Month: August 2021

RYKHO has teamed up once again with Billboard chart topping producers Soulshaker on his new single, ‘Whatcha Gonna Do’, following the success of his first two singles, which hit top 10 in the UK’s Music Week charts.

RYKHO is a Canadian recording artist who has been steadily making waves on the inter­ national dance scene over the last few years. RYKHO was born in the Philippines
and moved to the Canadian west coast at an early age. As a teen he gravitated towards the stage as a performer and was later cast in a number of Broadway theatrical produc­ tions in Vancouver.

His vocal training was honed by one of Vancouver’s
finest coaches Sandi Siemins (Michael Bublé) and he slowly developed his signature vo­ cal style being influenced by acts such as Justin Timberlake, Usher, and Backstreet Boys. In 2015, under the guise ‘Friedrick Ryan’, he broke into the Dance Music scene collaborating with acclaimed club remixers DASCO and Eric Kupper on the singles ‘Love On the Dance Floor’, ‘All Over Again’ and ‘Glow’ which all hit Top 30 in the Music Worx Top 100 International Chart.

In 2019, RYKHO joined the talented team at Audiofreaks to evolve his sound further in the house dance realm. RYKHO’s debut single ‘Can’t Do Loving You’ peaked at #6 in the UK Music Week Commercial Pop Chart and his energetic feel­good sophomore banger ‘Without You’ broke even more ground, peaking at #4 in the Music Week Chart,

hitting #1 in the Music Worx Top 50 Europe Chart and breaking top 20 in the Beatport Top 100 Dance Chart.

Following the success of his first two singles, RYKHO immediately got back to work with the legendary Soulshaker to craft an even bigger club anthem ‘Whatcha Gonna Do’.

Block & Crown are up first on the remix package with a driving House remix. The Nether­ lands based producers are currently top of Beatport’s top 100 and they continue to take over the charts at Traxsource, DJ tunes and Beatport with a US Billboard #1 to their name and releases on some of the world’s biggest dance labels.

The mysterious Journey By A DJ completes the remix package with a chunky, tech house remix for the virtual dancefloors. RYKHO’s new single is set to bring more feel­good energy to all those facing the many challenges of 2021.

Cassidy-Rae is riding on a high after releasing two successful singles in 2021 and now returns with a highly anticipated new song. ‘Meant to Be’ is a heartbreaking track, a love story falling apart. With passionate lyrics like, “I was there, heart bleeding, you were gone when I needed the person you promised to be”, this song calls on deep feelings of love and loss that anyone can relate to. “Meant To Be” was produced by Sydney’s Love HZ Studios respected producer Michael Carpenter.

The prolific songstress has been busy on numerous radio tours and in the studio for over 12 months, crafting out a wave of new tracks to share with audiences. The third single from Cassidy-Rae this year is a passionate country-pop ballad taking a swift turn from the good vibes of “Dose Of You” & “Cheers Y’all”, shining a light on Cassidy-Rae’s depth, vividly depicting the nostalgia and emotional difficulties following a breakup.

Proving popular amongst fans and media alike, Cassidy-Rae is charting consistently with singles added to coveted playlists like Spotify’s Fresh Country Playlist, Apple Music Today’s Country, Aussie Country and Lil Bit Country Playlists. Her latest music video ‘Dose Of You’ enjoyed a premiere on Country Music Television and has been widely embraced by supporters.

As a graduate of the Country Music Academy of Australia, Cassidy-Rae is a powerhouse to be reckoned with, appearing at major events such as Tamworth Country Music Festival, Blue Water Country Music Festival, Ballina Country Music Festival, Sydney Blues and Roots Festival and more.

With over 90,000 followers across social media, Cassidy-Rae continues to connect with fans worldwide over Covid, performing and sharing her life through two Facebook Live Streams – Sunday Sit Down and Live Music Sessions every week.

