Artist Focus: Maple Sky

Jeeni Blog

Helping the next generation of talent to build a global fanbase

Artist Focus: Maple Sky

Although this refreshing four-piece has its foundations firmly planted in modern jazz, Maple Sky harvests their inspirations from a rich and varied crop. Classic rock, 50s lounge jazz, RnB and gospel are all contributed from various members to result in the exciting final product that is Maple Sky.

Maple Sky's origin began with keys player, Joel Bamigboye (far-left in pic above) in 2018 as he was compiling “a small archive of musical material, with the aim of forming a band” to translate his initial creative vision. Olivia McKeon (mid-left) entered the scene and brought a lyrical and vocal element to Joel’s work. From there, with the addition of two others, the Maple Sky prototype formed by the name of ‘NOVA’.

Quickly becoming a theme of our Artist Focus blogs; the pandemic forced a change in the group and created a make-or-break scenario for the founding members. Luckily, after releasing their self-titled EP as a duo, the two adapted and survived the obstacle and re-emerged as ‘Maple Sky’ with a key change in personnel. Ed Jordan (mid-right) was introduced as both the drummer and in-house producer, and Christian Rivers-Martin (far-right) was welcomed to contribute his classically trained bass skills as the groove backbone of the group. Since then, the group has been hard at work, whether that’s creating new, sweet jazz tunes or performing their stellar collection of tracks live.

Maple Sky specialise in a broad and flexible portrayal of jazz with influences from Esperanza Spalding, Yebba, and D’angelo. Their eponymous debut EP certainly showcases that range of their influences and inspirations, particularly that of jazz legend, Lester Young and current wunderkind, Arlo Parks.

The group are currently excited for the upcoming single, ‘Vision’, set to be released on the 5^th of February, which will join the romantic and heart-aching ‘Free Her’ as the teaser tracks for their future second EP, which will be released later this year. The group also plan to upload a roster of exciting live videos which were shot just before Christmas. Maple Sky promises more big things for those with their ears on the ground for more from the stellar jazz act, “We'd advise making sure you have us followed on all our social media to stay up-to-date with what we've got going on because there is a lot coming up!”

Follow Maple Sky on socials:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/mapleskyband

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MapleSkyBand/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mapleskyband/

We've loved supporting and following Maple Sky and we're happy to say that the group have enjoyed being a part of Jeeni, too, "Jeeni have been amazing to work with and we have loved collaborating with them." If Jeeni's mission interests you as an artist or a viewer, sign up for free, today!

Check out Maple Sky’s showcase on Jeeni here: https://jeeni.com/showcase/maple-sky/

How can Jeeni support artists like Maple Sky?

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.

BACK

03
Mar

Jeeni proudly announces that Sammie Venn has joined Team Jeeni as Official Writer, Columnist and Blogger.

