Rising Ivory Coast musician and well-versed musician snny has just released his new single ‘Postmodern Black’ via Radio Silence. The single will form part of his long-anticipated debut album release later this year. To date, the musician currently sits over a whopping 12 million streams across major music streaming platforms. His previous release, EP Otito features an impressive production team with Alex Mendoza (producer of song ‘Trampoline’ by SHAED), Scott Hoffman (Scissor Sisters), and Starchild & The New Romantic (Toro y Moi, Solange and Blood Orange).
We find out what makes snny tick in this exclusive with him.
What are some of your earliest memories of music?
My mother playing records around the house and especially lots of church music. I specifically remember the first time I watched the music video for ‘Thriller’ and I was blown away. I probably fell in love with music videos first before actually realizing I was into music.
Take us through your songwriting process. Are there any particular steps you take when putting music together?
A lot of ideas happen in the shower. There’s something about water that just brings the best out. I usually form a story or use some keywords to then paint with before bringing any instruments into play. The lyrics and melody come together simultaneously upon conception.
You have previously shared,“‘Postmodern Black’ is, to me, a sonic manifestation of my own self-reliance.” Can you elaborate on this?
I see it more like a score to a moment in a film where the underdog realizes his potential & throws all self-doubt out the window.
Studio work and music creation or performing and interacting with a live audience, which do you prefer?
I don’t think you can compare both really. I feel like they are both intimate in their own way. I thoroughly enjoy doing both, at the end of the day I want to create something in the studio that I myself would want to hear and perform at a live performance.
What is the most memorable response you have had to your music?
Getting Bob Dylan’s okay to approval to reimagine his classic ‘The Times They Are A-Changin’
If you could put together a radio show, what kind of music would you play?
It would be a pretty eclectic space, everything from traditional Ivorian music to Brazilian rap, french disco, to everything in between.
Name five artists and their albums who would appear on your radio show
my late great uncle “Ernesto DjeDje” his album Le Roi Ziglibithien, MC Binladen & self-titled album, Paul Desmond – Glad to be Unhappy, Toro y Moi – Outer Peace, Crack Cloud – Pain Olympics.
What would you like to achieve with your music? What does success look like to you?
Spreading positivity and influencing change. Ushering in the new while remembering the old.
What emotions were you trying to evoke in yourself with this single?
I wanted the single to represent strength, conviction and self-confidence, which are all extremely important especially as a black creative.
Australian singer-songwriter Harrison Storm shares the acoustic version of his recent single ’Breathe Again’ out via Nettwerk Records.
Talking about the new version Harrison says; “I recorded the acoustic version of ‘Breathe Again’ with my housemate and longtime collaborator Hayden Calnin in our home studio during lockdown in May. That was after a month or so of being stuck inside so getting into the studio and being able to create felt incredibly freeing. I think that energy really came out in the recording. A sort of desperation in the vocals tied in with the beauty of the instrumentation. A lot of pent up energy was released those few days and to have Ella Crotty’s beautiful cello playing on this track was the icing on the cake”.
Over the past few years, Harrison Storm has crafted a singular style, merging classically inspired fingerpicking and sophisticated lyrics with a rich and soulful vocal delivery that is both intimate and explosive. A born troubadour, Harrison traded college for busking in Melbourne.
The fruits of his impromptu performances financed the 2015 debut EP, Sense of Home. The latter yielded a worldwide hit as Sense of Home generated upwards of 65 million Spotify streams and counting. Signed to Nettwerk, he unveiled the Change It All EP two years later and notched another hit in the form of the title track, which racked up over 35 million Spotify streams.
Along the way, he occupied real estate on coveted playlists such as Your Favorite Coffeehouse, Relax & Unwind’, The Stress Buster, and more as the total stream tally exceeded 150 million and counting.
Storm has performed to packed crowds across Australia, UK, EU, US and Canada, developing a powerful presence on stage alongside the likes of Snow Patrol, Tash Sultana, Gregory Alan Isakov, Michael Franti, Husky, The Cat Empire, The Paper Kites, The Head and the Heart, and more.
Simultaneously, he impacted the influential Triple J, received airtime on BBC Radio 2, US tastemaker station KCRW and was featured in Nashville music songwriting bible American Songwriter magazine.