Past releases from this talented songstress include ‘I’m on Vacation’ ‘Throwback’ and the heartfelt ballad ‘More’ which have all sustained solid airplay on Australian Radio, airplay on CMC/CMT and together with ‘Cheers Y’all’ and ‘Dose of You’ streams over 350k on Spotify and over 560k views on YouTube. ‘Cheers Y’all’ also reached #28 on the major Countrytown Hot 50 music charts and ‘Dose Of You’ was officially added to Triple M Country ensuring high rotation.

From party anthems to heartfelt ballads, Sydney-based Cassidy-Rae is a talented and versatile rising star. Her vibrant, confident and authentic performances from her guitar and keyboard, have proven why she has amassed such a loyal following. Her mesmerizing vocals, and larger than life stage presence ensures she is an artist with a huge future and one to watch.

Six-time Grammy Award winning singer-songwriter Kacey Musgraves will release her highly-anticipated fourth studio album star-crossed on September 10, via Interscope Records / UMG Nashville. star-crossed : the film directed by Bardia Zeinali, stars Musgraves, and will be streamed exclusively via Paramount+ on the same day. The title track written by Musgraves, Daniel Tashian, and Ian Fitchuk along with the film’s trailer are both out now. star-crossed is the first album of new material from Musgraves since releasing her groundbreaking and critically-acclaimed album Golden Hour in 2018. Check out title track “star-crossed,” here and check out star-crossed : the film trailer here.

star-crossed , the album, found Musgraves collaborating once again with co-producers and writers, Ian Fitchuk and Daniel Tashian, and was recorded in Nashville,TN earlier this year in just under 3 weeks. The 15-song collection, structured as a modern-day tragedy in three acts, tells an extremely personal journey of heartache and healing and displays Musgraves continued growth as one of the finest singer-songwriters of our time. Pre-order the album here.

star-crossed : the film, takes the music from the studio to the screen with gorgeous visuals and a sense of heightened reality envisioned by Musgraves and Zeinali and shot by Academy Award-nominated cinematographer Matthew Libatique (A Star Is Born, Black Swan). “We wanted it to feel cinematic and epic without compromising the heart and the emotion,” Zeinali says, “to feel fantastical and heightened and tell her story through the lens of art and fashion.” The 50 -minute movie was filmed over a 10 day shoot in Los Angeles and features cameos from Emmy Award-winner Eugene Levy, Victoria Pedretti (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, You), singer-songwriter Princess Nokia, Symone (RuPaul’s Drag Race winner) and comedian Megan Stalter. The global premiere of Kacey Musgraves’ star-crossed : the film will exclusively debut on Paramount+ in the US, Latin America, Australia, the Nordics and Canada beginning on Friday, September 10th. Fans outside of these markets can watch on MTV across its worldwide network of channels in nearly 180 regions. star-crossed : the film is presented by Interscope Films and is an Anonymous Content Production in association with UMG Nashville, Sandbox Entertainment and Golden Girl Productions.

Dave Herrera was inspired to write the song Hella Country after working and taking care of his family ranch which is located in a small town surrounded by rice fields, orchard farmers, cattle, vineyards and the hard working blue collar families that keep the small town going.

It’s not just music, it’s a lifestyle, living through and relying on a good or bad season where we might not get necessities like water, when we’re delivered a summer full of droughts or wild fires that alter the growing environments.

Herrera said “what Hella Country means to me is a culture of hard working, never giving up, and doing what we can to provide for our families with the environment that surrounds us.

Herrera wrote the track with the help of Cory Coppin co-writer and produced the track with co-producer Jeff Balding. “Hella Country” was recorded at WestRoc Studios.

In addition to the release of Hella Country, the music video will also be released on Sept. 16, 2021.

Today, 3 x time ARIA Award and 11 x Golden Guitar winning Shane Nicholson releases his new album Living In Colour along with the official video for his Top 15 Country single ‘And You Will Have Your Way.’

