental stateside tour and released her critically acclaimed debut album, Paint My Bedroom Black. “The best thing to me about British music is how raw and rough around the edges a lot of it is,” she says. “I think that people aren’t afraid to express themselves and be really vulnerable with how they write. I’m proud to be a part of it.”
Production: Diana Eastman. Digital artwork: Kaja Jangaard. With thanks to Copeland Park and Waddington Studios