• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Manhattan Digest

All you need to know about Manhattan culture and so much more...

  • LIFESTYLE
  • ENTERTAINMENT
  • LGBT
  • OPINION
  • TECHNOLOGY

sam smith

z100’s Jingle Ball 2014- The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

by Ryan Shea

Jingle Ball, Taylor Swift, z100, Manhattan Digest

 

Last night z100’s, New York’s #1 hit music station, held their 2014 Jingle Ball right in the heart of New York City at the famed Madison Square Garden.  In conjunction with I Heart Radio, the concert was broadcast all over the internet with an air date on the CW to happen later on this month.  Naturally the show was sold out as it was packed with some of today’s biggest and brightest stars, all huddled under one roof to give everyone a great show and for us to have an awesome night.  Whereas there were a ton of great moments that happened throughout the night, there were some things that happened that made me puzzled, confused and wondering if it was really ok putting them there in the first place.  Take a look at what went right, and what went wrong at Jingle Ball.

The Standouts-

Taylor Swift-

Of course, Taylor was the headliner at Jingle Ballso she was the last to come out which happened around 11:45 PM, nearly four hours into the show itself.  It also happened to be Tay tay’s birthday today, so all of us got to celebrate with her on her 25th which was pretty awesome.  Honestly, Taylor is at the stage in her career where being at the top isn’t even the top, she’s further than that.  So the mini concert itself was really just a spectacle to watch and the audience craved every minute of it.  She has such great stage presence and really enjoys the interaction she has with her audience.  Only thing I was a bit confused by was why she performed two songs off of “Red” and not  all five of her songs from “1989”.  I get you wanna perform the hits, but you have enough adoring fans that know “1989” already that they would’ve been excited to hear something new as opposed to something we’ve heard for years (I was hoping she would’ve performed, “Style”.  Nope).  Otherwise, great set to end the night.

Shawn Mendes-

Maybe this is just my age as I am transitioning from the top 40 phase of my life to the WALK 97.5 stage, but Shawn Mendes was the only person on the Jingle Ball lineup that I had no clue who he actually was.  He apparently has some big song out right now that he performed last night called “Life Of The Party”, which for a guy just playing with a guitar and nothing else did a pretty good job.  The highlight was his own version of the first verse of Eminem’s “Lose Yourself” which he did in a very stripped down way, and that to me was awesome.  It is good to know that someone of his tender age of 16 can research music from a different time period and take a song which is so deep and heavy and turn it into something much more light and in a way refreshing.  Hope he has a very successful career ahead.

Sam Smith-

Love him and I think he is the best thing that happened in 2014 by far.  Such a simple guy with this amazing voice that commands such a presence.  He is such a unique throwback to the yesteryears of Elton John and Billy Joel, and did such a fantastic performance of his hits “I’m Not The Only One” and “Stay With Me”.  Just like Shawn, I see a bright future for him and hope his success continues beyond this amazing year he had.

Pharrell-

Surprisingly Pharrell was the one who kicked off the night, which in past years is usually reserved for some of the smaller acts.  Pharrell spent most of his set performing hits that he was featured on such as “Blurred Lines” and “Get Lucky” but the latter two songs were his best.  Why?  The surprise announcement of his fellow “Voice” judge Gwen Stefani coming out to perform their new song “Spark The Fire”, which was freaking awesome.   Growing up Gwen was a huge music influence for me and seeing her and him perform together again was amazing.  Of course, he finished his set with “Happy” and invited a bunch of PSL’s on the stage to dance/take selfies with him.  Honestly, if I was on stage with Pharrell I would put my phone in my pocket and enjoy the experience and not do what these stupid girls did, but it’s a generational thing, so whatever.

