- “Insane In The Ukraine” has Darrell Kelley Going To War With Russia
Darrell Kelley sounds the battle cry against Vladimir Putin and Russia’s decision to invade the Ukraine region. “Insane In The Ukraine” harks back upon the iconic Cypress Hill title of their hit, “Insane In The Membrane”. Calling out the country, and the man who leads it, for the horrendous war crimes currently being committed on a daily basis inside the former Soviet Union satellite country, he pulls no punches. And this activist artist is not alone. Through several passages in the piece, the American president, Joseph Biden, whose voice is heard intoning the repeated phrase of “Who in the Lord’s name?” which was sampled from one of the USA elected leader’s more recent speeches concerning the Russian invasion.
After last month’s launch of Darrell Kelley’s iconic “Won’t Die For Spotify Remix” had him in a battle to the death with a few music streaming platforms that resulted in him pulling the track from both Spotify and TuneCore, his label, Viral Records, issued the following statement. “Mr. Kelley felt the value of his artistic and spiritual soul far exceeded any amount of money or fame, these two platforms could ever provide for him. We at Viral Records entirely support his decision and commend his integrity in dealing with this freedom of speech issue and artistic control. Even after other such major label artists, like Neil Young who has since backtracked on his decision to remove his entire music catalog from Spotify. Darrell Kelley has, and will continue to, stick to his guns on that dire matter”
This week the “Insane In The Ukraine” single was submitted to all major digital and retail platforms. It’s being distributed globally by his record company to all major digital retailers and streaming platforms on the internet who have heard and joined his battle call against Putin’s tyranny. A North American radio and press campaign was then immediately launched to promote “Insane In The Ukraine” and to get the word out about this travesty and threat to not only human life and property, but to world peace at large and what now looks like the beginning of WWIII. Mainstream Top 40, Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop, and Adult Contemporary format radio stations were serviced with the single. Additional personal appearances will be announced in the coming weeks. To learn more go to www.darrellkelleyofficial.com. An EPK is provided upon request to all members of the media by contacting the representative listed below.
Media Contact:
Stevie B
Mia Mind Music
Phone: 800-843-8575
Email: press@miamindmusic.com
- House Music Legend Robert Owens and Wake Up! Music Announce New Release
Chicago House Music legend Robert Owens along with House Vocalist and Wake Up! Music record label proprietor Pepper Gomez has confirmed the release of “Be Ready” (on the Wake Up! Music record label and distributed globally by ONErpm Distribution) for next Friday, February 11, 2022. Advance copies of the single have already been made available to Mainstream Top 40 and Rhythmic radio broadcasters. Press contacts are currently being serviced with their electronic press kits.
Robert Owens, an American songwriter, record producer, DJ, singer, and all-around musical icon, and Pepper Gomez, vocalist, lyricist, and entrepreneur have united to record and release what they believe to be “a track for the ages…” Along with Larry Heard, Owens made his mark working with the Chicago House group Fingers Inc, and on the seminal house record “Tears” with Frankie Knuckles and Satoshi Tomiie. As a solo artist, he has placed several songs on the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart, two of which hit number-one: “I’ll Be Your Friend” (1992), and “Mine to Give” (2000). More recently Robert has collaborated with an array of producers such as Damian Lazarus, Coldcut, Roy Davis Jr., Marshall Jefferson, Soul Clap, Gina Breeze, Alinka, and Steve Bug amongst a plethora of others on labels from Ninja Tune and Boy Noize through to Circo Loco and HE.SHE.THEY. Robert continues to sing and DJ in all four corners of the world; global pandemic allowing.
Pepper Gomez too, is no stranger to the game. In her twenties, she began recording music and throughout her time has created multiple works of art within lyricism, poetry, and vocals. High notes include charting on Billboard in 1986 with the Master Plan tune “Electric Baile,” as well as Matt Warren’s “Way To My Heart” in 1987. More recently her collaborative vocal and lyrical work has appeared on releases with renowned DJs/Producers Ralphi Rosario and Craig J Snider, in addition to many, many others. At present, Ms. Gomez heads the helm of her own record and publishing companies.
