It’s perhaps never been tougher to identify Canadian artists bubbling up, but it’s in no way due to lack of talent in this country.
The pandemic, and especially touring grinding to a halt, messed with the momentum of countless artists and we’re still feeling the reverberations. For instance, it hasn’t gone unnoticed that an international festival like Coachella only featured a handful of Canadian artists, all of them known quantities. It can be tough for artists in smaller markets to break through the almighty algorithms on social channels, but then again, artists from here have managed to find their audiences.
Slowly but surely, the talent in this country will find a way back to the forefront, including some on this list. These are Complex Canada’s picks for the artists to watch in 2023.
Nonso Amadi
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For fans of: Burna Boy, Majid Jordan
Listen to these songs first: “Ease Up,” “Different”
Nonso Amadi’s 2023 is off to a great start. The Toronto-based Nigerian artist was announced as one of five winners of SiriusXM’s Black Canadian Music Awards for excellence in Black music. Alongside this victory, we also saw the Afro R&B artist hop on Savannah Ré’s remix of “Closure.” This follows a string of wins that also came his way in 2022. All four of the artist’s singles have been well-received across streaming platforms, amassing millions of views, particularly his “Different” collaboration with Toronto’s R&B duo Majid Jordan. After dropping “Ease Up,” debut album When It Blooms is due out this year. —Jacob Carey
City Fidelia
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For fans of: J. Cole, Lil Baby
Listen to these songs first: “Can’t Sleep,” “Soulmate”
At his core, City Fidelia is an honest rapper. The Ottawa artist isn’t afraid to dive deep into the problems that plague his mind. City Fidelia made that abundantly on his third album Painkiller, where he tackles sensitive topics like love and self-worth. The transparency makes City Fidelia an approachable rapper who’s easy to relate to, especially when he’s comfortable in discussing darker subjects. He lays his demons out for everyone to see but doesn’t always out a plan to deal with them. Healing is a daily struggle and City Fidelia’s music tracks that effectively. —Louis Pavlakos
Chung
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For fans of: Nicholas Craven, Griselda
Listen to these songs first: “Cave Music,” “Bellona”
Even though Chung’s 2022 effort See You, When I C U served as her breakthrough release, Chung is still gaining new fans and ears as we jumped into 2023. Her raps are sharp and quick-witted, like on “Bigger Fish 2 Fry” where Chung sneaks in a joke about being short like Duval in between bars about making her mother smile. Chung’s sly delivery can sometimes evoke the feeling of consistent seriousness, but her playful attitude lives in the shadows of her otherwise straightforward, no-frills verses. —Louis Pavlakos
Fleedoe
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For fans of: Smiley
Listen to these songs first: “YWR,” “Casino”
Even if the South Jane native with a strong Jamaican heritage takes the rest of 2023 off, he’s already made his mark with fellow Torontonian Dr. Bushman on “YWR,” a celebration of youth that skates over a disorienting beat by Keep 6ix Solid. It was enough to catch the ear of Drake, who posted it on his IG stories. The track comes from Dr. Bushman’s new album Canvas, and here’s hoping Fleedoe follows up the early contender for breakthrough Canadian rap single of 2023 with more music of his own. He followed up “YWR” with another collab, “These Scars” with Fixaveli. —Erik Leijon
Lioness Kaur
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For fans of: Yung Lean
Listen to these songs first: “Belligerent Butterfly,” “Canadian Gangster”
There’s no one in the scene quite like the Mississauga rapper, with her unhurried flow and unconventional word-association rhymes. But as you dive deeper into her hypnotic verses, the more you come out understanding the wordplay and world-building has method to the madness, and soon enough you go from being slightly skeptical of “Lloyd Banks from Canada” to appreciating her unique talents. It takes a lot to stand out in this competitive game, and if nothing else, Kaur has a knack for standing out. —Erik Leijon
Luna Elle
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For fans of: Sade
Listen to these songs first: “Perfect By Design,” “Why”
Only releasing her debut single “True Love” in May of 2021 and shortly afterwards being dubbed the next up by Shaq are a few examples of the constellations aligning for the young talent ironically named Luna Elle. She told us that “Elle” is short for Michelle and the bit “Luna” is well because it sounded nice together yet not as nice as her baritone angelic vocals. Residing in Mississauga, Ontario, Elle is a singer and songwriter who managed to convey the delicate ebbs and flows of romantic love at only 17 years old, like on her breakthrough single “Why.” —Veracia Ankrah
