Governors Ball has seen the early days of many an artist. Acts like Doechii, Elyanna, and Chappell Roan have all performed on Gov Ball’s storied grounds at the cusp of their careers, solidifying Gov Ball as the place to grab those “I saw them before they were famous” bragging rights.
Team EnVi kept eyes and ears on the ground all weekend, and caught up with six different acts backstage, giving you an exclusive look at the artists we think are going to be the next big thing.
Amaarae
Ghanian-American singer Amaarae puts the “do” in Do It Yourself. The multihyphenate singer-songwriter-producer-warrior princess is largely self-taught, a self-made ethos learned while growing up in Ghana.
Live, she has unique whisper-soft vocals that provide a balance to the crisp electronic production. With a range of inspiration from Britney Spears and Daddy Yankee to Lil Jon and Nirvana, her music offers something for everyone, resulting in a packed crowd and an artist that’s impossible to look away from. Stay tuned, because Amaarae is about to be everywhere.
FOR FANS OF: Curating vibe-focused, genre-bending playlists
ENVI’S SONG REC: Sociopathic Dance Queen
Joey Valence & Brae
Joey Valence & Brae, a.ka. JVB, have a vibe straight out of the mid aughts. A discography that harkens back to the likes of the Beastie Boys, Sum 41, and Project X style house parties, watching them perform feels like the kind of teenage hooliganism that was able to exist pre-iPhone.
In an era that loves its nostalgia, JVB bring an edge that reminds fans life isn’t always about a perfectly curated aesthetic. What made the 00’s fun wasn’t Depop t-shirts and butterfly hairclips: it was having weird fun with your weird friends. And we left their set feeling pretty grateful for that reminder.
In their honor, we immediately went and shotgunned a zero-calorie hard seltzer. What? It’s still 2025.
FOR FANS OF: Running over mailboxes in a beat-up Subaru Impreza
ENVI’S SONG REC: HOOLIGANG
Mark Ambor
Mark Ambor has all the makings of the next indie pop it boy: the boyish charm, the acoustic guitar, the bashful yet cheeky grin.
But on stage, the Armenian-American songwriter feels far from cookie-cutter. There’s a real heart to his songs, something that feels tangible even from several yards away. The songs are upbeat and catchy, but not in the way you can tell he’s fishing to get that Toyota RAV4 commercial – in a way that you can tell he genuinely cares about making music people can enjoy listening to.
As long as there’s music, there’s gonna be Guys With Guitars™, but Mark Ambor is a pretty exceptional version.
FOR FANS OF: Proposal compilation videos
ENVI’S SONG REC: Who Knows
Raye
Despite where you might have been on Gov Ball’s sprawling festival grounds, RAYE’s smooth, dulcet voice cuts clearly through the general noise like a R&B beacon.
She has the kind of voice that stops you in your tracks, wondering what stage it’s coming from and how quickly you can get there. It’s not been an overnight success story for RAYE, but it is clear with her rich vocals drawing in onlookers from across the park, that her trajectory is only going up and up and up.
FOR FANS OF: A bold cabernet in a velvet-booth-lined cocktail lounge
ENVI’S SONG REC: Worth It.
Snow Wife
Pop icon in the making, Snow Wife turned Gov Ball’s Kiehl’s stage into a dance floor, despite the beating midday sun. Upbeat club tracks had the crowd moving, fitting in quite well to Snow Wife’s performance of her aptly titled track “Sweat.”
Snow Wife has all the makings of the next pop star: eye-catching stage presence, a catalog of banger after banger, and an uber-cool aura that has us considering if we could pull off bleached eyebrows, too.
FOR FANS OF: Being the last one left on the dance floor when the lights come up
ENVI’S SONG REC: If God Is Real, Heaven Is A Club
Wave to Earth
Indie is a pretty saturated genre, but Korean trio wave to earth have risen to the top of their class, meeting lo-fi vibes with high-charisma performances.
Wave to Earth managed to pull a hefty crowd away from the Conan Gray-Olivia Rodrigo double feature across the grounds. Its clear to see why once they’re on stage, with their polished jazz influence garnering racuous cheers. They really let the music speak for itself, distinct basslines and pristine guitar riffs cutting through the air like an arrow straight to the heart. If people in the crowd weren’t fans when the group arrived on stage, they certainly were when the band finished.
FOR FANS OF: Driving on a summer’s night with the windows down
ENVI’S SONG REC: peach eyes
Looking for more Gov Ball? Check out our top acts from the weekend here.