Once “Be Ready” drops on February 11, a lyric video will be viewable on Wake Up! Music Group’s YouTube Channel, and will be available on all streaming platforms. Interviews and/or appearances will be booked later this month for these artists. Additional news updates and other information about upcoming events will be made available at https://www.facebook.com/WakeUpMusicGrp. Members of the media are encouraged to contact the representative listed below for an EPKs, or any other additional information as it becomes available.
Media Contact:
Stevie B
Mia Mind Music
Phone: 800-843-8575
Email: press@miamindmusic.com
- Wake Up Music Rocks! Announce New Coldwards Single Debut January 28th
Wake Up Music Rocks! has confirmed the release of “My Skeletons” by Coldwards (pronounced Cold-Words) for this Friday, January 28, 2022. Coldwards is a four-piece rock band with three family members including drummer Paul Crosby of the Grammy nominated R.I.I.A. Gold and Platinum awarded Saliva. Also in the band are his two sons, Zac, (vocals/all things electronic (i.e.: loops, samples, synths, etc), Sean (vocals/guitar), and close family friend and bass player Richie Hey. Not far removed from the sound of bands like Saliva, this release carries the torch further down the musical landscape and endeavors to break into a new frontier after “Say Something”, their last release from October 29, 2021.
Advance copies of this crossover single have been made available to Modern Rock, Active Rock and Alternative Rock mainstream radio broadcasters. Press contacts are currently being serviced with their electronic press kit. Interviews and/or appearances will be booked later this month for Coldwards. Powerhouse ONErpm will be overseeing the global digital retail distribution for the release. Additional news updates, as well as other information about upcoming events and appearances this year, will be made available at https://www.facebook.com/WakeUpMusicGrp. Members of the media are encouraged to contact the representative listed at the end of this press release for an EPK, or any other additional information as it becomes available.
According to this nu-metal-edged alternative rock band, “My Skeletons” is about dealing with the ghosts of your past, coming to terms that they’re a part of you, trailing over you like a dark cloud, and trying to cope and just make it or fake it to get through the day. Coldwards, a Houston, TX, based outfit has a lot to say, and Wake Up Music Rocks! along with ONErpm distribution has built a structurally sound podium from where these musicians may preach their nu-sound rock gospel.
Media Contact:
Stevie B
Mia Mind Music
Phone: 800-843-8575
Email: press@miamindmusic.com
- Frankie Knuckles Tribute “FK Always” Official Release Date
Wake Up! Music, and The Shamanic (comprised of DJs/Producers Ralphi Rosario and Craig J Snider) is officially releasing their tribute to DJ Frankie Knuckles – “FK Always”, next week on January 18, 2022. It is an especially important anniversary as it marks the birth date of the now-deceased legendary artist. Knuckles was the global Godfather of House music and a longtime friend and mentor to the Shamanic, as well as to hundreds of DJs/Producers worldwide. “FK Always” is a loving homage to him and to the indelible legacy he left that will be passed on for generations to come. The track features actually spoken word commentary by none other than the master himself: Frankie Knuckles. For an insider’s sneak peek take a look at the lyric video provided, courtesy of the Wake Up! Music Group.
Ralphi Rosario created dance/house music history as a member of the world-renowned Chicago HOT MIX FIVE and achieved legendary status with the crossover hit “You Used to Hold Me.” He’s been called upon to remix releases by Beyoncé, The Pussycat Dolls, Kylie Minogue, Lady Gaga, Jo Jonas, Madonna, Mariah Carey, Rihanna, Depeche Mode, Jennifer Lopez, Cher, Ricky Martin, The Ting Tings, Kelly Rowland, Donna Summer, Goldfrapp, and Grammy Nominee Katy Perry. Craig J Snider found success as a producer, arranger, and keyboardist on a string of remix & album productions that have topped Billboard’s dance chart (32 Number One Hits!). United as Shamanic, and working together on “FK Always”, the dynamic duo takes each other’s skills in a new direction.
