Latest News
September 12, 2022
For Immediate Release
Khaled, (Cheb Khaled), The King of Rai, is Back
Come Together -Asere Que Bola” the lead track from his first studio album in a decadereleased on all digital platforms on 8/19/22, and now the first new music video for Come Together -Asere Que Bola is set to release Friday, September 16th, 2022 on Youtube at 6PM
Since his arrival on the Algerian scene in the 1970s with bold lyrics, sharp wit and a hurricane force vocal, Khaled has been a major force in global music. He adapted and then revolutionized rai music, the signature genre in the port city of Oran. Rai means “opinion” or “advice,” and its lyrics sidelined artful poetry in favor of straightforward street language. The genre has roots in old Bedouin traditions and the multi-cultural fervor of a busy Mediterranean port. But in Khaled’s hands, rai went international, topping charts in France, winning honors in the U.K. and forging collaborations with giants of reggae, rock, jazz and pop.
“Come Together- Asere Que Bola-” continues Khaled’s expansive vision with its fusion of Arabic and Latin rhythms. It also reunites a team of artists who toured the U.S. with Khaled in 2005 and 2009. Produced by renowned award- winning music producer Dawn Elder. Elder tracked the song with top session musicians including multi-Grammy winning players Vinnie Colaiuta (Drums), Luis Conte (Percussions), Errol Cooney (Guitar), Sean Hurley (Bass), Matt Rhode(Keys), Dwight Rivera (Piano), John Fumo(Trumpet), Eric Jorgensen(Trombone), along with a top line North African- Arab -chamber orchestra, including musicians from Algeria, Morocco, Sudan, Egypt, Lebanon, and Syria. The featured singer – and old friend of Khaled’s; Elan Atias, a lauded Moroccan -Jamaican recording artist, and the former lead singer of the Wailers, all augmented by the well know Rhythm and Blues singers Lynne Fiddmont, Kimberley Brewer, and Latin Choral. The song and many of the tracks on the album were recorded at the historic Sunset Sound in Los Angeles shortly before the pandemic. The song is a spirited plea for unity, “from Oran to Santiago to L.A.” The title is a popularCuban expression for “Hey, friend, my brother, what’s up?” signaling Khaled’s playful, friendly approach to a subject that couldn’t be more serious: the need for humanity to come together. The song and the sentiment are of a piecewith an artist who has always strived to quell differences, as when he became the first major Arabic-speaking artist to tour the U.S. in the aftermath of 9/11.
During an extended stay in Los Angeles in 2019 to work on his album with music producer Dawn Elder, Khaled always looking, for new sounds, became inspired by a song idea Elder and master percussionist Luis Conte, from Santiago, Cuba, who had been working to fuse Arabic and Latin rhythms, and the idea for “Asere Que Bola” was born. From there, the song became a team effort. Mexican American songwriter pianist Dwight Rivera and African American R&B singer songwriter Lynn Fiddmont helped shape the demo, and soon Khaled was composing Arabic lyrics and adding his unmistakable vocal and Arabic percussion to a song destined to become a classic. The final touch: an overdub from Elan, former lead singer for The Wailers and another veteran of that 2005 U.S. tour. The song marks one more victory for Khaled bringing rai music to new heights, crossing global boarders.
“Come Together -Asere Que Bola”, is the title track from Khaled’s first full studio album since 2012. The album features collaborations with an array of international stars, Chakwi (Morocco), Andy (Iran), Riffat Sultana (Pakistan and U.S.), DJ Snake (Algeria), and Chico of the Gypsy Kings among others. In addition to the new songs, Asere Que Bola-Come Together includes an Arabic remix of “Love to the People,” Khaled’s sensational collaboration with Carlos Santana, also produced by Elder. This is also the first album on the new label AALIA Publishing, executive producer Samira Diabi, and distributed by Believe.
The music video was filmed in Morocco under the direction of Mohamed Ali Laaouini, and executive producer Samira Diabi. It shapes the song as a “dream, a wish”, Khaled is having as he travels the world hoping to unite with his friends, his brothers and sisters from around the world, from Oran to Santiago to LA.. share a meal, spend some time, share a few smiles, dance all night, as we “Come Together” and unite as one heart, living finally in peace.
The album marks a powerful reemergence of for one of North Africa’s most beloved and innovative artists.The album’s central message is that the youthful, optimistic spirit of Cheb Khaled—his title as a young singer—remains intact. “The world is what it is,” says Khaled. “Even if we can’t change it, we must always surpass what we’ve done before. What matters most is to live together. Love is the essential thing.
