The Underground Artistry: 01.18

Tuesday, January 30

{ YOU READ IT HERE FIRST } Coach Snoop: New Netflix Exclusive Begins 2/02/18

Snoop...the D-O-double G...the coolest west coast hip-hop artist to ever hit the scene. Well, in this new documentary that airs on February 2nd on Netflix, you'll get to see a different side to the nationally acclaimed & accomplished rapper. Adding to his repertoire of greatness, he's mentoring young athletes to allow them an opportunity to reach their goals despite the odds against them.

Coach Snoop New Netflix Exclusive You Read It Here First

Coach Snoop: New Netflix Exclusive Begins 2/02/2018

Hailing from Long Beach, born Cordozar Calvin Broadus, Jr. on October 20th, 1971, Snoop emerged under Dr. Dre in the early 90s. With infamous platinum selling albums such as "The Doggfather" & "Doggystyle", he quickly became a household favorite in the world of hip-hop. He was, along with artists like Dre, Biggie, 2Pac-- among a vast majority of others-- the face of the hip-hop industry. His music captivated hip-hop heads and the like ridiculously fast as his songs topped charts and won him numerous accolades, including --but certainly not limited to-- Best Video award for "Drop it like it's Hot" (featuring Pharell) and more Grammy nominations than I have space to write about. His music was --and still is-- on everyone's hip-hop playlists. Undoubtedly a legend that paved the way for many of today's artists, including --but not only, the ever so talented Kendrick Lamar, whom featured Snoop on his album To Pimp a Butterfly.

Coach Snoop New Netflix Exclusive begins 2/02/18

Coach Snoop airs February 2nd!

Moving into a new era and expanding on a new endeavor, Snoop moves from your stereos to your television sets this February as a mentor & football coach for at-risk youth athletes.

Add Snoop being a Steelers fan and Snoop's business partner being a Pamona, California native, and it gives a nice ring to the name of the team: the Pamona Steelers.

Drawing upon his own childhood struggles, he is striving to make a difference in the lives of these kids. The daily struggles of some of these athletes range from deceased parents (one or both), incarcerated fathers (or mothers), recent gang activity, and more.

Just to touch on some of the success Snoop has had as a youth football coach for going on 15 years, I cannot fail to mention the fact that one of Snoop's former players currently plays for the Denver Broncos --Ronnie Hillman-- and went on to assist his team in winning the Super Bowl in February 2016. Not to mention, his own son, Cordell Broadus, actually plays for UCLA.

A Boss on the field displaying leadership

Going from a cheering parent in the bleachers & selling out multiple football stadiums, to coaching on the sidelines, Snoop has definitely made an impact on and off the field. This show is going to touch all the heart strings. And I am so here for this. I love seeing people with statuses such as his make a difference and give back. There is nothing more genuine. And Snoop has always given us the real. So tune in THIS FRIDAY to the exclusive premiere of Coach Snoop on Netflix and then come back and drop your comments and thoughts below. I'd love to hear what you think about the show. Don't be the only one not watching. You can watch the trailer for the series below. Want to learn more? Follow the links to his social media accounts to stay updated on this show & more.

FOLLOW SNOOP DOGG

Facebook~*~*~*~Twitter

As always, thank you for reading. I hope you enjoyed the content. You're awesome. Be sure to share. Spread the word. Follow the blog for more hot topics & hot artists. You can click on the tabs under the title of the blog to be directed to my Facebook pages. Don't forget to leave your comments below; let me know what you think.

Until next time...

xoxo,

Rachel Marie

*Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use. No copyright infringement intended. ALL RIGHTS BELONG TO THEIR RESPECTIVE OWNERS*

Saturday, January 20

{ YOU NEED TO KNOW ARTIST } H.E.R. @HERMusicx

Who is H.E.R.?

Despite how grammatically incorrect that sounds, if you were like me when first hearing this artist, you did not know who it was. You knew you liked the songs. You knew you were addicted to her voice. You knew you couldn't live without one or all of her songs on a playlist. You knew you had to have her album. You knew you wanted to hear more. You knew all of that. Except her name.