Originally the face of BBC Pitch Battle in 2017, songstress Becky Bowe has officially released her new EP Cosmic Heart via Two Bridge Recording. The EP was produced by the impressive Aidan Thompson who forms part of Max Restaino’s, and has played as support for world-renowned musicians Rebecca Ferguson, UB40 and Tears for Fears.
Previously featured in an interview on RCRD LBL, Bowe mentioned this about her music, “ I would love my music to just be enjoyed and loved as much as possible. Success to me is people listening to my music to escape or feel better…just to be able for them to feel any sort of emotion. Music is a gift and to be able to write and sing my own music, and put it out in the world is leaps and bounds better than I ever thought I would have been able to do. Either way, I feel I’ve achieved what I want in my music, I just hope people listen to it and love it! Read the full interview here.
Bowe comments on the EP: ‘This EP is all about growth. Each song helps show the journey I’ve made as an artist and as a woman. Some songs were written a few years back but just didn’t have the sound I wanted until I revisited them again. These songs represent so much of my music taste, style and my personal life. It’s so nice to hear back to certain points in my life I’ve written about and I hope it relates to each listener.’
Featuring graceful soundscapes that flow with Bowe’s tender and sincere tone as she sings, the Cosmic Heart EP is truly filled with a lot of heart and passion, as the songstress reflects on her life-changing moments.
Inspired by the likes of John Mayer and Sam Fender to name a few, rising musical prodigy Andy Martin has just shared his latest single ‘Heat Of It All’. The single premiered via the acclaimed CLOUT Magazine and was recorded at the renowned Airlock Studios owned by rocker Ian Haug (Powderfinger and The Church). Born in Australia, Andy is currently based in Brisbane where he is working on his debut EP via Arts Queensland. His previous single releases have received a jaw-dropping stream count of over 80 000 on Spotify alone.
We find out what makes Martin tick in this exclusive.
Were there specific artists that inspired you when you were working on the chord progressions for your new release?
In regards to the actual chord progressions… I don’t think any artists directly influence my movements of chords. I am definitely influenced by the sounds and melodies of other artists, but in regards to chord progressions I kind of write the chords around the melodies in the voice and instruments that I hear in my head. Sometimes it’s just natural, sometimes there’s a longer thought process that goes into it, but all of the time it is something that reflects/highlights the melodies.
Describe the experience of recording your latest release at Ian Haug’s studio.
I have recorded all of my upcoming tracks out Airlock and the experience is surreal. Not only is the facility state of the art and gear out of this world, but the history embedded in the studio is amazing. Every time I go out there, I see another piece of amazing musical history that has come out of Airlock. To see the artists that have recorded out there and the amazing musical memorabilia on display is just surreal and inspiring in itself. I have been recording with James See and him and I seem to have forged quite a formidable relationship and the process is just getting better and better. I plan to record future releases out at Airlock also.
To those not familiar with you, how would you describe your sound?
Indie Rock, with a touch of Pop!
Which three albums have influenced you the most creatively?
This one might surprise some people. A lot of the time it is in fact folk/singer-songwriter music that inspires my songwriting. Here are three albums that got the creative juices flowing for my EP. Over the last few years, it has been.
Ben Howard – “I Forget Where We Were”
Sam Fender – “Hypersonic Missles”
John Mayer – “Born & Raised”
Describe the experience of recording your latest release at Ian Haug’s studio.
I have recorded all of my upcoming tracks out of Airlock and the experience is surreal. Not only is the facility state of the art and gear out of this world, but the history embedded in the studio is amazing. Every time I go out there, I see another piece of amazing musical history that has come out of Airlock. To see the artists that have recorded out there and the amazing musical memorabilia on display is just surreal and inspiring in itself. I have been recording with James See, and he and I seem to have forged quite a formidable relationship and the process is just getting better and better. I plan to record future releases out at Airlock also.
Tell us about the key pieces of equipment that you use to define your sound?
Firstly, brass instruments. In every single track on the upcoming EP, I am playing either Trumpet/s or Flugelhorn. This really, well to me, fills out the sound of the chords and adds a touch of sweetness/brightness to the tracks. If you listen hard enough, in most parts of the tracks, you will be able to hear the horns.