5 Seconds of Summer/Maroon 5-

The only two “Rock” acts at Jingle Ball, and both did a pretty decent job.  Maroon 5 was great, maybe phoned it in a bit with “Animal” and “One More Night”, but I felt like they were super rushed because Jingle Ball itself had such a large lineup that many of the acts only had 10-15 minutes.  Nevertheless they were great.  5 Seconds of Summer, or 5SOS, were quite fantastic and did a great rendition of “What I Like About You”.  My hope is that they can get past the screaming girl phase and really be seen as a great band as opposed to a flash in the pan that pop seems to take in and spit out every year.

The Lowlights-

Jessie J/Meghan Trainor/Rita Ora/Nick Jonas/Charli XCX/Rixton-

I honestly felt bad for all of them, they legit got 2.5 seconds on stage and then went bye bye.  Nick and Rita I’m not shocked at.  Rita doesn’t even have a huge song here in our country, and Nick only has one song “Jealous” which he did pretty decently.  Jessie did one song “Burning Up” but came back later on in the night to perform “Bang Bang” with Ariana Grande, and Charli XCX came back after her set to do “Fancy” of course.  I just felt that all six of these artists are quite talented and had a good amount of buzz about them that they could’ve given them a little bit more stage time.  Especially Meghan Trainor, who legit rushed through quite possibly the biggest song of this year, “All About That Base”.  I get that they have to stay on schedule but I just thought it was a bit unfair to give them that little amount of time when they are all talented in their own right.

Calvin Harris-

You have had massive hits over the years with some of the biggest names in the business, and you even sing on some of your own songs.  So you got paid last night to stand on stage, press play, and yell at the audience and you weren’t even mixing.  Seriously?  Bye.

Ariana Grande-

Oh lord, where to begin.  First off, I’m begging this girl to stop wearing that stupid ponytail as she consistently looks like a 6th grader.  Want to be taken seriously?  Dress a little bit older than you have been.  Her shout out to her awful brother Frankie was another thing.  Zero connection with her audience, she giggled about tripping during her one part, and just seems very unprofessional.  Also, it seemed as if The Weeknd was supposed to perform with her on “Love Me Harder” but conspicuously wasn’t there.   I attest it to the fact that she wanted all the stage time, which further proves her diva like behavior that she has been accused of over the past year.  There is a huge difference between what she and Taylor is putting out there.  Just saying.

Iggy Azalea-

Sort of surprised that she was the second to last to perform over people I deem to be bigger and more talented than her.  Ugh.  What kills me is that she needs to figure out if she wants to be a pop artist or stay strictly rap, because her performance last night lingered both ways.  She was super bubbly and pop on “Fancy” then went the other direction on one of her better songs “Work”.  I can’t believe she didn’t censor the “Blow Job” line in that song, but to each his own.  I just read novelty all over her and hope that she figures out a game plan because the amount of respect she has in the industry as a whole is quite low for someone who had such highs this year.

Go to z100’s site for more information.

 

 

Filed Under: ENTERTAINMENT, MUSIC Tagged With: 5 seconds of summer, 5sos, all about that base, annie, ansel elgort, ariana grande, Calvin Harris, charli xcx, gwen stefani, iggy azalea, iheartradio, jamie foxx, jessie j, madison square garden, Maroon 5, maroon5, meghan trainor, nick jonas, nicki minaj, penn station, pharrell, quvenzhane wallis, rita ora, Ryan Seacrest, sam smith, shawn mendes, Taylor Swift, z100, z100 jingle ball

Grammy Predictions 2015- Album Of The Year

by Ryan Shea

Manhattan Digest, Grammy, Beyonce

 

When it comes to the music industry, the Grammy Awards still remain the Gold Medal when it comes to award achievement  for artists and musicians alike.  Last year’s saw newcomers like Macklemore & Ryan Lewis and Lorde take the top spots in the New Artist and Song of the Year Category, whereas perennial EDM megastars Daft Punk shocked many a music fans by winning the coveted Album Of The Year Grammy with “Random Access Memories”.  Now with another year in music about to close, and the Grammy Nominations out in less than a month, Manhattan Digest digest’s what will be nominated and who might be left in the dust in a year that was less than stellar to say the least.  With no major artists with the exception of Coldplay, Beyonce, Jason Aldean and Eminem releasing albums this year, the music industry was run by throwaway pop tracks and one hit wonders in the making (Sorry Meghan Trainor).  That being said, there were some stellar exceptions that I hope that Grammy’s notice and crown this year- some who are overdue, some who are new, and some who have been here before and deserve it again.  Today, we look at the potential noms for Album Of The Year.

