Year 8, Day 243

Hey guys. Today's song is Unaware by Bella Taylor Smith.

Bella Taylor Smith is an Australian singer active since 2021 when she auditioned for The Voice Australia. Unlike most of the people I end up featuring that had been apart of talent competitions, she actually won that season of the show, which also earned her a recording contract. Following her win, she released two EPs that same year, with another two EPs released in 2022. And as of right now she is actually up for an ARIA award, so we'll have to wait for the results on that. Though there isn't too much from her yet she definitely has potential so keep an eye out.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 242

Hey guys. Today's song is Phantom by Of Monsters And Men. 

Photo by: Levi Manchak

Of Monster and Men is an Iclandic band active since 2010 and currently made up of Nanna Bryndís Hilmarsdóttir, Ragnar Þórhallsson, Brynjar Leifsson, Kristján Páll Kristjánsson, and Arnar Rósenkranz Hilmarsson with one past member being Árni Guðjónsson. The band was originally a solo project of Hilmarsdóttir's called Songbird, but she added members and formed this group in 2009, although the name of the group was picked by Þórhallsson. In 2010 as a quartet of Hilmarsdóttir, Leifsson, Þórhallsson, and Hilmarsson they entered a music competition in Reykjavik, then afterwards added in Guðjónsson and Kristjánsson. They toured around Iceland playing gigs, then performed at the Iceland Airwaves festival in 2010 where a Seattle radio station recorded one of their songs. The band was signed in 2011 and released their debut album in Iceland. Meanwhile their other song was getting played on the radio in the States and gaining them nationwide success. This earned them another record deal, leading to the release of an EP at the end of 2011 and then a re-release on their album in the States in 2012. It was also in 2012 that Guðjónsson left the group. They spent most of 2012 and 2013 touring and playing at various festivals, before recording their next album through 2014 and releasing it in 2015, followed by a tour. They did more performing in 2016, then started on their next album in 2017, with it being released in 2019. They've been releasing some singles since then and even an entry at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2022, so they're still around if you want to check them out.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 241

Hey guys. Today's song is Swan Upon Leda by Hozier.

Photo by: Neon Tommy

Hozier is Andrew Hozier-Byrne, and Irish singer whose been around since 2008. He was part of a choral ensemble called Anúna starting in 2009, and he toured with them internationally. He released his debut EP in 2013 and it became huge. He released his second EP in 2014, followed quickly by his debut album. He did some performances in 2015, but then kind of disappeared from the music scene until his next EP in 2018. His second album was released in 2019, followed by a worldwide tour and some festival performances. In 2020 he did a lot of fundraising, livestreaming for the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children and and performing at the RTÉ Does Comic Relief Special for pandemic relief. He announced his next album in 2021, and an upcoming EP to be released next month. This song was released in 2022, and is inspired by Mona Eltahawy, an Egyptian feminist, and the Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization Supreme Court ruling about the right (or lack there of) to abortion. Add in the protests in Iran and there seems to be a war against women going on. When you go to the video, Hozier does have a little blurb in the description explaining the reasoning behind the song and its inspiration, so give that a read when you check out the song. One thing about Hozier that I've always appreciated is how much emphasis his songs put on important things. I'm sure someone could base a whole history class of of the influences Hozier has for all his music, so if you're curious, go see what other things he's talked about through his craft.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 240

Hey guys. Today's song is The Good Parts by JP Saxe.

Photo by: VagueOnTheHow

Jp Saxe is Jonathan Percy Saxe, a Canadian musician active since 2012. He's got songwriting credits on a couple tracks before he started releasing singles himself in 2017. His debut EP came out in 2018, which was followed by some more singles in 2019 and another EP in 2020. His debut album came out in 2021, and he's been releasing singles since then, including this song which was released in 2022. So he's still going strong and I would expect to see another album from him in the near future. So keep an eye out.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 239

Hey guys. Today's song is Bridges by Calum Scott.

