Selci Shares Soothing Anthem For Self-Isolation on ‘Hide Forever,’ Announces New EP

Following the video release for her anti-Valentines single ‘Strangers’ (currently the blog’s Music Video of the Month), Canadian soundscaper SELCI returns with the languid electro-R&B number, ‘Hide Forever,’ which will appear on her second EP in less than a year, ‘A SOFT PLACE’, set for release via Inner Ocean Records on June 23.

As the world is gripped by the Coronavirus pandemic, the track’s message of finding comfort in isolation seems especially fitting in these uncertain times. ‘Hide Forever’ is a slumbering reflection of the artist trapped in a sleep state during a periodic low. Produced with the help of prolific Vancouver beatmaker Neighbour and tempered by Selci’s narcotic vocals, the track flows like a curl of smoke.

“I wrote ‘Hide Forever’ when I was in a major depression and I wasn’t able to face the world,” Selci says. “Sleep was my only place of solace. The world would shut off and I could drift away. For A SOFT PLACE, I needed to dig into the places that made me feel safe, where the fear and stress of the world was silenced: laying on a couch with family, dancing by myself, or sleeping. Sometimes finding a soft place is a site of peace. Sometimes it’s a place of refuge or a part of you that you need to protect. Now with people all over the world going into self-isolation, this song seems to resonate more. I hope that people who are struggling with their mental health because of the pandemic are able to find their own places of softness and comfort. While you may feel like hiding forever, just know that you’re not alone—we’re all in this together.”

‘Hide Forever’ is now out today on all download/streaming sites. Have a listen below…

Song of the Day: Where’s The Love? – Neak

After making his entry on the blog last month with single, ‘Abstract’ featuring rapper Since9ine6ix, NEAK makes a return, claiming the Song of the Day spot with latest track, ‘Where’s The Love?’

Speaking of the track, which arguably has a tinge of Kanye West (pre-Kardashian), Neak says: “As people, we are affected by societal outcomes and the ways in which we interact with what’s presented to us (media, news, etc.). In this record, I touched on what has affected me and many others, and how it relates to the way we see life; addressing various perspectives that we inherently embrace and live under day-to-day.”

‘Where’s The Love?’ is now out on all major streaming and download sites. Have a listen below…

Song of the Day: Love Is A Gamble – Sneakbo (ft. Kudz)

Brixton rapper SNEAKBO releases his first single of 2020, ‘Love Is A Gamble’ featuring Disturbing London’s Kida Kudz.

‘Love Is A Gamble’ is a perfect introduction of what’s to come from Sneakbo this year. Fusing rap, afrobeats and dancehall melodies, all which Sneakbo is known for innovating. He is recognised as one of the first UK artists to create this unique sound that has taken over the UK in a huge way.

Sneakbo as always flows effortless riding the beat with Kida Kudz bringing us his ‘jiggy’ vibes, both showing grown vibes to a track dedicated to the woman they love in their life.

Sneakbo has always been at the forefront of the UK rap scene, which has swept across the UK and internationally for nearly a decade now, with other artists incorporating his unique sound. His debut single ‘The Wave’ released in 2011 hit the UK charts, but more importantly the clubs and airwaves, where people embraced his name and music. Since then he has released numerous hit singles, EP’s and mixtapes.

2020 will be Sneakbo’s year with lots in store…check out the track for the video below…

Bby Ivy Will ‘Blow Your Mind’ With Latest Single

Following on from her debut EP, ‘Grizzly’ (read the review here), BBY IVY bounces right back on the blog with new single, ‘U Got It Bad (Blow My Mind)’.

This lust-at-first sight number carries on her boisterous trademark in her six-track project, boasting a reverberating trap-hop/R&B fusion.

This is one newcomer on-a-SERIOUS-rise… be sure to check out ‘U Got It Bad (Blow My Mind)’ below…

Song of the Day: Taxi – Average Joe

AVERAGE JOE’s single,‘Taxi’, is an ambitious, intense and eclectic listen, sat on a grooving rhythm made further compelling by bluesy jazz flourishes, soulful charisma and spades of Northern wit.

This artist takes the very ordinariness of everyday life – the mundanity, heartache, hard graft, and little victories and twists it all into something transformative, and hopeful. Brooding front-man Joe was raised in Stoke-on-Trent, an ex-industrial area whose cultural heritage – a thriving Northern Soul scene – Jimi Hendrix once playing in what is now a Wetherspoons, has slowly been eroded into a city sometimes known for little more than the birthplace of Robbie Williams.

Growing up, the escapist (yet seemingly unreachable) possibilities of music were made clear to Joe from an early age – his mum sang folk lullabies to him from the womb onwards, whilst his landlord Dad’s “working-class attitude, yet aristocratic high standards” exposed Joe to classic, confessional storytellers such as John Martyn and Tom Waits. Joe felt emboldened to sign up for the school musical, but one scrappy year of bullying later threw himself instead into the local post-punk scene, where his frustrations and fears were filtered into the idea of writing your own songs instead.

Now as inspired by vintage soul, hip-hop and classic R&B as the caustic spirit of Sleaford Mods or Mike Skinner, Average Joe takes timeless themes and renders them razor-sharp on the conditions of the present day….

Watch the video for ‘Taxi’ below…