10 Albums in Rotation on College Radio in 2026 (So Far)
Recommended if you like: music discovery, human curation, independent artists and the "random brilliance" of college radio
emwhitenoise is a monthly essay exploring the future of music through the lens of fandom, technology and culture—from Emily White, a music product builder and Spotify and Billboard alum.
Today marks one year since I published the first edition of this newsletter about the next generation of independent music tastemakers. Thank you to the 4,200 subscribers who have joined since then! 🥳
Every college radio station has a music library.
At WVAU, we called this the rack: a black wire shelf stacked with promo CDs curated by the music staff, with mini reviews and recommended if you like (“RIYL”) tags lovingly taped onto jewel cases. Sometimes I’d play a song on air for the first time based solely on those notes!
“Our music directors have been writing comments on the records and CDs since the seventies,” Marcus Rothera, general manager of Boston College’s WZBC told me last year, “It’s like an analog Internet comment section.”
I surveyed 80+ DJs in 2025 who say student interest in college radio has surged in recent years, driven by algorithm fatigue, analog nostalgia and a desire for “third spaces.” The New York Times followed with a fantastic profile of KXLU, capturing college radio’s “unpredictability, uniqueness and random brilliance.”
In search of some fresh music recommendations, I asked college radio stations across North America to share their favorite albums of 2026 so far. Many new releases are now submitted and reviewed digitally, so I asked Dusty Henry of KEXP and Another Thought to illustrate the picks.
This isn’t an official chart. It’s a snapshot of the wide-ranging, deeply human and often surprising taste of college radio DJs right now, in no particular order.
Enjoy digging through the stacks. College radio, forever <3
Heel, Segmentation (KANM)
Deep shoegaze distortion coupled with vulnerable, echoing lyrics, Segmentation can piece together the heel-wounded parts of any listener with its heavy sound. The album transcends its mainstream counterparts, taking you on a journey with swirling liminal riffs. An alternative album for an alternative station: Segmentation is the debut album of Heel, who are also active members at Texas A&M’s KANM Student Radio.
Favorite Tracks: “Through me,” “August”, and “Waste.”
RIYL: narrow head, trauma ray, starflyer 59, grungegaze, Gregg Araki films, limerence, wildflower honey, driving in Texas at night, skateparks, the sound of frogs croaking at the lake after sundown, cyberpunk
—DJ playlistmachinemaker (Natalia Silva), Onda Fresalternativa, KANM, Texas A&M (College Station, Texas)
Buck Meek, The Mirror (WCFM)
Bouncy, down-to-earth love songs. The Mirror, fittingly introspective, feels both chronological and retrospective, distinctly Meek, yet totally relatable in its romantic storytelling.
Favorite tracks: gasoline (1), can I mend it (3), worms (8)
RIYL: Big Thief (of course), acoustic guitar, lavender marriages, if Licorice Pizza is your favorite movie.
—Ella Hegarty, Filet of the Day, WCFM, Williams College (Williamstown, Massachusetts)
Cities Aviv, EVEN COLDER SPRING (WCBN)
Memphis rapper & producer Gavin Mays continues his foray into the digitally-scarred, sample heavy, and increasingly abstract annals of internet-born hip-hop with EVEN COLDER SPRING. Featuring his signature philosophically-inclined stream-of-consciousness lyricism and lo-fi, often drumless production style. A great atmospheric and heady record which continues Mays’ legacy of being one of the most interesting forces in underground hip-hop.
Favorite Tracks: Even Colder Spring - Parts 1 & 2, the élan vital, Tribeca, Concrete Masks, Closing Door
RIYL: cLOUDDEAD, Armand Hammer, SpaceGhostPurrp, walking around the city at 3am after you left the party
—DJ Nick (Nick Staudacher), Sonic Valhalla, WCBN, University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, Michigan)
Baby Keem, Casino (KPSU)
Some fans were reluctant to welcome Baby Keem back after a 5 year hiatus, but the return album is very energetic! Unfamiliar with Baby Keem? His style is similar to Kendrick Lamar, who alongside being an extended family member of Keem, was also featured on the song “Good Flirts”. Turn on this album when you feel like bumping your head…perhaps on your way to the casino.
Favorite tracks: “Dramatic Girl,” “Sex Appeal,” “Birds & the Bees”
RIYL: Kendrick Lamar, J. Cole, Travis Scott, ASAP Rocky, Rae Sremmurd, rap/hip hop reflective of relationship trials and tribulations
—DJ Goof aka Blake Brabo, Hectic Eclectic, KPSU, Portland College (Portland, Oregon)
Potions, potions95 (CFUV)
Lovely, textural “freak-folk” from Toronto. I’d say more cute than freaky but there are definitely moments. The songwriting is incredible, but I’m really drawn to the way everyone interacts instrumentally.
Favorite track: Stumbled Across
RIYL: sun shining on dusty wood floors
—Rowan Grice, Bench Mob, CFUV, University of Victoria (Victoria, British Columbia, Canada)
Bruce Springsteen, Streets of Minneapolis (WMCN)
A timely track of rebellion speaking to the heart of the nation, Bruce Springsteen’s single, “Streets of Minneapolis,” is one of WMCN’s most-streamed “albums” of 2026 so far. If anyone is equipped to write a patriotic protest song, it’s Springsteen; yet, unlike his infamously misinterpreted “Born in the USA,” the anti-ICE message of “Streets of Minneapolis” is impossible to misread. From his direct quotations of the national anthem to his signature harmonica solo, Springsteen’s track speaks to WMCN’s local community and our DJs with an ear for the political.
