These Are the 5 Artists Pop Powerhouse Bebe Rexha Tells Us She Can’t Get Enough Of

Bebe Rexha was breaking records even before her debut album, Expectations, dropped on June 22.

You’re likely familiar with her current smash hit, “Meant to Be” featuring Florida Georgia Line. The pop-Country crossover single is not only sitting pretty on the iTunes charts but is currently topping the Billboard Hot Country Chart. “Meant to Be” has spent a whopping 31 weeks on that Country chart (as of press time), and — how cool is this? — it’s the longest consecutive #1 run for a female on that chart … ever.

And with the release of her full-length debut Expectations, Bebe Rexha has dropped one of the summer’s most highly anticipated albums, every song on which she co-wrote and co-produced along with some of pop’s biggest names, including Max Martin.

Bebe Rexha tells Hornet of the new record, “It’s so special to me, because it’s been such a journey to get here and the album is such a true representation of me and my life over the past year. It’s also definitely true to its title and explores what happens when you have expectations about things versus when you feel free to let them go.”

But what does Bebe Rexha — referred to by Billboard as “one of the most daring artists of 2017” — listen to in her spare time when she’s not cranking out brilliant pop hooks? We asked her.

Here are the 5 artists Bebe Rexha says she can’t get enough of:

1. Ella Mai

“Her sound is fresh and throwback at the same time. It reminds me a lot of the R&B/pop music I loved in the late ’90s / early ’00s but still sounds brand new.”

2. Bazzi

“He is such a good songwriter that his songs get stuck in your head after hearing them one time. I have a lot of respect for that because it takes a lot of skill to make a song sound effortless like that.”

3. Dennis Lloyd

“When I first heard ‘Nevermind’ I was instantly a fan of Dennis. The music is so dope, and the songs sound simple at first but when you pay attention to all the layers it gets even better.”

4. H.E.R.

“Kind of like Ella I absolutely love the mix of new and classic R&B sounds in the first two H.E.R. EPs. There are some amazing slow jams in them, too. I can’t wait to hear what she does next.”

5. Queen Naija

“I’m obsessed with her voice. Her song ‘Medicine’ is like the modern ‘Case of the Ex’ but more savage.”

The new Bebe Rexha album Expectations is out now.

Bebe Rexha images by Sasha Samsonova