Shayla He
ARENI E - Hate Myself
Hayden Williams-Moran -Coming of Age
WILLOW SEIXAS
Maeve
NOW RELEASED, Singer-Songwriter Anna K. Steiner’s soulful debut: “Invisible”
Anna K Steiner is a prodigy singer, songwriter, actress and musician. Just 16 years old and 5”1’, she transcends age and stature with a voice of outstanding clarity and power and the poise and depth of a seasoned veteran. A singer since age five, and then an actress, voice-over artist and songwriter, Steiner debuts this month with a bluesy, old-school soul original, “Invisible.” Now available to stream and purchase on all platforms Apple Music, Itunes, Amazon Music, Spotify and on all streaming platforms.
Anna’s inspired debut was co-written with award-winning, Grammy-nominated music producer Dawn Elder and Dwight Rivera. Stellar performances of Grammy-winning instrumentalists Errol Cooney, Luis Conte, Vinnie Colaiuta, Dan Antunovich and Bob Malone bring Steiner’s score to light as only these top L.A. session players can. The track was recorded at historic Sunset Sound Studio in Los Angeles, where legends like Fleetwood Mac, Stevie Nicks, Melissa Etheridge and Prince have worked. The session for “Invisible”.
Steiner’s “Invisible” takes a stand for women’s empowerment with elegance and confidence far beyond her years. The song is a slow burn rock number about rising above pain and adversity with a young man who has ignored and ghosted one young woman who is not going to take it anymore. "Invisible a ghost in your eyes" . but returns with strength and power. With blooming presence and range, Steiner coos and whispers, cries and belts like a blues diva—all in the same song. Sultry blues builds to the strength and power of pop and rock, reaching back to a time when music invited individuals to dive deeply into the sea of the human experience and soothe the soul.
11-YEAR-OLD ACTRESS AND SINGER/SONGWRITER ALEXA SWINTON SET TO RELEASE HER
DEBUT SINGLE “YOU, ME, AND MY PURPLE DOCS” ON JULY 30, 2020
Persona PR
E: [email protected]
P: 310.601.2734
LOS ANGELES, CA (July 10, 2020)— Actress Alexa Swinton announced today her debut single “You, Me, and My Purple Docs” will be released on Thursday July 30, 2020. Formally launching Alexa’s career as a singer/songwriter, the single was co-written as part of a protégé program (Ultimate Vocal Music Summit) with awardwinning, Grammy-nominated music producer Dawn Elder, as well as composer Dwight Rivera and vocalists Natascha Corrigan and Lynne Fiddmont.
With the world in crisis, “You, Me, and My Purple Docs” brings an uplifting summer anthem of personal empowerment to audiences of all ages. The song showcases Swinton’s sweet and energetic vocals while featuring a star-studded lineup of Grammy winning instrumentalists including Errol Cooney, Luis Conte, Vinnie Colaiuta, and arrangements by pianist, composer Bob Malone and Elder. The sound is an enticing blend of stateof-the-art electronic production and musical virtuosity.
Of the single, recorded at historic Sunset Sound in Los Angeles, Swinton shares “‘You, Me, and My Purple Docs’ is about empathy for our world and using our voices to make it a better place. Kids have voices and we can use them to speak out! Music has always been key for bringing people together to celebrate, protest, and create change. We can make a better and fairer world. It starts with finding your own inner strength, and that can be as simple as wearing the right pair of shoes.”
While Swinton is making her first foray into music professionally this year with her fun vocal style, at just eleven years old, she has been a growing force in the entertainment industry. Swinton most recently starred as Piper on ABC’s critically acclaimed fall drama series “Emergence,” and she also appears as Eva Rhoades on Showtime’s “Billions.” Born in New York City and raised in a creative, musical family, Swinton’s Russian-Jewish mother is an actor, comedian, and writer who immigrated to the United States from Latvia as a child, and her ScottishCanadian father is a designer and tech entrepreneur. Her siblings are also multi-talented performers. A firstgeneration American with an abundance of talent and global ambitions, Swinton has put us all on notice as she sings with the clarity and confidence of a seasoned pop star.
When she isn't on set or in the studio recording music, Swinton loves to play piano, write and illustrate comics, code video games, and even runs a virtual cafe business on Roblox. Through her music, she hopes to champion the idea that young people can shape a new future for our world, starting with finding their superpowers and using them to impact others in a positive way.
“You, Me, and My Purple Docs” will be available to stream and purchase on Apple Music, Amazon Music and on all streaming platforms on July 30, 2020.
For more information on the single, or for media inquiries with Alexa Swinton please contact Persona PR at [email protected] or 310-601-2734.
