Year 8, Day 130

Hey guys. Today's song is Take It All Back 2.0 by Judah & the Lion.

Photo from: Clairerex

Judah & the Lion is an American bans active since 2011 and currently made up of Judah Akers and Brian Macdonald with past members including Spencer Cross and Nate Zuercher. They released an EP is 2012 and another in 2013 which earned them a place on a couple different charts before opening for a band called Drew Halcomb and the Neighbors. In 2014 they released their debut album then did a lot of touring before releasing their next album in 2016. Later that year they released an EP which is where this song is from and it actually topped the Billboard Alternative Songs chart for weeks. They did some TV appearances and some touring through 2017, then released their next album in 2019. A bunch of those songs were used for different sports stuff including a football anthem, soccer anthem, NHL game, and FIFA soundtrack. The band also has a new album out this year for you to check out as well if you're interested.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 129

Hey guys. Today's song is I'm Not Okay by Citizen Soldier.

Citizen Soldier is a American band active since 2016 and made up of Jake Segura, Matt Duffney, Kooper Hanosky, Wonitta, and Kyle Persell. According to their website "the band presents an accessible message that combats stigmatization and provides a group therapy dynamic." Not surprising since Segura is a clinical therapist, so most of their songs tackle things relating to mental health. As shown in this song. They released an album in 2019 and have continued releasing music since then including what looks like a new album out this year, so give that a try.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 128

Hey guys. Today's song is City Of Angels by Arrows To Athens.

Arrows to Athens is a joint music project between guitarist Steven Miller and David Hodges. There seem to be other members based on the photos, but I can't find out who they are. After parting with his label, Hodges started to work on all kinds of music projects. His name might not sound too familiar too, but I'm sure his former discography does, as he used to be a member of Evanescence, Trading Yesterday, and The Age of Information before starting this project. Arrows to Athens officially has been around since 2011 with the release of their debut album. They released another album in 2016, and although I haven't heard of anything since then, their early stuff is worth checking out. Originally the link I had up was done with clips from a movie called All The Bright Places and looks incredibly sad, but that was taken down so now it's just a lyric video.  

Peace.

Year 8, Day 127

Hey guys. Today's song is Kiss Me by Dermot Kennedy.

Photo from: 3voor12

Dermot Kennedy is an Irish singer/songwriter active since 2009. He started out with busking which helped develop his sound and actually opened for another Irish musician named Glen Hansard who saw him busking and kept in touch. He spent three years studying classical music at Maynooth University whilse also being part of a four piece band called Shadows and Dust before they split up in 2015. He toured though Europe, Australia, and the States through 2018 and 2019, playing at all kinds of music festivals. He was featured on NPR and voted NPR Slingshot's Best New Artist of The Year in 2018. He released his debut album in 2019 and was nominated for a BRIT Award for International Male Solo Artist in 2020. In 2021 he won Irish Song of the Year from the RTE Choice Music Prize for a song called Better Days. He's released some EPs previously, but his debut album features lots of work dating back to the beginning of his career so it's a good overview to listen to. He also has a new album out this year for you to check out so look for that one.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 126

Hey guys. Today's song is I'm Not Pretty by JESSIA.

This is probably the newest artist on my list so far this year. So Jessia is Jessika Harling, a Canadian artist from BC whose only been active since 2021. She went to school for music, graduating from MacEwan University before releasing this song through TikTok which became a huge hit and earned her a record deal. She released her debut EP the same year, and won a Juno for Breakthrough Artist of the Year in 2022. So she may not have a lot for you to check out yet, but she is definitely one to watch for, and this song is instantly hitting my playlist. I hope you enjoy it like I did.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 125

Hey guys. Today's song is Follow Me by Sam Feldt and Rita Ora.

Sam Fedlt is a Dutch DJ active since 2014. He's released 3 albums and 3 EPs since then, with the most recent being an EP from 2020. Some of his songs have topped the charts and he's worked with a lot of prominent artists. Also in 2020, he started his own label and also his own charity that focuses on global warming awareness. So Rita Ora is an English singer active since 2008 that I've featured before. She started out with performing around London and qualified for Eurovision in 2009 but dropped out since she didn't feel ready at the time. She signed with a label and recorded what she wanted to be her first album but the label recommended she do some other stuff. While working on her album she would post covers and other videos on YouTube which caught the attention of DJ Fresh, leading to her being a featured vocalist on his song which hit the top spot on the charts. She also toured as a supporting act for Drake and Coldplay before releasing her album in 2012. She did her own tour in 2013 and talked more about her next album, but ultimately the next thing we saw in 2015 was a lawsuit about getting out of her contract since she had written multiple records but had only been allowed to release one. They settled in 2016 and she signed with a new label, releasing a single in 2017 followed by her second album in 2018. She did some touring in 2019, released an EP in 2021 and has been working on her next album. So keep an eye out for that.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 124

Hey guys. Today's song is Take It Home by Mabel.

Photo by: Harald Krichel

So Mabel is Mabel Alabama-Pearl McVey, a singer active since 2015. There are many singers in her family, including her mother whose a Swedish singer, and a lot of her siblings. She was born in Spain, but is based in England. She was a gifted child, which led to an anxiety issue that her parents encouraged her to manage through music, so she started writing songs starting at age 4. When she was 15 she went to a Stockholm music school for three years before coming back to England. She released her debut single in 2015 then got signed, releasing a couple more singles through 2015 and 2016. She released her first EP in 2017, collaborated with Mot3s for some songs, then opened for Harry Styles on his tour. She got nominated for Breakthrough British Act in 2019, releasing a mixtape and her debut album the same year.She released a single in 2020, then did some collaborations the released some more singles in 2021, along with this one which was done for Pokemon's 25th anniversary album (which explains the jigglypuff creeping around because that really confused me at first lol). As of this year she has released her second album, so go check that out if you're interested.

Peace.