Up-and-coming artists you should have your notifications on for
- Devinney Rexrode
- Jul 3
- 8 min read
Devinney Rexrode | July 2026
Hi, I am Devinney, or Dev, one of the newer writers with BRUITMag.! I wanted to give you all a little showcase of some new and small artists from all over that I personally think are putting out hits or meaningful songs, while also giving you a little about the artists if I can, and giving you insight into my own music taste, so you can know if my articles might align with your own interests in the future!
That being said, let’s get to the good part… The music!
Subtitles.
Subtitles. is a duo based oceans apart and still managed to recently release their debut album together. With the vocalist, Jake Obermiller, in Chicago, US, and the drummer, Alexandre Di Pasquale, located in France, they dropped their album “subtitles. on” on March 19 of this year. Their sound mixes alternative rock and emo while giving it a particularly Midwest Emo feel to the vocals and lyrics.
I found Subtitles. through TikTok in April and have fallen in love with the duo. First hearing them advertising their song “Funny,” which is catchy and vulnerable. But it was their song “Reasons To Stay” that sold me on why this band is going to grow into something special. It’s raw and captures a sense of understanding and genuine care that can be lost in songs that speak of mental health if the artists aren’t careful, but subtitles. does it so effortlessly that you can tell they wrote the song from their heart.
Listen to “Reason To Stay” here!
Follow Subtitles. on their socials!
Eleven Green
This Los Angeles, CA-based duo delivers an electro-pop sound fueled by melodic vocals and groovey yet gritty instrumentals. Meet Eleven Green!
Since starting the project in 2018, the pair have released multiple singles, an EP, and their debut album “Against The Odds”, which they recorded with Grammy-winning engineer Josh Gudwin and mastered by Chris Gehringer.
Eleven Green is also a gem I found on TikTok, and I love the blends of sounds and production styles as a trained audio engineer myself. I love some of their songs that incorporate a bilingual element as well! My favorite song by them, yet, has to be the song “Shadow of the Days” off their new EP “Ivy st.” which came out on May 11.
Listen to “Shadow of the Days” here!
Follow Eleven Green on socials!
Bear Apartment
Bear Apartment is a five-person band, a pop punk/Midwest emo band that relocated from the US to Okinawa, Japan. Their songs “A Promise I Intend To Keep” and “Camino Del Pueblo” gained traction in 2025 after starting in 2022 by the vocalist Ryan Owens. They played their debut show at the renowned Okinawa venue, Remy’s, to a sold-out crowd. The band centers around mental health and their personal issues, crafting their own promises to each other that they intend to keep, of “dying of natural causes”.
After finding Bear Apartment on YouTube Shorts with a clip of “A Promise I Intend To Keep,” I fell deeply in love with this band. I have a huge soft spot for artists/songs that are about mental health, soul-crushing songs, and naturally Midwest Emo. Their newest track, “Okay OK,” came out in March and carries a more upbeat tone, while still holding to Bear Apartments' Midwest Emo vibes.
Listen to “Okay OK” here
Follow Bear Apartment on social media!
Hungover
Hungover is a four-piece pop punk and rock blended band from Orlando, Florida, that has coined their sound as pop and roll. This band is a multi-genred masterpiece with albums that rock to rock, pop, heavier vibes, and now melds them all together. This band released their debut album,” Wilt”, in 2018, right off the bat, before taking a four-year hiatus from 2019 to 2023, when they came back swinging with the single “Reunion”.
On April 3rd, Hungover released their banger “Grief Gauntlet” followed by their next heavy-hitter “Microdosing”. These two singles are a great representation of the pop and roll genre they have claimed the throne of! I love how fun their music is while still portraying the meanings, emotions, and topics they are covering well! They cover mental health in a lot of their music, too, which is a huge selling point for me personally.
Follow Bear Apartment on social media!
Bike Routes
Bike Routes is the solo artist David Lawrence Osterhout’s alter ego. Osterhout is a multi-instrumentalist from New Jersey with velvety smooth, powerhouse vocals and a hodgepodge of instruments and genres melding into one coherent sound. Midwest Emo, alt-rock, jazz, and more are all fair game for this singer-songwriter. Cinematic visuals and immersive sound are niches that not many artists can perfect, but David has what it takes to excel in these areas.
I found Bike routes earlier this year with his single “Delicate” and instantly fell in love with the song before driving into his earlier works. I am such a sucker for songs that are chaotic in sound, yet well-done in their chaos. “Delicate” scratched that itch for me and had me smiling and grooving along before I even noticed it myself!
Listen to “Delicate” here!
Follow Bike Routes on social media!
Massfear
New Jersey melodic post-hardcore and alt-rock band, Massfear, has atmospheric and heavy vibes. Their music is emotionally driven and provocative, often additionally covering different mental health topics.
They amassed 200,000 listeners in their first year as a band alone, making them an up-and-coming alt band, for sure.
Their newest single, “Only Silence,” came out on the 19 of May, and has had me absolutely obsessed since, for how real and emotional it is. They truly know how to use their instruments and the vocals to control the emotions of the listeners. This band has everything they need to be in the big leagues soon.
Listen to “Only Silence” here!
Follow Massfear on social media!
Valoria
From Providence, Rhode Island, this band melds hardcore, pop punk, and adds a saxophone to make their sound uniquely their own, coining it themselves as ‘Whatevercore’. Valoria is a band that plays to the heartstrings of fans of bands like Bilmuri and Dance Gavin Dance. Their hardcore-based riffs alongside the pop punk, even R&B-type vocals, and then that smooth sax all come together in a way that is full and layered, but still feels like a cohesive band.
Valoria just released their newest single, “Acceptance”, on May 29, and it’s just as good as the rest of their discography. I found this band about 2 years ago and have yet to hear a song I don’t like from them!
Listen to “Acceptance” here!
Follow Valoria on social media!
NVSN
NVSN is a metalcore band from Biloxi, Mississippi. Their sound marries alt-rock, metalcore, and a heavy influence from hip-hop together to make an infectious vibe. With clean and harsh vocals mixed with punchy hooks, this band is one I have been following and loving for the last year and a half or more!
They often address themes of loss, love, dreams, and despair, making this band’s lyrics deep and meaningful. This year, they have been blowing up more and have been taking on more live markets than before as they continue to grow their performance history and base around them!
NVSN released their last single, “Siren Song”, on August 22 of last year. This song is a hit in my books! I haven’t disliked a release from them yet and am here for their climb up in the ranks of metalcore!
Listen to “Siren Song” here!
Follow NSVN on social media!
Duellona
Duellona is a four-part female-fronted pop-metal band from Fort Myers, Florida. They have taken over social media by storm recently with clips from their new and incredibly catchy single, “Heaven Bent”.
Their sound, while very much based in both pop and metal, also holds a lot of glitchcore/digitalcore influence with computerized sound effects that add a really cool touch to their music.
“Heaven Bent” came out on June 10 and has been all over social media! The music video, which dropped the day before the song, is extremely fun too! This is a band I just found, but I am really loving!
Listen to “Heaven Bent” here!
Follow Duellona on social media!
VIKTORIA XO
VIKTORIA XO is a dark pop artist from Dallas, Texas. She explains her music and brand as “your deeply religious grandmother’s least favorite pop star”, and often references the circus and clowns in her visuals and lyrics.
Her aesthetic bounces between girly pop and a twisted or even more sensual version of herself.
I have really come to love her music recently when I found her and plan to catch a show in the future as a Dallas local myself. VIKTORIA XO released “House of God” on 24 April. This song is fun and fiery in nature.
Listen to “House of God” here!
Follow Viktoria XO on social media!
MAPHRA
MAPHRA came onto the alternative scene recently with powerhouse vocals and a mysterious air about her.
Her cover of “Doomed,” originally by Bring Me The Horizon, catapulted her right into the hearts and For You Pages of many of us. This cover also shot her straight to the Hot Hard Rock Songs chart at number 1.
Other than her cover of “Doomed,” you have to check out all her prior work, but especially her newest single, “Circle With Me,” which came out on April 18.
Listen to “Circle With Me” here!
Follow MAPHRA on social media!
Spotify | Instagram | YouTube | Facebook | TikTok | Amazon Music | Apple Music
These are just some of my personal favorite small artists, duos, and full bands that I think y’all should check out, too! I hope you find at least one or two from this list that make it into your new favorite jams. Please go find at least one small artist or band to also start supporting, either locally or online. Everyone starts somewhere, and watching a small artist grow is such a beautiful adventure to go on!
Small artists depend on community support to make what they do possible! Please make sure to support small artists and your local music scene. Merch sales and live performance ticket sales make up a good percentage of an artist's income from their music. Venues need to draw to book artists as it costs to host the bands and their sound as well, so promoters, venues, and bookers need to know they can sell tickets to cover the artists and their own fees. Please participate in keeping your local music scene alive and well for smaller artists, and not just your favorite big league artists.
Feel free to message me some of your favorites on Instagram. If I love the song or art you sent, I will include them in other playlists and shout you out in that article!
Message me here!
Until next time! Dev, signing off!
