Hip Hop Dominates SXSW With Rappers Khalid and Shah Nominated for Top New Artist of SXSW

[Organic Music Marketing]

2018 was a breakout year for hip hop at SXSW, which has traditionally been heavy on the discovery of live music that didn't include the ‘urban’ genre. Three of the most buzzed about acts included Rae Sremmurd, Khalid, and Shah. Rae Sremmurd have been popular worldwide for years now, but this was the first year that they were embraced with such open arms in Austin. Khalid and Shah were both nominated by New Artist Club as some of the top new artists of SXSW 2018, with Shah being crowned #1. Shah was also listed as the #1 breakout artist of SXSW by the blog Hip Hop Monsters with a showcase featuring fellow Toronto rappers Killy, Big Lean, CMDWN, and Sean Leon being listed as one of the most buzzed about shows. We've seen a change in mainstream music in the past year or two with hip hop and trap beginning to dominate over pop and country (which shockingly used to be the most popular genre in America) and this year’s SXSW festival represented this shift. We also saw Canada take a step up with many of the hottest new rappers being from Toronto, including Shah.