Freak Slug

Freak Slug is the project of Manchester (UK) based artist Xenya Genovese, whose sound fuses ‘90s shoegaze, indie, and alt-pop. Since her viral breakout with “Radio” (23M+ streams) Freak Slug has carved out a space for raw and emotionally honest music. Her debut album I Blow Out Big Candles is a fearless deep dive into identity, nostalgia, and sonic experimentation—earning praise from NPR, Clash, The Fader, DIY, and Line of Best Fit and a digital cover from Notion

Her song “Sexy Lemon” landed on the BBC Radio 1 playlist, was championed by Jack Saunders and BBC 6 Music in the UK, while U.S. airplay found her being championed by Sirius XMU, KEXP, KUTX and KCRW. Freak Slug has brought her captivating live show to SXSW in Austin, London and Sydney plus Latitude, Kendall Calling, The Great Escape, Greenman, End of The Road, Leeds, Reeperbahn, Blue Dot and Borderline (IE) festivals. On her Big Candles tour, Freak Slug sold out shows across a 40 date run of the US, CA, UK, EU and has been announced to play Coachella 2026.

This award will support Freak Slug to travel to Australia for her first visit to the region and appear at the SXSW conference and festival in Sydney.