Some artists take years to break through, others strike immediate success. This year's crop of breakthrough Canadian acts found their way to the spotlight through critically acclaimed releases, hit singles and life-changing co-signs from some of music's biggest names.

Below, we've highlighted 10 musicians who are pushing the boundaries of their respective genres, making an indelible mark on their music scenes and whose stars will undoubtedly continue to rise in the months and years to come.

Who were some of your favourite new artists of 2023?

"I've been quiet for a few years but, for good reason," announced Winnipeg-raised, Toronto-based Lavi$h in February, "I've been working on a voice loud enough to shake the world." His seven-song EP, You Made a Big Mistake, did indeed reveal an R&B singer-songwriter of seismic proportions, showing off a two-and-a-half octave range and myriad vocal colours. The project oozes confidence, which Lavi$h attributes in part to a Drake co-sign and working with OVO's Chubbs, who discovered Lavi$h and produced his EP in L.A. (Learn more in this documentary.) He opened for Jessie Reyez on the U.K. leg of her 2023 tour; then he traveled to South Africa as the opening act for Tamia; and most recently, he supported Victoria Monét for seven dates, culminating at Toronto's Danforth Music Hall. His momentum continued with a new single, "Your Biggest Fan," released on Dec. 15. — Robert Rowat

When rising Atlanta rapper Latto released her hit single, "Lottery," earlier this year, many didn't recognize the voice singing the song's hook. In a TikTok post, a number of guesses pop up onscreen — Miley Cyrus, Dua Lipa — until the clip ends with the real featured artist: "Surprise, it's me! I'm Lu Kala, and I'm your next new favourite pop star." Even though Kala's been working in the industry for almost a decade now, starting off as a songwriter for other artists, this year marked her true breakthrough. "Lottery" spent 16 weeks on the Billboard Canadian Hot 100, and her own upbeat, empowering anthems, "Pretty Girl Era" and "Hotter Now" have amassed millions of streams. If she's not your favourite pop star yet, she will be really soon. — Melody Lau

Released in March, Leith Ross's debut album, To Learn, was a raw look at the folk singer-songwriter's psyche as they unpacked themes spanning heartbreak and the comfort of chosen family. The introspective songs resonated with the Winnipeg singer's fervent fanbase — which includes Phoebe Bridgers, Courtney Barnett and Haim — and the track "We'll Never Have Sex," has been streamed over 63 million times on Spotify. Ross also embarked on their first headlining tour this year, performing songs from To Learn in several European cities as well as Canada, where they sold out Toronto's historic Danforth Music Hall. — Natalie Harmsen

This year started off with some big news for Toronto-based musician Debby Friday, who became the newest signee to famed Seattle rock label Sub Pop. But that was just the beginning. In March, Friday released her debut album, Good Luck, a kinetic collection of songs that fearlessly blurred the lines between genres, fusing techno, industrial rock, pop and more into something new and exciting. And then in September, Friday took home this year's Polaris Music Prize, adding a $50,000 cherry on top of what was already a successful year. "I've always been a little bit strange, a little bit different from other people," she said in her acceptance speech, "and it's only in retrospect that I've been able to see that this has been a superpower all along." 2023 was Friday's superhero origin story, and we can't wait to see where she goes next. — ML

With her debut album, Aiza has arrived on the scene with a new fresh sound — the self-proclaimed "Afro-bop queen" blends Afropop, R&B, reggaeton, samba and more Afro-diasporic genres to make music that incites movement. Her album, Sovereignty, came out in September as a follow up to the 2018 EP Adieu, her farewell to her home of Montreal for new ventures in Toronto. On Sovereignty, Aiza is fully realized, reclaiming her autonomy and finally in control. Leading up to the release of the album earlier this year she performed at the Gala Dynastie in Montreal, Toronto Pride and Afrowave, as well as opening for Kassa Overall at TD Music Hall. Not one to keep all her eggs in one basket, in between musical releases the Burundian-Canadian artist, actor and producer has launched her own award-winning CBC Gem series Real Blackity Talk and appeared in Workin' Moms, Jupiter's Legacy and other television roles. — Kelsey Adams

