Year 6, Day 44

Good Morning! Today's song is Open Your Eyes by Tha Los.

Tha Los is the stage name for Carlos Valdes, who is mostly an actor, but obviously sings as well. He's most known for The Flash, and most of his filmography includes other DC TV installments. I didn't even know he could sing until the musical episode and I've been pleasantly surprised since. So in 2009 he was in school in Michigan with a bunch of other theatre kids who are known for making A Very Potter musical, which Carlos was a bass in. He also co-wrote another musical for Starkid Production called Me and My Dick. He was constantly in plays, including High School Musical and the Wedding Singer, before joining the Jersey Boys tour as a stand in. After that he spent a year starring in Once, which was nominated for a Tony in 2013. Then he started on The Flash in 2014. I knew going into the musical episode that Kara, Barry and Joe's characters would be able to sing, as I've seen them in Glee and Rent respectively, but Cisco's character was a shock. Like I said I was pleasantly surprised, and am in love with the fact that TV and Broadway stars are becoming fluid in the industry. It helps remove the stigma to Broadway that older generations have held to it and gives people of mine and younger generations more incentive to check out musicals if they know the people. This of course is excluding people who don't need the incentive because they love Broadway anyway like myself. But I can still appreciate this recent change for what it is and look forward to the shift. I hope you do too.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 43

Good Morning! Today's song is Rescue Me by Fontella Bass.

Fontella Bass is a singer active from 1961 to 2012. Singing runs in the family with both her mom and brother also being in the business. In 1961 she auditioned for a carnival show on a dare, and actually got the gig but couldn't tour with it when they left her town because her mother refused. During the two week stint that she was with the carnival show, a vocalist named Little Milton and his bandleader saw her and offered her a backing role, which she took. One night Milton was late, so she went on and got her own section in the show. She split with Milton and ended up in The Oliver Sain Soul Revue. Two years later she quit and moved, then got signed immediately and started releasing singles in 1965. She released this song, and an album, but then split with her label after they failed to acknowledge her part in writing this song. She moved to Paris in 1969 and made two albums with the Art Ensemble of Chicago, while still fighting for the creditation on this song. Her second album came out in 1972 and did badly, so she retired to have a family. She would come back briefly through the years to sing with friends and family, and do some gospel music. In the 2000's she toured with her brother while fighting health problems, until she died in 2012 of a heart attack. All the effort that she had to put in just to get recognition for this song is ridiculous, but she succeeded in the end. So this song isn't just a good song, but a show of hard work winning when you don't give up on it. I hope that helps you guys feel inspired today.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 42

Good Morning! Today's song is Try A Little Tenderness by Otis Redding.

Otis Redding Jr. was active from 1958 until 1967. He started singing and drumming when he was 10, and sang in a school band and on a radio station on the weekends. He left school when he was 15 to support his family, and performed at talent nights on weekends at a social club. He was discovered in 1958 when a famous guitarist saw him perform and offered to jump in since his backing band wasn't that good. After that they started playing together which led to Redding getting offered a spot as the frontman for Pat T. Cake and the Mighty Panthers. Redding ended up getting signed and recorded some songs as Otis and the Shooters. By 1962, Redding had impressed another label bigwig who signed him. His debut came out in 1964, which was followed by him playing the Apollo Theatre, which left him more in debt rather than in profit. His next album came out in 1965, followed almost immediately by another one in the same year. He recorded this song in 1966, and the publishers of the song had actually tried to stop him from covering it, because they didn't want a "negro perspective". Which is why I'm so glad this has become the staple song to showcase his craft because every time someone listens to this version of the song, it's a big middle finger up to those dicks. He died in a plane crash in 1967, which seems to be the way a lot of musician's in this era met their end. Even though he died far too soon, his music has lived on with five albums being released after his death. So anyway, there's a little piece of music history and I hope you enjoy it.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 41

Good Morning! Today's song is Hate On Me by Jill Scott.

