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Kele Fleming Releases New 90s-Infused Rock-Remix for “Me Oh My”

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Canadian folk-pop artist Kele Fleming’s song future-fuelling song “Me Oh My” gets a 90s-infused rock-remix glow-up with singer/songwriter and producer Marty Zylstra.

Originally recorded for Fleming’s 2016 album, No Static, the song’s very roots are woven with collaboration; written solely by Fleming’s longtime collaborator and friend, Ron Yamauchi, Fleming was up to the challenge of interpreting her friend’s song as she was navigating big life changes herself at the time.

“I can still hear the intensity of the emotion I was feeling at the time in my vocal performance,” Fleming notes. “I was hopeful and fierce that the shifts and changes I was following in my life would bring me peace and love.”

With the original video for “Me Oh My” described by Fleming as “walking as a life metaphor” and “a love letter to Vancouver,” the current video features a candid video chat with Zylstra talking about the song, the remix, and all things music.

Never devoid of muse or inspiration, Fleming continually produces singles, songs, tracks, albums, and anthems seasoned with her charming blend of authenticity and poetic license. “Me Oh My”s remix is the latest in a string of acclaimed releases from the British Columbia-based artist — including 2016’s No Static, 2010’s World in Reverse, and 2020’s The Song I’ll Write For My Whole Life.

A fearless and gifted songwriter with the ability and agility to encapsulate the environment around her, Fleming’s ethereal twist on traditional roots and folk music sets her uniqueness apart from her peers in the genre. Bridging from her deeply talented vivaciousness as a wordsmith, her undeniable attention to detail in lyrics is matched solely by the music it’s mounted against. Soothing tones, upbeat tempos, changing melodies — Fleming knows no bounds in her prowess to create music that suits the score of the song at hand.

A transplant from Ontario, the indie songstress began her professional songwriting journey fronting the 90s indie outfit “Hazel Motes” of BC before branching off into the solo artist we know today. She has performed on stages, festivals, and performance halls, where she thrives in front of live audiences. Included among her impressive roster of appearances include gigs at Vancouver’s world-renowned venues like The Cultch, The Railway Club, and the Wise Hall.

Gabi Epstein Pays Tribute to Barbra Streisand with New Single, “Don’t Rain On My Parade”

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Hailed “Canada’s Queen of Cabaret” by CTV, award-winning Canadian songstress Gabi Epstein insists “Don’t Rain On My Parade” with the release of her playful new rendition of the Barbra Streisand classic.

Epstein’s version of the whimsical, self-affirming hit from 1968’s Funny Girl begins as less theatrical and more reverential, highlighting the beauty and range of the singing and the poetry of the lyrics. Then, towards the song’s final third where there’s typically a staccato, Epstein’s band adds a little bit of Latin flair, which is then where the vocals take on a fullness and theatricality.

The overall result is fun and cabaret-inspired and guaranteed to tickle even the staunchest Babs fans.

Growing up as a young Jewish Canadian woman and aspiring performer, the Toronto-based multi-talented artist looked to the entertainment icon as a role model to help her find her way. Now, as a seasoned performer in her own right, Epstein’s love of Streisand translates into a forthcoming sophomore album, the aptly titled Gabs Sings Babs — set for release this Spring.

“Growing up without a lot of people who looked or sounded like me, I really turned to Barbra Streisand,” Epstein shares. “Babs is a champion of ‘not fitting a mold’ and using her extraordinary talents to prove naysayers wrong.”

The concept for Gabs Sings Babs began as a cabaret back in 2015; Epstein and her producer/accompanist Mark Camilleri had been playing around with different arrangements of Streisand’s greatest hits, and, being a cabaret artist, Epstein decided to use these arrangements to tell some of her own stories.

“My goal for the development of the piece was to find more ‘Gabs’ in this story and to lead with that,” Epstein reveals. “I never set out to do an imitation of Barbra Streisand. It was always about using her inspiration to create something uniquely true to myself.

“But despite my best efforts, the show was still about ‘Babs.’”

Then, the pandemic hit in 2020, and Epstein found that “the great pause,” as she calls it, forced her to think about who she really was and what she wanted to put out into the world, and she began reworking the Streisand arrangements.

“The subsequent arrangements that came out of this time are bold statements of who I am as an artist and person,” Epstein says. “Even though these songs were made famous by someone else, this is the truest representation of myself I have ever put out. I finally found the ‘Gabs’ in all of the ‘Babs.’

Hailed “Canada’s Queen of Cabaret” by CTV, Gabi Epstein is a DORA AWARD winner and one of Canada’s leading stage/cabaret performers best known for playing Audrey in Little Shop of Horrors at the Stratford Festival, and Fanny Brice in Funny Girl at the Segal Centre and for the Harold Green Jewish Theatre. Epstein also released her debut album Show Off in 2010.

