English Teacher kicked off the countdown on the BBC’s annual list of music’s rising stars, coming in at number five.
English Teacher. Photo credit: Tatiana Pozuelo
The four-piece band, who formed at Leeds Conservatoire, were voted in fifth place in BBC Radio 1’s Sound of 2025 poll by a panel of 180 music industry experts who chose them as one of the acts with “the best chance of mainstream success in the next 12 months.”
This position follows a fantastic 2024 for the band where they wowed crowds at over 100 gigs in 16 countries, released their debut album This Could Be Texas, and became the first act from outside London to win the Mercury Prize in a decade.
This Could Be Texas represents members Lily Fontaine, Douglas Frost, Lewis Whiting and Nicholas Eden’s sonic journeys so far with some tracks written during their time at Leeds Conservatoire and others in the weeks before entering the studio.
"I wrote my first song for the audition," frontwoman Lily recalls. "It was awful, but it worked. I got a place to study singing and performance, but I very quickly switched to composition, because I was suddenly spending all my time writing songs."
English Teacher’s members played with various other bands in Leeds before settling on their current line-up and continue to champion the city’s live music scene.
The full BBC Sound of 2025 top five will be revealed on Radio 1 and BBC News across this week, concluding with the winner on Friday 10 January.
Access this BBC News article to find out more about English Teacher and their top five position in this poll