Also, the pedals I use/sounds I try and get out of the guitars to add variety to the song. A lot of the time on the upcoming tracks, I am playing multiple guitars with sounds that you wouldn’t expect to work together. Whether it be a tube screamer/chorus/hall reverb combo on one guitar (on the bridge pickup) and then an Overdrive/Delay/Tremelo combo on another guitar (on the neck pickup)… I believe the sounds that are coming out are familiar to the listener, but interesting. I love playing around with different sounds because sometimes it can just add
another element to the music.
Were there specific artists that inspired you when you were working on the chord progressions for your new release?
In regards to the actual chord progressions… I don’t think any artists directly influence my movements of chords. I am definitely influenced by the sounds and melodies of other artists. But in regards to chord progressions, I kind of write the chords around the melodies in the voice and instruments that I hear in my head. Sometimes it’s just natural, sometimes there’s a longer thought process that goes into it, but all of the time it is something that reflects/highlights the melodies.
Is there any “non-musical” ingredient that is essential to crafting your sound?
Inspiration. I never stop getting inspired… I think that is the key ingredient. I listen to a lot of folk music, pop, jazz, fusion, rock, punk, electronic music…. just a whole lot of everything and I appreciate and love them all for so many different reasons. I only hope the listener/creatives will get inspired by my music as I do theirs.
Studio work and music creation, or performing and interacting with a live audience, which do you prefer?
BOTH! In the studio, as I am working on my own with a producer, it means that I have all creative licensing to try out weird and wonderful sounds, which sometimes stems new ideas to get the wheels in motion.
But… and I think (well I’d hope) this would be the same answer for many artists, but nothing beats playing live on stage, interacting with the audience and just genuinely having a good time. Sometimes you can go to a free gig and have one of the most amazing experiences of your life… you can’t get that out of many (if any) industries in the world. I love music and feel a sense of pride and love performing it to people. That’s why COVID has been so hard on so many artists.
What has been your most memorable performance so far?
Playing a headline shows to a max capacity venue (around 350 people) without even having any music released. That was pretty special.
This was after 3 straight days in a studio and all of us were knackered… but this really capped the recording.
To see that many people at your own personal gig, without any music out in the world, is something that I believe is pretty special.
And which performance would you prefer to forget?
Once we played a gig down the Gold Coast and our guitarist’s amp wasn’t working.
We played out first song (which ended up being more of a stripped down version of the song) and then had to stop to sort it out. Half an hour later, with nearly half the crowd leaving the show, it was because the amp wasn’t switched on. The gig was fine from there on and you’re never gonna have the ‘perfect’ set, but I remember that gig vividly.
Any new or emerging artists on your radar?
Hope D & Sycco out of Brisbane… definitely check them both out. I can’t wait to see what’s next for these two because their latest singles have been on repeat every day for me.
Also, High Tropics from up the Sunshine Coast. Their new tracks rock and I have been listening to ‘Wait For You’ since the day it came out and still can’t stop listening!!
If you could collaborate with, or perform alongside any artist, who would it be? And why?
John Mayer. Since I was about 10/11 he has been my favourite musician.
I am in awe of his songwriting, phrasing, and melodic structure. Every album of his has resonated with me for different reasons and I genuinely don’t think I would’ve picked up a guitar in the first place if it wasn’t for him.
To sit down and pick his brain about music and life would be amazing. To collaborate would be even better. To perform alongside would just be surreal.
If you weren’t a musician what would you be?
Cafe Owner. I love the hospitality industry and always have. I would love to run my own cafe if this whole music thing doesn’t work out.
However, I am so stubborn and have always known in my head, from a very young age, that I would do great things and it is amazing that the pieces of the puzzle are finally falling into place!
Tell us about any upcoming shows or releases you have in the pipeline. I have an EP out in November of this year and am planning shows around this. I have been working hard in the studio and can’t wait to share this music with the world.
In regards to live shows, I haven’t announced anything at this stage but there are definitely bookings in place. With COVID-19 it has taken a toll on venues and artists so I just feel blessed that venues are showing interest in having me perform at their venues in these tough times.