- Best World Music Album-Just A Dream Away
- Producer of the year -Non-Classical Dawn Elder
- Album of the year -Just A Dream Away
- Song of the year -Just a dream away – Michael Jay & Steve Dorff
- Best New Artist -Yara Lapidus
- Arrangement-instrumental and vocals for both
- How-Kif and Just A Dream Away -Matt Rhode, Lynne Fiddmont, Dawn Elder
- Best engineered album -Non-Classical Jeff Peters and Sean Magee
- Best album package Éric Vandepoorter, Guillaume Nicollet, Sara Etienne
For Immediate Release
September 12, 2019
French-Lebanese YARA LAPIDUS releases U.S. debutalbum Just A Dream Away,featuring first authorized Arabic adaptation of John Lennon’s iconic song “How-KIF”
Into a troubled world sweeps the sensuous, reflective voice of Yara Lapidus, whose journey from Beirut to Cairo and Paris , then London’s Abbey Road Studios and Sunset Sound in Los Angeles,has led to a stunning set of songs that reach our ears like a gentle breeze on a sultry summer day. From a bilingual pair of covers of John Lennon’s “How,” to her collaborations with Brazil’s Chico César, Palestinian oud virtuosos Simon Shaheen and Adnan Joubran, and even punk pioneer Iggy Pop, Yara’s U.S. debut release, Just a Dream Away, reveals a voice blooming with understated power, and an artist unconstrained by genre and convention.
Yara sings in English, French and Lebanese Arabic, always the effortless, seductivecoo and sigh we associate with greats like Fairuz, Astrud Gilberto, Serge Gainsbourg, Francoise Hardy, and Sade, who, like Yara, began her career as a fashion designer. That life, and Yara’s career as a guitarist, came to an abrupt end in 2010 when a routine operation on her collarbone left her without the use of her left hand. In spite of this devastating disability, Yara carried on, her destiny now to sing and write poetic lyrics. Yara applies lyrics to musical compositions as deftly as a master painter graces a canvas. “Images have always come easily to me,” says the mother-of-two, whose imagination was nurtured by stories read by candlelight as a child, inspired by French scribes Rimbaud and Verlaine, and contemporary wordsmith Boris Vian. Yara’s triumph over her disability sends a powerful message to all who face such challenges.
Just a Dream Away was born of a two-year collaboration with Oscar-winning composer, musician and producer Gabriel Yared, who created music for such iconic films as Cold Mountain and The English Patient. Yared spent two years working with Yara, composing tunes specifically to compliment Yara’s unique aesthetic. Both of these artists were born in Lebanon and share the memory of its traumatic civil war (1975-90), a searing emotional undertone that colors the transcendent melancholy that pervadesthis luminous album.
Just a Dream Away reached fruition in the hands of award-winning Lebanese-American music producer Dawn Elder, widely acclaimed for her productions of major global artists. She has worked with Algerian rai superstar Khaled as well as such icons of Arabic music as Kazem el-Saher (Iraq), Fairouz, Wadi Safi, Sabah Fakhri (Lebanon & Syria) and numerous American and English luminaries including Carlos Santana, Quincy Jones, and Sting. Elder draws on a deep well of superb session musicians in L.A. including Grammy winners Louis Conte, Vinnie Colaiuta, Sean Hurly, Matt Rhode and Errol Cooney, all of whom bring the final polish to this wonderfully organic collaborative album. Elder also brought in vocal stylist/producer Lynne Fiddmont, who has fine-tuned performances by stars from Stevie Wonder to Barbara Streisand. Says Yara, “I almost never dared to think that one day I might make a beautiful, timeless record featuring artists I adore.”
The original tracks from Abbey Road were enhanced and supplemented at Sunset in L.A., with British singer-songwriter Ed Harcourt helping to translate Yara’s subtle French lyrics into English.
The album’s title song, sung both in English and Arabic, was composed by American composers Steve Dorff and Michael Jay. Yara fell in love with the song and made it the centerpiece of this project. It opens with keening violin by LaythSidiq the feathery oud of Simon Shaheen and a sultry trumpet by John Fumo, painting a dreamscape that unfolds in a sensuously pulsing groove. Over the course of the song, Yara’s voice rises from a softly intoned breath to a full-throated cry that merges into a wash of urgently soaring strings.
John Lennon’s “How” is rendered in both Arabic and English versions, each with spare ensemble backing, mostly piano and oud. Yara reveals the song’s plaintive simplicity in a way that penetrates even without the translation. Notably, this is the first time Lennon’s estate has allowed a cover andlanguage adaptionof this song, which was a mainstay of the landmark Imaginealbum.
