Artists to Watch’ is now in its 6th year with the list consisting of 20 artists who Vevo believes will break through in the coming year. Vevo will premiere two performances from one artist per day beginning November 4th, with the rollout culminating on November 29th.
“Hip-Hop started in New York, so when an artist bursts onto the scene with a breakout anthem that generates remixes by both Nicki Minaj and Skepta, people pay attention,” says Jordan Glickson, Vevo’s VP of Music and Talent. “Pop Smoke has captured lots of ears with ‘Welcome To The Party,’ but he’s not just a one-hit wonder; the Brooklyn MC followed his hit with the smashes ‘Dior’ and ‘War.’ And all this before releasing his debut album. Keep an eye out – an even bigger 2020 is on tap for the rapper who says he’s all about ‘aggression and fashion’.”
“DSCVR Artists to Watch is a key program for Vevo and now in its 6th year demonstrates our commitment to championing emerging artists.” says JP Evangelista, SVP of Content, Programming & Marketing. “The Vevo team takes great pride in fostering new talent and helping expose our audience to artists we feel will make an impact in the forthcoming year. We’re excited to shine a light on these 20 artists, and watch as they continue to grow their fan base into 2020.”
Vevo has a long history of helping emerging artists break through to new and wider audiences. Past alumni of Vevo’s DSCVR ‘Artists To Watch’ series including Billie Ellish, Alessia Cara, Little Simz, SlowThai and Lewis Capaldi.
Vevo is committed to working with artists at an early stage of their career to create unique content that brings their music to life visually and creatively.
ABOUT POP SMOKE: Known for his breakout single “Welcome to the Party,” New York’s Pop Smoke combined gravelly vocals with erratic production to become the face of Brooklyn’s rising drill scene. Meet the WooBorn and raised in Brooklyn, New York, Pop Smoke (born Bashar Jackson) got his start in music almost by accident: During studio sessions with various associates in 2018, Smoke secretly began to record his own vocals. Couched firmly in Brooklyn’s rising drill scene, Smoke combined his booming, smoky vocals with the sonics of Chicago and London drill. After remixing Sheff G’s iconic “Panic, Pt. 3” for his debut single “MPR,” Smoke released follow-up single “Welcome to the Party,” produced by U.K. drill’s 808Melo. Racking up millions of streams in just days, Smoke’s single swiftly became Brooklyn drill’s biggest success thus far, prompting remixes from the likes of Skepta and Nicki Minaj. Capitalizing on his rapid rise, Smoke released his debut project Meet the Woo in July 2019, produced exclusively by 808Melo.
ABOUT VEVO: Vevo is the world’s largest all-premium music video provider, offering artists a global platform with enormous scale through its distribution partners. Vevo connects artists with their audience globally via music videos and original content, working directly with them to find unique ways to bring their music to life visually. Vevo also works with emerging artists, providing them with a platform of global scale and reach, to find and grow their audience. Reaching 26 billion monthly views globally, Vevo has over 400,000 music videos in its catalogue.