The golden gramophone for Producer Of  The Year, Non-Classical is perhaps the ultimate accolade for anyone whose talents are best served behind a mixing desk. Phil Ramone, Rick Rubin, and Max Martin are just a few of the legendary behind-the-scenes names who've received the coveted award since it was added to the ceremony in 1975. But winners such as Pharrell Williams, Mark Ronson, and Stevie Wonder have also proven that the Recording Academy are open to honoring those who can take center stage, too.

This year's crop have undoubtedly all been pivotal to the pop, rock and hip-hop landscapes of the past 12 months. Two-time winner Jack Antonoff continued on his mission to conquer the charts for all of eternity by joining forces with two of his superstar regular cohorts, while first-time nominee Daniel Nigro helped not just one but two teen stars parlay their early success into adulthood.

Hit-Boy and Metro Boomin both vied for the title of hardest-working rap producer with an exhausting list of credits. At the other end of the scale, D'Mile, focused most of his attention on just one burgeoning talent.

Here's a closer look at the nominees for Producer Of The Year at the 2024 GRAMMYs.

Jack Antonoff

Jack Antonoff will be hoping to replicate Babyface's mid-'90s dominance by becoming only the second-ever artist to win the Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical GRAMMY three times in a row. The pop maestro is on the cusp of history thanks to fruitful working relationships with two of the era's most prolific female singer-songwriters.

Antonoff has been recognized for co-producing the entirety of Taylor Swift's Midnights, the dreamlike concept album which spawned a record-breaking 10 U.S. Top 10 singles in the same week including Lana Del Rey collaboration "Snow on the Beach." The latter's equally alluring Did You Know There's A Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd also benefited from Antonoff's magic touch on all but three of its 16 tracks including a guest appearance from his own alt-pop outfit Bleachers.

Antonoff's production empire further grew this year when he entered the studio with another Swift-adjacent (albeit briefly) act, The 1975, for their fifth LP, Being Funny In A Foreign Language. But despite his chart ubiquity, the New Jersey native insists he has little interest in courting the mainstream.

"I do think that there's a misconception about what I do and what pop music is," he told The Face in September. "There's a certain group of people who think it's about appealing to the masses, [which is] not how I feel. I've never made anything hoping that everyone would like it."

Alongside his own individual accolades, Antonoff has previously shared GRAMMYs with his first band fun. (Best New Artist, Song of the Year for "We Are Young") Swift (Album of the Year for both 1989 and Folklore), and St. Vincent (Best Rock Song for "Masseduction" and Best Alternative Music Album for Daddy's Home).

But proving that all the awards glory hasn't gone to his head, Antonoff dedicated much of his acceptance speech last year to the unsung hero who joined him on stage: "I sit in the studio all day with one person — this is Laura, who engineers and mixes the records with us. We just sit there all f—ing day. We were there yesterday, we'll be there tomorrow, and this is all completely for Laura."

Dernst "D'Mile" Emile II

While last year's nomination came for his work with a modern R&B legend, Mary J. Blige, this year's is courtesy of a relatively new diva on the block.

Dernst Emile II, a.k.a. R&B/hip-hop producer D'Mile took the production reins on 10 of the 11 tracks on Victoria Monét's long-awaited full-length debut Jaguar II. The lush melting pot of disco, dancehall, funk, and soul firmly established the Ariana Grande hitmaker as a star in her own right.

It certainly lived up to the expectations that D'Mile, who also worked on Monét's Jaguar EP, put forward to GRAMMY.com last year: "We dug a little deeper. She is an artist that I feel really comfortable with. There might be a couple of songs that you wouldn't expect from her, and then there are songs that are just incredible records."

Of course, D'Mile has already made GRAMMY history having become the first-ever songwriter to pick up consecutive Song Of The Year awards, first winning with H.E.R.'s "I Can't Breathe" and then with Silk Sonic's "Leave the Door Open."

D'Mile sadly didn't get to accept the former in person due to COVID-19 protocols. But thankfully, the hitmaker did get to join Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak on stage for the latter where he dedicated the award to his late Haitian vocalist mother Yanick Étienne (the same Philly soul throwback also picked up Record Of The Year and Best R&B Song).

When asked about his pioneering feat by Vulture, D’Mile still appeared to be in a state of shock: "Man, these past two — even three — years have been just a wild ride for me. I definitely didn't expect to set a record. Even when I heard that it was possible, I was like, Wow, really? No one's ever done that? It's just wild to me that I'm at the GRAMMYs, let alone winning..."

D'Mile better get used to the feeling. The New Yorker was also victorious at the 2022 GRAMMYs thanks to his contributions on Lucky Daye's Best Progressive R&B Album Table for Two. And this second consecutive nod suggests it's only a matter of time before Producer of the Year - Non-Classical is added to the trophy cabinet that also includes an Academy Award for Best Original Song.

Hit-Boy

From Ty Dolla $ign and Big Sean to Travis Scott and ASAP Rocky — name pretty much any major hip-hop star of the last 20 years and there's a good chance Chauncey Alexander Hollis Jr., a.k.a. Hit-Boy, has given them some audacious beats.

The Californian already has three GRAMMY Awards to his name, having co-produced Kanye West and Jay-Z's "N— in Paris," showcased his own lyrical flow on Nipsey Hussle's "Racks in the Middle," and worked on all 13 tracks on Nas' King's Disease.

Hit-Boy's prolific new partnership with the latter rap god has undoubtedly helped him pick up a second Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical GRAMMY nomination, specifically his work on the two Magic sequels and King's Disease III. Likewise, his production skills on Dreamville's "Just Face It" and Don Toliver's "Bus Stop."

But the aptly-named beatmaker has also been celebrated for his own headlining efforts, including the Surf and Drown mixtape, the Alchemist collaboration "Slipping Into Darkness," and the Victims and Villains LP recorded alongside nu-soul crooner Musiq Soulchild, all of which arrived within the space of just three months.

Hit-Boy's work schedule may sound truly exhausting, but as he told GRAMMY.com in 2020, the star thrives on keeping busy: "It's too many artists trying to tap in for me to just work on one thing at a time, but I still am able to give my focus. It's like quantity and quality. I don't know how to explain it right now."

And Hit-Boy will certainly be appreciative if it proves to be second time lucky. Discussing his first Producer of the Year nod, he told Variety, "It would definitely be a dream come true … Just to be recognized is amazing, but to win? That would be major, man. Just for the people that have followed my story and know how much I've stayed down, that would be major."