Calum Scott is an English musician active since 2013. His career started with a win on a talent competition for a regional newspaper. Afterwards he joined a Maroon 5 tribute band and toured around the UK. By 2014 he formed a new duo along with John McIntyre called The Experiment, releasing their debut single the same year before the group broke up. In 2015 both he and his sister auditioned for Britain's Got Talent. His sister went first and was fully rejected by the judges, but Calum received not only a standing ovation, but a golden buzzer from Simon Cowell. He came in sixth overall. After the show he released his cover of his audition song independently in 2016 and it slowly rose to fame. He then signed with a label and did a number of TV spots, then teamed up with Brazilian artist Ivete Sangalo for a single that became the official song for the Summer Paralympics in 2016. He released another single in 2017, followed by his debut album in 2018. In 2020 he did a musical documentary following the making of his next album. Then in 2021 he released three EPs and a couple singles leading up to the release of his second album in 2022. This song I'm featuring is the title song on that album. And I really cannot say enough about this song. It might seem a little dark to someone who has never felt the emotions that it's conveying, but as someone who has, this song is... so perfectly created. I have listened to it so much since finding it, so I hope you appreciate it like I did.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 238

Hey guys. Today's song is The Fixer by Brent Morgan.

So this is another one where you need to bear with me because I don't have an official bio to go off of. So Brent Morgan is an American musician, active since at least 2011 since that's when his YouTube channel went up. If you watch the Voice you might recognize him as he did do a stint on it, but had to leave for medical reasons. Much like with Sarah Cothran earlier this week there is a video of him explaining his beginning and career, so rather than me reiterating all that, I'm going to link it so he can tell you himself. And it is pretty interesting and to see the progression of his musical career and the commentary of how getting into the industry has changed from 20 years ago until now. So please check it out and give the song a listen because I think it's incredible.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 237

Hey guys. Today's song is Doomsday by Lizzy McAlpine.

Lizzy McAlpine is an American musician active since 2016. She sang in an a cappella group in high school, then went to the Berklee College of Music for a bit and started to write music, before dropping out to pursue her music full time. She has an EP listened from 2016, as well as another in 2018. She spent 2019 in Spain where she wrote her debut album, released in 2020. Also in 2020 during the pandemic she spent time doing a streamed concert series. She released another EP in 2021, followed by another studio album in 2022, and a tour the same year. This is the first song that I've heard from her, but it has definitely peaked my interest so I'm looking forward to more.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 236

Hey guys. Today's song is Superhuman by Bishop Briggs.

Bishop Briggs is the stage name for Sarah McLaughlin, a British musician active since 2015. The stage name is from the place where she was born, a town called Bishopbriggs in Scotland. She grew up in Hong Kong where she wrote and honed her craft before moving to LA after high school to attend college at the Musicians Institute. She did as much performing as she could, recording and releasing her first single in 2015, which then was used in a car commercial, which helped her gain some exposure and caused the song to climb some music charts. In 2016 she released another single which got even more top spots on chart lists, which she followed up with another single an a spot as a supporting act for Coldplay and Kaleo on their tours. She continued releasing singles before putting out her first EP in 2016, followed by some performances at music festivals before re-releasing her EP in digital form in 2017. Her debut album was released in 2018, followed quickly by her second album in 2019. She's continued to release singles since then, with this one being released in 2022, and is clearly a very emotional piece for her, as evidenced from the video. It never fails to make me tear up a little to watch, so I hope you check it out.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 235

Hey guys. Today's song is Fingers Crossed by Lauren Spencer-Smith.

So Lauren Spencer-Smith is a Canadian musician, active since 2019. She released two live album in 2019, the first of which earned her a Juno Award nomination for Adult Contemporary Album of the Year. Then in 2020 she decided to compete on American Idol, making it into the top 20. She released an EP in 2020, and has been releasing singles since then, with this one being released in 2022. It's also the song that has earned her international fame, making it onto the charts in a bunch of different countries after a clip went viral in TikTok. I'm excited to see what she's got in the works for the future. 

