Jeeni Blog

Helping the next generation of talent to build a global fanbase

Weekly Round-Up #8

/ By Doug Phillips
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/ 

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Crowdfunding Prize Draw, Win-Win with #ilovelive

12
Mar

Crowdfunding Prize Draw, Win-Win with #ilovelive

There is currently an event happening, which reads like a memorabilia collector's wishlist. Using the hashtag #ilovelive, a Crowdfunding prize draw is a win-win, for the donation recipients and the prize winners. The event has so far raised over £575,000 and seen 64 Lots offered up by a variety of artists from right across the music world. These lots have now closed but there are still 21 up for grabs, including a DJing gig with Idris Elba, a signed snare drum from Dave Grohl, the original Spice Girls Union Jack Sofa and Frank Turner offering a 'Lifetime' guest pass for two. #ilovelive - Idris Elba The fund was set up by charity, Stagehand to raise funds for the behind the scenes and backstage crew of gigs and live events. Many of these staff are self-employed, so did not qualify for furlough or any of the grants offered. Some have suffered real hardship over the last year due to the effect of the lockdowns on the music industry. #ilovelive - Dave Grohl With the same charitable intentions, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds have set up their own Crowdfund prize draw. Nick and his band have generously collated over 100 items between them. The items being offered include, signed guitars and keyboards, plus gig tickets, art and gift vouchers. Having been forced to cancel their 2021 tour at the end of last year, the band realised the impact and knock on this would have on their support staff, so felt compelled to soften the blow for them. https://twitter.com/nickcave/status/1362352225780183047?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1362352225780183047%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nme.com%2Fnews%2Fmusic%2Fnick-cave-foo-fighters-launch-new-crowdfunders-raise-funds-road-crew-2883669 Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds Entrants for both prize draws can purchase a single ticket for £5 and there is no limit on the amount of tickets you purchase. Both draws close in March 2021, so check the sites for details and to hand over your dosh to a great cause. ww.jeeni.com #ilovelive Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds

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Zeeteah Massiah on Music, Performing and Life during 2020

04
Apr

Zeeteah Massiah on Music, Performing and Life during 2020

Zeeteah Massiah is a Number One Billboard Dance Chart star who specialises in Reggae, Jazz and house music. Like many artists, the last year has provided many challenges for Zeeteah, but also a host of new opportunities and ventures that would have never otherwise have been possible. We asked her to tell us about her experiences over the last year whilst we count down to Jeeni's online JAM festival.  It’s been the craziest year ever, but we’ve made it through thirteen months in and out of lockdown. At the beginning of 2020, I unveiled a brand-new sound and a wicked new band, and I was full of high hopes for the year. I was excited and ready to go. And then Covid hit. It took me three weeks into the first lockdown to come to terms with the fact that I wouldn’t be going on stage again for a long time. I was in a fog for weeks and then I thought: just because I can’t be on stage doesn’t mean I can’t make music. I suddenly had an impulse to record a new version of an old song that I’ve always loved – United We Stand by Brotherhood of Man. It seemed so right for that moment. Paul, my husband and musical partner, understood immediately the sound I was looking for, and we set to work in our studio. Three of my favourite musicians played on the track – remotely, of course – and family and friends in London, Germany and the Caribbean filmed lovely cameos for the video. It was such fun to do, and it got a wonderful response. You can check it out on Jeeni. And then a man called George Floyd died in Minnesota, and we were all plunged into a very different mood. I didn’t realise how painful many of my feelings about race were, and how deeply they were buried, until I started telling Paul, with tears in my eyes, about growing up in London as a young black girl from Barbados. I was constantly made to feel a certain way simply because of the colour of my skin. Here we are in 2021 and, sadly, many things are still the same. At one point I blurted out to Paul, “You don’t know how it feels to be Black”.  He took those words and turned them into a song called You Don’t Know. We recorded it and made the video in July. It’s one of the most heartfelt things I’ve done, and I’ve been amazed by the incredible response it’s had and so grateful for the wonderful feedback. I did manage to squeeze in three London gigs in the gaps between the lockdowns: a reggae gig in Chelsea, and jazz gigs in Hampstead and in the West End. Better than nothing – and in fact, they were all lovely events. When it became clear that there weren’t going to be any more gigs, I decided to start doing live sessions at home with some of my favourite musicians and sharing them on YouTube. And so, the Massiah Sessions were born. We’ve released nine videos so far, in a variety of styles, and there are more to come. I was also invited to add vocals to a new rock album by a dear friend in Germany. Thanks, Günther – it was a blast. In February, I did a livestream with guitarist Marcin Bobkowski for a charity called Educ’aid Africa, run by Isa Bell, which is helping to provide music education to schools in Benin. A recent DNA test revealed that many of my ancestors were from Benin, and so the project had a special meaning for me. It was my first livestream, and I loved it. I’m going to be doing another one on 10 April, and hopefully regularly after that – join us at zeestream.live if you can! And so now here we are, approaching the end of what we pray will be the final lockdown. And soon I’ll be back on stage in front of a live audience doing what I love best. My first live gig of 2021 will be on Thursday 27 May at Crazy Coqs in London’s West End. Maybe see you there? In the meantime, I wish you all the best for what will, hopefully, end up being a much better year. Zeeteah will also be performing in the JAM festival which is a collaboration between Jeeni, AmplifyX and MultiView Media and will be held at 12 noon Los Angeles time, 8pm London time on Saturday April 10th 2021. To find out more about the JAM Festival check out our events on Facebook. https://fb.me/e/1etPauFMV