She literally took over the world with her first self-titled EPs, H.E.R.: Vol 1 and now she's stealing new hearts and making old fans fall in love all over again with H.E.R. Vol 2: The B Sides. Named in Forbes list of 30 Under 30: Class of 2018 & named "Artist to Watch" from Pandora, she definitely is leaving her mark on the industry...and the world. Her tours are sold out. Her singles are being downloaded at alarming rates. Her EPs are outselling some of the biggest albums of the year. Not to mention, there's a lot of people who still do not know H.E.R. name.

Ready to learn about the artist behind the moniker? Gabi Wilson is the name behind the silhouette you see on her covers. There was speculation after a few weeks. The vocals were similar, the vibes were remembered, sooner or later true fans were bound to put one with the other and find out who this mysteriously talented beauty was and how to let the world know just whom they were listening to.
H.E.R.'s debut project bolted to the No. 1 spot on the iTunes R&B chart. Not to mention, it's been streamed more than 12 million times on Soundcloud. Spotify? Up to 1.6 million MONTHLY listeners. All this without any real promotion of her project or pushing it to radio.

In earlier interviews, the woman behind the acronym said that music isn't listened to "for what it is" anymore and people are always so worried about who the artist is, what they're doing, what they're wearing, who they're friends with, etc...she said she just wants to let people judge the music for what it is without having to deal with the other part of the industry, which is the ever so annoying paparazzi wanting to record and photograph your every move. Nonetheless, she covers her face in photos to keep the mystery going & allows people who listen to H.E.R. to feel the emotions behind the music.

With her velvety tones, dynamic harmonies, soul snatching lyrics, and heart stealing melodies, this artist--whether you know her real name or not--will be the force that awakens real R&B and brings back the music we used to love.

Her latest: "My Song" off Vol. 2: The B Sides, released January the 2nd, is climbing the R&B charts and ever so gracefully showcasing her beloved talent. {audio video below}

Follow H.E.R. by visiting the Links Below:

You can purchase your copy of the album {both old & new} as well as her latest single by following the links below:

iTunes: H.E.R. Vol 1 :Amazon

iTunes: H.E.R. Vol 2: The B Sides :Amazon

iTunes: My Song {the single} :Amazon

Well, as usual I appreciate you visiting the blog and reading the content. I hope you enjoyed this week's You Need To Know Artist. Leave your comments below to let me know what you think about the artist and the music.

And...as you know:

Enjoy the music?
Support the artist.

Until next time....

xoxo,
Rachel Marie
The Underground Artistry

Find me on FB here and Twitter here! Be sure to visit & leave a like on The Underground Artistry's FB page here.

*Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use. No copyright infringement intended. ALL RIGHTS BELONG TO THEIR RESPECTIVE OWNERS*

Tuesday, January 9

{ YOU NEED TO KNOW ARTIST } @halsey

Have you ever came across an artist that you just cannot stop listening to?

I'm literally ADDICTED to this week's YOU NEED TO KNOW ARTIST, Halsey. She is one of those artists. Her songs are electrifying. Her lyrics seep into your soul and drag you kicking & screaming to her vantage points only to find out when you get there, you don't want to leave.

She makes you feel what she's feeling when she sings. A pop sensation, she's featured on numerous artist's tracks, such as "Closer" with The Chainsmokers, "Him & I" with G-Eazy, "The Feeling" with Justin Bieber & more. In 2015 she was named "Rising Star" by Billboard; in 2016, she received a nomination for Billboard's Women In Music alongside other female artists like Shania Twain & others.

Thus, Halsey is definitely leaving a mark where ever she lends her vocals and whenever she releases a single or an album.

Her music is literally so aesthetic it's almost surreal. I honestly do not know how I didn't know about her until now...I'm like, what? 2 years behind?

Well...now that I know...YOU NEED TO KNOW!!

