Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month ended last month, but that doesn’t mean we should stop acknowledging all the AAPI talent that’s out there. After all, it seems rather unfair that an entire community of people from diverse backgrounds should only get a month to celebrate its achievements.

Moreover, considering that AAPI Heritage Month celebrations in May often highlight Asian individuals from outside the U.S. (and not Asian Americans), it’s become increasingly imperative to recognize and elevate homegrown creatives—especially AAPI musicians who are boldly paving their own path in an industry where Asian American artists continue to face many barriers.

Below are 12 AAPI artists, in no particular order, that deserve to be added to your summer playlist (and streamed year-round). From rising indie darlings to fearless rappers to genre-defying singer-songwriters, this wide-ranging list showcases only a tiny fraction of the immense musical talent found within the AAPI community.

Sarah Kinsley

Take a quick peek at Sarah Kinsley’s Instagram or TikTok, and you’ll see why the NYC-based singer-songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist is one of the most talented artists of her generation. The Chinese-American musical prodigy often shares glimpses into her production process—some of her posts show her layering her entrancing vocals over dreamy synths, piano and/or guitar to create transcendent melodies. Others reveal her uncanny ability to make music out of even the most mundane objects and random sounds. In 2021 a clip of the intro to her song “The King” went viral on TikTok, leading millions to discover her signature style of ethereal alt-pop.

Raaginder

Bay Area-based Raaginder blends two seemingly incongruous elements—hip-hop and Indian classical music—to create lush, genre-bending symphonies that have wowed audiences across the country. The Indian-American violinist, rapper, composer and producer extraordinaire has performed at a number of prestigious venues, such as the White House and the Kennedy Center, as well as prominent festivals like Burning Man and SXSW. He also received an Emmy nomination for his contribution to “Ms. Marvel’s” soundtrack.

Emei

It’s no wonder that Spotify chose Emei as one of its Artists To Watch in 2024: every one of her songs features infectious hooks and deeply honest, witty and relatable lyrics. But the alt-pop musician is no stranger to the limelight. In 2015 she took a year off from high school to travel to her parents’ native China, where she competed on Chinese Idol (eventually placing third) as well as Dancing with the Stars. While a senior at Yale, she released her single “Late to the Party,” which went viral on TikTok and Instagram. The following year, Spotify selected her ADHD-themed banger “Scatterbrain” as one of its Best Pop Songs of 2023. With sold-out tours in the US and Europe last November and April, it looks like we’ll be hearing a lot more of Emei soon.

Isa Yu

Born in Guam to a Korean mother and a Chinese father, Isa Yu has crafted her own take on reggae-inflected R&B, infusing smooth, rhythmic instrumentals with her silky voice and a distinctive island groove. For Isa, whose name means “rainbow” in Chamorro (one of the official languages of Guam), writing songs amid life’s challenges feels like “the beauty of witnessing a rainbow after a storm.” It’s probably how you’ll feel after vibing along to one of her tracks.

Johnny Huynh

An engineering major at the University of Washington who’s interned (twice) for SpaceX, Johnny Huynh isn’t your average college student. He’s also a social media star and one of Gen Z’s fastest-rising artists. After his cover of d4vd’s “Romantic Homicide” went viral on TikTok last year, the Vietnamese-American singer-songwriter began uploading other popular covers as well as self-penned singles like “The One That Was Meant for Me” and “Cheater.” His raw, heartfelt vocals have garnered him over seven million followers on TikTok and Instagram and a deal with Columbia Records. And he isn’t even done with college yet.

J. Maya

Indian-American singer-songwriter J. Maya has accomplished more in twenty-odd years than most people probably do in a lifetime. She’s a Harvard College alum, former Survivor contestant and a master of wordplay (literally—she became the youngest person to win a pun championship at the age of 17). After writing her first song at 16, the whip-smart Californian turned down early admission to Harvard Law School to pursue a full-time music career. With incredibly clever lyrics that reflect her love of literature, Greco-Roman mythology and, of course, puns, J. Maya has charmed millions of listeners with her unique brand of “nerd pop.” Who knew that songs centered on books and crossword puzzles could sound so cool?