Frankie will live forever; “FK Always.” As of yesterday, advance copies of the single have been made available to Mainstream Top 40 and Rhythmic radio broadcasters. Press contacts are being serviced with their electronic press kit. Interviews and/or appearances will be booked later this month for The Shamanic. Additional news updates and other information about upcoming events will be made available at https://www.facebook.com/WakeUpMusicGrp. Members of the media are encouraged to contact the representative listed below for an EPK, or any other additional information as it becomes available.
Media Contact:
Stevie B
Mia Mind Music
Phone: 800-843-8575
Email: press@miamindmusic.com
- Tacboy of ET Boys and Rude Minor Collaborate on “Not Around”
The Wake Up! Music label has just announced they’ll be officially releasing a new collaborative EDM effort titled “Not Around” by Tacboy Rude Minor on December 28, 2021. As of today, advance copies of the single have been made available Mainstream Top 40 and Rhythmic radio broadcasters, and press contacts are being serviced with their electronic press kits. Interviews and/or appearances will be booked later this month for Tacboy Rude Minor. Added news updates and other information about upcoming events may be found at https://www.facebook.com/WakeUpMusicGrp. Press kits will be provided to members of the media by contacting the representative listed below.
Tacboy, son of House vocalist Pepper Gomez, an IMG signed model, and singer/lyricist for the ET Boys, made his solo and group debuts in 2021. His first release was with his mother on a Nu House track called, “Oh My Heart”. It went on to achieve 6 figure streaming numbers, radio play and landed on numerous radio charts. The ET Boys were next to launch. The duo of Sharkeyes and Tacboy released 4 singles to critical acclaim, impressive streaming stats and strong reviews. From the first release called, “Sober” to the most recent, “Long Night,” which was the #1 add on the NACC Top Hip Hop Adds charts this December, fans have been discovering and supporting their music. One cannot overlook the importance and visual depth of the videos created by Domonick Giorgianni that were based on the releases. Even the lyric videos by @abueloretrowave of Mexico have the ET Boys signature love of pixels which brings you to some of the flavor of things they love besides music.
On this release, “Not Around”, Tacboy collaborates with another young artist, Rude Minor. Similar to Tacboy, Rude’s father has been in the industry as a DJ, Producer for 40 years. When Gomez and Wake Up! Music suggested the two gorgeously sexy Latinos collaborate, the response was positive. Yet, none of them could have ever imagined that the two would work so well together. “Not Around” is an anthem track built on EDM/Hip-Pop. The voices of both Tacboy and Rude, complement one another and make you want to listen to more and more. The music created by Rude is the perfect backdrop for what they have created both lyrically and vocally. No doubt as reviewers have noted, these young artists are on a fast track and setting themselves up for a lifetime in the industry.
Media Contact:
Stevie B
Mia Mind Music
Phone: 800-843-8575
Email: press@miamindmusic.com
- Stryker Records Artist Drew Lines “Rise” On Radio Charts
Currently the single, “Rise”, featuring Clio Cadence, has been impacting radio charts throughout the US and Canada. It was the #3 most added release for hip-hop stations the week of August 2, 2021, and has so far peaked at #18 on the NACC national hip-hop airplay charts, #483 on the national un-weighted, and #812 on the weighted College Radio charts. With these indicator broadcasters behind it, the next intended target is Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Billboard and Mediabase charts.
Drew, from Green Bay, WI, started writing by the age of 13. While at a boy’s prison, he would write poems and send them home. He has created over 500 poems, some of which have been published. Amongst the published writings, a poem titled “Rose,” caught the attention of The International Poets Society, resulting in a first-place award. Drew and his older brother started a group they called “The Brotherhood.” Quickly gaining momentum after their debut album, their popularity grew, and soon the duo of brothers had found themselves working with Rick Ross’s Label, FMG as well as Glance Conway, and Project Pat of Three 6 Mafia. They continued to work with Solomon Childs of Wu-Tang and started creating songs for other artists.
