Artist Spotlight – The SoCC Blog

13Sep

By Oliviero Zanalda2 Comments

5 Gems From Around the Internet

Images courtesy of Discogs, Acclaim Magazine, Our Generation Music, Lil Shine Youtube, and adamwieczorek Soundcloud By Oliviero Zanalda If you've ever been on the internet, you've stumbled across a song that is so interesting, so obscure, and so good that you try to show it to your friends and they, well, think it sucks (definitely not derived from personal experience). The internet is full of "bad" music, but music is subjective. In this article, I share 5 songs that I discovered through countless hours of scouring YouTube and SoundCloud. All 5 of these songs are unique, yet share something in common, the use of the internet to gain traction. These could be the best or worst songs you've ever heard. You might love these songs, and you might hate them. Nevertheless, I think there's ...

18Jan

By soccNo Comments

Artist Spotlight

Artist Spotlight: Nick Drake

By Finn Russell As an English singer-songwriter in the early '70s, Nick Drake and his work competed with renowned artists such as Elton John, John Lennon, and David Bowie. Although these artists may have found success as they dominated the early '70s music scene Nick Drake's melanch0ly lyrics and acoustic sound would go on to inspire future artists and grasp the listening ear of millions. Drake's reluctance to hold interviews and perform live stunted his success. This may be attributed to his battle with depression which, sadly, took his life as he was found dead from an overdose of prescribed antidepressants at the age of 26. The manner of his death has never been resolved leading individuals to speculate whether Drake's untimely death was suicide or merely an accident. During th...

14Dec

By Oliviero ZanaldaNo Comments

Artist Spotlight, Reviews

The Best Verses of 2022

By Oliviero Zanalda 2022 has seen some incredible verses, both guest features and artist's verses that stood out on their own song. I've compiled a list of 10 verses (and a few honorable mentions) that, in my opinion, were the best of the year. This could include lyrics, flow, effectiveness, and whether the verse makes you rewind it to listen to it again. (I've included time stamps for each verse, but I recommend listening to each song as a whole to fully experience the verses). Honorable Mentions "Freestyle 3" - Ken Carson Ken can't miss with his freestyle series. "Almighty Gnar" - Lil Gnar Lil Gnar one-ups Chief Keef on a song that's named after one of Sosa's legendary mixtapes. "Big 3" - Babytron "Wockiana turned my cream soda into HennessyPull up from w...

24Nov

By Marina MalinNo Comments

Artist Spotlight, Campus Events, Interview

Interview with Charlie Burg

Charlie Burg is a singer, songwriter, and producer who released his first mixtape in 2015 when he was in college. After transferring from Denison University to Michigan State, he finally landed on Syracuse University to study music industry. From there, he released a series of extended plays throughout his time in University. Originally from Michigan, he now resides in Brooklyn NY where he dropped his debut album Infinity Tall (2022). Cinematic and youthful, Charlie Burg seamlessly transports listeners from one point to another with his pastel-shaded, storytelling lyrics. The curiosity and exploration that exists in his music is shown on his album art - which he creates himself. His personable whim showed in his performance at Colorado College, students still fan ov...

4Nov

By Oliviero ZanaldaNo Comments

Artist Spotlight, Interview

An Interview With Seiji Oda

Seiji Oda is a rapper, singer/songwriter, and producer from Oakland, California. He began producing and creating music in high school. His big break hit when Seiji and his brother Nathaniel, or Lil Ricefield, released their viral hit “Trapanese,” a song that poked fun at asian stereotypes and referenced countless anime and other Japanese pop culture over a Seiji-produced beat. The song was remixed by local Bay Area rappers Daboii and Cash Kidd. But Seiji isn’t only an incredible producer, he can rap, sing, and songwrite just as well. In the past few years, he has worked heavily on his solo work, releasing one of my favorite albums of this year, lofi//HYPHY, an album that combines the two genres, the former being known for it’s chiller production and the latter known for its da...

Artist Spotlight – Three Artists That Should be on Your Radar

1Feb

By Oliviero ZanaldaNo Comments

Artist Spotlight

Artist Spotlight – Three Artists That Should be on Your Radar

By Oliviero Zanalda Hip-hop has become an extremely fast-paced genre, with people constantly blowing up at a moment’s notice and fading into irrelevance just as quickly. This is a list of four rappers (one honorable mention) who are currently gaining popularity and could eventually break into the mainstream. Should they achieve mainstream success, I’m confident they will be able to maintain it. That’s why I wrote this article. All of these artists bring something new to the table and I think that they should be recognized for this. In this article, I delve into the artists’ background, their rise to fame, and what they’re doing that makes them stand out from other rappers who similarly haven’t achieved mainstream success just yet. Again, the artist’s future is not determined, so take t...

5Nov

By HenryNo Comments

Artist Spotlight, Local Shows: Previews & Reviews, Reviews, Shows

CONCERT REVIEW: The Front Bottoms at Mission Ballroom 10/11/21

By Henry Hodde The Front Bottoms’ performance at Mission Ballroom last Monday was a reminder that punk rock and roll is not dead. The genre is alive and well alright. It may not look the same as the days in which The Clash and The Ramones reigned supreme, nor does it sound like Metallica, or even Green Day. Nevertheless, fans of noise first and foremost ought not despair. The Front Bottoms at Mission Ballroom The Front Bottoms are not a new band. Guitarist Brain Sella and childhood buddy Mathew Uychich began to write music together in 2007, adding Uychich’s brother Brian to complete the original lineup. Sella and Mathew Uychich still form the heart of the New Jersey band, but on Thursday, the founding duo were complemented by Erik Kase Romero and Natalie Newbold. The next ...

13Oct

By soccNo Comments

Artist Spotlight, Uncategorized

Artist Spotlight : Xavier Wulf

By Oliviero Zanalda Every so often, an artist or group of artists will emerge and immediately cause an impact, becoming widely acknowledged by the public as influential. While certain artists have been fully credited for their music and influence, as they should be, many artists haven’t received the full recognition they should get. This series is meant to highlight artists that haven’t been fully credited for their experimentation, artistic capabilities, and influence on music. Xavier Wulf is by far one of my favorite artists of the past decade. The Memphis born, LA based rapper is one of the pioneers (along with Bones, Chris Travis, and Black Smurf) of the dark, underground Memphis rap scene that created the “trap-metal” subgenre of hip hop. Some of the most notable current ...