Metro Boomin

Perhaps surprisingly, considering he's been behind Hot 100 No.1s by Migos and The Weeknd, trap genius Metro Boomin is the only Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical nominee this year without a GRAMMY already to his name. In fact, he's only ever received one nomination — Album of the Year for his sole contribution to Coldplay's Music of the Spheres.

Could 2024 be the year this changes? Well, it wouldn't be for the want of trying. The man born Leland Tyler Wayne has laid down beats for everyone from Travis Scott ("Til Further Notice") and Lil Durk ("War Bout It") to Drake ("More M's") and Young Thug ("Oh U Went") over the period of eligibility.

And like his fellow studio wizard Hit-Boy, Metro Boomin has also been recognized for his own material including his Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse cuts "Am I Dreaming" and "Calling," and three tracks from his sophomore Heroes and Villains ("Creepin'," "Superhero," and "Trance"),

Luckily, the St. Louis native seems likely to take it in his stride if he once again misses out on a golden gramophone. Metro Boomin was seen as a shoo-in for the 2018 Producer Of The Year category but the award went to Greg Kurstin. The hitmaker told Billboard, "You know, we don't be tripping off stuff like that. We just keep it moving, man … I'm just here to service the people. As long as that happens what I do, that's really all that what matters to me."

That doesn't mean Boomin believes he's unworthy of the accolade, though, with the star recently telling Ebony, "I knew I was here to stay before I even really got here, because I knew how much time I was putting into this…..I'm always trying to outdo myself. This is one of the first times in my career that I can really feel the ascension; I can feel something happening, and I'm well aware of it."

Daniel Nigro

Mid-2000s emo rock outfit As Tall as Lions might not have got anywhere near the most prestigious night on the music industry calendar. But frontman Daniel Nigro is now racking up the GRAMMY nominations as one of the go-to guys for Gen-Z.

All four of the New Yorker's previous nods were for his work with Disney Channel graduate Olivia Rodrigo, including the Best Pop Album category in which Sour reigned supreme. But in his first Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical showing, Nigro has also been acknowledged for collaborating with some other cool names.

That includes Chappell Roan, the dark-pop singer-songwriter who called on Nigro to produce the entirety of her debut album The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess. Irish troubadour Dermot Kennedy ("Divide") and former Chairlift vocalist Caroline Polachek ("Welcome To My Island") have also helped the one-time jingle writer to build a GRAMMY-worthy discography over the past 12 months.

Of course, it's Nigro's second effort with Rodrigo, Guts, that may best put him in contention for the big prize. He produced and co-wrote all 12 tracks on the pop-punk chart-topper, a committed approach he told Billboard is far preferable to being a songwriter-for-hire: "I know I'm definitely a pop producer [now], but I think I struggled a long time with that whole, 'You're part of a record' … I never felt satisfied doing just a song or two with an artist. I always felt detached. I come from a world where when something happens I want to call you up and celebrate the wins and vent about the losses and be a part of it [all]."

Nigro seems keen to continue guiding the careers of those young enough to be his kids. "I think it's just about being honest and talking about what's going on in their lives," Nigro replied when asked by Vulture what he admires about artists such as Rodrigo and Conan Gray.

"I think in their generation, something that they gravitate towards is the specificity of lyrics and honesty, which is always interesting," he continued to Vulture. "Whereas our generation was much more about metaphor and vagueness in lyrics, something that's left for interpretation, you know? It seems this generation is much more into something that's right on the nose."

The 2024 GRAMMYs, officially known as the 66th GRAMMY Awards, returns to Los Angeles' Crypto.com Arena on Sunday, Feb. 4, 2024, and will broadcast live on the CBS Television Network and stream live and on-demand on Paramount+ at 8-11:30 p.m. ET/5-8:30 p.m. PT.

The Recording Academy and GRAMMY.com do not endorse any particular artist, submission or nominee over another. The results of the GRAMMY Awards, including winners and nominees, are solely dependent on the Recording Academy’s Voting Membership.

2024 GRAMMY Nominations: See The Full Nominees List

Few individuals get the opportunity to truly define the sound of a moment the way that producers do. The recent passing of Quincy Jones acts as a reminder: Even though they may not always be onstage or have their name in flashing lights on the marquee, producers’ ability to imprint their unique vision and style across genres, styles, and voices and build a map of what the year sounds like. 

This year's nominees for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical have undoubtedly reached that achievement, delivering beauty and joy across the musical spectrum. There are some names that should be very familiar to GRAMMY viewers. Dernst "D’Mile" Emile II returns to the category for the third year in a row, hoping to build from his Best R&B Album win at the 66th GRAMMY Awards for his work on Victoria Monet's JAGUAR II. Nominated for the second year in a row, Daniel Nigro hopes to take home the golden gramophone for shaping glorious pop indulgence. 

Fans of rap have long known the work of Mustard, but now it would seem that so would anyone who’s walked past a radio. Ian Fitchuk’s resume stretches from country gold to woozy pop delight, and Alissia put a stamp on a lush, disco-tinged brand of R&B. 

Check out the nominees below and read the full 2025 GRAMMYs nominations list ahead of Music's Biggest Night on Sunday, Feb. 2, 2025.  

Alissia

After obsessing over Motown, Parliament Funkadelic, Prince and James Brown as a young person, Alissia took up the bass and started to commit herself fully to a life in music. "I was a big funk-head, ‘70s funk," she told Sweetwater. "I was kind of like a sponge…I was a big nerd and wanted to learn how to arrange for a big band and orchestra." 

Translating that love into actual work with none other than Bootsy Collins, then, must have elevated Alissia into some level of funk heaven. Since then, Alissia has continued to evolve her grooves and style, working with artists ranging from Anderson .Paak and Bruno Mars, to Nile Rodgers and Mary J. Blige. In 2024, that interstellar journey culminated in an impressive swathe of releases in soul, R&B, and funk.

Take, for example, the sublime "Is It Worth It", a slippery groove that elevates Rae Khalil’s smoke-laced voice to obscene extremes. Or "Love Takeover" from R&B duo Lion Babe, a track that could single-handedly transport an entire dancefloor back to the heights of the disco era while retaining a modernist bass flow. 

The Swiss-born, New York-based producer’s soulful niche has also found a match in a pair of Chicago artists. Alissia produced the opening track to Jamila Woods’ Water Made Us, and "Bugs" gives a nostalgic and sensuous tone to the poet/vocalist’s lilting voice. Alissia’s hard-thumping rhythms also lift up BJ the Chicago Kid, giving a new energy to his regal voice. 