Jill Scott has been active since 1999 and actually started as a spoken word artist. Questlove from the Roots found her and they collaborated on a song, which won them a Grammy. Afterwords she went on tour with Rent before releasing her debut album in 2000. Her next album came out in 2004, and in 2005 she won another Grammy. She worked with other artists and got featured on two songs, both of which won her more Grammys. She's been continuing to release albums, both through her wishes and old material her old label is releasing so there is plenty of selection to listen to. Her last album came out in 2015, but she has been doing touring as late as last year. Plus she's been doing acting on top of that in some Tyler Perry and Lifetime movies. Basically she's a busy girl, and I have no doubt is still working hard on all her pursuits. And this song kind of motivates me to do that too, so let's all get in the groove and get shit done.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 40

Good Morning! Today's song is The Boy Is Mine by Brandy and Monica.

Brandy is Brandy Rayana Norwood, who has been active since 1993. She started off in music, before taking a break to star in a TV show, but came back to the music scene with this song in 1998. Her whole career she has jumped back and forth between acting and singing, with Broadway added on in recent years. Monica is Monica Denise Arnold who has also been active since 1993. She also has a career full of music and acting. So this song is a play on a duet between Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson from 1982. Brandy is the one that requested Monica be on the track, because everyone talked about them being rivals at the time and she thought this would help get rid of that. I can see why people would think to pit them against each other, as their careers have had pretty much the same trajectory. Of course the rumors just blew up more with the song, since it gave them a stage where they were competing for something. Considering some of the quotes I've read it seems the rivalry was real, but I believe it wouldn't have been if the media hadn't pitted them against each other so hard. But anyway there is some explanation for you guys. I always kind of wondered how they got together for this, so it's cool to know now.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 39

Good Morning! Today's song is Me Against The Music by Britney Spears featuring Madonna.

I've talked about Britney a lot, and I know I've done her history and that most of you should already know who she is so I'm not going to today. Same goes for Madonna, who is an icon in pop and someone who will be featured later on individually. This video is so hilarious to me now because I remember how taboo it was when it came out since its appearance as a duet happened after they kissed at the VMA's in 2003. Originally it was a solo track, but Madonna heard it and liked it, so Britney offered up a part to Madonna, who took the song to add in her part and arrange it how she wanted. I mean I still listen to it today so obviously they did something right.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 38

Good Morning! Today's song is Rhythm Nation by Janet Jackson.

With the success of her siblings group, it kind of led to her career starting with acting in their variety show in 1976. She kept doing other acting spots, and then released her debut album in 1982 and another in 1984. After this album she split from her family, trying to get away from her father. She started working on her new album which got released in 1986 and became a huge hit, which effectively separated her from the Jackson name and made her an individual. Her next album came out in 1989 which is where this song is from. Not just this song, but this album became something iconic that people still look to as a standard today. In 1993 she starred in a movie, and then released another album in 1995 before going on a massive world tour. Her next album came out in 1997, then she did another movie in 2000, and another album in 2001. She did the Superbowl halftime show in 2004 with the famous wardrobe incident, and has actually been heralded as one of the reasons the founders created YouTube... weird, but not surprising. To think YouTube was inspired because some boys had trouble finding a video of an exposed breast on the internet. The incident put a bit of a dent into her career, with stations essentially sabotaging her 2004 album by blacklisting her music. She still kept going though and was eventually able to put that moment in the past, and has released three more albums and three more movies since then. The most recent was out in 2015 so she's still going strong. This year she's doing touring and performances celebrating the 30th anniversary of Rhythm Nation (the album), so it seems like a good year to feature this song.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 37

Good Morning! Today's song is Wanna Be Startin' Somethin' by Michael Jackson.

