Shazamers' Blog

Rebecca Ferguson came by the Shazam studio for an exclusive performance of ‘Nothing’s Real But Love’ from her brand new album ‘Heaven’. The album does not pander to fashion; it’s not a hybrid of every current hip music genre, shaken around a bit and mixed into an amorphous lump. This is soul; raw emotion pours out of every fibre of every note making her pop rivals sound predictable and ordinary.

Created over the last 11 months, the album is highly accomplished and timeless piece of work. From the sweet pared back piano led ‘Teach Me How To Be Loved’ to the 100 miles a minute ‘Backtrack’ with its fierce drum beats, to the big band sound of ‘Fairytale’, Rebecca’s voice soars effortlessly. And if ‘Shoulder To Shoulder’ doesn’t make you cry then there must be androids amongst us.

On her single ‘Nothing’s Real But Love’ Rebecca states “No money, no car, can beat love” as what’s really important in life.

Incredibly humble, but with an eye trained firmly on the future, her potential is vast. She comments “I am very proud of this album. It wasn’t easy to write and I poured that much of myself into it that if people don’t like it, it’ll be hard; but I’ll take that on the chin. As long as people can say ‘I believed what she was saying, that’s the ultimate.”

Watch the exclusive Shazam Session below.

Fancy winning a signed copy of Rebecca Ferguson’s debut album ‘Heaven’? Click here to stand a chance by answering the set question.

Emmanuel Kobla Shazam Sessions Rebecca Ferguson

Loick Essien is back with ‘Me Without You’, The follow up single to his debut smash ‘How We Roll’. Loick was in our studio and explained ‘Me Without You’ by saying “There’s nothing worse than ending a relationship with someone you don’t want to break up with. This song is about trying to rebuild your life when it feels like you can’t go on without them. Everyone has felt like that at some point and it’s something we can all relate to”. Watch the exclusive shazam session above

‘Me Without You is Now’ available from iTunes & Amazon You can follow Loick Essien on Twitter

Emmanuel Kobla Shazam Sessions Loick Essien

Katherine Jenkins came by the Shazam studio for an exclusive  performance of  ‘Black Is  The Colour’ & ‘Your Silhouette’ from her  brand new album ’Daydream’.  Released on Warner Music UK,  her latest collection of tracks sees Katherine return to her musical roots.

Her most personal album to date, it draws together music and songs she loves from across classical, traditional, folk and pop that have inspired her over the course of her life.

Stand out tracks on the album include the stunning Shanks produced ‘Break It To My Heart’, a deeply moving interpretation of the Celtic classic ‘Black Is The Colour’, ‘I Dreamed A Dream’ from Les Misérables performed in French, a brand new composition of ‘Ave Maria’ and Katherine’s stirring tribute to servicing men and women through the ages ‘A Flower Tells A Story’.

See below for the exclusive Shazam Sessions Videos Of both ’Black Is The Colour’ & ‘Your Silhouette’.

Daydream is now available from iTunes & Amazon, and you can follow Katherine Jenkins On Twitter.

Emmanuel Kobla Shazam Sessions Katherine Jenkins

‘It’s Not The Same’ is the new EP and title track from rising UK musician Liam Bailey. Liam’s music has a classic soul feel with a contemporary twist, which is enriched by his distinctive and stunning vocal.

Originally from a suburb of Nottingham, Liam Bailey draws musical influence from the likes of Michael Jackson, R Kelly and Oasis and appeared as a guest vocal on the Chase & Status hit ‘Blind Faith’. Having recently coming off support tours with Plan B and Jessie J Liam is on the road promoting his new EP.

We were lucky enough to have Liam come into the Shazam studio to give us a beautiful performance of ‘It’s Not The Same’.

For more information on Liam Bailey and to purchase his music please visit his website.

Steph Cox Shazam Sessions Liam Bailey, Shazam Session

A couple of months ago Kentucky based Black Stone Cherry came in to the Shazam office to give us a fabulous raw acoustic performance of their single ‘White Trash Millionaire’. Blending roots and modern hard rock Black Stone Cherry’s sound redefines southern rock for a modern audience.

Their new album ‘Between The Devil And The Deep Blue Sea’ peaked at #1 on the UK Rock Album Chart and the band had a quick chat with us about the album and what’s coming up next for them.