Drew Lines, the newest added member to the Stryker Records family, is now wrapping up work on a soon-to-be-released debut album in conjunction with multi-platinum producer Malcolm Springer and Award-winning producer Scott Wilson at the House of Blue Studio in Nashville.
He is now available for interviews and/or appearances. News updates, activities, and other information about upcoming events may be found at: http://www.strykerrecords.com/DL/DL and you may also take a quick listen to “Rise” here: https://youtu.be/w6Mb6bTjSiQ
Press kits will be provided upon request to members of the media by contacting the representative below.
Media Contact:
Stevie B
Mia Mind Music
Phone: 800-843-8575
Email: press@miamindmusic.com
- “Sober” by ET Boys on Wake Up! Music
House vocalist, Pepper Gomez of Wake Up! Music announces that the much anticipated first release by the new band, the ET Boys, called “Sober” is out June 25, 2021. Pepper notes, “I’ve been waiting for a Nu Pop act to sign to the Label but little did I know it would come from my own sons.”
The ET Boys from SoFlo are the brothers Tacboy and Sharkeyes. Sharkeyes creates all the music for the tracks while Tacboy takes lead on the vocals and lyrics. “These sounds cannot be forced into creation but rather are born from the bonds of brotherhood,” states Sharkeyes. This is a synergy that comes from growing up together in a home where dancers, musicians and music of all genres were welcome. What the brothers create as a duo is their own unique sound which has been described with various genre influences including melodic rap but is best described as the ET Boys Nu Pop sound.
“Sober”, their first release, tells a story which is visually and dramatically supported by the high intensity video which accompanies the track. Domonick Giorgianni, video creator, said, “The ET Boys were a dream to work with – super talented dudes who came in early and ready to work. Get ready to have your minds blown.” The “Sober” video is an excellent and visually beautiful introduction to the ET Boys. As we follow the video’s storyline and music, we feel both the struggle of the main character and the driving force of the music which ultimately can save him. A future release entitled, “Long Night” will tie together the two videos in the life of the brothers.
“From their music to the videos, the ET Boys are clearly making their own art and set to make their special mark on the world, “states Pepper Gomez. Tacboy, a signed IMG model, is already being compared to Jim Morrison in looks, vocal fluidity and lyrical production. In this analogy, Sharkeyes is the Ray Manzarek of the team with his formal studies in piano and drums from which he pulls to create and elevate his tracks, not to mention with over 100 tracks in the vaults for future releases.
There has never been anything like the ET Boys and “Sober” is starting off as strong as it gets as it hits the airwaves June, 25, 2021. Signed to Wake Up! Music and with distribution by ONErpm, the summer sounds of nu and indie pop are here. The ET Boys – lighting up your summer and moving in for life!
Interviews and/or appearances will be booked later this month for the ET Boys. Added news updates and other information about upcoming events may be found at https://www.facebook.com/WakeUpMusicGrp. Press kits will be provided upon request to members of the media by contacting the representative listed below:
Media Contact:
Stevie B
Mia Mind Music
Phone: 800-843-8575
Email: press@miamindmusic.com
- An Interview with Stevie B, Mia Mind Music
Tell us a bit about the career path that led to where you are now.
At fifteen, I dropped out of high school, got a part in a TV soap opera for about a year (until they killed off my character in a motorcycle accident), then went on a European tour with Richie Havens (remember him from Woodstock?), got signed as a recording artist to Decca Records when I was 16 and worked on side with them as a talent scout and as an in-house composer with Chappell publishing, got dropped so took the GED and attended NYC’s Hunter College where through internships I worked with Benny Goodman, Stéphane Grappelli, Bucky Pizzarelli, Cab Calloway, August Darnell (aka Kid Creole) and ultimately wound up at the Polygram Music Group interning for Stephan Pritchitt, who was a great mentor and eventually one of my Mia Mind Music business partners, then over the years produced records for weird people like Madonna, and held the position known as The Resident Bastard running the day-to-day operations of Mia Mind Music for the past 35 years.
