The opinions expressed in this article are the writer’s own and do not reflect the views of Her Campus.
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Skidmore chapter.
TikTok is infamous for people using it as a vehicle to promote their terrible music. “Did I just write the song of the summer?” Exclaims the third identical person sitting in their car. But it has also controlled the charts since its explosion in 2020. So, how do we weed out the incredible small musicians crushed under piles of the same synth beat over and over again. Well, don’t you worry, as someone who has spent too much of her life scrolling through #songwriter, I have found some fantastic small artists for you to try out.
Disclaimer: I am generally only discussing the first album/EP I found of each artist, lest this article be 50 pages. But, if you like what you hear, I guarantee their other music is phenomenal.
- Charlie Hickey: I found Charlie through someone’s 2022 Songs of the Year tiktok, and something about the title intrigued me. Nervous at Night pulls at your heartstrings as and delves into topics of true love, heartbreak, loneliness, going away to college, grooming, and toxic relationships. It’s a quiet album with a consistent sound. It’s self aware and self pitying at the same time. Its sincerity makes my stomach hurt. If you like indie boys with anxiety and a sense of self importance, this album is for you. He also has an EP and a new album coming out in 2025. My favorite lyric of his is, “Couldn’t bring myself to get that cracked screen fixed/So when you sent me your love, I only got half of it.” From Choir Song (I Feel Dumb). He currently has 31.4K monthly listeners on Spotify. My first song recommendation is “Planet with Water.” Follow him @charlie__hickey__ on TikTok!
- Wesley Preis: Where to begin? I heard Wesley’s song “Figures(Drink Every Night)” in early 2024 from her TikTok page and my life hasn’t been the same since. Her EP First Apartment is genuinely life ruining in the best way. An acoustic and vulnerable album played almost exclusively with jazzy piano, she is one of the greatest songwriters I have ever heard. This EP tackles themes of mourning childhood, confusion in college, alcoholism, heartbreak, and depression. If you turn on Phoebe Bridgers’ christmas songs the second it hits November to stare out the window and contemplate, this EP is for you. My favorite lyric of hers is, “You’ll try economics say “I don’t think it’s for me”/You’ll try film or you’ll try polisci/You’ll try a liberal arts degree/You’ll try starin’ at your wall/until you swear you can see/A kind of place for you.” From “Cosmos & Taxis.” She currently has 5,767 monthly listeners. My first song recommendation is, “Figures(Drink Every Night).” Follow her @wespreismusic on TikTok!
- Jesse Detor: Jesse’s music has this weird way of making me feel hot. I found her on her own TikTok singing “Sophia, I’m Sorry.” Her guitar based wordy alt/rock songs delve into confusing queer relationships, revenge, taking what you want, and being taken advantage of. Her singles are so, so fun, sonically cohesive, and give you pieces of a story to try to put together without ever giving too much. She has been known to post multiple bridges and let her TikTok audiences and let them pick their favorite. If you like cool girls who self-destruct and take you with them you will love her music. My favorite lyric of hers is, “It’s a one night stand this suicide pact/If you’re gone then I’m going and I’m not coming back,” from “If You’re Going(I’m Going)”. She currently has 39.7K monthly listeners on Spotify. My first song recommendation is “Sophia, I’m Sorry.” Follow her @feverhead on TikTok!
- Cayden Wemple: Kind of Midwest Emo, kind of Indie, Cayden Wemple has something weird in the best way. Guitar and lyrics, he effortlessly describes what it’s like to be young and listless, in love and lonely. His nostalgic sound and unique voice make for a difficult to replicate elsewhere. I can’t remember which song I heard him sing first. They’re all so special to me. Everyone I’ve ever played his music too has instantly added to their playlists. If you spend your time lying on the ground with your earbuds in and contemplating, his music is for you. My favorite lyric of his is, “You expected big things/And then I just stopped growing” from “but then i just stopped growing.” He currently has 20.8K monthly listeners on Spotify. My starter song recommendation is “not to catch you by surprise.” Follow him @caydenwemple on TikTok!
- Jake Minch: The first time I heard one of Jake Minch’s songs on TikTok I was done for. I have never felt so understood by an artist in my whole life. Jake writes about childhood friends, intoxicated hookups, the inability to move on, and ruining your own life in a way so honest and raw it is impossible to listen to him casually. His single, “id pick up flowers” is possibly the most devastating song I’ve ever heard. I am convinced he couldn’t write a bad song if he tried. Acoustic guitar, soft, crushing vocals, and a hook that is somehow equally catchy and heartbreaking. Jake Minch is the inner monologue you can’t escape. If you spend your nights in a high and find yourself in a brooding, depressed low the next day, writing poetry and self isolating; Jake Minch is the artist you’ve been waiting for. He spends time playing songs on his TikTok live, which helps you connect to the songs even more. My favorite lyric of his is, “I miss the summer/I hate that I’m old in a dorm now/I hate that you’re old in our hometown/I hate that I hate what you do/I loved being younger with you” from “Strip Mall.” He currently has 53.6K monthly listeners. My first song recommendation is “handgun.” Follow him @jakeminch31 on TikTok!