It’s that time of year again! The 36th Annual GLAAD Media Awards are right around the corner. Hosted by the incredible Michael Urie, with exciting honorees like Cynthia Erivo, and special guests like Doechii, Maren Morris, Keke Palmer, and Patti LuPone making appearances, this year’s awards are sure to be one for the books. And it’s all happening Thursday, March 27th at the Beverly Hilton in Los Angeles.
Every year, the GLAAD Media Awards celebrate rising artists who are shaping the future of music and bringing meaningful LGBTQ representation to the world with the Breakthrough Music Artist category. Time and again, a nomination in this category has marked the early stages of an artist’s rise to mainstream success, with past honorees like Chappell Roan, Ice Spice, Renée Rapp, Doechii, Steve Lacy, and Omar Apollo going on to become some of the most influential names in the industry.
In this unprecedented time for the LGBTQ community under President Trump’s administration, with executive orders and directives aiming to ban gender-affirming care for minors, ban trans people from the military, restrict funding for schools that are LGBTQ-inclusive, and to simply eliminate queer and trans people’s identities, it is more important than ever to have outspoken and proud LGBTQ artists in the spotlight, using their platforms to promote positive change for the community.
Without further ado, here are the nominees for Outstanding Breakthrough Music Artist at the 36th Annual GLAAD Media Awards:
beabadoobee
beabadoobee first entered the limelight in 2020, when featured on Powfu‘s chart topping hit, Death Bed (Coffee for Your Head.) The song went viral on TikTok, piquing fans interest in the Philippines born bedroom-pop artist. From there, she continued to pick up steam, with romantic and melodic singles like Glue Song and The Perfect Pair going viral.
Ironically, it was getting expelled from high school at 17, that helped her discover that music was her true calling. Her father bought her a second-hand guitar to make her feel better, and the rest was history. A year later, she was already being signed to Dirty Hit, the flagship label of huge stars like The 1975 and Rina Sawayama.
Debuting her third studio album in 2024, This Is How Tomorrow Moves catapulted her into mainstream success. The indie rock album peaked at #1 on the UK’s charts and has brought the bisexual artist over 24 million monthly listeners on Spotify alone.
The album is both heartbreaking and empowering, recounting tales of toxic relationships and finding closure.
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At only 24-years-old, Bea has already worked with some of the biggest names in music, recently touring with Clairo, The 1975, Halsey, Olivia Rodrigo, and even Taylor Swift!
Catch beabadoobee on her upcoming tour!
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The Blessed Madonna
The Blessed Madonna is an artist like no other. While the American DJ has been in the game since the late 90s, it wasn’t until 2024 that she produced her long anticipated debut studio album Godspeed. And their millions of monthly listeners can all agree, it was worth the wait.
The Blessed Madonna has worked with many of the greats throughout their career, with tracks featuring and remixing artists like Florence & the Machine, Dua Lipa, Kylie Minogue, Ariana Grande, and Fred again…, amongst countless others.
They have DJed all over the world at huge festivals like Drumsheds, DGTL, FuturFestival, Parklife, and Coachella, just to name a few.
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If The Blessed Madonna has one goal when making music, it is to get audiences dancing. That, and using their platform to speak up for what’s right.
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As a longtime activist, The Blessed Madonna takes every opportunity to protest protest attacks on civil liberties. Most recently at the BAFTA red carpet, wielding a fan that read “This Machine Kills Facism.”
In a post on Instagram they wrote, “The fight against fascism started long ago and has risen and fallen in intensity and location, but the time is now. The place is now. Shout it, wear it, be it. You don’t need a cape to be a hero in this battle (although I sure did feel powerful in mine borrowed from and created with love by the astonishing Deborah Latouche). The worst of us have a toe hold at the moment. We can either live in fear, or live in courage. I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else. And if you give me a microphone, I’m yelling in it, or rather clacking a fan so loud that whoever you are, you pay attention for a second,” reminding the masses that we too, have a voice.