Alright since I already did his early career with the Jackson 5 when I was talking about them, I'm going to focus on the second half of his career here. His fifth solo album in 1979 marked the change in his career sound-wise and making him a stand alone artist. His next album in 1982 was Thriller with got him seven Grammy's and became an institution in the music world with a lot of hits, this song being one of them. He went on the Victory Tour in 1984 with his family. In the late 80's his skin color changed because of some medical conditions and the efforts he made to combat those, and along with the public scrutiny came many more outrageous stories about him, some that Michael reportedly spread himself and some made up by the media. His next album came out in 1987 which was followed by a world tour. He released another album in 1991, then did the Superbowl halftime show in 1993. After that he continued making music and touring, got married, got divorced, was in and out of courts, and got addicted to drugs. He died in 2009 of a heart attack, but it was technically caused by an overdose. I know a lot of you have heard the stuff about him, and know I glossed over a ton of serious shit in the middle, but I just can't write about it. I don't want to know more than what I pick up just existing in the world, but if you guys want to get into all the court stuff I'm guessing there are documentaries that are easy to find. I'm sorry if any of you are pissed that I cut it off how I did, but sometimes I can handle bullshit like that and sometimes I can't. Today I just can't.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 36

Good Morning! Today's song is Bootylicious by Destiny's Child.

Like others this year I have already done their bio, so instead I'm just going to rant for a few minutes so tune me out if you wish. I hate book covers. I hate reading a book that I like online, but then when I go to buy it it has a cover that makes me embarrassed to purchase it. For example I read a series that is about a girl that's half vampire (I like fantasy books because reality is just too real for my maladaptive self) and about her adjusting to life while murdering things along the way. It also has a love plot so naturally the covers feature bare chested men and women doing ridiculous poses in little black dresses. Why!? Why do we have to sexualize the covers, I'm here for the story, not to broadcast to the unassuming public that I'm reading some 50 Shades of Grey bullshit. I'm now self conscious about my books, which isn't aided by my uncle asking if my books were kid friendly when I got some for my birthday. Those ones were tame with just a guy and a girl standing on the cover (the girl obviously in a tiny dress because no others clothes exist for women apparently), but the implication rubbed me the wrong way and turned me off sharing anything with my family. Again. As if this isn't a constant problem I've been trying to fix since my tweens. I've started doing this thing where I design my own covers for the book and have debated printing them out and covering the books with them, but I feel like that might be one step further down the crazy train for me. Thoughts? Concerns? Do you guys also have this problem? Let me know what you think.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 35

Good Morning! Today's song is Don't You Worry 'Bout A Thing by Tori Kelly.

I've only discovered Tori Kelly in recent years, but she's been active since 2004. She was on the show Star Search, but didn't really break out until she was on America's Most Talented Kids, beating Hunter Hayes but losing to Antonio Pontarelli. She was signed briefly when she was 12, but that didn't work out. Then two years later in 2007 she started posting on YouTube. After the she tried out for American Idol, but didn't make the show, so she switched tracks and started to learn guitar and write music, posting those to YouTube. She released an EP in 2012 on her own label, which got to iTunes top ten. She was signed to another label in 2013, and from there her career exploded with appearances all over, another EP, song features on popular media, and supporting other artists on tour. She released her debut album in 2015, and was nominated for a Grammy. She's done a lot of noteworthy things since then, too many things to list so I'm going to let her voice speak for itself because her talent is fantastic.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 34

Good Morning! Today's song is I Wanna Dance With Somebody by Whitney Houston.