Why does college/community radio matter in today’s fragmented environment?
Non-commercial radio levels the playing field for new artists, most who possess more talent than they have major label backing. The broad programming formats provided at most non-commercial stations, as well as their freedom of not having to answer to advertisers and stockholders, maybe just allows them to experiment more freely and push the artistic envelope further. So many acts, such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers, owe their careers to non-comm. Commercial radio is more narrowly formatted and is no longer concerned with artistic development as they once were in the past. They’re now focused only on artists who have already built a large following (usually through the backing of major label resources) and incorporating that following as a method of increasing the station’s audience and market share.
What is your favorite experience you’ve had in your career? Perhaps a musical idol you got to meet? A festival you were able to attend? A project you were involved with promoting?
Having Benny Goodman throw a plate of sandwiches at my head because he didn’t like how they were arranged and Stéphane Grappelli taking me aside to tell me not to worry about what Benny just did, then sharing a secret: Benny was in the final stages of cancer and was in constant pain, which helped me to understand his often erratic behavior. Richie Havens teaching me open tunings for the guitar. Madonna sending a Christmas card which simply said “All I Want For Xmas Is A Chainsaw”.
What band/artist outside the realm of college/community radio would people be surprised to hear you love?
Beside the ones I’ve already mentioned I’m a sucker for Bach.
What job do you think you would you be doing if you weren’t a promoter?
Since I wasted several years of my life earning a degree in clinical psychology I’d have to be crazy to try my hand at anything else other than as a practicing shrink. But if I had instead done that for a living, I’d probably be wearing a straightjacket and bouncing off the padded walls of Bellevue Hospital today.
What destination would you most like to visit and why?
I now work and love living in Hoboken, NJ, which I’ve nicknamed as “Hobohemia”. I’ve traveled so much of the world during my touring career, which averaged about 300 days a year on the road, so there are few places I haven’t already seen. Hobohemia has the combined vibe of an artist community, like Greenwich Village circa 1960s, and Mayberry, the setting of a fictional small town in an old TV series called The Andy Griffith Show. When people ask where I’d like to go for a vacation I always reply Hobohemia. Maybe one day I’ll even be inspired to write an epic anthem about my little town titled “Hobohemian Rhapsody”.
You just won a million dollars. What are you going to do with it?
Give it away to Wikipedia, my local library, and our local shelter. These are the 3 things I’ve constantly found fulfillment in, and use of, during my lifetime. I find no joy in receiving anything that I haven’t earned from the sweat of my own labor, which is why I don’t gamble for pleasure. It’s just the way my brain’s wired. Maybe I really am ready for that straightjacket.
What is/are your current favorite TV obsession(s)? What was your favorite movie of 2018 so far?
Netflix’s “Black Mirror”, FX’s “American Horror Story” and CW’s “iZombie” are my jams for TV. So far I really don’t have a favorite 2018 movie, but we still have 5 more months in the year to go, so who knows?
When friends come to town, what is your favorite restaurant you take them to?
Without a doubt it would be Court Street. It’s gastronomically pleasing to the palate, aesthetically pleasing to the eye and the staff’s the coolest of the cool. Hey, it’s Court Street, damn it!
You’re stranded on a desert island. What five well known people (dead or alive) would you like to have there with you?
Without a doubt I’d like Dr. Linus Pauling, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Dr. Sigmund Freud, Dr. Seuss, and Dr. Dolittle there with me. One to take care of my body, the second for my soul, the other for my mind, another for my entertainment, and the last one to talk to any animals on the island with me. My philosophy is that if you’re stranded on an island then you can’t have too many doctors to care for you. Alright, I’ve got to end it here because those little men in the white suits with the butterfly nets are here to measure me for that straightjacket…
Read this interview on the NACC web site