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Keep up with @TheBlessedMadonna on Instagram and stream Godspeed now.
Durand Bernarr
“I’m not meant to be understood; I’m meant to be experienced,” Durand Bernarr told NPR moments before his iconic Tiny Desk performance in 2023.
The R&B and soul artist earned himself a Grammy nomination this year for his EP En Route for Best Progressive R&B Album. The project highlights his queer experience and makes audiences want to get up and dance. Never shying away from his true self, Bernarr’s authenticity is undeniable.
Bernarr, on Ohio native, told The Buckeye Flame in a recent interview that his love for music “really just comes from my upbringing.” He shared that, “My parents made sure I had a voice. That I was heard. They taught me to ask questions, be a good friend, and look people in the eye. I had a support system that never threw me away. That foundation is what I bring into my music.”
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Bernarr is Overqualified, to say the least. He has been in the music world since he was a teenager, posting covers of his favorite artists on the internet and working as a production assistant for bands as iconic as Earth, Wind, and Fire. From there, Bernarr has provided vocals for a variety of projects for artists like Erykah Badu, Anderson .Paak, Kaytranada, and The Internet.
With his new album Bloom out now, Bernarr is not slowing down. Don’t miss Durand Bernarr’s upcoming world tour! Catch a show in a city near you:
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Gigi Perez
Gigi Perez is another artist who was able to reach a massive fanbase through TikTok. With Sailor Song easily securing it’s spot in the 2024 internet hall of fame, she is more than deserving of her nomination for Breakthrough Artist of the Year.
Out and proud with her identity as a lesbian, Perez has spoken candidly about her religious upbringing and how isolated she felt as a kid. In an interview with Billboard, she said that, “One of the things in life that I’ve struggled with — and part of why I decided that I wanted to be an artist — is the feeling of loneliness that comes with the lie that no one understands you. I think about the artists that changed my life in that way, and one of the first gay projects that I had that with was Troye Sivan’s Blue Neighbourhood. That changed my life. I couldn’t even imagine that somebody could be there for me during a time when I couldn’t express or understand what I was feeling.”
She went on to say, “It’s so beautiful now that there’s so much media that really highlights the gay and queer experience. Kids need that. Actually, people in general, not just children… It’s very special to me that, in any capacity, I could be a part of that.”
Dedicating her life and career to honoring her late sister Celene, Gigi has written countless songs aimed to help herself, and others going through the many stages of grief. Perez describes one of her newest songs Fable as an ode to her complicated relationship with religion.
@gigi4perezI dream of eternal life♬ original sound – Gigi Perez
Queer fans all over the world can relate to these themes. Lyrics like “love was the law and religion was taught,” remind audiences that Christianity was never meant to be a vehicle for hate.
@gigi4perez♬ love was the law – Gigi Perez
With over 27 million monthly listeners and performing on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon all before she’s even released her first album, it’s clear the powerhouse artist is someone to watch. Keep up with Gigi @Gigi4Perez and catch her on her upcoming world tour!
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The Last Dinner Party
The Last Dinner Party has the Feminine Urge to change the face of music. Originally from London, members Abigail Morris, Lizzie Mayland, Emily Roberts, Georgia Davies, and Aurora Nishevci have no interest conforming to norms of any kind. First joining forces in 2021, the band has become an international success, selling out shows all over the world on their headlining tour.
Dropping their first studio album in 2024, Prelude to Ecstasy was certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry and peaked at#1 on the UK’s charts. Beloved by the LGBTQ community, nonbinary guitarist Lizzie Mayland told DIVA Magazine that their smash hit Sinner is “about growing up in a small town and it being kind of prejudiced and not having words for their sexuality unless it’s a negative thing.” They said that, “The first time I heard ‘lesbian’ or ‘queer’ or whatever wasn’t in a positive way.”
