Small Town Rockstars: Women In Indie Pop
WRITTEN BY JACKSON MACKASEY
Some of the most influential artists of the 21st century are women within the indie pop scene. Acts like Phoebe Bridgers, Lorde, and Japanese Breakfast have spent years shaping the genre, influencing a new generation of listeners and musicians alike. For many like myself, that introduction begins early, hearing a song like Royals on the radio and immediately recognizing something different. Although I was in like third grade, I was a massive fan. That initial exposure often leads to a deeper appreciation. Fast-forwarding to today, I see myself revisiting projects like Pure Heroine,Stranger in the Alps, and Soft Sounds from Another Planet a couple of times a week, which ultimately opens the door to artists in the indie scene today.
That same path of discovery now points towards many different waves of the genre. Artists like Keni Titus, a 21-year-old from Los Angeles; Hannah Brewer, another 21-year-old from Sydney’s Inner-West; and Mila Bea, a 17-year-old from Singapore, represent the many faces in the next generation of indie pop, building on the foundation set by those before them while carving out their own distinct sounds. As their audiences grow, so too does their role in shaping the future of the genre. These women have incredible songwriting abilities, and listening to them brings me so many different emotions.
Keni Titus is one of the most exciting emerging voices in indie pop right now. Based in Los Angeles, she creates music that feels intimate and emotionally raw, often capturing fleeting thoughts and quiet moments with striking clarity. Her sound leans into soft, atmospheric production, giving her songs a dreamlike quality that draws listeners in. Being that she is only 21, her ballads are so mature, like she’s been making music for as long as some of the legends I named at the start of this piece.
Another thing that is striking about Titus is how her songwriting comes across so naturally, almost as if she's having a conversation with her journal or microphone. Nothing is overly polished, and that honesty is exactly what makes her music resonate. As her audience continues to grow, she feels like a true reflection of where indie pop is headed, building on the influence of those female icons while carving out a space that is entirely her own.
The reason I started writing this piece is because of Hannah Brewer, one of my favourite artists from Australia. Brewer has an undeniable sense of talent, pairing catchy lyrics with genre-blending production that feels both familiar and fresh. You can hear clear pop influences throughout her music, but instead of simply following that blueprint, she reshapes those inspirations into something more left of centre. The result is a polished yet distinctive sound that stands out while remaining accessible.
She gained a huge amount of traction in Australia when her song Rumspringa became one of the most played tracks on Triple J, a popular radio station in The Great Down Under. This inclined her to release a couple more singles, including the one that really caught my attention, Small Town Rockstar. Something about this track reminds me why I write about music; it's just so good, you really feel Hannah’s swagger within the heavier, guitar-driven sound. There are themes of humour and self-interrogation; it’s one of those songs that could play as the credits roll in an A24 coming-of-age film. Whoever is reading this, listen to it (after you finish reading, of course). Brewer has released a few singles for her upcoming EP, Catch and Release, which comes out on April 24.
Mila Bea is one of the more compelling voices right now, not just because of her sound, but because of the world she is building around it. Recording primarily in her bedroom, she describes her music as “tiny mythologies,” a phrase that perfectly captures the intimate and slightly surreal quality of her songs. Each track feels like its own self-contained story, as if the listener is stepping into a small, evolving universe.
Her breakout song Laughing Track has started to gain real traction, bringing attention to her 2024 debut album Part of Me. The project carries a similar emotional immediacy to Olivia Rodrigo’s Sour, with its raw and diaristic tone, but Bea’s approach feels more inward and fragmented. It feels less like a polished journal and more like flipping through a sketchbook, where emotions are still forming and not fully resolved. That looseness ultimately works in her favour, giving the album a sense of honesty that feels unfiltered and real.
What makes Part of Me even more striking is the timeline behind it. Bea released her first song at just 15 years old, but much of the material on the album was written even earlier, between the ages of 13 and 15. Beyond music, her creativity extends into visual art, including drawing and painting, which feels like a natural extension of her songwriting. There is a clear connection between her sonic and visual work, as both lean into emotion, abstraction, and a quiet kind of introspection.
These three women will inspire generations to come. I have discovered them at a time when they are really starting to flourish and flex those creative muscles, and what comes next will only cement all the great art they have created thus far.