Living In Colour is Shane Nicholson in different hues: trusting and cynical, father and friend, sometimes buoyant and in love, beginning to have faith in the world, other times struggling to make sense of the same world that can rip your heart right out.

Shane is a man remaking himself constantly. “That’s exactly me to a T. I guess in some ways that’s good: I have more positive days than I used to, and that probably spills over into songs now and then,” he says. “It’s been a pretty sad couple of years to be frank, losing one of my best mates to suicide, grandparents, my partner lost her dad, my manager lost his brother, a few close industry friends. And then in the first Covid lockdown there was this crazy spate of musician suicides in Australia, people that we’d all known.”

You can hear the stresses and anxieties in frank and open songs like Simple Man and The High Price Of Surviving and feel the brutal truth of a damaging relationship in Ain’t Been Loved. But it’s not the full story. The “internal struggle to stay happy” was balanced by his partner, his kids, his house and studio and Shane will tell you that “I feel lucky”. After all, even though he claims in one song here that “I can’t write a love song”, there’s a lot of it about. “There’s more love creeping into the songs but maybe that’s the 40s,” he grins.

Living In Colour was written and recorded in Shane’s Central Coast studio pretty much on his own due to Covid restrictions, while also producing 4-5 other artists projects at the same time. “I just found it fun to be doing it myself. It was sort of a return to the old days, my teenage years, when I had my first Pro-Tools set up on old computer and I was making demos and putting songs together, learning about the mechanics of production in a bedroom in Brisbane in my parents’ house,” he says excitedly. “I haven’t really done that since then, being able to sit there by myself and pick up instrument after instrument. It was mostly me and a bottle of whiskey into the night, that was it.”

Help came at the beginning and the end of the process, with Josh Schuberth recording the drums in his own studio in the Blue Mountains, over which Shane laid all the other parts, and then “comrade in arms” and fellow producer Matt Fell adding his tweaks to the finished product.

Springsteen meets Country in Jackson Capps’ angsty yet nostalgic

first-love-lost breakup song ‘LAX’ – Australian Radio Premiere August 6

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT JACKSON CAPPS

“Jackson has the unique ability to create modern music that appeals to fans of country music from any generation. I find his sound refreshing and exciting.”
– Chris Yow, Raised Rowdy

“[About LAX] A bright country pop song with a rousing chorus and some emotive delivery alongside…”
– Bristol Funk

“[About Yesterday’s Makeup] With a booming baritone voice and the support of an all-star roots band, Jackson delivers a bittersweet mix of country-flavored melody and beautiful harmony. Classic elements of fiddle and electric guitar come together behind this rock-solid groove to support the tragedy of a love gone wrong, as we experience the vicious grasp of loneliness, and the power it has to lead us astray…”
– CHILLFILTR.com

Nashville based, Alabamian country artist Jackson Capps released his angsty yet nostalgic breakup song, “LAX” on August 6 2021, with his Australian Radio Premiere the same day.

That feeling of a first-love-lost is explored in “LAX” as it paints the picture of a long anticipated departure from LA after a bittersweet breakup. While country sensibilities are clearly evident with Capps’ classic tone, fiddle and slide guitar, “LAX” also channels the sounds of America with influences of Bruce Springsteen meets Ryan Adams, and melancholy Don Henley vibes.

“LAX” was co-written by Capps, Alex Tomlins and J.W. Faria, co-produced by Capps, Alex Tomlins and Jed Smith, performed by Capps’ Nashville live band, mixed by GRAMMY-award winner Brandon Bell, and mastered by Daniel Bacigalupi of Infrasonic Studios.

While many artists have been inspired by country music from a young age, Capps additionally had an once-in-a-lifetime experience at the age of 12 when Marty Stuart invited Capps on the Grand Ole Opry stage to perform with him. Determined to pursue his dream, he graduated high-school early to relocate to Nashville and has spent the last 3 years consistently writing and honing his live performance skills, performing 4-5 times a week with his six-piece band. In 2020 Capps released two singles with “Yesterday’s Makeup” charting at #83 on the Australian iTunes Country Charts.

