The term "pop princess" encapsulates fresh, teen-driven contemporary pop music. Past crown holders have included Britney Spears, Taylor Swift, Lady Gaga, and Rihanna. While, historically, the term has referred to essentially only US-based artists, in the current music industry, there are many contenders across the globe.
While no one has better embodied the term since Britney Spears’ run in the Y2K era, there are many young ladies in the pop scene today that could sur the icon. The pandemic and global lockdown forced the music industry to pivot. Online streaming, music video consumption on YouTube, and the surge in social media interactivity permitted new artists to rise to the top ranks of the pop music world.
To be a pop princess in today’s landscape, you must have global appeal and present prowess both domestically and internationally. Some of the artists discussed are veterans of their homeland, but have only recently found international fame, while others have seen a meteoric rise upon their first outing. All of them hold global appeal with room for growth, despite being big award winners and achieving record-breaking sales.
8 Tyla
The "Pretty Girl From Jo'burg" Singer Hailing From South Africa
The monotonously known singer Tyla was permitted one-year off from her collegiate studies by her parents to make her music career happen. She got herself a deal with Epic Records and got to work on what would become her self-titled debut studio album. The lead single, “Water,” became the first song in 55 years by a South African solo artist to enter the Billboard Hot 100. It also earned her a Grammy win for the inaugural Best African Music Performance award, also making her the youngest African artist to win a Grammy.
Tyla’s career may feel overnight; this stems from the international spread of “Water” happening via TikTok. Utilizing the current social media trends, a hypnotic dance challenge was created for the song, which let audiences grow infatuated with her South African sound and movement. The music video was released three months later, garnering over three million views on YouTube within the first three days. Tyla’s warm, assertive vocal delivery in combination with highlighting her South African roots set her up for an enduring international pop career.
7 Lisa
The Charismatic K-Pop Singer From Thailand
Since her 2016 debut as a member of South Korean girl group BLACKPINK, Lisa has been a trendsetting, undeniable force. The Thai-born artist has exuded charismatic confidence since day one and has continually raised the bar on whom a K-Pop artist can be. Her debut single album, Lalisa, set the precedent for highest domestic sales for a female soloist; the music video became the record holder for most views in 24-hours on YouTube by a solo artist.
After starting her own management company, Lloud, to better oversee her career, Lisa has seen expedited career growth. She is the top-followed female solo artist of K-Pop origin across Instagram, YouTube, and Spotify. Releasing her debut studio album in February 2025, Alter Ego, has permitted Lisa to show audiences different sides of herself, departing from her tightly monitored public persona witnessed under YG Entertainment.
Lisa made her acting debut in season 3 of HBO's The White Lotus as the character Mook.
While Lisa has already accomplished commercial success, audiences remain eager for her next move. Keeping fans on the edge of their sets, Lisa still has a tremendous amount of untapped potential she can evolve into over the course of her burgeoning solo career.
6 Jennie
YG Label's Princess From South Korea
Hailing from South Korea’s BLACKPINK alongside the previously mentioned Lisa, Jennie already had a name for herself before the 2016 group debut. Appearing as a feature on other YG artists' songs, such as G-Dragon’s “Black,” Jennie was building steady anticipation for her next project. Upon the debut of BLACKPINK, Jennie was singled out as the breakout member from the start. Her confident delivery of the lyrics exuded an indelible charisma for listeners.
The first member to promote a solo career, her debut single “Solo” proved her international appeal by topping the US Billboard Global Song chart, while the accompanying music video was the first for a female Korean soloist to sur one billion views on YouTube. Since promoting under her own label, Odd Atelier, Jennie’s achieved new heights of recognition, such as becoming the highest-charting female Korean artist on the UK Singles chart alongside sweeping the 2024 MAMA Awards.
Jenni made her acting debut in HBO's The Idol, which positioned her alongside The Weeknd and Lily-Rose Depp.
Her debut studio album, Ruby, has pushed Jennie further into musical exploration of her brand. Notable songs include “ExtraL,” which features Doechii, and the most recent, “Like JENNIE,” which serves as a performance anthem for the artist.
5 Tate McRae
The All-Around Performer Hailing From Canada
First recognized as a notable dancer, becoming the first Canadian contestant to make it to the finals on So You Think You Can Dance, Tate McRae parlayed the interest into a recording deal with RCA Records. Rightly so, she has consistently highlighted her strong dance background as part of her brand.
Refining her musical sound across her early releases, McRae unveiled a more polished, directionally pop sound for her second studio album, Think Later. The 2023 single “greedy” catapulted McRae into a new arena of success, simultaneously giving her a global number one single and entryway to the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 3.
