Genre: Neo-soul, R&B
Sounds Like: Lauryn Hill, Janelle Monae, Erykah Badu

Emeli Sandé is a 23-year-old Scotland-born singer and songwriter.

Equipped with a solid, soulful voice recalling both legends and contemporaries alike–from Lauryn Hill to Janelle Monae to Solange Knowles (who she’s already opened for on tour), Sandé is one of the promising new neo-soul talents on the scene…and it almost never happened.

After submitting one of her own songs to a Trever Nelson‘s BBC Urban Music competition years ago, the singer was offered several recording contracts as a finalist. Worried about inking a contract and allowing label control, Sandé ultimately chose schooling over songcraft–opting to attend Glasgow University instead to pursue a degree in neuroscience.

However, during a medical residency in Madrid, Sandé met producer Naughty Boy (Chipmunk, Ms. Dynamite), and the two instantly set forth in forging a musical partnership: Together they crafted “Diamond Rings,” a song that would result in Chipmunk’s first Top 10 single in the summer of ’09. And by March of 2010, Sandé was officially signed to Virgin Records.

Since then, Sandé has penned dozens of other tracks for other major UK pop acts including Cheryl Cole (“Boys”), Alesha Dixon (“Radio”) and Tinie Tempah (“Let Go”).

Having now put her medical aspirations on hold, Sandé has decided to return to once again pursue her musical path. And while she doesn’t yet have an official single out (look for a debut track to drop mid-summer), she does have a few official demos floating around, including “Easier In Bed.”

“Easier In Bed” is a gorgeous, hypnotic mixture of sweetly-sung vocals, hypnotic strings, and waves of ambient noise all set to a solid, tripping drum sample. “At night time we pretend / It’s easier in bed,” Sande croons on repeat during the falsetto-fied chorus.

While she’s still a long way away from a debut, the earliest rumblings suggest that Sandé’s going to be a major one to watch for in 2011.

For a free download of “Easier In Bed,” head to Sande’s official Facebook page, and check out her official website.

Photo taken by Markofthehorse.

On Wednesday night, Natalia Kills, Maluca and Robyn took to the stage at Terminal 5 in New York City.

This is what transpired.

Read More…

Meet Andrea Lewis.

Perhaps you’ve seen her around: The actress-turned-singer is best known for her role as Hazel Aden in five seasons of Degrassi: The Next Generation, as well as a role in Nickelodeon’s first ever musical, Spectacular!

Now, feel free to add “One to Watch” to her repertoire.

On October 10 (10/10/10), Lewis will be unleashing a free album on her blog (Those Girls Are Wild–which I am assured is not porn).

“Voodoo” is the first single from the upcoming effort.

Despite what you might assume from an actress-turned-singer, “Voodoo” is not the by-the-numbers electro-pop track you may be expecting: Like her Degrassi roots, Lewis’ single goes there.

“Let’s get it!” Lewis yelps in the track’s first few opening seconds. Accompanied by funk-ified hand claps, organs, and spacey synthesizers, Lewis’ voice is fiery and earnest–like a cross between Alesha Dixon and Janelle Monae–allowing her to riff and leap through the song’s catchy melodies with ease.

The track, which was co-penned by Lewis and her partner, Ty Lorraine, was produced by Ty Steez.

If the rest of the album is as top notch a production as “Voodoo,” someone’s going to have a record deal very soon. After all, a music career spun from the roots of Degrassi seemed to work nicely for Drake, didn’t it?

DL: Andrea Lewis – Voodoo

Andrea Lewis’ upcoming album, 54321, will be released on October 10 on her website.

I almost missed this one during the chaos that was my mini-vacation over the weekend. I’m glad I didn’t.

Click above to watch the official video for Janelle Monae‘s “Cold War,” one of my favorite tracks off of the singer’s incredible debut record, The ArchAndroid.

The video requires very little explanation, though I do want to include this quote found in the press release:

“‘The ‘Cold War’ music video was filmed in the black box auditorium at The Palace of the Dogs sanitarium. This is the complete first take. This performance is unaltered and unencumbered, as those of us in attendance on that day experienced it.”‬ –Wendy Morgan (Director) and The Wondaland Arts Society

Gorgeous.

Click here to preview and purchase The ArchAndroid.

RING THE ALARM.

My very first magazine review was just published!

Check out the latest issue of Attitude Magazine on stands now to see my review of Janelle Monáe‘s debut album, Metropolis.

Yes, the issue with Kylie Minogue on the cover. Dying!

Many thanks to Kat B. for the scan.

Last Thursday, Janelle Monae held a special album launch party at the Delano Hotel in Miami on May 13 to celebrate the release of her incredible debut LP, The ArchAndroid.

Since I’m of the Northeastern persuasion, I wasn’t able to attend. However, one of my good friends and loyal Muusers, Jonny (of LoveJonny.com), was able to attend the show in my stead. Aww!

Click above to see the full recap from the night’s events, and click here to preview and purchase the album from iTunes.

Thank you so much, Jonny! Xoxo.

STOP WHATEVER YOU’RE DOING.

Janelle Monae‘s full-length debut, The ArchAndroid, has officially been released today.

You can stream the entire album at her MySpace right now.

Or, if you’d prefer to support extraordinary talent financially, click here to preview and purchase the album from iTunes.

Behold: One of the greater–if not the best–album covers of 2010 thus far.

And now, a nerdy-yet-awesome description of the crown featured in the artwork above:

The ArchAndroid Crown: Designed by Zoman Ignatius, the half-elf, half-human mystic, reportedly 500 years ago. According to legend, the crown has several magic properties, as well as innovative technologies that can be employed only by The ArchAndroid. Zoman was a consummate inventor, artist and sculptor, a cross between Tesla and Da Vinci, and as such, he designed the crown to be a work of beauty that would embody the very spirit of Metropolis. According to legend, the crown features prominent Metropolis buildings and towers that will light up radiantly when the one and only true ArchAndroid wears the crown. According to the Daily Horos, this opulent headdress was stolen from the vaults in the Black House, reportedly by 1954, in October of 2715. Several members of 1954 were hunted down and executed for this crime. But the crown was never found. Many claim it has been secreted away to the Wonderground. There is also word that in the year 2010, several 1954 operatives have crafted a replica of this historic headdress to be worn by Janelle Monáe in anticipation for her album The ArchAndroid…no word on whether or not this replica has magic properties… The Living Cyktionary, 9th Edition, 2719

You can see the crown in action in the ArchAndroid trailer here.

But really…it’s kind of perfect.