Gustavo Guaapo
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For fans of: Cash Cobain
Listen to these songs first: “No Hoes in the Studio,” “Lost My Scholarship”
Gustavo Guaapo has a magnetic personality, seamlessly switching from introspective ballads to bombastic bangers across his 2022 album 9 Stories High. The songs rarely go over the three-minute mark and the brevity works in Guaapo’s favour, allowing him to change moods and feelings on the fly and stick the landing with ease. The Toronto rapper bookended 9 Stories High with a deluxe edition in December that nearly doubled the total song count, only furthering just how capable he is of crafting a cohesive body of work. —Louis Pavlakos
Lu Kala
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For fans of: Keri Hilson, Lizzo
Listen to these songs first: “Pretty Girl Era,” “Love Shit”
Imagine if Keri Hilson’s “Pretty Girl Rock” was written in 2022. It sure had the messaging right, except Black girls had not yet vowed an adherence to soft life and luxury. Then, as a tidal wave comes Lu Kala, the Congolese-Canadian pop artist who’s bound to take this year by storm after the viral success of her single “Pretty Girl Era”—a feel-good, remorseless empowerment record for women to make TikToks too and dance around while they get ready for a night out. According to Kala’s recent tweet, this ditty is one of many “I feel like Pop is making a real comeback. It’s really my Szn bxtches!” —Veracia Ankrah
Nemahsis
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For fans of: Fka Twigs
Listen to these songs first: “I’m Not Gonna Kill You,” “Paper Thin”
Nemahsis hopes that people whose lives exist outside of the status quo, pushing against conformity, find solace in her musical contributions. As a Palestinian-Canadian hijabi pop singer from Toronto, she’s well accustomed to defining her lane. Nemahsis has worn chainmail armour on her head to replace her hijab, dressed in an all-black assassin get-up all to drive the message home in her “I’m Not Gonna Kill You” video. The culture-shifter’s amassed over 160,000 monthly listeners on “Paper Thin” off her 2022 EP, which had listeners hitting play well over a million times. —Veracia Ankrah
Notfortheo
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For fans of: Lil Yachty
Listen to these songs first: “Interlock,” “Down”
Listening to Half Life, the debut EP from Toronto-based group Notfortheo, feels like watching a fire wither away while coming down from an acid trip. The songs feel muffled by design, shrouding the vocals behind the group’s consistently hazy synths and bubbly strings. The topics are often morose in theme, often sounding like the polar opposite of their instrumentals. With the EP clocking in at just over 10 minutes, the young group already has a sound to keep developing over 2023. —Louis Pavlakos
Paydro 66
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For fans of: Yeat
Listen to these songs first: “Die Young,” “Meal Ticket”
The beats over which Montreal rapper Paydro 66 croons are sombre in nature, but his high-pitched vocal inflections add a deeper sense of hope than his tracks let on. On “Die Young,” Paydro tries to sidestep the trajectory that has seen so many of peers across in hip-hop pass far too soon. Paydro’s self-awareness adds a layer of personality to the tracks, and there’s an ominous touch at times. Following his name change Paydro released a handful of singles over the last year, and all signs to point to him having an intriguing 2023. —Louis Pavlakos
Planet Giza
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For fans of: Kaytranada
Listen to these songs first: “Unavailable,” “Das U”
Montreal’s trio of Tony Stone, Rami B, and DoomX have been making their name known in the local music scene since the 2019 release of their debut album, Added Sugar. Only growing stronger since then, the group’s most recent 2022 EP, You Don’t Understand, has led to Giza amassing over a million monthly listeners on Spotify thanks to their wide range of sounds. While intro track “Das U” is a funky head-bopper thanks to frontman Tony Stone’s effortless flow, songs like “Slow Down” do exactly as the title suggests and lower the tempo, showing his ability to handle any beat with ease. Planet Giza will be releasing their second album in 2023. —Jacob Carey
Poolblood
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For fans of: Hemlocke Springs, Mac Demarco
Listen to these songs first: “Wfy,” “Shabby”
Poolblood started their year coming in hot. After dropping various singles in 2022, all have ended up on the artist’s debut album Mole that released earlier this month. The project features acoustic folk songs that show the singer-songwriter at their most vulnerable, slightly differing from their more rock-focused EP Yummy. Poolblood drops the tempo and slows everything down, making for a more intimate experience with listeners that sounds best on a rainy afternoon. The artist already has plans on getting right back to work on another project and will be making their SXSW debut this upcoming March. —Jacob Carey