Beyonce, Manhattan Digest
Credit to: HipHopDX

Album Of The Year at the Grammy’s can be tricky.  Sometimes they get it right (Mumford & Sons, Daft Punk, Adele) and sometimes we don’t know where they are coming from (Steely Dan, Herbie Hancock).  Sometimes, they miss the ball completely, like last year when Justin Timberlake didn’t even get nominated in a category that many people thought he would’ve won.  This year, the inevitable nominee and winner is simple- Beyonce.  Beyonce has been in this category before, losing a couple of years ago to Taylor Swift’s “Fearless” over her insanely good effort “I Am… Sasha Fierce”.  However, with her self titled debut this year, she really doesn’t have any competition as this album was one of the biggest music stories of the year.  With no one knowing it was coming out, she quietly released this on a cold December night and drove the album to platinum status in less than two weeks, and outselling her previous effort “4” shortly after.  The album spawned several huge singles (some will be discussed later), has insatiable duets with artists like Drake, Frank Ocean and her hubby Jay-Z and received generally positive feedback from fans and critics alike.  No doubt the winner in my mind.

Frozen Soundtrack, Frozen, Manhattan Digest
Credit to: Wikipedia

Others who could be huge contenders?  Obviously, The “Frozen” Soundtrack for many reasons.  Oscar winning, highest selling, songs parents and like minded people alike can’t get out of your head equal Grammy goodness.  This is the first soundtrack in several years though that really can be a strong contender in the main categories so be on the lookout for this to be nominated several times throughout the night.

Eminem, Manhattan Digest
Credit to: Pretty Much Amazing

Hip-Hop this year wasn’t exactly stellar whatsoever.  Last year had so many memorable people come out of the wood works with fantastic first efforts (Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Kendrick Lamar) and icons who kept churning out some amazing tracks (Jay-Z, Kanye West).  The sad fact that the biggest star in hip hop this year may have been Iggy Azalea says a lot about that industry and hopefully there will be some recharge in 2015.  That being said, Eminem should no doubt be the 3rd nominee in this category with “The Marshall Mathers LP 2”.  As someone who grew up when Eminem was really at his peek in so many different ways, I find it fantastic that 15 years after we first heard “The Real Slim Shady” he is still incredibly relevant and hip with a younger crowd that is just discovering what an epic rapper and legend he is.  Whereas he had a better shot of winning this award years ago with “The Eminem Show” and the first Marshall Mathers LP” it would be a surprise if he was left out in this category.

Sam Smith, Manhattan Digest
Credit to: Wikipedia

The other two could be difficult to choose.  One new artist who has gained quite a huge following this year is Sam Smith, who broke through with his gold selling “In The Lonely Hour”.  A powerhouse on his own, Sam blasted through the charts with his first single “Stay With Me” as well as working with other fantastic artists such as Disclosure (“Latch”) and one of my favorite artists and tracks of the year, “Lalala” by Naughty Boy.  He is this year’s big British import, sort of the male Adele when it comes to the impact that he has had on the industry.  His music style is very eclectic, with tinges of pop, R&B and adult contemporary all mixed in one.  He’s a surefire lock for Best New Artist without a shadow of a doubt, however don’t be surprised if he is able to seep his way into the pivotal Album Of The Year category at the Grammy’s.

