When Sabrina Carpenter was 9 years old, she posted her first video to YouTube: a cover of Taylor Swift's "Picture To Burn." Fifteen years later, Carpenter isn't just a pop force to be reckoned with in her own right — she's sharing the stage with Swift.

While Carpenter certainly hasn't been a stranger to the spotlight before this year — she launched her singing career in 2014, the same year she gained recognition for her leading role in Disney Channel's "Girl Meets World" — her Eras Tour slot is indicative of the monster year she's had. Since her fifth studio album, emails i can't send, arrived in July 2022, Carpenter has continued to reach new career heights, from garnering billions of streams, to being named Variety's Rising Star of 2023, to headlining her biggest sold-out tour yet.

"In such a weird way, I guess I've tried to do my best and be enjoying what I'm doing without being too aware of what's going on," Carpenter admits to GRAMMY.com. "The love of what I do is in the actual making of things, so I've been making so much music and writing so much over the last year. Seeing this cool, organic reaction to it is great. But in the moment, it's hard to grasp it."

In between the Argentina and Brazil Eras Tour stops in November, Carpenter topped off her banner year with another bucket list item: a Christmas project. The six-track EP fruitcake nods to one of her biggest hits to date, "Nonsense," with a revamped version aptly dubbed "A Nonsense Christmas." 

Shortly after wrapping her 2023 Eras Tour run, Carpenter took GRAMMY.com on a rollicking journey through her biggest milestones of the past 12 months.

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Opening For Taylor Swift On The Eras Tour

When I first found out, it was through a text and there were a lot of emojis and exclamation points. That was really how it happened; it wasn't through managers or anything. When Taylor texted me and asked if I wanted to come on tour with her, I threw my phone across the room. 

It's a really surreal thing. I covered one of her songs when I was 9 years old and definitely, throughout my life, she was an artist and a songwriter and businesswoman who I've always admired. So to call her a friend and be a part of something as iconic as this tour, I still can't process it. 

I'm still on the tour into next year and have been learning as much as I can along the way. I actually feel bad about how many shows I've been to because so many people want to see this show, so I feel lucky and privileged to have seen it as many times as I have! 

Creating Her Latest Billboard Hot 100 Hit, "Feather"

I was actually on the phone with my producer, John Ryan, and we were laughing about it because honestly, when we made it, we were just having fun. We wanted to make this song about all the s—ty events happening in my life, because it's so much more fun to turn it into a positive than to sit in the sadness. 

When we wrote it, it was me, John and one of my closest friends, the songwriter Amy Allen. We were just literally dancing around when John was playing a chord progression and a cool, feathery thing on the piano. We wrote it in two hours and the fact that it fit so perfectly on the deluxe [version of emails i can't send] was a very kismet situation.

Getting Honored With Variety's Rising Star Of 2023

Just to be recognized by them was also surreal, because then I'm in a room with a bunch of people whose music I listen to, songs I study, and producers I love. I was just sitting there talking to them — and it's not, like, imposter syndrome, because it did feel like such an honor. It's cool to be able to do the thing I love the most, and when those things happen it's just icing on the cake. I'm very grateful for them. 

Solidifying Her Status As A Songwriter

I wrote my first song when I was 10 years old and it was very bad. But it was always something that I loved doing. 

When I got a little older and to a place where I got people's opinions, I was always made to feel like it wasn't my place; like I should just listen to them, be sent songs and be happy with them. But something really tricky for me is that I would actually have a real weird internal reaction singing lyrics that didn't feel honest to me, or didn't feel something I would say. I just always had a specific point of view — and I'm a Tarus, so I'm a little stubborn. 

But over time, writing became a necessity for me; if I didn't write a song, I wouldn't be able to make it through these situations in life. I'm very lucky that I now get to do it all the time, but also that the people I work with who I love so much all believe in me so much. 

Writing Original Christmas Music For Her New EP, fruitcake

It's been a dream of mine for a long time to make a Christmas EP. At first, the dream was to make a naughty EP and have all the songs be sexual and focus on a more risqué side of Christmas. Growing up, I always listened to naughty ones like "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" and "Santa Baby." But as I wrote the first couple songs, I had way more ideas and just wrote normal songs with Christmas lyrics, and it all became a very special project for me. It's always exciting to put new energy and life into classics and the traditions, so there's a lot of new and there's a lot of old. 

I got so lucky with the lives "Nonsense" has taken on, because I don't think I could have done that with just any song of mine. The holidays fit so perfectly with what the song is about. 

At first I thought it'd be fun to make a short form version of it, so I made a music video at home with my sister and a friend in my house and put on a Santa outfit. It was well-received by my fans who I love very much, and when they want something they harass me. So they harassed me to write a full version, and that's how that happened.

Meeting Her Idols

I met Paul McCartney back in March. It was at a party, which is not the environment you want to meet your biggest icon in. But he was so present, sweet and gracious with me. You know the kind of eye contact that someone makes with you and you're like, "You're a real person, I'm just not sure I believe it." 

I've been so inspired by him my entire life, and I'm not sure a lot of people know that about me. I do think that sometimes when you're writing pop music, or whatever genre it is, I pull from so many different genres and Paul has always been my No. 1. As we were talking, I definitely did start crying a little bit, which is not something I do often. I'll remember it forever and I hope I can see him again. 

5 Reasons Why Taylor Swift's Eras Tour Will Be The Most Legendary Of Her Generation

August 2024 comes with five Fridays and five weeks of piping hot new music releases. And if July was busy, the upcoming month puts it to task with a sundry of albums for every genre, generation, and gusto.

Kicking off August, R&B star Khalid releases Sincere, while masked country singer Orville Peck will release his first duets album, Stampede. The following week, Aug. 9 heralds the third LP from Filipino British singer beabadoobee, This Is How Tomorrow Moves.

By mid-August, new releases from Foster The People, Nikka Costa, Post Malone and Tinashe will drop, as well as the debut of KATSEYE — a multinational girl group formed by K-pop label HYBE in partnership with Geffen Records. A week later, all eyes and ears will turn to Sabrina Carpenter’s Short n’ Sweet, Lainey Wilson’s Whirlwind, Thomas Rhett’s About A Woman, and Fontaines D.C.’s Romance.

Just before September arrives, Laurie Anderson will release her tribute to aviator Amelia Earhart, Amelia, and A$AP Rocky will make a long-awaited return with Don’t Be Dumb.

To fill up your upcoming weekends with fresh music, GRAMMY.com crafted a list with 13 remarkable new albums coming out August 2024.

