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Ryan Montano - Dreamer


Ryan Montano is a musician, trumpet player, piano player, and songwriter, which is currently his biggest musical passion. He's always striving to write songs that are honest, well-written and well-produced. His biggest musical influences come from the genres of soul and singer-songwriter. June Marieezy, John Mayer, Allen Stone, Jim Croce, Norah Jones, Tingsek, Justin Timberlake, Citizen Cope, Lukas Graham, Jamie Cullum, Nicholas Payton and The Association.

 

We think you and your listeners will dig Ryan's new radio single, "Dreamer".

Greg Manning - Come On Over


Greg Manning celebrates the end of summer with an uptempo party song, "Come On Over". This feel-good track invites you to come on over to the house and let your hair down. The funky tune has Carlyle Barriteau (formerly of Bobby Caldwell's band) on guitar, weaving an enticing groove over Greg's distinctive piano styling and sophisticated jazz chords.


We hope that you'll be singing the catchy hook of "Come On Over" through the end of summer and beyond!

dark satellite · the modern illusion


Paul Curtiz embarks on the improbable journey of writing, recording and mixing a new music album with his musical accomplice Denis Moulin. “Liner Notes” is a gloriously self-deprecating inside story about two musicians taking on a project that’s probably too big for both of them. From early enthusiasm to long periods of procrastination and endless tweaking to its eventual completion, Paul Curtiz takes us along for the ride, as they stoically navigate the muddy waters of what’s left of the music industry in the 21st century.

https://darksatellitemusic.bandcamp.com/

Kaiak · Caught Up In You

Kaiak is a collaborative duo based in Sweden, comprised of musicians Marcos Ubeda (keyboards, producer, songwriter, all backing vocals) and Emil Gullhamn (lead vocals, guitar, songwriter). Deep in the forests of the Swedish countryside, Kaiak makes music that’s equal parts jazz club, soft rock and indie. Kaiak’s music is, first and foremost, art intended to reveal deep and soothing feelings. The plan is to continue the music’s evolution, keep focused on what the group does best, and build a global fanbase. This is emotional, hook-filled, and melodic music with substance.

Kaiak's latest track, "Caught Up In You," featuring smooth jazz guitar legend Peter White, is a feel-good anthem that blends the carefree vibes of Yacht Rock with the nostalgic charm of The Beach Boys' "Good Vibrations." Currently topping the Billboard Contemporary Jazz chart with "Sunshine Yellow," Peter White's masterful guitar play adds an irresistible touch to this breezy, cruising tune. Don't miss out on this perfect soundtrack for your endless summer days!


Darnell 'Showcase' Taylor · Nights In Napa ft. Patches Stewart


Darnell "Showcase" Taylor is an American guitarist, songwriter, producer and engineer. Beginning at the age of twelve, Taylor's pursuit of guitar started in the church and he has now been playing for over 20 years. In 2009 he executively produced his first gospel project for Marshetta Parker which led him to launch his own record company, Turning Point Music Group.


Darnell "Showcase" Taylor sets the stage for a career as an innovative creative artist. His new single is "Nights In Napa", featuring Patches Stewart.

The Lao Tizer Band · Amplify

Colorado-bred, LA-based keyboardist Lao Tizer embodies what it means to be a 21st-century musician inhabiting the jazz sphere - that being one who embraces musical diversity and has no fear of crossing boundaries.

But Tizer also happens to come by this naturally. As the self-described “child of East Coast Jewish hippies,” he was exposed to and was influenced by his parents' extensive musical tastes from a young age:

“My dad had a huge music collection. He loved classical music and had all this world music - Ravi Shankar, R. Carlos Nakai, music of the Sufis - plus my parents were boomers, so that brought in all the Buddy Holly, Sam Cooke, Elvis, Janis Joplin, and Motown. The Temptations were my favorite band as a kid. So, I basically grew up with everything but jazz, which I didn’t really discover until I was about 16.”

It was a couple of seemingly random selections from the Columbia House mail-order club that turned him toward a new and lasting musical direction.

”It was buy one, get twelve free, right? So I ordered Miles Davis’s Kind of Blue and Miles & Quincy Live at Montreux. Then one Sunday morning, it all just kind of hit me. To a lot of people trained in the classical tradition, jazz sounds like it breaks all kinds of rules, but I just heard there was a whole other world to explore there.”

From there, Tizer hit the ground running, applying his classical piano skills to jazz and releasing his first self-produced solo keyboard albums while still in high school. After graduating from Boulder High, Tizer moved to LA and studied with legendary piano guru Terry Trotter for about two years, forgoing formal music education.

“Instead of going to music school, I just got my butt kicked on the bandstand. I was always working with musicians who were older and more experienced. School’s great but there’s no better way to grow than playing with people who are going to push you to grow. I was so green, man. Learning to play in a band concept - playing in good time with a rhythm section–was one of the most challenging things, coming from being a solo pianist.”

But his approach and talents served him well. At 19, he formed and led the first band under his own name, taking indirect inspiration from another iconic jazz entity.

“When I got into listening to The Pat Metheny Group in the late ‘90s, they had that “formula” that definitely spoke to me - great, through-composed music with a lot of room for improvisation. That’s the formula that I love”.

In the ensuing years and through various incarnations, The Lao Tizer Band has flown by that directional compass while infusing the bespoke influences and experiences that inform Tizer’s musical worldview.

