Vaporwave is a microgenre of electronic music and a subgenre of hauntology, a visual art style, and an Internet meme that emerged in the early 2010s, and became well-known in 2015. It is defined partly by its slowed-down, chopped and screwed samples of smooth jazz, 1970s elevator music, R&B, and lounge music from the 1980s and 1990s. The surrounding subculture is sometimes associated with an ambiguous or satirical take on consumer capitalism and pop culture, and tends to be characterized by a nostalgic or surrealist engagement with the popular entertainment, technology and advertising of previous decades. Visually, it incorporates early Internet imagery, late 1990s web design, glitch art, anime, stylized Greek sculptures, 3D-rendered objects, and cyberpunk tropes in its cover artwork and music videos.
Ramona Andra Langley is an American electronic musician from Portland, Oregon. She has released music under her primary Vektroid alias, as well as others, such as dstnt, Laserdisc Visions, New Dreams Ltd., Virtual Information Desk, and PrismCorp Virtual Enterprises. Langley played a prominent role in the popularization of the vaporwave subgenre with the release of her ninth studio album, Floral Shoppe, under the alias Macintosh Plus. The album helped popularize the vaporwave genre throughout the Internet. Since then, she has continued to release music through Bandcamp and other online platforms.
Floral Shoppe is the ninth studio album by the American electronic musician Ramona Andra Langley under the alias Macintosh Plus, released on December 9, 2011 by the independent record label Beer on the Rug. It was one of the first releases of the 2010s microgenre known as vaporwave to gain popular recognition on the Internet. Since then, Floral Shoppe has been considered by some critics to be the defining album of the style.
Chuck Person's Eccojams Vol. 1 is a 2010 album of remixes by American electronic musician Daniel Lopatin under the pseudonym Chuck Person. Its tracks consist of chopped, looped samples of various songs—including popular songs from the 1980s and 1990s—processed with effects such as delay, reverb, and pitch shifting; the results highlight mournful or existential moments from the sources. It was used as an initial template for the vaporwave internet microgenre.
Dvsn is a Canadian R&B duo composed of singer Daniel Daley and producer Nineteen85. After releasing three songs in 2015, the duo signed with Canadian rapper Drake through his label OVO Sound. They released their debut studio album Sept. 5th to positive reviews that same year. Their second album, Morning After (2017), continued their critical success. They released their third album A Muse in Her Feelings (2020) and followed that up with the collaborative album Cheers to the Best Memories (2021) with Ty Dolla Sign. The duo's fourth studio album, Working on My Karma, was released on October 22, 2022.
Travis Miller, best known professionally as Lil Ugly Mane, is an American musician, rapper, singer, and record producer. Noted for his diverse style, introspective lyrics, and various side projects, Miller's work spans a wide range of genres, including instrumental and experimental hip hop, black metal, lo-fi music, indie rock, and free jazz. He has also produced under the alias Shawn Kemp, and has recorded under the names Bedwetter and Vudmurk.
Benjamin Reichwald, known professionally as Bladee, is a Swedish rapper, singer, record producer, designer, and member of the artistic collective Drain Gang. Reichwald has released music through the Stockholm record label Year0001 since his debut mixtape Gluee in 2014. In addition to his music, Reichwald creates visual art, which frequently appears as cover art for his releases. Reichwald also serves as the creative director for Yung Lean's clothing line Sadboys Gear.
Hyperpop is a loosely defined electronic music movement and microgenre that predominantly originated in the United Kingdom during the early 2010s. It is characterised by a maximalist or exaggerated take on popular music, and artists within the microgenre typically integrate pop and avant-garde sensibilities while drawing on elements commonly found in electronic, hip hop, and dance music.
Ash Blue Gutierrez, known professionally as Glaive, is an American singer-songwriter and record producer. After posting a string of hyperpop songs to SoundCloud during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic that earned him a following, he signed a record deal with Interscope Records and released his debut extended play, Cypress Grove, in 2020. His debut album, I Care So Much That I Don't Care at All, was released in 2023.
Jane Remover is an American musician. She pioneered the "dariacore" microgenre on SoundCloud with her album of the same name, released under the pseudonym Leroy. She released her debut studio album, Frailty, in 2021, which was followed by Census Designated in 2023.
Frailty is the debut studio album by the American musician Jane Remover, released through DeadAir Records on November 12, 2021, under her former stage name, Dltzk. The album was supported by the release of three singles: "How to Lie", "Pretender", and "Search Party". A hyperpop, EDM, and emo record, Frailty was recorded within six to seven months in Remover's childhood bedroom using FL Studio and an acoustic guitar. Many of the experiences brought up in the album reference Remover's issues with her mental and physical health. The album was positively received by critics.
Plugg is a sub-genre of trap music that emerged in the mid-2010s via online distribution on platform SoundCloud. It was popularized by melodic Southern hip hop artists, and is characterized by deep 808 basslines, sparkly melodies, and melodic vocals.
Quinn Dupree, known mononymously as Quinn, is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, record producer and DJ. Her second studio album, Quinn, was released on July 22, 2022.
Randall "Randy" Findell, known professionally as Brakence, is an American singer-songwriter, rapper, record producer and musician from Columbus, Ohio, currently signed to Columbia Records and Sony Music. He is known for his hyperpop-influenced style which has been described as a mixture of "Midwest emo and emo rap," and his use of both baritone and falsetto vocals.
April Harper Grey, known professionally as Underscores, is an American singer-songwriter and producer. She grew up listening to artists like Jack White, Beck, and Madonna, becoming interested in filmmaking and composing music at a young age. Grey began releasing dubstep music on SoundCloud at the age of 13, eventually incorporating other genres. After releasing three extended plays (EPs) from 2018 to 2020, she rose to prominence with her debut album Fishmonger in March 2021. She released its companion EP and opened for 100 gecs on tour later that year. Grey performed her first headlining tour in early 2022 and concluded the "Fishmonger era" with a pop song in early 2023. She released her second album Wallsocket in September 2023 on the Mom + Pop record label. It was promoted with four singles, an alternate reality game, and a tour of North America and Europe.
Census Designated is the second studio album by the American musician Jane Remover. It was released through DeadAir Records on October 20, 2023. The album is a follow-up to Remover's debut studio album, Frailty (2021). It was supported by the release of four singles: "Cage Girl", "Contingency Song", "Lips", and "Census Designated", which were released throughout 2022 and 2023.
Vayda is an American rapper and record producer. After starting her rap career in 2021, she released the mixtapes Breeze and Forrest Gump in 2023.
Quannnic is an American musician. Initially presenting a digicore sound, they began releasing music as Quannnic in 2020 and released their debut studio album, Kenopsia, in February the following year. A track from the album, "Life Imitates Life", unexpectedly became viral on TikTok and charted on Billboard's Hot Hard Rock Songs. Quannnic's second studio album, Stepdream, was released in November 2023, and they later co-headlined an American tour with Jane Remover. On Quannnic's musical style, sources mostly described it as shoegaze, with Kenopsia mixing glitch elements and Stepdream emo.
Tatiana Mann, known professionally as Hook, is an American rapper. She started her solo rap career at age 18. She released her debut studio album, Bully, in 2019, which was executive produced by record producer Nedarb, and released a collaborative album with him, Crashed My Car, in 2020.