ABOUT JACKSON CAPPS

Jackson Capps is a country artist and songwriter based in Nashville, TN. Inspired by the storytelling of country music, the Alabama native traveled back and forth to Nashville from a young age, where he had a chance meeting with Marty Stuart at the age of 12 and was subsequently invited to perform with him on the Opry stage. His excitement turned to calming peace as he performed on that famous stage, reassured in his desire to pursue a music career.

Determined to get his career underway, Capps graduated high school early and relocated to Nashville in 2018 (at 17). He has since been writing consistently and performing at Tootsies Orchid Lounge four-five times a week with his six-piece band (performing over 200 gigs/yr). Capps seeks to consistently hone his skills, learn from multi-talented musicians and writers, and create meaningful and emotive music.

Capps’ touring plans started with two sold-out headline shows, one at Workplay in November 2019 and the second at Iron City in March 2020 and came to a crashing halt the following weekend due to Covid-19 shutdowns. Undeterred, Capps refocused his attention to release his first two singles and focused on writing for his upcoming releases in 2021.

Jackson’s single, ‘Alabama Gone,’ was released in October 2020 and followed by a music video in January 2021, which has over 60,000 combined views. The song follows a complicated relationship across Alabama with an ex on the loose, betrayal on his mind, and a morally questionable conclusion.

‘Yesterday’s Makeup,’ Jackson’s first stand-alone single, was released in July 2020, which generated thousands of streams in the first week, playlist features on Whisky Riff and ChillFiltr amidst others, and charted at #83 on the iTunes Country Charts in Australia (thank you Australia).

His first release and self-titled debut EP of 2018 was co-produced with Jack Key and engineered by Grammy award winning Zach Allen.

Jackson prides himself on performing with exceptional and highly sought after musicians from across the world (Australia, Canada, and across the US). His band currently consists of Courtney Wray (backing vocals), Alex Tomlins (guitar), Eric Dysart (fiddle), Darren Theriault (bass – Garth Brooks, Huey Lewis and the News), and Jed Smith (drums & percussion).

Casey Barnes has today delivered country rock/pop ballad, “God Took His Time On You” – melodic and memorable, the song possesses a heartfelt lyric that sets it apart.

Discussing the single, Barnes said today, “I’ve absolutely loved teaming up with my US buddies in Brown & Gray co-writing tracks for this next album and when we worked on this single we knew straight away it was something really special. Every lyric in this song is a dedication to the one you love. Using the metaphor in the line ‘when heaven dreamt you up, God took his time on you’ I think is the ultimate tribute of how perfect you feel your partner is.”

“God Took His Time On You” is the follow up to the No 1 airplay hit “Come Turn Me On”, of which Rolling Stone Magazine (AU) made the following assessment, “While 2020 served as something of a bleak year for most, Barnes was able to turn musical lemons into lemonade … a masterful piece of country pop/rock, “Come Turn Me On” is exactly the sort of song that the phrase “crossover hit” was made to describe.”

Born in Tasmania and now hailing from the Gold Coast, Barnes has quietly honed his talent, touring consistently across Australia and abroad, delivering for an ever growing and fervid fan base.

With the success of “Come Turn Me On”, Casey Barnes’s international audience has continued to build, reaching US ears via successful additions on some of their biggest country playlists. Of his 200k+ monthly listeners, over 25% are from the US and close to 50% are outside of Australia – he is well on his way to becoming one of Australia’s most successful country music exports.

Over the last 18 months, Barnes has delivered a string of successful releases. He has nailed four No. 1s on the Australian country radio charts, and eight of his songs have blasted past one million streams. His all-time streams are closing in on 20 million.

