Up and coming for 2005 - Jon Bibbs
In last weeks edition of Musicscene, I gave you the first two of my five artists to 'look out for' in the upcoming year. This week I'm concluding with the remaining three.
We know that the state of Virginia has been producing some fine talent of late. From Missy Elliott to The Neptunes to Jarrard Anthony to name a few and speaking of Jarrard, I must say a big thanks to him for sending me this young mans material. The young man is question singer Jon Bibbs a native of Richmond, Va who is been making a name for himself all on his own.I received Jon's Anthology disc (a 2 CD set) from Jarrard the other day and I must say I was pleasantly surprised from what I heard. Upon one listen of Jon's track 'True Story' (taken from the CD of the same name) and I knew he was a special talent. A singer to show unparallel maturity in his relatively short career, Jon has challenged himself to not be compromising but to be a perfectionist and has achieved such feats on each track. 'Call Me', 'If I Cared' and 'So High' are shining examples of his ability as is the delicious and sensual ballads 'The Apologetic Serenade' and the acoustic driven 'Amazin'.
Also offered here on the Anthology is Red - The Colour of Love which would naturally be seen as the next step in his 'colourful' musical journey. 'Liberation' offers a sensibility of inner exploration while my favourite of the lot 'So Glad I've Found You' gives props to the one you love. A great array of songs readily geared for your listening ear.
His influences are of those who's R&B status is legendary Marvin Gaye, Al Green and Gladys Knight. He pulls no punches where his music is concerned it's honest, revealing and tells a tale in every chapter which is what good music is crafted to do. The message is clear love is what it's about and all kinds of love is available want it or not.
To date he's worked with Bilal and Frankie to name a few (but I'm sure that will expand by next years end). As Jon said in an interview on his Red - The Colour of Love CD, ''Love is supreme, love is the highest of the highs, I just feel like we have to learn to love: one - we have to truly please God and two - we have to learn to love if we really wanna save ourselves as a species, as human beings. The truth about love that it's hard it's hard to keep, it's hard to get, it's hard to find but the reality is that once you got it, can't nobody take it away'' Be on the lookout for Jon in 2005 he's gearing to explode unto the musicscene.
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Up and coming for 2005 - Avani
I'm crossing the Atlantic ocean to my native land of London, England for the final two young artists whom I feel will make their presence felt in the upcoming new year.
The first is Avani a talented and polished young singer who has captured the essence of R&B/soul with an uncanny calm and presence of a veteran with her debut set. The 24-year-old South London native makes her debut calling on one of the UK's top indie label Dome Records with her album - 'The Real Thing'.Avani started singing in her teens with a local band in South London but after a few years together the band broke up. It was during that time that she caught the attention of the legendary UK manager Tony Hall.
Tony's responsible for guiding some of the biggest names in the UK soul scene from The Real Thing, to Loose Ends to Lynden David Hall so when her material landed in his office, he knew he had found one extraordinary new artist and was keen to work with her. They would eventually meet and the album was on the cards. With the help of singer/producer Don-E (who produced 2 tracks) and newcomer Shaun Stanley also on board the album was taking shape.
The finished product is a 13 song set that includes her classic renindition of the Loose Ends smash hit from the 80s - 'Watching You' featuring the originator of the song (none other than Carl McIntosh himself) and one of my favourite vocalists around today Rahsaan Patterson both adding their vocals to the song in the background capacity. Avani had been singing with Carl in his revival shows (singing the vocals made famous by former lead vocalist Jane Eugene) and was more than happy to help out on the track while Rahsaan was a fan of both Carl and Avani and just couldn't say no. Says Avani: “I love all those songs anyway – and it's been a real thrill working on stage with Carl. And now, to have him singing on my album, it's incredible.”
Other notables include a remake of Incognito's 'Don't U Worry' 'Teardrops', 'Lover's Theme' and 'Something On My Mind'. It's an incredible album and it would be a shame if you miss out on this one because it's absolutely wicked from top to bottom. The album is available now from Dome and various other outlets as well. Be sure to get a copy it's a winner all the way and an artist for you to look out for in the new year.....
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Up and coming for 2005 - Juliette Leon
...And last but certainly not the least, is a young lady who's been bubbling under the radar gun in the UK soul scene for a bit, her name is Juliette Leon.
Juliette hails from Coventry located about 50 miles outside of London and has been singing all her life although she never really followed her dream and (heart for that matter) until she was in her twenties when she joined the group Urban Vibe. They had moderate success with their debut EP 'Get your Groove On' and Joolz presence was evident in the songs, both lyric and vocals but in her heart, Juliette knew she was destined for bigger things and decided to go solo.
With that same mentality and progression in mind, Joolz soon stepped forward and laid down what is to be her first single 'Unconditional'. Produced by Darkman Productions (out of Birmingham City in the UK), 'Unconditional' tells the story of his Almighty's infinitive gift he (or she - however you look at it) shows to all of us and why is it that its not the same with us mortals.The song itself deals with the simple fundamental of the modern era soul movement, nothing thrilling or fancy just a modest soul groove that you can sing or dance to while at the same time is given an injection of life into it's core with Joolz vocal chops at the helm. The lads at Darkman are on point with the production and leaves room for remixes in the process.
Joolz album (also called Unconditional) is now complete and will be out in the spring of next year (via Orchid). Joolz is truly a diamond in the ruff. A talented singer and songwriter who can kick ass - literally (she's going for her black belt in Taekwondo) and is definitely moving in the right direction as she kick starts her solo career (no pun intended). She's one to look out for in 2005 so don't say you weren't warned - and thats my five up and coming singers to look out for next year.
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Missy Elliott's new disc set to drop in the new year__________________________________________________________________
Missy Elliott has worked with just about everyone in the past year — from touring with Beyoncé and Alicia Keys to recording with Christina Aguilera to producing tracks for Fantasia, Ciara and Tweet to name a few. So who's going to be working with her on her new record? Elliott's playing coy, but she promises that there will be some recognizable names in the liner notes.
"I don't want to say who the people are," Elliott said. "But oh yes, the artists that I've worked with will be on my album."
Elliott also promised that the album, which she recently finished, is a return to form. She also had to struggle a bit more this time around.
"It was a process," she said. "I didn't get a chance while I was out on the road to get in the studio, but I went [afterward] and it wasn't the right way. And then I took a minute, took a break, and went back in — and it's my favorite album I've ever done, out of all my albums. If people like Under Construction, they'll triple-times love this album."
There's no title or release date for the project yet, though Elliott joked that "it'll be out in the blink of an eye."
- Source: MTV.com