Apple's Shazam Shares 2021 Popular Music Predictions
Shazam, the music discovery and identification app owned by Apple, today shared a Shazam Predictions 2021 playlist that's available on Apple Music. The playlist features a list of 50 songs from up-and-coming artists that Shazam believes are "poised to make a splash."

The data was calculated using Shazam's predictive algorithms, with the 50 tracks hand-selected from Apple Music's global editorial team. The songs all show early and consistent momentum in Shazam activity along with discovery in more than one country, which Shazam says are early indicators of future growth.
Of the 50 new songs in the playlist, Apple Music chose five artists to spotlight as those to watch out for in 2021 and beyond.
- Masked Wolf - A hip-hop artist from Sydney. His song "Astronaut in the Ocean" has reached the overall Apple Music top 10 in five territories.
- BLACKSTARKIDS - A trio from Kansas City that started trending on Shazam in September 2020. Their songs mix indie and hip-hop with contemporary lyrics and analogue pop music.
- Serena Isioma - Nigerian-American singer-songwriter Serena Isioma mixes funk, indie, pop, and R&B, and her song "King" has been featured on Apple Music's New Music Daily playlist.
- Tai Verdes - Indie pop artist Tai Verdes gained momentum on Shazam in July 2020. His single "Stuck in the Middle" is featured on the Alt Pop and ALT CTRL playlists on Apple Music.
- LB Spiffy - Teenage Toronto rapper LB Spiffy has been an emerging artist on Shazam since 2017. His song "Again" has been featured on Apple Music playlists like Rap Life and Today's Hits.
The full Shazam 2021 predictions playlist can be listened to on Apple Music. For those unfamiliar with Shazam, it is an app that iPhone owners can use to identify songs that are playing in movies, on the radio, and elsewhere. Apple purchased Shazam in 2018, and the song identifying functionality has been built into the Siri feature on iPhones for years.
Shazam has in past years been able to identify emerging artists prior to when their music takes off. Olivia Rodrigo, who hit number one on the Apple Music Daily Top 100 Global charts with "drivers license," was picked up by Shazam more than a year ago. Billie Eilish, who soared to popularity in 2019 and 2020, was on Shazam's emerging artist lists in 2015.
Popular Stories
Apple today seeded the release candidate version of iOS 18.5 to developers and public beta testers, giving us a look at the final version of the update that will be provided to the public next week.
With the release candidate, Apple provided release notes, so we have a more complete look at the new features that are included in the update, including those that weren't found during the beta...
If you owned a Siri-compatible device and had an accidental Siri activation between September 17, 2014 and December 31, 2024, you could be eligible for a payment from Apple as part of a class action lawsuit settlement.
Apple in January agreed to pay $95 million to settle a class action lawsuit involving Siri spying accusations, and a website to distribute the funds has now been set up and...
We've still got months to go before the new iPhone 17 models come out, but a combination of dummy models and leaks have given us some insight into what we can expect in terms of camera changes.
Apple is adding new camera features, and changing the design of the camera bump for some models. You might be skeptical of dummy models, but over the years, they've proven to be a highly accurate...
In its press release for the new Pride Band today, Apple said that iOS 18.5 is "upcoming," following more than a month of beta testing.
We expect the iOS 18.5 Release Candidate to be released this week, and this should be the final beta version, barring any last-minute bugs or changes. The software update should then be released to the general public next week.
iOS 18.5 is a relatively...
The first iOS 19 beta is just one month away, and there are already many new features and changes that are expected with it.
Apple should seed the first iOS 19 beta to developers immediately following the WWDC 2025 keynote, which is scheduled for Monday, June 9. Following beta testing, the update should be released to the general public in September.
Below, we recap the key iOS 19 rumors...
Apple plans to release its first foldable iPhone next year, according to several reporters and analysts who cover the company.
In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said the foldable iPhone will offer two key advantages over other foldable smartphones.
First, he said the foldable iPhone will have a "nearly invisible" crease when unfolded. This means the device's...
Apple's upcoming foldable iPhone will feature a new type of display panel developed by Samsung that has never been used in a foldable product, claims a source with links to Apple's supply chain.
According to the account yeux1122 on the Korean Naver blog, the foldable iPhone will use a custom display process for which Apple will hold branding trademark rights, and that meets Apple's stringent ...
Despite being more than two years old, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 still dominate the premium wireless‑earbud space, thanks to a potent mix of top‑tier audio, class‑leading noise cancellation, and Apple's habit of delivering major new features through software updates. With AirPods Pro 3 widely expected to arrive in 2025, prospective buyers now face a familiar dilemma: snap up the proven...