Damiano David, the front man for the popular Italian rock band, Måneskin, has recently released a side project. David, along with fellow musicians, Victoria De Angelis, Thomas Raggi and Ethan Torchio, first came together to form a band as high school students in Rome back in 2016. They chose the name "Måneskin" (which means "Moonlight" in Danish) and developed their skills by playing on the streets for tips. The band soon worked their way on to the Italian version of "X-Factor", finishing in second place. This lead to a recording contract with Måneskin releasing their first album, "Il ballo della vita" that featured a mix of Italian and English-language rock songs. Måneskin's next big achievement was representing Italy in the Eurovision Song Contest in 2021 and creating a bit of an upset by winning the finals with their song, "Zitti e buoni (quiet and well-behaved)". This victory helped to drive even more buzz for the band with their previous recordings receiving some new found interest throughout Europe including their cover of the Four Seasons' 1967 hit, "Beggin'" that reached the top-ten in the UK and even charting in the US.
The twenty-six year old singer's debut solo album, "Funny Little Fears" is a clear shift in musical direction from his band, with a softer, pure pop sound. David began writing for the album in Los Angeles (in part to be closer to his current girlfriend, musician Dove Cameron), working with numerous songwriters and producers, and ended up with about seventy songs. This was narrowed down to fourteen English-language tracks which expressed a more personal and sensitive side of the artist, songs that might not fit as well with his band. David plans to hit the road this fall, beginning in Warsaw on Septemeber 11th, that will take him around the world to promote the album.
Here is a collection of new music that I'm connecting with at the moment: Devonté Hynes, better known as the British performer and producer, Blood Orange, has a new track that features the Durutti Column, Tariq Al-Sabir, Caroline Polachek and Daniel Caesar; Christine and the Queens join forces with disco legend, Cerrone for a cover of his 1977 hit, "Supernature" which is remixed by Purple Disco Machine; the pop stylist, Kim Petras is back with "Polo" that has her in a techno-driven vibe; Tinashe teams up with DJ and producer,Disco Lines for a remix to proclaim she wants "No Broke Boys" and an inspired paring of Norah Jones and John Legend with "Summertime Blue"
I am sad to report that Walter Scott, one of the original members of the r&b group, The Whispers that found fame beginning in the post-disco era and shared lead vocal duties with his identical twin, Wallace, passed away on June 26th at the age of eighty-two. Formed in Watts, CA in 1963 with the Scott brothers along with Gordy Harmon, Marcus Hutson, and Nicholas Caldwell, The Whispers first became known as a thrilling live act. Harmon became seriously injured in a car accident in 1973 and was replaced by Friends of Distinction member, Leaveil Degree. The Whispers would get a recording contract but struggled to gain some traction with their music. By 1978, they signed with Solar Records and finally hit it big with the dance tune, "And The Beat Goes On". The song was their first number-one single on the r&b chart and crossed over to the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number nineteen. More hits followed with "It's a Love Thing", "Keep On Lovin' Me" and "Rock Steady" which became their highest charting on the US pop chart, reaching number seven and their second number one on the R&B chart.
And Calvin Yarbrough of the r&b duo, Yarbrough & Peoples has died on June 19th at the age of seventy-one. Yarbrough and Alisa Peoples both grew up in Dallas, TX, and they had met taking piano lessons as young children. They grew-up to become professional musicians together and formed a group first called Grand Theft. An encounter on the road had them meeting Charlie, Ronnie, and Robert Wilson, who are better known as The Gap Band, and they introduced them to Lonnie Simmons, a songwriter and producer who went on to work with them to help put together their first album. In 1981, Yarbrough & Peoples released their debut, "The Two of Us" which featured, "Don't Stop the Music," that went to number one on the US Billboard R&B chart and also reached the pop chart, making it as far as number nineteen. This would become the most popular song by the duo (who would later marry in 1987) but had four more top-ten R&B hits before heading back to Dallas to start their own music production company in 1986.
It's been fifteen years since actor and musical artist, Vanessa Williams has released new music. She had a thriving pop music career since the late 1980's but had recently decided to put her main focus on acting on the screen and stage. Yet unexpectedly Williams has dropped a new single, "Legs (Keep Dancing)" that is the first from an upcoming album due out later in the year. Inspired by the memoir, "The Legs Are The Last To Go" by the legendary, trailblazing actress, Diahann Carroll, the sixty-one year old Williams decided it was not too late to resume her recording career. The music video for this dance bop displays Williams in fine form, showing off her legs and some impressive, high energy moves. But Williams has not given up on acting as she is set to return to the stage in London's West End, as Miranda Priestly in Elton John's musical adaptation of "The Devil Wears Prada".