After more than a decade away from the studios, Texican rock trio Los Lonely Boys are ready for their Resurrection. The 10-track LP was recorded at guitarist Henry Garza’s home studio in St. Angelo, Texas and in El Paso’s Sonic Ranch (Fiona Apple, Bon Iver). 

On  lead singles "Wish You Would" and "See Your Face," Los Lonely Boys prove that the wait was worth it, as they experiment with their signature sound for a deeper, more mature output. Resurrection aims to rekindle "the sonic fire that bonds the Los Lonely Boys brotherhood," while also paying respects to Texas legends like Stevie Ray Vaughan and Freddy Fender, per a press release.

"It’s something we think people need to hear — especially the youth," said bassist Jojo Garza. "When we’re young, we think we have it figured out. When you get older, you start to see things differently. Having kids of our own, we see their ambitions and ideas of what they want to be, so we want to be good parents. The message is, ‘Be careful what you wish for. There could be a false light, and we don’t want you to get hurt.’"

Los Lonely Boys are also celebrating the 20th anniversary of their self-titled debut, and the commemorations will be extended to a lengthy North American tour. Starting in August and running until November, the shows will also feature long time peers Los Lobos.

Five years after the release of Free Spirit, R&B singer/songwriter Khalid is back with his third full length. Per a press release, Sincere is a "combination of my life experiences" that explores the pains and joys of growing up. Khalid noted that "it takes inspiration from conversations that I have had with my fans, supporters, and the people that love me." 

"When I listen back to this project, I hear a sound that’s so unique and represents me at my best," he added. "This album is me at 26, continuing to evolve with the knowledge that I have garnered throughout the years." Previewed by singles "Please Don’t Fall In Love With Me," "Adore U," and "Ground (Cotton Candy Skies)," Sincere is a 16-track collection that, most of all, showcases Khalid’s maturing.

"This all feels like the biggest reset for me," he shared on Instagram. "I feel so reminiscent to how I did when I first started my career 8 years ago. I can’t wait for all of you to experience the album."

Groundbreaking country singer Orville Peck is about to surprise his audience once again. Following 2022’s Bronco, Stampede — his first duet album, and third overall — spans 15 tracks with collaborations from Elton John, Willie Nelson, Beck, Kylie Minogue, Diplo, and more.

Back in May, Peck teased the project with EP Stampede Vol. 1, featuring songs with Noah Cyrus, Midland, and others. "This project has always been something I’ve fantasized about, so to see it finally come to fruition really is a dream come true," said the South African masked star in a press release.

Among a busy schedule, Peck also announced that his 6th annual Rodeo will happen on Aug. 23, 24 and 25 in Nashville. It will be headlined by himself and Tanya Tucker, and will feature sets from Medium Build, Reyna Roberts, and more. The Stampede North American tour is underway through October.

Learn more: How Queer Country Artists Are Creating Space For Inclusive Stories In The Genre 

Filipino-British singer beabadoobee — also known as Beatrice Laus — is so excited about her upcoming third studio album that she decided to bring its release one week forward. This Is How Tomorrow Moves is now coming out on Aug. 9, via Dirty Hit.

Fronted by singles "Take a Bite," "Coming Home," and "Ever Seen," the album was produced by Rick Rubin, and features "themes of self-acceptance and personal growth," per a press release. "I think I’m more aware of my actions in these songs," said Laus. "In my previous records, I would consistently sing about my reaction towards other people’s doings, like a blame game. But in this record, it’s accepting that there’s an inevitability of my fault in there too." 

To crystallize those lessons, the alt-pop star is slated to perform at a one-off acoustic show in London, on Aug. 2. Then, she will play two intimate shows in London and Coventry, and a set at All Points East UK festival. In September, Laus will begin her North American tour, following with a string of November concerts in Europe.

Posty has been riding high on the country wave ever since May, when he released the top-charting single "I Had Some Help" with Morgan Wallen. Followed by "Pour Me a Drink" with Blake Shelton, and more recently by "Guy For That" with Luke Combs, his shift into the Nashville scene feels not only natural, but also rewarding. 

All three pre-releases are part of Malone’s sixth studio album, F-1 Trillion. The singer also collaborated with Chris Stapleton and Hardy in tracks yet to be revealed, and featured production by Louis Bell, Charlie Handsome, and Hoskins. F-1 also marks the first time that the singer fully dives into country music, despite dabbling with the genre for years.

To celebrate this momentous phase, Malone will embark on a North American Tour starting September. In the company of backing band The Fools For You, he will hit cities like Boston, Atlanta, Virginia Beach, Charleston, and wrap up in Nashville in October. 

Read more: Post Malone's Country Roots: 8 Key Moments In Covers and Collaborations

Tinashe — 'Quantum Baby' (Aug. 16)

"Quantum Baby is about getting to know me on a deeper level," said Tinashe in a press release about her upcoming album. "It’s about exploring who I am as a person and who I am as an artist. I’ve never been one to be put into a box, so the name ‘Quantum Baby’ encompasses all the different parts that make up who I am as a creative."

Spearheaded by April’s viral hit "Nasty," which serves as the album’s lead single, Quantum Baby is the second installment of a trilogy that began with 2023’s BB/ANG3L. "For BB/ANG3L, I was very inspired by the concept of identity. Exploring both how I self-identify and also challenging the perceptions of others," explained Tinashe. "I’ve enjoyed stripping back layers of aesthetic fluff, smoke and mirrors, and white noise to get down to the core of myself. Who we are at a core level, when we are alone — raw and unfiltered, is what I want this album to reflect."

Second single "Getting No Sleep" reflects that forthright perspective: "Feels Friday like, different night, same vibe / Take you outside, movie scene every time / Flick me up, I’m fitted up, so pretty, no bad side / Not a dog, but it’s in me, taking shots like I’m Lindsay," she sings.

Read more: Love "Nasty"? Get To Know Tinashe With 10 Songs That Show Her Honesty & Artistry

After heralding the summer of 2024 with double hits "Espresso" and "Please, Please, Please," Sabrina Carpenter will bring us Short n’ Sweet, a whole studio album to accompany its caffeinated appetizers.

Short n’ Sweet is Carpenter’s sixth LP so far, and features 12 tracks with major collaboration from top-charting producer Jack Antonoff. "This project is quite special to me and I hope it’ll be something special to you too," the singer shared on Instagram. 

To seal 2024 as the year of Sabrina Carpenter, the pocket-sized star announced her first North American arena tour, starting September 23 in Columbus, Ohio and wrapping up on November 18 in Inglewood, California.  

