The Female Ed Sheeran, Nikki Loy | Tongue Tied New Single

Happy Wednesday folks, I'm back with another new singer songwriter whose new single (Tongue Tied) is released this Friday 10th November. Check out the music video below!

Nikki is the long-awaited female answer to Ed Sheeran, her melodies are effortlessly catchy and her lyrics encapsulate her own personal experiences.
Loy's new album Pivotal came from a 52 week songwriting challenge, she wrote 52 songs in 52 weeks and posted them online, a mighty challenge which she says at times was tough!
Nikki has recently released a Youtube series called Pivotal Moments, a series of Youtube videos giving us an insight into her new album and documenting her life in her self-made camper van! These videos are definitely a must watch if you are a fan of the recent 'rise of the vloggers' such as Alfie Deyes and Zoella. Click HERE to watch!
If you like the sound of Nikki Loy, be sure to pre-order the new single Tongue Tied here - https://itunes.apple.com/album/tongue... PLUS! If you are London based, Nikki is having a single launch party gig at Shoreditch Treehouse tomorrow (November 9th) - Tickets are available from Eventbrite 
Make sure you are following Nikki on all social media below for more updates!
https://www.facebook.com/nikki.loy1 https://twitter.com/nikkiloymusic https://www.instagram.com/nikkiloymusic/ http://www.nikkiloy.com/
Livvy x

Philippa Hanna | Live Review

Last week I had the joy of going to see Philppa Hanna supporting Collabro as they kicked off their 29 date tour in Liverpool. This is her second time opening for the group, she has also opened for the likes of Wet Wet Wet, Little Mix and Lionel Richie. Her blend of country-christian-pop is a delight to listen to. Hanna kicked off her set with the song Happy in my skin, a song about learning to love yourself; she instantly had the audience in the palm of her hand with this jazzy number.
It was evident early on in her set that Hanna performs with true honesty. She sang every song with great feeling and told a story to preface each song. Her stage presence reminded me of Kate Rusby. Philippa's voice is pure like Taylor Swift's early days but also has the power of Crissie from The Shires.
The next song in the set list was Speed of light, a goose-bump inducing song reflecting on a darker time in her life and the power of love that brought her through it.
During her set, Hanna tells us she is celebrating 10 years as an independent artist. Hanna also reveals she was once signed to a major label, flown to Nashville and introduced to many record industry bigwigs. Unfortunately they wanted to change her appearance and sound, plus she was told she was 'too ordinary looking to be a popstar'. (Which is just UTTER NONSENSE might I add..)
Her next song I am amazing told us of her journey with self confidence. She encourages positivity, and gives us the message 'every day is a new day' before launching into her latest country-fied single Off The Wagon which has recently been backed by Radio 2's Clare Balding.
Hanna ended the set with Arrow, an uplifting, catchy tune telling us we are all made to fly.
Her whole performance was heart-warming and a joy to watch. Philippa was instantly likeable, she  has an effortless charm and was definitely meant to be a performer. Hanna's aim is to spread positivity and the importance of self love. Check out her latest single Off The Wagon below, you can also pre-order her new album Come Back Fighting HERE (released 24th November)

You still have chance to catch Collabro and Philippa Hanna on their mega UK tour - check out the tour dates below!

Livvy x
http://www.philippahanna.com/ http://steamingkettlepr.com/

Joe Dolman | Something Beautiful - New Single and Tour Dates

Fans of Damien Rice and James Bay, you're sure going to love Joe Dolman.
The 21 year old hails from Leamington Spa and has already had two top 10 EPs in the UK and USA. He studied at the prestigious BIMM in Brighton where acts such as James Bay and Tom Odell honed their skills.
Joe has been championed by BBC Introducing, headlining the stage at Radio 2's Live in Hyde Park and Radio 1's Huw Stephens is a huge fan.
I'm thrilled to be telling you all about his new single, plus his first headline solo UK tour this winter!
Something Beautiful is a gorgeous track with a chorus that you're sure to have stuck in your head all day. Joe's voice is very similar to James Bay's on this new single. You can have a listen to his previous single here - 

If you like the sound of Joe Dolman, you can pre order his new single Something Beautiful which is released tomorrow by clicking here - https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/something-beautiful-single/id1288655987

Make sure you catch him this November on his UK Tour!

