A stunning piece of chillhop inspired downtempo electronica, (Baby) Just Let Me Know’s melodies wash over you like a wave of bliss.

Perfect for rest and reflection, the track features an R&B inspired vocal sample reminiscent of Drake at his most heartfelt – but with more intricate percussion driven production. This tune is set to gear Itona up for the stratosphere.

https://itonabeats.bandcamp.com/

Itona is the new alias of James Vine, aka ENiGMA Dubz.

Meaning ito – love, na – summer in Japanese, the Itona project was inspired by the UK lockdown due to COVID-19. In response to these difficult times, James set about creating uplifting, dreamy and authentic electronic music to help people escape the difficulties, but still deep and thought provoking.

First outing, Dusty City, is a stunning piece of reflective downtempo lofi electronica, with a chillhop groove and sparse yet infectious vocal samples, that takes you on a dream-like journey as you float in a bubble of bliss.

Watch out for more from Itona, with a series of singles leading to his debut EP – Reverie – out later this year on UK independent label Morii Records.

https://www.instagram.com/itonabeats/

FRENCH:

Une voix claire et envoutante. Des textes forts aux accents nostalgiques. Des mélodies profondes bercées d’influences cap-verdiennes et africaines. Marie Minet opère une synthèse des genres aussi sublime qu’inédite en racontant de manière crue mais poétique des histoires de vie qui font echo à sa génération.

Son premier single Attendre l’été, disponible à la fin du mois de Novembre 2020, navigue entre slam, musique du monde et références subtiles aux compositions classiques de son aïeul Edward Grieg. Une chanson qui ravive des souvenirs d’enfance, tout en interrogeant l’innocence de cette période et les désillusions de l’âge adulte. Un single qui surprend tant il bouscule les frontières entre les genres musicaux tout en nous rapellant les classiques de la chanson française.

Son premier album, qu’elle compose sur les textes de son frère Paul, est mis en musique par Jon Luz, prodige discret de la musique du monde ayant composé pour Cesária Evora et bien d’autres. Il est attendu pour le printemps 2021.

https://www.facebook.com/marieminetmusic

ENG:

A clear and mesmerising voice. Powerful lyrics with nostalgic touches. Deep melodies soften by Cape Verdean influences. This is what makes Marie Minet’s mixing of genres is as sublime as it is innovative. In her raw but poetic way, she tells life stories that echo her generation.

Her first single, “Attendre l’Été,” available in November 2020, navigates between French chanson, spoken word, World Music, and subtle references to the classical compositions of her ancestor Edward Grieg. It’s a song that revives childhood memories while questioning the innocence of youth and the disillusionment of adulthood.

Her first album, “Clair Obscur”, is filled with profound lyrics from her brother Paul. She composed the music in collaboration with Jon Luz, a master of Cape Verdean music who composed for Césaria Évora, bringing a Lusafone accent to the French chanteuse. He also produced the album, which is expected to be released in spring 2021.

https://www.instagram.com/marieminetmusic

For singer and songwriter Rumour, the inspiration to pursue music originated when he won his first singing competition at 17.

Growing up in Waldorf, Maryland his dad taught him to play the guitar at a young age. His love of music led him to teach himself producing and sound engineering, all while composing his own lyrics. He’s spent years making music in a multitude of genres and performing with many local artists, with each experience contributing more to his voice and passion as an artist.

Modeling his music off the creative tones of The Weeknd and The Chainsmokers, Rumour adds his own elements of ambient vocals and EDM to produce his unique spin on current Pop and R&B.

https://instagram.com/rumourt7

ABOUT THIS SONG

This is a pretty dark experimental electronic song written during one of the pandemic lockdowns. A good song to listen to when you’re feeling trapped by anything – a job, a zoom meeting, a relationship, a prison cell, the world.

ABOUT THIS ARTIST

An experimental electronic project out of Montreal Canada fronted by singer-songwriter Ricia Rae. Combining sometimes strange and haunting lyrics with layers of mixed beats, and analogue and digital synths to create an electronic soundscape experience.

