Brixton, London based teenage trio KID APOLLO released their captivating debut single ‘Let Go Of Things I Said’ yesterday (7th September).
Consisting of singer and producer Jimmy HM and twin brothers (and producers) Felix and Theo Ratigan, the outfit’s self written and produced offering is a visceral, hushed R&B/pop hybrid, suggesting exciting things to come from the young trio.
Speaking on the release of the new track, singer Jimmy HM said: “‘let go of things I said’ tells the simple story of two people that rely heavily on each other yet refuse to accept it. It explains how the small things that happen between two people are often what breaks a relationship down.”
Commenting further on their goals, the band said: “We’re expressing our experiences within the way we live through our music. We aim to never restrict ourselves to one genre as this wouldn’t reflect the type of artists we are. Whether the songs are talking about relationships or our last function, all we really want when someone first listens to our music is for them to be in their own space and get lost in the songs.”
The band will release their debut EP later this year via Sweat Entertainment. Check out the official video for the emotive single below…
Acting as a reinforcement of a much-needed mantra, LA based trio, FORTUNO, explores the unequal yet undeniably beautiful path toward success and self-exploration in their single, ‘Right Way.’
Eli, Ellis, and Tobi share a lot. Beyond being bandmates, the trio shares a taste for nostalgic tunes and ambient sounds as well as a passionate and genuine connection to their craft. That said, each of them has their own specific paths both as artists and as humans. That’s where ‘Right Way’ comes in. Simultaneously chilling yet warm, the final single off their EP speaks to the unique path each person must go down for their personal development. Echoing a sentiment that the guys’ hold onto themselves, the single shows that once you figure out that there is no ‘Right Way,’ you end up finding yourself exactly where you’re meant to be.
For Fortuno, the right place is LA. In 2018 on the shoreline of southern Maine, music majors and local cover-band mates Tobi and Ellis joined forces with their former high school classmate and current USC jazz guitar star, Eli. Together they celebrated and struggled, as young adults do, and eventually made their way to Southern California to dive headfirst into a full-blown music career. Not only was this the best decision they collectively made, but it also clearly created inspiration for their music. Their EP is a mosaic of their years of moving and committing to a “make-it-work” mentality, and ‘Right Way’ is both a gift to listeners as well as a gift to themselves. Like a mantra, the lyrics remind Fortuno of the good, the bad, and the ugly, yet the result is a harmoniously haunting hymn fashioned with modern trap elements and a soundscape of comfort.
With Eli and Ellis on production and Tobi on the mic ,the trio has danced throughout the Los Angeles music milieu since their debut and through the speakers of the millions who stream their songs. Playing at The Roxy, The Peppermint Club, and shows with Sofar Sounds, Fortuno cemented their unique sound as one that is here to stay in the So-Cal scene. Their single, ‘Home’ has amassed nearly 1.5 million streams while their previous songs have garnered applause from music industry legends and local fans alike.
This one’s a must listen…check out ‘Right Way’ below…
On the surface, 5OMERSET‘s brand new single ‘Said To Me’, is a breakup song with a retrospective mood enhanced by confusion and resentment. Beneath that, it’s about the desire to gain closure — moving on from the past and cutting ties with any toxic relationships or behaviour.
The light electronica piece features J.Roque who he met after running competition on TikTok looking for rappers to duet the song with a verse.
5omerset said of his collaboration with J.Roque: “after reviewing lots of amazing submissions,I chose J.Roque’s verse because lyrically it was the best fit for the song.
My favourite line of his is: ‘should I wait or is it love that I’m choosing?’ Don’t stay somewhere stagnant or in an unhappy relationship or state of mind; choose love for yourself.”
North London’s multi-instrumentalist RAY ALEX from collaborates with LA-based powerhouse singer/songwriter Sydney Jane for the sultry, evocative, and nostalgic R&B single ‘Erased’.
