From Lily Allen and Katy Perry to Harry Styles, 2017 is shaping up to be a hot year

TRACK OF THE WEEK
Noah Cyrus and Labrinth - Make Me Cry
This track came out at the end of last year, but we think it's a good one to open the new year with. At first glance, it's a curveball – Miley's little sister, collaborating with UK soul singer Labrinth? Despite the age difference (Noah is 16, Labrinth is 27), the lyrics hit home from both sides. Noah sounds like she's longing after a crush, and Labrinth sounds like he's just lost something he didn't know he had. Surprisingly it works – and it's a good analogy for the weird year we're about to enter. It's a strange world out there, and maybe pop music can help us make sense of it all.

With that in mind, let’s look into our crystal ball of pop, and see what predictions we can make...

- Due to some extensive Instagram stalking, we know that Lily Allen is hanging out with Mark Ronson in LA. Does that mean a new record in 2017? We do hope so. During that same Instagram stalk, Katy Perry filmed an Instagram video from inside the studio – with a snippet of a new song. That, plus a cryptic caption about 2017, could also mean a new record sooner rather than later.

- Another one to watch out for is Eden. This Dubliner, by way of Hong Kong, has gotten shout-outs from Lorde and does a wicked cover of Billie Jean. Album in 2017 please.

- We're also pinning our hopes on Louisa Johnston. With a Clean Bandit collab in the bag (Tears), she's making strides away from the X-Factor and its power balladry. We suggest setting her up with Nicola Roberts (ex- Girls Aloud, now a 10/10 songwriter) to really get things going.

-We know we're conjecturing at this point, but we've got to talk about Harry Styles' solo career. Here is what we know for sure. He's got a movie coming out (Dunkirk), he's got a deal with Columbia Records, and Johnny from Snow Patrol says they've written together. The rest is anyone's guess.