NewYearsDayProject | a song a day blog

  Shura 's 2016 debut,  Nothing's Real   made a splash in the U.K. and Europe, but the electro-pop singer-songwriter didn't make a huge impact on the American charts, which is a shame. Hits like " What's It Gonna Be? " and " What Happened to Us? " were perfect hits for the mid-summer of the album's release, and I find that I come back to it every spring to early fall. But while her contemporaries like  Ellie Goulding  and  Carly Rae Jepsen  keep songs pretty light and upbeat, there's a sadness and introversion that hides the lyrics beneath even the most dance-floor-worthy tracks. SMALL CHANGE IN THE UNIVERSE . The daughter of a British documentary filmmaker, Shura uses a documentary-style motif throughout  Nothing's Real,  featuring audio of Shura as a child speaking and singing. Also in the vein of a documentary, Shura sings about her breakup in the third person " Make It Up ." Other songs, like " Indecision " and ...

A few years ago, YouTuber Nick Canovas, or  Mic the Snare , made a  video about the characteristics of meme songs  and why some songs go viral. Not all meme songs are created equal. Some annoyingly catchy songs get stuck in enough heads to become a hit. These are so bad that they’re  almost  good. Then there are old songs that become renewed for the  TikTok  generation. These songs had a solid presence before taking off on social media. Some of these songs are laughable in a modern context—the swanky sax solo from “ Careless Whisper ,”  Rick Astley ’s shoulder dance when he sings “ Never Gonna Give You Up .” But some meme songs are what music critics still call legitimately good.  A-ha ’s “ Take On Me ,”  Simon & Garfunkel ’s “ The Sound of Silence ,” and today’s song can be legitimately enjoyed  with  an extra dose of irony once it has soundtracked a meme. YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO CUT ME OFF . In the spring and summer of 20...

Tropical House is a subgenre of electronic dance music (EDM) that is characterized by its laid-back, feel-good vibes and tropical-inspired melodies. It often incorporates elements of house music, deep house, and chillwave, and is typically characterized by a tempo of around 100-120 beats per minute. Instruments often played or sampled in the genre included steel drums, marimbas, ukuleles, other tropical instruments, synths, and drum machines. The lyrics are often about love, relationships, and the beach. The genre can be traced back to the ‘00s but became extremely popular in the ‘10s. Ed Sheeran ’s “ Shape of You ” has been called the biggest song in the genre.    Avicii and Martin Garrix were early popularizers of the subgenre. SPARKS WILL FLY, THEY WILL IGNITE OUR BONES. Norwegian DJ Kyrre Gørvell-Dahll , or Kygo , was influenced by Avicci’s music and started emulating the late DJ’s sound in his created music. Kygo both wrote new music and remixed existing tracks, many of...

Shura 's 2016 debut, Nothing's Real made a splash in the U.K. and Europe, but the electro-pop singer-songwriter didn't make a huge impact on the American charts, which is a shame. Hits like " What's It Gonna Be? " and " What Happened to Us? " were perfect hits for the mid-summer of the album's release, and I find that I come back to it every spring to early fall. But while her contemporaries like Ellie Goulding and Carly Rae Jepsen keep songs pretty light and upbeat, there's a sadness and introversion that hides the lyrics beneath even the most dance-floor-worthy tracks. SMALL CHANGE IN THE UNIVERSE . The daughter of a British documentary filmmaker, Shura uses a documentary-style motif throughout  Nothing's Real,  featuring audio of Shura as a child speaking and singing. Also in the vein of a documentary, Shura sings about her breakup in the third person " Make It Up ." Other songs, like "Indecision" and "Kidz ...