Do you have a personal favourite track from the album?
One of my personal favourites’ is ‘Killing Floor’. It’s heave and we wrote it with John5 (Rob Zombie’s guitarist). Second favourite is ‘Won’t Let Go’

In what ways do you find ‘Between the Devil…’ an extension of the previous two albums?
It’s a little bit of both albums combined – but mostly a new level for the band as far as songwriting.

You guys have been together for years now, with the same line up, how do you all get along?
We’re brothers. We love like brothers, fights like brothers etc. But we’re best friends.

Do you prefer playing live shows or recording as a band?
Both are different. We obviously love playing live and feeling the energy of a crowd. When we’re in the studio, we’re in a different mode.

What does the next year have in store for BSC?
Lots of touring!

Here at Shazam we are all about music discovery, what are you listening to at the minute?
Different stuff. Elvis, country music, roots. I listen to a lot of different genres.

If you could have one song from history to claim as your own, what would you chose?
Dang, that’s hard. Probably Sweet Emotion or Stairway to Heaven!

Black Stone Cherry’s album ‘Between The Devil And The Deep Blue Sea’ is available now through Roadrunner Record and you can find more on the band by visiting their website.

Interview by Hazel Savage

Steph Cox Shazam Sessions Black Stone Cherry

Folk musician Eliza Carthy has built herself an admirable and diverse fifteen year career, having twice been nominated for the Mercury Prize, regularly co-presenting shows on BBC Radio, playing Glastonbury and performing and recording with an array of artists including, Paul Weller, Nick Cave, Patrick Wolf and Rufus and Martha Wainwright.

Eliza has released her new studio album ‘Neptune’ through her own label, Hem Hem Records and came in to the Shazam studio to deliver a beautifully impressive performance of the single ‘Revolution’.

To find out more on Eliza Carthy, please visit her website.

Steph Cox Shazam Sessions Eliza Carthy, Revolution, Shazam Session

While in London for a sold-out five night concert series, pop/rock band, Hanson took some time out to come into our Shazam Studio and give us a stripped back and fun performance of their latest single ‘Give A Little’.

Since 1997, the band have released five studio albums, toured excessively, set up their own label and focused on cultivating a relationship with their loyal fanbase.

With album sales in excess of 15 million, Hanson have recently released their critically acclaimed album ‘Shout It Out’. Debuting at #2 on the US Billboard independent charts, the album is a collection of songs that pays homage to the music that inspired them when they were starting out.

For more information on Hanson and to purchase their latest album, please visit their website.

Steph Cox Shazam Sessions Hanson

Platinum-selling, BRIT & Ivor Novello Award nominated singer-songwriter Nerina Pallot recently released her anticipated new album ‘Year Of The Wolf’.

Nerina popped into our Shazam Studios to give us a gorgeous and heartfelt acoustic performance of the lead single ‘Put Your Hands Up’.

Nerina is best known for her radio hit in 2006 ‘Everybody’s Gone To War’ from the album ‘Fires’ and more recently for her songwriting credits for the likes of Kylie Minogue and Diana Vickers.

For more information on Nerina and to purchase her album, please visit her website

Steph Cox Shazam Sessions Nerina Pallot

Last month we had the pleasure of the delightful folk-pop duo, The Submarines, popping by the Shazam studio. The duo (John Draonetti & Blake Hazard) came in to give us a wonderful and stripped back performance of their single ‘Shoelaces’, taken from their latest album ‘Love Notes/Letter Bombs’.

‘Love Notes/Letter Bombs’ is the anticipated follow up to their 2008 release ‘Honeysuckle Weeks’ which featured the track ‘You, Me & Bourgeoisie’ which was used on Apple iPhone’s 3G television ad campaign.

For more on The Submarines and to purchase their music, please visit their website.

Steph Cox Shazam Sessions Shazam Sessions, The Submarines

American singer/songwriter Pete Yorn joined us last month for a special acoustic performance of his new single ‘Sans Fear’ from his latest, self titled, album.

Yorn, who grew up in New Jersey, taught himself to play the drums and guitar at a young age before eventually releasing his critically acclaimed, gold record, debut LP in 2001 ‘musicforthemorningafter’. The latest release, produced by Frank Black (Pixies), was recorded in just five days and follows 2009′s ‘Back & Fourth’ and ‘Break Up’ (Yorn’s collaboration with Scarlett Johansson).

To find out more about Pete Yorn and to buy his latest record please visit his website.

Steph Cox Shazam Sessions Pete Yorn