Welcome to a fresh year. Our resolution? Support more artists, always. We know we’ll hear new music from some of our favorites, or discover debuts from those we’ll come to love. But before all that, we want to kick 2022 off by sharing four artists from our Sofar community that we think have an exciting year ahead.
1. Remi Wolf
Remi Wolf has been on a heck of a streak. She put out her debut Juno, which received nods from folks like Pitchfork and The Guardian, along with a remix album including collaborations with Beck, Sylvan Esso, among others. Now she’s kicking off the year with a sold-out tour (keep an eye out for extra dates), then spring support for none other than Lorde. We see 2022 as a big one for Remi Wolf, which makes her stripped down 2019 Sofar extra special.
2. Johnny Drille
John Ighodaro, aka Johnny Drille, has been dazzling listeners for years, but the Nigerian artist brought things to a new level with his recent LP, Before We Fall Asleep, a smooth pop prize, and the single “Bad Dancer”, a ballad that landed the artist two nominations for The Beatz Awards. Before he’s off on world tours, remember this sweet, on-the-floor Sofar performance.
3. Nana Mendoza
The born-and-raised Mexico City artist already has two Latin Grammy nominations under her belt, and POPSUGAR Latina named her one of the women shaping the sound of Latin R&B. But the music just speaks for itself– Nana is on the rise. If you missed it, revisit her 2019 Sofar performance of “Suave”.
4. Yutaka Hirasaka
The Tokyo-based guitarist and composer has been steadily releasing albums, including last year’s Substance, a dreamy, hypnotic collection of well-worn grooves. We just feel more good things on the horizon for him. When we’re not listening through his catalogue, we’re still immersing ourselves in his Sofar performance, where Yutaka created soundscapes that felt like standing in the midst of passing storms and clearing skies.
Photo credit: Remi Wolf performing at Sofar Los Angeles, image via YouTube