Yara’s velvet soft, deeply expressive voice is perfectly suited for bossa nova, as Yara demonstrates in an elegant collaboration with Brazilian singer-songwriter Chico César, “Saudade de Voce.” Singing together, they evoke the ineffable emotion of saudade, a kind of melancholy graced by the shimmer of lingering love. A Brazilian flavor carries forth into “A Morning So Blue,” another song about separation from a loved one. Separation and longing are time honored themes in popular music, but they take on spiritual depth in the hands of this French-Arabic singer, who subtly draws on the Arabic tradition of romantic love as a metaphor for divine longing. “Vingt-Quatre Heures” clocks the seconds of anguished waiting for reunion with a lover to the tick-tock of a metronome.
Each song on this album has its own style and character. “Ilalabad” unfolds as a cantering waltz, sung in Arabic and English, with Yara’s voice moving from the ethereal realm to a rhythmic, staccato refrain: “pitter patter in my beating heart for him.” “Depuis Toi” is a brooding soundscape of roiling passions that builds to an anthemic crescendo of drums and strings that chug and cry, then vanish, leaving just the solitude of Yara and her brilliant oud accompanist, Adnan Joubran of the exquisite Trio Joubran. Yara’s voice rides this wave of emotion with trademark confidence and composure.
Perhaps the album’s biggest surprise, “EncorEncor,” opens with Yara interweaving her voice with gentle piano arpeggios. But then the song takes an unexpected turn into pulsing rock with the still more unexpected voice of Iggy Pop, who merges an uncharacteristically tender croon with his trademark baritone gravitas. The track is made all the more delightful for the its curiously familiar music: Yared’s theme from “37 °2 le matin” – or in English, “Betty Blue.”
This is the work of a consummate artist with unbridled ambition and unconstrained creative impulses. Yara attributes her openness to her bicultural, oriental and Western background. “I have an oriental side that is very emotional and the oud captures this very well,” she says. “My European side is more self-contained, reflective. I like to think my music is a bridge from one to the other.” And with Just a Dream Away, her music will prove a bridge to a much wider audience.
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YARALAPIDUS.COM
For More Information on Artist or to Interview Artist
Email [email protected]
Just ADream Away
Record Label : Yara Music Distributed by TuneCore & CD Baby in US/Canada
Middle East Icons Launch Musical Mission of Peace with a song and concert.
Capitol France Recording artist Khaled with Armenian-Iranian Singer Andy set to release new music video “Salama So Good”, Wednesday, April 17, 2019, and debut the song live for their Earth Day Peace through Music Concert, April 27, at LA’s Greek Amphitheatre
On Wednesday, April 17th, Khaled and Andy released a brand new music video of their recent song collaboration entitled “Salama So Good”. The music and lyrics celebrate joy, love, peace, and sweet friendships the perfect lead to their upcoming concert on April 27, at LA’s Greek Amphitheatre. The concert will highlight through music their Love for all Humanity and our planet. Algerian raï superstar, Khaled, who is no stranger to American World Music audiences joins forces with an all-star band and Armenian-Iranian singer songwriter Andy and a host of guest artists from Asia, Cuba, Latin America, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestine, Sudan, the U.S. and beyond. The concert is a celebration of the earth’s
cultural diversity, uniting faiths, nationalities and musical genres in an electrifying evening of music.
It’s been said that Khaled is raï, a signature North African music style. The word means “My Opinion” It began as the sound of the street in Khaled’s native Algeria. But starting in the 1970s, a teenager with an uncannily moving voice, Khaled, went on to raise the genre to a high art form. Over the years, he has collaborated with an Arabic orchestra, Bob Marley’s I Threes on a series of reggae hits, Carlos Santana on “Love to the People,” Marc Anthony on a Latin dance track “C’est La Vie,” Pitbull on a pumping Arabic pop hit, and now, a forthcoming collaboration with Andy, Riffat Sultana, Carlos Santana, DJ Snake, Elan Atias, French Montana, and Stevie Wonder, among others.
Khaled’s resume includes 10 Diamond, Platinum, and Gold albums, the highest-selling Arab album in history (123 Soleils), and chart-topping pop hits “Aïcha” (1996) and “Didi” (1992), the latter produced by the inimitable Don Was. Khaled is a four-time winner of BBC Radio 3 World Music Award, and was named by NPR one of the “50 Greatest Voices in Music.”
Andy Madadian has been called the “Persian Bono.” He’s recorded 15 albums over a 30-year career, singing in four languages, and incorporating influences from African music, Western Pop and Flamenco. Andy’s music is banned in his own country, although he was the first Iranian/American singer to perform at the White House. Long based in L.A., Andy has collaborated with Jon Bon Jovi and La Toya Jackson and won numerous awards, including the Ellis Island Medal of Honor in 2017. He is also an actor, appearing in The House of Sand and Fog, The Keeper and Guardian Angel; but Andy is best known for his spectacular voice and stage charisma.
