The Songs That Got Away in 2015

This past year was definitely one for the books with artists like Drake, Taylor Swift, and Adele simultaneously breaking records and Lady Gaga being crowned Billboard’s Woman of the Year in recognition for her artistry, accomplishments, and contributions to society. There’s no doubt in my mind that these artists worked incredibly hard to reach their level of success and be able to express themselves in the manner that they do, but I also believe it’s important to spotlight those artists that have the talent and potential to be as vast and world-renown, but just do not yet appeal to the general audience.

Songs are great when accompanied by not only great instrumentals, but a story that rips our hearts out and forces us to sympathize. Coincidentally, the three biggest artists of the year (Adele, Taylor Swift, and Drake) are known for contributing their fair share of falling-out anthems this year with songs like Hello, Bad Blood, and Hotline Bling. What differentiates these popular songs from those created by artists in smaller labels?

Content-wise, nothing. Each artist, I would assume, puts in their fair amount of heart-wrenching experiences and lyricism into creating their music.

In terms of how marketable the artist is, everything differentiates them. The way they walk, who they talk to, how they present themselves on social media, what they stand for — it all comes down to the smallest details. That is why a good publicist and backing label can filter the bad and only show the public what the artist wants them to see. That, of course, would be their talent.

With that being said, I’ve generated a list of songs from artists of different social classes within the digital world that showcase great lyricism and vocals. To put it simple, they are songs that I feel were good enough to be played on radios, streamed greedily on music-streaming apps, and listened to just as religiously as any new song from the the biggest artists of the year.