Learn more: Meet Amy Allen, The Hitmaking Singer/Songwriter Behind Sabrina Carpenter's "Please Please Please" & More Pop Gems 

"Writing and recording these 14 songs over the past couple of years has helped me stay grounded in ways you’d never believe," said Lainey Wilson on Instagram about her new LP, Whirlwind. "This album brought me back to my roots and made me feel at home during times when I couldn’t have been further away and my biggest hope is that it gives you that same sense of comfort that it has for me." 

Following the 2022 GRAMMY-winning Bell Bottom Country, Wilson’s Whirlwind enlists producer Jay Joyce once again, but aims for a more organic sound by employing the singer’s touring band instead of studio musicians. Previously shared singles "Hang Tight Honey," "Country’s Cool Again," and "4x4xU" feature on the tracklist, as well as a collaboration with Miranda Lambert on "Good Horses." 

Seizing the momentum, Wilson recently opened the Bell Bottoms Up bar in Nashville, and released a Hulu-exclusive documentary, Lainey Wilson: Bell Bottom Country. She is also amidst her North American tour, Country’s Cool Again.

Steve Cropper — 'Friendlytown' (Aug. 23)

Time may be tight, but is also just a number to legendary guitarist Steve Cropper. Best known as a member of Stax house band Booker T. & The M.G.’s and as a guitarist for the Blues Brothers, he’s now 82 years old — but just getting started with his solo project, Steve Cropper & the Midnight Hour.

His 2021 solo debut album, Fire It Up, was nominated for a GRAMMY award in the Best Contemporary Blues Album category, and the upcoming Friendlytown aims to follow the same steps. "If your booty is not shaking in the first two bars of this album you’re already dead in a chair," said Cropper in a press statement. "I feel so good about this batch of songs. They’re packed with radio hooks, and we have Billy Gibbons, Brian May, and Tim Montana playing on the album — it’s like guitar heaven."

Single "Too Much Stress" with Brian May teases what’s to come in Friendlytown: 13 tracks of unbridled creativity and stirring melodies that bring back your faith in humanity. As Cropper said, "when I think about my legacy, I want it to be said that I was a nice guy."

"Be really energetic and dance." That’s the acronym behind Sofi Tukker’s upcoming BREAD, but could also be their official slogan. The electronic duo formed by Sophie Hawley-Weld and Tucker Halpern bring joy and irreverence to their beats, mixing English with Portuguese, EDM with favela funk, fun with elegance. Now, they come forward with a brand new recipe for their third studio album.

"BREAD is pure energy," said Hawley-Weld in a press release. "Literally, carbs. That's exactly what we want our music to do. When you put on the album, we want it to give you energy." Halpern added, "We didn't know when we wrote the song ‘Bread’ that it was going to feel like a thesis statement for the album, and we didn't know that was going to be the name of the album initially, but as we were discussing, it became clearer and clearer that what we wanted to say to the world is: the world can be dark but it's also a really fun place."

To get a hint of the BREAD vibes, tune in to singles "Hey Homie," "Spiral," and the cheeky "Throw Some Ass." Then, catch Sofi Tukker live on their world tour starting September in Oceania, North America, and Europe.

Following their acclaimed 2022 album Skinty Fia, Irish band Fontaines D.C. are gearing up to release their fourth LP, Romance. This is the post-punk ensemble’s first album under XL Recordings, and first album with producer James Ford, but it’s said to be their "most assured, inventive, and sonically adventurous" yet, according to a press release. 

"We’ve always had this sense of idealism and romance," said guitarist Conor Deegan of the upcoming record. "Each album gets further away from observing that through the lens of Ireland, as directly as [debut album] Dogrel. The second album [A Hero’s Death] is about that detachment, and the third [Skinty Fia] is about Irishness dislocated in the diaspora. Now we look to where and what else there is to be romantic about."

Romance’s 11 tracks boast many inspirations — not all of them romantic per se. Frantic lead single "Starburster," for example, was inspired by a panic attack that vocalist Grian Chatten suffered at London’s St. Pancras station. Aside from that, other references include the dystopian anime Akira, singer Shygirl, Prodigy, Sega Bodega, and more.

Fontaines D.C. will kick off a world tour starting September in the U.S. and Canada, and then head on to Europe and the UK throughout December.

Zedd — 'TELOS' (Aug. 30) 

This month also marks the return of German DJ and producer Zedd, who will release his first LP in nearly a decade, TELOS. Described in a press release as a "profound listening experience," the album was crafted in hopes to create deep bonds with the audience. "I wanted everyone to be able to feel a deeper emotional connection, like how I felt listening to my favorite albums when I was growing up. It was the details, transitions and cohesiveness that made me want to create a truly meaningful body of work," said Zedd.

Lead single "Out Of Time" has been in the works since 2015, and is still one of Zedd’s favorite compositions. "I made an intro for my live show based on this chord progression, but was never able to finish it," he said. "Bea [Miller] was the missing piece of the puzzle; her voice added an emotional depth that completed the song. "Out Of Time" really encapsulates the DNA of the Telos album, which is why I chose it to be the song that introduces this new era."

Fans will be able to check out how this new era sounds live starting September, as Zedd just announced his TELOS North American tour. Starting in Los Angeles, he will play 18 shows throughout 10 cities, including Seattle, San Francisco, and Dallas.

One of 2024’s most awaited releases, A$AP Rocky’s fourth LP, Don’t Be Dumb, will finally drop at the end of the month. It’s been six years since the New Yorker put out his last full effort, Testing, and several changes happened in his life since — including becoming a father to two sons with his partner, Rihanna.

In a 2023 interview for Dazed, Lord Flacko affirmed that the album feels like his "best work yet," and that he wants to "leave expectations wide and open. I don’t want to tell you what to expect. I just want people to experience it how they do naturally."

Don’t Be Dumb has been teased for a long time, and Rocky previewed three unreleased songs off it at his Rolling Loud performance in July 2023. It is also preceded by singles "S—in’ Me," "Same Problems?," and Pharrell Williams-produced "RIOT (Rowdy Pipe’n)," although there’s no confirmation if they will end up on the final tracklist.

Some artists are lucky enough to have a moment: a song of the summer, a radio hit, or a point at which their song dominates the pop conversation. Before even launching her own singing career, Amy Allen has done just that — multiple times.

