It’s New Music Friday, and your ears are in for a treat. From chart-topping artists to rising stars, there’s something for everyone to discover today.
ST LUNDI – THE ISLAND
One day, St. Lundi walked out of his humdrum job on Hayling Island, packed a bag of clothes and his guitar, and headed to London with what can only be described as a completely inadequate amount of money to his name. Ambitions certainly aren’t achieved overnight and they’re not easy, but St. Lundi’s seven-year journey has already delivered more than he could’ve ever hoped for in that moment – collabs with Kygo and Seeb, huge shows with Take That, ever-growing headline gigs of his own and a million monthly listeners at Spotify.
Now comes a true landmark moment as St. Lundi releases new music and his debut album ‘The Island’ today. It’s a set which explores many of the personal experiences and emotions he went through during the course of that adventure. Listen HERE.
St. Lundi says, “When I started writing ‘The Island’ I had no idea that it would end up being so autobiographical. For so many years I ran away from my life and wanted to create another reality. I experienced some times of struggle growing up and I think that led me to feel that I didn’t want to have anything to do with my hometown, probably because going back there brought everything to the surface. But in the making of this album, I worked through all of those feelings and the relationships surrounding them and came out of the process feeling really proud to be from ‘The Island’.
BAILEY TOMKINSON & THE LOCALS – CHRYSALIS
An energising soft-rock sound with star Stevie Nicks-esque vocals, a bohemian chic west coast vibe, immense potential, and even a couple in the band – it’s no wonder that the rising Bailey Tomkinson & The Locals are being compared to the UK’s real life answer to Daisy Jones & The Six. That’s a conversation that will really take off as the band share their new music single ‘Chrysalis’. LISTEN HERE.
Storytelling folk-rock that’s big on melody and exemplary musicianship, ‘Chrysalis’ more than lives up to such lofty comparisons. Bailey’s voice is potent and passionate as she sings about the determination and possibilities that come by making a new start, while her bandmates’ tight male vocal harmonies counter the femininity of her lead.
Bailey says, “‘Chrysalis’ is a song about rebirth and transformation, which ties beautifully with our emergence as a band. When we were playing it on tour, we could feel the energy really shift and we knew that we’d got something pretty special.
That energy carried through into the studio, it was such a magical session, and the result is probably the closest we’ve got to capturing the essence of who we are as a band, and how we sound live. We can’t wait for everyone to experience it.”
FIAA HAMILTON – RIVERS IN THE NIGHT
Fiaa Hamilton’s recent debut single ‘Love War’ set the stage for her to become Britain’s next pop sensation. Supported by BBC Introducing and press tastemakers, the track was especially impactful at TikTok. It shot to #8 on the platform’s Pop Hits chart, while Fiaa was also named as one of just two musicians on the UK’s Top 20 TikTok LIVE creators at the Community Fest and won their Breakthrough Star award.
But Fiaa’s not getting complacent and is instead powering towards her next stage with today’s release of her second single ‘Rivers In The Night’. It’s a song that sees Fiaa saunter with characteristic self-confidence and empowerment as she writes her own future, this time fusing pulsating electro-pop with a voice of arena-ready quality, all with an undertone of country swagger. Its message is direct: always be brave enough to take a gamble which edge you a step closer to your towering ambitions. Listen HERE.
Fiaa says, “As the song says, ‘Shoot in the dark and take a chance on your heart’. It means when things are dark and scary, jump to your dreams – don’t hold back because of fear.”
RETT MADISON – EVERYWHERE
Los Angeles-based vocalist, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Rett Madison shares a brand new music cover of the 1987 Fleetwood Mac classic “Everywhere” out now. Listen HERE. On October 25, she will unveil One More For Jackie as an expanded Digital Deluxe Edition of her acclaimed 2023 full-length, One For Jackie, in celebration of the LP’s one-year anniversary. One More For Jackie features the original album, now accompanied by four additional tracks, including “Everywhere.” Pre-save HERE.
Rett Madison explains why the track means so much to her. “My mom introduced me to many of my favorite bands and artists that I still love listening to this day. One of those bands was Fleetwood Mac. We’d listen to their “Greatest Hits” album whenever we’d make the hour and a half long drive to visit my grandmother. On those trips, I often would ask her to play “Everywhere”, or in my own words as a kid “The Magic Song”, over and over again. We really bonded over that song and whenever I hear it I always think of my mom.”
She strips down “Everywhere” to its emotional core with a reverent reinvention. The track’s percussive groove pulsates like a steady heartbeat through glimmers of soft acoustic guitar.
WILLIE NELSON – LAST LEAF ON THE TREE
Legacy Recordings, a division of Sony Music Entertainment, today released the second track from Willie Nelson’s anticipated new music album ‘Last Leaf on the Tree’.
The album’s second spotlight track – Willie’s rendition of The Flaming Lips “Do You Realize??” – is available on all DSPs today (Thursday, September 19). Listen HERE.
One of The Flaming Lips’ most enduring songs is an existentialist masterpiece well-suited to the tao of Willie. From their perspective, the Lips loved it. “He’s just such a unique singer,” lead singer Wayne Coyne says. “You hear one second of his voice, and you go, that’s him.” Fellow bandmember and song co-writer Steven Drozd says his only regret is that his late father won’t get to hear it: “I wish he was still alive to see this happening, that Willie Nelson is doing a Flaming Lips song I had a part in co-writing. He’d be very proud.”
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