Tom Mackell shared with us few words about this song “I wrote Strange Times while considering all of the sudden changes in my every day life during quarantine. It’s an honest and sincere expression of how I was feeling and dealing with this new reality. I was looking forward to my first music festival appearance over the summer as well as a full coast-to-coast U.S. tour in the fall. It was hard to stop touring, but as every other musician unfortunately had to experience, I was forced to cancel everything and head home. One of the first things I did at the start of quarantine was sit down and write ‘Strange Times’; it was my way of processing the uncertainty ahead.

The track was written, recorded and produced in Nashville during quarantine. It features some of the best musicians in music city including Sol Philcox-Littlefield (Tim McGraw, Sam Hunt, Luke Combs, Jake Owen), Grady Saxman (Luke Combs, Muscadine Bloodline, Uncle Kracker), Will Moore (Lucie Silvas), Billy Justineau (Brothers Osborne), Tim Galloway (Chris Janson, Jake Owen). Strange Times by Tom Mackell is a new Nashville track from a new Nashville artist that was featured on Glide Magazine, Americanafest and more.”

http://tommackell.com/

Frank Knight & Chuck LaWayne drop the latest smooth banger in single and music video format from their upcoming joint album “Slim & Mickens”. This new record known as “Plush Illy Down” featuring the legendary O.G. Shabaam Sahdeeq. Taking the time to drop gems on this piece of art. It’s perfect the mesh of similar and different eras coming together in the name of the “Real Hip-Hop”. This record is the perfect representation and example of “this is what New York sounds like”. The video compliments the records so perfectly featuring the legendary New York crew the “Lo-Life’s” in classic Ralph Lauren Polo freshness. A true testament of excellence and authenticity radiates all through this video.

http://instagram.com/theofficialsxm

Canadian country-pop artist Mandy McMillan has released her emotional new single, “Haven’t We All Been” – which is now available on all digital platforms.

Co-written by McMillan and Chris Roberts, “Haven’t We All Been” was produced in Nashville by Simon Gugala. It was influenced primarily by the styles and sounds of Sheryl Crow, Tom Petty, and John Mayer to create a song that intersects between alt-country and classic rock but is fueled by cathartic energy.

“The inspiration for this song came from my own path to self-love during a very trying time in my life. Creating ‘Haven’t We All Been’ was a healing exercise that helped to keep me grounded. It taught me to not be ashamed of any situation I have been in. Instead, I can transform the pain into a means of learning, growing, and – ultimately – living,” says McMillan.

“Reflective hopefulness” is how McMillan describes the lasting impact of the song that she wants her listeners to feel from it.

McMillan says, “I want people know that it is okay to be real and be open about their vulnerability. Every experience becomes a story, and these unique stories and struggles that make us who we are. The greatest gift that we can offer is to share our stories and find a connection – not through our common adversities, but from the helping others to find light through the darkness. With this song, I want to share understanding and compassion for others on a hopeful path to better days.”

The Edmonton-born McMillan’s own journey sent her from the small town of Stony Plain, Alberta to Nashville after she won a Country Music Television Canada Contest in 2008. High points like opening for Trisha Yearwood and Blake Shelton, releasing her 2014 self-titled EP, and making the Top 10 of ole’s “Play for Publisher” have been mixed with lower points of personal struggles and self-reflection. McMillan has ultimately made peace with herself through self-love, spirituality, trust in the universe, and let it shine through with a diverse offering of new music for others to form their own connections with.

“Haven’t We All Been” follows McMillan’s summer release, “Dream Catcher”, and is the newest single to be released from her upcoming album – also called “Dream Catcher” – due in 2021.

She will support “Haven’t We All Been” with a music video in November and a special alliance with Be Free Yoga – a Spruce Grove, Alberta foundation that emphasizes yoga and meditation as a means of healing for those faced with mental health challenges.

