New icons of modern music: 2014's 50 coolest stars on the planet

We simply are not worthy

12:23 23rd May 2014

Well, we're nearly halfway through and 2014 is shaping up to be pretty special for the music world. Big albums scheduled, huge artists playing on the festival scene and a year of huge tours and shows to look forward to. We're all going to spending the year listening to, and watching, some true modern music icons, but who's the coolest of the current crop?

'Cool' isn't something that can be determined by a committee of record label executives - an artist either has it or they don't, and these are the 50, most iconic and coolest artists on the music scene of 2014. Bow down.

Banks: Dark and futuristic R&B with a film noir air of mystique.
Hayden Thorpe (Wild Beasts): Making artrock cool all over again.
Albert Hammond Jr: Proof that the frontmen don't always get all the glory.
Apparat: The more coherent half of Moderat, and a true pioneer of blissful electronica.
A$AP Rocky: His punk rock approach to hip hop makes him one of the coolest heads in the genre right now.
Dev Hynes: Having found his niche as a production superstar, Hynes is responsible for some of the past year's biggest beats.
Chance the Rapper: He lives with James Blake - oh, and he is also (most likely) the future of hip hop.
Chet Faker: The man. The music. The beard.
Chromeo: Sweet shades and sweet disco jams.
Cyril Hahn: The charismatic new face of house music.
Daft Punk: Music's premiere robot duo.
Danny Brown: He doesn't give a f**k what any of us think. And that's why he is so coo.
Discclosure: What did you do with your teen years? Whatever it was, you weren't as cool as these brothers.
Flying Lotus: The coolest electronic export from the West Coast since Silicon Valley was built.
Four Tet: The genre-defying king of the remix.
Frank Ocean: Effortlessly enigmatic, Mr Ocean is loved by men and women the world over.
Giorgio Moroder: The absolute DON of disco, and his recent remixes have been superb. He still got it, that's for sure.
James Blake: Mercury Music Prize winner, now boasting Chance The Rapper as his flatmate. Surviving 'dubstep' tags mean he deserves his place here alone.
James Vincent McMorrow: The bearded Irishman made heartbreak cool with his second album, Post Tropical.
Jessie Ware: Soulful, talented and so damn charming. We are not worthy.
Joe Mount (Metronomy): Giving indie its charming beardy bounce back.
Josh Homme (Queens Of The Stone Age): He nearly died on the operating table and came back more badass than ever.
Karen O (Yeah Yeah Yeahs): Cat like moves and a wolf-like howl.
Kelis: A leader, not a follower. Innovative and constantly pushing for more than you average diva. We salute you.
Kendrick Lamar: Hip-hop's less than understated king. Believe the hype of 'Control' and raise your game.
Lorde: We were never as wise as 17. We were awful.
Marcus Pepperill (Thumpers): You may not recognise him yet, but he's about to dominate 2014.
Matthew Hitt (Drowners): They're supporting Arctic Monkeys in the US, with this man's effortless cool soon to dominate the UK.
Maya Jane Coles: Making waves in the male dominated genre of house production and DJing.
MO: The coolest woman in music 2014. Fact.
Mykki Blanco: Clever, articulate and making harder-hitting rhymes than most of the mainstream. Blanco is the baddest.
Orlando Weeks (The Maccabees): Great band. Great voice. GREAT HAIR.
Pharrell Williams: An ageless god of hip hop / r&b.
Sampha: Soul so good it's almost 'too much'.
Say Lou Lou: Saving pop music one classy track at a time
SBTRKT: The OTHER masked dude who rules at electro.
Scuba: The Hot Flush head honcho is always a musical trend setter, well ahead of the game.
Solange: Beyonc-who?
Toro Y Moi: Chic-geek with a fine line in r&b / house tunes.
The Weeknd: No one else can sing about sex and drugs and make it sound this cool.
White Sea: She looks like a ghost and sounds like a Goddess.
James Murphy: Retired from music with LCD Soundsystem but still infecting everyone from Arcade Fire to David Bowie with effortless cool (also, Despacio is the most fun you can have with your clothes on)
Matt Healy (The 1975): A born frontman who never sleeps.
Prince: Eccentricity, swagger and a cheeky sense of humour create something of an enigma.
Jenny Lee Lindberg (Warpaint): The coolest bassist around and the beating heart of Warpaint's hypnotic cool.
Sky Ferreira: Probably the first model-turned-singer who should give up the day job.
St Vincent: Sharp riffs, sharp cheeckbones, dark lyrics, awesome image - the modern female Bowie?
David Bowie: He's called The Duke for a reason.
Alex Turner: Making waves of his own while ever surfing the line between cocky and cool.
Lana Del Rey: An icon from the word go. Her new Ultraviolence material and Tropico movie only further this.