It is undeniable: This year so far has been one massive series of unprecedented events for music. This month’s occurrences show no divergence from the legacy. Gucci Mane has his third album of the year already lined up, Kid Cudi came public with his mental health complications and Bobby Shmurda was officially sentenced to seven years in prison. It is a wild time for the music industry. While we wait for the dust to fall, grab your headphones and dive into this week’s playlist.
1) “Fire” by 3LAU feat. Said The Sky & Christina
3LAU (pronounced “Blau,” his last name) got into producing right around some of the peak years of EDM. The 25-year-old is originally from New York, but moved to Las Vegas at age 13. He discovered EDM in 2011, while on vacation in Sweden. He returned to his college in the United States and began creating mashups, which he then uploaded to YouTube under the name 3LAU. He has released a number of mixtapes and singles, and has been featured on tours all over the world. He is also relatively active in education philanthropy when not making music.
2) “Say What You Feel” by Jagwar Ma
Three-piece psychedelic rock band Jagwar Ma holds its roots in Sydney, Australia. Jono Ma, one of the two guitarists, and Gabriel Winterfield, the lead vocalist, met in 2007 while still parts of two separate bands. After splitting ways with their previous groups and frequently meeting up to test out synthesized melodies, they began recording demo tapes for their first EP. The duo then decided to relocate to France to finish out their EP, which inevitably turned into a full LP. Jack Freeman, their third band-mate, then joined the group, and the trio has since released two albums together.
3) “Summertime Romance” by Johnnyswim
Johnnyswim has a decade old romance story to tell with their newest album, Georgica Pond. Husband and wife duo Amanda Sudano (daughter of disco legend, Donna Summer) and Abner Ramirez met in 2005. They then began writing and making music together as a couple. The duo have since released three EP’s and four albums. This track comes from their latest project, which is just as hauntingly beautiful as all of their work.
4) “4 Da Squaw” by Isaiah Rashad
Isaiah Rashad made a massive splash in the hip-hop community with his first album, Cilvia Demo, in 2014. He then hopped on tour with label mate ScHoolboy Q, at which point he embarked on a two-year battle with alcohol and substance abuse. In that time, he made no music, leading many of his fans to wonder if he would ever put out his sophomore album. After nearly being dropped from TDE and coming to terms with his depression, he sought out the help he needed to get his career back on track. On Sept. 2, he came back with The Sun’s Tirade, a 17-track work of art featuring the likes of SZA, SiR and Kendrick Lamar.
5) “Change My World” by ELEL
ELEL is essentially the seven-piece second generation to Grouplove. The fairly new indie pop band includes members Zach Tichenor, Jo Jo Jackson, Tim Cook, Ben Elkins, Alex Mojavarian, Stefan Forbus and Fredrick Weathersby. They released their debut EP just last year, at which point they hopped on the tour chain for various festivals across the United States. They have just released their debut studio album, Geode, from which comes this track.
6) “Warm” by Becky Hill
English pop singer-songwriter Becky Hill first belonged to a band called the Shaking Trees. She then auditioned for the first series of The Voice UK, where she progressed all the way until the semi-final stage before being eliminated. Hill spent many years writing and featuring on tracks for other artists, such as Wilkinson and Rudimental. In 2014, she began releasing solo singles as she completed her debut album. Although the album still has not been released, she has been actively working with producers by the likes of MNEK and Two Inch Punch to complete it.
7) “Find What You’re Looking For” by Olivia O’Brien
At just 16-years-old, California-based singer-songwriter Olivia O’Brien gained massive acclaim for her song with Gnash, “i hate u, i love u,” which now has over 43 million streams on Soundcloud and over 369 million streams on Spotify. The young teen then went on tour with Gnash for the summer. She has released a total of three official singles since signing to Island Records, and there are rumors that an EP is on the way.
8) “Most At Home” by Oshan
Oshan is the moniker Riley Wingfield took when he began producing music. The Sydney-based artist keeps a very low Internet profile, so little is known about the 21-year-old music maker. This single is the first of the tracks to drop for his rumored EP, and serves as a well-rounded introduction for new fans.