Whether DJing, playing bass, or working behind the board, Alissia finds a lithe, effortless cool that’s downright infectious. "To me, what makes a great record is when you did it from your heart. You really felt it, it wasn't forced or anything, it was genuine, you made it with love," she told GRAMMY.com. "Music is feelings. There's no competition. eVerybody has something different to bring to the table."

Watch: Behind The Board: Alissia On Working With Bootsy Collins, Learning From Anderson .Paak & What Makes A Great Record

Dernst "D’Mile" Emile II

With Jack Antonoff out of the running after three wins in a row in this category, Dernst Emile II, a.k.a. R&B/hip-hop producer D’Mile, hopes that he can take his turn at the top. And thanks to some incredible work with a coterie of smooth eccentrics, this could well be his time.

Over the past few years, D’mile has helped usher a lux, live brand of vintage R&B to the fore, resulting in his becoming the first person to net back-to-back Song Of The Year awards for H.E.R.'s "I Can't Breathe" and Silk Sonic's "Leave the Door Open," not to mention recognition for his work with the likes of Victoria Monet and Mary J. Blige.

D’mile’s soulful penchant for fusion brought the best out of a wide variety of artists. From bringing a reeling jig to Koe Wetzel’s "Bar Song" to putting a sepia glow on Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars’ duet "Die With a Smile," this year found D’mile pushing his already expansive boundaries. At the same time, he knew exactly how to pull the best out of styles that hit closer to home, like the Prince-adjacent funk of Usher’s "I Love U" and the swanky throwback "That’s You" from Lucky Daye (an artist with whom D’mile has already had success, gaining gold for his work on 2022’s Best Progressive R&B Album, Table for Two. 

There’s something so natural about a D’mile track — and that seems to be by design. "It’s like when you cook, you got to make the right concoction and make sure the love is in it," he told Vibe. "Can you explain what you just did? No. You just threw stuff in the pot."

The Brooklynite has already notched six GRAMMY wins and an Academy Award, and that’s nothing to sneeze at. But on his third run at Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical, D'Mile is surely ready to finally take the award home. And if this pace continues, there’s no reason to doubt that he could go on his own three-year streak. 

Read more: 5 Essential D'Mile Productions: Silk Sonic, Victoria Monét, & Others

Ian Fitchuk

When Kacey Musgraves took home the GRAMMY Award for Best Country Album in 2019 for Golden Hour, she made sure to bring Ian Fitchuk onto the stage and to give him a shoutout. The Chicago-born, Nashville-based musician co-produced the record and played a variety of instruments across its 13 tracks — helping Musgraves unlock the truest expression of her version of country music to date. 

This year, Fitchuk nabbed a nomination for Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical in part for his work on Musgraves’ latest, the dazzling Deeper Well. Speaking of helping shape unique perspectives on country, Fitchuk’s year also featured a spot on the writing and production team for "Amen" on Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter. "I had the crazy idea of, ‘What if we got Beyoncé on a song [with Kacey Musgraves]?" he recalled in an interview with Vulture. While that track may never be finished, the process led to Fitchuk getting a call when Queen B was prepping her country record.

Another high-profile hit in Fitchuk's catalog comes via co-write on the ecstatic "Silk Chiffon," the queer anthem from MUNA featuring Phoebe Bridgers, as well as producing the multimillion-streamed "Until I Found You" by Stephen Sanchez. This year’s Pr nomination is powered in part by Fitchuk’s role as producer for the album that spawned that latter hit, a debut that radiates vintage AM glow. Fitchuk's big year also featured work with the likes of Maggie Rogers, Still Woozy, and Role Model, not to mention working with Musgraves and Leon Bridges on their contributions to an album of music inspired by the film Bob Marley: One Love.

That diverse list of artists belies Fitchuk’s greatest strength: a willingness to experiment with country tropes while respecting the genre’s history. "I think ‘What is country music?’ is an exhausting question," he told Vulture. "I’m down to be making all different kinds of versions of whatever anybody thinks country music is. Because I didn’t grow up with it, by me fucking with it in any way, it’s going to be its own thing."

Watch: Kacey Musgraves Wins Best Country Album For 'Golden Hour' | 2019 GRAMMYs

Mustard

When an artist decides to play one of the tracks that you produced not once, not twice, not three times, heck not even four times, but five times in a row at a prominent concert, you know you’ve done something right. R&B hitmaker Mustard has plenty of absolute smash hits in his catalog, but perhaps nothing in that long line matches Kendrick Lamar’s "Not Like Us" in terms of inescapability and being in the absolute epicenter of not just the rap world but the entire pop culture conversation.

A relatively mellow character when it comes to long-tenured hitmakers, Mustard seems to be reveling in the moment. "I never look for validation from anybody in the music industry. But do I feel accomplished? Yeah," he told XXL. "I feel really good about what this did. And I do feel like it should make people respect who I am."

Mustard’s been at the top of the game for more than a decade, as far back as "Rack City" in 2011, the "Mustard on the beat" tag one of those constants on rap radio and favorites of deep cut fans alike. As a producer, he’s hit the charts with everyone from Big Sean, Rihanna and 2 Chainz, to Fergie, Young Jeezy and Tinashe. But Mustard’s got hits of his own as well, like the Roddy Rich-featuring "High Fashion" and "Ballin'", as well as "Pure Water" with Migos.

This year, his nomination of course comes in part thanks to "Not Like Us," but also to his razor-sharp solo record, Faith of a Mustard Seed. The album features Mustard's trademark beats, but stretches out in its click-snap percussion, well-deep bass, twitchy samples, and lux synths. Album highlight "Parking Lot" deserves extra attention, Travis Scott’s rippling AutoTune floating over the top of a glittering hi-hat and particularly rubbery bass line. 

"I've been behind the boards and the beats so long that nobody's ever heard my side of things," Mustard recently told REAL 92.3 radio in Los Angeles. "I owe it to my fans to let you guys know where I've been the last five years, what's been going on in my life." And as bigger and bigger things keep happening, one has to assume that the production will just keep getting bigger as well.

Watch: Where Do You Keep Your GRAMMY? | Mustard

Daniel Nigro

Some of the fans in their native Long Island, New York may have looked at Tall As Lions and seen GRAMMYs in their future. And while their work never reached that height, those fans wouldn’t be wrong, as frontman Daniel Nigro has racked up eight nominations, including a win for Best Pop Vocal Album for his work on Olivia Rodrigo's Sour.