Other guests at this historic unity concert include: South Asian vocal diva Riffat Sultana, Elan(Wailers), Grammy Winner KC Porter, singer-activist Shani Rigsbee, among others to be announced. The show begins with a set by young singer-songwriters emerging from the star-building Ultimate Vocal Music Summit including Kristen Tanios, Hailey Faith, Anna Steiner and Sydney Shalhoob.
The concert benefits VOICESOUT.ORG, a 501C3 organization devoted to providing a voice and aiding children and animals in neglectful, abusive and abandoned conditions.
ULTIMATEVOCALMUSICSUMMIT.COM - A not-for-profit organization devoted to providing vocal and music educational studies to students throughout the United States.
Salama So Good-Video
Concert Tickets on Sale at Ticketmaster.com, Greek Theatre Box office, https://www.lagreektheatre.com/events/detail/khaled-andy
Greek Theatre 2700 North Vermont Avenue Los Angeles, California 90027 (844) 524-7335
Doors at 6:30pm, Concert commences at 7:45pm.
For more info on Artists or to request interviews; email [email protected] https://DawnElderWorldEntertainment.com
International Stars Unite to Celebrate Earth ay,
2019 April 27, at LA’s Greek Amphitheatre
Algeria’s Khaled, Iran’s Andy, Latin Grammy winner KC Porter, Pakistan’s vocal diva Riffat Sultana, plus surprise guests and an all-star band
Landmark moments in musical history have a way of unfolding at the Greek Amphitheatre in Los Angeles. And so, it will be again on April 27 when Algerian raï superstar, Khaled, and Iran’s greatest popular singer, Andy, join forces with an all-star band and guest vocalists from Cuba, Latin America, Pakistan, Lebanon, Morocco, the U.S. and beyond. The concert is a celebration of the earth’s cultural diversity, uniting faiths, nationalities and musical genres in an electrifying evening of music.
It’s been ten years since Khaled has performed on an American stage. Though he has returned with full force, working on a groundbreaking album, Coming Together, in L.A.’s historic Sunset Studio. It’s been said that Khaled is raï, a signature North African music style. The word means “advice” or “opinion.” It began as the sound of the street in Khaled’s native Algeria. But starting in the 1970s, a teenager with an uncannily moving voice, Khaled went on to raise the genre to a high art form. Over the years, he has collaborated with an Arabic orchestra, Bob Marley’s I Threes on a series of reggae hits, Carlos Santana on “Love to the People,” Marc Anthony on a Latin dance track “C’est La Vie,” Pitbull
on a pumping Arabic pop hit, and now, a forthcoming collaboration with Andy, Riffat Sultana, Carlos Santana, DJ Snake, Elan Atias, French Montana, and Stevie Wonder among others. The Coming Together album and this unity concert are produced by veteran composer/music producer Dawn Elder in association with Sonic Imports, Voicesout.org. and the Ultimate Vocal Music Summit.
Khaled’s resume includes 10 Diamond, Platinum, and Gold albums, the highest-selling Arab album in history (123 Soleils), chart-topping pop hits “Aïcha” (1996) and “Didi” (1992), the latter produced by the inimitable Don Was. Khaled is a four-time winner of BBC Radio 3 World Music Award, and was named by NPR one of the “50 Greatest Voices in Music.”
Andy Madadian has been called the “Persian Bono.” He’s recorded 15 albums over a 30-year career, singing in four languages, and incorporating influences from African music, Western Pop and Flamenco. Andy’s music is banned in his own country, although he was the first Iranian/American singer to perform at the White House. Long based in L.A., Andy has collaborated with Jon Bon Jovi and La Toya Jackson and won numerous awards, including the Ellis Island Medal of Honor in 2017. He is also an actor, appearing in The House of Sand and Fog, The Keeper and Guardian Angel; but Andy is best known for his spectacular voice and stage charisma.
Onstage at the Greek, Khaled and Andy will debut a fiery new duet with “Salama So Good” (Peace, So Good), a featured track on Khaled’s forthcoming album. The Music Video will be released on April 11th, 2019.
Other guests at this historic unity concert include: Riffat Sultana (Pakistan), Elan Atias (Morocco), African-American R&B singer-songwriter Lynne Fiddmont, as well as Grammy-winning Latin producer KC Porter, renowned singer-songwriter and activist Shani Rigsbee among others. The bands draw from the most talented session players in L.A. Khaled’s band includes: his long time band mates Mustapha Didouh on keyboards and vocals, French bassist Maurice Zemmour, North African percussionist Bachir Mokari, Alan Perez 2nd guitar side by side with renowned guitarist Errol Cooney (Janet Jackson, Philip Philips), Flamenco Gypsy Guitarist Alfredo Caceres, Latin percussionist Ramon Yslas (Chicago), a full brass section featuring Eric Jorgensen, Bill Esparza, John Fumo, and MD Matt Rohde of Jane’s Addiction Keys, Dwight Rivera (Piano-Keys) and on drums, Herman Mathews, the driving force behind Tower of Power.