Ruby Ibarra

With smooth precision and a fierce swagger, Filipina-American rapper Ruby Ibarra lays down incisive verses about race, her Filipino identity, the immigrant experience and other sociocultural issues, often switching seamlessly between English and Tagalog. The respected Bay Area rapper, director and spoken word artist is also a former biotech scientist who worked on helping to find a cure for COVID-19 during the pandemic. Last year she co-founded the record label Bolo Music Group to promote Filipino-American artists.

Chloe Tang

A classically trained musician who’s been writing songs for more than half her life, Los Angeles-based artist Chloe Tang got her break when she opened for Dua Lipa in 2018 at a venue where she’d previously been a security worker. Since then she’s released a range of sassy, unapologetic bangers, from sensual pop-R&B numbers like “Chloe Ting” to the grunge pop-rock anthem “I SEE U,” which calls out deceitful men in the music industry. An avid advocate for Asian American representation, Chloe embraces her Chinese roots and recently played at SXSW as part of an Asian/AAPI artist showcase hosted by rising Asian entertainment brand Jaded.

Brooke Alexx

Whether it’s emotional ballads like “Seriously” or bouncy pop tunes like her hilarious hit single “All My Exes’ Moms” (which has amassed over 16 million combined streams), it wouldn’t be an overstatement to say that every Brooke Alexx song is a certified bop. The half-Japanese New Jersey native—who also directs many of her entertaining music videos and has previous performed at Lollapalooza—fuses catchy melodies with personal, candid lyrics that explore human relationships, identity and other universally relatable themes. Her tearfully poignant song “I’m Sorry, Tokyo,” in which she shares her regret over not wanting to embrace her Japanese heritage as a teen, resonated with many Asian Americans upon its 2022 release.

Iam Tongi

Iam Tongi first caught the nation’s attention when he appeared on season 21 of American Idol and made the judges cry with his soul-stirring rendition of “Monsters” by James Blunt (the two artists would later perform the song together on the show). Iam became the first contestant from Hawaii and the first Pacific Islander to win American Idol. When Iam was 13, his late father—who constantly sought to nurture his son’s musical talent—spent his holiday paycheck to buy him a guitar—the same guitar that the teenage artist eventually used during his performances on American Idol. Since winning the singing competition, Iam has seen continued success with his singles “Why Kiki?” and “I’ll Be Seeing You,” which topped Billboard’s World Digital Song Sales and Rock Digital Song Sales charts, respectively.

Lyn Lapid

Filipina-American singer-songwriter Lyn Lapid started uploading covers on YouTube and Instagram in 2018, but it was when she began posting on TikTok that her popularity really took off. In 2020 she released a short TikTok video of her singing the opening verses to “Producer Man,” an original she’d begun writing about her own unpleasant exchanges with an exploitative music producer. Soon it blew up on TikTok, garnering over 50 million views before she’d even finished writing the song. “Producer Man” landed her a contract with Republic Records, and in 2022, she was named one of Shazam’s top five artists to watch. Her star continues to rise, with recent performances at 88rising’s Head in the Clouds Festivals in LA and NYC and her single “Cruise Control” being featured in an Uber commercial for Disney and Pixar’s Inside Out 2.

Eric Nam

Though born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, Eric Nam launched his music career by auditioning for a Korean televised singing competition, where he placed in the top five. Gifted with sweet vocals, stage presence and onscreen charisma, he subsequently found huge success in South Korea as a K-pop star and an in-demand TV personality, his bilingual skills making him a go-to host for conducting interviews with Hollywood celebrities.

Named GQ Korea’s Man of the Year in 2016, Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia in 2017 and a TIME100 Impact Award Honoree in 2023, Eric has also recently added acting and entrepreneurship to his list of many accomplishments. Along with his brothers Eddie and Brian Nam, he co-founded DIVE Studios, a popular podcast production company. Eric made his acting debut in the Forest Whitaker-produced psychological thriller Transplant (release date TBD) and will also be voicing Aang in the upcoming animated feature Aang: The Last Airbender. With his latest world tour selling out across six continents, it seems the sky’s the limit for the Korean-American multi-hyphenate.