This is part five of a six-part series on the year in indie Aussie music. 

This week we 're checking out some of the highlights of 2025 when it came to alternative music and and the hip-hop scene.

Worm Girlz dropped their highly anticipated self-titled alt-rock debut album, which features the anthem Get Ugly.

Meanwhile, pop-punk sensation Donni Heat dropped the EP Echoes From The Fallout, featuring one of the stand-out tracks of the year, Lies.

Worm Girlz

Two alt-pop artists who both had fantastic years culminating in super-catchy EP's were ixaras, with the EP WHAT IS AND WHAT ISN'T, and Gordon's Grandson with KISSED.

YAGKI also broke out with an EP full of alt-pop hits, Nightmare, while Merpire's dark-pop album MILKPOOL quietly blew our minds.

And of course fan favourite RAGEFLOWER released two influential EP's with INFINITE HIGHS, END OF TIMES in August, and SIGN OF LIFE squeezing in in December.

RAGEFLOWER

On the hip-hop front, a couple of artists who've had a prolific year include Dylan Billiondollars, who gave us two albums (##SWAGSTYLE and Don't Be Swag.) and DZ, who dropped the 22-track album SECOND SUNDAY.

It was also a big year for Zafty, releasing the EP OMO BURUKU and featuring in triple j's freestyle Bars of Steel program.

Zafty

HAVE A LISTEN!

There were so many excellent releases this year, but we've made it easy for you to check out the year's top alternative and hip-hop tracks!

Find all our favourite alt-pop and alt-rock tracks of the year on our BE BOLD! playlist.

Check out all our fave hip-hop tracks of the year on our GET DOWN! playlist.

Who knows, you might find some tracks to include when you vote in the HOMEGROWN HUNDRED (voting is open until Tuesday, January 27, 2026 - vote for your fave Aussie artists now!)