Peace.

Year 8, Day 234

Hey guys. Today's song is It's OK If You Forget Me by Astrid S. 

Astrid Smeplass is a Norwegian singer active since 2013 with her appearance on Idol – Jakten på en superstjerne, a Norwegian version of the British show Pop Idol to find the next big star. She came in fifth on the show, but by then her popularity had broken through. She released her first single after the show, then was signed and released another single with the label in 2014. She released her debut EP in 2016, followed quickly by another in 2017, as well as an acoustic version of that EP. Her music started popping up on the Swedish charts, then in 2018 she won Artist of the Year at the Norwegian Grammy Awards. She did some touring with other artists through 2018, then in 2019 released another EP, followed by her debut album in 2020. In 2021 she was focused more on acting playing Cinderella in Tre nøtter til Askepott a.k.a Three Nuts For Cinderella, a remake of a 1973 Czechoslovak/East German film. She has been releasing more singles through 2022 again, so I'm sure we'll see another album from her in the future. For now I hope you enjoy this song.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 233

Hey guys. Today's song is I'm Here by Sarah Cothran.

Sarah Cothran is new enough to the industry that there is no official bio for her to go off of. Her YouTube has been active since 2017, starting with covers before she moved on to making her own music through TikTok. She released her debut EP in 2022, and along with the release of that she put out a video to let you get to know here, so rather than me writing a whole lot of nothing here, I'll link the video for you here so she can tell you her story herself. 

Peace.

Year 8, Day 232

Hey guys. Today's song is Everything To Everyone by Renee Rapp.

Renee Rapp is a singer/actress active since 2018. While in school she was heavily involved in the theatre program, and won Best Actress at the Blumey Awards in 2018, leading to her also attending the National High School Musical Theatre Awards and winning Best Performance by an Actress and putting her on the radar of some big Broadway names. After winning for her Big Fish performance, Rapp joined the cast of Spring Awakening in Theatre Charlotte's 2018 production, and in the same year also performed at The Educational Theatre Foundation's show at Feinstein's/54 Below (very famous Broadway bar) and at a music festival. Through 2019 she did more performances, including at Feinstein's/54 Below again for the High School Musical night and their For The Girls night. She also performed at BroadwayCon's 2019 Star to Be event, singing a song from Smash, a Broadway centred TV show that I've actually featured music from before. The in summer of 2019 it was announced that she would join the Broadway cast of Mean Girls, playing Regina George for a limited run through June, then permanently taking on the role from September onward. She kept the role until the pandemic shut Broadway down in 2020, and then in 2021 they announced the show would not be reopening. In 2020 she joined the cast of The Sex Lives of College Girls, then in 2022 it was announced that she would play Regina George again, this time in the movie adaption of the musical. Also in 2022 she started on her music career with releasing some singles and an EP. So while her music industry career doesn't have that much to check out yet, I'd bet you can find performances of her from Broadway or at Feinstein's if you look. So check that out.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 231

Hey guys. Today's song is Psycho by Maisie Peters.

This song has been living rent free in my brain since Maisie released it and I'm completely okay with that. So Maisie Peters is an English singer active since 2015. She started out on YouTube, releasing her debut singles in 2017. In 2018 her career started to pick up and she got signed to a label, releasing her debut EP at the end of the year. She released a couple singles in 2019, followed by another EP, before one of her songs got used for the Birds of Prey album in 2020. In 2021 she switched labels and released her debut album, which is where this song is from. She did some touring in 2022 and has released a single so far this year leading up to her upcoming album, so keep an eye out for that.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 230

Hey guys. Today's song is Ray Of Light by Madonna. 

