Keep an Ear: Bridget Kelly

By J9 of J9's MusicLife

Keep an Ear: A feature post that presents up and coming artists you should keep an ear out for.

So Twitter has been buzzing lately about 25-year-old, songwriter/singer Bridget Kelly, a.k.a. BeeKay or BK and her single Thinking About Forever, written by Frank Ocean (you know the dude behind the song Novacane).

BK got her big break in the spotlight when she filled in for Alicia Keys singing on Empire State of Mind with Jay-Z on his international tour, his concert w/ Em at Yankee Stadium, and the 9/11 Benefit concert.

Long before being on stage with Jay, BK was singing as a kid and listening to the sounds of Motown, Jazz, and Pop at home.  She attended the LaGuardia High School for Performing Arts in New York City (same school the musical Fame was based) and says it played a major part in her pursuing a career in music and allowed her to hone her talent.  BK's musical influences include Mariah Carey, Brandy, Whitney, Pink, Alicia Keys.

Now, BK is in the studio working on her debut album which she says is a very emotional driven album that will represent an aggressive yet vulnerable side.  She's working with many famous writers/producers like Frank Ocean, The-Dream, Ne-Yo, James Fauntleroy, and Shea Taylor.  She also plans to release an EP beforehand as an introduction to who she is which will include the single Thinking About Forever.  So make sure to keep an ear out for that when it drops.  BK has also collaborated with such musical greats as Dr. Dre and Nas for potential singles on their upcoming projects.

To read the full post, click here.

Introducing Frank Ocean: Nostalgia, Ultra

By Steven Hyden March 15, 2011

Much like the ’80s BMW on the cover of his debut album, Nostalgia, Ultra, gifted singer-songwriter Frank Ocean apparently is out of touch with the times. That doesn’t jibe with his résumé, a seemingly impeccable combination of mainstream R&B credentials (he’s co-written songs for John Legend and Justin Bieber) and underground cool (he’s associated with outlaw hip-hop collective Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All). But after going nowhere as a solo artist signed to Island Def Jam, Ocean decided to post Nostalgia, Ultra as a free download last month. Hearing the record, it’s no shock that Ocean’s label didn’t know what to do with him. Nostalgia is a moody, frequently downbeat character study, a sort of musical version of the Reagan-era confessional Less Than Zero.

Ocean presents himself as a troubled guy in his early 20s who does cocaine for breakfast (as he sings over an aestheticized shuffle supplied by superstar producer Tricky Stewart on “Novacane”) and can’t decide whether to rue or revel in his conflicted feelings about women (the hit-single-in-waiting “Songs For Women”). Sampling world-class sulkers like Coldplay and Radiohead, as well as Stanley Kubrick’s queasy dissection of marriage, Eyes Wide Shut, Ocean saves his boldest move for the 7-minute epic “American Wedding,” fantasizing about his nuptials as the ultimate hymn of coke-addled self-absorption, The Eagles’ “Hotel California,” plays out in its entirety. Like the rest of Nostalgia, it’s dark, playful, a little tasteless, and absolutely riveting.