Coldplay, Manhattan Digest
Credit to: Wikipedia

Jack White’s “Lazaretto” seems poised to be the fifth and final nominee in this category.  Jack, mainly known for his epic band “The White Stripes” is no stranger to this category having being nominated two years ago for his effort “Blunderbuss”.  The 9 time Grammy Award winner’s Rock efforts paid off for him tend fold this past year, with “Lazaretto” receiving stellar reviews from the top publications and debuting at #1 on the Billboard 200 Chart.  If Jack doesn’t get the lock for Album Of The Year don’t be surprised if Coldplay takes the fifth spot for “Ghost Stories“, which is one of the highest selling albums of this past year.  the 7 time Grammy Award winners lit up the charts this year with “Sky Full Of Stars” amongst other hits, and have been Grammy favorites in the past with “Clocks” winning Record Of The Year over ten years ago.  Don’t expect Coldplay to take this award but expect multiple nominations for both “Stars” and “Ghost Stories” for sure.

Who do you think will be nominated Check out the Grammy official website for more info.

Filed Under: ENTERTAINMENT, MUSIC Tagged With: 2015 grammy nominations, adele, coldplay, daft punk, disclosure, eminem, grammy, grammy nominations, iggy azalea, Jack White, Jason Aldean, jay-z, kanye west, kendrick lamar, lazaretto, luke bryan, macklemore, meghan trainor, naughty boy, ryan lewis, sam smith

2014 MTV Video Music Awards- Who Will Win

by Ryan Shea

MTV, Beyonce, Manhattan Digest

As sad as it is for me to say this, I was not invited to the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards that are happening tonight in Inglewood, California.  I repped Manhattan Digest to the fullest at last year’s show when they were held at Brooklyn’s very own Barclay Center, and gave us one of the most epic performances in VMA history- Miley Cyrus.  If you don’t know what happened then you have been living under a rock for the past year.  Needless to say, this year’s VMA’s is sure to be unpredictable and insane as it usually is.  The lineup of performances look sick, with the opening being pop divas Jessie J, Arianna Grande and hip-hop songstress Nicki Minaj doing their current top 10 single “Bang Bang”.  Other noteworthy performances of the night should be Taylor Swift, who will be performing her new hit “Shake It Off” from the much anticipated new album “1989” due out October 27th.  And of course, the lady of the night will be eight time nominee and already multiple VMA award winner Beyonce, who will be receiving the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award later in the evening.  This award has been bestowed on several legends in the industry, from Madonna, Janet Jackson, The Rolling Stones and most recently pop pioneers Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears.  Should be a performance of epic madness and one that I cannot wait to see.

So let’s breakdown the other thing that people are there to see- who will win each category at the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards.  This year’s pack is stacked with some of the biggest artists and songs of the year, and is making it tough for this journalist to choose who will win and who should win.  It is still funny to me that MTV broadcasts something like this when I believe I was wearing JNCO Jeans the last time they actually aired a block of music videos, but it is the most highly anticipated award show of the season, so I can see why they keep it going each year.  Let’s breakdown each category, starting with the “Artist To Watch, Presented by Taco Bell”.

Artist to Watch, Presented By Taco Bell

5 Seconds Of Summer- “She Looks So Perfect”

Fifth Harmony- “Miss Moving On”

Sam Smith- “Stay With Me”

Schoolboy Q- “Man Of The Year”

Charli XCX- “Boom Clap”

Who Will Win- 5 Seconds Of Summer, Who Should Win- Sam Smith

5 Seconds Of Summer really came out of nowhere and has won the hearts of millions of adoring teens, who are the ones voting on this particular category for the most part.  They are One Direction with talent, drums and guitar for the most part, so I sure as heck see them easily winning this won as it is a fan based vote.  Fifth Harmony could’ve been a heavy contender for this if 5SOS wasn’t in it, but they won’t win this one.  Schoolboy Q is amazing, as well as Charli XCX’s song from “The fault In Our Stars” but not enough to garner this.  If Sam Smith doesn’t win this at the VMA’s, he sure as hell will win at the 2015 Grammys and several other prestigious awards.  His solo work this year on “Stay With Me” on top of his brilliant performances with other artists such as Disclosure and Naughty Boy prove what a threat this guy is to the industry, and I hope he gets some love on VMA night.

