20 Female Singers From England To Listen In 2023

Young British Female Singers include Lauren Aquilina. Her full name is Lauren Amber Aquilina.

The artist is a 27-year-old Singer-Songwriter hailing from Bristol. She is of Maltese descent as her parents are from Malta.

The singer started showing musical aspirations from a young age and started playing piano at the age of nine. Lauren went to her first open mic event at 13 and sang Lady Gaga's Poker Face.

Her mother filmed the video and Lauren's future manager, Ryan Walter, came across the video and approached her. The two began working together and made her debut EP "Fools."

She would go on to take a trilogy of EPs after Fools with Sinners and Liars. Lauren signed to both Island Records and Universal Music Group in 2014 and released her debut album on August 26, 2016.

However, the singer would take a hiatus in August 2016, citing mental health issues, but has since resumed her music career in August 2018. She is a welcome anomaly among artists who prioritized self-care over fame, and her fans love her for it.

Her most recent work is an EP called Ghost World which she released Independently on November 13, 2020.

Raye is among UK Female Singers from Tooting. She is hot property at the moment with over 27 million listeners on Spotify.

Born to a Ghanaian-Swiss mother and an English father, Raye is of mixed descent. Her real name is Rachel Agatha Keen.

The singer credits singing gospel songs in the church with awakening her love of music as well as giving her a powerful voice. Her voice has become one of her standout characteristics.

Raye started writing her songs at the age of seven. According to BBC, her love of music was so strong that she dropped out of high school at age 14 to pursue a career in the field.  

She started releasing music as quickly as three years later, at the age of 17, with her debut EP, Welcome to Winter. The singer would go on to release three more EPs, two remixes, and two live EPs in the next couple of years.

Raye finally saw some critical and commercial acclaim with the release of her 2020 EP, Euphoric Sad Songs. The Guardian rated the album with three out of five stars.

The singer has kept up her momentum as her most recent single, Escapism, has climbed up the UK and US charts due to going viral on TikTok. She is set to release her debut album, My 21st Century Blues in February 2023.

Birdy is one of UK Female Artists known for her beautiful voice and chill music. Her real name is Jasmine Lucilla Elizabeth Jennifer van den Bogaerde.

A prodigy, Birdy showed her talent young by winning the Open Mic Uk at the age of 12 in 2008. She gained international prominence when she released a cover of the song Skinny Love by Bon Iver in 2011.

Her cover of Skinny Love is, to some, even more, recognizable than Bon Iver's original version. The same year she released her self-titled debut album on November 7 which peaked in many countries like Australia, the Netherlands, and Belgium. 

Since then, she has released over four albums, with her most recent one, "Young Heart," being released in 2021. One of the album's singles, "Quietly Yours" gained prominence as part of the Netflix adaptation of Jane Austen's novel Persuasion.

Dreya Mac is a British rapper who gained global fame when her song went viral on TikTok. She might be the biggest viral sensation on this list.

Originally a backup dancer, before her fame, Dreya had danced in music videos for various artists like Dua Lip and Rita Ora. She'd even performed at the Brit Awards for rapper Stormzy.

On October 29, 2021, Dreya released a collaboration song with fellow British rapper Felix the 1st called Own Brand Freestyle. Her verse on the song soon became viral on Tiktok, owing to her gaining more fame than fellow rapper Felix the 1st.

The popularity of the song soon led to her becoming popular too, and since then she has performed in A COLORS SHOW, a YouTube live performance channel, and released her EP titled TWENTYONE.

She has continued releasing music and has amassed over 900K monthly listeners on her Spotify page. The success of Own Brand Freestyle has led to the rapper getting shout-outs from established artists like Rihanna and Kehlani.

Mimi Webb has all the stylings of a pop star at the young age of 22. She has amassed a strong following with 5 million monthly listeners on Spotify.

The young pop star first made waves when she signed with Epic Records on February 2019 at the age of 18. She released her debut single "Before I go" two years later in 2020.

She would start seeing more success in the following year when she released her fourth single, "Good Without," which charted at number 8 on the UK Charts. She would release her debut EP, "Seven Shades of Heartbreak" the same year which reached number 9.

The singer is set to release her debut studio album, "Amelia," on March 3, 2023. Still, she has gained widespread acclaim from various magazines like British Vogue, Rolling Stone, and Billboard.