Whitney Houston was active from 1977 until 2012 and had a huge career. So I'm going to do a really general overview and probably miss a bunch, but that's so this isn't a huge post. So like I've pointed out before, a lot of greats of the time were tied together: Dionne Warwick was her cousin, Aretha Franklin was her honorary Aunt, and her godmother was Darlene Love. She started out in gospel, which is what most people did at the time, eventually doing backup vocals at 14 for bands and singers like Chaka Khan. In the 80's she started modeling, and was one of the first women of color to be featured in Seventeen magazine. She was officially discovered in 1983 performing with her mom at a nightclub and was offered a worldwide contract. Her debut came out in 1985, with different songs gaining popularity in different places. It did fantastically, leading to her charting consecutively for months, being one of the first African American woman to receive lots of plays on MTV, and won a Grammy after being nominated for three. Her performance when winning the Grammy even got her an Emmy Award. Her success kind of set the standard and helped other women of color get the shot they deserved. Her second album came out in 1987 which did good still, but was considered too similar to the first one. It still won her a Grammy and two American Music Awards. She also used her power for good, refusing to work with companies who did business in apartheid South Africa, and she formed a non-profit that cared for children around the world. Her third album was released in 1990 and it had a more urban influence that got mixed reviews. She got a lot of movie offers, and finally debuted in the Bodyguard in 1992. She got a Razzie for it, because she was said to play herself and no one else, but she still got success from the movie overall, earning three Grammy's for the soundtrack. The rest of the 90's was spent mostly doing other films before she released an album in 1998. It was supposed to be a greatest hits album, but she kind of fired off so much gold that there was enough for a totally new album, so the Greatest Hits wasn't released until 2000. Around that time she started having struggles, not showing up for the things she was supposed to and generally acting erratic and taking drugs (which she only admitted to later). She released some more albums and had marriage problems before dropping off for a bit, then coming back into the spotlight in 2007 with her divorce. She gained full custody of her daughter and then spent the next couple years releasing albums while struggling with her drug abuse with stints in and out of rehab. She died in 2012 of drowning, though it's said that she drowned in her bath due to heart disease and cocaine use. It's a sad end to a long life, but so many of these musicians stories end tragically. I can only hope the trend doesn't continue with some of the newer industry leaders. Anyway, that's all for now, so take a listen and appreciate the song.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 33

Good Morning! Today's song is Spinning Around The Sun by Martina Sorbara.

Martina Sorbara is a Canadian singer who I've featured before as a group, but she was solo first. Her debut album was released in 1998, and had a lot of attention at the beginning for the fact that she sewed her own clothes and made her own guitars. Her next album came out in 2000, with an expanded version released in 2002. She toured for the album and got a lot of exposure through Much Music, and was even nominated for Pop Album of the Year at the Canadian Independent Music Awards in 2003. This was the same year she got featured on this song. She was working on a third album when she met Dan Kurtz. After she scrapped her album and became a duo with him, first going by The Fuzz, but then switching to Dragonette. She's also done collaborations with a couple DJ's, being the featured voice on their stuff. Since joining Dragonette she refers to her old stuff as songs made for tampon commercials which... is accurate haha. It doesn't mean it's bad though, I still like it. I have featured Dragonette before back in Year 3 so some of you might already be familiar with the group. They haven't been active since 2016 when Sorbara and Kurtz separated (they were married) so I don't know if the band is actually still a thing. It's a weird situation to be in. But until we know you can enjoy her tampon music!

Peace.

Year 6, Day 32

Good Morning! Today's song is Hey Mickey by Toni Basil.

Toni Basil is the stage name of Antonia Christina Basilotta whose been active since 1964. Her career started with dance, when she was a dancer of a TV series, and a choreographer for concert films and music videos, and in later years some movies. She's one of the last members of the Lockers, an influential dance group and is heralded as a pioneering for mixing ballet and street dance. Her singing career started in 1966 when she sang a song for a short film called Breakaway. After that she was featured on a couple different shows, and sold out clubs to see her perform. This song came out in 1982 and is the thing that shot her career into high gear. Fun Fact: the uniform she wears in the video is actually a play on the cheerleading outfit she had in high school. Mickey is a cover of the song Kitty by Racey, although with her own flair added to it. Weirdly she actually sued South Park for using her song as a parody in 2017. That seems like kind of a dick move to me, but I guess some artists embrace parodies more than others (for example any song that Weird Al has messed with). She's done some other stuff too, but nothing as popular as this song so I hope you like it.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 31

Good Morning! Today's song is Really Don't Care by Demi Lovato featuring Cher Lloyd.

So I've featured both of these guys before. I've done a bio on Cher Lloyd and I already have one ready to go for Demi Lovato later on on one of her solo songs so for now I'm just going to highlight what this song is about. If you can see the video, you'll see that it's at a Gay Pride parade. Originally the song was a standard breakup song, but Demi also associated it with her bullying and when thinking about how much bullying goes on in the LGBT community, it became an empowering song for them. I think it's great. Music is so versatile that anyone can attach a song to anything (made evident by that music ask I did last time with my family) so it's nice that she subverted the intent of a breakup song to something else. I've never been bothered by people being of different sexual orientation, race, religion, political association etc etc. (only thing that bugs me are garbage people), but I know some people do and to those who do, this song is how I feel about that unnecessary hatred of random strangers: I really don't care. And really, since it has nothing to do with you as an individual, you shouldn't either. Anyway that's my piece for the day, sorry if I offended anyone.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 30

Good Morning! Today's song is We Found Love by Rihanna featuring Calvin Harris.

