Welcome all to 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗹𝘆’𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗿, a series of weekly reviews by Charles Connolly - an artist in his own right. Here, Charles delves into the greatest brand new singles brought to you by the best unsigned artists on our electrifying and eclectic set of 𝙉𝙚𝙬 𝘼𝙧𝙩𝙞𝙨𝙩 𝙎𝙥𝙤𝙩𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 playlists.
𝙀𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙎𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙡𝙚 𝙉𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 - 𝙑𝙞𝙘𝙠𝙮 𝙍𝙖𝙞
Charles talks pop, pop and more pop.
Last week we were in Ancient Rome. It’s time to go back to the future. Great Scott (!), I converted too many watts into the flux capacitor! I meant, the present - with a hint of things to come. Within the last week, Coldplay released a new album. It has been pretty much universally panned by the press, but will inevitably reach number one and be massively successful. Being a huge fan of the band however, after only a couple of listens I personally found it rather special. I love upbeat pop and I love their darker more classical side. This is predominantly a “pop” album with an emphasis on the future, space, aliens and all things cosmic. And of course, that vital source of energy for the days not yet lived: Love. The first single from the album was released around 4 months ago. Its futuristic video was full of Chris Martin (their singer: for those of you who have been unconscious for 20 years) with his blue eyes, the most incredible graphics money can buy, and of course, dancing aliens. All quite silly and absurd, but utterly fun! The 80s have lately had the biggest comeback since, well, the 80s. Coldplay has gone heavy on this, but in a tasteful yet blatant way. More importantly though, it is space and the future that has made the biggest comeback of all. In the 90s it was all thought to be rather naff and old hat - we had delivered a man to the moon (for some reason) some thirty years previous. And we were kind enough to bring him back too! This “new” obsession with space travel (by people even richer than I), paranormal activity and general thoughts (and worries) about the future have made many artists fascinated by it all. Some are using it as a tool to raise awareness about climate change or to make us remember that our “world” is just one of many. But some just like to stick with our old favourite theme: love - with a beautiful dusting of modernity. A backdrop of scenery, if you will.
If we go back one year, we will find the release of an upbeat pop number that I just couldn’t allow to be washed away by the sea of new-new-new. It has the unashamed positivity in pop that we so often want, but so rarely get. Pop can be cold, harsh and bleak at times these days. I spoke of Coldplay for a means of comparison and to talk similarity. I am not about to start saying how this week’s artist has copied a famous band, but actually almost the opposite. You see, Vicky Rai released a single (with an accompanying video - more about that very soon) that easily could have been written by Chris Martin of 2021. It has his most recent melodies, chord progressions and relentless positivity. It has his obsession with love and longing. But the thing is, Vicky’s single was released long before anything by Coldplay this year. And it gets weirder. Vicky’s video for the song was released 6 months ago (again, pre Coldplay 2021). It is an extravaganza of heavy graphical wonder, set in the future (or Tokyo at night) with…… Dancing aliens!!! Or robots. You get the idea. Basically, Vicky Rai got there first.
Enough about the megastars. Vicky is yet another artist from Canada (the country seems to breathe art) - this time Toronto - and is just 15 years old. Her vocals are youthful but experienced. She has a voice that can vary depending on what is needed. In general, Vicky Rai can sound like Carly Rae (Jepsen) and even Taylor Swift, but then can launch into Aguilera-like “how the hell did she do that?” vocal runs. The petite singer has the charm and talent to go far, with the advantage of having Grammy-nominated producer Michael Hanson alongside her. The music is tight and succinct - as mainstream pop should be - with the first chorus launching within 30 seconds of the song. It has instant familiarity yet freshness, and retains that positivity that we know and love. A simple pop song is often the best pop song, particularly when produced with such slick style.
I would personally be very interested in working with Vicky on a song in the future - not that we have even spoken about this…! She is one of the most upbeat artists on the New Artist Spotlight, and one of the most involved too, in terms of really understanding and appreciating each and every part of the collective/society/group/cult. Aside from her tremendous talent, this is what draws me towards the idea of making a song together - she’s evidently a lovely, supportive human being. It takes a lot to reach the heights of pop stardom, but I believe that Vicki Rai has a big chance to make it to the stars.
Being as big as Coldplay can be Hotwork.
Listen to 𝙀𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙎𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙡𝙚 𝙉𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 on the 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗹𝘆’𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗿 Spotify playlist HERE!
Listen to 𝙀𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙎𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙡𝙚 𝙉𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 on the 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗹𝘆’𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗿 Apple Music playlist HERE!
Watch the official 𝙀𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙎𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙡𝙚 𝙉𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 video HERE!
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Great job, as always, CC. And I think you really hit the nail on the head: Vicky, despite her youth, gets what most artists don’t: it’s nearly impossible to make it by yourself and on talent alone. I also agree that she has a bright future and you’d probably be a great collaborator!