So...here's some quick facts about this week's featured artist:

Her birthday is September 29th. She's a Libra by the way...for the zodiac followers. She performed live for the first time at The Wiltern in Los Angeles. She was born in New Jersey; and she says she relates her stage name back to a street name in Brooklyn, which is actually an anagram for her REAL name: Ashley.

And at 23 years old, she's definitely taking the music scene by storm.

If you placed Alanis Morissette, Fiona Apple, ZZ Ward, & Rihanna in a blender... you'd get Halsey.

That's just my recipe for this beyond amazing artist...you can let me know yours in the comments.

My favorite song thus far...and that's hard because I actually like her entire album-- Hopeless Fountain Kingdom...the album is just beautiful. Yet, in choosing, I'd pick "Bad at Love" and "Now or Never" off of this album. Definitely a tie for my fave from that album.

Now, her first album-- Badlands...I'd have to say "Castle"--which is also on the soundtrack for The Hunstman: Winter's War. Tied with "Gasoline" for my favorites.

If you'd like to see her perform this year, she's destined to be performing at this year's Summerfest on June 29th at 7:30PM!

You can get your tickets here from Ticket Master starting NEXT FRIDAY on January 19th!

In addition, you can also pick up BOTH of these albums & follow her on ALL of her social platforms below. And--as always--let me know in the comments what you think about this week's YOU NEED TO KNOW ARTIST!

FOLLOW HALSEY:
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
YouTube
SoundCloud

And you can subscribe to her mailing list HERE.

And if you like her music, then support her...you can purchase her latest album, Hopeless Fountain Kingdom from iTunes HERE --if you'd prefer Amazon, you can pick it up HERE.

If you like Badlands, you can pick that album up on iTunes HERE --or on Amazon, HERE.

And those lead you to the DELUXE version of each album.

Enjoy the music?
Support the artist.

In conclusion, Halsey is destined for bigger & better. There's no doubt in my mind she will be here when our kids are grown & when their kids fall in love with certain artists, Halsey will be one of those artists. Her music transcends the boundaries set forth by the labels. And her music, in essence, will transcend time.

I hope you enjoyed the content. Please leave a comment to let me know...do you like this week's choice? Did you know of her before now? What's your favorite Halsey song? Let me know below. Don't forget to go FOLLOW the artist on her social platforms & pick up either/or --or BOTH-- of the albums featured in today's post.

I'm going to leave you with the video for this week's YOU NEED TO KNOW ARTIST's latest single "Bad At Love". Enjoy.

#ThankMeLater

As usual, if you would like to know more about the writer behind the blog...you can visit my Facebook page HERE and while you're surfing Facebook, head over to The Underground Artistry--the page that supports the blog-- and leave a like & a review of my work.

Until next time...

xoxo,
Rachel Marie
The Underground Artistry
Another site...not just another blog.

*Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use. No copyright infringement intended. ALL RIGHTS BELONG TO THEIR RESPECTIVE OWNERS*

Monday, January 1

{ YOU NEED TO KNOW ARTIST } @queennaija_

Let me start off by saying HAPPY NEW YEAR everyone!! I hope you all had a great eve & enjoyed your holiday breaks.

Okay, I'm just going to jump right into this post with the first YOU NEED TO KNOW ARTIST of 2018: the Michigan native, Queen Naija.

Appearing on the eighth season of American Idol, she made it to the Hollywood round but did not make the cut. Nonetheless, she used that platform to catapult her success on social media and now has over a million followers on Instagram, over 930k on YouTube, 8k on Twitter, and 5k likes and 6k followers on Facebook. I have to say she's definitely on the way to making herself a household name and fan favorite. {click the links herein to follow her platforms}

She just dropped her latest single, "Medicine", on YouTube on New Year's Eve & it is definitely one to relate to if you've ever been the one being taken for a fool in a relationship, been cheated on, etc. This is one of those songs.

A lot of her followers know her from her channel with her significant other, Chris Sails, whom she has a son with. Conveniently titled "Chris & Queen", this song was quickly linked to his infidelities, but I will not be speaking on this song in reference to that topic, because in all honesty I don't know. I just know that I like her new track and I wanted to share it with each of YOU!

