University of Maryland students were in for a treat when Mac Miller and Casey Veggies were announced as the headliners for the back to school concert. Bark + Bite was able to catch up with young Veggies before he hit the stage.
The 18-year-old MC is but he proved very cool and mature through our conversation. With the re-release of his Sleeping in Class album on iTunes, the sky is the limit for the L.A.-based rapper. Read our Q&A session with Casey below.
When it comes to infectious dancefloor filler credentials, Sean Paul has 'em in spades. The Jamaican star has consistently churned out club bangers like "Gimme the Light," "Get Busy" and "Temperature," and now he's back with his Stargate-produced single, "Got 2 Luv U."
After taking a brief hiatus from the public eye after his 2009 album, Imperial Blaze, Sean Paul is back and ready to jump in on the "international" sound that's sweeping the music industry.
We had a chance to catch up with Sean Paul and he told us about his new album, his collaboration with Kelly Rowland and his attempts to balance his island sound with the dance music craze that is sweeping urban music.
It all started in a park. Anthony, Mr. Marcus Lee, Chris Voice and Royce P used to play basketball together in Hamilton Park and their bond as brothers has sustained them as they embark on their journey into the music industry. And they've got one of the best heads in the business guiding them: Andre Harrell.
Andre Harrell teamed up with Radio One's "Superstar Soul Search" in a bid to find new talent, which brought him to Atlanta. The boys, unfortunately, missed the registration deadline, but fate still brought them together, as word about the upstart R&B group reached Harrell's ears. When they finally did audition for the legendary record executive, he felt that they reminded him of Jodeci, and he soon signed them to his label Harrell Records.
Now, Hamilton Park is on a promo tour promoting their first single "Thing Called Us" and we had the opportunity to ask the guys a few questions about life, music and their faith.
Although the Internet has been the bane of many a major record label's existence, it's also turned out to be a great talent scout. Especially YouTube, which has already given us artists like Justin Bieber and Greyson Chance.
Not too long ago, Karmin, made up of boyfriend/girlfriend duo Nick Noonan and Amy Heidemann, was just another act among thousands of others on YouTube performing cover songs on their channel hoping to catch on like Maria Aragon did with her "Born This Way" cover. And it happened, unexpectedly, when Amy decided to step in front of the mic and rap, instead of just singing, for a reworked version of Chris Brown's hit single "Look At Me Now."
The clip quickly went viral and before the two knew it, they were being flown out to perform on Ellen DeGeneres' show and being showered with attention by record label execs and big name recording artists.
Bark + Bite had the pleasure of catching up with Amy and Nick for an interview in which the two shared their rise to fame, their relationship, the next steps in their career and their undying admiration for Kanye West.
It's a hard knock life for a backup musician. Playing or singing on another person's album, supporting them on tour, it's all well and good but it leaves a lot of talented artists sitting in the shadows of another's fame. But for Breanne Düren, the hit song "Fireflies" by Owl City suddenly opened a thousand new doors and inspired her to finally strike out with her own sound.
The singer, whose work with Adam Young (aka Owl City) led to a full-time touring gig, has a fresh vibe that combines parts of Young's musical niche (think LIGHTS without the Warcraft ties) with elements of her favorite singers. This is evidenced most by Düren's first single, "Gold Mine" (off her debut EP, Sparks) which is Adele's groove stripped down and sung with a much more youthful voice.
Bark + Bite chatted with Düren as she prepared for the release of her EP. The young star in the making talked about her role in Owl City, the world of a full-time musician, and how all of her new experiences inspired her to put together the five songs that make up Sparks.
Alexz Johnson would like you to know that she's still exists. The former star of Instant Star, a fictional television show based around a teenaged girl winning a sort of American Idol, is now an indie artist trying to make a name for herself in the industry.
After many ups and downs along the way, the Canadian singer released her debut album Voodoo about one year ago. The album, which draws from many different genres and eras in music, does little to remind listeners of her Instant Star past (with perhaps the exception of "A Little Bit"), carves Johnson her own niche in the vast indie genre.
In about a month a remix album from The Demolition Crew entitled Voodoo Reloaded will be released in an attempt to make the songs slightly more palatable for the average listener.
We spoke to Alexz Johnson while she perused the Egyptian mummies exhibit at a museum. She told us about the old and new versions of the album, what she has planned for the future, and triumphs and heartaches she's felt along the way.
D.R.U.G.S. (aka Destroy Rebuild Until God Shows) is a sort of addiction. The band's combination of both longtime members of the music industry and a mixture of genres can cause even the most avid hater of heavy metal or pop music to have “If you had a sex life, a sex life/Would you even worry about mine?” stuck in his or her head after just one listen (in other words, don’t listen to “Sex Life” before an important, proper event).
The self-titled debut from the group features something for almost everyone, with a surprisingly broad spectrum coming from former Chiodos front man Craig Owens and his new band mates.
Augustana is at a crossroads. It’s been three years since their last album, Can’t Hurt, Can’t Love, was released and six years since their first single, “Boston,” flooded the airwaves and reached the top of charts across the country. Now, one month away from the release of their third full-length and on the brink of a spring tour, the group is in a very different place than it was all those years ago.
Bark + Bite talked to lead singer Dan Layus in the calm before the storm. He shared his feelings about their past success, what’s in store for the new album, and his hopes for the band’s future.