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The term pop princess has adapted to include a greater variety of young female artists, highlighting singer-songwriters and instrumentally focused young ladies. McRae is bringing with her a return to the dance-laden, all-around entertainer persona that has been missing in the pop scene in recent years. Her latest single, “Sports car,” further cements McRae as a current pop princess, invoking the golden-era of millennial hip-hop-influenced pop sounds seen in the early 2000s.
4 Lexie Liu
The Futuristic Electro-Pop Artist From China
Lexie Liu has been on a rising trajectory since her first appearance in the South Korean competition show, K-pop Star 5. Liu would compete in one more reality competition show, The Rap of China, finishing as the lone female contestant in the finale. Her career started taking off after g with the US-based label 88rising. Her first single under the company, “Sleep Away,” saw positive fanfare from US and international critics.
A must-listen is “MAGICIAN” from her 2022 EP The Happy Star. The initial pulled strings give a classical-Chinese air, pausing for a momentary breath before the listener is pulled into a whirling synth-beat. Liu’s vocals emerge with a sweet pop inflection, contrasting with the dystopian instrumental that s her. Effortlessly, Liu weaves in between English and Mandarin lyrics, highlighting her multilingual abilities and positioning her to truly be a global pop star.
While she has pushed herself to evolve as an artist with each release, her base level of sound is a polished, dance-pop vibe with self-produced touches. Liu’s latest single, “Pop Girl,” most exemplifies this hallmark of her branding.
3 Sabrina Carpenter
The Short N' Sweet Singer In The US
Audiences initially gained familiarity with Carpenter would release her early albums. She wouldn’t begin the skyrocket flight to widespread success until bursting out of the Disney bubble and moving to Island Records in 2021. Her first release with them, “Skin,” finally granted her entry in the Billboard charts.
An overall slow and steady career, Carpenter’s current success with Short n’ Sweet is her meteoric moment. The lead single from her sixth studio album, "Espresso," topped Billboard’s Global 200 chart with the accompanying stylized, retro-themed music video garnering her an MTV Music Video Award for Song of the Year. Her follow-up single, “Please Please Please,” achieved another milestone as the first female artist to hold both the number one and two positions in the UK singles charts for three weeks.
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Carpenter is a singer-songwriter, with powerhouse vocalists such as Aretha Franklin and Christina Aguilera noted as influences. Her blend of melodic pop songs, camp imagery, and euphonious live vocals has defined her as a contemporary pop princess.
2 Anitta
The Hometown Hero Breaking Out Of Brazil
A multilingual, philanthropic artist, Anitta is the epitome of a modern global icon. Since her 2013 self-titled debut album, she has been a force on the charts in her home country of Brazil. She reached number one on the Billboard Brasil Hot 100 and scored her first Latin Grammy nomination with her initial foray into the industry.
Anitta’s first entry to the US Billboard Hot 100 would be her 2020 collaboration “Me Gusta” with Cardi B and Mike Towers. Newly signed to Warner Music in the US, the major label would provide Anitta with a larger backing force to further propel her career to new heights. She would continue to spread her wings musically and become a player of more reggaeton and Spanish-language sounds. Exemplified by “Envolver” in 2021, she became the first Brazilian and Latin solo artist to top Spotify’s Global 200.
Her signature song, “Girl From Rio,” is a perfect encapsulation of Anitta’s intoxicating spell. Proudly representing herself as a native Brazilian, she simultaneously acknowledges her sex symbol status while highlighting entrappings of the grittier side of her hometown overtop the lighthearted, nostalgic backing music.
1 Olivia Rodrigo
The Whirlwind Commercial Success In The US
Olivia Rodrigo has been immersed in a music career that seems to outdo itself with every new release. With early beginnings on Disney Channel in shows such as Bizaardvark and Disney+'s High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, Rodrigo hasn’t exactly followed the typical Disney starlet blueprint. She left Disney in 2019 and signed with Geffen Records to better focus on her solo career.
With her debut single “driver’s license,” she broke Spotify’s record for most daily streams (for a non-holiday song) twice, reaching 17 million global streams. She would go on to end her monumental first year as a solo artist with Billboard confirming she was the bestselling singles artist worldwide – on top of winning three Grammys.
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Rodrigo embodies a spirit-of-change by simultaneously being pop-culture centric and advocating for others, despite having only two solo albums in her catalog. The musical direction Rodrigo has adapted, a pop-rock-focused femininity, has allowed her to be relatable to her predominantly teenage audience. Her strong voice and humble lyrical perspectives are her special sauce, fostering excitement for the future of her career.
