3 Female Indie Artists To Keep An Eye On This Year

What is it about indie music that keeps fans so hooked? “Indie” is short for independent music, but it also refers to a type of sound and sensibility. There’s a type of DIY ethos at work that you can often hear, even in bands that otherwise sound nothing alike.

As we head into a new year, let’s check out a few female indie artists fans are looking out for heading into 2024.

IMAGE: PEXELS

3 Female Indie Artists

Lila Drew

What’s in store this year for Lila Drew ? She’s back from touring Europe and releasing her first full EP, All the Places I Could Be. Drew’s lyrics are often about the struggles of growing up, navigating relationships, heartbreak, and other day-to-day stresses.

Drew has been a songwriter since she was in her teens. As the precocious, worldly artist turns 24, fans wonder if she’ll keep mining the rich territory that is growing up and adolescence or make a type of pivot.

Typically, Drew’s songs have a frank, wry way of looking at the world, and she’s unafraid of speaking about tough subjects honestly.

But her poppy hooks and lush tones make what could otherwise be a weighty song fit onto any good vibes music playlist. We’re excited to see what Lila Drew has in store for 2024.

Sarah Lake

If you’re into the new sounds of country, you should check out Sarah Lake , who got her start on American Idol but is now a fixture of the Nashville songwriting scene.

You can join the millions of fans who have streamed her music online or find her playing on some of Music City’s most prestigious stages.

Songs like “Get In Or Get Out” show that modern country isn’t the twangy, acoustic sound people may think of when they hear “country.” The themes explored involve religion, freedom, highways, and which direction to take, and that definitely speaks to country’s roots.

Country fans are pumped to see where their beloved genre will go next, and maybe that’ll be wherever Sarah Lake takes it.

Micaela Kleinsmith

Speaking of modern country, next up, we have Micaela Kleinsmith, a South African country musician who won the first edition of My Kind of Country, a TV series produced by Reese Witherspoon and the contemporary country star Kacey Musgraves.

Kleinsmith has a lovely, lyrical fingerpicking approach to guitar, and her soulful, rich, and pretty voice stands out on songs like “Butterfly,” an original song she released on the show. Kleinsmith has upbeat, danceable tunes, too. Just like “country music” contains a wider range than people may think, today’s country artists straddle, or even challenge, many traditional genre lines.

Thankfully, Micaela Kleinsmith is also representing Black, queer musicians, something lacking in pop music generally, especially in country music. If you try to confine a real artist to a box, they’ll likely resist and push back.

Kleinsmith is a self-assured country star who can play other sounds, too.

The indie world is changing. Once dominated by young men writing introspective, emo-type songs, it’s opened up to include all types of performers and sounds. The young women above are taking indie music to good places in 2024, a journey we’re all excited about.