Nico Paulo teased an upcoming T-shirt design on Instagram earlier this month, and it's a perfect encapsulation of her year: a debut album release on April 8, followed by shows all over Atlantic Canada, Ontario and Portugal every month since. The Canadian-born singer-songwriter grew up in Portugal, moved to Toronto in 2014 and then to St. John's during the pandemic, and each form of home finds its way into her music, as it does her live shows. Her self-titled debut album — a stunning set of songs about all forms of love, infused with the warmth of her singular voice — was recorded on Nova Scotia's South Shore with co-producers Tim Baker and Joshua Van Tassel, featuring more fellow Newfoundlanders including clarinetist Mary Beth Waldram, singer Steve Maloney and Hey Rosetta!'s Adam Hogan. Community flows from Paulo's work, as she draws inspiration from Gal Costa, Feist and the Velvet Underground's Nico (with rays of Joni Mitchell's wry eye shining through), effectively adding her voice to the new generation of folk singers coming up on the East Coast. — Holly Gordon

Winnipeg musician Fontine spent the past couple of years backing her friend Boy Golden on tour, but this year was her time to step into the spotlight. Her debut EP, Yarrow Lover, was a beautiful, intimate collection of songs that won many over — including CBC Music, which placed Fontine's track "Homemaker" on its top 100 songs of 2023 list. Her deeply personal songwriting puts her in the same lineage as some of this country's best songwriters like Sarah Harmer or Kathleen Edwards, but infused with her own identity, as she told CBC Music's The Intro earlier this year: "All of the songs are about me being a queer person, for the most part. I think it's just really important for me personally to be very vocal about it because we need to see that representation." — ML

Aqyila's career thus far is the perfect encapsulation of a slow burn. She dropped her debut single "Vibe for Me (Bob for Me)" on Tik Tok in 2020, in 2021 it went viral after Lizzo shared it and she received shout outs from Brandy and Monica, in 2022 she was nominated for her first Juno Award and now, in 2023 she's released her debut EP, For the Better. All the pieces have really fallen into place for the Toronto R&B singer, whose crystalline vocals and vulnerable songwriting have racked up north of 30 million streams and views across Spotify and Youtube. For the Better shows all of the sides of the singer, from pleading R&B to blasé neo-soul to gritty pop. She's been in Los Angeles working over the past few months, and has teased fans with new music created in those sessions, so it looks like she'll be keeping up the momentum in 2024. — KA

Scarborough, Ont. singer Chxrry22 (pronounced cherry) made history when she became the first woman signed to the Weeknd's label, XO, in 2022. However, 2023 was when the R&B musician truly took off, with the release of her second EP, Siren. With glossy, sensual vocals and lyrics that aptly illustrate tangled romances, the moody project showcased her refreshingly alternative, dark sound. (The song "Worlds Away" was named one of the year's best.) Siren featured collaborations with Grammy-winning songwriter Vory and multi-platinum rapper Offset, and their star power only amplified Chxrry22's rapidly rising status. It's just the beginning for the singer, who will open for the Weeknd in Australia and New Zealand when his After Hours til Dawn tour recommences in 2024. — NH

Somali-Canadian artist Idman was immersed in social justice work (they co-found the Portland Racial Justice Congress while attending school in Maine) when they decided to make the move into music. That eventually led Idman back to Toronto, where they graduated from the Remix Project and found a mentor in Salaam Remi (Amy Winehouse, Jazmine Sullivan). This year, Idman put out Risk, their debut EP packed with emotional truths couched in bass-bumping R&B soundscapes. "I'm figuring out if all the risks I've been taking have been worth it and I don't feel ashamed about sharing what I've found for better or worse," they said, in a statement about the release. It's that unfiltered honesty that makes Idman's music feel so potent and relatable — leaving them with endless possibilities on where to take their music next. — ML