25 great songs from Michigan artists in 2025 (so far)

Songs for people

Happy solstice, Radio Amor readers!

Find me a more ideal day on the calendar. I dare you. It is also Friday. So, like, come on! Great day.

To celebrate this day of maximum daylight, I’ve selected 25 songs from Michigan artists that have resonated with me in one way or another this year.

You may be familiar with some of the artists from previous Radio Amor features, which shouldn’t be too surprising. It’s been a tremendous honor to talk with people who make music that I love and that’s not lost on me.

There also is plenty of new material highlighted here that I’m really excited about, emphasizing the rich range of talent from artists in Michigan.

Beyond Michigan, what songs or albums or artists have you been listening to this year? Lemme know in the comments. With that, here’s a look at some great songs from Michigan artists this year.

May Erlewine — Animal

When will you set yourself free? May Erlewine asks on Animal, a jam she certainly cannot be accused of being restrained on. Backed by a chugging indie rock guitar riff that slyly burns and builds tension, the song eventually releases and unravels with Erlewine’s voice giving out, delivering an anthem that will bring you to your feet with applause on this should-be hit. Check out Radio Amor’s review of Erlewine’s latest album What it Takes.

Bronson Arm - Permitted To Be Omitted

There is an inevitably to hearing the word “sludge” in describing Kalamazoo band Bronson Arm’s sound and the sound of its latest record, Casket Schwagg. Hey, if the shoe fits. Permitted To Be Omitted kicks off the two-piece’s outstanding Tour de sludge with an immediate eye for the bottom as

Tobin Sprout — Pop Da Dada

I’m still kind of taken aback by this unassuming song and its ability to move me. Guided By Voices secret sauce generator Tobin Sprout has always delivered a tender, world weary message and that is certainly the case on Pop Da Dada. The song wobbles into focus before Sprout delicate, high-pitched vocals deliver some haymaker lines like time I can’t afford no more and the worthless sounds and thoughts abound from sadness. Fans of GBV will feel at home here.

Neu Blume — Let It Win

When you first hear that guitar riff, you know Let It Win is going to be a winner. The title track and one of several standouts from Mo Neuharth and Colson Miller’s album documenting their transition from Phoenix to Detroit, Let It Win is an instantly recognizable and comforting folk pop single. It’s a song about being comfortable inside of conflict and struggles within any sort of relationship, Neuharth told Radio Amor, bringing with it a calming, reassuring wisdom.

Kora Feder — Rambling Man

The title of Kora Feder’s album Some Kind of Truth is tucked in the middle of her musings on the state of her life on album opener Rambling Man. Feder’s poetic delivery finds her surmising that her life contains multitudes, all on display for the listener to ponder. Radio Amor spoke to Feder about the album earlier this year.

Idle Ray — Fell Off

Fred Thomas is remembering some folks who’ve fallen off behind a feather-light Real Estate-esque guitar progression on Fell Off, a standout track from his Idle Ray project’s outstanding new album Even in the Spring. Thomas is masterfully poetic on the tossed off indie jangle pop tune with lyrical references to those who are living in a snowglobe of deactivated beauty unaware its time has past.

HiTech — NEW JAZZ SCHMELL

HiTech’s hilarious, raunchy brand of groundbreaking Detroit ghetto tech continues to expand into new territory, as the aptly titled NEW JAZZ SCHMELL suggests. While the trio of King Milo, Milf Melly and DJ 47Chops aim to create chaos throughout their latest release HONEYPAQQ Vol. 1, NEW JAZZ SCHMELL’s airy verses hint at new territory the band is capable of bringing the part to.

Carbon Decoy — Heavy Weight

My hope is that Heavy Weight is Carbon Decoy’s uncompromising warning sign of what’s to come — a runaway freight train of a jam created for no other purpose than to be just that. While the song’s message boasts about an end of the line, the small town Michigan stoner rockers have hinted at a dynamic poised to be just getting started. The band will release their second album Crush the Sun on July 18.

Phabies — The Bloodletting

Phabies’ Laura Hobson aims to deliver a message of nurturing on the Grand Rapids band’s latest album The Curse of Caring. This can mean knowing when to let go, as she does on the triumphant indie pop bop The Bloodletting. It’s a song that showcases the sharpening of Hobson’s songwriting and the band’s use of studio as a tool in crafting its sound. Check out Radio Amor’s feature on Phabies here.

Dick Texas — Acrid

All That Fall, Valerie Salerno’s debut album as Dick Texas, finds the singer/songwriter balancing the eerie with the disarming. Salerno strikes that balance perfectly on Acrid, a fuzzier, more psychedelic take on a spare, bedroom recording released three years earlier.

Black Milk & Fat Ray — Talcum

The chemistry between Detroit rap staples Black Milk and Fat Ray is immediately evident on Talcum, a foreboding song on the duo’s exceptional new album Food From the Gods. Sonically, it pays dues to Dilla, with Fat Ray in complete control at the mic about making his next move during perilous times. The duo’s fearlessness feels contagious.

Hala — So Cold

Ian Ruhala’s throwback sound and overall aesthetic can be witnessed on his very entertaining Instagram page, where the singer/songwriter wears many hats from music history teacher to studio mentor. So Cold showcases Hala’s personality perfectly in this regard with its carefully considered studio bells and whistles, backed by a beat and bassline that’s so … oh you know.