Rihanna is Robyn Fenty whose been active since 2003. Originally she was in a trio with two other girls, but they didn't exude the star power that she did. She traveled to the States to do demos which were eventually shipped to Def Jam records and Jay Z. When she came and auditioned they wouldn't let her leave the building until the lawyers drew up contracts for her to sign so they didn't lose her to another label. She moved to the States, then released her debut album in 2005. The next album came out in 2006, and she made an appearance in a Bring It On movie. She had another album out in 2007 which continued have chart topping songs well into 2008, while she went on tour. Since then she's released more albums, done lots of collaborations with some huge names, and become one of the most well known singers in the industry with more hits than it's possible to count. Recently, Pentatonix did one of its artist medleys to her music which just shows you how many good songs she's been a part of. She's planning to release her ninth studio album later this year so I'm sure we'll have some more bangers on that. For now, enjoy.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 29

Good Morning! Today's song is Happier by Marshmello featuring Bastille.

Okay, so I have definitely written about Marshmello before. I started to do a bio again and it was purely rewriting facts that I know I've already disclosed somewhere on here when I was talking about the saga of who is under the mask and why it doesn't truly matter. So instead how about a random fact about my life, and it even kind of goes with the video. My mom is getting new kittens. A friend of hers had a stray give birth in his house, so he's been taking care of six babies and trying to find them homes. My mom is taking two, and the others are going elsewhere while the guy is keeping the mom and one kitten. I'm kind of torn about it because the mom is being super territorial and probably shouldn't have the babies taken away, but also because I don't think my mom should get them. She still has Splish who is an old man cat, and it's kind of an asshole move to get new cats before he's gone. Older cats don't always handle new additions well. It might be okay since they are babies and when we did that with my grandparent's cat she became their mom, but we have no way of knowing how Splish will react. I made a promise to myself a long time ago not to get involved in my mom's stuff, but I still feel weird about it. So that's a thing, it's probably not interesting, but if you guys have any advice for me feel free.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 28

Good Morning! Today's song is She's So Mean by Matchbox Twenty.

So Matchbox Twenty has been around since 1995 and is made up of Rob Thomas, Brian Yale, Paul Doucette, and Kyle Cook currently. The first three guys were in a band together before this one called Tabitha's Secret, which broke up and then they formed this one. They released their debut in 1996 and it quickly gained traction with multiple songs being radio hits. Originally they went by Matchbox 20, but switched to the long-form numeral for their second album. Their third album came out in 2002, and then an EP was released in 2003, and a live DVD in 2004. They took a hiatus after that so they could all work on side projects, some of the guys releasing solo albums. They came back together in 2007, releasing a new album, which I think is the one that actually introduced me to the band. They spend a year touring with some other artists, then Thomas started work on a second solo album while the others were presumably working on a Matchbox album. After a lot of miscommunication by the band about when it would be released, their fourth album came out in 2012, which is where this song is from. They toured for the album through 2013 and then were quiet for a couple years before Cook took to Twitter to say he'd left the band due to a breakdown in agreement and communication in the band. Whatever was wrong was clearly fixed though because 2017 saw the announcement that he was back with the others and planning a tour. There hasn't been anything since, so we'll see what happens in the next couple years. For now, enjoy the song.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 27

Good Morning! Today's song is Goodbye Mr A by The Hoosiers.

