Give the gift of Awesome: Music edition
Give the gift of awesome: make this Christmas season count for creativity and independence
Music
There is some great music out there, and a lot of it you haven’t heard. Music is the one thing that can transcend ethnicity, gender, disability, and every other human condition. Music gives emotion the floor and can create a universal language grounded in the beauty of creation and sharing. Whether sitting around the campfire, in the car or at home alone, music can change a person’s mood or reinforce. It can increase endorphins, especially when dance is added to the mix. It can soothe pain. It can evoke memories of close friends, and with music, distant times can come crashing back as though they are in the present.
In order to continue to have the best music available, people need to look at the artists who are trying to break into the industry. These artists, who are still fresh to the business, still have the raw energy that comes with creating something for the sheer act of creation rather than for the money that is needed to fund a company. By supporting artists who may otherwise not be able to produce music, people will ensure that a variety of acts and different voices will be heard.
Music
There is some great music out there, and a lot of it you haven’t heard. Music is the one thing that can transcend ethnicity, gender, disability, and every other human condition. Music gives emotion the floor and can create a universal language grounded in the beauty of creation and sharing. Whether sitting around the campfire, in the car or at home alone, music can change a person’s mood or reinforce. It can increase endorphins, especially when dance is added to the mix. It can soothe pain. It can evoke memories of close friends, and with music, distant times can come crashing back as though they are in the present.
In order to continue to have the best music available, people need to look at the artists who are trying to break into the industry. These artists, who are still fresh to the business, still have the raw energy that comes with creating something for the sheer act of creation rather than for the money that is needed to fund a company. By supporting artists who may otherwise not be able to produce music, people will ensure that a variety of acts and different voices will be heard.
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Rachel Zevita has a soulful voice, and if music like “You Can Have Manhattan” were all she sang, this world would be richer for it. However, she can rock a room, and some of her best music is good because of the comedy involved. Zevita made it to the final 12 on American Idol Season 10 and got kicked off the show for doing exactly what Randy wanted her to do – be herself. While her rendition of “Criminal” may have been too much for Randy, it is the first reason why she is on the top of this list. |
Casey Abrams is just fun to listen to. His music hits that sweet spot of soulful, enthusiastic, upbeat and emotionally relevant. He can play jazz with the best of them. Whether he is singing about losing his beard and his fro or he is plucking the bass, Abrams guarantees a great song every time. Of course, his duets with Haley Reinhart are legendary – take a listen to “Hit the Road Jack” then go get his album.
Haley Reinhart’s voice is the quintessential example of a voice that can change and charge emotions with just a couple of notes. She can growl. She can croon. She can blend, and she can rock. Cover Led Zeppelin? Done. Sound like someone from the 1940s? Done. Melt hearts and walls? Done. She’s at her best when she is singing the blast from the past type songs, but when she lets her voice hit the notes of a song naturally, there is very little that the listener can do beyond hold on to the music and enjoy the ride.
Fiona Apple hasn’t released a record in a while. There are a multitude of reasons for that, but here is the one thing that everyone should know. Apple is by far the truest, most honest voice out there. Her voice could melt butter. Her cover of “Across the Universe” is breathtaking. Her duet with Johnny Cash is shockingly beautiful, but it is the raw, emotional honesty that fuels her music that makes Apple a genius. She will only be the original that she is, and that is something worthy of giving.
Choose one of the above artists to support, and give the gift of awesome. You will be making the world a more beautiful place.
Fiona Apple hasn’t released a record in a while. There are a multitude of reasons for that, but here is the one thing that everyone should know. Apple is by far the truest, most honest voice out there. Her voice could melt butter. Her cover of “Across the Universe” is breathtaking. Her duet with Johnny Cash is shockingly beautiful, but it is the raw, emotional honesty that fuels her music that makes Apple a genius. She will only be the original that she is, and that is something worthy of giving.
Choose one of the above artists to support, and give the gift of awesome. You will be making the world a more beautiful place.
Read about Haley Reinhart's "Listen Up!"
Read about Fiona Apple's "The idler wheel..."
Read about Fiona Apple in concert
Read about Casey Abrams' debut "Casey Abrams"
Read about Fiona Apple's "The idler wheel..."
Read about Fiona Apple in concert
Read about Casey Abrams' debut "Casey Abrams"