Photo by: Chris Weger

After the lyrics yesterday, it just made me think of Madonna, but I didn't have her song Vogue saved to showcase. I had this one, and that works well enough too. I think after this one I only have one more Madonna song saved to showcase. In other news, I learned today that one of my old friends from high school wrote a poetry book! I feel a little defeated since I haven't really done anything in my life, but I am mostly proud of her and excited to read it. I don't know much about it other than it was very personal and a form of therapy for her after some trauma, so it might not be everything's style, but I figured I could help spread the love for it so you can check it out if you're interested. So her website is here if you're curious and want to check out the book. And if you do read it left me know what you thought about it.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 229

Hey guys. Today's song is Back Into Vogue by AleXa. 

AleXa is the stage name for Alexaundra Christine Schneiderman, an American singer based out of South Korea and active since 2016. She got her start when she auditioned online as Alex Christine for Rising Legends run by Soompi, an english website providing coverage of K-Pop culture, in partnership with one of the entertainment companies. She auditioned twice, and the second time came in first in dance and second overall, signing with ZB Label. In 2018 she was a competitor on Produce 48, a show to produce a girl group, but was eliminated in the first round. She released her debut single in 2019, followed by two EPs in 2020. She released an album in 2021, then in 2022 represented Oklahoma in the American Song Contest, which is basically a baby Eurovision just for the States. AleXa won the competition with one of her songs, then released another album. So if you like what you hear go check out some of her other stuff.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 228

Hey guys. Today's song is Sorry To Me Too by Julia Michaels.

Photo by: Justin Higuchi

I've shown you Julia Michaels before so this shouldn't be too much of a surprise. So Julia Michaels is the stage name for Julia Carin Cavazos who has been active in the industry since 2010 as a songwriter. It's only recently that she has branched out to performing, releasing her debut single in 2017. 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. In 2019 she released two EPs, then released a single in 2020 in preparation of the release of her debut album, which was released in 2021. She has done stuff since then (this song is an example) so she's still going strong and I'm sure we'll be featuring even more of her stuff again at some point.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 227

Hey guys. Today's song is Forever by Gryffin and Elley Duhe.

Gryffin is the stage name for Dan Griffith, an American DJ active since 2014. He is a multi-instrumentalist, and actually started music with the goal of having friends play it at parties, but never thought of it actually being a career. He gained popularity after debuting in 2015 at a music festival, followed by releasing his debut single in 2016, which topped the charts. He continued to release singles over the next couple years before releasing his debut album in 2019. As of 2022 he released his second album, so check that out. He actually made another song besides this one with Elley Duhe, first collaborating on a single in 2018. Elley Duhe is an American singer active since 2016. She started out playing in coffee shops while she was still under age, then upgraded to the bar scene and private parties which got her enough exposure to start booking gigs opening for bigger artists. She dropped out of school and instead got her GED while focusing on her career, and auditioned for The Voice in 2012, but didn't pass through. In 2014 she collaborated with Tarro on a single that went big online. By the end of the year, one of her singles had hit on the Billboard charts. She continued to do collaborations with other artists before releasing her EP in 2018. Since then she's had more singles released, and has signed a deal allowing her to release music independently through her own label. Since is one of her more recent songs as a featured artist in 2022, and she also has some singles of her own from the same year for you to give a listen to. Enjoy.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 226

Hey guys. Today's song is End Of The Night by Danny Avila.

So Danny Avila is a Spanish DJ active since 2010, with his first show in Kapital, a Spanish club. By 2011 he was nominated at the Vicious Music Awards, before touring through the United States in 2012. In 2013 he performed at a music festival in Miami before getting signed. Since then he's been consistently releasing singles and collaborating with some other big names including The Vamps and Nervo. So if you like what you hear, go check out some of his other music.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 225

Hey guys. Today's song is The River by Axel Johansson.

Axel Johansson is a Danish songwriter/producer who has been active since 2017 with the release of his debut single called The River which after posted to YouTube went viral. He's continued to release music through YouTube and Spotify since. He uses the robot in the picture and that you'll see in the video as the face of his career, so you'll see a lot of this little guy as you check out his music. And while there are pictures of Johansson from behind with a robot hoodie on, if her wants his robot to represent him, then that's what I'm going to show. I don't have much more to tell you since the only bio I can go off is what's on his YouTube, but all that really matters is the music is good and is linked for you to enjoy.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 224

Hey guys. Today's song is Love To Lose by Sandro Cavazza and Georgia Ku. 