The alt-r&b duo, Lion Babe, that features vocalist, Jillian Hervey and producer, Lucas Goodman have also just released a new dance track, "So Pretty". This New York based outfit have been blending classic soul and electronic beats since 2012 and with their latest release, "So Pretty" delivers a shimmering house music song about feeling confidently beautiful on the inside and on the outside. For the video, looking and sounding very much like her mother, Vanessa Williams, Hervey is seen strutting around the city looking glamourous and fierce.
Here are a few recent songs that I am enjoying: "Espresso", the latest pop single from actress/singer, Sabrina Carpenter which is her first to reach the top-ten in several countries including the Billboard Hot 100; The song, "Make You Mine" from Madison Beer with the music video inspired by the horror-comedy, "Jennifer's Body"; Tinashe is back with "Nasty" which proclaims that she's looking for a freak and "Magnificent", the most recent song unearthed from the seemingly, unlimited musical vault from the late and highly prolific artist, Prince.
And I just recently watched again "Sweet Charity", the 1969 movie adaptation of the stage musical which was based on the Fellini film, "Nights of Cabiria". And while it does not work entirely for me, what makes the film truly stand out is the direction and choreography of Bob Fosse, making his screen directorial debut. He began first as a chorus dancer in the movies before heading to the Broadway stage, working his magic to become an acclaimed choreographer and later a director. Fosse's success continued as he returned to film, making five features and winning the Best Director Oscar for the musical, "Cabaret" in 1972. Here is the incredible number of "Big Spender" from "Sweet Charity" which features Paula Kelly and Chita Rivera that is a marvel in movement and sound.
2019 seemed to highlight the further fragmenting of pop music with the growing emphasis on the song and less on the singer. In this Spotify generation, endless playlists filled with disconnected songs by a variety of artists have increasingly replaced a focused collection of work by a singer/songwriter with specific thoughts on life and love. Even the way music is created has moved back in time to the days when a factory of songwriters and producers put together a track and then find the right singer to fill in the rest. While it has become much more difficult for performers to maintain enduring careers after their initial burst of success, there were certainly some promising new artists who broke out and made fresh, memorable works last year who look like the real deal.
Here are a few more favorite songs that I didn't get chance to share previously throughout last year:
First up, we have Britney Spears who has just dropped a new song, "Make Me" which is the first release from her upcoming ninth studio album. With an obligatory guest appearance by a rapper (here we have G-Easy), this beat-heavy, sexy ballad has Spears cooing seductively about having her man make her do whatever he'd like. I think this just might be the hit that will bring her back to the top of the charts.
With the 2016 Rio Olympics just a few weeks away, it's time to hear an inspirational anthem to help get everyone pumped up for the event. Katy Perry has been assigned that job and "Rise" is the song. This Max Martin produced ballad is intended to lift up and inspire and does so with Perry's robust vocals and lyrics with an encouraging positive message. The music video drives it all home with powerful images from past Olympics.
Finally, we have Tinashe with "Superlove", an '90's inspired, throw-back jam. The track is a part of "Joyride", her highly anticipated follow-up to her 2014 studio debut, "Aquarius" that featured the million-selling smash, "2 On". This hypnotic song, produced by The Dream and Tricky Stewart, may feature a familiar vibe that will certainly remind you of the great Aaliyah yet Tinashe manages to make "Superlove" stand out as a modern classic.
There was quite a bit of good music during 2014 and it all helped motivate, inspire and excite me each and every day. I happily shared some of my favorites here throughout the year, so these are the rest of my best:
"Rather Be " - Clean Bandit featuring Jess Glynne
"Don't Tell 'Em" - Jeremih featuring YG
"2On" - Tinashe featuring ScHoolboy Q
"Am I Wrong" - Nico & Vinz
"I Don't Mind" - Usher featuring Juicy J
"Water Fountain" - Tune-Yards
"Cool Kids" - Echosmith
"I Was Gonna Cancel (Steph Seroussi Family Remix)" - Kylie Minogue
"Love Me Harder" - Ariana Grande featuring The Weeknd
While the world has to anxiously await the third installment of the "Hunger Games" franchise until tomorrow, you can hear some of the music from the film right now. The eighteen year-old New Zealand artist, Lorde was approached to once again contribute a song but this time she wanted to have a bigger role in creating the soundtrack. She was given the reins to curate the music for "Mockingjay, Part One" and assembled an impressive list of artists to participate.
Lorde brought together veteran cutting-edge musicians (Chemical Brothers, Bat For Lashes, CHVRCHΞS) and offbeat rising stars (Charli XCX, Tinashe, Tove Lo) to create a moody, hard-hitting collection that will enhance and work perfectly with the dark themes of the film. There are also some inventive musical pairings including EDM outfit, Major Lazer with Ariana Grande, Simon LeBon of Duran Duran joins Charli XCX on "Kingdom" and Lorde herself with a crazy team featuring rap artists, Q-Tip and Pusha T and the rock group, Haim on Belgian hip-hop artist, Stromae's song, "Meltdown".
