r&b/soul | Musicosity

r&b/soul

Emma Donovan

Emma Donovan (born 1981) is an Aboriginal Australian singer and songwriter. She is a member of the renowned musical Donovan family. She started her singing career at age seven with her uncle's band, the Donovans. In 2000, she became a founding member of Stiff Gins, leaving the band three years later to release the solo album Changes in 2004. She performs with the Black Arm Band and released a solo EP, Ngaaraanga, in 2009.

She has been nominated for multiple Deadly Awards including Female Artist of the Year, and performed at the opening of the 2004 Olympic Torch Relay. She won Best Female Artist at the 2009 BUMP Awards. Donovan appeared in the ABC series Dynasties in 2004,and was the subject of the 2005 SBS TV documentary Emma Donovan: Gumbainggir Lady.

Donovan has sung with and performed with Indigenous Australian musicians such as Frank Yamma, her cousin Casey Donovan, Archie Roach and Ruby Hunter, Kerriane Cox, Christine Anu, Tiddas, Yothu Yindi and Jimmy Little.She has also performed with Paul Kelly, Ursula Yovich, and Shellie Morris.

Tijuana Surf

Straight out of the dusty hell of some forgotten border town, Tijuana Surf, the R&B Surf Soul combo that exceeds the sound barrier of groove and swing.

Listen, but don’t be afraid - side effects may
be compulsive moving of the hips and gyrations.

Lead by vocalist and twin lead guitarist Jason Goody Goodman straight from New Orleans,
combined with Italian brothers Paul Vanzella on Bass & Frank Vanzella on drums from Melbourne as the rhythm section, with Pete Pistola Andrews on lead and rhythm guitar, watch out for this combo of sound and enigmatic appeal.

Playing since 2014, this intriguing group of seasoned musicians, mix up styles with great musical influences, such as Link Wray, Dick Dale, Sir Douglas Quintet, Jimmy Smith & John Barry,
which have helped influence Tijuana surfs combination of surf instrumentals along with 1950`s & 1960`s rhythm & blues & rock`n`roll.

The Badloves

One of Australia’s most cherished bands, The Badloves, are getting ready to hit the road for their vinyl release tour. The local lads will be performing at venues across the country and at one of Melbourne’s much loved live music institutions.

The Badloves became a household name in the 90’s with their debut album Get On Board. It spent a massive 69 weeks in the charts, peaked at No. 5 and went on to achieved double platinum sales. The critically acclaimed album delivered four hit singles: Lost, Memphis, I Remember and Green Limousine. The band then went on to be nominated for five ARIA Awards – Album of The Year, Single of The Year (Lost), Breakthrough Artist – Album, Breakthrough Artist – Single (Lost) and Best New Talent. The band secured two awards for Breakthrough Artist – Album and Breakthrough Artist – Single.

After extensive tours in Australia and Europe, they released their second album in 1995, Holy Roadside. It was a Top 15 chart debut, received further ARIA nominations, and another string of hit singles in Slave, Barefoot Bride, Living Thing and Caroline, establishing them as one of this country’s premier acts.

Whilst The Badloves wagon has rarely left the road in 30 long years, their recording output has been sparse. The drought finally broke in late 2019 when the band released the superb soulbrothertruckinsong – their first new single in 17 years. The Badloves continue to build on their legacy with the arrival of their recent single, Tribal, which has already received strong support from Australian radio. The song was inspired by one of Michael Spiby’s recurring dreams. Spiby explains “I don’t usually remember dreams, they’re so hard to catch. But often enough I wake up disturbed by this one recurring theme…how will I keep my little tribe together in tough times, am I up to the task? ‘Tribal’ is my recurring dream, caught in the light of day.”

In April 2021, for the first time, Warner Music released Get On Board on vinyl and as a digital deluxe including unreleased tracks from their 1993 Triple J Live At The Wireless session. The band’s videos have also been digitised for the first time, with the videos from Get On Board to be staggered from November 30. To celebrate the re-issue of Get On Board the band will be embarking on a national Australian tour.

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Rita Satch

“Soulful vocals with a jazz-tinged charm, there’s a defiantly modern approach at play here.” – Clash Magazine.

