Archive for the 'Recommended Listening' category

Adele – Set Fire to the Rain

Jan 10 2012 Published by under Pop Culture, Recommended Listening

I bought Adele’s 21 CD earlier this week. I knew I’d like the album because I’ve liked everything I’ve heard of hers thus far. She has such an amazing, soulful voice and her lyrics are so easy to relate to. However, I was even more pleased with the album than I expected.

I hope she recovers quickly from her surgery. If she reschedules her concert in the Triangle I am so there.  Below is a live performance of “Set Fire to the Rain” – my current favorite song. If you don’t like this song, I may be forced to come and check your pulse. Seriously.


 

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Let the Rain. Let it Be.

Jul 12 2011 Published by under Pop Culture, Recommended Listening, The Writing Life, Tuesday Writing Tips

I am a huge fan of brilliant singer/songwriters. Maybe because they live at the convergence of two of my greatest passions – words and music. Reigning as Queen atop the list of brilliant singer/songwriters that I HEART is Sara Bareilles. She enchants listeners with clever turns of phrase and the ability to write songs that feel like they were written about your life, your experiences.

Sara talks about her song Let the Rain in the video below. She says she had to ‘let the song be’ and get out of the way. As a person who is prone to overthinking and overanalyzing everything, this definitely struck a chord with me. Sometimes a story almost seems to write itself. But our inner critics keep stopping the flow. This is particularly the case when writers get caught up in trying to write a book that is ‘marketable’ rather than just trying to tell a great story.

Editing and revising is an essential part of any kind of writing. But overthinking every scene, every chapter, weighs down the story. Sometimes we just need to ‘let it be.’ Let the words flow from your brain, from your heart, from the mouths of your characters. Let the story become what it will. You can always go back and revise later.

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Recommended Listening: Black Stax

Feb 12 2011 Published by under Pop Culture, Recommended Listening

I was introduced to this group – accidentally. I visited Blue Shoes Media because I’d been pitched one of their other artists for All Things Girl.

I fell in love with their sound instantly. Their music has been referred to as ‘avant-garde hip-hop.’ I call it grown folks hip-hop. These three veteran performers have a unique, soulful sound and thoughtful lyrics. I will interviewing Black Stax on All Things Girl in the next several weeks. Until then, here is the song that turned me into a fan. It’s called I Love My Life.

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Recommended Listening: Savio Rego

Feb 05 2011 Published by under Pop Culture, Recommended Listening

One of the many perks to being Senior Editor of All Things Girl is interviewing authors and artists I admire and discovering musicians previously unknown to me.

Several months ago I interviewed a talented singer/songwriter named Natalie Brown. Natalie has a video on YouTube that encourages music lovers to support independent and unsigned artists. After watching her video I became more aware of all of the talented, unsigned artists out there. Many of them had a purer sound, better material, and more talent that some of the commercial artists coming across the airwaves. So I started to pay attention. I was more open to featuring these artists. And I discovered wonderful songs and artists. Some of those artists have been featured in on the All Things Girl Blog. Others I hope we’ll feature soon.

One of the artists I discovered this week is singer/songwriter and guitarist, Savio Rego. He sent a friend request on the shiny, new, updated MySpace. This led me to check out his music. I was impressed and thought I’d share the video for his song Miss You here. Take a listen and let me know what you think. Then share your favorite unsigned or underrated artist in the comments below.


Miss You – Official Music Video

Savio Rego | Myspace Music Videos

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King of Anything

Jan 14 2011 Published by under Recommended Listening

I love this song by Sara Bareilles.

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Wrong in all the write ways

Dec 09 2010 Published by under Recommended Listening, The Writing Life, Uncategorized

I often write to one of several writing soundtracks I’ve created. Many writers do. The soundtrack I’ve been favoring of late is one that features a lineup of bad arse chicks who don’t fit demurely into the typical pop diva envelope. Women like Madonna, Katy Perry, Rihanna, Kelly Clarkson, and one of my favorite women in this category – P!nk.

P!ink in an incredible artist. She has an amazing voice that is as gritty and raw as the emotions she reveals in her songs. One of the great things about being a creative artist  - a writer, musician, painter, sculptor, knitter – is the opportunity to take all of the pain and hardships of life and turn them into an anthem that lifts your spirits and empowers others. Pink’s new song, Raise Your Glass (video below – not for those easily offended) does just that.

The song contains one of my favorite current musical lines – “So raise your glass if you’re wrong in all the right ways.” It is a call that resonates with anyone that has ever felt like an outsider.

Some of the most powerful stories – written, sung, seen – are born out of the creator’s willingness to bare their pain to connect with others. I am always impressed by artists who are wrong in all the write ways. I hope to one day be one of them.

What is on your current creative soundtrack? Are their any songwriters whose work you particularly admire?

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MySpace Revamped

Nov 20 2010 Published by under Pop Culture, Recommended Listening, social networking

I’m really liking the new MySpace. The folks over at MySpace has finally embraced it’s identity as a space to discover new artists or connect with the artists you already know and love. I got a few friend requests on my shiny new MySpace account. Much to my surprise there was nary a creep in the bunch. Instead there were several fresh, interesting, and talented artists that I hadn’t heard before. You’ll find videos for two of them below. J Minus and Jonathan Clay, respectively.

What do you think of the new look MySpace?


Jonathan Clay – Gypsy Woman

Jonathan Clay | Myspace Music Videos

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Melanie Fiona Sings It Kills Me

Jul 29 2010 Published by under Pop Culture, Recommended Listening

This is an absolutely fantastic song. It definitely made me sit up and take notice on Melanie Fiona – a Canadian born singer and one of Motown’s newest artists.

It was also very interesting hearing Melanie talk about her journey as an artist, her commitment to staying true to herself, and her determination to find a label that would appreciate her rather than try to change her.

Check out the interview and studio performance of her Grammy-nominated song below.

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Esperanza Spalding – Bassist, Vocalist, Composer

Jul 10 2010 Published by under Recommended Listening

I love all kinds of music. It’s always fun to discover a new artist. After seeing Esperanza Spalding during the Prince tribute on the BET awards I’ve been listening to her music quite a bit. Would love to see her in concert.

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Sick of Sarah – "Daisies"

Sep 26 2008 Published by under Recommended Listening, Sick of Sarah

If you haven’t already noticed; I have a pretty eclectic musical palate. I’m just as likely to be rockin’ it out to Red Hot Chili Peppers or grooving to Ne-Yo as I am to mesmerized by Andrea Bocelli or belting out Broadway tunes.

So, it shouldn’t be surprising that I liked this little diddy that I ran across today by the Minneapolis band, Sick of Sarah. I won’t lie: I checked it out because I hoped it was a spoof song that proclaimed that they were sick of a particular Sarah. Though that wasn’t the case, I liked it just the same. So, I thought I’d share:

Copyright ©2006-2008 Samara Leigh
www.SamaraLeigh.com

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