The singer-songwriters who are pop’s new breakout stars

In 2024, high-octane pop and dance music are out and folksy singer-songwriters are in, if new chart data is anything to go by.

Three of the four biggest hits of the year so far have come from Noah Kahan, Teddy Swims and Benson Boone, according to the UK’s Official Charts Company.

Kahan’s pain-tinged folk track Stick Season, which was originally released back in 2022, became the most popular song of the first three months of this year after spending seven weeks at the top of the charts.

Swims’ addiction-themed Lose Control comes in second, after spending the past 13 weeks in the top 10.

Next on the list is Sophie Ellis-Bextor’s resurgent 2001 hit Murder on the Dancefloor – followed by Boone’s viral heartbreak hit Beautiful Things.

The appetite for Kahan’s music in particular has been steadily growing. A recent deluxe re-release of his third studio album, also titled Stick Season, and a collaboration with Brit Award winner Sam Fender on the track Homesick, have helped propel the 27-year-old into mainstream stardom.

A profile of the Vermont artist by Billboard noted his wide-reaching influence, predicting that “2024 may be the moment the greater sound of modern pop bends around him”.

Elements of his “detailed storytelling, vulnerable vocals [and] scruffy guitar strums that could lead a song anywhere from folk to rock to country to pop” can be heard in other artists, the music magazine said.

Swims’ ascent to stardom has been a little different – the 31-year-old Georgia native has been putting out songs since 2019, but only recently has perfected his sound, a blend of R&B, soul and rock.

Lose Control comes from his first album – I’ve Tried Everything But Therapy – which was released last year but didn’t break the UK top 20 at the time.

Boone is another newcomer – rising to fame on TikTok and American Idol, although he decided to drop out of the TV talent show after getting through the auditions.

Beautiful Things is his biggest hit to date and features on his debut album Fireworks And Rollerblades, which came out on Friday.

The 21-year-old has been able to create a level of hype around his music online thanks to more than six million followers on TikTok, which has helped propel this song in the charts. In fact, all three have been fuelled by social media success.

And all three bring a vulnerability to their music through their lyrics and vocal range, choosing to incorporate folk elements into their guitar-led tracks.

Meanwhile, Michael Marcagi, another emerging US singer-songwriter, is about to embark on his first UK tour.

Martin Talbot, who runs the Official Charts Company, tells the BBC they are all “staking a claim for drums and guitars on the current Official Singles Chart Top 10”.

He adds: “There is a growing interest in guitar and storytelling music over recent years, spanning country, Americana, folk and roots.”

Billboard’s executive digital director Katie Atkinson said on the magazine’s Pop Shop podcast that the rise of this new crop of singers is “a country-fuelled trend”.

It is “drawing a straight line” from more clear-cut country singers, she said – with artists like Chris Stapleton, Luke Combs and Zach Bryan having seen huge success in the US over the past year.

Country music certainly has its British fans, but it is yet to achieve the same levels of success in the UK.

Beyoncé’s country-inspired album, Cowboy Carter, which was released last week, may help to boost the genre on radio and streaming playlists this year.

Her first single from the album, Texas Hold ‘Em, sits at number seven in the list of the biggest songs of the year so far after spending four weeks at number one in February and March.

Country music journalist and podcaster Holly Smith says songs like Stick Season are resonating with listeners because of the themes they cover.

“Noah Kahan has this emotional heart that’s vulnerable and honest and connects with people,” she tells the BBC. “He’s able to blend that with a very conventionally rock and pop sound that’s catchy, and that gets people.”

Of the rising stars, Boone is the least aligned with the country sound, she says. “But because his lyrics are confessional, because he’s got this kind of acoustic vibe, it slots nicely into country, so it’s easy to see how people are making that connection.”

The UK’s relationship with country music certainly isn’t a new one – the Country Music Association’s Country to Country festival has been selling out arenas in cities including London and Glasgow for more than 10 years, with established US stars such as Brad Paisley and Carly Pearce on this year’s line-up.

The genre connects well with fans on TikTok, Smith says. “Country music has a way of very simple, conversational storytelling that has always made it relatable, and social media loves that because social media has a way of boiling things down and distilling them,” she says.

Smith adds that the “easily digestible lyrics” and the cowboy aesthetic all help boost its appeal to audiences.

Another artist who originally began in the country scene is Taylor Swift, whose fans have adopted cowboy hats as part of the uniform at her current Eras tour. Her move into folk-pop could be another factor that has opened the door for more guitar-playing singer-songwriters.

Martin Talbot has seen the impact of the new wave of stars on charts so far this year.

“After a period dominated by beats-driven pop music in recent years, perhaps we are seeing the beginnings of a resurgence for more instrumentation-led repertoire,” he says.