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LIVE NATION’S ‘ONES TO WATCH’ MAKES DARWIN DEBUT

Maria Predavec News 10/07/202410/07/2024Beehive pr, Black Of Hearts, Music, One To Watch

LIVE NATION’S

‘ONES TO WATCH’

MAKES DARWIN DEBUT

Returning for their second showcase of 2024, Live Nation Australia’s ‘Ones To Watch’ program will be making its Darwin debut on Thursday, August 8th. Off the back of a highly successful jaunt in Sydney earlier this year, the ‘Ones To Watch’ program heads up north, with support from MusicNT & the Regional & Remote Music Summit.

Expected to get local, national & international heads turning, the event will host three of the top end’s finest acts, with brothers Yung Milla & J Milla set to appear alongside singer & songwriter Juran.

Top End’s rising hip-hop truth teller Yung Milla will perform off the back of a successful Barunga Festival, where Yung Milla ignited a sea of 5,000 new fans with his spectacular backflipping stage presence and sharp wordplay. Singles ‘Land Down Under’ & ‘Lose Control’ follow a slow-burning trilogy of potent tracks from Yung Milla, including: ‘Daily’, ‘Better Days’ and ‘Used To Be’. His righteous path has just begun, seeing early support from the likes of triple j and triple j Unearthed, along with his recent NT Music Awards nomination for “Best Hip Hop song” in 2022.

Rising hip-hop star J-MILLA is set to light up the ‘Ones To Watch’ stage. Over the last 12 months he has made appearances at festivals such as Field Day, St Kilda Festival, Perth Festival, Barunga Festival and Bass In The Grass; was selected as the feature artist for Triple J Unearthed during Naidoc Week 2023 and has recently been selected as a finalist for Acclaim’s coveted All Stars list for 2024. He has previously won 2x NT Music Awards, as well as the NIMA Archie Roach Foundation Award (2021) and has seen significant support from DSP’s, with over 4 million total streams across platforms.

Juran, a soulful artist from Tropical Darwin, blends inventiveness with captivating allure , exploring themes of love and the human psyche. In 2023, she collaborated with top Northern Territory musicians and co-created the award-winning show “Manifesto of Salt Water Women.” Now, with her debut album “Demons” set for release in 2024, Juran’s journey of self-discovery continues. Juran’s versatility extends beyond solo work; she’s a guitarist for the punk band ‘Mr Chrisy Mertas’ and part of the upcoming hip-hop duo ‘Clink’ with Caiti Baker. Collaborations with NT-based talents like Yirrmal and Emily Wurramara further highlight her as a rising star.

The ONES TO WATCH Backed By VODAFONE series has made a solid impact within the Australian music community. Throughout 2023, the series provided industry and fans the exclusive opportunity to see some of the country’s best talent perform in intimate environments across Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane, highlighting the talent of the current wave of Australian talent primed to make their impact in other markets.

“It has been a long-awaited moment, and we are thrilled to introduce Live Nation’s ‘Ones to Watch’ to Darwin. This event will showcase some of the finest local talent, poised to make a significant impact on the domestic music scene.” Paul Lynch. Live Nation Australia

The Summit Program will present research, panel sessions, case studies, keynotes and workshops that respond to number of broad themes, including: Place, Storytelling, and Culture; Regional and Remote Live Music and Festivals; Adapting to the Climate Crisis; Understanding Audiences; The Importance of Safe Spaces; Skills Gaps and Building Capacity; and Policy and Investment. The event makes space for the 7 million Australians existing outside of the metropolitan music industry who need their voices heard.

Since its establishment in North America, the ONES TO WATCH series has been able to support and promote artists such as Dua Lipa, Olivia Rodrigo and Halsey early in their careers. So far in Australia, ONES TO WATCH has platformed artists including Blake Rose, Sophisticated Dingo, STUMPS, Forest Claudette, Teenage Joans, Carla Wehbe, ZPLUTO, WIIGZ, Hoodzy, East AV3, Colourblind and Saint Lane at events around the country.

LIVE NATION’S ‘ONES TO WATCH’ DARWIN

Thursday, August 8th Bustard Town Darwin

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J-MILLA RETURN WITH NEW SINGLE AND VIDEO ‘BOOMERANG’

Maria Predavec News 09/07/2024Beehive pr, Black Of Hearts, J-Milla, Music

J-MILLA

RETURN WITH NEW SINGLE AND VIDEO ‘BOOMERANG’

Having enjoyed a milestone year of successes in 2023 off the back of singles ‘Gammon’ and ‘On My Soul’, not to mention powerhouse performances at BIGSOUND and on stages around the country, rising hip-hop star J-MILLA is back with a new joint in ‘BOOMERANG’.

