Musical Influencers

Artists that are changing the industry – or have the potential to.

Ryan Rolle, A&E Editor

February 18, 2026

All of the time, artists are blowing up overnight and transforming the music scene. While mostly through TikTok and other social media platforms, artists have the power to transform what’s being listened to by the masses. There are influencers for every form of media, and I dare say there are also music influencers who are bound to blow up and change the scene someday.

Lizzy McAlpine

While McAlpine is already a well-known name, I believe that her journey as a musician is far from over. McAlpine already has a couple big hits, like “ceilings” and “pushing it down and praying.” However, her entire discography is just as beautiful and deserves the same attention. Her voice is hauntingly clear, and carries an honest tone that resonates within your soul. A fun fact is that for her popular song “pushing it down and praying,” she used the original voice memo that the idea was recorded on for the final production of the song, which in my opinion is a testament to her clarity and raw-feeling music. This type of music with no voice effects and only traditional instruments is honestly rare within this music era, and I hope that more artists like her with pure talent come forward and make art like hers.

Malcolm Todd

Malcom Todd photographed for an interview. (Photo From atwoodmagazine.com)

Todd is another artist that deserves more hype, although having a couple popular songs. His album “Sweet Boy” was my personal album of the summer, with fun beats and simple lyrics. People say he sounds extremely similar to Steve Lacy, another one of my favorite artists. However, Lacy hasn’t been spotted in a hot minute and Todd continually produces bangers, so I’m rooting for Todd to continue rising to fame through his easygoing tunes and likable personality. His sister is also in the music industry, under the name Audrey Hobert. Her music is worth a listen as well, however I think her music is more so made for the pop girls while Todd’s can be enjoyed by anyone. His music has almost a retro vibe to it, which I think will stand the test of time.

Japanese House

For her music video “Boyhood.” (Photo From readdork.com)

Japanese House is definitely the smallest artist on the list. With only 2 million listeners, she has a fresh upbeat vibe that reminds me of Chappell Roan without as much fame. The lead singer’s voice is extremely clear and soft and matches the chill instrumentals that back her up. What really makes this artist stand out is her lyricism, which can be very emotionally touching and poetic when you pay close attention to it. To me, her biggest moment of recognition is within their collaboration with Charli XCX, on her Brat deluxe album. Her song “Apple” with their feature showcases Japanese House’s impressive sound that somehow takes simplistic and vibey instruments and turn them into an upbeat song.

BETWEEN FRIENDS

I am personally shocked that this band is not bigger. Again with only 2.3 million listeners, this band deserves way more listeners. An interesting mix of rock and pop, BETWEEN FRIENDS fits the exact genre that I believe is extremely popular right now, while still bending into new territory. If you like more of a rock-pop song, I would definitely check out “Bruise,” and if you are more into dance music I would check out “JAM !” BETWEEN FRIENDS is actually made up of a sibling duo, and the main singer Savannah Hudson is an ultimate it-girl. Her look is extremely fashionable and current, and her outfits for their concerts are always the most stylish. Their song “affection” is the most popular by far with 252 million streams, but I think so many of their other songs need that same attention.

Overall, there are hundreds of new artists that could blow up this week and completely change the industry, the best part about new music is that people always believe we’ve reached the limits of new sound until someone shakes it up. These four artists have been in my rotation recently, and even though they are already semi-popular I believe there is much more to come for each of them. Music is unique in the way that there can be 20 new trends that all happen at once, instead of moving in a more linear way such as fashion or makeup. I personally am excited to see what is to come in the following eras of music.

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About the Contributor

Ryan Rolle, A&E Editor

Ryan Rolle is a senior at Robinson and is the A&E editor for the Knight Writers. This is her third year on staff. Rolle decided to join Knight Writers, as she always adored reading and writing and wanted to communicate her thoughts from pop culture to school issues, while also deepening her involvement with the school. “I joined when I was a sophomore and I decided to join because I’ve always had a passion for reading and writing and I thought it would be fun to be able to voice my opinion to the school while getting involved in something academic,” Rolle said. Outside of the school newspaper, you can likely find Rolle spending her free time on the water, rowing for the varsity team at the Tampa Bay rowing club. “Two of my closest friends have been rowing since sixth grade and our team is small, so they were asking new girls to come out and try it. So, my sophomore year I decided to give it a try, and I loved and have been doing it ever since,” Rolle said. Whenever she’s not rowing, Rolle greatly enjoys using her time making matcha and listening to various genres of music, with her tastes changing depending on the time of year. “I listen to different music genres throughout the seasons but right now, since it’s fall, I’m listening to a lot of Smashing Pumpkins and Radiohead,” Rolle said. This being her third year on the Knight Writers staff, Rolle has formed many unforgettable experiences but of all the memories, her favorite has to be when she attended the Florida Scholastic Press Association competition last year in Orlando. “We got to stay near the SeaWorld for a weekend, and we just had so much fun entering competitions and hanging around the hotel,” Rolle said. Part of the class of 2026, Rolle plans to attend college after high school either furthering her passion in journalism by majoring in biology or furthering her passion in journalism by majoring in creative writing. “My biggest dream ever would be to get into Dartmouth and major in biology or journalism/creative writing with a minor in Spanish, then go on to become an orthodontist,” Rolle said. (Profile by Avani Madabhushanam)