The Hoosiers are an English band active since 2003 and is currently made up of Irwin Sparkes and Alan Sharland. They started the band when the two of the were living in Indianapolis and used that as inspiration since people in Indiana are affectionately referred to as hoosiers. They moved back to London and found some other members (who've left since) and got signed then released an album in 2007. They won an NME award which should sound good but it was for worst band. So they made some changes for their second album and released it in 2010. No one noticed that album got released, so they parted with their label and re-released it in 2011. They played at some universities in 2013 and then released their next album in 2014. They did some touring then came out with an EP, then another album in 2015 followed by another tour. It's been quiet since, but I guess we'll see what happens.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 26

Good Morning! Today's song is I'm Born To Run by American Authors.

American Authors is a rock band who has been active since 2006 and is made up of Zac Barnett, James Adam Shelley, Dave Rublin, and Matt Sanchez. They all met in college, and initially had performed as the Blue Pages. They used that name until 2012, releasing music and opening for Cash Cash on their tour. They changed to this name in 2012, and were signed a year later. They released their debut EP in 2013, and hit 9th on the Billboard's New Artist list for 2014. The next couple years they spent working on an album that came out in 2016. They've spent the time since releasing singles and performing, then releasing another album this year. So they are still going strong and I really hope you like them.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 25

Good Morning! Today's song is No Excuses covered by Red.

Red is a Scottish musician who's as of yet still undiscovered (although I think she models since she's got a modeling agency listed on her Facebook) and posts her stuff on YouTube. She's mostly got covers like this one which I found because of the Glamour series of showing covers to the artists, but she has started doing her own original songs. If you like what she did with Meghan's song then you should listen to her own song Dangerous Love. Then, if you like that, keep an eye out for her, because I think she's going places.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 24

Good Morning! Today's song is Dangerously by Charlie Puth.

Charlie Puth has been active in the industry since 2009, when he started on YouTube. Fun Fact: his eyebrow is scarred because of a dog bite when he was a kid… alright it's not a fun fact, but I've always wondered about his eyebrow so it's nice to know what happened. So he started with acoustic covers on YouTube before released his own extended play in 2010. The next year he won an online singing competition which led to him getting signed to Ellen's label. He released a singer and did some performances before leaving the label and releasing another independent EP in 2013. He also wrote jingles for a couple YouTubers, and co-wrote a song for Pitbull. He signed with a label in 2015, which then removed all his older stuff from iTunes, and then he debuted his single with Meghan Trainor. Since then he's released a lot of popular songs and was nominated for a couple awards before releasing his debut album in 2016. In recent years he's been releasing singles and collaborating on songs with other artists. He's an artist who kind of flies under the radar in my periphery, but he seems nice and makes great music so I wanted to feature it.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 23

Good Morning! Today's song is I Like Me Better by Lauv.

Lauv is the stage name for Ari Staprans Leff, an American musician active since 2015. He was interested in music his whole life, and by 14 was writing love songs, despite never being in a relationship. By college, he moved to producing for other people until finding a way back to writing personal music. He adopted his stage name, which is a reference to his mother's heritage, his first name, and his zodiac sign all in one. In 2014 he helped write a deeply personal song about his break up, and didn't feel right giving it to another artist, so he released it himself. It quickly became a viral hit. Once he graduated, he signed with a publishing company, and released his first EP in 2015. While doing his stuff, he continued writing for other artists, and one of those songs is actually on my list to feature later. This song was released in 2017, followed by a tour of his own, then immediately followed by a supporting role on Ed Sheeran's Asia tour. Sheeran got hurt so a lot of dates were cancelled, but Lauv continued to play in those cities while waiting for the tour to officially kick off. He released another single in 2018 and did his own world tour, then released another single and is touring for his debut album. So if you like this song, keep an eye out. There will be more to come.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 22

Good Morning! Today's song is ABC by the Jackson 5.

