Marika Hackman

Although she has experimented stylistically with production and presentation, singer and songwriter Marika Hackman is known for her emotionally honest and personal lyrics. She first made a name for herself with a spare, acoustic-oriented approach but explored more full-bodied sounds as her career progressed. On her breakthrough album, 2015's We Slept at Last, Hackman's voice displayed a breathy near whisper that hovered over minimal, low-key arrangements, but she showed more confidence as a singer on 2017's I'm Not Your Man with accompaniment that blended contemporary folk and indie rock. She made another creative shift on 2019's Any Human Friend, where her songs were more straightforward, and keyboards and dance-pop grooves dominated several tracks. She added strings and a horn section to self-performed rock arrangements on her Chrysalis Records debut, 2024's more anxious Big Sigh, which followed a period of struggling to write.