In 2022, the Maine native contributed to hit songs from Harry Styles, Lizzo, Charli XCX, and King Princess; at the 2023 GRAMMYs, she was one of the inaugural nominees for Songwriter Of The Year, Non-Classical, and celebrated an Album Of The Year win alongside Styles thanks to her work on Harry's House. And as of press time, two songs she co-wrote with Sabrina Carpenter are in the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 chart: "Espresso" and "Please Please Please," the latter of which hit No. 1.

When you have a resume and catalog as impressive as Allen's, it's hard not to get stuck in a run of highlights — but Allen's writing style is so full of remarkable emotional depth and inevitable hooks that her life and career deserves further exploration. After binging on classic rock and performing in rock and bluegrass bands in her youth, Allen began writing songs for others in the mid 2010s and has only continued to expand her impact on audiences and collaborators alike.

"Amy is a once-in-a-lifetime writer and friend — it all comes to her very naturally and effortlessly," Carpenter recently told Variety. "She's super versatile: She can wear any hat and yet it still feels authentic. I've learned a lot from her and admire what an incredible collaborator she is."

Along the way, Allen has continued honing her skills as an artist in her own right, releasing a handful of EPs and singles since 2015, initially under the name Amy and the Engine. But on Sept. 6, she's ready to fully introduce herself with her debut album — fittingly titled Amy Allen.

Just after Allen celebrated her latest No. 1 and released her newest single, "even forever," GRAMMY.com rounded up the key details you need to know about the singer/songwriter's diverse musical background, from her advocacy for female creators to seeing Harry Styles sing a song she co-wrote to a massive audience.

Her Origin Story Features A Lot Of Car Talk

Allen's early musical growth relied on four-wheeled vehicles to drive the plot forward — in many different forms. Growing up in rural Maine meant long car rides to for school and family outings, which in turn meant a lot of time with the radio.

"My dad is the biggest classic rock fan, so since I was little, I spent hours every day listening to music in the car with him and my sisters," she told Variety earlier this year.

When it came time for one of her sisters to start a band, the elder Allen named it No U-Turn, setting the theme. When the band needed a new bassist, Amy took up the low end at just 8 years old, learning classic songs from the likes of Tom Petty and Rolling Stones. The band started collecting opening spots at a bar in Portland, Maine, and lasted until Allen was in high school and her sisters had left for college. In addition, she started playing in a bluegrass band called Jerks of Grass alongside her high school guitar teacher.

Eventually, Allen thought about moving on and changing course. "I went to nursing school at Boston College for two years, and within a month of getting there I was like, 'I made a big mistake,'" she continued. After moving over to the prestigious Berklee School of Music, Allen started a new project, yet again turning to vehicular terminology: Amy and the Engine, who would go on to open for the likes of Vance Joy and Kacey Musgraves. The project's timeless indie pop charm shone brightly on singles like "Last Forever" and the 2017 EP Get Me Outta Here!, fusing references ranging from the Cranberries to the Cure.

She's A Major Champion For Women In Music

Back in 2021, Allen pondered whether it was time to carve up one of America's most prominent monuments. "Can you imagine tits on Mount Rushmore/ And Ruth Bader Ginsburg from dynamite sticks?" she sang on "A Woman's World," a highlight from her 2021 solo EP AWW!. The song backs off from that explicit ask, but the low-slung waltz of ghostly piano and gentle acoustic guitar still subversively slices at traditional gender roles and power dynamics. 

And while the track may focus its first verse on the Notorious RBG, Allen designed it as a more approachable anthem. "I felt very proud of that song. And it's something that I love to play live, because I think that it's nice as a woman to give that moment to other women in the audience where I see them," she told The Line of Best Fit upon the EP's release.

Her solo work sits in a long line of female pop and rock stars looking to lift others up — with Allen's list of influences including everyone from the Carpenters and Pat Benatar to No Doubt, Hole, and Siouxsie and the Banshees. But she's also aware of the shortcomings in the industry when it comes to behind-the-scenes matters, with female songwriters representing a disproportionately small percentage of the industry and often at lower revenue than their male counterparts. 

"It's important to have more women writing and performing so that younger girls can be hearing that and really connecting with that and resonating with that, and then being inspired to do that themselves," she continued. "I'm really excited to hear what the next generation of singer songwriters creates, and I want to do my part in making sure that they're able to."

She Went Full Circle With Selena Gomez

Allen's emotionally salient and indelibly quirky songwriting with the Engine caught the attention of more than just adoring fans. While on a tour stop in New York, she connected with Scott Harris, a songwriter who has worked with the likes of Shawn Mendes, Camila Cabello, Niall Horan, and Meghan Trainor; when Allen eventually moved to New York, she would take on some of Harris' writing sessions when he was in Los Angeles. One of those sessions spawned the first song she'd place with another artist: Selena Gomez's "Back To You," which ended up on the soundtrack for the second season of Netflix's teen drama "13 Reasons Why" in 2018. 

"I grew up listening to Selena Gomez, and I know that she's going to be a pop icon forever," Allen told People in 2020. "She's awesome. I was so psyched…It definitely propelled my career in the pop writing field further."

Two years later, she would re-team with Gomez for "My Mind & Me," a single released alongside a documentary film of the same title following the impact of the star's diagnoses with lupus and bipolar disorder on her career. The single similarly offers an openhearted, empathetic look at big mental health struggles, this time in the form of a sweeping, cathartic power ballad driven by stumbling syllables and stair-step piano. 

The track was shortlisted for Best Original Song at the 2023 Academy Awards, charted in more than a dozen countries, and, perhaps most importantly, seemed to have made quite the connection with Gomez. "Honestly, it was therapeutic for me," the pop star and actress told Variety in 2022. "I felt super connected to what I was singing and what I was saying."

She Loves Seeing Her Collaborators Live

Songwriters often wind up hidden behind the scenes, unable to really gather the impact that their artistic expression is making on others. But thankfully, Allen has been able to catch a peek in on the arena-sized reactions for some of her biggest collaborators. 

One of Allen's most-played co-writes is "Adore You," a highlight from Harry Styles' 2019 album, Fine Line, which has nearly 1.7 billion streams on Spotify alone as of press time. The buoyant, slippery burst of Fleetwood Mac-indebted funk pop embodies the start of an infatuation, and fans similarly felt under the song's spell. And Allen finally got to see that feeling come to life at Styles' album release show at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles in 2019. 

"Watching Harry, I was really nervous because the album had only been out for a couple days and I wasn't sure if anybody would know that song," Allen told Variety in 2020. She also noted that the song was a hard turn from more heartbroken tracks she'd written for the likes of Halsey. "'Adore You' was my first feel-good song, so I'm psyched about that," she added.

