British radio channel BBC Radio 6 has officially released their top artists of the year for 2024! The channel that pulls in a weekly listening audience of around 2.5 million listeners has gathered their hosts to share the artists they feel are worth celebrating this year.
The channel announced they chose the acts from artists that have “championed the station” and “have made a cultural impact”. The artists will be celebrated with uploads of their recorded performances on the channel, as well as a more in depth segment for each artist where they will share more detail about them on the show.
The 6 Music Artists of the year in alphabetical order are:
Charli xcx
CMAT
English Teacher
Fat Dog
Fontaines D.C.
Jamie xx
Kim Gordon
Kneecap
Little Simz
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
While it is clear every artist on this list has earned their place, I would like to draw attention to the three Irish artists listed: CMAT, Fontaines D.C. and Kneecap. All three have skyrocketed to fame in only a short amount of years and are the much needed creative and artistic representation Ireland needs in a time when clubs, social and creative spaces continue to close throughout the country. The artists have not held back in using their new fame to spread messages surrounding Irish identity, Irish diaspora and the complex relationship Irish youth have to their country.
In particular, rap trio Kneecap from the North of Ireland mention in their thank you message to Radio 6, “We hope this inspires other artists using indigenous languages worldwide to be confident in their own identity”. The group are unrelenting advocates for the survival and incorporation of the once dying Irish language back into mainstream use in the country.
Kneecap promotes a message that their music transcends religious backgrounds and allows the Irish youth to unite in their love for their music and language, despite their differences. Their catchy lyrics and beats are one step in normalising the use of the language in all forms of expression and to remind the next generation to be proud and how to party against the hate.
You can read the BBC 6 Artists of the year list here.