Sandro Cavazza is a Swedish singer/songwriter active since 2014. As a solo artist he released two EP's, one in 2017 and another in 2020. He was also a member of Estraden, a Swedish pop group formed in 2017. As of 2021, he has ended his singing career, but does still plan to write music. Georgie Ku is a British singer/songwriter active since 2015. She started out as a featured vocalist on a song from Skrillex and Dillon Frances, then another with Nicky Romero and Stadiumx. From 2016 to 2019 she continued to be featured on other songs, and co-wrote some big hits, including songs for Fifth Harmony and Iggy Azalea. She released her first EP in 2020 and has released a couple singles since then, but no album as of yet. I guess we'll have to wait and see about that one.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 223

Hey guys. Today's song is Mess by Noah Kahan.

Noah Kahan is an American musician active since 2017. He started doing music stuff at 17, working with a school friend as a producer which gained the attention of his current manager and the notice of songwriter Dan Wilson, whose worked with a lot of big name artists. After high school he deferred his acceptance to Tulane University in favour of pursuing his music career, getting sign in 2016 and releasing  his first single in 2017. He released another single in 2017, to lead up to his EP released early in 2018. In 2019 his released his debut album, which is where this song is from. He released another EP in 2020, followed by his second album in 2021. He did some touring in 2022, along with releasing singles to lead up to his third album released later in the year. I'm sure we'll be seeing more from him soon, since he's been releasing stuff pretty consistently, so keep a lookout for that if his stuff is to your style. You guys have no idea how long I have been holding on to this song with the intention of showcasing it here for you. It's been probably since it came out and it is a song that really strums a chord within me. So hopefully it was worth the wait.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 222

Hey guys. Today's song is Carry It Well by Sam Fischer.

Sam Fischer is an Australian artist active since 2012. He started with instruments early, learning violin at 3 and saxophone at 10, going on to play sax in his high school jazz band. Side Note: already the parallels I'm seeing between this man and my sister is freaking me out. He also began writing music at an early as as well, before enrolling into the Berklee College of Music and joining the school's a cappella group. His debut song was as a featured artist on a track from Alex Preston released in 2012. Then in 2014 after winning an a capella competition with the school, Fischer graduated and moved to LA and began writing songs, rejoining some a cappella stuff, and singing backup in the group HOLYCHILD. In 2016 he released his first solo single, followed by a few more before releasing two EPs in 2018. In 2019 he did some collaborating and toured with Lewis Capaldi before getting signed. They re-released one of his EP's in 2020, then he did some more collaborations in 2021. This year he has released a couple more singles, one being this song and it's one that I really enjoy so I hope you'll like it too.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 221

Hey guys. Today's song is Never Knew A Heart Could Break Itself by Zach Hood.

So this is the acoustic version of this song which I found first, but I actually had saved both versions because I liked it so much. I do think I like the acoustic one a little better though so that's the one you get today. So Zach Hood is another green artist, meaning he's pretty new to the industry. (For reference I consider starting anywhere in the last five years as new.) He started off with posting covers on Instagram while in junior high, then in high school he got on TikTok. As many other TikTok artists, his songs went viral and his songs just kept getting more and more views and earning him exposure. He was signed to a label in 2021. He already has a handful of singles out, and I do already have another song of his selected for later on, so I hope you like what you hear today.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 220

Hey guys. Today's song is I'm Never Getting Over You by Gone West.

