Artist Focus: DarkStarGraver – Rapper, Singer, Poet

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Artist Focus: DarkStarGraver – Rapper, Singer, Poet

While DarkStarGraver has a Zambian heritage, he lived in South Africa until he was two at which point, he bounced around the UK from Birmingham, to London, to Scotland and finally at ten years old, found where he identifies most, in Portsmouth. This is where Graver found his passion and drive as a rapper and has “been a Pompey lad ever since.”

With innovative wordplay and masterful creative insight, DarkStarGraver is making an exciting splash in the UK hiphop scene, particularly with last year’s ‘Burning Bridges’, a dark, and impressive debut EP that expertly showcases his range as a rapper, singer and producer. Criminally underrated and unexplored, it’s only a matter of time before DSG blows up.

Like all great artists, Graver grew up surrounded by iconic and memorable music. Marvin Gaye, Diana Ross and Sade all combined to create a powerful and soulful pool of inspirations for a young DarkStarGraver. Inspirations of the past collided with the then-current music landscape of garage and grime as the final push to convince him to start creating his own brand of the music that he loves.

Graver found a particular success with a cut from his Burning Bridges EP, ‘CodeRED’ which holds the key components of a modern hiphop hit; A hard-hitting, adaptive beat, a catchy sung chorus and pure skill on the mic. Graver's 'CodeRed' was last year, a long time on from his first ever beat, ‘Dark Stars’ which kicked off his journey and brand as an artist.

More than just a creative outlet, DarkStarGraver is inspired by artists like Tyler, The Creator and Kendrick for their tendencies towards lyrics deeper than just the surface. “Music is how I vent my most intimate thoughts and feelings, it’s therapeutic to me so I'm typically drawn to music that does the same”.

From Graver’s, ‘Nivana Over DIGITS’ video, it comes as no surprise that earlier this year, Graver was nominated for ‘Music Video of The Year’ by LMSUK’s Portsmouth Radar. DarkStarGraver’s vision is realised vibrantly and clearly in his visuals. Watch now on Jeeni: https://jeeni.com/bcewhactsrxr/

Last year, Respect Magazine said, “DarkStarGraver is one of the most exciting new acts on the UK rap scene” and they couldn’t be more accurate. Graver’s mindset is fresh, focused and inspiring and we can’t wait to hear his next project.

Check out DarkStarGraver’s Jeeni page: https://jeeni.com/?s=DarkStarGraver

How can Jeeni support artists like DarkStarGraver?

JEENI is a multi-channel platform for original entertainment on demand. We’re a direct service between creatives and the global audience.

• We give creatives, independent artists and performers a showcase for their talent and services. And they keep 100% of everything they make.
• We empower our audience and reward them every step of the way.
• We promise to treat our members ethically, fairly, honestly and with respect.
• Access to artist liaison and a supportive marketing team