A modern day siren, Rita Satch is fast becoming an unforgettable presence in Australia’s neo-soul movement.

Brought up on jazz and soul greats such as Ella Fitzgerald, Ray Charles and Nina Simone, Rita Satch has a powerful voice that transcends time. She has released 2 EP’s and has performed at world renowned festivals such as Glastonbury and Cheltenham Jazz Festival (UK).

Rita has received prestigious accolades for her songwriting, including first prize in the Unsigned Only Music competition and was a finalist in the International Songwriting Competition in 2015.

Satch regularly collaborates with the world's leading musicians, including Barney McAll (Sia, Gary Bartz) who featured her in his most recent releases, An Extra Celestial Christmas and Sweet Water.

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Stylus

Stylus were an Australian blue-eyed soul group formed in 1975. They were the only Australian act to be released by Motown Records in the USA. Stylus toured supporting George Benson, Average White Band, Ike & Tina Turner, and Little River Band. According to rock music historian, Ian McFarlane, Stylus "scored a number of hit singles and became very popular on the Australian pub and concert circuit". The group disbanded in 1979 and subsequently had various reunions. In 1998-99 Japan's Toshiba-EMI re-issued three Stylus albums on CDs (For the Love of Music, Best Kept Secret and Part of It All). Their reunions have resulted in a live album, Still Alive (2003); and a new studio album, Across Time (2010).

Yazmin Lacey

Yazmin Lacey (born in east London) is a British singer based in Nottingham.

Having written in her bedroom for her whole life, Lacey began to play acoustic shows in 2014. As her reputation grew locally in Nottingham, she came to meet the diverse group of musicians who would form her band The Running Circle. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.

Sonam Wangchen

Sonam Wangchen is one of Bhutan’s youngest and most popular singers. Born in February 2002, he is currently studying in 11th grade. He sings mostly in Dzongkha, Bhutan’s national language. His 2015 song, "choe thom da", was a super-hit, propelling him into the limelight. Since then, Sonam has written numerous hits, performed at national events and charitable concerts, and worked on original soundtracks for movies.

Sonam is beloved by Bhutan’s younger population. He takes every opportunity to encourage children and teens to study, believe in themselves and follow their dreams. In his role as UNICEF Youth Ambassador, Sonam will use his singing, his popularity, and his large social media following to engage with young people and empower them to speak about the issues they face.

World Children’s Day – celebrated on 20th November – is a global day of action ‘for children, by children’ to raise awareness and funds for the millions of children that are unschooled, unprotected and uprooted. UNICEF is inviting the public to go online and sign a global petition asking leaders to commit to fulfilling the rights of every child now and for future generations, so that every child is in school, safe from harm and can fulfil their potential.

As part of the day, UNICEF is asking supporters to raise their voices in solidarity with the most disadvantaged and vulnerable children by helping ‘turn the world blue’ – by doing or wearing something blue at school, on the streets, on social media, in boardrooms and on sports fields on 20 November.

More than 50 organizations globally will turn over roles to children or show their support for every child, including FC Barcelona, Beko, All Blacks, Qantas and Amadeus. Johnson & Johnson Headquarters will also be taken over by children as they announce a US$10 million commitment to support UNICEF’s health programmes. The LEGO Group and LEGO Foundation will host a number of `Build the Change’ events around the world where children are invited to share their views on what their dream school looks like.

Alongside Sonam Wangchen in Bhutan, Emmy-nominated actress Millie Bobby Brown has been announced as UNICEF’s newest and youngest ever Goodwill Ambassador. In addition, countries around the world will appoint UNICEF Youth Ambassadors including:

Wang Yuan (Roy Wang), 18, singer, UNICEF China Ambassador.
Hima Das, 18, athlete, UNICEF India Ambassador.
Hinna Asefi Wardak, 15, television presenter, UNICEF Afghanistan Ambassador.
El Sistema, The National Children's Orchestra of Venezuela, renewed as UNICEF Venezuela Ambassadors.