Though not in person, Allen got a similar bolt of joy when she was able to watch Lizzo perform Styles' track for BBC Radio 1 in 2020. "I idolize Lizzo," Allen continued. "It really just goes to show that the right song can be performed by many different people." 

Little did Allen know that she'd get to celebrate a GRAMMY nomination and win alongside Lizzo and Styles, respectively, just three years later. She co-wrote "If You Love Me" from the flute-jamming pop star's 2022 record Special, which was nominated for Album Of The Year at the 2023 GRAMMYs, where Styles' Harry's House (which featured Allen's co-write "Matilda") won the coveted honor.

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She Shapeshifts Her Songwriting For Each Artist

When a songwriter has to split their tracks up between multiple different artists, it might be difficult to ensure that each track sounds appropriately fitted to each performer. For Allen, it all comes down to knowing when to follow the rules and when to break them. 

"Sometimes we'll be writing and someone will say, 'It should go straight to the chorus here,' and in my brain I'm like, 'But we need a pre-chorus!' — you know, following the ABCs of songwriting," she told Variety. "But I've really been trying over the last couple of years to deconstruct some of those — that you don't need to pull out all the tricks all the time. It can actually make the song more interesting."

In fact, it might come down to what she prioritizes when sitting down to write, rather than which rules to follow. While walking the red carpet for the 2021 Ivor Novello Awards for songwriting and composition, Allen explained her perspective on songwriting formulas to PRS For Music: "When I'm writing for myself, I usually start with the verse and move my way through, and lots of other times when I'm writing with another artist I make sure the chorus is bulletproof."

The GRAMMYs Are Helping Change Her Family's Perspective On Her Career

Allen earned her first GRAMMY nomination in 2022 for her work on Justin Bieber's Justice, but her most meaningful nomination came a year later for Songwriter Of The Year, Non-Classical at the 65th Annual Awards ceremony (alongside Nija Charles, The-Dream, Laura Veltz, and Tobias Jesso, Jr.). While Allen had a hard time contextualizing the recognition, it helped her loved ones better understand the impact of her career.

"I'm just so grateful…Even my closest family and friends, they're like, 'I've listened to this artist for so long, or I listened to this song on the radio, and I had no idea there was a team that helped make this happen,'" she told VERSED: The ASCAP Podcast in 2022. "People like me growing up in small towns, we don't know that being a songwriter for a career is an option… I watched the GRAMMYs when I was growing up, and if I had known that people were making great careers, I would've gotten on the track a lot earlier."

Though the inaugural award ultimately went to Jesso, Jr., Allen seems to agree that he's deserving of the honor — he's one of her collaborators on her upcoming album.

Maine Will Always Be Home — and An Inspiration

For those who haven't been to Maine, a quick look at Allen's social media will reveal just how stunning the American Northeast can be. Among TikToks promoting her music, Allen almost inevitably drops in a clip displaying the expansive natural beauty of her home state — whether she's on a rope swing over a dazzlingly blue pool of water, or dropping a front spin while skating on the ice, or watching the massive waves from her family home.

"POV: ur back home in maine and wondering why u ever left," she plastered over one particularly stunning TikTok montage of a dazzling day swimming amongst waterfalls. The only thing as beautiful as the scenery is the music behind it is an unreleased track about missing home — proof that Maine will always be part of her, and that she clearly made the correct choice in following her songwriting dreams.

Three months after OneRepublic began promoting their sixth album, Artificial Paradise, in February 2022, the band unexpectedly had their biggest release in nearly a decade. The pop-rock band's carefree jam, "I Ain't Worried," soundtracked Top Gun: Maverick's most memeable scene and quickly became a global smash — ultimately delaying album plans in favor of promoting their latest hit.

Two years later, "I Ain't Worried" is one of 16 tracks on Artificial Paradise, which arrived July 12. It's a seamless blend of songs that will resonate with longtime and newer fans alike. From the layered production of "Hurt," to the feel-good vibes of "Serotonin," to the evocative lyrics of "Last Holiday," Artificial Paradise shows that OneRepublic's sound is as dialed-in as it is ever-evolving.

The album also marks the end of an era for OneRepublic, as it's the last in their contract with Interscope Records. But for the group's singer, Ryan Tedder, that means the future is even more exciting than it's been in their entire 15-year career.

"I've never been more motivated to write the best material of my life than this very moment," he asserts. "I'm taking it as a challenge. We've had a lot of fun, and a lot of uplifting records for the last seven or eight years, but I also want to tap back into some deeper material with the band."

As he's been prepping Artificial Paradise with his OneRepublic cohorts, Tedder has also been as busy as he's ever been working with other artists. His career as a songwriter/producer took off almost simultaneously with OneRepublic's 2007 breakthrough, "Apologize" (his first major behind-the-board hit was Leona Lewis' "Bleeding Love"); to this day he's one of the go-to guys for pop's biggest names, from BLACKPINK to Tate McRae.

Tedder sat down with GRAMMY.com to share some of his most prominent memories of OneRepublic's biggest songs, as well as some of the hits he's written with Beyoncé, Adele, Taylor Swift and more.

I was producing and writing other songs for different artists on Epic and Atlantic — I was just cutting my teeth as a songwriter in L.A. This is like 2004. I was at my lowest mentally and financially. I was completely broke. Creditors chasing me, literally dodging the taxman and getting my car repoed, everything.

I had that song in my back pocket for four years. A buddy of mine just reminded me last month, a songwriter from Nashville — Ashley Gorley, actually. We had a session last month, me, him and Amy Allen, and he brought it up. He was like, "Is it true, the story about 'Apologize'? You were completely broke living in L.A. and Epic Records offered you like 100 grand or something just for the right to record the song on one of their artists?"

And that is true. It was, like, 20 [grand], then 50, then 100. And I was salivating. I was, like, I need this money so bad. And I give so many songs to other people, but with that song, I drew a line in the sand and said, "No one will sing this song but me. I will die with this song." 

It was my story, and I just didn't want anyone else to sing it. It was really that simple. It was a song about my past relationships, it was deeply personal. And it was also the song that — I spent two years trying to figure out what my sound was gonna be. I was a solo artist… and I wasn't landing on anything compelling. Then I landed on "Apologize" and a couple of other songs, and I was like, These songs make me think of a band, not solo artist material. So it was the song that led me to the sound of OneRepublic, and it also led me to the idea that I should start a band and not be a solo artist.

We do it every night. I'll never not do it. I've never gotten sick of it once. Every night that we do it, whether I'm in Houston or Hong Kong, I look out at the crowd and look at the band, and I'm like, Wow. This is the song that got us here.