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14
Jan

Weekly Round-Up #7

The latest news on all things Jeeni, music and entertainment. Happy new year from Jeeni! We're constantly trying to enrich our database with new art for listeners to explore and enjoy and so, on this edition of Weekly Round-Up, we wanted to keep everyone updated on the new developments and additions that have been going on here at Jeeni. New Releases on Jeeni: Jeeni’s database of incredible new music has recently been expanded with new projects from a variety of artists ranging from hip-hop to country. Baby Panna, Ariana May, Richard Murray, Lennox Campbell and DarkStarGraver have all recently uploaded new projects onto Jeeni. Exciting new music is what fuels Jeeni and allows us to promote and boost the artists behind them. If you want to feature your work on Jeeni or if you’re already a Jeeni artist and want more of your work to be added to your showcase, contact us at doug@jeeni.com or ella@jeeni.com and we can sort everything out for you! New Review blogs: As more inspiring and inventive work is uploaded to Jeeni, as are more reviews. DarkStarGraver released an album late last year titled ‘Over The Bridge & Far Away’. Jeeni’s review of the album claimed that, “If you had any familiarity with this Portsmouth rapper’s refreshing and inventive brand of UK hip-hop, then it should be of no surprise that his newest album is as buoyant, animated and thought-out as it is.” We also had the pleasure of reviewing Maple Sky’s ‘Wearing Red’, a smoky and lush opening track from their self-titled EP. A “perfect sonic epitome of the smooth jazz inspired outfit”, ‘Wearing Red’ is certainly a must-listen for jazz-heads. Finally, Richard Murray’s anticipated new album, ‘Fire Sale’ was reviewed on Wednesday. “Richard Murray is a Northern Irish singer and songwriter who specialises in expanding the pre-conceived ideas people have about country music.” Jeeni University Partnerships: Jeeni is keen to operate and work with various universities to uplift blossoming and brand-new artists and to provide an ethical and supportive means of showcasing their talent to a worldwide platform. As well as getting young students and artists interested in becoming a Jeeni artist and making use of our marketing and artist liaison team, we’re also offering roles to become a part of the Jeeni team itself. Right now, we have our roles advertised with BIMM and Middlesex Unis, as well as on our Indeed page (https://uk.indeed.com/jobs?q=jeeni&l&vjk=a98f08cca58bd410). Make sure you're following us on social media to keep up to date with new releases from our artists, our reviews and any job openings: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeenimusic/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeenimusic Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jeenimusic Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/33222018/admin/

09
Nov

Respite Alt-Rock band from Glasgow

Respite are an Alt-rock quintet hailing from Glasgow, Scotland. The band blends elements of punk, post-hardcore and pop music, with lyrics and vocals heavily inspired by pop-punk and emo. Influenced by bands such as Don Broco, Mallory Knox and A Day To Remember, Respite deliver catchy and energetic earworms with a subtle depth. Having supported acts such as Hawthorne Heights, Trophy Eyes and Like Pacific, the band released their first single, “Chemical Sleep” on the 3rd of October. Soon after following with their debut EP “Vol. 1” on the 29th of October which features five original tracks, and is available to stream everywhere right now! Respite will also be headling Audio Glasgow on November 26th in celebration of their debut EP, joined by aOHNOVA, WRTHLESS Swallows. Find out more about the event here How can Jeeni support artists like Respite? JEENI is a multi-channel platform for original entertainment on demand. We’re a direct service between creatives and the global audience. • We give creatives, independent artists and performers a showcase for their talent and services. And they keep 100% of everything they make.• We empower our audience and reward them every step of the way.• We promise to treat our members ethically, fairly, honestly and with respect. Check out Respite's showcase on Jeeni - Respite | Showcase | JEENI

