15 Recently Emerging and Trending Music Genres

Hyperpop

Hyperpop is a digital-era pop and electronic music genre that exaggerates, deconstructs, and reconstructs pop elements. It generally features fast BPMs and catchy melodies.

Phonk

Phonk is a music genre rooted mainly in 1990s Southern hip-hop, particularly Memphis rap, and has been reinterpreted through modern internet culture.

It features psychedelic melodies and a vibe reminiscent of hip-hop sampling. The subgenre "Drift Phonk" has become popular as background music for car drifting videos.

Drill (UK/NY)

Drill is a subgenre of hip-hop characterized by gang-influenced lyrics, ominous and cold beats, and realistic street narratives. It has evolved broadly in the following order: Chicago Drill (the original) → UK Drill → NY Drill (the evolved form).
UK Drill has further evolved by blending with grime and road rap influences.

UK Garage

UK Garage is a club music genre influenced by house, R&B, jungle, and 2-Step.
It typically features tempos around 130–140 BPM (slightly fast) and incorporates not only four-on-the-floor beats but also a variety of 2-Step (syncopated) rhythms.

Lo-fi Hip Hop

Lo-fi Hip Hop is an instrumental music genre characterized by a warm, nostalgic atmosphere and relaxed beats. Many listeners may be familiar with it as “chill,” “study BGM,” or “work music.”
Lo-fi (Low Fidelity) intentionally lowers sound quality, featuring slower tempos (around 80–100 BPM) for a relaxed feel. While the arrangements may include many layers, jazz-influenced chord progressions are common.

Chillwave

Chillwave is a music genre that emerged online in the late 2000s, characterized by nostalgic and dreamy sounds, lo-fi textures, and an 80s-style synth-pop feel. As the name suggests, it combines “chill” (relaxed) and “wave,” reflecting its soothing, undulating sound.
The sound is primarily synthesizer-based, often associated with home recording, inexpensive equipment, and retro culture aesthetics.

Vaporwave

Vaporwave is a music and art genre that emerged from internet culture in the early 2010s. It often reinterprets and satirizes 1980s–1990s commercial music, advertising, and technology culture, expressing nostalgia and commentary on consumer society.
It features endlessly repeating short phrases, hypnotic and mechanical sounds, and often incorporates glitches.
Vaporwave also carries conceptual elements that critique capitalism, globalization, advertising, and consumer culture.

Future Bass

Future Bass is a subgenre of electronic dance music (EDM) that emerged in the 2010s. It is characterized by melodic and emotional sounds along with wavy, modulating bass lines.
Major chords are often used, creating bright and emotive chord progressions.

Slowed + Reverb

Slowed + Reverb is a remix technique where the tempo of an existing track is slowed down and reverb is added. While this is more of a production method than a music genre, it has become popular enough to be considered a genre in its own right.
It creates an emotional, nostalgic, and slightly melancholic atmosphere.

Bedroom Pop

Bedroom Pop is a music style that emerged in the late 2010s, referring to pop music self-produced at home (i.e., in the bedroom). Rather than a strict genre, it emphasizes the production environment and creative spirit, featuring a DIY approach to music creation.
The sound is dreamy and mellow, often with a lo-fi aesthetic.

Glitchcore

Glitchcore is a subcultural genre that spans both visual expression and music, mainly known as a form of electronic music. Musically, it is characterized by the rapid and colorful use of intentionally "broken" sounds, known as glitches.

Afrobeats / Afro-fusion

Afrobeats and Afro-fusion are highly popular music genres that originated from the West African music scene. Each has its own unique characteristics and, as they spread globally, they have blended with other musical styles.

Afrobeats is a contemporary music style in the West African music scene, particularly popular in Nigeria, Ghana, and Côte d'Ivoire. It fuses traditional African music with Western pop, hip-hop, and dancehall.

Afro-fusion builds on Afrobeats and blends it with other genres. Specifically, it combines African music with diverse Western styles such as hip-hop, R&B, jazz, dancehall, and reggae, aiming for a flexible and rich musical expression that transcends genres.

Latin Trap / Reggaeton Revival

Latin Trap is the Latin American version of trap music, combining hip-hop trap beats with Latin rhythms and melodies. This genre is characterized mainly by Spanish-language rap, heavy bass, and synthesizers.

Reggaeton Revival refers to the resurgence of early-2000s reggaeton, revived with a fresh style. Reggaeton, originating from Latin America, features dancehall- and hip-hop-influenced beats, and Reggaeton Revival updates the original sound with modern elements, evolving the genre.

PluggnB

PluggnB is a relatively new music genre that fuses R&B with Plug (a subgenre of hip-hop/trap). It incorporates melodic and emotional elements of R&B while being influenced by hip-hop and trap, featuring bass-heavy sounds and smooth vocal flows.

New Jazz / Jazztronic

New Jazz is a contemporary jazz style that goes beyond traditional jazz, aiming to fuse elements of electronica, hip-hop, and club music. It combines the improvisational freedom of jazz with modern musical elements, creating a genre that appeals to a broader audience.