Barnes’ second album “Town Of A Million Dreams”, released in April last year, won over a whole new legion of fans, debuting at No. 16 on the ARIA Albums Chart and No. 1 on the Australian Country Chart, the iTunes Country and All Genre Charts. It has now chalked up 60+ consecutive weeks in the ARIA Country Albums Chart and shows no sign of slowing down.

Along the way, Barnes collected an ARIA Award nomination for Best Country Album, and he performed at the 2021 Golden Guitar Awards, where he was recognised with four nominations – 2021 Toyota Album of the Year, Contemporary Country Album of the Year, Male Artist of the Year, and Vocal Collaboration of the Year . He also scored an APRA Award Nomination (Most Performed Country Work) and an AIR Award Nomination (Country Album of the Year).

Next up is the 2021 Gold Coast Music Awards, where Barnes has scored 4 nominations for the event to be held at HOTA on Saturday September 4 – Song of the Year, Release of the Year, Live Act of the Year and defending the coveted title of Artist of the Year, which he won in 2020.

“God Took His Time On You” is the second single from Casey Barnes’ yet to be announced new album, which is due for release in early 2022 and will be followed by an extensive national tour.

Shyla Roe’s new track “Mind Wide Open” speaks on the topic of lockdown, how quarantine has made everyone be so productive while the world shuts off.

Roe: ‘Some are more heated at the situation than others, but we all must adhere to the rules to work together through the pandemic. The government hasn’t been honest with their choices but to survive they need to be transparent with the public.’

Enjoy this Dance single produced by Rob Davis.

After exploring ‘High Country Snows’ with Bill Chambers, Kevin Sullivan is back with the feel-good, tongue-in-cheek ‘Spend The Kids Inheritance’. The vibe of the song is set from the very beginning, as soon as you hear the ukulele playing ‘Aloha Oe’, it makes you want to appreciate not only today but the rest of your days.

Helping us value that all important work/life balance, Kevin wrote the song after meeting so many grey nomads while on tour. The common thread in countless conversations was how they were rewarding themselves and more importantly not feeling guilty about investing in their happiness and a long and happy life.

Whilst Kevin’s initial thought process was of retirement, the song became so much more. People of all ages are now realising that we need to get out there and really start living. If the past 18 months has taught us anything it’s that we need to think differently about how we live.

Kevin adds, “The song is almost an anthem to the grey nomads and those living every second. When I sing this song live, everyone in the audience gets it; they cheer, particularly the retirees, they nod and say, ‘yes, that’s what we are doing’. But there’s also the personal side of the story. With my career path from the Forensic Police to touring musician and my wife Belinda’s career as a CEO, we’ve slowly realised you can change your paradigm. What we have experienced since our sponsorship with Sunland Off Road Caravans and meeting so many caravaning people is that you can get off the daily grind. It’s never too late to get out there and LIVE”.

‘Spend The Kids Inheritance’ is the 5th single from what will be Kevin’s 2nd album. With a working title of “Against The Tide”, no release date has been set. Previous singles include the Number 1 iTunes Country Music Top Songs chart Australia, ‘High Country Snows’ (March 2021), ‘Against The Tide’ (Sept 2020), ‘Pilgrimage’ (April 2020) and ‘Just Don’t Mention Christmas’ (Nov 2019).

Kevin, Belinda and their three youngest children are currently touring QLD in their custom-built van. Premium Australian caravan company Sunland, have designed and built the family a 3.5 tonne family caravan & named it in their honour… The Sunland Sulli-Van. This is the 2nd leg of the Sulli-Van Tour returning home to NSW (Gerringong, NSW South Coast) in October 2021… at this stage!

Summer Nights is another production by Dj Aldo & Lost Dejavu, and as always, expect a catchy melody.

The track features the sweet vocals of Giang Pham and has an intense build! This is a tune that will add a magic touch to the summer nights. OUT NOW…..!!