Released today (10th September), ‘Erased’ is a savory duet that transports the listener to the tension-filled and nostalgic moment of meeting an old lover again. Ray Alex creates a colorful and rich instrumental soundscape, and opens the song with his signature falsetto, interweaving with wispy harmonies and echoes to paint a visceral picture of reunion. Sydney Jane creates the feeling of a love lost and hopes of rekindling with her soaring, raw vocals.
Having been named in Audiomack’s ‘Best of Britain’ list two months running, and after collaborating with Julia Romana (Duckwrth/GLAM), Ray continues to push boundaries and mesh styles with Sydney Jane on the first single from his self-produced EP ‘Good To Me’. Sydney Jane has worked with and turned the heads of huge names in electronic music such as Disclosure, MJ Cole, and Michael Calfan, and she’s stepping confidently into the world of R&B to create the sensual and shimmering ‘Erased’.
Following the success of his last album Augustine’s Legacy, which was dedicated to his late father and his first child and has now accumulated over 16 million streams on Spotify alone, Texas-based international rap artist S.O. releases new EP. ‘Larry Ginni Crescent’, which sees him tracing his footsteps back to his hometown in Nigeria, where he was born and raised. The new project is nostalgically named after the street in Lagos, Nigeria that S.O. lived on as a child called Larry Ginni Crescent.
Written and composed by S.O. and produced by long-time collaborator and Grammy Award nominated producer GP, alongside burgeoning Nigerian producers TBabz (Travis Greene, Faith Child, Aaron Cole) and SteveRawd, the Larry Gini Crescent EP is driven by lead singles ‘Kinda Love’ and the previously released ‘Corner (O Ti De)’ – the former is a summer-ready afropop love song from S.O. dedicated to his wife, where he exudes the virtues of their love, while the latter is an infectious head-bopping track that sees S.O. boasting about who he has in his corner, as he sings “no babalawo in my corner, just God putting things in order”.
Chronologically, the EP opens with the infectious up-tempo ‘Prosper’, which was penned in direct response to S.O. losing his grandmother last December and sees him putting an afrobeats twist to the popular Bible verse “no weapon formed against me shall prosper”. Elsewhere on the EP, S.O. is full of gratitude on the uplifting sing-along number ‘Good To Me’, while the up-tempo dance floor filler ‘That One’ sees S.O. fusing afrobeats, rap and a motivational message together to great effect. The EP then winds down with the sexy R&B driven ‘Want You’ and the afrohouse influenced ‘Wonder’ with its cautionary tale about battling sin and temptation.
Speaking about the inspiration behind his new Larry Ginni Crescent EP, S.O. says: “This is a project that is connected to my African roots – Larry Ginni Crescent is the name of the street I lived on as a child back in Lagos, but it’s also deeply sentimental for me and it is dedicated to my grandmother who passed away from COVID late last year. As a proud Nigerian, I have always loved my heritage, from the food and the language to the music and the culture, and afrobeats is one of the branches on the Nigerian tree that’s rooted in the diaspora.
This project has been something I’ve wanted to do for a while and the lockdown opened the door for that. I got to collaborate with two special Nigerian producers TBabz and SteveRawd, as well as my long-time collaborator GP. Not only am I a Nigerian but I am also a Christian and that comes out in this project. So ‘Larry Ginni Crescent’ can be described as deeply Christian and deeply Nigerian. From the songs about faith, to songs about love, everything connects to this one point – al that we do, all that we experience, can be used for our art. I hope it moves you”.
With over 40 million global streams and sold-out shows across America, Europe and Africa, and having also lived in Lagos, London and now Texas, S.O. is the true definition of an international artist. Since his now classic debut mixtape 5 Solas, S.O. has gone on to chart in the top 10 on the Billboard Heatseekers album chart, in the top 30 on both the Billboard Rap album chart and the Billboard Christian album chart, and in the top 5 on the iTunes Hip-Hop/Rap album chart across his four albums and two EPs. As his new project Larry Ginni Crescent arrives, S.O. is showing no signs of slowing down anytime soon. Check out the blog’s song recommendations below:
Must Listens: Corner (O Ti De), Good To Me, Kinda Love, Want You
New Lease Music 