10
Jun

Top 5 Acoustic Guitar Brands

Here at Jeeni.com we celebrate and support all musicians and performers to showcase their work and earn 100% of their sales, ticketing, merchandise and donations. Last week Jeeni returned to Crowdcube to raise more funds for helping new talent. We have been very encouraged with the positive response as we reached our target in just 6 days and are now overfunding. If you want to see our pitch click HERE. Here is a really interesting blog by Bree Noble. Who produces the best acoustic guitars in the world? What brand is great for beginners? What price range fits me well? The answer to these questions can be subjective. Everybody has their parameters to judge the quality of the instruments. To be purely objective, we will be looking at overall instrument quality, brand reputation, and popularity. With these parameters, it’s possible for us to at least come up with a list of the best acoustic guitar brands. We’ve included a range of brands–some are known for making some of the world’s best-sounding guitars, and others are known for making economically priced guitars that swing well above their weight class in terms of build quality, tone and playability, Here are our top picks: #5. Yamaha–The Best Value Guitars You probably weren’t expecting to see Yamaha as our 5th pick on a list of top acoustic guitar brands. However, Yamaha is a brand that’s been praised for consistent quality and economical price range, allowing them to provide the best value for money. Most leading manufacturers have an economical line of guitars that caters to all budgets. Still, you often end up paying more for the brand itself rather than paying for the quality of the instrument. And like us, if you ever played a poorly-made acoustic while learning, you know just how frustrating the endeavour can get. However, while Yamaha guitars are recognised for value, many influential and legendary musicians have performed with Yamaha instruments, especially in the 70s such as John Lennon, John Denver, Bob Dylan and Carlos Santana. Today, it can be quite rare to see experts playing Yamaha acoustics, but the brand remains an excellent choice for those looking out for quality construction at an affordable price. You also can find some of the high-end Yamaha acoustics at most major music stores. #4. Gibson–For Players Who Want A Piece Of History Most novices and regular people have likely heard of Gibson–it’s a brand name seen on stages and in studios around the world. Gibson has been making quality guitars for over 100 years. Professional & expert musicians widely use both their acoustic-guitars and their electric guitars. Most Gibson acoustic-guitars are made of all solid wood, and even though Gibson is a large corporation, their acoustics are all still made by hand at their factory in Montana rather than a cheap, mass-produced guitar. The difference between a high-end, handmade one and factory mass-produced one can be significant. #3. Guild–For Those Looking For A Player’s Guitar Guild has been making and producing quality guitars since the 1950s. The guild as a brand, unfortunately, doesn’t have the mainstream popularity of Gibson or Fender yet, it’s still the preferred instrument of many professionals such as legendary musician Doyle Dykes who plays a Guild guitar and has his signature model, a stunning grand orchestra guitar launched in 2012. Guild guitars are frequently described as having a unique ‘sound’. To us, they have a brilliant sort of clarity about them, with punchy and natural-sounding bass. Guild is a company that has been bought out several times, and its tumultuous history may explain why it isn’t as well known or as mainstream as Martin or Taylor. The company was also famous for producing electric archtop guitars during the 1950s and 1960s. As archtops fell out of favour, the guild began moving back to creating acoustics. The company’s focus on excellent build quality and top-class materials means that their guitars are a pure joy to play. #2. Martin–Classic Tone, Classic Style Martin is the manufacturer responsible for introducing the dreadnought body shape, X bracing, and other key innovations to the world of acoustic guitars. Their amazingly responsive dreadnoughts are often used as bluegrass instruments, and they sound great when being played fingerstyle, too. However, their rich tone lends itself well to just about any musical style. The best-known Martin guitar is probably the D-28. This all solid spruce and rosewood dreadnought has both deep bass response and the sparkling nuances of rosewood. From the body shape to the tonewood configuration, it’s what a lot of people would consider the classical acoustic guitar. Martin is a brand steeped in history, but their guitars aren’t without modern touches–acoustic-electric models have sophisticated electronics (usually by Fishman), and the brand has a connection to pop superstar Ed Sheeran. Because Sheeran often played Little Martins onstage, he collaborated with Martin to produce his signature, Little Martins. #1. Taylor–Nuanced, Modern Sound Taylor produces almost every conceivable type of acoustic guitar you could ask for. From ornately-inlaid limited editions to affordable, durable instruments, you can find something that’s perfect for most budgets and playing styles. They’re also refreshing to listen to. To our ears, Taylor guitars have a light, almost airy sound that suits modern singer-songwriters exceptionally well. One thing that really sets a Taylor guitar apart is the Expression System pickups on acoustic-electric models. The pickup system sits behind the saddle (rather than under it). The pickup isn’t compressed like a standard under-saddle pickup; the sound ends up being more natural. Taylor has also pioneered a new bracing style, which experts believe is a step up from traditional X bracing. Taylor’s V-class bracing is designed to let the soundboard vibrate more freely, resulting in improved sound and sustain. This video offers a demo of some of V-class Taylor guitars. Whether you’re in search of a fast-playing bluegrass guitar or something to play relaxing slow songs on, one of these brands offers it. Let us know who your top picks/brands are? Add your thoughts in the comments section, and please share this article if you liked it! Click HERE to visit or return to jeeni.com

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