In 2023, Guts proved a worthy successor to that record — and tracks from the deluxe Spilled edition helped power Nigro to his second straight nomination for Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical. The teen pop star is a powerhouse in her own right, but Nigro’s production has helped Rodrigo evolve and find new ways to share her emotionally salient, raw lyrics. 

"To me, there's so much nuance in between what makes a song good — like if it's one little part that makes it special and nurturing that to make it bigger," Nigro told GRAMMY.com earlier this year. "I think that's what I bring to the table; helping these artists see their vision and seeing if we as a group find something special in a song."

Though of course one of the biggest stories of the year is Chappell Roan, the esoteric dark pop genius behind The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess — and that record on its own could position Nigro in good standing for a big GRAMMY win. Much akin to Rodrigo’s gold-gathering albums, that record thrives on open-hearted lyrics and massive hooks, with Nigro aiding the live energy.

While for some, the "Pink Pony Club" auteur came out of nowhere, Nigro has been a long-time Roan supporter and collaborator, the two having worked together for more than half a decade. In fact, when Roan was dropped from Atlantic Records, Nigro decided he'd sign her to his own label so that her creative vision could come fully to fruition. "[I feel a] deep sense of fulfillment," he told Fast Company. "I wanted nothing more than for people to listen to Chappell. I’ve been shouting it from a mountain for years — ‘Please listen to this, I promise!’"

Read more: The Genius Of Dan Nigro: The Producer Of The Year Nominee On Olivia Rodrigo's 'GUTS' & Why His Success "Doesn't Feel Real"

"I think collaboration boils down to the core belief that something can work," Jack Antonoff recently told GRAMMY.com. "When I make an album with someone, I'm filled with faith that much more in my life or the universe can work, which is definitely a reason why I do this."

The 11-time GRAMMY-winning singer, songwriter and producer has worked with many of the biggest modern pop stars — from Taylor Swift, Lana Del Rey and Lorde, to St. Vincent and Sabrina Carpenter — but his core focus has never changed. Antonoff simply wants to make music he loves with people he loves, and perform it live.

Antonoff not only holds many peoples' dream job of being Swift's go-to collaborator, but he's been having a banner year filled with notable creative projects and big wins. At the 2024 GRAMMYs, he won Producer of the Year, Non-Classical for the third year in a row. He also earned two more GRAMMYs that night, sharing Best Pop Vocal Album and Album Of The Year with Swift for his extensive production work, co-writing and instrumentation on Midnights. In March, he released his fourth album as Bleachers and launched a lengthy world tour with the band, which will wrap with their biggest-ever (sold-out) gig at Madison Square Garden on Oct. 4.

His 2024 production credits include Swift's The Tortured Poets Department, four of breakout star Carpenter's Short n' Sweet tracks including No. 1 hit "Please Please Please," and even one of Kendrick Lamar's Drake diss tracks, "6:16 in LA." He also curated and produced the soundtrack for Apple TV's WWII couture period drama "The New Look," featuring modern renditions of classics by Lana Del Rey, Florence Welch, Nick Cave and others. He was also tapped by Tony-winning director Sam Gold to create the soundtrack for a modern reimagining of "Romeo and Juliet," debuting on Broadway later this month.

Before Antonoff became one of the most in-demand producers in pop, he spent his time in bands. As a high school senior in 2002, he formed indie rock outfit Steel Train with several classmates, who'd have a decade-long run playing big festivals including Bonnaroo, SXSW, Warped Tour and Lollapalooza. Afterwards, he played guitar in the power pop trio fun. with whom he earned his first six GRAMMY nods and won his first two in 2013, for Best New Artist and Song of the Year for their anthemic hit "We Are Young" featuring Janelle Monáe.

2013 was a pivotal year for the "Tiny Moves" artist, as it also marked his first time he worked with Swift, who then enlisted him to support her transition away from country music on Album Of The Year winner 1989. Antonoff has said that she was the first artist to trust him as a producer, and that their work together, understandably, opened many other doors for him.

GRAMMY.com recently caught up with the prolific producer and artist for a dive deep into his collaborative magic, the latest Bleachers album, and why he thinks pop is whatever you want it to be. 

This interview has been edited and condensed.

There's a lot to talk about just from this year, it's pretty crazy. 

When the Bleachers album came out and I was starting to do interviews, I had this really weird experience. Interviews recap things that have happened, so [they make me] realize how little I think about the past. I don't know if that's a good or bad thing. 

I think it's a symptom of how much my life is future-focused — which is something I really like and fear about my life at the same time. The studio is such a forward place. You're thinking about the next thing, how to find this next feeling in literal and esoteric ways. [Being on] the road is one of the most literally forward places — every day you're somewhere new and you're thinking about the next day and the tour. 

I feel like I'm trapped in the future. It's nice and I've designed it that way. But sometimes I get a little scattered or emotional when I talk about things that have happened because I'm thinking about them for the first time. I don't have canned answers. 

You're often called a super-producer, which is valid; you've worked with so many big artists and on so much music that everyone hears. But what are you desiring as an artist and a producer lately?

The grand desire that I have has never changed, because it's so much bigger than any amount of success. That desire is to write and produce things and play live. That's a big part of why I love this work so much is because nothing can really help you with that besides your soul. You could be in the most expensive studio in the world with all the best engineers, but there's no proof that [that setting] equals a better song than just sitting in your room.

That fleeting feeling of knowing that it comes and it goes, and you just have to be there to grab it, is such a deep connected-to-the-cosmos feeling.

When you're working on music, at what point do you get excited about a song or know that it's going in the right direction?

When it does happen is when I start to push it forward in a real way. There's an amazing amount of f—king around in search of that feeling, and you never know where you're going to get it. It's sometimes just moving around instruments or lyrics or thoughts with no direction until one thing feels exciting, and then you follow that thing. 

It's a really fun process, and it can be anxiety-producing. It's a different kind of fun when you do it with someone else, because you're on this weird adventure together. When you're in a room with other people and everyone has that feeling off of one idea or one sound, it's a very connecting feeling. 

When you're working on your own music, particularly with Bleachers, it's mostly just you in the studio, right? 

Yes. But the Bleachers process is oddly similar [to my producing], just sort of flipped. I work with producers on Bleachers because I need it sometimes. I've always had these two sides of writing my music and having my own band and needing help with that in various ways. I've learned so much on either side. 

Being on the road with Bleachers, remarkably, keeps me connected to everything that matters the most when I'm making records with other artists because I can very easily visualize real fans, the people who live and die by this music. To be acquainted with them every night is a very powerful experience. It always just reminds me who I'm in conversation with, because I think it's easier than ever to get lost.