The Jackson 5 is a sibling group and started out with Tito, Jermaine, Jackie, Michael, and Marlon. They started winning a lot of talent shows, so their dad Joe started booking them gigs. They were signed in 1967 and started performing at strip clubs and opening for Bobby Taylor & the Vancouvers. They eventually got signed to a bigger label that had turned them down twice before, and it marked a jump in their career. They opened for The Supremes then released their debut single along with two more which all topped the charts. They came out with four albums in a year riding the success, becoming the labels main focus, and Right On! magazine's cover darlings. In 1971 the label promoted Michael going solo to keep increasing their sales, followed by Jermaine doing the same. While they both were successful solo, the group overall declined and split with the label in 1975. There was a lawsuit which led to them needing to change their name to The Jacksons. They joined a different label and released an album in 1976 which didn't chart well, and the next album did even worse. Finally they got full creative control and their next two albums from 1978 and 1980 were successful. They kept releasing albums and doing performances, but as Michael got bigger it overshadowed them until he left in 1984. Marlon followed suit the next year. The remaining guys tried to continue on, but after one album that went badly, they went on hiatus. They reunited in 2001 to celebrate Michael's career, then filmed a reality show in 2009. Michael died shortly after and the rest spent years trying to figure out how best to pay tribute to him, resulting in Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, and Marlon doing a Unity tour in 2012. That ended in 2013 and was the last we've heard from them since. I'm going to feature some solo stuff from the family later so look to that for a filling of some gaps.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 21

Good Morning! Today's song is Glorious by Macklemore featuring Skylar Grey.

Macklemore is the stage name for Benjamin Haggerty whose been active since 2000. Fun Fact: the name comes from an art project involving a superhero called Professor Macklemore. He actually started off in a hip hop group called Elevated Elements which he started in high school. They released an album in 2000, and he made a mixtape as Professor Macklemore at the same time, which he distributed himself. After he dropped the first part and started on his first album which was released in 2005. Then the next year he met Ryan Lewis. If you guys know Macklemore, then you know that these two pretty much go hand in hand. They formed their duo in 2009 and released an EP, followed by another in 2010. They started doing touring in 2011, including festival performances. The next album came out in 2012, followed by a world tour, and then another album in 2016. They duo went on hiatus in 2017, and Macklemore has continued on since with a couple collaborations with other artists, and an album. He spent 2018 touring and has been quiet since so we'll see what's up next.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 20

Good Morning! Today's song is S.L.U.T. by Bea Miller.

Bea Miller is an American singer whose been active since 2012 when she was on X Factor. She auditioned when she was 13 and came in 9th. On the show, she had gone by her full name, Beatrice, but obviously has since shortened it. She got singed in 2013, releasing her first EP in 2014, and first album in 2015. Theses releases got her a lot of attention, being the featured break out artist through multiple outlets. Late in 2015 she joined others as support of the Fifth Harmony tour. In 2016 she supported Selena Gomez on her tour. While she was on that, she kept releasing singles and had a song featured for a TV show. In 2017 she released all three parts of an EP Project. She released her second album in 2018 which is where this song is from. As of this year she's planning a tour, so she's still going strong. I like her attempt with this song at reclaiming a word that's always used as a slur for women. I can't even count the number of times I've been called a slut in my life, although it's never phased me because prude would be a more apt term for me. But this song is for all the girls who are tired of the negative connotation to reclaim the word, so go forth S.L.U.T.s and conquer.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 19

Good Morning! Today's song is In The Name Of Love by Martin Garrix and Bebe Rexha.

Martin Garrix is the stage name for Martijn Garritsen, a Dutch DJ whose been active since 2012. Shout out to the Netherlands today! He started off by playing guitar when he was 8, but became inspired to be a DJ in 2004 after seeing Tiesto perform. So he downloaded FL Studio and got to work. In a cool bit of history, it was actually Tiestio who first discovered him. He signed with a label in 2012 after they liked his remix of an Enrique Iglesias song. He had some collab songs first, but he really got fame with his solo song called Animals in 2013. He released singles pretty consistently until finally releasing his debut EP in 2014. In 2015 he was living the dream, collaborating on songs with big names like Usher, Avicii, Tiesto and Ed Sheeran. He left his label the same year after a conflict about song rights and opted to start his own label which happened in 2016. He released this song that same year. Since then he has been winning awards left and right for his music, so he's going to have an incredible career if he keeps this up. I know Bebe Rexha is on this too, but I'm pretty sure I have a solo song of hers saved to do later so I'll wait until that for her bio. For now, bask in the talent that is Martin Garrix.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 18

Good Morning! Today's song is Glitter & Gold by Barns Courtney.

