Birthed from a heady mix of Gen Z angst and increased access to cheap yet professional music software, Bedroom Pop is quickly becoming one of the decade’s most exciting genres. With a meteoric rise to fame, for all the right reasons, it is a fascinating genre which has somehow found itself being characterised by place rather than sound. Diverse in nature, its artists come from varied cultural backgrounds and take inspiration from a plethora of genres. From the offbeat synth leads of shoegaze to the nostalgic fuzziness of lo-fi, Bedroom Pop mixes a variety of sonic themes together, resulting in a refreshing and ultimately reassuring approach to modern day pop. Constructed within the comforting realm of the bedroom, Bedroom Pop has pushed out against the boundaries of the music industry without ever leaving the room.

Central to the genre’s popularity is the highly accessible DIY aesthetic that shines through within many of its tracks. Emerging singer-songwriter mxmtoon declared in an interview with NBC that:

“Anyone can make music, and I think that is the idea behind bedroom pop”

With more and more high-quality music production programmes being created anyone with a laptop can try their hand at the genre, resulting in a surge of innovative yet simplistic beats. In an industry which is increasingly controlled by corporate labels, Bedroom Pop fights back, encouraging creative expression over diluted chart toppers. For angsty teenagers the bedroom has always felt like a sanctum from the cruel world and this feeling resonates within the genre. Predominately existing on the fringes of the music world, artists find immense freedom within the safety of their own bedroom. With just a laptop and their thoughts, we see musicians become vastly intimate within their songs. Emotional barriers are naturally deconstructed within our bedrooms, it’s a safe space where the mind often wonders to more sensitive topics. The likes of Steve Lacy and Current Joys explore complex themes of adolescent confusion and emotional strife, something which their younger audience can strongly relate to. It doesn’t only sound like a genre anyone can make, it’s a genre anyone can sing along to.

Because of the genres inherit accessibility it has resulted in an incredibly diverse cast of artists who serve as a poignant example of Bedroom Pop’s unwavering creativity. Each with their own inspiration and ideas, individuals within the genre have curated whimsical, comforting sounds, each unique to their personality. Perhaps pioneering this style was the indie culture icon, MacDemarco. Adhering to the philosophy that less is more he uses striped back minimalist instrumentals, and soft vocals to create a dream like atmosphere. One of the genre’s most popular figures, Sven Gamsky, known by Still Woozy, clearly takes influence from Mac’s spacey minimalism, yet injects it with his own psychedelic approach. Bouncy synths and distorted guitar solos work alongside his strained, weary vocals to fashion a transcendental sound that leaves you staring off into the distance. Then you have the likes of Rex Orange County who seamlessly mixes the likes of Hip-Hop, Jazz and Soul to incredible success. All these different influences result in an ever-changing tone that’s always different but still reassuringly similar, with a woozy, introverted sound that wraps your ear drums like a cashmere throw. Yet if you listen just a little closer, you’ll find that Bedroom Pop very often wears its feelings boldly upon its sleeve.

More than ever, the distance between creator and consumer is immeasurable, with artists existing as inaccessible figures within the far-off realm of pop culture. However, Bedroom Pop has drastically reduced this disparity, deconstructing the celebrity figure into the everyday individual, in turn exaggerating the theme of intimacy. Often posting their tracks to YouTube first, artists can instantaneously go from obscurity to fame. Clairo’s hit single ‘Pretty Girl’ is the perfect example of this straightforward approach to music publising. Uploaded to YouTube when she was just 18 the track epitomises the genres brutally honest topics, as she openly explores a past relationship in which she felt the need to “be the perfect girl for another person”. Recorded in the humble setting of her own bedroom, using nothing more than the camera on her laptop, the music video is beautifully simple, directly mirroring those innocent iMovie’s we all at some point forced our parents to watch. Clairo shows us exactly who she is, and tells us exactly how she is feeling, nothing is held back across the tracks three-minute runtime. In being so raw both lyrically and stylistically Clairo had already fashioned an authentic anthem to be enjoyed by the younger generation, however in choosing to initially upload to YouTube she further deconstructed any potential distance between listener and artist. Anyone can post to YouTube and anyone can watch something on YouTube, so Clairo consciously portrays herself as nothing more than that; she both is the everyday and experiences the everyday. She’s not trying to be a celebrity superstar; she’s just being herself and that’s what made ‘Pretty Girl’ so popular, the listener can just as easily picture themselves up upon the screen. The accessible lyrics and authentic videos of Bedroom Pop have danced around corporate control thanks to the help of platforms like YouTube, resulting in one of the most intimate genres to date which is totally free to quietly discuss some of life’s more sensitive topics.

With artists from a variety of cultural backgrounds, there is an excellent representation of minority groups within the genre who have taken advantage of the liberty YouTube offers and infused their own identities within their music. One artist who has taken advantage of this creative freedom is Marie Ulven Ringheim, better known as ‘girl in red’. Skirting around potential gatekeepers by originally posting to Soundcloud and subverting label restrictions, she openly discusses themes of queerness on tracks like ‘girls’ and ‘i wanna be your girlfriend’, quickly becoming an important LGBTQ figure in the music industry. The latter track was recorded in her bedroom and posted straight to YouTube in 2018, and since it has amassed 120 million streams on Spotify and acted as a cathartic anthem for so many teens struggling with their own sexuality. Ulven and others have transformed the bedroom into a place of liberation for minority groups. Artists can create a conversation with their audience, one which encourages differences and reassures the listener that they aren’t alone in their struggle, ultimately resulting in a refreshingly conscious approach to music that has seen the genre become immensely popular.

Upon first listen Bedroom Pop is a never ending starry horizon of soothing vocals and dreamy jams, but upon further inspection it becomes so much more than that. Made up of a new guard of innovative, exciting individuals it’s a subtly rebellious genre that quietly stands up for its own interests and constantly pushes the boundaries of what can be achieved from the most personal room in the house.

It also happens to sound really fucking cool so here’s a playlist to set you on your way.