“Haven’t We All Been” is available now on all streaming platforms.

https://www.mandymcmillan.com/

HAVEN’T WE ALL BEEN (LYRICS)

Haven’t we all been
Drinking in the same bars
And haven’t we all been
Hiding the same old scars

We’re singing the same songs
About love gone wrong
Getting by getting high
Letting go of yesterday

Haven’t we all been here at least a time or two
Wiping away these tears we’re drinking away our blues
Falling in love and breaking up
Over and over again
Haven’t we all been

I’ve got a friend who
Is getting married next week
And i got another one getting alimony

I’ve had a heartbreak
Pulled close then pushed away
I’ve learned to fly i’ve learned ro cry
Aren’t we all doing the same dang thing

Haven’t we all been here at least a time or two
Wiping away these tears we’re drinking away our blues
Falling in love and breaking up
Over and over again
Haven’t we all been

A little lost along the way
A little up a little down
A little scared to leave the same small towns
A little whiskey kills the pain

But in the end we’re all ok
Tomorrows another day but for now

Haven’t we all been here at least a time or two
Wiping away these tears we’re drinking away our blues
Falling in love and breaking up
Over and over again
Haven’t we all been
Haven’t we all been

Your Dreams is an ode to one’s particular longings coming from a place of starry-eyed purity. In Evripidis’ words: “This is a song about yearning, sleepless nights and most of all, hope, about trying to overcome your fears and hesitations, struggling to leave a suffocating situation be it a family, a relationship, a job, a city, and move on, although you might not even know what exactly you are aiming for.”

Conceived as a piano ballad, it was later transformed by Evripidis, his boyfriend Marc Ribera and producer Sergio Perez, into an indie dance pop anthem, full of analogue synth sounds, complete with an ecstatic instrumental coda. It features Rachel Kenedy (from indie pop darlings Flowers and experimental pop group Fuse Box City) as a guest vocalist

https://evripidisandhistragedies.bandcamp.com

Evripidis and His Tragedies is the handsome and goofy alter-ego of Evripidis Sabatis (born and raised in Athens, based in Barcelona). Through his devastating, confesional and darkly humorous pop songs he tries to dissect and ultimately own the vicissitudes of life, invoking a pop sensibility featuring quirky lyrics as he takes us for a bumpy, dancy ride across the fine line between tragedy and joie de vivre. He draws influences from the vast spectre of pop music of the last 60 years, adding his classical piano training.

He has released four full-length LPs to the day, three of them sung mostly in English and the last one sung entirely in Greek while he is about to release a fifth one, featuring a shift towards a synthetic sound

-French-

« Un morceau qui parle du vide ressenti lorsque la distance s’immisce entre deux personnes. Un lien invisible difficile à délaisser ».

(Kay Jam)

En collaborant sur ce titre composé quelques mois plus tôt, Kay Jam (Julien Cambarau) mêle son univers habituellement plus rock à la sensibilité et à la voix réconfortante de Nalu (Noa Zalts). Cette rencontre artistique donne naissance à une ballade folk touchante, remplie de douceur et d’une tension habilement distillée. Le duo nous emmène délicatement et nous raconte une histoire. Celle d’une rupture entre deux individus qui tentent de suivre leur propre chemin en l’absence de l’autre.

-English-

« A song about the emptiness felt when two people are apart. An invisible connection remains and it makes it hard for them to move on ».

(Kay Jam)

By composing this track, Kay Jam (Julien Cambarau) melts his usually more rock universe with the sensitivity and the comforting voice of Nalu (Noa Zalts). This artistic collaboration gives birth to a touching folk ballad, full of softness and skilfully distilled tension. The duo delicately takes us along to tell us a story about a separation between two people who are trying to follow their own path, while missing each other.

http://kay-jam.com/

“Cherry on Top” is a creative unique hip hop tune. Ziearre is a Brooklyn born rapper who makes music to express a message to the world. The sounds are engaging, featuring an exciting mix of beat boxing, vocal samples, percussives, and synths. The melody is creative mix of contemporary rap, conscious rap, with some 90’s vibes coming through in the pre-chorus.

https://www.instagram.com/ziearre/

A New York boy, who grew up in Brooklyn was destine to become the young warrior of words and inspiration to youth. Ziearre expressed a love for music at the early age of 3. This sparked the beginning of Ziearre’s journey. As he matured and his gifts were revealed, he proved that he was not your typical entertainer, but a creator and a messenger. He explains, “I started to hear melodies and music in my head, and began to write songs. The musical ideas just came to me, and I couldn’t turn it off.”

https://www.ziearre.com/