Sadboi
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For fans of: Flo Milli
Listen to these songs first: “U Dun Kno,” “That’s Your Problem (Stank Hoez)”
Fka Ebhoni’s stage name is short for “Why you so sad boy?”—a rhetorical tidbit for all men daring to share space with the Toronto rapper—it’s likely the phrase she’ll unapologetically ask potential suitors while owning her bars. Her flow is reminiscent of Flo Milli with an added air of Toronto slang and swagger heard on “That’s Your Problem (Stank Hoes),” and don’t overlook the reggae rhythms like “Whose Fault.” 2023 will surely see steady progression by the self-proclaimed “Princess of Toronto.” —Veracia Ankrah
Storry
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For fans of: Kehlani
Listen to these songs first: “Intimate Abuse,” “I Don’t Wanna Get High”
The Toronto soul artist had a big year in 2020 with two albums, Interlude-19 and CH III: The Come Up, the latter which was nominated for Adult Contemporary Album of the Year at the Juno Awards. Since then, she released two singles in 2022, “Intimate Abuse” and a remix record by producer Jeia entitled “House and a Range.” However, a major moment came when she was featured on the video version of the title track of Stormzy’s album This Is What I Mean. Storry then followed it up with the deluxe edition to CH III in January with a Junia-T remix, and after following her own path, seems destined to take another huge step forward. —Jacob Carey
Sunsetto
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For fans of: RealestK
Listen to these songs first: “Too Fast,” “Don’t Leave”
By way of Halifax, Nova Scotia, the now-Toronto based artist tapped into deeply personal lyrics over an enveloping electronic backdrop on the 2021 single “Don’t Leave,” and he’s only since expanded his sound while refining his approach. October 2022 single “Too Fast” showed there’s even another gear to his songcraft, and it’s inevitable that his sticky hooks find their way towards a bigger audience. He’s quickly turning into one of this country’s most unheralded pop songwriters. —Erik Leijon
Swavy
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For fans of: Nav
Listen to these songs first: “Old Ways,” “Out of Line”
From the opening melodious flows of 2022 breakthrough “Old Ways,” it was obvious the Toronto artist could carry hit verses and hooks on his back with relative ease. The city in Swavy’s lyrics is a hard one, but his vocal style approaches the difficulties of violence and surviving the streets with a taste of the bittersweet. He’s since dropped two more tracks in his post-”Old Ways” rebrand, including “Out of Line” earlier this January, and it just seems like sky’s the limit for the self-described “lone wolf.” —Erik Leijon
Thxsomch
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For fans of: The Kid Laroi
Listen to these songs first: “Spit in My Face!” “Caroline”
Thxsomch’s genre may be hard to pin down, but whatever you want to call it, it’s clearly working for him. The breakout star from Toronto combines indie rock with elements of grunge, hip-hop and screamo in a unique way that resonates with listeners, as his numbers across streaming platforms speak for themselves. His toxic relationship anthem, “Spit in My Face!,” has gone on to accrue over 100 million streams and counting. Thxsomch has recently released his newest single, “Caroline,” and plans to drop a full-length project or two this year, along with, in his own words, “starting a sheep farm in Italy.” —Jacob Carey
Wave Montega
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For fans of: Knucks
Listen to these songs first: “Ave Baby,” “Steam Fish”
The Toronto drill rapper’s 2022 album Catharsis comes from a rapper who got his start in the States and has a sound capable to crossing an ocean into the UK, but it still has the references and style that could only come from our side of the pond. An introspective-yet-unflinching MC who manifested four years of pain into a record, and it opened the floodgates, with more visibility sure to come as keen listeners gravitate towards his geographically bending anthems. —Erik Leijon
Täbï Yösha
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For fans of: H.E.R., Kali Uchis
Listen to these songs first: “Pause,” “Move On”
Hailing from Montreal, Canada, Täbï Yösha uses her bilingual prowess and whimsical neo-soul croons to set herself apart from the rest, as heard in “Move On” and new single “Pause” with Suiker. Her Haitian descent might be why she’s honed this space seamlessly, intertwining edgier afro sounds amid uptempo R&B while singing in English and French. She was introduced to the world after releasing her first single and most notable song to date in 2020, entitled “All Day All Night.” Since, she’s dropped a full-on french track, “Le Drapeau Blanc,” signed to Bonsound and is expected to present the world with her first EP in 2023. —Veracia Ankrah