We were halfway through promoting Dreaming Out Loud, our first album. I played basketball every day on tour, and I snapped my Achilles. The tour got canceled. The doctor told me not to even write. And I had this one sliver of an afternoon where my wife had to run an errand. And because I'm sadistic and crazy, I texted [songwriter] Evan Bogart, "I got a three-hour window, race over here. Beyoncé called me and asked me to write her a song. I want to do it with you." He had just come off his huge Rihanna No. 1, and we had an Ashley Tisdale single together.

When you write enough songs, not every day do the clouds part and God looks down on you and goes, "Here." But that's what happened on that day. I turn on the keyboard, the first sound that I play is the opening sound of the song. Sounds like angels singing. And we wrote the song pretty quick, as I recall. 

I didn't get a response [from Beyoncé after sending "Halo" over], which I've now learned is very, very typical of her. I did Miley Cyrus and Beyoncé "II MOST WANTED" [from COWBOY CARTER] — I didn't know that was coming out 'til five days before it came out. And when I did "XO" [from 2013's Beyoncé], I found out that "XO" was coming out 12 hours before it came out. That's how she operates.

["Good Life"] was kind of a Hail Mary. We already knew that "All the Right Moves" would be the first single [from Waking Up]. We knew that "Secrets" was the second single. And in the 11th hour, our engineer at the time — who I ended up signing as a songwriter, Noel Zancanella — had this drum loop that he had made, and he played it for Brent [Kutzle] in our band. Brent said, "You gotta hear this drum loop that Noel made. It's incredible."

He played it for me the next morning, and I was like, "Yo throw some chords to this. I'm writing to this today." They threw some chords down, and the first thing out of my mouth was, [sings] "Oh, this has gotta be the good life." 

It's the perfect example of, oftentimes, the chord I've tried to strike with this band with some of our bigger records, [which] is happy sad. Where you feel nostalgic and kind of melancholic, but at the same time, euphoric. That's what those chords and that melody did for me.

I was like, "Hey guys, would it be weird if I made the hook a whistle?" And everyone was like, "No! Do not whistle!" They're like, "Name the last hit song that had a whistle." And the only one I could think of was, like, Scorpion from like, 1988. [Laughs.] So I thought, To hell with it, man, it's been long enough, who cares? Let's try it. And the whistle kind of made the record. It became such a signature thing.

Adele — "Rumour Has It," '21' (2011)

"Rumour Has It" was the first song I did in probably a four year period, with any artist, that wasn't a ballad. All any artist ever wanted me to write with them or for them, was ballads, because of "Halo," and "Apologize" and "Bleeding Love."

I begged [Adele] to do a [song with] tempo, because we did "Turning Tables," another ballad. She was in a feisty mood [that day], so I was like, "Okay, we're doing a tempo today!"

Rick Rubin was originally producing the whole album. I was determined to produce Adele, not just write — because I wanted a shot to show her that I could, and to show myself. I stayed later after she left, and I remember thinking, What can I do in this record in this song that could be so difficult to reproduce that it might land me the gig?

So I intentionally muted the click track, changed the tempo, and [created that] whole piano bridge. I was making it up as I went. When she got in that morning. I said, "I have a crazy idea for a bridge. It's a movie." She listens and she says, "This is really different, I like this! How do we write to this?" 

I mean, it was very difficult. [But] we finished the song. She recorded the entire song that day. She recorded the whole song in one take. I've never seen anyone do that in my life — before or since.

Then I didn't hear from her for six months. Because I handed over the files, and Rick Rubin's doing it, so I don't need to check on it. I randomly check on the status of the song — and at this point, if you're a songwriter or producer, you're assuming that they're not keeping the songs. Her manager emails my manager, "Hey, good news — she's keeping both songs they did, and she wants Ryan to finish 'Rumour Has It' production and mix it." 

When I finally asked her, months later — probably at the GRAMMYs — I said, "Why didn't [Rick] do it?" She said, "Oh he did. It's that damn bridge! Nobody could figure out what the hell you were doing…It was so problematic that we just gave up on it."

I was in a Beyoncé camp in the Hamptons writing for the self-titled album. [There were] a bunch of people in the house — me, Greg Kurstin, Sia — it was a fun group of people. I had four days there, and every morning I'd get up an hour and a half before I had to leave, make a coffee, and start prepping for the day. On the third day, I got up, I'm in the basement of this house at like 7 in the morning, and I'm coming up with ideas. I stumble across that chord progression, the guitar and the melody. It was instant shivers up my spine. 

"Lately I've been losing sleep, dreaming about the things that we could be" is the only line that I had. [My] first thought was, I should play this for Beyoncé, and then I'm listening to it and going, This is not Beyoncé, not even remotely. It'd be a waste. So I tabled it, and I texted the guys in my band, "Hey, I think I have a potentially really big record. I'm going to finish it when I get back to Denver."

I got back the next week, started recording it, did four or five versions of the chorus, bouncing all the versions off my wife, and then eventually landed it. And when I played it for the band, they were like, "This is our favorite song."

It was my second session with Taylor. The first one was [1989's] "I Know Places," and she sent me a voice memo. I was looking for a house in Venice [California], because we were spending so much time in L.A. So that whole memory is attached to me migrating back to Los Angeles. 

But I knew what she was talking about, because I lived in New York, and I remember the feeling — endless possibilities, all the different people and races and sexes and loves. That was her New York chapter. She was so excited to be there. If you never lived there, and especially if you get there and you've got a little money in the pocket, it is so exhilarating.

It was me just kind of witnessing her brilliant, fast-paced, lyrical wizardry. [Co-producer] Max [Martin] and I had a conversation nine months later at the GRAMMYs, when we had literally just won for 1989. He kind of laughed, he pointed to all the other producers on the album, and he's like, "If she had, like, three more hours in the day, she would just figure out what we do and she would do it. And she wouldn't need any of us." 

And I still think that's true. Some people are just forces of nature in and among themselves, and she's one of them. She just blew me away. She's the most talented top liner I've ever been in a room with, bar none. If you're talking lyric and melody, I've never been in a room with anyone faster, more adept, knows more what they want to say, focused, efficient, and just talented.

I had gone through a pretty dry spell mentally, emotionally. I had just burned it at both ends and tapped out, call it end of 2016. So, really, all of 2017 for me was a blur and a wash. I did a bunch of sessions in the first three months of the year, and then I just couldn't get a song out. I kept having, song after song, artists telling me it's the first single, [then] the song was not even on the album. I had never experienced that in my career.

