Welcome to the day when music production was reserved for million-dollar studios, with their lavish mixing boards and a producer begging for ‘One more take!’ from behind a glass window. Now, skip forward to 2025, and some of the biggest hits of this year, which are currently topping Spotify playlists and TikTok trends – are being created in someone's bedroom. Meet bedroom pop for the first time.
This DIY genre has slowly (but not so slowly) changed the music industry over the last decade. Its lo-fi vibes, emotionally raw lyrics, and ability to connect with listeners – have made bedroom pop graduate from a niche subculture to a global phenomenon. But what's driving this meteoric rise? Let's unpack it – literally, grab your headphones and I'll tell you why bedroom pop is taking over.
Low Barriers to Entry = Endless Creativity
Thanks to modern tech, you don’t need a fancy studio to create high-quality music. A laptop, some affordable software (hi, GarageBand), and a pretty decent microphone that’s all you need. This is why bedroom pop thrives on this accessibility, allowing anyone with a spark of creativity to turn their bedroom into a mini production studio.
Ask artists like Billie Eilish and Clairo — you don’t need glossy, overproduced tracks to resonate with an audience. Billie’s brother’s tiny bedroom was where she recorded much of her Grammy-sweeping album When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?, with a creaky bed and a buzzing fridge in the background. Relatable much?
Authenticity
In a world where everything appears to be curated, the unpolished, raw energy of bedroom pop is a much-needed break from the fray. These artists tend to focus on personal issues—mental health, heartbreak, identity—and they do so with a vulnerability that feels real.
Also, let’s not underestimate social media. TikTok and Instagram enable bedroom pop artists to post their work in clips, interact with the audience, and go viral in a matter of hours. A single viral post can transform a small-town teenager into a global star (by way of Beabadoobee).
The lo-fi aesthetic of bedroom pop borrows heavily from the past. The dreamy synths and the analog-like textures of the music remind one of the cassette tapes of the ‘80s and ’90s, while the DIY ethos seems to be a nod to the punk and the indie scenes.
However, despite the fact that it is dripping with nostalgia, bedroom pop has no problem innovating. Artists blend genres with ease, incorporating elements of R&B, electronic, and even hip-hop. The end result is a sound that is familiar yet surprisingly fresh.
TikTok: The Ultimate Stage
Let’s be real: TikTok is the bedroom pop artist’s best friend. The ability of the algorithm to launch any artist, no matter how obscure they are, to stardom makes TikTok the new hotbed of music discovery. Millions of streams and a spot on coveted playlists are not uncommon for tracks like "death bed (coffee for your head)" by Powfu or "Prom Dress" by mxmtoon even after going viral seemingly overnight.
TikTok isn’t just a marketing tool for bedroom pop artists; it’s a form of creative expression. Fans enjoy the behind-the-scenes, acoustic demos or even goofy memes of their favorite tracks. This is where the role of accessibility in the relationship between artists and listeners comes into play.
The Bedroom as a Creative Haven
There is something just about creating music in your own private space. You are most comfortable, vulnerable, and able to experiment in your bedrooms. A bedroom is not at all like a sterile studio; it is full of quirks and character, and that is what makes a bedroom pop so unique.
The faint hum of a neighbor’s lawnmower and the spontaneous sound of a pet knocking into a microphone stand these imperfections enhance the music. In bedroom pop, there is no such thing as ‘perfect’ — it’s the human element that counts.
Bedroom pop is rule-free. Artists are able to combine different styles of music and create new sounds by combining hazy guitars with trap beats or glitchy electronics and delicate piano melodies. This is what makes bedroom pop so exciting: this genre fluidity. Every track is almost like a private performance by the artist, with nothing filtered out by industry standards.
The Power of Independent Platforms
The rise of bedroom pop has been thanks to independent platforms like Bandcamp, SoundCloud, and Spotify. These spaces allow artists to release music on their own terms without the need for a record label.
But, of course, fans love discovering these hidden gems. There’s a thrill in identifying an artist with just a few hundred followers and knowing you were there from the beginning. This grassroots support has been crucial in turning bedroom pop artists into global stars.
Thanks to the internet, artists from all corners of the globe can connect, collaborate, and share their music. A kid in Manila can co-write a track with someone in Berlin and combine cultural influences to create something entirely new.
This global exchange of ideas has expanded what bedroom pop can be, making it one of the most diverse and inclusive genres of music of the day.