Sammie is an award-winning entrepreneur, a writer, columnist and blogger. We caught up with Sammie this afternoon and she told us about her Soul Warrior journey. "I began the Soul Warrior path after writing a series of poems based on my journey of self-discovery. Some were just late-night musings, others more conscious truths, but in essence they encompass the search for the strength that lies within ourselves. I love developing memorable stories and experiences through the emotional connection of words and images, and find writing a wonderful way to capture those inspiring moments and joyful experiences life has to offer. Preferring wild spaces that feel spirited and untamed, I’ve always aimed to be part of nature’s green army. I grew up in the countryside and have finally wound my way back home after decades of living in a densely populated city and feeling almost a stranger to the natural environment. Mindful of the future, we are providing for our children and generations to come, I have strived to turn my business “Soul Warriors” into an eco-friendly company: one that has an holistic approach to life, embracing support, learning, growth and inspiration by taking an alternative path to a traditional business plan. The “Business Garden” needs to be planted, nourished, weeded and watered, given air to breathe, sunshine to blossom and have roots strong enough to endure adversity. I believe that nature, love and adventure connect the mind, body and soul, the balance of each dependent on the other. Soul Warriors nurtures trust on both a personal and professional level, where positive and transparent ethics are key to its success. The vision embodies joyful soulful-entrepreneurship where positivity and emotional clarity are as important as the bottom line. I began making jewellery years ago and have loved the mindful dedication it takes to develop a bespoke product. Each collection is based on the poetry and stories I write and the collection of ethical treasures have been described as modern-day heirlooms that people can cherish, share and adore. Having been in the retail industry for over 25 years and winning the Business Woman of Excellence Award 2019 in Sussex, I endeavour to work with other award-winning partners who embody fair trade and eco-friendly standards, like Jeeni. In September 2019 I was invited to be part of Gok Wan’s Dream 8 retailers for his UK roadshow, a fun and vibrant event that has led to some interesting collaborations. From the moment I learnt to put pen to paper as a child, writing became a passion. My Grandmother was also a writer, I have many fond memories of typing her work on a battered Olivetti in her drawing room. My Grandfather was an accomplished saxophonist, so music has always been an central part of my life from a young age. My writing journey has been an integral part of my emotional well-being: it’s freeing, mindful and allows me to explore unique, exuberant and imaginative worlds. Storytelling is the skeleton of all my work, both in product development and the poetry, articles and blogs I write. My work has been published in the US literary journal The Starlight Emporium, which explores wonder-filled ideas relating to art, music, travel, storytelling, and all manner of things creative. I am also taking on the role of columnist with Town and County magazine, later this year. Blogging for Soulful Life Club, a company I founded with my business partner Sharron Goodyear 18 months ago, has been a springboard for my work, in creating a wellness community for women. Now my entrepreneurial journey has found a new niche." Welcome on board Sammie we are very excited to be working with you and know you will be a great asset to Team Jeeni. If you would like to find out more about Sammie please check out her website: www.soulwarriors.co.uk. Sammie Venn Click HERE to visit or return to jeeni.com

28
Jan

Weekly Round-Up #8

The latest developments and additions to Jeeni's mission! Rock-star Eden James joins Jeeni! New York based Eden James has joined Jeeni’s ranks of global stars. “I like what you do and I would love to help,” Eden says. "I was fortunate to have musicians from Bruce Springsteen's, Paul Simon's and David Bowie's bands contribute to my studio recordings. The last 6 months have been a huge success for me, winning 25 music and video awards around the globe, and receiving a slew of reviews and interviews from some of the biggest music magazines out there, including Classic Rock magazine and American Songwriter magazine.” We’ll be bringing you exclusives from this Number One chart topper right here, meanwhile check out his Jeeni showcase at https://jeeni.com/showcase/edenjames/ New Content Contributed to Jeeni’s Database of Talent! Fresh, new music has been poured into Jeen’s diverse collection of artistry and talent. The aforementioned Eden James has provided a vintage and classic collection of tracks for our ever-growing rock channel, including ‘New York’ and ‘Black Book’. The industry legend, Lennox Campbell also contributed some of the stellar RnB and soul tracks that he’s produced such as ‘Beautifull’ and ‘Lost One’s’. Another exciting new addition to Jeeni is the UK chill-rap artist, Cassius Gray. Achieving over 2 million streams across his discography, Cassius has achieved so much already and we can’t wait so promote him further. Check out tracks like ‘From Here On Out’ and ‘Flight 22’ on Jeeni, now. Featuring members with connections to Elton John and Hanz Zimmer, ‘Coolstar’ is an epic collaboration of all sorts of artists and have offered the tracks ‘Homeland’ and ‘I Keep Walkin.’ to Jeen’s database. Brand new music from Daisy Chute and I K 8OY has also been added to Jeeni today, on the same day as their releases. Check out Daisy’s ‘Cradle Songs’ and I K 8OY’s ‘Let You Know’. New Jeeni Blogs Published! In anticipation for Maple Sky’s new single, ‘Vision’, set to be released next Saturday, we prepared an ‘Artist Focus’ blog for the smooth jazz quartet, “Maple Sky specialise in a broad and flexible portrayal of jazz with influences from Esperanza Spalding, Yebba, and D’angelo.” We’ve also been reviewing and praising the stunning work of our artists. Beginning with Glaswegian rock band, Respite’s first EP, ‘Vol.1’, “This five-track project is a triumphant and proud announcement of a new advancement in their style, synergy and musicianship.” We also had two single reviews, for Arianna May’s ‘Suffolk Bay’ and Baby Panna’s ‘Golden’. On Suffolk Bay, Arianna May’s “vision is translated through her expressive piano playing and is then fully realised by her sweet, graceful vocals which glide as delicately as the accompanying strings.”. Baby Panna’s ‘Golden’ is an impactful final track for his debut mixtape, “The instrumental landscape set for this frank and passionate narrative is an atmospheric and soulful wave of spaced-out beats and crackly samples.” Jeeni also featured its first live review of Giack Bazz’s incredible set from last Friday (21st, January), “Considering the arsenal of instruments Giack typically uses to convey his vision, the emotive power that he communicated with just his voice, a guitar and a pedal board was astonishing.” We loved attending Giack’s gig in East-London and we’d love to see our artists perform more often. Reach out to the Jeeni marketing team at doug@jeeni.com or ella@jeeni.com. Make sure you're following us on social media to keep up to date with new releases from our artists, our blogs 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/