You've had a busy summer on the road with the Bleachers. How has it felt performing this album live?

It's really my favorite ever. It's the first album I've made with Bleachers that feels like a response to this thing that happens at the shows. Somewhere during the Take the Sadness Out of Saturday Night [tour in 2021], the shows got really crazy and loose and kind of off the wall. There was something about it where I was kinda like, Okay, you want to play chicken? [Laughs.] I went into the studio and I tried to one up them. I never felt that before. This time I was talking right at [my fans], which is a luxury of being known by them.**

The first song we ever released was "I Wanna Get Better," which is almost a Wikipedia page of my life, it rattles through everything I'm going to be talking about [forever]. It feels like now I can wax on about something, and they know what I'm talking about.

Is that why you decided to self-title this album?

The actual decision to self-title is a gut feeling. But the real reason is it felt like an earned moment, like we had arrived somewhere where everything had completely formed.

Every reference point [while] making this album became about our own history and our own mythology. In the past, I would have said, Make it like a Mick Fleetwood or Ringo kind of feel. Now the reference point would be Play it like you do at this point in the set when the wheels have blown out for you. You tour and spend enough time with people where it becomes almost like conversations with your best friends, the reference points become your own shared history. 

What called you back into the studio to make your own music? 

I never know. My life is a lot less structured than people would think. The way I make Bleachers records — and even in everything I make with other people — there's a real looseness to it because I like to be [in the studio] when I feel incredibly excited to be there. I schedule things, just not terribly far out.

For example, Lana and I or Taylor and I have never once been like, "Let's book out a month here." It's sort of like, "What are you doing today? I got this idea, come over." And then if that's feeling good, it's like, "What are you doing tomorrow? Let's keep this going." It's very [much] catching it when it's happening. Some days I'm in the studio for an hour, some days for 16 hours; it's all based on how I feel. 

Are you always working on music or ideas — is there always something that's coming out of you? 

Lately — the past couple years — I've been feeling the need to create a lot. I feel connected to something, and I feel a lot of joy and that good buzzy anxiety of having these ideas and wanting to hear them, which reminds me of my earliest memories of writing and producing music. When you hear the thing in reality — you can press play on a thing that was a thought — it's the most incredible experience.

"Alma Mater" is such a poetic way to refer to an ex. How did that track come together? Did you have Lana del Rey in mind for it? 

No, we were just f—ing around. I think a lot about where you put people [when listening to a song]. On that song, I wanted to put you in a room with me and her, so I left a lot of the elements of us being in the room writing it, messing around. We kept singing back and forth like, "She's my alma mater, f— Balenciaga." [Chuckles.] The lyrics were just making us smile. 

As it started to come together, this idea of referring to an old relationship as an alma mater, that excited me and made me want to write that story. That's kind of what an old relationship is: a school that you go to where there's a whole set of friends, and a whole culture, and when it's over, poof, it's gone. 

Obviously, you worked with Sabrina Carpenter on some of her new music… 

How brilliant is she?

Read more: How Sabrina Carpenter Became A Pop Queen: Tracing Her Journey To 'Short N' Sweet'

She's around the same age Taylor Swift was when you started working with her. Do you see any parallels with Sabrina where Taylor was at then? Sabrina has said it was a really big deal to get to work with you. What was it like working with her? 

It was a big deal for me to get to work with her. The great parallel is brilliant writing and being able to write about one's life in the most vulnerable and powerful way. It sounds so simple, but it's the rarest thing to be able to write about your life and to be able to make it so specific and also so poetic. You know it as soon as you hear it.

Can you talk a little bit about the sonic landscape on "Please Please Please"?

We were thinking a lot about joy and the kind of fantastical nature of ABBA, Dolly [Parton] and ELO that I felt would fit her voice and lyrics so well. She [does] this quick vacillation between really cheeky then really emotional, back to really sarcastic, and then she smacks you over the head with something so serious and real that you're stunned. It's my favorite kind of music.

One of the reasons it's so thrilling to me that so many people have responded to it is because it doesn't sound like anything that's going on at all, it almost sounds like the opposite of everything going on. Those are my favorite moments; when something out of left field grabs everyone's attention.

Those bubbly sounds right when "Please Please Please" comes in are not in time. You have a LinnDrum ['80s drum machine] and a live drum playing this tight beat and these country-picking acoustic guitars. Then you have these wobbling synths that, in my head, I'm playing the same way someone would play it when it was first invented because you're just playing along to the track, you're not locking it to any MIDI or anything. I was thinking a lot about that time period — I think about [it] all the time — when I was with Sabrina.

How has your creative partnership with Taylor Swift and your trust in each other evolved in the decade-plus you've been working together? And what has been the coolest thing for you to see in your ongoing work?

As far as evolution, we just have our own language. I saw her play last night [at Wembley Stadium in London], and actually played some songs there too. Most of the time when we work it's just her and I in a room, usually my apartment or Electric Lady [Studios]. To see [the songs] in literally the biggest spaces and retain all of [their] importance and soul and feeling like it's that for every single person in that crowd, it's like the absolute coolest.

She's the absolute greatest of all time, with a never-ending hunger to push forward. 

You and Taylor both have such an affinity for witty, nerdy, literary references, and poetic phrasing. How do you pull that out in a way that makes sense in a pop song structure? 

I think that tendency is just inherent in both of us. But I think the concept of pop structure is whatever the hell we want it to be. The worst of pop music is ambulance-chasing. The real inspiration is to be your own loud light-up machine shooting down the street. The things I've loved about pop music have just invigorated me to believe that pop music is whatever the hell the person making it says it is, and then everyone else gets to argue if it is or isn't. 

I don't sit around and think about genre, placement, or who they're going to satisfy. All those thoughts are not just the death of making things. It's pretty easy for me to only consider that gut feeling. I'm just fascinated by how people hear things. There's no genre of music that I think is better or worse than any other one. 

What can you tell us about the upcoming Romeo + Juliet Broadway show you soundtracked? Was it a different creative exercise for you to score such a well-known text; how so?

It was a very different process which is exactly why I wanted to do it. Credit to [director] Sam Gold who really let me fly out to left field and back. I'm about 50 percent through it and I'm going to finish it when I'm home from this tour. It's been something that has opened my world in many ways, to a whole new side of scoring and writing for a musical. 

You have a lot of GRAMMYs, 11 of them — 

People always ask me if it gets normal. No, it doesn't get normal! It's crazy. 

One, where do you keep them? 

