The songs that defined careers, started movements, disrupted genres.
Hearing a killer song from a brand-new band is one of the purest joys of being a music fan.
The best debut singles don't just offer us more great music for our playlists, they excite and energise us. They give us a thrill that, at its best, feels positively life-affirming.
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Big debut singles can shift the needle on where music is headed. They can open dialogues that have always been closed. They are a glimpse into the future, not just of music, but of our culture.
The following list is all about artists who had a huge impact with their first songs. In most cases those are 'official' releases, though we also want to reflect those artists who break through before they’ve had a chance to officially release that debut single.
Here are the 50 best debut singles from those artists we connected with instantly.