WORLD MUSIC RADIO

After receiving several awards (including the Oscar) for his work co-writing the score for the animated film, "Soul" and winning the top Grammy prize of Album of the Year in 2022 (with a total of five wins) for his album, "We Are", Jon Batiste's career is on a major roll. He has just recently given up his night job as the musical director on "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" (which he held for seven years) in order to devote more time for his own music projects. 

Batiste, who comes from a distinguished musical family in the New Orleans area, began as a child playing percussion and drums with his family's jazz outfit, the Batiste Brothers Band before later switching to the piano. He studied classical piano throughout his teenage years but went on to attend Juilliard where he received a Bachelor of Music in jazz studies. Since he finished school, Batiste has had an impressive career that began teaching classes and workshops throughout the Netherlands, recording several jazz albums and even doing some acting, appearing in the HBO series, "Treme" and the Spike Lee films, "Red Hook Summer" and "Da Sweet Blood of Jesus".

With his latest album, "World Music Radio", Batiste ventures into global music in an unconventional way. The collection is a concept album with a DJ named "Billy Bob Bo" who is playing songs on an intergalactic radio station, transmitting an eclectic mixture of musical sounds for a truly otherworldly audience. There is also an interesting mix of collaborators which includes Spanish singer, Rita Payés; the psychedelic rap of Lil Wayne; Leigh-Anne of the English girl group, Little Mix; the K-pop group, NewJeans; the dream-pop goddess, Lana Del Rey and the classic cool sax of Kenny G.

NEW SOUNDS

KELLY ROWLAND

Kelly Rowland is really on fire right now after releasing another smoking hot single. The former Destiny's Child member and expectant mother has dropped the song, "Crazy", a dance-floor banger about someone who is insanely in love with their significant other.  And while there are moments that brings to mind the musical delivery of Rowland's ex-bandmate, this disco-flavored track is solid and will continue to help take Miss Kelly to the next level. After this and the sensual "Coffee" from earlier this year, I can't wait to hear more.



H.E.R.

Gabriella Wilson or as she is best known professionally as H.E.R. has returned with new music. The Vallejo, CA. born and raised singer has helped make classic r&b popular again with her own style of contemporary soul. The music of H.E.R. has been critically acclaimed, winning the singer Grammy Awards in 2019 for Best R&B Performance and Best R&B Album, and found chart success with the singles, "Focus", "Best Part" (with Daniel Caesar) and "Slow Down" (with Skip Marley). Her latest single is "Damage" (that is driven by a distinctive sample from Herb Alpert's 1987 song, "Making Love In The Rain"),  a soulful ballad on the harm that can happen when your lover takes you for granted. No word on when there will be a new record but with several compilations and EPs since 2016, H.E.R. has not officially released a debut album.



LITTLE MIX

Little Mix is one of the best-selling girl groups of all time and while this British quartet has managed to conquer much of the world, they still haven't been able to reach the US. But they might change with their latest single, "Sweet Melody" which is getting some attention here in the States. The song is the third release from their upcoming sixth album, "Confetti" which is due out in November. I don't think "Sweet Melody" is necessarily a major standout from this pop group but you never know what could potentially help Little Mix crossover to this side of the world.

LM5

Little Mix, the British female pop/soul quartet, is probably one of world's most popular girl-groups that almost no one has ever heard of in America. They are hoping to change that with the upcoming release of their fifth album, "LM5".

The group, made up of Jesy Nelson, Leigh-Anne Pinnock, Jade Thirlwall and Perrie Edwards, was formed in 2011 on the UK version of the talent-competition program, "The X-Factor". They had each auditioned as solo acts but failed to make the final cut. They were given a second chance to come back and teamed-up to become "Rhythmix". The ladies worked their way up the competition before eventually winning that season's contest. The group decided to change their name to "Little Mix" so not to be confused with a British children's music charity that had shared their original name.

Little Mix's first single, "Wings" debuted on the UK pop chart at number one in 2012 and their album, "DNA" soon followed, peaking at number three on the British album chart. This began their world-wide success with three more platinum albums and chart-topping singles like "Black Magic", "Cannonball" and "Shout Out to My Ex".

With "LM5". the group continues with their powerful vocals and solid harmonies. It seems like this new music should definitely catch the attention of American ears, The first official single, "Woman Like Me" features a reggae-infused pop vibe and Nicki Minaj providing a rap verse. The song has charted across the globe and reached number two in their native country.

Take a look at the recent live performance on the 2018 MTV EMAs of Little Mix with Nicki Minaj performing together "Woman Like Me" and Minaj's latest, "Good Form". And here are two other songs, "Joan of Arc" and the ballad, "Told You So" that have been released to promote the album.







And as a bonus, here is the music video for their first hit, "Wings":