That's one thing I've never really figured out, they kind of move around. Everything in my life moves around a lot, so I don't have a satisfying answer for that one.

And going back to 2013 when you won your first GRAMMYs with fun., how did you feel that day? 

F—ing shocked. As I was saying, I don't really sit around thinking about the past because it's the opposite of the job. What's so shocking about those moments is you're surrounded by family and the people you love and work with, and it's this huge moment to think about how you got to that point. 

My biggest takeaway of these experiences that force you to stop and think about the road behind is just how heavy they are. All of us are held up by really special people, whether it's partners or parents or siblings, fans, engineers, managers, loved ones. If you have amazing people around you, it's the best feeling in the world. That's my favorite part about any award, it feels like it's for everyone that got you there.

Sabrina Carpenter is the first to admit that it's taken her a bit of time to find her way to the top of the music industry. She even likens herself to the tortoise in the fable "The Tortoise and the Hare" — even if she didn't want to believe the metaphor growing up.

"Something that my mom always said to me as a little girl that really annoyed me was that I am the tortoise… throughout my life, [I was] being told, 'Sabrina, you're the tortoise, just chill,'" Carpenter recalled while accepting the Variety Hitmakers Rising Artist Award in December 2023. "In moments of frustration and confusion it can feel like a letdown, but it turns out it's actually a very good thing."

It's been a very good thing for Carpenter, indeed. A decade since the release of her debut single, the singer/songwriter isn't just breaking through — she's one of pop's new reigning queens. Over the last year, Carpenter has nabbed her first No. 1 song on the Billboard Hot 100, made a stellar debut at Coachella, and performed on "Saturday Night Live," all the while racking up billions of streams on her music new and old. It's all built excitement for one of the most anticipated pop albums of the summer: Short n' Sweet.

As Carpenter unveils her new album, take a deep dive into her decade-long journey to pop stardom.

Growing up, Carpenter filled the sounds of her family home in Pennsylvania with covers of songs like Adele's "Set Fire To The Rain" and "Picture to Burn" by future Eras Tour companion Taylor Swift (more on that later). After submitting videos for a singing contest spearheaded by Miley Cyrus, Carpenter would get her first taste of success. Placing third, she caught the eye of Hollywood Records, who signed her following the competition.

Simultaneously, Carpenter also began pursuing acting, landing guest spots on series like "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" in 2011 and joining "The Goodwin Games" in 2012. In 2014, she landed a lead role in the Disney Channel series "Girl Meets World," a spin-off of the beloved '90s series "Boy Meets World," which served as a breakthrough moment for the burgeoning star — and a catalyst for her music career.

Just before the show debuted, Carpenter released her debut single, "Can't Blame A Girl for Trying," the title track to her debut EP that arrived a month later. While the four-track EP was the typical output of a teenage Disney star — bubblegum pop sounds with digestible, family-friendly lyricism — it showed off her youthful timbre and offered themes that would become prevalent later in Carpenter's songwriting: love, heartache, and navigating life.

A year later, she released her debut album, Eyes Wide Open. A mix of pop with folk and country influences — a soundscape that remains on Short n' Sweet — Carpenter's debut showed maturity and growth following Can't Blame A Girl For Trying; songs like "Eyes Wide Open" and "We'll Be the Stars" showed a more introspective side, reflecting on the pressures of being in the spotlight and the journey of finding her identity. Eyes Wide Open also hinted that Carpenter was beginning to hone her songwriting skills, penning four of the 12 tracks.

It would be on her 2016 sophomore album, EVOLution, where Carpenter would find confidence as a songwriter, co-writing all but one song on the 10-track project. In turn, the lyrics reflected her growing sense of self and a new perspective on past themes, like embracing non-romantic forms of love in "All We Have is Love," being there for a struggling friend in "Shadows," and learning to assert boundaries in "Space."

EVOLution transitioned Carpenter out of the teen pop aesthetic into a more sophisticated sound, experimenting with dance-pop and techno sonics. Genre versatility would become a throughline of sorts for Carpenter, and EVOLution foreshadowed the multifaceted musicality that was to come.

After "Girl Meets World" came to an end at the beginning of 2017, Carpenter was ready for reinvention. Much like Britney Spears' Britney and Cyrus' Can't Be Tamed before her, as Carpenter grew into an adult, she felt like she needed to shed the Disney-fied image that has become a rite of passage for teen stars. Thus began the Singular era.

Released in 2018 and 2019, respectively, Singular: Act I and Singular: Act II featured songs that were more risqué and mature in nature. A far cry from her tamer work of the past, the R&B track "Hold Tight" is equal parts sultry and evocative with Carpenter singing, "Wanna keep you in, wanna keep you in right/ Wanna feel your skin, wanna feel it on mine."

As she noted in an interview with Billboard, Singular: Act I  was a natural progression for a girl now in her late teens — even if it was against the squeaky-clean image of her beginnings.

"I was known as a fictional character on television with lines that were written for her with an attitude that was portrayed in a way by other people. So for a lot of people, their first impression of me was as a 13-year-old girl [singing] the kinds of songs that she should be singing," she said. "Then, flash forward to 19, and people are asking why I am not singing about the same things that I did when I was 13, as if that's normal."

One of the more notable Singular tracks is from Act I, "Sue Me." Sneakily disguised as a story about a romantic relationship, the song is Carpenter's response to being sued by her ex music managers: "That's my shape, I made the shadow/ That's my name, don't wear it out though/ Feelin' myself can't be illegal." Its tongue-in-cheek and snarky nature would inevitably embolden Carpenter to continue writing more confessional songs with attitude, whether she's responding to media scrutiny in "because i liked a boy" from 2022's emails i can't send, or warning a suitor to be careful in Short n' Sweet's "Please, Please, Please."

Singular: Act I and Act II further helped demonstrate different facets of Carpenter's musicality, with the former leaning into pop tendencies and the latter embracing an R&B flair. And as her final albums with Hollywood Records, she used Singular: Act I and Act II to indicate that she wasn't going to let any sort of previous perceptions hold her back. Their coming-of-age themes showcased Carpenter as an artist coming into her own — regardless of whether listeners wanted to keep her in the Disney box or not.

While the world was going through a period of change amid the COVID-19 pandemic, so was Carpenter. She signed with Universal Music Group's Island Records in 2021, and soon she would be able to fully introduce the world to who Sabrina Carpenter is as an artist.

