The Year So Far: Artists, Albums And Trends To Watch For In 2016

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We’re four months into 2016 and Kanye West has already dropped one of his promised three records for the year, Beyoncé has obliterated Coldplay at the Super Bowl and Iggy Pop has teamed up with Josh Homme to release his best solo album since Lust For Life.

And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Following a year in which both Tame Impala and Courtney Barnett were nominated for Grammys, the local releases are also stacking up nicely. With new sounds from Perth’s Koi Child, Melbourne’s Milwaukee Banks, plus collaboration between two of Australia’s most promising emcees Remi and Sampa the Great, the hip-hop scene at home has never felt so invigorated.

So what could the rest of the year possibly hold? Triple R’s breakfast anchor and Australian Music Prize judge Sarah Smith looks into her crystal ball to see what the next 12 months has in store.

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International Artist To Watch In 2016: Lizzo

Born Melissa Jefferson, Lizzo was raised in Houston listening to gospel, Beyonce and mid-90s Riot grrrl bands. And it’s these three seemingly disparate influences that form the core of the 26 year-old’s identity. Described as “no genre hip-hop” Lizzo’s music playfully combines neo-soul with trappy beats and boastful raps that deal with race, fame, sex and body politics. It is also hella fun, with the music never taking a backseat to the message.

But don’t just take my word for it. Lizzo’s 2013 debut, Lizzobangers, gained her props from Andre 3000 and Prince (with the Purple One subsequently inviting the emcee to sing on PLECTRUMELECTRUM cut ‘BOYTROUBLE’). It also caught the attention of her heroes Sleater-Kinney who asked Lizzo to open for them on their recent reunion tour of the US. But it is her latest album Big Grrrl Small World – released in December – that is going to make 2016 the year of Lizzo. Striking the exact same balance between political and party that Bey floored us with on ‘Formation’, Lizzo is making smart, sexy pop music that demands attention.

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Australian Artist To Watch In 2016: Sampa The Great

Sampa The Great exploded onto the hip-hop scene in 2015 with her astonishing debut The Great Mixtape, and in less than 12 months has firmly established herself as one of Australia’s most exciting rappers. Born in Zambia and raised in Botswana the Sydney-based emcee grew up listening to Tupac and Lauryn Hill, both clear influences on her sound. Combining poetic lyrics with old school funk and soul, organic beats and distorted samples The Great Mixtape led The Guardian to declare that Sampa “has enough spit and spunk to one day sit alongside the greats.”

And all this is just the beginning. Since releasing her debut Sampa has teamed up with rap stalwart Urthboy on ‘Second Heartbeat’, dropped a collab with local emcee Remi and turned out one of the most memorable sets at Golden Plains Festival. There is no doubt that 2016 will be the year that the rest of the world catches on.

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Albums To Get Excited About In 2016

Kanye has already done everything in his power to make 2016 the Year of Yeezy. Having finally produced The Life of Pablo, the rapper just recently announced (via his always extremely accurate Twitter ) that he plans to drop a second, and maybe third, records mid-year. This timing could prove problematic for Frank Ocean who, after missing his scheduled release date of April 2015 and consequently sending his fanbase into a collective meltdown, is expected to finally release the follow-up to 2012’s Channel Orange. Tentatively titled Boys Don’t Cry, the singer has previously said the record will feature Tyler, The Creator and Danger Mouse. And given Ocean surprised everyone with an appearance on the Pablo cut of ‘Wolves’, it wouldn’t be a stretch to assume Yeezy may consider returning the favour.

As of last year, Kanye was slated to appear on James Blake’s well overdue Radio Silence LP alongside Bon Iver and Connan Mockasin. The UK producer has moved the due date of his third album a handful of times, but after premiering the slow-burning ‘Modern Soul’ during his BBC 1 residency a few weeks ago it seems his record could arrive before the UK summer.

2016 will see the return of some certified legends sans Kanye as well, with Beck, LCD Soundsystem, PJ Harvey, Gorillaz and Missy Elliot all working on new music after extended periods away from the limelight.

It may be hard to top a year that saw Tame Impala and Courtney Barnett nominated for Grammys but there are still some promising local releases arriving in 2016. We’ve already had two standout albums from Melbourne’s NO ZU (Afterlife) and Tyrannmen (Tyrannmen) with big things expected from Meg Mac, Elizabeth Rose and The Goon Sax on their debut full-lengths.

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Music Trends To Watch

It’s barely two months into the year and Kanye West has delivered a 17-track album through Tidal, Rihanna has dropped a simmering curve-ball leaked exclusively through Tidal, and Beyoncé has produced the most important song of her career — which first appeared on Tidal. Could there be a pattern emerging?

More than any particular genre trends, the escalating arm-wrestle for dominance between streaming services is going to dominate the conversation in 2016. So that means we can expect more “exclusive” deals between artists and streaming services and a trend away from traditional models. Beyoncé’s decision to just give away ‘Formation’ and Rihanna’s deal with Samsung to make Anti available for free download are just the tip of the iceberg as YouTube Red and Soundcloud prepare to enter this market as well.

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Refresh your current playlist with some new blood and give it a kiss of life, courtesy of Coors. Visit coors.com.au and follow on Facebook www.facebook.com/coorsaus

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Sarah Smith is a presenter on Melbourne’s Triple R and a former editor of FasterLouder.