Best Rock Video-

Lorde- “Royals”

Linkin Park- “Until I’m Gone”

Imagine Dragons- “Demons”

Black Keys- “Fever”

Arctic Monkeys- “Do I Wanna Know?”

Who Will Win- Imagine Dragons.  Who Should Win- Black Keys.

Imagine Dragons have had a pretty awesome two years, and this was only the 2nd song released off of their amazing debut album.  “Royals” is not a rock song, so I don’t get why it is in this category.  Lorde has a better shot in other categories than this one, and sadly I don’t think Arctic Monkeys have a shot in this category either.  Black Keys should win as “Fever” is an amazing video, but no doubt Imagine Dragons will be the one taking this home tonight.

Best Pop Video-

Arianna Grande Featuring Iggy Azealea- “Problem”

Iggy Azalea Featuring Chari XCX- “Fancy”

Avicii Featuring Aloe Blacc- “Wake Me Up”

Jason DeRulo Featuring 2Chainz- “Talk Dirty”

Pharrell Williams- “Happy”

Who Will Win- Arianna Grande & Iggy.  Who Should Win- Pharrell.

This really has been the year for Arianna and Iggy, however I think because Arianna has a bigger tween and teen fanbase she should lock this one up.  “Wake Me Up” should be more in the clubland award than this one, and “Talk Dirty” just seems too urban for this as well, as is “Fancy”.  “Happy” is a freaking brilliant video that screams pop with a R&B flare, and should be the one to win in this.  But expect pop ingenue Arianna Grande to be leaving with not just one but a couple of VMA night.

Best Female Video-

Lorde- “Royals”

Beyonce- “Partition”

Arianna Grande Featuring Iggy Azalea- “Problem”

Iggy Azalea Featuring Charli XCX- “Fancy”

Katy Perry Featuring Juicy J- “Dark Horse”

Who Will Win- “Royals”.  Who Should Win- “Dark Horse/Partition”

I think “Royals”, even though it is quite simple, kept my focus a lot more than the colorful pops that Iggy and Arianne presented in each of their videos, and the song is better than both so based off that it will and maybe should win.  I loved the video for “Dark Horse” as Katy keeps bringing us really unique and out there videos that she has done so well over the years.  “Partition” isn’t the best video from the Beyonce album, but the look and feel of it should really make her a good contender for this category tonight.

Best Male Video-

Ed Sheeran Featuring Pharrell Williams- “Sing”

Sam Smith- “Stay With Me”

John Legend- “All Of Me”

Eminem Featuring Rihanna- “Monster”

Pharrell Williams- “Happy”

Who Will Win- Ed Sheeran.  Who Should Win- All of them (Minus John Legend).

This is quite possibly the strongest category of the bunch this year, as all videos and songs are incredible in their own unique ways.  John’s song is amazing and is this generation’s new wedding song, however the video was basic and more of wedding video than an actual music video.  I happen to love Ed Sheeran’s vocals and video for “Sing” so that gets my vote easily.  I wouldn’t mind multiple VMA winner Eminem winning this for old times sake, however I think this is Ed’s to lose.

Best Hip-Hop Video-

Childish Gambino- “3005”

Drake Featuring Majid Jordan- “Hold On (We’re Going Home)”

Eminem- “Berserk”

Kanye West- “Black Skinhead”

Wiz Khalifa- “We Dem Boyz”

Who Will Win- Drake.  Who should win-  All of them.

Another really amazing category.  I have to say Drake will win just based off of how popular the video and song was, however Eminem might be knocking at Drake’s door for this so don’t be surprised if he pulls an upset.  Kanye’s video is one of his best ever with his own social message that makes this video and song one of the standouts off of his last album.  Wiz hasn’t really had the biggest success since “Black & Yellow”  however “We Dem Boyz” is a great video and keeps his street hustle going in the hip-hop game.  Childish Gambino deserves a lot more success than then man is given, and I am super pumped the “3005” got the nod this year.