Subsequently, the band attracted many top players to its ranks - GRAMMY-winning saxophonist Eric Marienthal (Chick Corea), Emmy-winning guitarist Chieli Minucci (Special EFX), Senegalese bassist Cheikh N'Doye (Baaba Maal), violinist extraordinaire Karen Briggs (Stanley Clarke), GRAMMY-winning drum phenom Gene Coye (Hiromi) and legendary GRAMMY-winning percussionist Munyungo Jackson (Stevie Wonder) - and became a steady presence at LA hotspots like The Baked Potato as well as entertaining audiences at premier jazz festivals around the world. Milestones among these were The Hollywood Bowl Jazz Festival, Cape Town Jazz Festival, Java Jazz Festival, and Atlanta Jazz Festival.

The six albums he has released as a leader have seen Tizer steadily grow while constantly defining (and redefining) who he is as a keyboardist, composer, and bandleader.

“I think the most important thing as an artist and composer is to have your own identity and your own sound. Everybody comes to where they are in music through whatever path they have followed and I think staying true to what brought you to where you are now helps to create your own true voice. I think I have always had that.”

But not content to rest, Tizer recently decided to take another bold turn with his music. In 2018, The Lao Tizer Band released Songs From The Swinghouse, a project that included fresh, sophisticated takes on a number of vocal-oriented covers from seminal artists such as U2, Led Zeppelin, and Cat Stevens along with a collection of seven original instrumentals penned by Tizer. The album was released to critical acclaim and notched the Top 10 on the Billboard Contemporary Jazz album chart.

“We were always only instrumental until that record. The concept was to reinvent covers like ‘Ramble On,’ ‘Pride in the Name of Love,’ and ‘Sad Lisa.’ I had never arranged or recorded any vocal material with my group before, so to take those tunes and make them our own was really fun.”

Now, with his forthcoming album, Amplify, Tizer ups the ante by bringing original vocal-oriented songs into his mix of smart instrumentals - as well as a few potent new additions to the band.

“A big part of the concept for Amplify is to cross over. It’s not really a “jazz” record but it definitely has jazz elements, no question. The band still features the core lineup we’ve had for a while now with Eric, Chieli, Karen, Munyungo, Gene, and Cheikh, but now there are a few new faces involved in the group. Namely saxophone and flute wunderkind Danny Janklow (MONKestra) and Rolling Stone 2022 ”Bassist of the Year” nominee Anthony Crawford (Erykah Badu), who shares low-end duties with Cheikh. We augmented our already large band with a horn section and background singers on a few songs as well. The album is nine songs - five vocal, four instrumental - all original, no covers.”

But perhaps Tizer’s most intriguing choice of secret weapon for Amplify is bringing American Idol star Elliott Yamin to handle the vocal material.

“Elliott’s first album had that platinum hit single “Wait For You.” He’s very much a throwback to a blue-eyed soul kind of vibe and it was amazing to be able to bring him into the band. This project was a little outside his stylistic wheelhouse because it is a bit more adventurous harmonically. I think he was a little intimidated by the music early on but he’s such a remarkably gifted singer and he’s just singing his butt off. He’s turned out to be unbelievable in this project and the band. He’s super gung-ho about it too, which is great. I couldn’t have asked for a better fit!”

With these continuing steps over boundaries into new stylistic territory, one might wonder if Tizer has any trepidation about alienating the core base of jazz listeners he’s built up over time. Quite the contrary, it seems.

“I love that longstanding boundaries in music are getting broken down. Artists like Snarky Puppy, Robert Glasper, and Kamasi Washington have proven this theory that I’ve long held: If you have music that’s melodic and grooves, you can win over a very broad array of listeners.”

Indeed, Tizer testifies to having seen the evidence firsthand. “There’s been a really cool renaissance and rebirth with all these genre-defying artists and I’ve seen a shift in the crowd at our shows too. There’s a lot of 20 and 30-somethings coming out, and that’s so cool. That’s what the future audience is going to be. If we want to have long careers like our predecessors, we need to have our peers and younger listeners connect to this music and follow it.”

With eyes set on the future and a willingness to keep exploring, Tizer’s simplest ethos perhaps sums it up best: “I say forget the boundaries. Just make good music and try to connect with as many listeners as you can.”


John Carey & David margam · Smile

Two International Smooth Jazz Masters Shine with Their New Single 'Smile' Get ready to be carried away by the magic of «Smile», the new single that unites two smooth jazz titans in a unique fusion of guitars that speak to the soul. This piece is more than just music; it is a celebration of the joy of living, a reminder that life is full of precious moments that deserve to be enjoyed. Allow yourself to smile, relax and connect with the best the world has to offer as you immerse yourself in the soft melodies of "Smile".

"The Cultural Fusion of John Carey and David Margam: 'Smile', a Hymn to Smooth Jazz that Unites Chicago (USA) and Granada (ESP)" «Smile» is the new single that marks a milestone in the world of smooth jazz, bringing together two international figures of great renown: John Carey, the virtuoso guitarist from Chicago, and David Margam, the Spanish guitar master. Both artists, with an impressive career and global recognition, have combined their talent and experience to create a musical piece that radiates freshness, elegance and joy.

Accompanied by the mastery of Jorge Pinelo on the saxophone and Nathaniel Scott on the drums, «Smile» becomes a jewel of smooth jazz, a perfect fusion of cultures and styles that invites us to enjoy life and its most pleasant moments. This single is not only a sample of the talent of these titans, but also a celebration of music as a universal language that unites hearts and cultures.

Brian Lenair · Smooth Sailin'


National recording artist Brian Lenair is a Washington D.C. based contemporary Jazz saxophonist that can blow with the best of them. Lenair truly believes that hidden in the notes, harmonies, and compositions, are the answers and the bridges between what we see and what we seek for our lives. He has been taught that music gives us meaning and purpose. It is one of mankind’s sources of love, truth, imagination, reflection and discovery. It articulates hope and freedom.

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