Favorite track: “Streets of Minneapolis (Radio Mix)”
RIYL: building community, fighting occupation, and Bruuuuuuuuuuce.
—Sarah Tachau, a.k.a. DJ Sarah, Velvet n Knitted Things, WMCN, Macalester College (St. Paul, Minnesota)
friends&, folx (MET Radio)
Spanning 100+ songs, this is the wildest fever dream of an album you’ll hear all year. A huge leap forward in internet music. Through all the hysterical irony poisoned aspects there is still a deep theme of introspection and societal critique at its core. If you choose to listen and recognize most of the samples from this project, maybe it’s time to get offline for a while.
Favorite Tracks: (kinda n/a since you really need to listen to this one in order but…) #33 I walk the line, #106 can the circle be unbroken, #14 Jolene
RIYL: Frost Children, Tommy Fleece, doomscrolling, internet deep dives, those weird people you only find on tiktok live, sonic the hedgehog, my little pony, Nirvana The Band The Show The Movie copyright law
—Megan Curry, The Man Cave (emo radio show) and Worms of the Week (music discovery radio show), MET Radio, Toronto Metropolitan University (Toronto, Ontario, Canada)
cootie catcher, Something We All Got (WRBB)
A sweet spot between 90s Indie Rock and 2020s Laptop Twee. Consistently striking arrangements teaming with ear candy yield unlimited replay value. The tweevival is upon us.
Recommended Tracks: “Loiter for the Love of It,” “Quarter Note Rock,” “No Biggie”
RIYL: The first bike ride in spring, feeble little horse, making collages out of old cloth
—DJ Eli Ehrlich, Get Me Out of Here: It’s Time to Get Crankier, WRBB, Northeastern University (Boston, Massachusetts)
Endive, Under Lies (WCBN)
A 90s Indianapolis band that only lasted a few years before disbanding, with no officially published material made available---until the Numero Group assembled this full-length. Melodic, sweet-and-bitter, fuzzy second-wave emo, edged with angsty depression, Endive have finally got their work out there.
Favorite Tracks: “Sink,” “Dying Eyes,” “Choice (Solemn)”
RIYL: Everyone Asked About You, Mineral, Sunny Day Real Estate, warm August nights, high school romance, stepping over cracks in the sidewalk, shitty camcorder videos
—DJ hsudonym (Alex Hsu), junk, WCBN, University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, Michigan)
Beverly Glenn-Copeland, Laughter In Summer (CJSW)
In a world saturated with phony-baloney-ism, hearing an ailing octogenarian’s perspective on vulnerability, mortality, and genuine love on Laughter In Summer is as honest as it is refreshing. Canada’s iconic trans elder, Beverly Glenn-Copeland has released one of the most deeply touching albums in years. The use of space and restraint in the arrangements, including contributions from Glenn-Copeland’s wife, Elizabeth, reflects the tone of peace and intimacy found throughout the record. A fitting dénouement to a wholly original career in music and an inspiring story of a life lived on one’s own terms.
Favorite tracks: Prince Caspian’s Dream At Hotel2Tango, Let Us Dance (Movement One)
RIYL: ANOHNI, David Sylvian, people that need to call their grandparents
—Adam Kamis, The Failed Pilot show, CJSW, University of Calgary (Calgary, Alberta, Canada)
Honorable Mentions:
loopcinema, My-Lovely-Yellow-Kombi
RIYL: Space travel, long-form Magdalena Bay, the club in slow-motion—DJ Eli Ehrlich, WRBB
Slayyyter, WOR$T GIRL IN AMERICA
RIYL: Azealia Banks, Charli XCX, Ayesha Erotica—DJ PJ (Paul Cirillo), WCBN
Joost Klein, Kleinkunst
RIYL: horsegiirL (featured on “Farmcore”), Ski Aggu, GFTOY—toile (Eliot Schlaack), WCBN
Charli xcx, Wuthering Heights
RIYL: all-consuming love, cultural controversies, and Gothic themes—Elle Setiya, a.k.a. DJ Elle Woods, WMCN
Deathcrash, Somersaults
RIYL: Sadness, Horse Jumper of Love, wallowing in sorrow, never letting go of anything that’s ever happened to you, long walks as the sun sets, british guys—Megan Curry, MET Radio
Bennett Mitchell, rearranging
RIYL: Father John Misty, Nick Shoulders, indie rockers discovering country for the first time—Adam Kamis, CJSW
EXEK, Prove Mountains Move
RIYL: The Fall, Brian Eno, Total Control—Adam Kamis, CJSW
Sleep Tight Tiger, Plum Something
RIYL: Saturday Looks Good to Me, Horsegirl, Belle and Sebastian—DJ anja (Anja Sheppard), WCBN
Album recommendations submitted by CFUV, KPSU, KANM, MET Radio, CJSW, WMCN, WRBB and WCBN. Lightly edited by me.
Playlist of recs is here (however, several of these picks aren’t available on Spotify!)
Illustrations by Dusty Henry, a writer, producer, illustrator, and editor based in Seattle. He leads editorial at KEXP and co-creates stories about music and culture. His book 20th Century Ambient is out now via Bloomsbury. He also writes the newsletter Another Thought.
Wow. I'm Dino, the drummer of Endive, and I definitely didn't expect this. Thanks for posting this!
Nice to see WRBB get mentioned.