I went six to nine months without finishing a song, which for me is unheard of. Andrew Watt kind of roped me back into working with him. We did "Easier" for 5 Seconds of Summer, and we did some Sam Smith and some Miley Cyrus, and right in that same window, I did this song "Sucker." Two [or] three months later, Wendy Goldstein from Republic [Records] heard the record, I had sent it to her. She'd said, very quietly, "We're relaunching the Jonas Brothers. They want you to be involved in a major way. Do you have anything?" 

She calls me, she goes, "Ryan, do not play this for anybody else. This is their comeback single. It's a No. 1 record. Watch what we're gonna do." And she delivered.

My memory is, being in lockdown in COVID, and just being like, Who knows when this is going to end, working out of my Airstream at my house. I had done a lot of songs for movies over the years, and [for] that particular [song] Randy Spendlove, who runs [music at] Paramount, called me.

I end up Zooming with Tom Cruise [and Top Gun: Maverick director] Jerry Bruckheimer — everybody's in lockdown during post-production. The overarching memory was, Holy cow, I'm doing the scene, I'm doing the song for Top Gun. I can't believe this is happening. But the only way I knew how to approach it, rather than to, like, overreact and s— the bed, was, It's just another day.

I do prescription songs for movies, TV, film all the time. I love a brief. It's so antithetical to most writers. I'm either uncontrollably lazy or the most productive person you've ever met. And the dividing line between the two is, if I'm chasing some directive, some motivation, some endpoint, then I can be wildly productive.

I just thought, I'm going to do the absolute best thing I can do for this scene and serve the film. OneRepublic being the performing artist was not on the menu in my mind. I just told them, "I think you need a cool indie band sounding, like, breakbeat." I used adjectives to describe what I heard when I saw the scene, and Tom got really ramped and excited. 

You could argue [it's the biggest song] since the band started. The thing about it is, it's kind of become one of those every summer [hits]. And when it blew up, that's what Tom said. He said, "Mark my words, dude. You're gonna have a hit with this every summer for, like, the next 20 years or more." 

And that's what happened. The moment Memorial Day happened, "I Ain't Worried" got defrosted and marched itself back into the top 100.

Tate McRae — "Greedy," 'THINK LATER' (2023)

We had "10:35" [with Tiësto] the previous year that had been, like, a No. 1 in the UK and across Europe and Australia. So we were coming off the back of that, and the one thing she was clear about was, "That is not the direction of what I want to do."

If my memory serves me correct, "greedy" was the next to last session we had. Everything we had done up to that point was kind of dark, midtempo, emotional. So "greedy" was the weirdo outlier. I kept pushing her to do a dance record. I was like, "Tate, there's a lot of people that have great voices, and there's a lot of people who can write, but none of those people are professional dancers like you are. Your secret weapon is the thing you're not using. In this game and this career, you've got to use every asset that you have and exploit it."

There was a lot of cajoling. On that day, we did it, and I thought it was badass, and loved it. And she was like, "Ugh, what do we just do? What is this?"

So then it was just, like, months, months and months of me constantly bringing that song back up, and playing it for her, and annoying the s— out of her. And she came around on it. 

She has very specific taste. So much of the music with Tate, it really is her steering. I'll do what I think is like a finished version of a song, and then she will push everyone for weeks, if not months, to extract every ounce of everything out of them, to push the song harder, further, edgier — 19 versions of a song, until finally she goes, "Okay, this is the one." She's a perfectionist.

I love [our latest single] "Hurt," but my favorite song on the album is called "Last Holiday." I probably started the beginning of that lyric, I'm not joking, seven, eight years ago. But I didn't finish it 'til this past year.

The verses are little maxims and words of advice that I've been given throughout the years. It's almost cynical in a way, the song. When I wrote the chorus, I was definitely in kind of a down place. So the opening line is, "So I don't believe in the stars anymore/ They never gave me what I wished for." And it's, obviously, a very not-so-slight reference to "Counting Stars." But it's also hopeful — "We've got some problems, okay, but this isn't our last holiday." 

It's very simple sentiments. Press pause. Take some moments. Find God before it all ends. All these things with this big, soaring chorus. Musically and emotionally and sonically, that song — and "Hurt," for sure — but "Last Holiday" is extremely us-sounding. 

The biggest enemy that we've had over the course of 18 years, I'll be the first to volunteer, is, this ever-evolving, undulating sound. No one's gonna accuse me of making these super complex concept albums, because that's just not how my brain's wired. I grew up listening to the radio. I didn't grow up hanging out in the Bowery in CBGBs listening to Nick Cave. So for us, the downside to that, and for me doing all these songs for all these other people, is the constant push and pull of "What is their sound? What genre is it?" 

I couldn't put a pin in exactly what the sound is, but what I would say is, if you look at the last 18 years, a song like "Last Holiday" really encompasses, sonically, what this band is about. It's very moving, and emotional, and dynamic. It takes me to a place — that's the best way for me to put it. And hopefully the listener finds the same.

Every June, Pride Month offers a time for the LGBTQIA+ community to reflect and raise awareness — but also, to party it up. While there were plenty of Pride anthems to pack playlists prior to this year, the past 12 months have seen some flawless new additions from a mix of fresh talent and long-standing stalwart artists that the queer community happily embraces.

While there's no set template on how to create an undeniable Pride anthem, there are major hallmarks: high-energy tempo, candid lyrics, delicious camp, and an undeniable groove. Between pop bops and dance floor jams, no Pride party is complete without at least a couple of the songs listed below. Cheers to the cathartic power of music to usher in another season of acceptance and equality. 

You play it when you wake up. It's on the radio on the way to the club. It's playing at the club. Heck, it's even blasting at the gym the next day. 2024's newly crowned pop princess, Sabrina Carpenter, released an instant classic when she unfurled "Espresso" in April — more than enough time to learn the lyrics by Pride Month.

With an infectious melody targeting your ears like a jolt of morning caffeine, its steaming dose of memorable lines ("I'm working late/ 'cause I'm a singer") are the handiwork of Carpenter along with three veteran lyricists, including close collaborator Steph Jones, Amy Allen (Harry Styles, Selena Gomez) and Julian Bunetta, who is perhaps best known for his plethora of work with One Direction. "Espresso" marks further proof that if there's one thing Carpenter knows it's how to command an audience, whether through her captivating stage shows or viral, story-telling music videos that link together (including for recent single "Please, Please, Please").