Gone West was a country pop group active from 2018 until 2020 and made up of some familiar names including Colbie Caillet, Nelly Joy, Jason Reeves, and Justin Young. In case you aren't sure who those people are: Caillet is a solo folk pop musician, and a Grammy award winner, Young is a musician focused on Hawaiian contemporary music, Reeves is an indie artist and does songwriting for Caillat, and is married to our fourth member Joy, who is one half of the country duo called the JaneDear Girls. The group had all been touring together in support of Caillat's sixth album in 2018, and decided to form this group together. The name comes from the fact that all members are from states east of the groups base town of Nashville, meaning they all have gone west to Tennessee. The released an EP in 2019, followed by their debut album in 2020 before a split between Caillet and Young caused the group to disband... which does suck, but at least with them all being in the music industry you can go check them out in their other iterations if you want more.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 219

Hey guys. Today's song is Dear God by Shaun Farrugia. 

This is another new artist to me, and the only bio I have is the one from his website, so it might not be as detailed as normal. So Shaun Farrugia is from the Republic of Malta (which is a first for us here so give it up for Malta today!), and is based out of London, England where he moved in 2019 to start his music career. He got his start through Instagram of all places, where he received an invite from producer Sigala to meet up, leading to his move and getting signed to a label. As of now he has some collaborations out and some songwriting credits. Starting this year he has been releasing some music, with this being one of three right now with more to come. So check of his stuff through the year and if you like it show it to your friends so we can build up his fan base.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 218

Hey guys. Today's song is Pointless by Lewis Capaldi. 

Photo by: Tuomas Vitikainen

Lewis Capaldi is a Scottish musician based out of Britain and active since 2013. He learned how to play guitar at a young age, and would then go on to write music and sneak into bars to play gigs. Officially he was discovered through SoundCloud, when a video he posted made its way into the hand of his now manager Ryan Walter. After that he still went to college for music, graduating with an HND in 2016 in England. His debut single was released in 2017, becoming a viral hit and leading to him being signed with a label. He released some other singles that would then be featured on an EP, before joining various groups on tour, with his music rapidly earning him more and more spots on tours of big name artists. In 2018 he was nominated for a Scottish Alternative Music Award, and was also featured by BBC Music, BBC Radio 1, and Vevo. He also performed at a bunch of different music festivals throughout 2018 before releasing a single, leading to his debut album in 2019, that would top the Billboard charts and earn him a Grammy nomination. He also received a nomination at the 2019 Brit Awards, then again in the 2020 Brit Award, winning twice in the latter year. He spent 2021 working on his next album before coming back to redo his cancelled shows in 2022. His second album is on deck to come out later this year so if you like what you hear, keep an eye out for that one.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 217

Hey guys. Today's song is In The Stars by Benson Boone.

So this is another new one for me, and actually pretty much a new one in general in the industry. Benson Boone is an American musician, active since 2021. He first started thinking about music after being asked to play piano and sing in his high school Battle of the Bands. He then did a semester of college before dropping out to focus on his career which is when he auditioned for American Idol and started releasing stuff on TikTok. He got in the top 24 of Idol before he dropped out and refocused on his music through Tik Tok, gaining a decent following. It also made its way into the hand of Dan Reynolds, the singer in imagine Dragons, who then signed Boone to his label in late 2021. So far he's got a couple singles and an EP from 2022 that you can check out. I just know his career is going to take off. So here's to a new fantastic find for today. Enjoy.

Peace.

Year 8, Day 216

Hey guys. Today's song is How Do I Say Goodbye by Dean Lewis.

Photo by: Harald Krichel

Dean Lewis is an Australian musician active since 2016. His influence and inspiration comes from the Gallagher brothers of Oasis fame, with Lewis eating up their content since 2005. Lewis was signed in 2014 with a smaller label, then again in 2016 with a bigger one, releasing his debut single that skyrocketed in popularity and would go on to be featured in a lot of pop culture stuff. In 2017 he released an EP and some singles, and was nominated for five different ARIA Awards. In 2018 he released another chart-topping single which hit number one in multiple countries. His debut album was released in 2019, followed by a collaboration track with Martin Garrix. He released a couple singles through 2021 which led up to his second album that was released in 2022. This song is from that latest album and, considering most of us have had to deal with at least one death in the last couple years, it really hits different. It's a beautiful song and I hope you enjoy it.

Peace.