She even got Kanye West involved to remix her track, "Yellow Flicker Beat" and re-titled the tune as "Flicker". My favorite part of this whole enterprise is the inclusion of the legendary Grace Jones with the song, "Original Beast". The idea that Lorde was aware who she is, let alone, wise enough to have this incredible performer a part of this project makes me love her even more.
Listen to a few of the tracks from the soundtrack:
"All My Love" - Major Lazer featuring Ariana Grande (2014)
Country superstar, Taylor Swift has made a risky move by making her fifth album, "1989" a pure pop record. This could potentially be career suicide as country music fans are notoriously unforgiving when a beloved artist abandons their loving arms. I don't think Ms Swift has much to fear as the album looks poised to becoming one of the biggest sellers of the year.
For her official foray in to pop music, Swift has wisely decided against relying on current trends and looks back to the sounds of the 1980's for inspiration. The title of this record comes from the year of her birth and with production assistance from pop-hit makers, Max Martin, Ryan Tedder and Shellback as well as Jack Antonoff of the indie band, Fun and alt-rocker, Imogen Heap, she has crafted a collection that evokes a feeling of the past but remains quite modern. And considering she hasn't done much living at only twenty-four, Swift also shows great maturity as a songwriter.
"Blank Space", the latest single from the album looks sure to be another smash:
"Blank Space" - Taylor Swift (2014)
STEVIE NICKS - "24 KARAT GOLD: SONGS FROM THE VAULT"
One of Taylor Swift's idols, Stevie Nicks has also looked to the past for her latest release, "24 Karat Gold: Songs From the Vault". Nicks had a large collection of unrecorded songs she had written that went as far back as when she was dating Lindsey Buckingham before they joined Fleetwood Mac in 1975. They are now seeing the light of day as Nicks went to Nashville with producers, Waddy Wachtel and Dave Stewart (formerly of The Eurythmics) to record these lost treasures. The majority of the songs are by the singer but there are a few covers including "Carousel" by Vanessa Carlton which was one of her mother's favorites.
This is one of the tracks I really like:
"Starshine" - Stevie Nicks (2014)
PRINCE - "ART OFFICIAL AGE"
After being musically silent for far too long, the iconic Prince has returned with not one but two new releases. "Plectrumelectrum" and "Art Official Age" are being released by his former label, Warner Bros Records which he claimed at one time that they treated him like nothing more than a slave but clearly time has healed those old wounds. The former CD is an avant-garde, hard-edged rock album with his all-female backing band, 3rdeyegirl but I'm going to focus on the later which delivers more of the funky sound that I love. Prince seems to be in a more playful, sensual mood these days which is reflected in this new music. Along with the expected idiosyncratic touches scattered throughout, this is one of his most accessible albums in years.
"Clouds" - Prince (2014)
ANNIE LENNOX - "NOSTALGIA"
As is the trend these days for record labels to have veteran artists travel down a musical memory lane, Annie Lennox has just released her version with the appropriately titled, "Nostalgia". Ms Lennox had previously recorded a covers album of pop songs that inspired her back in 1995 with "Medusa" but this time the dynamic vocalist has gone back even further. This collection features songs from the Great American Songbook and some jazz tunes. She has taken on such classics ranging from Billie Holiday's "God Bless The Child" and "Strange Fruit", "Summertime" from Gershwin and "Georgia On My Mind" made famous by Ray Charles. Ms Lennox convincingly performs each song with warmth, style and class. "Nostalgia" has even made it to the top of the Billboard jazz chart.
Here is a clip of the singer performing "Summertime":
TINASHE - "AQUARIUS"
One of my favorite songs of the year is "2 On" by the twenty-one year old Tinashe and after releasing several popular mixtapes, her debut, "Aquarius" is now out. Although this singer/actress brings to mind the late Aaliyah, the Zimbabwe born, L.A. raised artist moves further out of the realm of traditional r&b or hip-hop. Tinashe had a hand on the writing of most of the songs along with top producers DJ Mustard, Mike Will Made-It and Stargate to help expand her sound and together they created a work that is sexy, experimental and highly innovative.
Enjoy this sample of the sounds of Tinashe:
"Cold Sweat" - Tinashe (2014)
Dawn Richard, a former member of the female pop singing group formed by Sean "P.Diddy" Combs, Danity Kane, has dropped the music video for her new single, "Blow". Richard is part of the alt-r&b movement and this pulsating clip is equally offbeat:
