It bubbles, fizzes, pangs, moans, screeches, strikes — hyperpop is constantly slithering through modernity toward new light. Forging futuristic soundscapes, the subgenre harnesses the power of experimentation with a distinct mission of upheaval.
With its origins commonly traced back to the late trailblazer SOPHIE and English musician A.G. Cook, hyperpop fuses electronic, hip-hop, and other genres into brash beauty. Hyperpop's cartoonish dynamism embraces the eccentric and bold, but it also grasps at something revolutionary. Its search for escapism is parallel to an auditory, avant-garde iconoclasm.
Whether it's riding a viral TikTok wave or getting boosted to new audiences on Spotify-curated playlists, the quickly-evolving genre has increasingly resonated with people, especially with members of Gen Z and the queer community. Though some characterize it as a microgenre, it's evident that hyperpop is expanding rapidly into the mainstream.
In honor of hyperpop's dedication to fulfilling curiosity, here are seven enterprising mainstays of the subgenre.
Hannah Diamond
A poster girl for A.G. Cook's PC Music label, Hannah Diamond underscores hyperpop's futurism. Her music's hyperreality blends bubblegum pop and outlandish experimentalism, crafting records that feel cutesy but earnest. Her work cradles a characteristic soft sweetness, but at other times, she's not afraid to lean into a grittier, harsher production.
Diamond guides a bouncy nostalgia across surrealism, exploring how identity develops on and alongside the internet — her '90s aesthetic invokes images of MSN Messenger, MySpace, and moodboards. On tracks like "Hi," Diamond questions reality and love from a lonely bedroom, braiding together confusion and longing.
Everything about Diamond's music feels glossy and futuristic. When you listen to her hyperpop endeavors, its experimentalism parallels the thrill of notifications blowing up your first-ever phone under your desk at school.
Alice Longyu Gao
Since beginning to release music in 2018, Alice Longyu Gao has never looked back. The Chinese multi-hyphenate channels their ambition into concentrated, zealous hyperpop songs, signing onto 100 Gecs' Dylan Brady's label Dog Show Records in 2019.
Gao's sprawling artistic career ranges from fashion to DJing to photography to experiential art installation, but their heart lies within music. The creative's distorted vocals flicker over textured tracks, pierced by everything from the quick squeal of turntables to clownlike honking car horns.
Whether Gao's keeping their "100 Boyfriends" on their wrist or drinking "Rich B— Juice" with 100 Gecs' Laura Les (the latter song landing a spot on Lady Gaga's 2020 "Women of Choice" Apple Music playlist), the musician is rapidly expanding their vision with vigor.
Shygirl
Shygirl's music swims in restless fantasy. Known for working with producers such as Sega Bodega and Arca, the English singer/songwriter shapes everything from hyperpop to deconstructed club to grime. Her whirlwind raps flicker with idiosyncrasy and insouciance, and while she might not fall explicitly into the hyperpop genre, Shygirl's style is so creatively modern that she remains a key influence to the genre.
Shygirl released a flurry of innovative singles starting back in 2016, deciding two years later to quit her day job at a modeling agency to pursue music. Since then, her work has explored the depths of desire with both a classic pop feel and distinctive experimental edge, and she cites Mariah Carey, Aphex Twin, Róisín Murphy, and Björk as a few of her core influences.
Juggling a tour in support of her debut album Nymph with managing her co-founded record label Nuxxe, it's clear Shygirl is a busy girl — so try to keep up.
Namasenda
You never know where a drunk DM might take you, but in Naomi Namasenda's case, it got her signed to PC Music. While the label is associated with hyperpop, the Swedish musician — who mononymously goes by her last name — transcends categorization.
Crafting calculated musical chaos as a double Scorpio, Namasenda always knows how to find the fun in life. Her affinity for action movies helped inspire her 2021 album Unlimited Ammo, a vessel of experimental ambition filled with everything from gunshots to glittery pulses.
Though her vocals might technically glitch into voids on her tracks, Namasenda's voice as an artist is stronger than ever. As the first Black musician to sign to PC Music, Namasenda is reminding us how boundless hyperpop really is.
daine
Injecting hyperpop with pop punk, daine is a rising master of the bittersweet.
Angst underlies the Filipino-Australian musician's scream-ridden, electric tracks, and her demanding songwriting unlocks a rawness that cuts skin-deep. Having worked closely with mentor Charli XCX, it's no wonder daine's plunges into pop feel so exhilarating and ultra contemporary.
On her debut mixtape Quantum Jumping, which features songs she wrote back when she was a teenager, her voice wanders through waves of electronica, knowing when to pull back or escalate. Balancing delicacy and intensity, daine manages to find stability amid heavy trap and emo influences, though she's increasingly shifting into a fitting pop sound. Her work is often described as "otherworldly" — a word that perfectly captures her music's punky escapism.
COBRAH
A former high school musical theatre kid, COBRAH was meant for the stage. Her concerts remix and reinvent songs live, bubbling with a sweaty energy that makes it impossible not to dance.
Yet, even if you're not witnessing COBRAH on stage, this spirit carries into her studio recorded tracks with ease. Characterized by some as "BDSM pop," COBRAH's music is heavily inspired by the fetish club scene (see: "GOOD PUSS" and "WET"), and her slinky, sticky beats echo with pop, cyberpunk, and disco.
Impulsive at its finest, COBRAH's hyperpop ventures throb with magnetism. Some of her songs channel nervous excitement — like "DEBUT," in which she describes her experience casually dating curious straight women — but most of her music channels a radiant confidence.
The multi-talented artist also takes pride in her independence, self-releasing music via her own record label, GAGBALL Records. From sewing her outfits to booking venues, she serves as her own creative director and designer — proving that you really can do it all.
Slayyyter
Oh me, oh my! From getting her start on SoundCloud to headlining international shows, Slayyyter streamlines sultry, gleeful lyrics over hyperpop production. With sensual vivacity, the musician always carries herself with an irresistible confidence that translates to her live shows.
Inspired by icons like Britney Spears, Madonna and Lady Gaga, Slayyyter is determined to change the pop soundscape with her futuristic vision. Frequently collaborating with producer Ayesha Erotica, Slayyyter writes music that italicizes sexual freedom and playfulness — a self-declared "Throatzillaaa," she's "popping bottles and f— models" on "Daddy AF" and reminding a boy that she's the "boss b—" while he's trapped in the "Dog House.''
With music this neon and campy, it's safe to say that Slayyyter slays as a hyperpop staple putting the petty back in pop.