10
Jun

Facing the Broken Music Industry.

By Adam Cowherd @ AmplifyX.com Did you know that artists take home only 12% of the $43 billion spent on music annually, according to Citigroup? [1] The hip-hop artist Russ put it perfectly when he said, “The music business isn’t set up for the artists to get rich. It’s set up for everyone else to get rich off the artists.” [2] If you start looking deeper into the music industry, one of the first things you’ll discover is how broken it is. Artists are the nucleus of the business, but somehow they’re the individuals left with no ownership of their Intellectual Property (IP), inhibited creative freedom, and only a sliver of the earnings. There are so many entities involved in the value chain of music that it has created a convoluted industry structure that lacks equality and transparency. When we break down the mechanics of the music industry, we see just how many hands are in the pot: record labels, managers, producers, booking agents, and streaming platforms. A report by Ernst & Young highlighted the post-tax payouts of streaming revenue and identified that record labels are taking nearly 75% of the payout. [3] Why are artists today signing with record labels? Signed artists have fans. They do not have a majority of royalties, ownership of their masters, or creative freedom. Artists have historically been enticed to join record labels as a way to grow their popularity, because major labels can provide global brand recognition. But the music industry is in the business of making a profit — not in the business of freebies. The artist’s growth may be guaranteed, but not their wealth. Take Thirty Seconds to Mars for instance: after multiple platinum records, they were still millions of dollars in debt to their label. [4] This is a result of the artist being forced to pay the label back for cash advances. Although advances may seem extremely alluring, many don’t realize how hard these loans will be to recoup from their small slice of royalties. Artists thriving off of their album sales are the exception, not the rule. This recognizable gap in income has inspired a large number of artists to start challenging the status quo of record label contracts. Artists today have more tools and resources to build their career — and wealth — independently. Traditional services formerly tied to record labels, like recording, distribution, and promotion, are becoming commodified. Also, modern artists have a wide range of social media platforms to engage listeners on, from Instagram to TikTok to Triller. Artists can grow their fame and find new fans on their own terms—retaining their rights and independence. Evaluating the industry today, music spending is at an all-time high. Goldman Sachs predicts we will have over 1.1 billion people on paid streaming platforms by 2030, generating over $130 billion in music industry revenue. [5] By pursuing alternative ways to release music, artists can take a larger cut of the profits while retaining ownership of their IP and a majority of royalties. The industry is projected to experience massive growth over the next decade. Artists should reap the rewards.

Jeeni Blog