Her stage show Gabs Sings Babs debuted at the Toronto Jazz Festival and has subsequently been performed at the Segal Centre, Globus Theatre, and will open the Port Stanley Festival Theatre’s season this June.

Downchild Members Chuck Jackson & Gary Kendall’s New Band THE HOGTOWN ALLSTARS Debut Is Out

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A new band of multi-award-winning not-so-new blues players are set to make their musical mark: The Hogtown Allstars have released their debut album, Hog Wild, via Stony Plain Records.

Featuring eight new all-original songs, and two covers, Hog Wild was recorded throughout 2021 once the group nailed their first challenge: coordinating everyone’s schedule to hit the studio. It’s the first release for the undeniable supergroup that first started in 2013 as a collaborative, creative outlet for Toronto-based musicians dedicated to the genre.

As for ‘Allstars,’ they come by the moniker honestly; built with some of the most dynamic and experienced players on the global blues scene, the 7-piece adds up to Downchild Blues Band alum Chuck Jackson, Pat Carey, Gary Kendall, Jim Casson, and Tyler Yarema alongside Maple Blues Band alums Teddy Leonard and Howard Moore.

Their collective shelves are lined with more than 20+ Maple Blues Awards, five JUNO Awards, two Lifetime Achievement Awards, and countless international blues and jazz music awards.

// Hog Wild Track Listing:

“Mr. Lucky”
“Hog Wild”
“Real Good Night”
“I Just Think Of You”
“Angel In My Bed”
“Subway Casanova”
“The Sad One”
“Biscuits & Beans”
“She’s Got The Stuff”
“I Ain’t Lyin”

Bree Taylor Inspires Strength & Self-Love While Overcoming Challenges with “On My Own”

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When you’re going it alone, sometimes all you need for that extra pep in your step is an encouraging anthem about independence. Thankfully, Canadian country songstress Bree Taylor delivers just such an antidote with the release of her brand-new single, “On My Own.”

Bursting with a catchy, head-bopping chorus, “On My Own” is validating to anyone who might doubt their ability to do it alone. “I’m ok on my own/ I can do this alone/ I’ll find the road that will lead me home/ Because I’m ok on my own,” Taylor sings as an affirmation.

“I originally wrote this song about being fed up with disappointing dating experiences and wanting to just get to a place of being okay on my own and not needing someone to ‘complete’ me,” she shares. “The song was written almost four years ago now, so its meaning has taken a turn for me in the time since I originally wrote it…

“Now, the song means more to me on a level of being okay with one’s self in life on our unique path,” she continues. “That, no matter what we go through, the relationship with ourselves is most important and determines our outlook on a situation.

“I want people to know they’re okay on their own in life, regardless of the circumstances, and that no matter what we’ve been through, we are strong and capable of getting through on our own.”

Bree Taylor knows the matter of resilience first-hand in an ultra-unique way given her craft and shares that practicing self-love and self-care have been something she’s had to learn along the way as important pieces in the puzzle of life.

“I am a singer who has hearing loss and wears hearing aids,” Bree Taylor explains. “From the age of six years old, I knew I wanted to be a recording artist and have a career in music; I endured ongoing hearing loss as I got older, however, and underwent several ear-related surgeries throughout my childhood.

“I, unfortunately, had a doctor who did bad surgical work on my ears, despite being told by my parents I had dreams of singing professionally. By the time I turned 16, he didn’t know what else to do with me and referred me to my current specialist, Dr. Halik, who gave me two options after hearing my story: more surgery and risk my hearing entirely or get started with hearing aids. I decided on the latter and have never regretted my choice for a second.

“I completely changed once I was finally able to hear properly!” she continues. “My hearing aids have allowed me to keep going as a singer and musician, regardless of my hearing disability.”

Having trained with legendary vocal coach to the stars, Bob Garrett in Los Angeles, as well as Lorraine Lawson in Toronto, Bree Taylor’s new single “On My Own” comes on the heels of 2021’s “Kryptonite” — a song that explored how someone who can be bad for you can be irresistible at the same time, and how the magnetic attraction with someone can grab ahold of you despite your better judgment.

With a career and a brand built on authenticity, honesty, and resilience, Bree Taylor’s creative ambitions have no limitations. No matter what life throws at her, she is and always will be a fighter and she will keep writing songs, keep singing, and will remain truly unapologetically Bree.

Jazz Songstress KATIE DITSCHUN Captures A Lonely Sense of Melancholy in Stunning “One Voice”

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In the age of social media, we are theoretically more connected than we’ve ever been, but that connection can prove tenuous when there’s bullying, anger, or unkind words, and Canadian jazz songstress Katie Ditschun captures the sadness around having one’s voice drowned out in her new single, “One Voice.”