The fresh music from the Marranungu artist provides another unique insight into his artistry, as his lyricism continues to show maturity and raw intensity. On ‘Boomerang’, J-MILLA flexes his lyrical prowess on every bar – with relentless energy that never wavers, weaving between hard-hitting verses and infectious hooks with ease. Thematically, ‘Boomerang’ is about cause and effect; the concept of karma – an ideal that J-MILLA wholeheartedly believes in. Incorporating traditional indigenous instrumentation along with language and Aboriginal slang, the creation of this song is one that J-MILLA counts as one of his favourite projects to date.

“As soon as I heard the instrumental, I came up with the line, “What goes around comes around like a boomerang”. This gave me inspiration on writing the rest of the song based on the effect of Karma, which leads to the motion of a boomerang when it’s thrown. What we release into the universe is what we eventually get back. Recording the song was second nature to me, everything went very well from the moment I pressed record.” J-MILLA

For ‘Boomerang’ J-MILLA collaborated with the Central Australian Aboriginal Women’s Choir (CAAWC), whose beautiful voices can be heard performing in language on the track. The language is taken from the song titled ‘Mayatja altimani mununi minala’, originally written by Tony Campbell of the Mimili Gospel Singers, recorded by the CAAWC the song in Germany back in 2015, where it was then included on their first album, Boomerang Tour Ansbach Live.

Sampled by J-MILLA here, the ethereal choir fuses with the contemporary production and J-MILLA’s rhymes in a striking way. Of using the CAAWC on this single, J-MILLA explains, “I always wanted some sort of cultural interest as an intro to the song. I was inspired by a movie called High Grounds, when I was seeking cultural elements for my music. As I was sourcing it I came across the CAAWC and knew straight away I needed something from them. I love their sound and the melodies they come up with. These ladies are something else, definitely national treasures. Their sample really starts the track off strong and brings a unique feature that contrasts extremely well with my vibe.”

For the ‘Boomerang’ music video, J-MILLA worked with director Tully Hemsley in Darwin to capture the energy of the track in an intimate and personal way, bringing together home video-style footage with spanning shots of J-MILLA and his friends on their home turf.

“This clip has me go back to my roots in Darwin. The scenes are set in locations where I played as a kid, and those guys are my bruthas and cousins that still live there. That man at the end with the boomerang; that’s my dad. I also wanted to put a modern lens on the cultural elements i and I feel I’ve done that in a fun way.”

J-MILLA

J-MILLA has been busy of late, to say the least. Over the last 12 months he has made appearances at festivals such as Field Day, St Kilda Festival, Perth Festival, Barunga Festival and Bass In The Grass; was selected as the feature artist for Triple J Unearthed during Naidoc Week 2023 and has recently been selected as a finalist for Acclaim’s coveted All Stars list for 2024.

The second half of the year is full of touchstone moments for J-MILLA, with appearances at lucrative festivals and events set to solidify his place as an Australian artist to eye. September and October will see J-MILLA bring that D-town flavour to Brisbane’s BIGSOUND festival and SXSW Sydney.

He has previously won 2x NT Music Awards, as well as the NIMA Archie Roach Foundation Award (2021) and has seen significant support from DSPS, with over 4m+ total streams across platforms.

UPCOMING SHOWS

Thursday, August 8th Live Nation’s Ones To Watch – Bustard Town Darwin NT

TICKETS

Wednesday, July 31st Clancestry Festival – QPAQ Concert Hall Brisbane, QLD

Warriors concert feat. Andrew Gurruwiwi Band, Jungaji, Radical Son TICKETS

September 3 – 6 BIGSOUND 2024 Brisbane, QLD

J-MILLA x Yung Milla – SAME BLOOD showcase TICKETS

October 14 – 18 SXSW 2024 Sydney, NSW

J-MILLA x Yung Milla – SAME BLOOD showcase INFO

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FRANK TURNER RELEASES NEW SINGLE ‘LETTERS’

Maria Predavec News 27/03/2024Beehive pr, Black Of Hearts, Frank Turner

FRANK TURNER

RELEASES NEW SINGLE

‘LETTERS’

new album ‘UNDEFEATED’ to be released on May 3rd

via Xtra Mile Recordings

Frank Turner has just released a brand new single ‘Letters’, the latest track following ‘Girl From The Record Shop’, ‘No Thank You For The Music’ and ‘Do One’ to be taken from his tenth album ‘Undefeated’, out May 3rd via Xtra Mile Recordings. On the single he says, “‘Letters’ is a song that I’ve been working on for a long time; in some ways I’ve been writing it since a genuine pen-friendship of mine dried up when I was a kid, when the mix-tapes stopped coming through the post. It’s a song about communication and its breakdown, about nostalgia for teenage romance, and about how reassessing those things as an adult can be the start of a healing process.”