Video Of The Year-

Sia- “Chandelier”

Pharrell Williams- “Happy”

Miley Cyrus- “Wrecking Ball”

Beyonce Featuring Jay-Z- “Drunk In Love”

Iggy Azalea Featuring Charli XCX- “Fancy”

Who Will Win- Miley or Beyonce.  Who should win- SIA!!!!!!!!!!!!!

“Chandelier” is such an AMAZING song and video that I really just want to see Sia make a public appearance and win this.  She’s like the female Daft Punk, you really never see her so I think it would make an AWESOME VMA moment if she won.  I don’t get why Iggy is in this, the video is great but not at this level, she’s too new.  As much as “Wrecking Ball” is a great video it is more 2013 than 2014, so I don’t think it deserves to win this.  “Happy” is amazing, but I fear Pharrell may be shut out due to the younger demographic.  Seeing as this is Beyonce’s night, expect her to win her second Video Of The Year trophy (done once before for “Single Ladies” back in 2009).  But this is quite the unpredictable category, so you never know.

Who do YOU think will win tonight?  Comment here and for a full list of nominees check out the official website for more info.

 

 

Filed Under: ENTERTAINMENT, MUSIC, TELEVISION, uncategorized Tagged With: 2014 mtv video music awards, 2chainz, 5 seconds of summer, arctic monkeys, arianna grande, Beyonce, black keys, boom clap, britney spears, Chandelier, chari xcx, childish gambino, drake, Ed Sheeran, eminem, fifth harmony, happy, iggy azalea, imagine dragons, janet jackson, jason derulo, jay-z, john legend, justin timberlake, Katy Perry, linkin park, lorde, madonna, michael jackson, miley cyrus, pharell williams, pharrell, Rihanna, sam smith, schoolboy q, Sia, stay with me, Taylor Swift, video music award, video music awards, vma, VMA's, Wiz Khalifa

Get To Know Jazz Musician MRF- The MD Interview

by Ryan Shea

MRF, Manhattan Digest
MRF. Eric Hussey, Manhattan Digest
Credit to: Eric Hussey

 

Sometimes in the most unconventional of settings you will meet some really great people and the further you get to know them and their passion makes you understand just how awesome they truly are. This can be said of jazz musician Mike Flanagan, who goes under the stage name MRF. I conveniently met him through some mutual friends at this year’s Bear Week in Provincetown, Massachusetts. On top of being a brutally handsome, charismatic and an all around great guy, I got to know him a little deeper and found out what a successful artist he has become in the jazz world.

In a short couple of years, MRF has accomplished things that many artists wouldn’t even dream about doing. He has independently released two albums, the most recent called “Mob Music”, which both have had a considerable amount of success since each of their inceptions. In a short twenty hour time frame, “Mob Music” became the highest-selling jazz album in the country on iTunes, sharing in the same company as jazz legends Miles Davis and Harry Connick Jr. Some of the singles off of that album, including “Trying” have remained in massive rotations on stations in and outside the US from Germany to Spain to name a few. On top of all of this, MRF has been able to work throughout the world with Grammy winners and nominees Esperanza Spaulding, Issa Pointer of The Pointer Sisters and Surefire Music Group. The Berklee College Of Music Graduate has also received rave reviews for his LGBT anthem “Be Strong (LGBT Youth)” as it was selected for the Flag Raising Anthem for Boston Pride last year. Quite a lot of accomplishments for a guy in such a short period of time.

The day before his big performance at Bear Week, I sat down with MRF to discuss his meteoric rise in the music industry, what and who inspires him, and what his music has meant to his fans and in particular the LGBT youth. Take a look.

So tell me how you got started in the music industry.

