Ten Years Of New Music Discovery | The Finest Emerging New Talent From The UK, USA and Scandinavia
Three years and three mixtapes later, Easy Life are finally gearing up to release their debut album, and with it comes ‘Daydreams’.
“Like most of us, I’ve spent the whole year sat at home daydreaming about a possible alternate reality. Born out of boredom and idleness, ‘Daydreams’ is as much about getting drunk as it is about falling in and out of love.” – Murray Matravers, Easy Life
“The title being censored is to highlight how throughout history parts of society have portrayed black people and culture almost like a swear word.”
This song genuinely gave me shivers of emotion; it’s a stunning piece of music and I really hope you give it time to play in full, because it’s nothing short of stunning.
The visuals are just as gorgeous, where the inspiration for the song opens the video as we hear Nikki Giovanni’s striking words from her 1971 conversation with fellow author, poet and activist James Baldwin: “I get least of you. I get the very minimum. And I’m saying, you know, fake it with me. Is that too much for the Black Woman to ask of the Black Man?”
“‘Black Woman’ is about reconciliation and also celebration – celebrating how strong our women are and how they hold us up. People might think this song was written as a response to the moment right now but it’s saying the exact same thing it was saying when it was written a year ago – ‘I see you, I recognise you, I appreciate you and I love you’.”
Taken from the sophomore EP ‘It’s Never Really Over’ which is out now via Island Records.
“I hope these songs can make you feel something and help you like they have helped me. These are the most genuine songs I’ve ever made… New era starts now.”
British readers will recognise that this release from American talent Hamond samples UK garage classic ‘Rewind’ by Artful Dodger.
Flawlessly done too, if I say so myself. This kid brings a refreshingly bold and original approach to RnB and pop, and I am living for it.
Taken from the new EP ‘Source Material’ which is out now.
One of the most fun visuals I have seen all week, featuring a brilliant intro with Dan Rue from ‘Wild ‘n Out’.
The track itself is a fresh and finessed RnB number with some Guyanese flavour added for extra goodness.
“It’s about being young, single and living your best life. The record has a fun and carefree vibe to let loose to.”
Taken from the forthcoming EP ‘Love Songs About Nobody’ which is set to release later this year.
A positive song with matching visuals is just about the most needed thing in 2020.
“‘Doubt Nothing’ again just does what it says on the tin. I was really particular about what song I was going to release following on from ‘Ain’t So’ and my mood and my energy and everyone else’s energy right now just needs ‘Doubt Nothing’, I’d like to think it’s uplifting. It’s just me in a song really.”
New visuals to celebrate the news that Arlo Parks’ debut album ‘Collapsed In Sunbeams‘ will *finally!* be out on 29th January 2021 via Transgressive Records.
“This is a song about self-discovery, self-acceptance and adolescence. It is supposed to uplift and comfort those going through hard times”.
“With this video I wanted the feeling of absence to really be felt. We wanted to contrast that with bright colours because often when I feel down, outwardly it can seem the complete opposite. I cover up everything with a smile and numb myself with food comas and mindless activities.”
Taken from the debut album ‘One of One’ which is out now.
London duo HONNE (one of my all time favourite bands) have just released a new acoustic EP, ‘no song without you: dream edits’, which reimagines six tracks from their mixtape ‘no song without you’.
Perfect listening for lockdown, wherever you are in the world, and a reminder of just how happy their sound can make you feel.
“Working with Ali was a really amazing experience. I’ve always loved his music so I’m super stoked to finally release this collaboration. We wrote the whole thing over FaceTime, in quarantine!! It was crazy.” – Tate McRae
Harlesden’s finest, 18-year old talent kamal. has already amassed over 10 million streams this year already while graduating from school.
This track takes a look at FOMO; the fear of missing out… Feeling obliged to go to parties even when you don’t really want to, so that you can feel some sense of validation.
The track is released alongside another song called ‘autopilot‘ which is equally gorgeous.
I’ve been a fan for a couple of years now, and I’m still hugely obsessed with ROLE MODEL. It’s a casual take on indie pop that’s so mesmerising and addictive.
“Lauv and I wrote Fake while we were just hanging and ranting about those two faced people everybody knows. Those people who say one thing and do the other, people who constantly talk trash about their own friends. We wanted to make something fun you can scream in the car to, a song to flip a bird at those types of people.” – Conan Gray
Self-taught indie-soul sensation Joesef unveils new visuals to celebrate the release of new EP ‘Does It Make You Feel Good?’ which is out now via AWAL.
“This EP draws a line under a relationship that I’ve written about in ‘Play Me Something Nice’ – if that EP felt more hopeful, this is the end game. The bitterness, and the lies that stem from fading love, to the aftermath of dealing with loss and regret, and finally taking responsibility for my own actions. I don’t really give much away ever, so it will always make me feel uncomfortable sharing such personal aspects of my life, but maybe if it can help me work some shit out, it could help somebody else too.”
In addition to these beautiful new visuals from Izzy Bizu, she’s also supporting a charity event by Studio Samuel (a charity that supports young and at-risk women in her homeland Ethiopia) for International Day of the Girl this Sunday (11th October).
“Originally the song was about a promise that my Dad made to me that one day we would buy an MG. We used to walk past the MG store and he would ask me to pick out my favourite and said we would buy it one day and drive away on an adventure. He wasn’t around long enough to be able to do that, so it was emotional to do the video but also an amazing experience.”
“To be honest, it seems like the good days have been too few and far between lately… but deep in my heart I know a good day is there running beside us in a parallel universe, and I wrote this song to help remind me that nothing is permanent and anything can happen.”
“This song is about friendships, courage, and love. I wrote it after a psychedelic experience that led to an outpouring of emotions that were bottled up for a long time. This song is meant to be that release.”
One of the stand-out tracks from Kaytranada’s ‘BUBBA’ album gets the visual treatment and it’s pretty spectacular to watch.
Also worth checking out is the release of ‘BUBBA (Instrumental Version)’, which includes vocal-free versions of all tracks featured on the original album, with exception to those that originally debuted as instrumentals and the track ‘Look Easy.’
