19. Jacob Whitesides
18. Chloe x Halle
17. Desiigner
16. Lee Hi
15. Bea Miller
14. Trevor Jackson
13. Daya
12. Jaden Smith
11. Hailee Steinfeld
10. Zara Larsson
9. Becky G
8. Martin Garrix
7. Alessia
6. Willow
5. Zendaya
4. Babymetal
3. Lorde
Quote:
Why She's Great: It's been almost three years since a 16-year-old New Zealand kid born Ella Yelich O'Connor took on the world with the incisive "Royals." The album that followed, Pure Heroine, was so powerful, true and visionary that it still casts an imposing shadow over the dark, auteurist pop trickling out in 2016. Lorde doesn't need her god-name to prove she's queen of the teens.
2. Shawn Mendes
Quote:
Why He’s Great: After establishing himself on Vine, Canadian singer-songwriter Shawn Mendes has proven he’s far more than just a six-second wonder. In 2015 alone, Mendes opened for Taylor Swift on her 1989 stadium tour; scored a No. 1 album with his debut LP, Handwritten; and took over radio with his pensive pop-rock track “Stitches” (current YouTube views: over 400 million). Recently, Shawn has teamed up with Fifth Harmony’s Camila Cabello for the duet “I Know What You Did Last Summer” and headlined his own tour in the spring of 2016. Mendes is ubiquitous at 17 years old, and judging by his songwriting chops, it’s very clear that he’s just getting started.
1. Fifth Harmony
Quote:
When One Direction and (to a lesser extent) The Wanted broke out in the U.S. in 2012, the boy band revival officially began…and girl group fans wondered when their representation was going to arrive in America. It’s been a long time coming, but Fifth Harmony is finally there, with a Top 10 smash in “Work From Home” following radio staples like last year’s “Worth It” and “Sledgehammer.” Aside from the Top 40 success, 5H has developed a deeply devoted fan base that has led to bigger shows, brighter TV opportunities and higher profiles for Camila, Ally, Dinah, Normani and Lauren. With four of the five girls still under 20, Fifth Harmony are teen queens exuding positivity and empowerment; give them your devotion, because they are very much worth it.
How can they say that Jaden Smith, Zendaya, Willow, and Becky G (who all didn't get a T40 hit in 2015) are bigger than Daya (2 T40 hits in 2016, with both going T10 on pop radio) right now?
