In a day when an obnoxious girl talking about #selfies over EDM constitutes as music and that painful song from Frozen plays on the radio 3 billion times a day (seriously, my ears bleed), it’s refreshing to discover new, talented artists and quality tunes. Here are three smooth dudes you need to get up in your ears STAT.
1. John Newman. You probably know “Love Me Again” from this 23-year-old Brit, but that’s not even close to being his best jam. He’s got powerful pipes with dope beats behind them (did I just say dope beats?), and the songs are upbeat enough to work out to. I am obsessed with “Losing Sleep” and “Gold Dust.”
(PS, does anyone else see hipster preacher?)
2. Aloe Blacc. Remember when “Wake Me Up” came out and I had to pull over on the side of the road the first time I heard it and it’s still my favorite song of all time? Oh. We all know about the artist named after sunburn lotion with a soulful voice that is literally as smooth as butter (excuse me, butta’), but have you heard his new album?
“Wake Me Up” acoustic is beautiful, “Here Today” is inspirational, and “Red Velvet Seat” will give you a lady boner.
And my favorite of all…
3. Sam Smith. Sweet Jesus of Nazareth, this ’90s boy band-looking Brit with the voice of an angel has changed my life. It’s like all of a sudden, he came out of nowhere and all my friends starting talking and posting about him. Kinda’ like Tinder. If you are not yet familiar, first watch this (and if you’re a total loser like me, you might shed a tear):
Then listen to “Latch” acoustic and feel all the feelings, and move onto my personal favorite, “Nirvana.” There is also a pretty dope remix to “Nirvana.” I just said dope again. But seriously, you guys–this dude’s voice is as magical as a golden unicorn frolicking through a pond of vodka and about as sexy as the “Drunk In Love” video, only instead of Jay Z, it’s Channing Tatum (let’s all picture that for second).
I put the latest tunes from ALL THREE of these gents on a Spotify playlist, and as usual, if you don’t have Spotify, I don’t know what to tell you because I have nothing nice to say.
Happy listening, lovers!
LYLAS,
Ashley