[Black Dagger]

Sam, Chloe and Ella are the chosen ones for Critics Choice shortlist.

urgh. I am not here for Ella or Sam being forced down our throats during 2014, no doubt they'll be in the top 5 as well here.

[Jords]

"Julian" by Say Lou Lou

[LemonJam]

Sampha or Chance the Rapper to win please

[Jords]

Because I like to rank things...

1. Sam Smith
2. Say Lou Lou
3. Banks
-------------------------
4. FKA twigs
5. MNEK
6. Nick Mulvey
7. Jungle
-------------------------
8. Luke Sital-Singh
9. Chloe Howl
10. Sampha
11. Chance the Rapper
-------------------------
12. Royal Blood
13. Kelela
14. Ella Eyre
15. George Ezra

...overall quite a boring longlist, I dont think my interest stretches past #7 at all and Im only really interested to hear more from Sam Smith, Say Lou Lou and Banks.

FKA twigs is kinda quirky.

Edit: based on first listens.

[Black Dagger]

I'm not here for you having the best boy (George) last and the basic one first, Jords, no way no way!

[Shaun]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-25590722

Singer-songwriter George Ezra has come fifth in the BBC's Sound of 2014 list, kicking off a week-long countdown to the winner.

The Bristol-based artist, whose tracks include Budapest, has been described as making "grizzly folk-pop".

The list was compiled by 170 DJs, critics and bloggers, who were asked to name their three favourite new acts.

And an article about him himself:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-25590684

(they reveal one each day this week)

[Brother Leon]

Chance the Rapper or Sam Smith ftw.

[Marc]

Thank god for this thread. Been looking for Chloe's surname for a while.

George

-he sounded black on R1-

[Z]

Wonder if this year's winner will be a success or not

[Marc]

Little Boots in that list in the OP tho....

[Doogle]

Banks, Say Lou Lou, Kelela, Ella Eyre, Chloe Howl, Sam Smith >>>>

But basically Banks >>>>>> everyone

[Black Dagger]

George

He's superior to the other charismaless bore boys in every-way.

Should have been top 3 tbqfh.

[Black Dagger]

Originally Posted by Zee

Wonder if this year's winner will be a success or not

The majority have, even Little Botts was tbf, she was just lambasted for beating well actual success hiters.. wasn't that the year of Florence and Gaga?

The only big flop was Michael, and even then I think he had moderate chart success, I did think Haim were odd winners, but they've done well.

I do think top 2 is Sam (BORE THE **** OFF) and Ella/Chloe though.. bit lame.

[Z]

I can imagine Sam Smith would have a career, I find his voice grating but there aren't really any male popstars and haven't been for a while other than Olly Murs trying to be Robbie Williams and he's carved out quite a career for himself doing that for a few years, about time we had some originality in the male pop field again - it's been usurped by R&B, rappers and DJs masquerading as solo artists.

[Shaun]

Sampha has placed 4th.



http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01k...rofiles/sampha

Hailing from South London, this 24-year-old soul singer has already racked up an impressive list of collaborators.

With everyone from SBTRKT to Jessie Ware queuing up to work with him, he even managed to feature on Drake’s hugely successful Nothing Was The Same album. As a result, he was flown out to New York to perform alongside the rapper on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon.

Now branching out on his own, Sampha recently released his ‘Dual’ EP to rave reviews.

His distinctive vocals have drawn comparisons to Tracey Chapman and Michael Jackson - two artists he has cited as influences on his own tracks.

BBC News article: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-25216843

[LemonJam]

Sampha

[Black Dagger]

Oh he's lovely

Right, your typical Sam, Ella, Chloe top 3 now.

Poor Jungle </3

[Shaun]

I'd be very surprised if Chance wasn't in it. I think Chloe won't make it.

[Z]

Sampha

[Shaun]

top 3 should be Banks, Chance + FKA Twigs tho

[Black Dagger]

I need to really have another listen of them all, there is an Annie Mac 25 minute show on the Iplayer, might check it out in a bit.

[Benjamin]

I don;t really get the love for Sampha's music, it's nice but very forgettable and bland in my opinion.

[Black Dagger]

Banks finishes 3rd -lets Shaun update the thread and post the nice little bios and video, I don't want to feel like I'm taking over-

Say Lou Lou and Jungle/FKA Twigs/MNEK for top 2 pls, piss off ella and sam.

[Black Dagger]

"They’ve mentioned Arcade Fire... among their influences"

END THE CONTEST, SAY LOU LOU TO WIN.