The show begins with a set by young singer-songwriters emerging from the star-building Ultimate Vocal Music Summit. Lebanese-Americans Kristen Tanios and Sydney Shalhoob, Portuguese-American Hailey Faith, Scandinavian-American Anna Steiner and African-American Celeste Butler will showcase a new generation of singers, launching a once-in-a-lifetime celebration of global unity that could not have come at a better moment.
The concert benefits Voicesout.org, a 501C3 organization devoted to providing a voice and aid children and animals in neglectful, abusive and abandoned conditions, to assist and provide programs with long term solutions for their welfare.
UltimateVocalSummit.com - A not for profit organization devoted to providing vocal and music educational studies to students throughout the United States, and in this concert provide an opportunity to showcase, support and encourage new young talent from California as they pursue careers in the music field.
Tickets on Sale at Ticketmaster.com, Greek Theatre Box office, Doors at 6:30pm, Concert commences at 7:45pm. For more information on tickets or to request interviews with the artists, call 800-295-2003
November 19, 2017
Dawn Elder Honored by Hollywood Music in Media Awards(HMMA) as Best Producer/Production of the Year
In over 59 years, the Recording Academy has never given the Grammy for Best Producer (non-classical) to a woman and in its 8 year history Hollywood Music and Media Awards has not honored a female music producer. This year Hollywood Music in Media (HMMA’s) took this unique opportunity to correct this by honoring Dawn Elder as the Producer/Production of the year for her work on “It Doesn’t Have to Rain Today” from the debut album of a young singer Ty Waters entitled Only Human. The album was recorded in Los Angeles, California when he was just ten and half years old. Elder produced the entire album all while mentoring the young singer throughout the process of his first official album recording. The album is a knockout, showcasing the young vocalist whose talent and energy invite comparisons to the young Michael Jackson and Stevie Wonder. But, as HMMA and Grammy voters dig deeper, they come away equally if not more impressed by the album’s principle producer, Elder. As one veteran noted,
“The craftsmanship on the songs, arrangements, and the caliber of the overall production is stunning.”
Only Human was recorded at the historic Sunset Sound in Hollywood and Pie Studios in Pasadena. Elder opted for a live sound, capable of capturing the warmth and fullness of the classic soul and R&B feel that has inspired Waters since childhood. Elder also assembled a team of A-list players with deep history in rock and pop, including Grammy winners Randy Waldman, Rami Jaffee, Howard Levy, Luis Conte along with all-star players from numerous Grammy winning albums Kenny Aronoff, Vinnie Colaiuta, Paulinho Da Costa, Sean Hurley, Nat Watts, Bill Bergman, Errol Cooney, Tariqh Akoni, Michael Fish Herring and Bruce Gaitch to name a few. Elder co-composed several of the songs on the album including the infectious title song, which took Best Pop Song of the Year at the 2016 Hollywood Music in Media Awards, and set the tone for the rest of the album. The excitement and personal chemistry between a young prodigy and this all star band is palpable on every track, evidence that in addition to her vision, composing skills and technical chops, Elder knows how to get the best possible performance out of her artists.
Elder is a veteran of many diverse music productions, spanning the entire world, and unbounded by genre. With Only Human, she brings all that experience to bear as she returns to her roots in soulful American pop. Between them, Elder and Only Human are on the Grammy First Ballot in eleven categories, including Album of the Year, Record, Song of the Year and New Artist of the Year. But the award to watch may well turn out to be Producer of the Year (nonclassical) for Dawn Elder. Whatever lies ahead for Ty Waters, Elder has given us an album for the ages, and it’s hard to imagine a better moment for the
NEW RELEASE
Straight to the Heart Music Festival ‘17
A new Generation of Voices Unite with Global Star Power to Deliver Messages of Hope and Optimism during these Troubled Times through Music.
Few things lift the spirit like the sound of phenomenally talented young singers delivering songs directly from the heart, full of promise, hope and optimism. That is precisely what the eight principal singers in Straight to the Heart bring to concert audiences this year. Coming from a variety of national, ethnic and religious backgrounds, these young prodigies combine their diverse talents in a show that spans inspired original compositions and inventive arrangements of classic pop, soul, rock and R&B. This musical festival also features some of the most notable global and National artists in their respective musical genres including #1 on Billboard Americana country star Chuck Murphy, bridging East and West; Turkey’s illustrious Neotolia, Violin Virtuoso, Composer, Singer Layth Sidiq from Iraq, renowned Lebanese Tenor Naji Youssef, Jazz duo Paul Hefti & Devyn Rush, Grammy all-stars Bob Malone, Kenny Aronoff, Tariqh Akoni to name a few and very special guest artists still to be announced. The show was created by American entertainment magnate, composer, pianist and producer Dawn Elder.