I graduated from the Berklee College of Music, and I wasn’t really sure which direction musically I wanted to go in. I had been playing a lot of jazz in and out of school, but I came out in my last year and it changed gears with what I was doing. I started writing my own stuff and collaborated with a singer who lives in New York, which is ultimately how my first album “Elevator Music” came to be. Once I started recording that, I ended up developing my own sound and own approach and knew exactly the direction I wanted to go in.

Jazz is such a unique part of the industry right now, so who would you say are your biggest inspirations?

I would say my number ones are D’Angelo and Lauryn Hill. That is the kind of stuff that I grew up on and it’s in me. Also, Meshell Ndegeocello is a good example. There are a whole bunch of jazz musicians and even country artists that I draw inspiration from in terms of their approach as well.

Many of my readers are unfamiliar with your work, so how would you describe your sound to them?

Its kind of a hybrid of R&B and Jazz. It also has a pop aesthetic to it as well because of the lyrics and forms of the songs. The music leaves a lot of room for my vocalists to interpret it in their own way, and for myself to stretch out on my instruments (saxophone, piano, etc) as well. The objective of my sophomore album, Mob Music, was to capture and document the magic of what we do on stage.

You are here enjoying Provincetown’s Bear Week, just as I am.  Is this your first Bear Week?

This is my seventh actually!

Oh wow!  This is my first time experiencing Bear Week in all of its glory, what would you say to convince people who are consistently on the fence about going to actually get them to go?

I really think it’s most important to figure out what Provincetown means to you, because it has so much to offer. It’s actually a great music town, and you can meet incredible people here. You can definitely go outside of the routine bear events that are going on and find something unique and different.  So I would definitely recommend coming to “Bear Week” as there is plenty to love about the experience.

You have a song called “Be Strong (LGBT Youth)” which is a very empowering LGBT anthem.  There isn’t a lot out there now that are like that, so tell me about the processing in recording this amazing song.

In 2010, when Asher Brown took his own life, and the epidemic of LGBT youth suicides made the media around that time, it made me insane. I started thinking about the work I was doing in my classroom by myself and how there are far too many kids without someone to turn to. Far too many kids that do not have an adult telling them that they are normal, and beautiful, and that they should love who they are. I felt I had to create something through music that could hopefully and potentially reach far beyond the classroom of students I was helping in my small corner of Boston. Originally, I wanted to name the song ‘Asher Brown’ but I was unsuccessful in getting in touch with his family to assure that was okay. So, “Be Strong”it was. That’s where the inspiration of the song came about.

Being an out musician yourself, do you find it to be a hindrance or a blessing to be so in the music industry?

I think everyone needs to come out. I hope everyone does. Sam Smith for example, love him. He is an incredible artist. He is in a position now where he can make a change, not saying he has to or wants to. He got rave reviews recently for his rendition of Whitney Houston’s “How Will I Know” but one thing that stood out to me was that he changed the pronoun“he”to “you”and instead of “there’s a boy I know”he says, “oh it’s you I know”to make the song entirely gender-neutral. I think most people didn’t think about that, however when I was doing my first album, I made a lot of my music gender-neutral in fear that there would backlash. It felt like I was regressing after working so hard to be who I am. I realized how important it was that I not do that on Mob Music. So, thought it may seem small, it’s a big step that fosters much needed change.

MRF, Manhattan Digest
Credit to: Steve Osemwenkhae

I love Joan Osbourne’s “What If God Was One Of Us”, so why did you choose to remake that on your latest album, “Mob Music”?

I started working with Lisa, Justin and Sheree in Boston, shortly after my first album was released. The first was singer Lisa Bello. Our styles have so much chemistry and when we come together, it really makes some incredible magic. We were raised similarly, share influences, and the way we approach music is similar as well. We started performing weekly in Boston at a place called “Club Cafe”every Thursday night. They were like, “What do you want to call the night?” and I was like, “Well, we are both Italian, so let’s call it Mob Music”. We loved it, and Mob Music just grew and grew. After our first month, singer Justin Waithe started coming on Thursdays and harmonized with Lisa. Then Sheree Dunwell filled in for Lisa while she was in LA and we she got back, the whole package of “Mob Music” was truly formed.