What is perhaps a fan favorite of the album, Caesar on a TV Screen describes the band’s relationship with gender. All dressed as men in the music video, described as an adaptation of Shakespeare‘s Julius Caesar, the song lyrics state; “Every night when we say goodbye, I know that I can see myself as a man. When I put on that suit, I don’t have to stay mute. I can talk all the time ‘Cause my shoulders are wide.”
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Keep up with the alternative rock band @TheLastDinnerParty for updates on new music and tour dates!
Medium Build
He may go by the name of Medium Build, but his impact is huge. Based in the great state of Alaska, the artist also known as Nicholas Carpenter, is blending genres and taking names. Aptly titled Country, Medium Build’s 5th studio album took a turn from his usual indie pop vibe.
He first reached the charts in 2023 when featured on X Ambassador‘s Friend for Life, and he’s been on the rise ever since.
Much like Gigi Perez, Carpenter was raised in a very religious household. In an interview with Rolling Stone UK, he said that, “When I was 18 or 19 I had my big battle with faith and realized that maybe it wasn’t what I thought it was. I was in my early twenties when I thought, ‘Oh maybe I’m not straight. Like, what is gender and sex anyway?’ I had to kill the binaries of those to grow into a new era. Kill the thing I used to believe.”
In the same interview, he said that he describes his music as “soul songs for indie queer kids or country music for city kids.”
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Also in 2024, Medium Build collabed with Boygenius’s Julien Baker on a melodic and heartbreaking single called Yoke. The two longtime friends talked with Northern Transmissions about the track, with Carpenter explaining, “This industry is lonely and the value of long-lasting friendships cannot be overstated, but having a friend in this business that you look up to, admire and adore is a godsend.” Baker said that Carpenter’s music “reports from the borders of the absurd with humor and grace—with allowance for, of all things, fun—unafraid of ugliness but always begging the merit of levity.”
Debuting in 2016, Medium Build has since toured with stars like Holly Humberstone, Finneas, and Lewis Capaldi. Now, he’s heading out on his headlining tour with Petey USA! Check it out below:
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Michaela Jaé
Fans may know Michaela Jaé as the critically acclaimed actress from Pose and Loot. In 2022, Rodriguez made history by becoming the first out transgender person to win a Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Drama. Now, she is breaking into the world of music.
33 is a genre blending pop and R&B album that gets listeners dancing, but also thinking. The sci-fi concept album follows the story of a robot named 33F7. In an interview with GLAAD, Rodriguez explained, “This whole concept of the album, I feel like I wanted to try to be a voice for this character that I created named 33F7. She’s a model of creation and I wanted to be the voice for her since she’s the future and she’s not able to physically be here.”
One of the album’s biggest hits is Green Lights. She told GLAAD, “When I first created ‘Green Lights,’ it was literally the beginning of her life in the future and how she was going to recollect her past and how she was in the present day to really try to fix the future.” Adding that, “I wanted my music to really penetrate those of queer people and make them feel and know that no matter what anyone says… We are the example. We are the testament. We are the catalyst to profound and beautiful, prolific work.”
Watch the full interview here:
Fans are loving this new era for the groundbreaking actress and activist. Embodying trans joy, she is providing powerful representation for trans people of color all over the world, proving that anything is possible.
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Keep up with Michaela @Mjrodriguez7!
Remi Wolf
Remi Wolf first caught the world’s attention in 2020 with her viral hit Photo ID. The classic pandemic-pop hit appeared on Wolf’s EP I’m Allergic to Dogs!, later releasing a remix featuring rapper Dominic Fike. Since then, Remi Wolf has become a household name.
2024 was a huge year for the bisexual artist, releasing her second studio album Big Ideas. Wolf had the opportunity to perform this album on both her own headlining tour and as an opening act for Olivia Rodrigo’s Guts World Tour!
Wolf achieved TikTok stardom again this year with her tracks Soup and Cinderella going viral.
In an intimate conversation with friend and artist Clairo for Interview Magazine, the fellow queer icon praised Remi Wolf’s new album, stating, “It’s the word choices, the phrasing. It’s all so deliberate and it has such a strong sense of self, but also you manage to have a silliness and a nonchalant attitude. I think that’s why your songs are so addictive. The genius of your writing is that you want to put the song in your mouth, especially on ‘Pitiful.’ I want to eat that song.”