The program features one of the newest and most talked about recording artist to come out in a decade Ty Waters. He is an 11-year-old with the voice of an angel and charisma to rival the young Stevie Wonder or Michael Jackson. Water’s debut album Only Human comes out March 24, 2017, the show includes songs from the album, notably the irresistible title track, that won best pop song of the year at the HMMA’s is a celebration of individual empowerment with the sting of classic soul and the spiritual force of gospel. The show also highlights seven other members of the Ultimate Vocal Music Summit’s Protégées and upcoming stars. These include 11-year-old Lebanese American pianist and singer Christen Ntanios, Louisiana’s 16-year-old singer and guitarist Lane Hardy whom some have compared to a young Fogerty, from Southern California 18-year-old African American Singer-Songwriter Celeste Butler and 16-year-old retro rock lyricist and vocalist Izzy Jones and finally Canadian pop and R&B singer/songwriter Connor Nelson who is 15 years old. The show will open with 4 ½ year old Disney Actress and singer Abrielle Cummings. Though newcomers to the national U.S. scene, these artists have all garnered prizes, praise and renown in their communities, and are plainly destined for significant careers. This is a chance to experience their brilliance in Straight to the Heart Music Festival.
The debut of Straight to the Heart took place at Florence Gould Hall in New York City as part of the annual gathering of the National Organization Association of Performing Arts Presenters. The young singers were backed by a band of seasoned professionals. Bob Malone has toured the world as a solo artist for two decades and has played keyboards with rock legend John Fogerty since 2011. Guitarist Chuck Murphy is an award-winning, multi time Billboard-charting singer/songwriter hailing from Minneapolis. Tariqh Akoni has been a composer, songwriter, studio musician, educator, musical director, multi-instrumentalist and clinician over his 25 years in the music industry, and has amassed an extensive and eclectic resume, working with many distinguished and award- winning artists.
And violinist, composer, singer and educator Layth Sidiq (born in Iraq and raised in Jordan), has toured the world as a leader and sideman. He began performing at the age of 4 ½ Violin and was one of the youngest to be accepted to the National Music Conservatory to receiving a full scholarship to Berklee College of Music, graduating with BA in Music and a Master’s Degree, from the Global institute of Jazz, now Layth pays it forward as he directs the Arab music ensemble at Tufts University in Boston, alongside of his touring and recently released to critical acclaim new album ‘Son of Tigris’. He is joined by the young brilliant Palestinian percussion virtuoso Tarek Rantisi.
The two-hour concert includes performances from Classic Rocker Bob Malone, Country star Chuck Murphy who performs one of the stunning group numbers of the night Peace Be With you off his Billboard charting album, Turkish virtuoso pianist Utar Artun and his stunning Vocalist Nazan Nihal, and from virtuoso Lebanese American Tenor-vocalist Naji Yousef, plus very special guests to be announced all adding a multi-generational and international element to the evening. But the stars were these diverse young singers. It is impossible to overestimate the excitement they are generating among those lucky enough to hear and work with them.
Just eleven years old, Christen Ntanios performs a deeply moving rendition of Majida Roumi’s “La Ma Rah Iza’l’a Chi, I will not be sad anymore” in flawless Arabic, the language of Christen’s ancestral home in Lebanon, in addition to two powerful ballads in English “A Note to God, and I believe in you and Me”. Lane Hardy (16) from the Louisiana bayou, though of Korean ancestry, delivered a stunning read of “Born on the Bayou.” Unlike John Fogerty, he actually was born there! Hailey Faith, dressed appropriately in yellow, exploded onto the stage with a joyous rendition of “Walking on Sunshine”, her message as a daughter of a farmer and living on a farm the vital importance of preserving mother earth. Connor Nelson, a young man with a nuanced and powerful voice and deeply soulful stage presence, brought the house down with a righteous performance of gospel classic “Higher and Higher” and the U2 Rock anthem “One”. Layth Sidiq and his ensemble provide an evocative interlude of his own instrumental and vocal work from his latest album Son of Tigres, bringing Middle Eastern art music into a new realm for the 21st century. And Ty Waters tore up the stage with uncanny professionalism and jaw-dropping vocal technique each time he appeared, from his heart-rending cover of Sam Cooke’s “A Change is Gonna Come,” It Doesn’t have to Rain today to that irresistible winning title track from his debut album, “Only Human.”
The show closes with all the artists on stage joining their voices together on two uplifting numbers “One Planet One People” and “Straight to the Heart” compositions by Dawn Elder that perfectly captures the spirit and mission of this extraordinary touring ensemble. Straight to the Heart Music Festival will tour the United States throughout 2017-2018.