Barns Courtney is the stage name for English singer Barnaby George Courtney. He started out in bands, leading a group called SleeperCell which were featured in a competition for a recording contract, then fronting Dive Bella Dive who were signed and performing as of 2012. Eventually after recording music that was never released the label dropped them. He wouldn't quit though, so he found ways to support himself while still pursuing music. He released his first solo track in 2015 (this one) which blew up and was featured everywhere. His next song did just as well, being featured in a hit movie and TV show. Since then he's released an EP and album, gone on tour, and has opened for a lot of different artists. His songs seem most successful for being featured in all kinds of pop culture, so you may know his stuff without being aware of it. Listen to the song and see if I'm right.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 17

Good Morning! Today's song is Inside Out by Eve 6.

Eve 6 is an American band active since 1995, and is currently made up of Max Collins, Jon Siebels, and Ben Hilzinger. They went through a couple names before settling on this one. The first year they performed as Yakoo, then the second year they performed as Eleventeen. They got signed under that pseudonym, but didn't release music until switching the name to Eve 6, which is a reference to a character in X-Files. Their debut album came out in 1998, and a second in 2000 which got them huge exposure, leading to a lot of late night TV performances. They released another album in 2003 before splitting from their label. The guys realized how burned out they were around then, which led to an indefinite hiatus in 2004. During the break a couple of the guys worked together in a band called Sugi Tap and on a song for Puddle of Mudd which helped them experiment beyond what Eve 6 could have done. In 2007 Sugi Tap was put on indefinite hiatus, and Eve 6 was brought back. They spent the next couple years touring until signing with a new label in 2011. They released their new album in 2012, and it seems to be the one the group is most proud of. The line up changed a bit in 2018 to be what I listed at the beginning, and since then there hasn't been much news. I am curious though to see what they're going to be up to. Maybe you will be too.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 16

Good Morning! Today's song is The Hamptons by Transviolet.

So these guys are an alt-rock group active since 2015 and made up of Sarah McTaggart, Judah McCarthy, Michael Panek, and Jon Garcia. Sarah and Michael connected online, and Michael brought in the others that he knew in school. Eventually they all moved to LA to work together in person after collaborating online. Their name is inspired by a line from a Charles Bukowski poem called When The Violets Roar At The Sun. They got some high praise early on from artists like Katy Perry, who knew Sarah before either of them were famous. Their debut EP came out in 2015, followed by them touring with LANY the next year. They were signed and dropped, then signed again before releasing their third EP in 2018. They had some controversy when they started out with how they sent their demos out, with no information other than "play me." It's kind of ominous and threatening and would not make me want to a) play the tape or b) sign the band when I realized that's what it was. Some people might call it a creative way to beat the system, but in a world where mysterious packages mean a bomb squad there is no place for ominous anything. That's my hot take anyway, let me know what you think.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 15

Good Morning! Today's song is Issues by Julia Michaels.

Julia Michaels is the stage name for Julia Carin Cavazos who has been active in the industry since 2010. She's been singing since she was 12, and when she was 14 she co-wrote the opening for a Disney channel TV show. That began her career as a songwriter (a career she also shares with her sister) and write songs for a lot of TV and film projects. By 19 she expanded to writing songs for artists, including Demi Lovato and Fifth Harmony. It's only recently that she has branched out to performing, releasing this single in 2017. Like with many other songwriters, it was a song that was so ingrained into her that she couldn't fathom giving it away, so she did it herself. Many artists tried to get the song, but ultimately her idea to keep it worked out, as she became a breakout star of the year. Her first EP came out later that same year, then she rounded off her successful year with supporting Shawn Mendes on tour. In 2018 she was nominated for a couple of Grammy's for this song, which she followed up by releasing another single then supporting Maroon 5 on tour. She has collaborated with a number of artists now, and has released an EP, which is part one to a larger project. Currently she's planning a tour, so if you like the song keep a lookout for that.

Peace.