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Chelsea Elder

I love my puppy, rollerskating, rock climbing, painting but mostly writing songs. I moved across the country when I was 18 to study songwriting. I just wanted an adventure and the space to focus on my craft. I wrote many terrible songs, but I also wrote ones that I'm really proud of. Even when I feel I have developed or "found" my sound I am still constantly rediscovering myself through other music, art and my own experiences.

Chelsea loves sharing stories, whether it be over a bottle of wine with a friend, or on a stage in front of a crowd. Her songs have a raw, unadulterated feel. Chelsea has a distinctive sound both in her vocals and in her writing. Her unforgettable melodies, witty lyricism and unique voice define her intriguing style. Her lyrics are honest to a fault, poetic but also "matter of fact." Pulling from her folk, jazz and musical theatre background, she creates a fresh indie pop fusion, filled with pleasantly surprising chord progressions and lush arrangements.

Tyne-James Organ

Tyne first gained national attention in late 2017 with the release of the single, ‘Watch You Go,’ a detailed account of the death of his father, Rikki, in 2016. It was a song that was equally flowing with grief and joy, as Tyne, a kid from the raw, Northern suburbs of the former steel city Wollongong, pursued not only his dreams to become a professional musician, but his desire to achieve catharsis and find meaning in his father’s untimely passing. Released by stalwart indie label Dew Process, the song quickly captured the attention of the tastemakers at triple j radio, and was added to full rotation, bringing his music to a national platform for the first time. Meanwhile, Tyne continued his journey towards closure by encouraging discussions of loss and grief in the media as his profile continued to grow.

From there he pivoted with his follow up – the upbeat rocker, ‘Graceful,’ and with it showed off the next huge step in his artistic development. The single saw him aim big – going for a huge, rockier sound, while continuing to focus on the delicacy of his lyricism. Again, championed by triple j, ‘Graceful’ proved to be a major turning point in his fledgling career, leading to sold out national solo tours and support slots for big name acts like Jake Bugg, Lime Cordiale, and Middle Kids, as well as performing as part of his good friend and label mate Mallrat’s on stage show, including her momentous Splendour In The Grass set in 2018. In 2019, Organ released his debut EP, Persevere, spearheaded by the barnstorming single ‘Something New.’

By now Organ had grown from the surfer-songwriter from the NSW South Coast, into a fully-formed frontman with swagger, a voice as powerful in its deeper register as its highest falsetto, and three songs that had burned bright on national radio on high rotation for 18 months. This time he returned to perform at Splendour in the Grass on his own steam, packing out the country’s premiere festival stage with thousands of his own fans.

After years of hard work and inspiration spawned by overcoming tragedy and celebrating triumph, 24-year old Organ now returns in 2021 with his debut album, Necessary Evil. The album was recorded throughout 2020 with longtime creative partner Chris Collins (Middle Kids, Skegss) at his NSW Hinterland studio, Stokers Siding. The result sees Organ move from triumphant and jubilant at one moment, to introspective and tender at the next. He deals with grief and pain, power and passion – sometimes open and raw with bare bones acoustics, other times with undeniable swagger via chugging guitar riffs and a swing for the fences approach that only comes from letting it all go and letting the music speak for itself.

Alongside Sunday Suit, Necessary Evil features the upbeat rocker Graceful, the undeniable follow up Hold Me Back; and recent single Not Ready for Love cut so deep it became his most successful international single to date. The track earned the attention of BBC Radio 1 tastemaker Jack Saunders, who locked into that vocal line straight away, saying, “…he's got such a sick voice! He sounds like he's just woken up after a three-day bender with Mick Jagger and Ozzy Osbourne picked up the guitar and gone straight into the recording booth without even attempting to rehydrate in any capacity at all. I love the gravel when he really pushes his voice to the max!"

Organ has steadily grown his audience and reputation over the last few years with hard work, brilliant stage craft, wearing his heart on his sleeve and an undeniable talent for writing beautiful music. It's a courage that has endeared him to fans around the country and the world at large. He’s shared stages with The Lumineers, Jake Bugg, Middle Kids, and Lime Cordiale to name a few, and several sold out national headline tours in minutes. As well as playing some of Australia’s biggest festivals including Splendour in the Grass, Falls, Party in the Paddock, Yours and Owls and Fairgrounds.