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The younger generation of PoC artists entered the music scene within the last few years with influential styles in different musical genres. While many people praise the voices of pop music stars and rappers heard on the radio, music fans miss out on lesser-known independent artists racking up listens on Spotify.
Though popular with fans on social media, PoC singers Nia Sioux-Frazier, Snow Tha Product, and Ali Gatie deserve more recognition. All three of these musicians leap across musical genres and defy stylistic expectations within each genre. Escape the stressors of life and take time to discover the re-playable tunes of Nia, Snow, and Ali as they represent multi-talented PoC in the music industry.
Nia Sioux-Frazier
Nia Sioux began her musical career at the age of 12 when she released her first single and danced in the music video for “Star in Your Own Life,” in 2015. Famously known as a former dancer on the hit Lifetime television show, Dance Moms, this multi-talented young woman also showcases her powerhouse dancing skills in her own music videos.
As the only PoC member of the original ALDC competition dance team on Dance Moms, Nia experienced continual racism and Black stereotyping from infamous dance coach Abby Lee Miller. Nia and her mother chose to separate Nia’s music career from Miller’s management. Thankfully, their decision to independently hire recording manager Aubrey O’Day launched Nia forward into her journey as a musician.
As a proud Black woman, now 18 years old, Nia reshaped the racial boundaries thrust upon her as a child and continues to release music in multiple genres. Nia’s catchy pop songs like “Slay” promote themes of empowerment and pride in oneself. Instead of focusing on romance like other pop songs, Nia’s songs give a younger audience beats to dance to with lyrics that inspire high self-esteem and belief in reaching your full potential.
In recent years, Nia’s more mature tracks like “FLXXN” and “Low Key Love,” showcase her evolving vocal range and soulful roots. “FLXXN” stands out as a catchy dance pop anthem with lyrics rebuking any hatred Nia has endured, especially as a PoC in many white dominated professions. “Low Key Love” bursts with energy as Nia dynamically excels in crossing over into an R&B/Soul genre of music. Ranging from dance music to more acoustic genres, Nia Sioux produces hit single after hit single that you’ll dance and sing along with.
Snow Tha Product
Snow Tha Product (Claudia Alexandra Madriz Meza) exploded into the rap genre in 2012 when her formidable singles “Woke Wednesday” and “Drunk Love” skyrocketed in popularity. Chiefly, Snow proves herself to be the most genre-defying and most recognizable PoC on this list as both a bilingual and a woman rapper. Born in San Jose, Snow’s Mexican heritage allowed her to transform her formerly sole Spanish rap tracks into a cross-genre of Spanish and English lyrics in her original rap songs. Though Snow is almost 33 years old, her musical career began and hasn’t stopped since 2010. Still, Snow continues to release rapid-fire, bilingual hit tracks as a Latina rapper, exponentially increasing her fanbase.
Snow overpowered her struggle as a woman of color by unleashing tunes with high-intensity rapping and a low, melodic voice. Snow’s full-length album, “Half Way There…Pt. 1” features both her supersonic rap speed and mix of bilingual lyrics in songs like “Nights (feat. W. Darling)” and the first version of “Nuestra canciĆ³n.” In the single “Gaslight,” Snow intermingles rapping and singing on the memorable track to represent the confusing toll gaslighting takes on its victims.
Snow has written and produced dozens of hit songs as an independent artist, including “Waste of Time,” “Dale Gas,” and the bilingual song “Bilingue.” All three singles include seriously impressive rapping skills as Snow jumps from forceful lyrics to gentler inflections in the choruses. Snow’s seamless transitions between Spanish and English display the elasticity of her vocal talent. Although not as prominent as mainstream female rappers like Cardi B, Snow’s unbelievable singing performances as a woman of color deserve more appreciation.
Ali Gatie
Iraqi-Canadian singer/rapper Ali Gatie rose to prominence after delightfully crooning in his now platinum R&B song, “Moonlight“. Born in the Middle East but raised in Canada, Ali grew up in diverse cultures that influenced his unconventional musical style. As both a Muslim and an Arab from Abu Dhabi, Ali represents a mix of minority backgrounds as a PoC in the rap and soul music genre. He took the opportunity to pursue his passion for diverse representation by featuring PoC and individuals from different backgrounds in his music video for one of his most popular songs, “It’s You.” The music video garnered over 25,000,000 views and lets listeners emotionally reflect on their own romantic experiences with Ali’s soft voice guiding you along.
Now, at 23 years old, Ali entertains with his lilting voice and unwavering connection with his fans in his R&B/Soul style of music. Soft guitars with melodic beats usually accompany Ali as he sings and raps, defying the usual boundaries placed on the rap genre. Comparable to American-Sicilian rapper Russ in both musical style and appearance, independent musician Ali Gatie sings of both heartbreak and romance in his emotive songs like “What If I Told You That I Love You” and “Say to You.”
Ali’s first EP, “Say to You,” highlights Ali’s most popular singles along with his beautiful voice nostalgically singing the passionate track, “Used to You.” All of Ali’s music videos provide an array of muted colors that illuminate the emotional tones prevalent in his lyrics. His mellow voice sings reflective lyrics that invite you to look inward at your own raw emotions. Ali’s rising success in the music industry as a PoC signifies the payoff of his continual hard work, praising diversity in music as an impactful form of expression.
Appreciation For Musical Diversity
While listening to popular radio tracks or learning to dance to the newest song on TikTok commonly attracts new fans, independent artists release music that often goes undiscovered. Nia Sioux, Snow Tha Product, and Ali Gatie gained popularity by establishing themselves as persevering PoC musicians in the competitive world of music.
These musicians attained strong fanbases through constantly interacting with their fans and working to demolish unjust racial limitations. Create a new playlist with any of these artists’ genre-defying songs and you won’t be disappointed!