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Deadline for Kickstart Employment Opportunity set for December the 17th

10
Dec

Deadline for Kickstart Employment Opportunity set for December the 17th

The governmental Kickstart scheme was introduced by Rishi Sunak as a response to covid-19 and the difficulty it created in employment for young people. Since its implementation last September, the initiative has boosted the careers of over 100,000 young people in the UK (figure from November, 2021). This scheme has revolutionised the way young people find their passion, career and purpose in a time when they need it most. That's why Jeeni is so proud to be making good use of the Kickstart scheme to train, support and build the portfolios of people aged 16-24 and on universal credit.  Available only on or before the 17th of December, 2021, here's why you can't afford not to take this opportunity. The Kickstart scheme is invaluable for both employers and employees, because companies can build a workforce at no cost to them, and young people get paid positions in the industry of their passion. The Government provides the grants to cover 100% of wages and national insurance contributions for well-qualified, pre-screened young workers on universal credit. The positions span across 6 months for up to 25 hours work a week and you receive a £1,500 cash injection into your business for each new person you take on with Kickstart.   Find out more about universal credit here: https://www.gov.uk/universal-credit Although the governmental Kickstart scheme itself provides this crucial helping hand for companies and graduates, websites like Gradfuel are vital in guiding those graduates to the perfect Kickstart role for their careers.  Gradfuel is a mediator between the Kickstart scheme and those it was designed to help. They provide an interpersonal and proactive connection to young people looking for a career path and “matches you with the perfect graduate jobs”. The pool of possibilities after education can seem endless and overwhelming, so a company like Gradfuel that takes you by the hand and leads you to a company that needs you as much as you need them is an extraordinarily valuable service.   Gradfuel has a 97% success rate for Kickstart applications and each one will earn over £7,500 across their 6-month placement. They have over 65,000 young people in their database and have raised £18.3 million in grant funding.  Happy customers such as friend-finding app, ‘Fethr’ have praised Gradfuel’s usefulness and outreach saying, “The learnings from Gradfuel and their expertise around the scheme, has saved us a lot of time, as they have thousands of candidates they’re engaged with and have really found their groove in attracting talent”. Dating app, ‘Thursday’ have also expressed their satisfaction with Gradfuel’s connection between the Kickstart scheme and young people, “Gradfuel are brilliant, they've helped us source all our young talent, from anything to data analysts to marketers, we've been very impressed.”   Visit: https://grants.gradfuel.co/direct-applications/ to find out more about Gradfuel and to sign up. Remember, the registration deadline is on December the 17th, 2021. Jeeni can personally attest to the effectiveness and value of using the Kickstart scheme through Gradfuel. Zak Ahmed, Jeeni’s HR specialist had this to say about the opportunity, "The Kickstart Scheme has helped me gain the vital experience I need as a recent Masters graduate. I've found a very meaningful role here at Jeeni, where I'm progressing quicker than I could've imagined!". Ella Venvell used Gradfuel to find her Kickstart position as Jeeni’s Artist Liaison and Marketing Leader, “The kickstart scheme has given me an invaluable experience which has helped me learn about the professional world as well as given me the time to develop myself and my portfolio.” and with regards to Gradfuel, Ella said that it’s “helped me find a job doing what I love, and am hoping to do as my lifetime career."  In many ways, the Kickstart scheme is the lifeblood of Jeeni; it’s the reason we can support up-and-coming artists, it’s the reason we can provide an invaluable service for viewers to discover new talent and it’s the reason you can read about it all, right now.  Check out some of the Inside Stories carried out by Jeeni's own Kickstart employees: https://jeeni.com/?s=inside+story If this interests you either as a company or a potential employee, act fast as the registration deadline for the Kickstart scheme is on December the 17th.  Follow: https://grants.gradfuel.co/direct-applications/ to sign up now or learn more about gradfuel and the Kickstart scheme.

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