Bellah is an up-and-coming UK R&B artist from London bubbling under the mainstream since 2019. Her birth name is Isobel Akpobire

Called the Princess of UK R&B by Complex UK, Bellah has been consistently releasing EPs since 2019. With over four EPs under her belt, the artist has held the ear of the UK R&B scene for some years now.

As she is of Nigerian descent, Bellah carries a strong Afro influence in her music that has been complemented by not only Complex but also BBC 1Xtra which called her debut single Track of The Week. 

She gained wider prominence in 2021 when she performed her song, Evil Eye, for the Youtube channel, A COLORS Show. She also released her most recent album Adultsville in 2022.

Lastly, the singer has over 200K monthly listeners on her Spotify as of the writing of this article.

English Female singers include Tora-i. She is a Neo-Soul artist from London who gained prominence in 2020. 

She released her debut single, "Call Your Name," on May 1, 2020, and her debut EP, "Cavalier," a month later on June 26, 2020.

Her sound is soulful and electronic, and pensive, which has made her an artist to look out for in recent years.

Since her debut EP, she has released three singles, with her most recent single, "Lounging," being released on April 21, 2022. She has also performed in concerts supporting other artists with her most recent one being in support of Omar Apollo.

Tora-i moves at her own pace, so all her fans can do is wait until she decides to drop another full-length project. Due to her fresh personality, she has developed a strong core fan base that doesn't mind waiting.

Millie Go Lightly is a UK-born artist currently based in Atlanta, Georgia. Her birth name is Melissa Sarah Griffiths

Millie started writing at the age of seven, inspired by various artists ranging from Stevie Nicks to 50 Cent. She moved to Atlanta from London, UK to pursue her musical passions.

The singer gained fame early on in her career for helping Atlanta rap legend Young Thug on his 2017 mixtape Beautiful Thugger Girls. She helped the rapper with two songs on the mixtape: Family Don't Matter and She Wanna Party. 

Thug's mixtape would eventually be certified Gold, resulting in Millie suddenly having a host of collaborators to work with. Her collaborations have ranged from producers like Lex Luger to Jetsonmade with many trying to emulate the success of Young Thug by tapping on Millie's potential.

From 2021 to now, she has released a whole host of singles and garnered over 64K monthly listeners on Spotify. However, her most popular work has still been collaborations as her work with British rapper Aj Tracey on his album Flu Game led to her being a part of a UK Top 2 album.

ENNY, whose real name is Enitan Adepitan, is an English rapper and singer. She has been active since 2020.

She gained prominence in her debut year for her fourth single "Peng Black Girls." The song gained more of a reputation when fellow British R&B singer Jorja Smith hopped on the remix. 

Then, their performance of the song on THE COLORS SHOW, raised its prominence as it rose to number 76 on the UK Charts. It is also her only charting single, but what she lacks commercially, she has made up for in grit and talent.

ENNY spent much of 2021 dropping singles, six in total, and even released an EP called "Under Twenty-Five" on July 16, 2021. Her 2021 output led to her being nominated in the Female Artist of the Year category at the Rated Awards.

Her recent work has revolved around collaborations as she has spent all of 2022 collaborating with various artists like Mychelle and Shae Universe. Through her hard work, Enny has amassed over 780K monthly listeners on her Spotify page.

Holly Ffion Humberstone is a 23-year-old English singer-songwriter. She won the 2022 Brit Award for Rising Star.

Known for her unique 2000s-style emo aesthetic alongside her guitar and piano playing, Holly has been active since 2018. She initially gained prominence in her career by releasing a cover of the English rock band Radiohead's Fake Plastic Trees.

She released her first EP, "Falling Asleep at the Wheel" on August 14, 2020. Holly signed with Polydor Records and Interscope Records for the UK and US respectively the next year and released her second EP, "The Walls Are Way Too Thin."

The singer has continued her trajectory of releasing an EP a year by releasing "Can You Afford to Lose Me?" in 2022. The same year, she also performed on Glastonbury, at its John Peel Stage, and even performed as an opening act for George Ezra.

Lola Young is a 22-year-old singer and musician hailing from South East London. Despite her age, she has garnered over 250K monthly listeners on Spotify.