“At Just 11 Years Old, Ty Waters Is Already Building His Pop Legacy” NPR All Things Considered
Waters is set to release his debut album on March 24, 2017, TY WATERS-ONLY HUMAN, with a Media listening celebration and intimate performance at the Historic Capitol Studios Studio A, and commences his tour with a live performance on May 06, 2017 the Saban Theater in his tour in Los Angeles, CA, May 06 at the Saban Theatre for the Straight To The Heart Music Festival 2017
Eleven-year-old Ty Waters is poised for greatness in American popular music. This child prodigy singer from Vancouver, Canada, has wowed artists from Michael Bublé to Bobby McFerrin to Stevie Wonder and won a series of prestigious awards, including Best Pop Song of 2016 at the Hollywood Music in Media Awards for his song “Only Human.” Now the world will hear what this remarkable young man has to offer with the release of his debut album, titled for his award-winning song, Only Human (TKJ Records-DeMusic), out on March 24. Produced by veteran composer and producer Dawn Elder, Only Human showcases an all-star lineup of writers and performers, including Grammy Award-winning arranger and pianist Randy Waldman, multiplatinum songwriter and Emmy and Grammy winning keyboardist and producer Rami Jaffee (Foofighters-Wallflowers), composer Michael Jay (Celine Dion, Eminem), bassists Nat Watts, (Stevie Wonder) and Sean Hurly (John Mayer), guitarists Tariqh Akoni (Josh Grobin) Errol Cooney (Janet Jackson-Christina Aguilera), Michael “Fish” Herring and Bruce Gaitsch, drummers Vinnie Colaiuta and Kenny Aronoff, world renowned percussionists Paulinho Da Costa (Michael Jackson, Madonna) and Luis Conte, and Howard Levy (Flecktones) on harmonica on the title track. Backing Waters’ phenomenal lead vocal in a chorus that includes Fred White, Lynne Fiddmont and Lamont Van Hook—who have sung backup for Stevie Wonder, Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, The Eagles and Diana Ross.
But for all this, Waters is the clear star on this set of eight songs, which NPR says “breathes fresh life into old school soul and R&B.” His remarkably agile voice soars on ballads “It Doesn’t Have to Rain Today” and “Remember” and bursts with charisma and vigor worthy of the young Michael Jackson—one of Waters’ idols—on driving, soulful pop songs “Nervous,” “Curiosity Killed the Cat,” “History” and two numbers Waters co-composed for the album, “Feel the Fun” and “Never Gonna Give it Up.” “Nervous” was actually written for Jackson’s Bad album, but never recorded. It’s hard to imagine even Jackson surpassing what Waters does with this irresistible expression of young love. “Curiosity Killed the Cat” was composed by Michael Sembello and Janey Clewer, but also never recorded. Elder and Waldman reworked this playful cautionary tale especially for Waters who delivers it with disarming wit and grace.
The album’s title track, “Only Human” was co-composed by Elder, Waters, Waldman and Jay, and offers a message both timely and timeless. In a world divided, sings Waters,“You’ve got to make time for your friends, running places and getting nowhere, trying to keep up with the trends.” The message is, peace begins at home with listening and compassion. After all, each of us is only human.
On this recording and in his charismatic stage performances, Waters comes across with stunning confidence, no surprise for one gifted with such a versatile and profoundly affecting voice. But Waters is no stranger to adversity. Back in Vancouver, he reached the age of two with a debilitating speech impediment. His parents investigated speech therapy options, but found the wait too long. So they improvised, teaching Ty nursery rhymes only to hear him “jazzing them up.” From there, YouTube became the boy’s therapist, prompting him to sing spot-on renditions of classics by Sinatra, Bobby Darrin, and later Jackson, Wonder, Prince, Lionel Richie and Etta James. Before long, not only was Waters’ speech impediment a thing of the past, but it became plain to all that this was young singer with uncanny power and precision.
In 2015, Waters traveled to Burbank, California to participate in the Ultimate Vocal & Music Summit, a program for nurturing talented young singers-songwriters developed by Dawn Elder. Elder quickly recognized Waters’ potential and began working with him to curate and compose songs and assemble the team that produced Only Human. In 2016, they all gathered at L.A.’s historic Sunset Studio, and the rest in history.
Only Human is the work of a gifted singer at the dawn of a potentially earth-shaking career. Moreover, it offers a badly needed message of optimism and hope sure to resonate with anyone who hears it.
Upcoming Projects
Global Woman's Voices
Peace Thru Music concert series 2017
When Music Matters 2017
Ultimate Vocal and Music Summit 2016-2017