This past year was a tough one for the majority of us. Thank goodness there was indie music. Looking back over the 19 Monday Mashup columns we compiled during the year, we have selected the 20 Best Singles. Here they are in the order we featured them.
Did you miss us? Things have finally settled down. I am in the process of being promoted to Shift Manager at Pizza Hut, which has allowed me to quit my job at Sam’s Club and have a less hectic life. I’m still working a lot of hours, but have regular days off and will (normally) get off earlier. As a result, we should be able to get back to the business of promoting indie music here on Indie Voice Blog. We are very happy to be back.
Let’s kick off our first Monday Mashup of 2020 with some great new songs and videos. Here we go.
NEW PLATFORM FOR INDIE ARTISTS
A revolutionary new music platform has launched, enabling artists to take control of their careers. Beatchain’s premium services help musicians share their talent, connect with fans, and earn money from their music, without having to share profits and creative control with industry middlemen.
Though there are many tools in the market providing services to musicians, they tend to be expensive and limited to a single capability, for example, handling just distribution, websites, email lists or social media management. Beatchain believes artists need all of these capabilities together in one platform. The market has clearly indicated that Beatchain is resonating. Over 40,000 artists have already taken their first steps towards independence by signing up to the Beatchain platform.
“Too many artists are seeing music streaming as a talent show where they upload one song to Spotify with zero promotion, and suddenly they’re being signed to a label or played on the radio,” said Ben Mendoza, Beatchain CEO. “Unfortunately that’s not how the music industry works in the streaming era. To get heard above the noise, you need the complete set of tools to grow and engage your fanbase, get them hyped for your new release, and then direct them again and again to your music, your shows and your merchandise. The unique thing about Beatchain is that you can do all this with one platform, without the artist needing to become an expert marketer or music promoter.”
Beatchain offers three pricing levels – a free Basic Plan, a Premium Plan for $14.99 and a “Superstar” Plan for $19.99. The platform’s wide array of tools remove the need for artists to subscribe separately to a number of other services, which can add up to a significant monthly investment, especially for artists just starting out.
NEW SINGLES
First up is the unique sound of Stefan T. He composed this guitar instrumental and then enlisted an old high school friend to write lyrics for it. He incorporated a hip hop beat underneath the guitar to give it that intriguing sound. Check out “One.”
https://soundcloud.com/stefantofficial/one
Next up is the amazing vibe of Dani Le Rose with her latest single “Flowers” from her upcoming self-titled EP, which will be released on Friday. We are totally in love with her and can’t wait to hear the rest of the EP.
Our third single has a similar “hot” vibe with the haunting sound of British songstress Actrese. We likewise love her groove and think that “Lola” will be a huge hit. What do you think?
Our next single has a gospel/pop feel and an equally incredible vocal zzsound from A Blake. Check out “Witness” and we think you’ll be a believer.
Our final single is from a future superstar that deserves as much airplay as Harry Styles. Check out “Find Me” from LA’s Matt Hansen – we think you’ll go out of your way to catch his live act.
NEW MUSIC VIDEOS
There are few things we love more than new music from multi-LA Music Critic Award winners The Spider Accomplice. Their latest, “Enough,” is definitely one of their finest accomplishments to date, and we are so proud to share it with you. Get ready to rock your socks off!
Next up is the new video from Blue Élan Records artist Lisa Lambe, formerly of the band Celtic Women. Her sound is reminiscent of Stevie Nicks, and we are intrigued by “Hunter’s Moon.” This one is a true keeper.
Our third video is the perfect segue and features the incredible sound of Grizzly Coast. We hope they stay around “Forever.”
Our next video is visually stimulating and worthy of multiple viewings. Check out Kris Kelly and his song, “More.”
We close out this week’s edition with the latest from our friend and amazing singer-songwriter Andy Grammer. We think everyone can relate to the lyrics of “Spotlight.”