She also has covers of numerous songs on her YouTube channel where she showcases her love and talent of singing. Songs such as "Selfish" by PnB Rock {video below}, "Rise Up" by Andra Day and more.

She also has videos where she is featured on other YouTuber's covers of songs, such as the Ar'mon & Trey's mashup of some of the hottest R&B songs {video below}. Awesome singers on their own & rising stars in their own right, but she made this mashup better than if she wouldn't have been featured on it; that's just my opinion, however.

In conclusion, Queen Naija is definitely an artist to watch. I cannot wait to see the day when she gets the acknowledgement she deserves. Her voice is so amazing. I can listen to her sing all day.

Unfortunately, her song, "Medicine" is not available for purchase just yet but I will update this post as soon as it is & you can pick it up.

As always, I hope you enjoyed this post. You can follow her channels by clicking on their respective links listed throughout this post. What do you think about her new song? Leave a comment below to let me know what you think & if you agree/disagree/like/don't like/etc...be sure to #Share #Subscribe #Follow #plus1 #PinIt #TweetIt #FacebookIt

Make sure you check out & like & follow #TheUndergroundArtistry on Facebook and #RachelMarieTheWriter on Facebook. Stay tuned to a new You Need To Know Artist by the end of the week and if you have any suggestions, ↓↓↓ drop your comments below!

"Poetically crafted PR + the underground's hottest artists = a blog worth reading"

Let's converse.

xoxo,
Rachel Marie
The Underground Artistry

*Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use. No copyright infringement intended. ALL RIGHTS BELONG TO THEIR RESPECTIVE OWNERS*

TOP 50 UNDERGROUND ARTISTS & PRODUCERS OF 2017

Out with the old...{still listening to them though!!}...in with the new!!

Before I get into the TOP 50 Underground --and highly underrated-- Artists of 2017...HAPPY NEW YEAR....

I hope all of you had an awesome holiday & your new year is beyond amazing. I hope all your goals are accomplished and your resolutions are achieved. I hope each of you continue to be great throughout all of 2018! Tell me what some of your goals for the new year are in the comments. What resolutions are you setting and hoping to achieve this year? Let me know below.

Alright, let's kick this off!

These are some of the hottest artists that I've come across in 2017. Some you may know, some you may not. This Top 50 is full of exemplary artists that have made their way onto several of my mixes and some have become playlist permanents: those songs that go on EVERY playlist...different genres & different styles, this list should keep you busy for a while.

The first TOP 40 are actual artists...the last 10 are producers...the magicians behind the music...I wanted to give credit where credit is due & producers are artists too! Click their names to be directed to their #Twitter, #YouTube or #SoundCloud accounts so you can follow & listen to more of these awesome artists & producers.

#ThankMeLater

Artists

Producers

This list is extensive, so I'm not posting videos for all these artists & producers. But here is one of my favorites of the TOP 10 Producers:

And though it is a hard ...VERY HARD... choice, here are 2 of my favorites chosen from the TOP 40 Artists:

These are NOT in any specific order & not all are pictured in the post. However, they are some of the illest and most underrated of the year. I've come across so many this list could easily be longer. However, to bring in the new year, here's the ones I've been rocking to almost all year long. Out with the old...in with the new.

I'm looking forward to new artists, new interviews and some new doors being opened. What are you looking forward to in the new year? Drop your comments below to let me know. Let's converse. #TheUndergroundArtistry #NewYear #NewMusic #2017to2018

In addition, I wanted to add...one of the artists I listed is no longer with us ...the lovely Christina Grimmie. A sad moment when she was shot at a benefit concert. I was a fan the day I listened to her cover of Titanium on YouTube. I added her to the list because she was such an amazing artist. And her memory is one to be remembered. #RIP #ChristinaGrimmie #GoneTooSoon

Well....

I hope each of you enjoyed your holidays and this end of 2017 post...and once again, HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!

xoxo,

Rachel Marie

The Underground Artistry

For more on the blogger, you can visit her Facebook or The Underground Artistry page on facebook. (just click the links herein)