After 2024 introduced us to a host of new stars from the world of music, TV, film and beyond that are undoubtedly here to stay, breaking out a new calendar means it’s time to usher in a new wave of talent.
From break-out performers of the last year to musicians with exciting new material to debut, we’ve rounded up 10 rising stars we think we’ll be hearing a lot more of in the year ahead.
These are our ones to watch for 2025...
Rachel Chinouriri
It’s fair to say Rachel Chinouriri’s 2024 went out on a high.
Fresh from glowing reviews for her debut album What A Devastating Turn Of Events (trailed by lead single Never Need Me and its Florence Pugh co-signed music video), Rachel performed her biggest headlining tour to date, ending in a sold-out hometown show at London’s Kentish Town Forum and landed one of her biggest streaming hits to date with the Cat Burns collab Even.
Fans can no doubt look forward to new material from Rachel over the course of next year – but before that, she’ll be opening for one of the biggest names in pop right now when she joins Sabrina Carpenter as the support act on her Short ’N Sweet tour.
Myles Smith
The industry is already predicting big things for singer-songwriter Myles Smith, after he made the shortlist of the BBC’s Sound Of 2025 list (joining more established names including Chappell Roan, Doechii, Kneecap, Ezra Collective and Mercury winners English Teacher) and beat stiff competition to bag the Brits’ Rising Star award (previously won by the likes of Sam Fender, Florence + The Machine and Adele).
Last year, Myles achieved a huge breakout moment when his single Stargazing blew up on TikTok and reached number four in the UK singles chart – with his full-length debut album now one of 2025′s most-anticipated releases.
Drew Starkey
Supporting roles in the likes of Love, Simon and The Hate U Give led to Drew Starkey landing a part in the ongoing Netflix series Outer Banks.
However, most of us now know him best for his role in the second of Luca Guadagnino’s two big-screen offerings of 2024, playing the younger lover of Daniel Craig in Queer.
After becoming one of the internet’s new boyfriends these past months, it’s no understatement to say that his fans are on tenterhooks to see what the US performer’s next role will be.
Monica Barbaro
Monica Barbaro’s profile in the acting world has been steadily building thanks to her performances in Top Gun: Maverick, I’m Charlie Maverick and the Arnold Schwarzenegger Netflix project Fubar.
She’ll next be seen in action in the musical biopic A Complete Unknown, sharing the screen with Timothée Chalamet as the Joan Baez to his Bob Dylan.
After that, you can catch her in the star-studded Crime 101, which also features Marvel icons Chris Hemsworth and Mark Ruffalo, Oscar winner Halle Berry and another man of the moment, Barry Keoghan.
Towa Bird
British performer Towa Rock’s guitar skills and unique take on indie rock and pop-punk have already earned her a legion of supporters, including industry peers like Olivia Rodrigo, who recruited her as part of the band for her Disney+ documentary Driving Home 2 U.
Next year, you can catch Towa opening for Billie Eilish on the UK leg of her Hit Me Hard And Soft, having previously been the opening act for Mean Girls star and pop sensation Renée Rapp (with whom she happens to now be dating).
It’s safe to assume she’ll also follow her album American Hero and subsequent EP Rat Race with more new music in 2025.
GK Barry
After already becoming an internet sensation thanks to her hugely popular TikTok page and her podcast Saving Grace, GK Barry was already making the jump to TV when I’m A Celebrity and Strictly Come Dancing were reportedly in a bidding war to try and snag for her their most recent seasons.
In the end, Grace wound up heading for the jungle, where she showed off her interviewing skills by subtly getting the tea from her campmates and making viewers howl, eventually pushing her through to fifth place.
Given just how many of the UK’s current crop of young presenting talents right now (we’re looking in your direction, Joel Dommett, AJ Odudu and Jordan North) landed their biggest gigs off the back of reality TV stints, we reckon it’s only a matter of time before the right telly project comes along to boost Grace’s career to the next level.
Cole Escola
Anyone who’d seen Cole Escola’s supporting (though usually scene-stealing) performances in the sitcom Difficult People, sketch comedy At Home With Amy Sedaris or the talk show Ziwe will know it would be only a matter of time before the US performer had their breakthrough moment.
That came in 2024 when their cult off-Broadway show Oh, Mary! made the jump to Broadway, and quickly became the hottest ticket in town, earning Cole universal acclaim.
With Cole now stepping down from the role of a reimagined Mary Todd Lincoln and Time listing them as one of the public figures on their 100 Next list, the world’s eyes are on them to see what they follow their hit show with. Frankly, we can’t wait, but we’re keeping our fingers crossed that it includes a West End transfer of Oh, Mary!...
Mark Eidelstein
Mikey Madison and Yura Borisov might be the ones tipped for recognition at awards season in 2025, but we wouldn’t sleep on their Anora co-star Mark Eidelstein, either.
Already being branded “the Russian Timothée Chalamet” in the press, Mark’s performance as Anya in Anora made the character immediately charming – only to have us furiously rooting against him by the end of the film.
With skills like that, and the way he charmed the media and his new fans on the festival circuit while promoting Anora, we don’t anticipate it’ll be long until he’s following in Timothée’s footsteps in a big way.
Benito Skinner
The platform Benito Skinner secured for himself as a comedian and content creator during the height of the Covid pandemic has already translated to a hit podcast and roles in Curb Your Enthusiasm and Queer As Folk – while even the famously humour-deficient Kardashians have given him his seal of approval thanks to his impressions.
In the coming year, his stand-up show Overcompensating – about his experiences being closeted as a high school student – will serve as the basis for a new Amazon Prime sitcom, with Benito taking the lead as a fictionalised version of himself.
Charley Marlowe
We’ve been howling at Charley Marlowe’s unfiltered and hilarious commentary over on TikTok for ages now, so it’s great that 2024 was the year the telly industry started catching up.
After cropping up on red carpets – where she brought some much-needed levity to events like the TV Baftas – and serving as the new narrator on the BBC dating series I Kissed A Girl, here’s hoping the momentum keeps up and we start seeing even more of Charley on our screens in 2025.