We would do popular songs and treat them like jazz standards, elevating them to the point where we took the audience on a journey every week! One of the songs we did was “One Of Us”and I knew that had to be the one cover on the ‘Mob Music’album.

On the “Mob Music” album, my favorite track is one called “This Love”.  What is your favorite on this album?

I love that song, but I would say that my favorite is “Trying”. “Trying” is the smooth jazz radio single on the record, and it is the most personal for me. I wrote that about a guy I was with, and that relationship ended right before I went into the studio to finish this record. We had two singles done at that point, and were heading in to track the rest of it. “Trying” was written right as that relationship was ending, and to this day remains my favorite.

OK, let’s do some fun questions so that my readers can see a different side of you.  If you had a dream concert, with two artists (dead or alive) that would never be on the same bill for ONE night only, who would it be?

The two on the same bill. Hmmm. I’m going to say D’Angelo and The Dixie Chicks. I’m a huge Dixie Chicks fan. I saw both live within a year’s time, and both were incredible. D’Angelo’s show had such an energy to. Knowing his entire catalog, I was dancing my ass off the entire time. When I saw The Dixie Chicks, my friends and I were lucky enough to stand right under Natalie Maines, and she was winking and smiling at us the whole time. Just great experiences for both.

Got it!  So you are stuck on an island with a CD player but it only has one song in it.  What do you want that song to be?

“Who Knew” by P!nk. It is my favorite song of all time. Everything about it, from her voice to the lyrics to the melody. The song is somewhat ambiguous, and even though it is a song about her losing a friend to an overdose I believe, it’s able to be interpreted in a lot of different ways. After my first relationship ended, I would come down here to Ptown and it was playing everywhere. So the song itself, my love for her, and the connection to PTown and gay life sort of culminates in why this truly is my favorite song.

You go to a 90’s dance party.  Which phase do you hope they play?

I’ll pick the Aaliyah, Brandy, Monica phase. I want them, I want Ginuwine, Jagged Edge, Toni Braxton, etc. Love 90’s R&B.

What do you have going on for the future?

So, I already have a third album planned. I want to continue to make music with the group I have right now. I’m hoping to go back into the studio in September in Orleans here in Mass. It will be similar to the second album however this one will be more saxophone driven. A challenge for me is the human voice. It’s something I love on others but hate my own. I’ve heard Me’Shell and Lenny Kravitz are like that too. I am tempted to get over that fear I guess and use it and see if I can come up with something that I am okay with releasing. I don’t know if it will be on this album, but sometime in the future it is something I definitely want to accomplish.

Official Site

iTunes

Facebook

 

 

Filed Under: ENTERTAINMENT, LGBT, MUSIC Tagged With: bear week, boston, frank sinatra, grammy, harry connick jr, joan osbourne, los angeles, mike flanagan, miles davis, mob music, mrf, provincetown, sam smith, what if god was one of us

Primary Sidebar

Navigation

  • HOME
  • OPINION
    • REVIEWS
  • BUSINESS
  • LGBT
  • ENTERTAINMENT
    • ARTS
    • MOVIES
    • MUSIC
    • TELEVISION
    • THEATRE
  • LIFESTYLE
    • TRAVEL
    • FASHION
    • HEALTH
    • FOODIE
    • STYLE
  • POLITICS
  • SCIENCE
  • SPORTS
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • U.S.
    • NEW YORK

Footer

  • ADVERTISE
  • TERMS OF SERVICE
  • CAREERS
  • ENTERTAINMENT
  • Home
  • Contact
  • Legal

Copyright © 2023 · ManhattanDigest.com is run by Fun & Joy, LLC an Ohio company · Log in

 

Loading Comments...