As she noted herself to Variety earlier this year, her 2022 LP, emails i can't send, "marked the beginning of a really freeing and artistic time for me." Once again, she co-wrote every song on the album; this time, though, she only had one co-writer for each track, and even wrote two songs solo ("emails i can't send" and "how many things") — proving that she was more assured as a songwriter than ever.

As a result, Carpenter's knack for confessional songwriting is on full display. emails i can't send represents a reflective time capsule of sorts; one that brings the curiosity of her earlier work with the perspective and wisdom of a young adult. Her growing fame meant there was more attention on her personal life, and emails i can't send allowed her to reclaim her narrative and express her side of the story.

Carpenter's candidness struck a chord with listeners, and upon the release of emails i can't send in July 2022, it was clear Carpenter was on a new trajectory. The album debuted at No. 23 on the Billboard 200, which marked her highest entry on the chart to date (as of press time); the 2022 stretch of her Emails I Can't Send Tour sold out in less than a day. And once  "Nonsense" was released as a single that November, her place as a rapidly rising star was solidified.

"Nonsense" was initially written as a means to an end after Carpenter was writing a sad song and had writer's block. Now, the track is the epitome of Carpenter's lyricism, weaving together her wit and humor with an infectious hook. First gaining traction on TikTok because of its catchiness, it's become a beloved part of Carpenter's canon thanks to her inventive and bespoke outros during her live shows. It's since become a tradition for fans to check to see what outro she created for each performance, adding to the fan fervor.

Carpenter further satiated fans' taste for her cheeky lyricism in March 2023, when she released emails i can't send fwd:, the deluxe version of her album, which featured a new track called "Feather." She took the playful, flirting energy of "Nonsense" and infused "Feather" with buoyant, airy production that mimics the feeling of self-liberation after moving on from a relationship. Earning Carpenter her first pop radio No. 1, "Feather" proved that the singer's audacious style was taking hold — and it set the stage for an even bigger 2024.

After her own extensive — and very sold out — tour in support of Emails I Can't Send, Carpenter's rising star status was further confirmed by pop's current queen, Taylor Swift. The singer earned a coveted opening slot on Swift's monumental Eras Tour in Mexico, South America, Australia, and Asia.

Just after her last Eras Tour show in March 2024, Carpenter hinted that her own new era was beginning. "I'm starting to feel like I've outgrown the songs I'm singing," she admitted to Cosmopolitan, "which is always an exciting feeling because I think that means the next chapter is right around the corner."

That chapter began with "Espresso," which dropped a day before her debut Coachella performance. Doubling down on the playful, self-assured vibe of "Nonsense," the song immediately hinted that big things were coming for Carpenter, debuting at No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100, where it peaked at No. 3.

Upon announcing her sixth album, Short n' Sweet, Carpenter released "Please Please Please." Combining her now-signature playful, carefree lyricism with an airy, disco-tinged sound, "Please Please Please" didn't just present Carpenter as a confident superstar —  it became her first Hot 100-topping smash.

Carpenter has referred to Short n' Sweet as the "hot older sister" of emails i can't send. "It's my second 'big girl' album; it's a companion but it's not the same," she explained to Variety, to whom she also admitted she feels a "sense of separation" from her work prior to emails. "When it comes to having full creative control and being a full-fledged adult, I would consider this a sophomore album."

It's apt, then, that her Short n' Sweet collaborators — including songwriters Julia Michaels, Amy Allen and Steph Jones — are largely the same as the team from emails i can't send. "I've really honed in on the people that I love making music with," she told Rolling Stone in June.

Even more telling of the direction she's heading is her work with one of pop's hottest producers — and Swift's right-hand man — Jack Antonoff, for the first time. At a GRAMMY Museum event with Antonoff himself, Carpenter debuted the country-infused "Slim Pickins," presenting yet another pop style from Short n' Sweet. And as "Slim Pickins," "Espresso" and "Please Please Please" indicate, Carpenter's knack for infectious and edgy lyrics isn't just the throughline across Short n' Sweet — it's become the epitome of both her artistry and her stardom.

Just like her metaphorical friend the tortoise, Carpenter's long but steady journey has clearly paid off. As she's figured out who she is on her own terms, she's manifested the bonafide superstardom she's always imagined.

"I never had the plan B, and it wasn't even a thought in my mind that it wouldn't work out," she told Rolling Stone. "I just always knew it was about not if it would happen but when it would happen."

For Carpenter, every chapter of her artistry has built on the last; she's refused to rest on her laurels and continuously pursued new directions. She's creating work that wholeheartedly reflects her, and growing a loyal fan base because of it. Her next album might be named Short n' Sweet, but her time as a pop superstar will be anything but.

This year’s Lollapalooza in Chicago may have been a particularly humid one, but that didn’t deter perspiring attendees from making the most of the four-day event. Held Aug. 1-4, the international festival’s flagship midwest iteration showcased a variety of talent — both revered and rising.

Among Lolla 2024's highlights, Chappell Roan drew an expectedly enormous crowd to Grant Park on Thursday, while GRAMMY winner Tyla captivated audiences with a lighthearted and entertaining anglicism. Friday offered a diversity of artists, from K-pop boy group Stray Kids, to electronic vet Zedd and GRAMMY-winning Icelandic jazz singer Laufey, who performed with the Chicago Philharmonic. J-pop stars YOASOBI and the Killers closed the festival on Saturday, and Blink-182 brought their ‘90s humor and hits to the main stage on Sunday.

Lollapalooza founder Perry Farrell was onhand in a rare sighting to partake in the weekend’s festivities, which in addition to various stages featured Toyota Music Den’s retro summer camp vibes, Coke Studio’s roller rink, House of Dunkin’s newly renovated setup and Kidzapalooza for the festival’s youngest attendees.

Though thunderstorms threatened throughout the weekend, it only materialized as light rain and was a welcome reprieve from the balmy temperatures. As Lollapalooza attendees recuperate from one of the summer's biggest parties, relive seven of the most exhilarating sets from Lollapalooza 2024.

Kesha has never been someone to shy away from controversy, and the GRAMMY-nominated singer made some interesting choices during her Lolla set on Thursday. The singer delivered some of her biggest hits — from "Cannibal" and "Die Young," to "Take It Off," and "Your Love Is My Drug" — in front of her most loyal fans at Lolla. While performing "Backstabber" from 2010's Animal, Kesha and her scantily-clad male dancers doused themselves in fake blood while the star herself brandished a knife as a prop. Kesha later revealed on X that the knife shockingly turned out to be real.