The two spoke in depth about Big Ideas, with Wolf sharing that. “Having to explain the overarching meaning of your record is so difficult, because at least for me, there’s parts of myself that I literally cannot communicate unless it is through this medium.”
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On her queer identity, in an interview with Vogue she shared, “I’m just trying to be myself. I’m writing a lot about my literal life experiences.”
Don’t miss Remi Wolf’s upcoming tour!
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Villano Antillano
Villano Antillano is the future of rap. Originally from Bayamón, Puerto Rico, the singer is continuing to break down barriers in the cis-male dominated worlds of reggaeton and trap.
Antillano’s 2024 album Miss Misogyny was wildly successful, bringing the singer over 8 million monthly listeners on Spotify alone. Singing in both Spanish and English, Antillano has amassed a massive international fanbase. Her iconic and sultry music videos gain views by the millions, securing her title as an icon.
In an interview with Billboard, Antillano talked about how as a transfemme artist, “There is no tolerance for women like me in the genre I have forcibly inserted myself in. To say there is would be a delusion and an attack on the works of queer people everywhere who consume said genre.” She added that, “I have helped make queer musicians and artists more visible perhaps; but tolerance, respect and equality are not things we have at the moment. That’s just the truth. Also, I think it’s important to state that I personally am not striving for tolerance, nobody has the power to “tolerate” me, I yield that power myself and demand respect over all things.”
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Villano has already made history, with her music reaching the Billboard Argentina Hot 100 and Billboard Spain Hot 100, making her the first transgender and nonbinary artist to reach the Top 50: Global on Spotify charts.
Antillano has collabed with some of the most iconic figures in Latin Rap and Pop like Lola Indigo, Maria Becerra, fellow nominee Young Miko, and Argentine producer Bizarrap. Antillano and Bizarrap’s 2022 collab on BZRP Music Sessions #51 has reached over 281 million fans on YouTube alone! Check out this iconic moment in Latin Rap below:
Keep up with @VillanoAntillano for upcoming tour dates and new music!
Young Miko
Much like Villano Antillano, Young Miko is shaking up the Puerto Rican rap game. With 20 million monthly listeners and a Latin American Music Award under her belt already, Young Miko is only just getting started.
With her debut album Att. dropping in 2024, Young Miko is bringing some much needed sapphic representation to the Urbano scene. Formerly a professional soccer player, Young Miko, AKA María Victoria, started making music on SoundCloud in 2018.
In an interview with Rolling Stone, the legendary Bad Bunny, who was honored with the Vanguard Award at the 34th Annual GLAAD Media Awards, praised Young Miko, stating, “Young Miko is a new face that’s breaking through, and I like her a lot. I feel like she has so much to show people, like she hasn’t showed people all her tricks yet.”
In the same article, Young Miko proudly told Rolling Stone, “My music is for the girlies and the they/thems,” she says. “Having the courage to talk about how I feel and what I actually like is what makes my project so different.” Her fans lovingly call themselves “mikosexuals.”
Young Miko recently made her U.S. TV debut on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon! where she performed offline with Feid.
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Keep up with her on Instagram @ItsYoungMiko.
All of these artists have done incredible work in the fight to accelerate acceptance for the LGBTQ community. By being authentically themselves and creating art that inspires, they’re all champions of visibility and change. Keep up with @GLAAD for updates about the 36th Annual GLAAD Media Awards!
The 36th Annual GLAAD Media Awards will take place on March 27th, 2025 in Los Angeles, CA. The GLAAD Media Awards honor media for fair, accurate, and inclusive representations of LGBTQ people and issues. Since 1990, the GLAAD Media Awards have grown to be the most visible annual LGBTQ awards show in the world, sending powerful messages of acceptance to audiences globally.
Learn more here.