“I feel disillusioned and dismayed about the ways people communicate these days — especially by what gets attention and engagement on social media,” Ditschun shares. “My own efforts at reaching an audience online focus on encouraging people to be kind and seeing the good in life; on finding moments of joy and beauty…

“But positive messaging has trouble competing with all the indignation, accusation, and animosity that people apparently prefer to spread.”

The song is the title track for the Alexandria, Ontario-based artist’s newly released EP, One Voice. Accompanied by warm, full-bodied piano, nuanced drums, and heartbeat-like bass, Ditschun sings with a wholehearted melancholy of feeling small, or unheard, even as her voice glides, floats, shimmies, and soars.

One voice, one small voice, that’s all we got
One voice, one solo voice, but it’s not enough
To be heard over angry, angry words,
And hearts filled with fear, making it clear that
Your voice, a little voice, even when it cries,
Is one voice, just one voice trying to sing its song

The message, even though it’s filled with sadness, is also one of hope and optimism. “I truly believe that the only thing that will change the world for the better is love,” Ditschun says. “It is incredibly easy to react in anger or pass judgment on others, but the effort it takes to act out of love is ultimately always worth it. It is my hope that with my one voice I can spread that message further and louder with the songs on One Voice.”

Ditschun is joined on the four-song EP by Mark Ferguson on piano, Tim Bedner on guitar, Normand Glaude on bass, and Scott Latham on drums. “These jazz masters are extraordinary storytellers,” Ditschun reveals. “Each instrument gives life and adds color to the characters and events featured in these songs.”

One Voice includes a French version of “One Voice” titled “Une Voix.” The EP also includes a bilingual song called “Un Oiseau” that expresses a yearning to fly away and escape life’s challenges. That sentiment is balanced by “The Moonflower,” a song with a Latin groove, which confronts the fear many of us have of not measuring up.

Jack Black Celebrates Blue Bear School of Music’s 50th Anniversary With A Cover Of David Bowie’s ‘Suffragette City’

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The one and only Jack Black joins some of San Francisco’s Blue Bear School of Music’s students in a rousing cover of David Bowie’s Suffragette City to celebrate their 50th Anniversary.

Johnny Marr Performs A Monstrous Version The Smiths’ ‘How Soon Is Now’

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Johnny Marr is never shy about performing The Smiths‘ iconic song “How Soon Is Now,” and rightfully so – he never disappoints, and here he is at The Crazy Face Factory, Marr’s studio in Manchester, England.

One Thousand Musicians Perform “My Hero” In Honour Of Taylor Hawkins

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In 2015, 1000 Rockers performed simultaneously “Learn to Fly” by the Foo Fighters in Cesena – Italy. The video got more than 32 million views and the Foos actually held a concert in town. This time around, the massive group pays tribute to the late, great Taylor Hawkins.

Like LEGO? Like The Rolling Stones? The You’ll Love This LEGO The Rolling Stones

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To commemorate the band’s 60th anniversary, the new LEGO Art the Rolling Stones set invites adults to dive into their passion for the iconic music by building the famous tongue logo.

The LEGO Group brings a rock ‘n’ roll image to life in brick form. The bright red lips and tongue known worldwide as the logo for the Rolling Stones will thrill adult fans looking to combine their passion for the band’s music and LEGO® bricks.

The logo, first seen on the Stones’ Sticky Fingers album 50 years ago, is a 1,998-piece tribute to their 60 years as one of the most legendary rock bands of all time. It is the first organically shaped set from LEGO Art and fans will be delighted to know that the LEGO designers included a hidden surprise.

While assembling the bold, colourful lips that measure over 22 in. (57 cm) high and 18.5 in. (47 cm) wide, fans can enjoy an accompanying soundtrack with almost an hour of tailor-made content, including an exclusive interview with John Pasche, the graphic designer who created the tongue logo for the Rolling Stones back in 1970.

“Who would have believed, 50 odd years ago… that design would be made into a LEGO piece. Wow!” says John, after seeing the LEGO Art set for the first time.

“Since the tongue logo is one of the most recognized logos, our biggest challenge was to figure out how we could get the LEGO Art design as close to the original as possible. Previous sets have been created with 1×1 round LEGO tiles as a mosaic, but this time, in the spirit of being more Rock ‘n’ Roll, we have used the full spectrum of LEGO bricks to capture the organic curves that John created. Hearing his reaction to our final design makes me so happy!” says Fiorella Groves, Design Manager at the LEGO Group.

The LEGO Art the Rolling Stones set will be available from June 1st from LEGO.com and all LEGO retailers.

SUPERCUT Every Window Cameo in Batman From 1966-1968

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The dynamic duo’s show of the 60s was fond of celebrity cameos. Here is a Supercut of every single one of them.