Read More: Sabrina Carpenter Releases New Single "Please Please Please": Everything We Know About Her New Album 'Short N' Sweet'

Charli XCX — "360"

It's safe to say that Charli XCX is experiencing a new phase of her decade-long career as a critically acclaimed starlet. Her sixth studio album, BRAT, marks an evolution of her sound into a batch of adult tracks tailor-made for the club. As a result, it's spawned a number of viral memes among her legions of LGBTQIA+ fans, who have also boasted lime green avatars on social media in honor of what's being dubbed "brat summer."

It's no coincidence then that she'd release the project in the midst of Pride Month, led by the relentlessly pulsating single "360." With lyrics that have quickly already found itselves queer canon — "Drop down, yeah, Put the camera flash on" — the album boasts a hyperpoop energy and unapologetic individuality, making her recent spate of shows some of the hottest tickets in town.

Read More: Charli XCX's Road To 'Brat': How Her New Album Celebrates Unabashed Confidence & Eccentricity

Giddy up! One of the brightest out stars in the LGBTQIA+ musical universe, the ever-masked Orville Peck has made a name for himself as a queer outlier in the country music scene. So it stands to reason that he'd partner up with none other than Kylie Minogue — who had the defining song of Pride '23 in the form of "Padam Padam" — for their own anthem for 2024. The result is "Midnight Ride," a whistle-powered, Diplo-produced earworm that's perfect for a rainbow-tinted hoedown.

The team-up is part of Peck's forthcoming duets project, for which he recruited a cavalcade of singing partners for queer-themed country-tinged tracks in a unique two-volume album dubbed Stampede (which drops in full Aug. 2). The collaborators include Willie Nelson, who croons with Peck on the eye-raising ditty "Cowboys Are Frequently Secretly Fond of Each Other."

Dua Lipa — "Houdini"

When Dua Lipa released Future Nostalgia in 2020, it became an instant classic in the pop world and LGBTQIA+ lexicon alike, cementing Lipa (and songs like "Don't Start Now" and "Physical") into the grand pantheon of queer playlist magic. The pressure was on, then, for her follow-up to live up to its commercial success and fandom.

Cue "Houdini," from this year's Radical Optimism, a cathartic dance floor anthem by one of the gay community's newer idols. Aside from setting the perfect tone for Pride Month with its delicious hook and refreshing confident lyrics "(Prove you got the right to please me"), in an interview with  SiriusXM Hits 1, Lipa said the production of the track set the tone for the new project: "I was like, "Okay, I feel like now I know exactly what this album's gonna be and what it's gonna sound like."

Read More: Dua Lipa's Road To 'Radical Optimism': How Finding The Joy In Every Moment Helped Her Become Pop's Dance Floor Queen

The Challengers soundtrack

Who knew that a soundtrack to a tense and sultry tennis drama would yield an album fit for the dance floor? The thumping array of tunes that Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross churned out for Luca Guadagnino's Challengers has proved to be a hit beyond the film, with its synth-propelled soundtrack proving to be a unique and wild tracks, including the driving "I Know." 

Its embrace in the LGBTQIA+ community should come as no surprise considering the single note the director gave Ross before he started work. "The way he described 'Challengers' was in a one-sentence email," Ross told Variety earlier this year. "Do you want to be on my next film? It's going to be super sexxy.' Two x's."

Ariana Grande — "yes, and"

Ariana Grande is no stranger to gay-friendly anthems; in fact, she delivered one of 2020's most iconic Pride moments with her Lady Gaga duet, "Rain On Me." When her album eternal sunshine dropped earlier this year, it was no surprise that she'd offer a few more bops for a Pride playlist.

Among them is "yes, and," a Max Martin-produced hit that can get even your stiffest friend moving on the dance floor. Perhaps it's no coincidence, then, that the creative team took the sonic elements of ballroom culture — a uniquely queer LGBTQIA+ experience — and fused them with lyrics perfect for a personal Pride anthem. "Say that s— with your chest," she croons. We will, Ari!

Read More: Listen To GRAMMY.com's 2024 Pride Month Playlist Of Rising LGBTQIA+ Artists

If you've been on a dance floor in the recent past, odds are you've grooved to nostalgic beats courtesy the South Korean producer Peggy Gou. The breakout star is known for her unique brand of throwback dance jams, which carry a distinct '90s-era flavor that has led her to be embraced in queer spaces from Fire Island to West Hollywood. The most infectious, "(It Goes Like) Nanana").... samples the German artist ATB's 1998 track "9 PM (Till I Come)," no doubt a reaction to the recent revitalization of 90s-era culture popular in the LGBTQIA+ community, which provides a thumping link to queer culture past.

"For me,  the DJ is someone who teaches people the value of music and educates them," Gou told L'Official of her musical mission. "It is someone who transmits a beautiful memory and is somehow responsible for it."

Chappell Roan — "Casual"

While Roan has been a bubbling-under singer/songwriter for a handful of years, 2024 has proved to be decidedly her time to shine. Ever since the release of her debut album, 2023's The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess, her back catalog has logged impressive streaming numbers, and she's commanded massive crowds at the likes of Governor's Ball and Bonnaroo.

Part of her appeal comes from her unabashed candidness about her sexuality (Roan identifies as a lesbian) and resilience. Both are exemplified by her single "Casual," which is about a relationship that doesn't seem to get all that serious, for better or worse.

However, Roan told the Associated Press last year that normally she isn't so sexually candid.  "The songs kind of give me the opportunity to act like that, and say that, and dress like that," she explained. "It's mainly to piss off — it's all a rebellion. That's what it is. It is very empowering, I think, for a lot of people. ... It's just not as empowering to me as it is living out a fantasy."

Read More: Chappell Roan's Big Year: The 'Midwest Princess' Examines How She Became A Pop "Feminomenon"

By now, we've all heard Troye Sivan's infectious hit "Rush" or seen its viral music video — both of which earned the singer his first GRAMMY nominations this year. In the interim, his 2023 album, Something to Give Each Other, is filled with plenty of other tracks that speak intimately and eloquently about the queer experience.

Take, for example, the luscious "One Of Your Girls," a meditation on when a gay man has a transactional fling with an otherwise straight person. It subsequently has turned into yet another queer definitive anthem for the Australian star.

As a result, Sivan has turned into one of the musical heroes of the community: not only unabashedly talented, but an eloquent chronicler of the gay experience. Even better, as he told  NPR last year, his queer-focused projects are as cathartic for him as they may be for listeners. "There's a big element of pride in the fact that I am now so comfortably, openly gay."