She started her career in 2019 with the release of her debut EP "Intro" on November 19, 2019. Since then, the singer has released three EPs including a live recording from her Apple Music Home Session.

Her most recent project came out on August 20, 2021titled "After Midnight." She has also released many singles throughout her career with five of her most recent ones supporting her newest EP.

Lola has been a vocal champion of mental health matters. Being schizo-affective, she has not shied away from talking about her own mental health troubles as a way to normalize opening up about and creating a public conversation about mental health. 

Lapsley is a multitalented singer, songwriter, musician, and producer. Her real name is Holly Lapsley Fletcher.

Taking her middle name as her pseudonym, the York-born but Merseyside-raised singer has been a bubbling force in the British music scene since 2013. She started her career with her debut single "Station" and subsequent debut EP "Monday" in 2014.

Her debut EP was critically lauded and won the "One to Watch" prize at GIT Award in April of the same year. Since then, the artist has released three more EPs and two studio albums.

Her debut album "Long Way Home" charted up to 32 in the UK Album Charts. She is set to release her new album "Cautionary Tales of Youth" on January 20, 2023, through the label, Believe Young.

Little Simz might be the most critically acclaimed artist on this list. The rapper and singer is only 28 years old.

Despite her young age, the Islington-born musician has been active since 2010. Since her debut, Simz has released five albums, five EPs, and countless singles.

Her third studio album, 2019's "Grey Area" was shortlisted for the prestigious Mercury Prize while her following album, 2021's "Sometimes I Might Be Introvert" not only received wider critical acclaim but won the Mercury Prize in 2022.

Despite her critical acclaim, Simz is still not as well-known by the general public, but recent placements in popular properties like her song Venom being on the soundtrack for the Marvel movie Venom: Let There Be Carnage is sure to change that.

Her most recent album "No Thank You" was seen as one of the best albums of 2022, and even added to many year-end lists by various critics and publications despite being released near the end of the year on December 12, 2022.

Shura, despite being the oldest artist on this list, might be the most underrated. The 31-year-old has been active since 2011.

The singer started her career by learning how to use music production software at her night job at a warehouse. Despite initially releasing a single in 2011, her official debut single "Touch" came out in 2014 to positive buzz amongst music blogs on the internet.

She went on to release two more singles and a remix that year, some more the following year and released her debut album "Nothing's Real" through Polydor Records in 2016. The album peaked at number 13 on the UK Albums Chart and even made an impact across the pond where it peaked at number 12 on the US Heatseekers chart.

Since then, the artist has released one more album "Forevher" in 2019. Her most recent work is a remix of the Ines Rae song "Never Get It Right."

Aside from her music, Shura is also an advocate and a strong fighter for LGBT Rights. She was also a talented footballer and played for Manchester City at its under-11 to under-12 level.

Nia Archives is the new champion of the seminally British genre, Drum and Bass. The London artist is known for melding it with a touch of Neo Soul.

Nia's real name is Dehaney Nia Lishahn Hunt. The Bradford-born singer and producer first got introduced to the genre when she moved to Manchester at age 16.

Manchester, which has a historically well-known rave scene affected the young artist greatly. In a couple of years, she was releasing rave music of her own.

She officially started her career with a single called "Sober Feels" in 2020. The next year, she self-released her debut EP "Headz Gone West" with a single of the same name. 

Nia kept busy all through 2022 by releasing three singles and once again self-released her second EP  called "Forbidden Feelingz." Her second EP attracted even greater critical acclaim than her first one.

Both commercial and critical acclaim greeted her last year as she amassed over 1.8 million monthly listeners on Spotify alongside awards like an NME Award, a MOBO Award, and a Brit Award nomination. 

Lastly, she has been shortlisted for the upcoming Brit Awards as a nomination for their Rising Star award. Even if she doesn't win the award, she is a rising star for many, fans and critics alike. 

Bree Runway is a hyper-pop sensation who has been blazing through her career since 2015. Her real name is Brenda Wireko Mensah.

 A London-born singer of Ghanaian descent, Bree burst onto the British music scene with her debut EP "RNWY 01" in November 2015. She squandered no time establishing herself as she released her second EP, "Bouji" a couple of months later in May 2016.

However, what really brought her major attention would be her 2017 music video, "What Do I Tell My Friends?" which was lauded by fans and critics for its message against the exploitation of younger women in the fashion industry.