“Now I’m surprised to report that as I enter my forties, I’ve returned to being an angry man,” he sings on the recent track ‘No Thank You For The Music’. And that’s a concise statement as to what to expect from ‘Undefeated’, Frank’s follow-up to his first UK #1 album, 2022’s ‘FTHC’. Finding the sweet spot between youthful outspokenness and surviving midlife’s challenges, it’s a record that explores both emotionally compelling topics and lighter reflections on those troubles that eventually come to most of us. Who you are versus who you wanted to be in your youth; life-altering love; fading friendships; wistful nostalgia; the mental fallout and political consequences that still linger from the pandemic era and the more prosaic issue of persistent backache.

Frank says, “There are no clichés about the difficult 10th album, so in some ways, that’s a liberating statement. But at the same time, I have a duty to justify writing and releasing a 10th album. That’s a lot of records for anybody. Also, I’m 42. Which is not a sexy, rock’n’roll age. But all through my career, I’ve been interested in writers like Loudon Wainwright III or The Hold Steady, people who write about adulthood, essentially.”

While thematically ‘Undefeated’ is informed by this time in life, sonically it’s full of echoes to influences that Frank has touched upon at various moments in his kaleidoscopic career. It switches from Black Flag to Counting Crows, from Descendents to The Pogues, via Elvis Costello and Billy Bragg. Its freewheeling nature is reflective not only of his new-found independence, but also of the creative environment he found himself in. As usual, it was entirely written by himself, but this is the first album that he produced himself, recorded in the home studio that he and his wife, Jessica Guise, share on Mersea Island, Essex. It features his live band: Ben Lloyd (guitar), Tarrant Anderson (bass), Callum Green (drums) and Matt Nasir (piano).

The release of ‘Undefeated’ will of course see this punk-rock road-warrior tour with the tenacity and intense schedules that he’s renowned for (such as the sprawling 50 States in 50 Days North American tour) but with even bigger ambitions that will be revealed in due course as he nears his 3000th gig. But for now, anticipate the new album: a typically energizing, literate, playful and provocative set from a musician who remains ‘Undefeated’ after a quarter-of-a-century in the game.

UNDEFEATED

‘Do One’

‘Never Mind The Back Problems’

‘Ceasefire’

‘Girl From The Record Shop’

‘Pandemic PTSD’

‘Letters’

‘East Finchley’

‘No Thank You For The Music’

‘The Leaders’

‘International Hide and Seek Champions’

‘Show People’
‘On My Way’
‘Somewhere In between’
‘Undefeated’

“Letters” out now!

PRAISE FOR FRANK TURNER

“Frank Turner goes back to hardcore and a whole lot more on superb ninth album, FTHC.”

KERRANG! ****

“Incredibly powerful”

NPR MUSIC

“Who better than Frank Turner to underscore the imminent joy of reconnecting with others?

Generally, this sort of earnestness can be wearying, but Turner succeeds because he sounds

like he’s just stomped out of a stuffy meeting to go yell on a street corner, frantic with

Euphoria.”

THE NEW YORK TIMES

“‘The Gathering’ is appropriately arena-sized from the start as Turner bellows over booming

drums and towering glam rock riffs. The track ends with Isbell unleashing the mightiest guitar

solo he can muster.”

ROLLING STONE (US)

“Stepping away from the more folk sounds of his last few albums, Frank and his band bring

back the fast-paced punk tunes that make you want to stand on a table and sing along.”

PEOPLE MAGAZINE

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J-MILLA RETURNS WITH NEW SINGLE ‘ON MY SOUL’

Maria Predavec News 13/09/2023Beehive pr, Black Of Hearts, J-Milla

J-MILLA RETURNS WITH NEW SINGLE ‘ON MY SOUL’

BREAKTHROUGH HIP HOP FIREBRAND SET TO APPEAR AT BIGSOUND 2023 AND FIELD DAY 2024

Easily one of Australian hip hop’s most dynamic new names, J-MILLA has harnessed the momentum generated off the back of a busy two years and has poured it into his strongest material to date with the release of new track, ‘On My Soul’.

