Artist Spotlight: October Issue
- Oct 5, 2017
- 5 min read
Okay OneSelfers… I really want to bring to you artist that I have discover and/or artist that I have been sleeping on. This is true, so keep reading. I wanted to put a spotlight on my first four artist that I believe should get the credit they deserve. I actual love their style of music. It's so raw and speaks truth to what they believe in and their work of art.
Alessia Cara
Alternative R&B- R&B
If you don’t know now you know. I honestly I only knew a little about Alessia Cara until I heard her song Scars to Your Beautiful over a year ago and remember her first single Here. This Canadian singer and songwriter got her start covering songs on YouTube until Def Jam Recordings signed her to their label in 2015 and released an extended play called Four Pink Walls before her debut album. Her debut album wasn’t release in November 13, 2015 called Know-It-All. I remember her face when I say her on TV talk show The Real and I remember she had her first tour and her style of clothes what stood so, so how come I saw sleeping on this girl? I still don’t have the answers yet, but here I am now Alessia. She is man talented OneSelfers. The reason I finally start noticing her was when she did that collaboration with Zedd on the song Stay that was released early this year that got me going back to her and checking her out. She also has a song with rapper Logic with she is featured on it called 1-800-273-8255. Also don’t forget she also was on the soundtrack for the Disney movie Moana for the song, How Far I’ll Go [end credits]. This song is very powerful in itself and it’s on US top 10. If you like music artist such as Lauryn Hill, Amy Winehouse, Pink, Fergie [the Black Eyed Peas], Drake and Ed Sheeran, then you know where Cara got her influence from. Pick up her album and listen. I sure love it.
Follow Alessia Cara:
JP Cooper
Soul-Indie Rock-Dance-Alternative Rock-House-Tropical House
The first time that I ever heard JP Cooper was on my Little Mix Pandora station. The
song that was playing was The Only Reason and I was hooked along with September Song. This English [UK] singer and song writer who I like to call, “Bob Marley other child”, got his start back in 2012 with the first two EP releases. From 2012 to 2015 JP releases five EPs in total [EP1, EP2, EP3, Keep the Quiet Out and When the Darkness Comes]. Cooper signed with Island Record in mid-2014. His first debut studio album Raised Under Grey Skies is due out tomorrow October 6, 2017. I actually pre-ordered the signed deluxe copy of the album [and got shipped off today]. Since is it being shipped from the UK I should get my copy in the mail in the next 10 days. I will say this: he only has one feature on the album by a UK rapper name Stormzy. So I can’t wait to hear this album. He also worked with many other artists such as Craig David [new album The Time Is Now due out January 26, 2018] and be featured on a summer hit called Perfect Stranger by Jonas Blue (another UK artist). If you love you some Eddie Vedder, Lauryn Hill and Bjork Houston then you know where his amazing influence from. Make sure you order the album.
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Kehlani
R&B-Hip Hop-Neo Soul-Pop
This girl came into my life during two movie end credits. I had to know who this Kehlani [Parrish] was all about. This American singer, songwriter and dancer who hail from the town that gave me life: Oakland, CA got her start. Kehlani wanted to be a dancer, but that dream was cut short due to an injury in junior high which turned her attention to music. When she was 14 years old she was part of a local pop cover band called PopLyfe and were on America’s Got Talent and placed 4th in 2011. When Kehlani moved to Los Angles [with some help from Nick Cannon] with studio time and linked her up with various artists in the business. In 2015 she was signed to Atlantic Record and a Mixtape called You Should Be Here followed that earned her a Grammy nomination for Best Urban Contemporary Album Grammy Award. Kehlani debut album SweetSexySavage was released back in January 27, 2017. I didn’t pick up the album 9 months later. Her songs were feature on many feature film soundtracks in the last year such as Gangsta (Suicide Squad-2016), Thank You (Girl’s Trip-2017), Escape (Everything, Everything-2017). If you love you some Lauryn Hill, Erykah Badu, and Jill Scott then you know where her music influence came to be and more. You won’t be disappointed in this album, because it has been on repeat in my house. Kehlani also release a new signal called Honey. I really like how she is being honest about her sexually in this new single and about her lover. Get the album and also her new single for her upcoming project in which I don’t know the release date.
Follow Kehlani:
Stanaj
Contemporary R&B-Alternative R&B-Pop
The first time that I ever heard Stanaj [Albert Stanaj] name and gorgeous voice was when JoJo announce that he was going on tour with her during the Mad Love Tour. I’m thinking to myself, “I don’t know who he is but he got to be good for JoJo to have him on tour.” When I heard his voice on the trailer video for the Mad Love Tour promotional, I was like “Damn, I’m in!” This Albania/New York-born singer got his start back in 2014 when Stanaj and his brother/manager David moved out west to California and his music got notice by your boy Drake aka “Jimmy Brooks” and got his music glowing on social media by Russell Simmons, Chris Brown Kim Kardashian West and Brandon Jennings. When Jennings uploaded a clip on his social media site everybody took notice of Stanaj. LAVA saw and offered Stanaj a recording contract and got to work music in England with producers such as Fraser T. Smith. If you don’t know who Fraser T. Smith is, you better pick up Craig David debut album Born To Do It (2000) and then we can have some tea…okay! From his two EP’s: The Preview EP and From A Distance, I fell in love with his music completely. From songs like Changed, Romantic, Goddess and Ain’t Love Strange is so deep. I know early this summer he released a song called The Way I Love Her. If you love you some Michael Jackson, Justin Timberlake, Mawell and Whitney Houston then you know where Stanaj got his crazy and amazing influence from. Also you can catch Stanaj on tour with Jessie J this summer in Europe and the U.S. (California dates got sold out).
NOTE: Due to JoJo getting sick for my tour date, Stanaj was unable to perform at the reschedule dates so I didn’t get a chance to see him live. Also I missed another chance to meet him because he was at the May 11th Craig David TS5 show [in the crowd] and I found out that Stanaj first album that he ever brought/ listen to was Craig David Born To Do It.
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Each of these of these artist have talent and they share their gift with the world. They have so much soul, true and so much more. You would have fun, be in your feelings and listen to the raw emotions in their work. Yes and here you have it OneSelfers, the artist that you need to check out. If you are listening to some artist that I haven’t heard or that I need to listen to leave them in the comment section below. I’m open to mostly anything and I will so give me review. Until next time OneSelfers.
This post is not sponsored by Alessia Cara, JP Cooper, Kehlani and Stanaj.
ALL OPINIONS ARE MY OWN
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