From Wendy Carlos to Kim Petras, transgender artists are being recognized for their talent, winning GRAMMYs and going mainstream. As they should.
Today is International Transgender Day of Visibility. But, visibility is always important to those within underrepresented communities and beyond. By celebrating our transgender friends, family, partners, artists, and creators, we can inspire empathy, minimize stigma, and amplify the voices of those who often go unheard.
Within the community, seeing other transgender artists succeed is essential. It gives hope, inspires the next generation, and fosters pride.
Today – take a step to expand your network. Discover a new artist. Share a transgender artist on your Instagram story. Make a playlist. Spread the word. Representation goes a long way and there’s no shortage of talent waiting to be discovered.
Support transgender independent artists below, and add them to your regular rotation:
Jotta A
Brazil Deluxe artist Jotta A is becoming a leading name in Brazil. The Latin GRAMMY Nominee began her career in Gospel and founded her passion for music in church. Since coming out as transgender, Jotta A is embracing her truth and recently released her first pop album ‘LA DRACULA.’ Stay tuned for the upcoming remix of “Chances” coming soon.
Catherine Moan
Philly-based artist Catherine Moan recently released an album titled ‘Chain Reaction.’ The album was written entirely in Catherine’s bedroom and is inspired by digital love, the experience of extended solitude, as well as bodily isolation. Catherine Moan’s electronic-pop sound reflects aspects of 80’s pop, cinematic synth scores, and indie dance music.
Pupil Slicer
The UK-based metal troupe, Pupil Slicer, is gearing up for their sophomore album Blossom following their highly celebrated debut, Mirrors. Lead singer and guitarist Kate Davies uses writing to better process their trans identity and address societal and internal biases, in the track “Collective Unconscious.”
Michelle Maciel
With over a million monthly listeners, Michelle Maciel is changing the landscape of Regional Mexican music. At just 25 years old Sonora-based artist, Michelle Maciel has amassed a following of over 1M on TikTok, and 10 Million streams. Listen to Maciel’s latest single “AI 70” in collaboration with Tony Aquirre, out now via Dale Play/Solido Records.
Grumpster
From Guitar Center to Gilman Street, Grumpster formed over the group’s collective love for underground ‘80s and ‘90s punk. The trio was due to open for Anti-Flag prior to the pandemic and had to shit back to writing. That’s how their new album via Pure Noise Records, FEVER DREAM was formed. Singer/bassist Donnie Walsh (he/him), drummer Noel Agtane (he/him) and guitarist Lalo Gonzalez Deetz (he/him) took an unfortunate circumstance and flipped it into a fervor of music about anxiety, self-loathing, and resilience.
Reveal Party
A Danish Rainbow Award winner, Emily Holm Nyhuss, aka Reveal Party, is an open and vulnerable artist who uses music to tell their story and advocate for others. Emiliy’s delicate indie sound lends itself to powerful themes of identity, societal conventions, and acceptance in songs like “I’m A Girl,” “Real Girls,” and “Community Love.” Listen to the latest album Favourite Person, out now via W.A.S. Entertainment.
Villano Antillano
Puerto Rican artist Villano Antillano released her debut album last year La Sustancia X via La Buena Fortuna Music. She has truly got the industry talking with her contagious rhythms. The album features both Spanish and English and appeals to a variety of genres. Villano states in an NPR interview “I’m hoping that when you hear it, you feel so empowered and so in tune with this raw, creative energy of being able to do anything.” Don’t sleep on this massive rising artist as she collaborates with some of the biggest names in Puerto Rican music and beyond.
T.Thomason
A brand new signing to Six Shooter Records, T. Thomason is gearing up to release his new cover single “Lovers in a Dangerous Time.” Based in Halifax, T. won over the owner of Six Shooter President Shauna de Cartier with his impressive interpretation of the Bruce Cockburn track. T.’s music encompasses thoughtful themes of courage and curiosity. As Thomason has described his songwriting is intended to “Say tough things tenderly.” Listen to the cover below:
Seeyouspacecowboy
A heavy band that covers heavy topics, SeeYouSpaceCowboy released their latest album, The Romance of Affliction, in 2021 via Pure Noise Records. Frontwoman Connie Sgarbossa describes songwriting as cathartic but also a self-fulfilling prophecy. Two weeks after the brutally dark and horror-filled album was followed by the singer’s near-deadly overdose just two weeks after release. Now, over a year later, the group is touring with major names in hardcore including a European tour with We Came As Romans this summer.
Britney Manson
Embracing your identity in a country where you could actually be penalized by your own government… talk about badass. Britney Manson came out while competing in the Russia edition of Next Top Model. Britney is the first-ever transgender model to appear on runways and magazine covers in a country that has now criminalized the LGBTQ+ community. Her latest single “MODE-L” is an electronic-pop dark banger. In sharing the cover art, Britney addressed diversity in the fashion industry and her experience as a model attempting to conform to unrealistic beauty standards.