01/11 - Nottingham Rough Trade

06/11 - London St Pancras Old Church

08/11 - Brighton Latest Music Bar

11/11 - Leamington Spa The Loft Theatre

12/11 - Manchester The Kings Arms

13/11 - Birmingham Sunflower Lounge

15/11 - Leeds The Fox and Newt

16/11 - Glasgow Glad Cafe

Buy Tickets HERE

Livvy xx

Imelda May - Black Tears Music Video

Imelda May has released a wonderful live video of her beautiful new track Black Tears shot at the iconic Maida Vale studios. Take a look below

This song is full of emotion, you can hear this in her strained yet breathtaking vocal. The track was written with Angelo Petragalia (Kings Of Leon) after a difficult moment in Imelda's life -  “I wrote Black Tears with Angelo Petraglia after a heart wrenchingly difficult goodbye. I closed my door and caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror with black tears rolling down my face. It's a sight and situation most women have unfortunately seen ourselves in at some point in life. Angelo had a beautiful guitar piece that fit the mood perfectly.” Her new record (Life. Love. Flesh. Blood) is the most autobiographical she has ever written, it is being released on 22nd April. Stand by for my thoughts and a review on the record on Monday 17th April.

The Lumineers - Exclusive Record Store Day Release - Seeds

The Lumineers have announced an exclusive 10" release for Record Store Day on 22nd April titled 'Seeds'.



The limited edition release from the critically-lauded Denver-based outfit shows the progression of two of the most popular tracks from their No.1 sophomore album ‘Cleopatra’ (‘Angela’ and ‘Long Way From Home’) from initial demo, through recording to the live entity.  
 
‘Angela’ is a subtle and restrained classic folk-rock song, which could have come straight out of Laurel Canyon in the late 60s-70s. It builds and crescendos seemingly lost in the vault of classic songwriting reappearing in 2017 as ageless and compelling. The 405 labelling the piece as “...the perfect example of The Lumineers' commitment to working through quality material that they believe in.” 
 
The other offering on ‘Seeds’,  ‘Long Way From Home’, displays the band’s uncompromising songwriting & emotional prowess in full force, centred on a simple picked guitar line and frontman Wesley Schultz' voice, lyricism & storytelling centre stage.
 
Discussing the release, Schultz shared, “With ‘Angela’, you'll hear how lyrics change and bridges and verses are moved around. And with ‘Long Way From Home’ you'll hear an entire intro, i.e. a brand new part of the song that was omitted on the studio album, but can be heard in the live version.” 

The band are also set to play the fantastic BST Hyde Park festival with Tom Petty and Stevie Nicks on July 9th! (I'm going! See you there?!)
‘Seeds’ Track List;
 
Side A
1. Angela
2. Angela (Live)
3. Angela Seed (For Fra)
Side B
1. Long Way From Home
2. Long Way From Home (Live)
3. Long Way From Home Seed

The Shires - First UK Country act to win a CMA Award

Hi Everyone!
You all know I am a huge fan of the UK country duo The Shires! I'm delighted to announce that they are the first UK act to win a CMA award!
They won the Jeff Walker Global Artist Award which recognizes outstanding achievements by a country music artist outside of the UK.

The Shires stated: “We are completely thrilled to win the CMA Jeff Walker Global Artist Award. To win a CMA Award this early in our career and to be the first band from the UK to be acknowledged by the CMAs in this way is huge for us – thank you to everyone who voted for us and thank you to our fans who support our music and the UK country movement.”

Last week The Shires were presented with their second GOLD disc in just 12 months as they officially announced their hit album ‘My Universe’ had sold more than 100K copies in the UK. This unprecedented achievement further cements the band’s position as the UK’s most successful Country act. The Shires are the fastest selling UK country act ever – going Gold with two albums within a year of release as well as reaching this level of sales with ‘My Universe’ a mere 20 weeks after its release. The new album has not left the Top 60 since release in October last year, and has been back up in the Top 20 numerous times.

The Shires also recently announced the release of their next single ‘Drive’. The country-rock tinged single, with its delayed guitars and stadium sized drums is the latest single from the UK Country superstars who landed three consecutive A-list on BBC Radio 2 for previous singles releases including; ‘Beats To Your Rhythm‘, ‘My Universe‘ and 'A Thousand Hallelujahs’. Co-written with USA Country music star Kip Moore, the song has potential to break across the pound as well as the UK. Discussing the tracks potential Decca’s Managing Director, Rebecca Allen stated: “Drive is one of those tracks that has potential to break not just the UK, but it will no doubt resonate with USA Country Radio too. Kip and the band have written a modern country pop classic and I’m sure when the time is right the USA label Big Machine, will launch it into the stratosphere.”