To all my friends who are artists, musicians, DJ's, run record labels, manage musicians, or just are genuinely interested in music - This event is the thing for you! Best of Britannia (BoB), curated by award winning songwriter Guy Chambers (best known for his work with Robbie Williams) celebrates Britain's best music, arts, culture design, technology and manufacturing! 

Better still, an iconic British superstar will 'perform' at the event in the form of a hologram created by MUSION -the British company who created the famous Tupac Hologram.

Guy Chambers said "British music talent is the best in the world because we take more risks, we embrace new genres, we aren't scared to be original and we have the confidence of an incredible pop heritage, I look forward to showcasing the best of British talent at BOB 2012."
 
When?: October 5th, 6th, 7th (pick which day is best for you from the site)

Where?: Farmiloe Building - London
(details here) 

Why should you go?: Because with prices starting from just 5 quid, you can enjoy a whole range of talent and meet some like-minded people in the creative industry.

Book tickets at www.bestofbritannia.com

'Tupac Style' Hologram 
Of a surprise ICONIC BRITISH SUPERSTAR, I can't wait to find out who it is!

The Janice Graham Band will be there (presented by ACID JAZZ: An East London label founded by Giles Peterson and Eddie Piller, associated with Jamiroquai and The Brand New Heavies.)

Helena Jesele: The sultry songstress whose unique sound comes courtesy of world-renowned producers such as Paul O’Duffy, who co-wrote Wake Up Alone with Amy Winehouse and Truth and Soul, who worked on Adele’s 19album. 

And MANY MORE special treats brought to you by industry professionals. Including a celebration of British film-making with an indoor pop-up cinema showcasing short, documentary and feature length films.

So come on down, I know i'll be going!

For more information and to BUY TICKETS go to:  
www.bestofbritannia.com


Written By Sazrah 
@sazrah_producer
Facebook.com/sazrahproducer

Cassie is a singer, songwriter and pianist who I was grateful to have as my friend at university. With over 25,000 youtube hits, her talent and skills are admired by people all around the world. Cassie and I both took music technology at uni and it was very male dominated! So today, we discuss how it feels to be a female in this industry and better still, her music and what music means to her.



Cassie! Tell us a bit about your musical style?
I write music as a form of expression, as I was growing up I played the piano when I was upset because it was one of the only places where I could sit and not think about anything, I would just improvise for hours until I realised I had taught myself piano by ear. All the music I write is written to convey my feelings at the time so is usually sad, slow, relaxing, almost film like. After learning music technology at university and college I now also combine production techniques into my piano/vocal songs to give a unique style to the music. 


Do you feel it is beneficial being a woman in the music industry, or would you see it as a negative?
This is a tricky question! It can always be both depending on the person and how they convey themselves. As a female if you want to be taken seriously in any industry I would say think about how you dress/put yourself across, I've been around boys in class for the past 5 years and I have learnt a lot! If you want to be taken seriously for your talent/what you do in music don't try and impress with anything else but your musical talent otherwise you will be seen in a way you don't want.  

In college I must have been about 18 and my college teacher actually said to me: "You know you can slut yourself off in this industry!" I couldn't believe those words were just said to me! And from that moment on I realised that a lot of men who had experience in the industry saw women in that way and it made me want to get somewhere without doing any of that! 

I have felt that men have sometimes looked down on me just because of my gender and they assume you can't do certain things or they assumed that I studied music instead of music technology because im female. 
The worst is when you get asked to 'sing on my track' as a chat up line, you wouldn't know it at first, you would think 'great let's do some music'! But boys sometimes have other things on their minds! It's a shame really...


I hear you! I've had a male teacher tell me something similar...'sleep with them if you have to!' were his words of so-called 'advice'! Anyway- What is your best moment of your music career so far?

The best moment... I don't have a specific moment but the best times are when you get really great feedback from people about your songs. There's a video on Youtube actually and when I uploaded it, it was the first piano cover of 'What You Know' by Two Door Cinema Club' and now it has over 10,000 views and i've had so many nice comments about it! It's just nice to know that your really getting through to people! I spent so much time before I made music thinking 'wow how has this song made me feel like this'?! And to know you have done it to other people.. 
To see video- click on the underlined title or click HERE


Who are your inspirations?

People who can perform well and make their own music are a massive plus for me! Singers like Eva Cassidy, I don't know how she had lungs like those but she was incredible! Amy winehouse was an amazing songwriter, Judy Garland, Adele, Aretha Franklin, Hayley Williams, Joni Mitchell. Recent producers who I take a lot of inspiration from are people like 'Baths'. He is a classically trained pianist who produces amazing music tieing in vocals with piano and production techniques to create his own lovely unique style  - Go listen!
...And a massive shout out to my nan! She loves hearing me play piano at home and has kept me with it over the years!

What advice do u give other ladies who want to make it in the industry?

Hmm! Be careful! Have fun and keep going! Don't let other people put you down or stop you and your music! Be a professional!

View more of Cassie on her: YouTube Page

I just HAD to share my new secret to happiness. It comes in the form of a 7 track album titled ‘Born In Black & White’ by the very talented Myles Sanko. This album puts the ‘good’ in feel-good music and it has been voted 4stars by Time Out Magazine.

Myles is local to me so I have met him and seen him perform plenty of times with his fantastic band Bijoumyo but I am eager to now watch him perform as a solo artist because I know he puts on a great show.

This solo EP is a lovely fusion of all funk and jazz genres with great instrumentation, accompanying Myles’ soulful vocals. I particularly adore the horn arrangements and admire the catchy rhythms and melodies sung and played by ALL the parts. Although Myles has a different sound to Jamiroquai as a whole, the tone of the synths that dip in and out of each track remind me of the spacey synth sounds in some of my favourite Jamiroquai songs.

There have been times when I have been down but as soon as I pop my ipod on and hit play on ‘Born In Black & White’, it’s like all problems are shaken away and all I want to do is dance! Infact, me, Mummy and my sister Anne had the TIME OF OUR LIFE to this album last weekend and caught it on tape. We’d had a hard week and Myles Sanko's music was a breath of fresh air for us and helped us unwind and feel good again. Below is the cheeky video of our lil party and better still, you can hear snippets of a few of my favourite tracks from the EP..... 

So! If you like James Brown, you’ll love this album that’s all I can say. My only criticism is that each song comes to an end - I want them to go on FOREVER.     

Download it NOW at: www.mylessanko.com 
Follow Myles Sanko at: @MylesSanko

Today I want to tell y'all about ExpandaUK. A company that helps artists by providing the services for music videos and live music recordings.
With video deals starting from just 20 pounds, ExpandaUK is a great service for young artists with a low budget.

I thought it all sounded too good to be true so took a trip to London to interview the CEO of ExpandaUK and here is what he had to say!

Follow Expanda: 
@expandaUK
Contact Expanda: 
ExpandaUK Official Facebook


For all prices click here