Released in the lead up to his anticipated appearance at BIGSOUND this year, ‘On My Soul’ is a moment of elevation and evolution from the young musician and lyricist.

Its release also adds another layer of accomplishment to what an incredible year for J-MILLA has been; one that has included industry acclaim and a historic performance on Wadeye during Reconciliation Week 2023, the first of its kind to be live streamed via TikTok.

A huge achievement by J-MILLA, the dedicated TikTok live stream event, produced in conjunction with iHeart Radio, was the first digitally live streamed concert out of a remote Indigenous community, attracting over 689k users engaging with the event throughout its duration.

Recording ‘On My Soul’ in Adelaide, J-MILLA linked up with composer and musician Nick Wales (Sarah Blasko, NGAIIRE, Sydney Dance Company) to deliver the string arrangement we hear on the track, performed by Wales and talented violinist Veronique Serret (Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Bangarra, AIR Award winner for best independent classical album). With final mixing and mastering completed by Prospeks, ‘On My Soul’ demonstrates J-MILLA’s continued shows of versatility as an artist and wordsmith.

Following on from the single ‘NICEST’ earlier in 2023, ‘On My Soul’ feels like a confident step forward for the artist, originally hailing from Darwin. A proper taste of things still to come.

“I’m really pleased with it, it shows my deeper side, my lyrical side – adds depth to my range, so while I still love the club bangas, I always will have room in my set for the more dramatic moments and this is one of them.”

“It tells a snippet of the story of my life, from where I started to where I am now and how my values have changed and evolved. It speaks of the importance of being authentic and having integrity because everything you do imprints your soul and you wear that stuff, that energy, so I want my energy to shine with good vibes.”

J-MILLA

Single Artwork: Poppy Radbone

Since his breakout with the powerful track ‘Unlock The System’, J-MILLA’s profile has risen considerably on the radars of tastemakers and fans around the country.

A consistent string of strong tracks in the years that followed showed J-MILLA’s prowess. These included the absolute vibe in ‘FRESH’ and ‘60K+’ in 2020, and in 2022 ‘Ball and Chain’, a collaboration with Xavier Rudd that earned J-MILLA a National Indigenous Music Award nomination.

As a live performer, J-MILLA’s chops have sharpened courtesy of a series of well-received performances on lucrative stages including the Adelaide Festival, Darwin Festival and Groovin The Moo. He also shone on stages shared with the likes of Ziggy Ramo and JK-47, as well as attracting the attention of BIGSOUND, landing on their BIGSOUND50 list in 2020. Now set to return to BIGSOUND in 2023, J-MILLA is ready to showcase his new show and creative vision moving forward.

“I was handpicked for the Bigsound50 back in 2020 so to finally arrive and showcase is mad. It’s now 2023 and during the three years since I’ve been working my show out on remote Aboriginal communities around the country and am pumped to perform for the industry and show them what I’m about.

I can’t wait to connect with the people on-the-ground at BIGSOUND and bring our energies to a new level.”

J-MILLA

TOUR DATES

Wednesday 6th September BIGSOUND Brightside Outdoors Brisbane, QLD

Thursday 7th September BIGSOUND Wonderland Brisbane, QLD

Saturday 4th November Yidiyi Day Wadeye, NT

Saturday 18th November Giiyong Festival Eden, NSW

Saturday 11th November CLANCESTRY, Mob Music Stage QPAC – Brisbane

Mon January 1st FIELD DAY Sydney, NSW

PRAISE FOR J-MILLA

“the piano melody and gentle vocals might soften the production, but J-MILLA’s uncompromising bars are as honest and gritty as ever.”

TRIPLE J, Abby Butler

“J-MILLA is the living example proving actions speak louder than words.”

TRIPLE J UNEARTHED

“It feels like J-MILLA’s star is just beginning to rise”

TONEDEAF

“J-MILLA’s ascendant trajectory in the vibrant Australian hip-hop scene has been nothing short of meteoric, invoking an ardent devotion from fans who recognize his exceptional talent and unwavering dedication to his craft. With an unmatched prowess, he has captivated audiences far and wide, establishing himself as a rising luminary whose influence knows no bounds.”

HAPPY MAGAZINE

‘ON MY SOUL’ is out now!

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