RICARDO WILLIAMS continues to bring on Xmas, by putting his seamlessly smooth R&B/soul spin on a festive classic ‘This Christmas’. The track is from his 2015 album, ‘The Gift.’
Go on, get into the spirit and have a listen!
Category: Songs of the Day
Song of the Day: Touched – Ashley David (ft. Alicai Harley)
ASHLEY DAVID has a smooth, sensuous and addictive voice and for his debut release ‘Touched’, featuring Alicai Harley, his attributes melt into a cascade of melodies for a refreshing and genuine spin on R&B.
Taking in his worldly inspirations, the Londoner embellishes his work with glints of his Jamaican heritage as island music and soul vibes flirt playfully alongside contemporary R&B to make his self coined ‘Island Blues’. Featuring the delectable rap and singing talents of one of the UK’s most recently discovered stars Alicai Harley, ‘Touched’ is seductive and genuine, yet fierce.
There’s little doubt as to how ASHLEY DAVID is so well versed in music creation once you have scraped the surface to this intriguing musician, artist and video director. Born into a multi-talented family, ASHLEY DAVID has been musically cultivated by the strong influences of his uncles who were in an award-winning international gospel group and his older brother, a chart topping songwriter, Varren Wade (Wretch 32 ‘6 words’, Stormzy ‘Blinded by your Grace’).
The smooth operator began his career at an early age, seeing him take to the stage of West End Theatre before moving on to study animation and become a freelance creative director/ animator & graphic designer, providing visuals and collaborating with the likes of H Money, Wstrn, Fanatics, N3GUS, Rhyon , Joivan Wade and John Boyega. It is through his own journeys and those closest to him that he’s been able to nurture and hone his craft, being in complete control of all elements that he displays to the world and bringing him to the point he has reached today, a genuinely “360” artist.
Speaking of the release, which was premiered at radio by DJ Ace on BBC 1Xtra, Ashley said: “I am extremely excited about ‘Touched’, as I have been working on my material over the last year and it seems like every skill I’ve learned & developed within the arts has now converged to this point where the world is now about to see all that I’ve been honing. Music, animation, visuals, the whole nine yards will be released and the excitement I am feeling is palpable, I want to take people on a journey into my very own genre which I call “Island blues”.
Start the journey and hit that play button on ‘Touched’.
Song of the Day: Sosa – Dubz (ft. Oliver King)
DUBZ has a significant legacy within the UK Rap scene and whilst he may not be the obvious choice when drawing for Rap names, he certainly holds an indisputable position in the game.
With a slick feature from upcoming R&B singer Oliver King, ‘Sosa’ bears all the hallmarks of the genuine lyricism and unique tone that has always made DUBZ stand out. The video, released via GRM Daily, is garnering a wave of excitement from fans. Having recently collaborated with Ghetts, Rico Squeeze and Tiggs Da Author, as well as working towards his album, which is set to release in the first quarter of 2018, it looks like DUBZ is going to be a more prominent fixture in the Rap scene than ever before.
Native to South West London, DUBZ made his debut almost 10 years ago with his ‘Ard Doe’ mixtape release. The tape picked up significant support from the then bubbling scene, catching the attention of artists such as Giggs and Skepta, resulting in DUBZ and Giggs collaborating the following year on the infamous 2007 record ‘Pain is of the Essence’. DUBZ has since appeared on Giggs’ number 2, 2016 album release ‘Landlord’ and both Giggs and Skepta have publicly tipped him as their favourite UK Rapper via their social media accounts, helping to reignite the necessity for him to return to the game.
Having to face the realities and adversity of road life and family ties during a period when being a rapper was not providing an income, like many of the greats, DUBZ had to make a decision on where to focus his time and energy and unfortunately for the music, it took second place.
However, in a new era and with his peers calling for his comeback, DUBZ has started to release his arsenal to rapturous effect. In a succession of quick-fire, DUBZ has dropped 3 videos across GRM Daily and Link Up TV, gaining plaudits from fans new and old, but it is ‘SOSA’ that is the real wake up call that DUBZ is still fully certified when it comes to rapping.
Christmas Song: Noel – Ricardo Williams
UK’s very own powerhouse RICARDO WILLIAMS kicks off the festive season on NEW LEASE MUSIC with his explosively spicy track ‘Noel’, taken from his 2015 Christmas album, The Gift.
It’s not too early to get into the Xmas spirit…check out ‘Noel.’
Song of the Day: Role Models – Lady Sanity
Following her win at the recent GRM Daily Rated Awards, Birmingham MC LADY SANITY shares the lead track off her forthcoming EP ‘For Figures’. The track is unapologetically raw and is about “finding inspiration in the amazing people around you in your everyday life, opposed to this unrealistic, overpriced culture that’s thrown in our faces so often.”
She has already performed at Glastonbury Festival and is certainly one of the most exciting and passionate lyricists in the underground Birmingham hip hop scene at the moment.
Check out her work…have a listen to ‘Role Models.’