The success of the music video boosted her previous work and garnered her enough acclaim for Virgin EMI Records to pick her up in 2018. Her major label debut would be the 2019 single "2ON" released on May 24, 2019.

She quickly capitalized on the attention the major label was giving her by releasing her debut mixtape, 2000And4Eva in 2020. Throughout her young career, Bree has been nominated for countless awards like BBC's Sound of 2021 in 2020, the NME Awards for Best New Act in the World and From the UK in 2021, and the Brit Awards' Rising Staar in 2022 among others.

However, the award that helped boost her career the most was when she won Best New International Act at the BET Awards in 2021. As she has yet to release a debut studio album, Bree Runway is still in the first act of her career despite the many successes she has seen.

Cathy Jain is the youngest and most recent musical act on this list. She has been described by NME as the "coolest kid you know."

Though she is only 18 years old, the Salford-born singer of Asian descent has spent much of her youth traveling the world. Though born in the UK, she was brought up in China and Australia and only returned back to her home country at age 14.

As soon as she stepped back to home ground, she started working on her music. Soon enough, she was signed to Yala! Records and released her first single "cool kid" to warm acclaim.

Since then, the singer has consistently released music that has earned the attention of BBC, Clash Magazine, and even NME. Still, she might just be the most underrated member of this list as she has less than 14K monthly music listeners on her Spotify, but the number is sure to increase in the future.

Jade Bird is a fresh, new voice in folk music hailing from Hexham in Northumberland. Jade is a graduate of the prestigious BRIT School.

She spent her childhood traveling between Hexham in London and Bridgend in South Wales due to her parent's divorce. Despite these early misgivings, success came to her early as she landed a management deal during her final year at BRIT School.

The management deal soon led to her signing with Glassnote Records. She immediately released her first EP, "Something American" which received some positive acclaim.

Jade released her debut album "Jade Bird" two years later in 2019, which received countless nominations at the NME Awards and more. Due to her direct American influence, Jade ended up even moving to America, more specifically Austin, Texas, in November 2020.

She released her most recent album "Different Kinds of Light" on August 13, 2021. The album reached number 27 on the UK Albums chart. The singer has amassed over 780K monthly music listeners on her Spotify page, and her most popular song has over 34 million monthly listens.

British Female Pop singers include PinkPantheress. PinkPantheress has become something of a figurehead for Bedroom Pop. 

One of the many artists to come out of the Bedroom pop genre, the British singer of Kenyan descent started making music through the free music production software Garageband. She initially gained prominence through a snippet of her music being posted on her TikTok account in December 2020.

TikTok played a huge part in boosting her career as most people heard of her when her song Pain went viral. Since then, most of her singles have gone viral on the app.

However, PinkPantheress is also one of the few artists who has been able to jump from TikTok into a proper music career and has since collaborated with many artists like Willow, Mura Masa, Lil Uzi Vert, and Shygirl. This success has translated to chart success too as her debut album "To Hell with It" reached number 20 on the UK charts and even charted on the US Hot 100 at number 73.

Her most successful single so far has been the song, "Just for Me." PinkPantheress has become quite known for her lush but muted production alongside her soft vocals with a slight touch of a British Accent.

Shygirl is a multi-faceted artist known for rapping, DJing, singing, and songwriting. Her real name is Blaine Muise.

A growing presence in the experimental pop scene, Shygirl is one of the co-founders of the pop collective Nuxxe. Both Nuxxe's and Shygirl's music contains influences from rap and electronic music such as hip-house, industrial hip-hop, and deconstructed club.

The experimental artist has released two EPs, one remix EP, over 30 singles, and an album as of the writing of this article. She is also getting famous for her collaborations as she has collaborated with various forward-thinking artists and producers like FKA Twigs, Arca, and even Lady Gaga.

These collaborations have attracted many to her music as she has racked up 1.7 monthly music listeners on her Spotify. Her second most popular song on the app is her collaboration with FKA Twigs on her song papi bones.

London female singers include 1. Raye 2. Dreya Mac 3. Bellah. These abovementioned artists were born in the capital:

• Raye
• Dreya Mac
• Bellah
• Tora-i
• Millie Go Lightly
• ENNY
• Lola Young
• Little Simz
• Shura
• Bree Runway
• Jade Bird
• Shygirl