In addition to her theatrical dramatics, Kesha also played a clip of Vice President Kamala Harris saying "You think you just fell out of a coconut tree?" as she began "Blow" (Kesha brought out a marching band for the song as well).  "Women do run this country," Kesha told the crowd, proudly standing in her power.

When she wasn’t waving pride flags and encouraging onlookers to "support local drag, Kesha paused to thank her fans for "standing by me through the hardest time of my entire life."

Read more: Kesha Reveals The 10 Most Important Songs Of Her Career, From "Tik Tok" To "Eat The Acid"

Megan Thee Stallion Got The Hotties In Formation

Three-time GRAMMY winner Megan Thee Stallion was tapped by the festival as one of the headliner’s after Tyler, The Creator pulled out of his slot earlier this year. The rapper, however, proved she was no "second best."

Fresh off of her performance at Vice President Kamala Harris’ Atlanta campaign rally, Megan Thee Stallion feverishly got her fans in formation with a spectacular performance. Donning a sexy, sequined pink ensemble, the Houston rapper plowed through a bevy of hits including: "Freak Nasty," "Cobra," "Big Ole Freak," "Mamushi" and "WAP."

She also addressed haters who were upset about her supporting Harris last month. "They was fake mad that I was popping it for Kamala. I don’t think they heard what she said," Meg explained. "Kamala said she wants a ceasefire. Kamala said she supports women’s rights. Kamala said y’all tired of high gas prices. Kamala said ‘I’m for the people.’" She shouted out "Hotties for Harris" before being surprised by Chicago Sky star Angel Reese onstage who took a selfie with the "Savage" artist.

Read more: 6 Takeaways From Megan Thee Stallion's 'Megan': Snakes, Shots & Self-Assurance

Deftones — the GRAMMY-winning rock facet from Sacramento, California — have For spent three decades perfecting their gnarly guitar riffs, airy vocals and thunderous percussion. Their most recent project, 2020's Ohms, served as a sauntering exploration of frontman Chino Moreno’s inner workings. This energy was on full display at Lollapalooza 2024.

The band’s electrifying energy was gleefully absorbed by the crowd, who moshed through heavier tracks such as "Lotion" and "My Own Summer (Shove It)." The audience was slightly more still but visibly bubbling over for slower, more sensual tunes like "Digital Bath" and "Change (In The House of Flies)."

Moreno — who said onstage he chipped his tooth during "Needles and Pins," from the band's self-titled 2003 LP — proved his performer prowess again and again. Even beyond the T-Mobile, Lolla attendees could feel the infectiousness of Deftones’ stellar set.

Learn more: 5 Essential Nu-Metal Albums: How Slipknot, Korn, Deftones & Others Showcased Adolescent Rage With A Dramatic Flair

Despite being 45 minutes late to their headlining set on Saturday, Future and Metro Boomin delivered a vigorous performance that celebrated their collaborative albums We Don’t Trust You (released in March) and We Still Don’t Trust You (which dropped a month later).

The pair ferociously fed off of each other’s energy, while simultaneously injecting that same enthusiasm into the crowd. From "Luv Bad Bitches" to "Type S—," "F— Up Some Commas" to "Low Life," there were no shortage of hits to feed the insatiable musical appetite of the packed crowd at the Bud Light stage.

Fans eagerly threw up two fingers in honor of Future's Dirty Sprite 2, per instructions from the duo, and Future x Metro Boomin Young Thug when "Relationship" played. "Like That" lost its potency when it was started for a second time as an attempt to reinvigorate the audience — but remained a thrilling track from beginning to end. The chemistry between Future x Metro Boomin was off the charts and seamlessly translated onstage.

Read more: Metro Boomin's Essential Songs: 10 Must-Know Tracks, From "Creepin" To "Like That"

SiR Savors "Summer" With Sensual R&B Set

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The Inglewood, California-based R&B singer used his time at Lollapalooza to reconnect with a city he hasn't performed in for nearly five years. On Sunday, the R&B crooner glided through his discography, performing "Karma" (from his March 2024 album Heavy) to "John Redcorn" — a track from his 2020 release Chasing Summer.

SiR, who was dripping in sweat from the intense Chicago heat, slowed things down a bit to celebrate his collaborators. First, he gleefully welcomed singer Zacari for "Mood" followed by his brother Davion Farris for "The Recipe." SiR’s bravado shined brightly on "Hair Down" where he felt his most confident, his most rambunctious, his most seen. He appeased fans’ requests for "D’Evils" and got emotional when reflecting on his struggles.

SiR has been candid about his journey to sobriety — a major theme on Heavy — and thanked his fans for their support throughout his set. When SiR performed "Life Is Good," he reminded attendees that nothing is sweeter than a well-earned victory lap.

Read more: On 'Heavy,' SiR Wants People To See The Weight Of His Humanity

Carmen DeLeon Basked In Being A Total Ray Of Sunshine

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The 23-year-old Venezuelan singer smiled from ear to ear as she enthusiastically gave her all during a short but powerful performance on Sunday at the BMI stage. She kicked off things with two of her most notable tracks: 2022’s "Mala Memoria" and "Mariposas" (which was released the year prior).  DeLeon was effervescent during "Wonderful," with its catchy chorus being as bright and brilliant as she was.

DeLeon became visibly emotional while paying  homage to Lady Gaga and her BMI stage legacy by covering "Always Remember Us This Way" from the A Star is Born soundtrack. She attached her native flag to the mic stand and emphasized the importance of speaking up against injustice, which hit especially close to home for her given the unrest following recent elections in Venezuela.

DeLeon quickly switched gears and tackled the complex nature of love with "El Vecino." Though the singer is longing to be noticed on the track, its live rendition feels more empowering than dejected. One of the show’s most heartwarming moments came when the singer brought her clearly proud dad onstage.

Moments after viral TikTok sensation Benson Boone took the stage at Lolla, he shared that this was the first U.S. music festival he has ever performed at. The former "American Idol" contestant used his performance on the IHG Resorts & Resorts stage to sing — and backflip — his way into the hearts of fans.

Boone's performance ranged in both sound and emotion. The singer basked in the sweetness of "Coffee Cake" from his 2023 album PULSE, then dug deeper with a formidable performance of "What Was." Before going into "My Greatest Fear," the singer shared that he is terrified of being alone and was devastated by the passing of his grandmother.

He used "Friend" as a springboard to talk about the importance of camaraderie and, before launching into "Beautiful Things," shared amazement at how one song dramatically changed his life.

Read more: Benson Boone Declares "Beautiful Things" Is No Fluke: "I've Tapped Into How I'll Write For The Rest Of My Life"