Michigander — Emotional

Jason Singer’s long-awaited debut album is packed with power pop tunes inspired by some of the biggest rock and roll and indie rock music from 15 to 20 years ago, from Coldplay to TV on the Radio to The National. While that little tidbit might sound like catnip for dudes my age, it actually means something when those inspirations can be heard through Singer’s unique songwriting lens. Emotional feels true to Singer’s heart-on-sleeve lyrical philosophy, admitting it can be tough to get out of your own way sometimes … unless you’re kicking out indie pop jams like this one.

Low Phase — Reason

It’s hard to explain what makes Low Phase’s single Reason a compelling listen. The Grand Rapids band deliver rapid fire choruses with deceptively intricate guitar work on this lively, wide eyed alternative rock cut. I guess that wasn’t so hard, but maybe how they pull off simplicity makes it feel more complex? I dunno. Anyway, great song!

CoffeeBlack, Scoob & Sydney, Young E.T. — You Good Bro?

WTB Scoob is just checking in on You Good Bro?, as good friends do. It’s the type of sentiment, along with his sleepy delivery, that has found the Detroit rapper an audience as he attempts to smooth the edges of a life’s sharp corners.

Luke Winslow-King — Baby Wild

Cadillac native Luke Winslow-King has carved out a nice sound for his bluesy brand of folk and rock, on display with his loose and limber single Baby Wild. Winslow-King’s career as a singer, producer and songwriter has given him the gift of a discerning ear in creating a sound that balances the Delta blues with more contemporary strains of folk and rock. It gives songs like Baby Wild an authentic sheen to accompany a riff you can ride off into the sunset on.

Pretoria — Don’t Fade

Pretoria left town a year ago, moving from Grand Rapids to Chicago in an effort to expand its audience and sound. They wrote a record about finding meaning in giving the band thing a go, with songs touching on the complexities of committing to something as crazy as being in a rock band in the year 2025. The band even admits their 2025 EP’s title If We’re Pretending references the pipe dream, “knowing the odds are low but doing it anyway.” While Don’t Fade is not on that EP, the single is a standout in its own right while expressing much of the EP’s sentiment. Adrenaline rush power chords usher the song in before it smoothly transitions into a supercharged version of the band’s best psychedelic pop moments — the type of song you take the risk to leave town for.

Greet Death — Country Girl

Flint-ish band Greet Death’s excellent new upcoming album Die in Love gets past the inevitability of death to pick at other questions, like how do we go on living knowing this — that we’re going to lose it all? Deceptive heavy hitters like Country Girl tackle this question by celebrating the beautiful and mundane: Viewings of a Halloween DVD, a trip to the liquor store and KFC, a phone conversation with a sibling while driving through the country. It’s a song that finds the band heavier than ever, but somehow restrained and under control in delivering these momentary comforts via gigantic bursts of sound.

Hot Mulligan — And a Big Load

Is it me, or is Hot Mulligan’s sound getting heavier? Or maybe just tighter? Probably both? Anyway, And a Big Load doesn’t diverge from what the band has always done well — express regret and doubt about themselves in a catchy jam. It’s an enticing early return from the band’s upcoming album The Sound a Body Makes When It's Still, out on Aug. 22.

The War And Treaty - Feels Like Home

I feel myself rooting for a song like Feels Like Home to deliver The War and Treaty’s couple of Michael and Tanya Trotter a bona fide hit. What else could this rootsy, stomp-clap couple do but pour their hearts out about the hard work it takes to keep it all going together. Hit or not, Feels Like Home is a pretension-free dual love song from an authentic duo.

Cyrus Pireh — Thank You, Guitar

The endlessly listenable experimental guitar work of Cyrus Pireh’s statement title track Thank You, Guitar feels like something you’d hear Battles pull a sample from to use on their landmark 2007 album Mirrored.

Liquid Mike — AT&T

It’s beginning to feel like a great follow up to 2024 Album of the Year list darling Paul Bunyan’s Slingshot is a slam dunk at this point. Upper Peninsula rockers Liquid Mike already have released a handful of songs that are on PBS’ level leading up to the release of its sixth album Hell is An Airport, continuing to show the band’s ear for tweaking its already rocking core sound. AT&T might be the biggest departure from the band’s straighforward pop punk formula without sacrificing any of the catchiness behind its midtempo backbeat and throwback DJ scratches.

DJ Godfather — This is Not a Test

I can’t think of any reason why the message This is Not a Test would resonate in 2025. Not one. Everything is fine. Regardless, the influential Detroit DJ delivers a thrilling cut on This is Not a Test, with an underlying sense that all is not well behind an old school Detroit techno beat.

Ryan Allen And His Extra Arms — Company’s Eyes

The prolific Ryan Allen didn’t waste time to follow up his band Extra Arms’ excellent album RADAR with his latest fun, audiobiographical solo album Livin’ On A Prayer On The Edge. Along with plenty of nods to music he would listen to as a 15-year-old, Allen dives into a wide range of topics that have become more important to him as he’s aged, including discovering that you’re more punk as an adult than you were as a kid and the useless act of trying to climb the corporate ladder, as he captures on Company’s Eyes.

TY — DEVIL TATTOO

Detroit punk rock band TY (pronounced tee-why), deliver jerky riffs on their debut WE R TY, with short but sweet ‘77-adjacent punk attitude and execution. I spoke with the band about said riffs and their excellent new album WE R TY here.