[Shaun]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-25576571

Sultry R&B singer Banks has come third in the BBC's Sound of 2014 list, which showcases emerging artists for the coming 12 months.

Fusing dark, introspective lyrics with seductive electronic grooves, the 25-year-old has collaborated with underground British producers such as Jamie Woon, Lil Silva and Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs.

But she hails from LA where, as a broken-hearted teen, she started writing songs on a toy piano she'd been given as a gift.

"I found music because I felt different," she tells the BBC.

"A lot of times, people are ashamed of feeling weak and being rejected - so it's liberating to be able to sing about those things. And it's amazing when other people don't feel alone because they hear it."

Having issued some low-key EPs (Fall Over and the London EP) last year, the singer recently toured with R&B soulmate The Weeknd and is preparing to release her debut album.
-------------

Congratulations on making the top three of the Sound Of 2014!
Oh my God, I'm so excited! It's just such an honour.

Do you feel ready for the next 12 months?
I am so ready. I love my job so much. It's all I want to do and it's all I think about.

Your birth certificate says "Jillian Banks". Why did you drop your first name?
I have a really feminine voice, but I also feel quite powerful when I write. So my songs feel heavy, and that's how Banks sounds. It's a really short, powerful sound. It almost sounds masculine and I like having that dichotomy.

Where were you born?
I was born in Orange County, but I moved to Los Angeles when I was one or two and lived in Tarzana [an affluent, highly educated neighbourhood in the San Fernando Valley]. We had a really big back yard and I was a little nature baby.

What was school like?
Well, it depends what age. I went through stages of being really, really outgoing and then… not so much.
But my mum told me that when I was five, the principal was giving us a tour of my first school and I made him watch me hop like a frog the whole time. I wouldn't walk, I just hopped like a frog!

So you were always performing?
[Giggles] I don't know if I was performing, but I was always in my own little world.

Did you take part in any school plays, or sing to the class?
No, once I discovered singing it was kind of my own thing, separate from everyone.

What's the first music you remember hearing as a child?
I have a memory of listening to Tracy Chapman and just being intrigued by her voice. Even as a young girl, I wanted to know more about her and her story. I felt I was learning about her through her music. That was a revelation to me.

Although your sound is very different, would you say there's a thread connecting Tracy Chapman's music to your own?
Definitely. The music I was really inspired by was Tracy Chapman, Fiona Apple, Lauryn Hill. You could hear how human they were through their music. All that vulnerability and that beauty of being human. I hope I have that in my music, too.

You started writing to get through a "tough time" - but you've never said exactly what that was. Is that deliberate?
Maybe it's deliberate and maybe it's not... But it wasn't just one thing - that time was hard. It was the first time I went so dark in my head. I had a lot of things going on around me that were hard for me to deal with. Even on a sunny day, everything felt gloomy.

Do you still go through those dark periods now?
Not so much. I think, when you're younger and you're having all these intense emotions... I can only speak for myself but I'm so sensitive: When I'm sad I'm really sad, and when I love someone I really love someone.
But as you get older you find ways to cope that are healthy for you, and for me that's music.

So things would be a lot worse if you hadn't found that release...
Yeah, it'd be awful! You'd just be wandering through life hitting your head against every object that comes along!

You're self-taught on the piano. How does that affect your writing?
Sometimes my chord progressions are a little bit different, or don't really make sense. I mean, I even hold my fingers differently than you're supposed to. But it makes the music 100% based on emotion and intuition and not at all about maths.

Your lyrics are very intimate. Do you ever worry you're giving too much away?
I never knew the boundaries that you had to draw for yourself. You know, how honest you can be?
But I decided, you know what? I'm not going to change anything. I'm not going to be less open because other people are going to start hearing it.

How did you feel when people did get to hear it?
I don't know what the word is. I was… I was touched. It feels amazing to be writing things that you went through, and other people are coming out right and left saying they have felt those things, too. It's amazing. Why should anyone be scared to show anger or anything?

What's it like reliving those emotions on stage?
It feels good. It's a powerful thing to be able to write a song. Even the least powerful feeling - like insecurity - that makes you feel weak when you experience it, when you write about it, you are powerful. So no matter how sad the song was for me, it feels good for me to go there.

Is the album finished yet?
I'm still just doing the finishing touches to it - I don't have a title yet - but I'm so excited.

How does it compare to your EPs?
It's more of me. More of my heart and my brain.

Any other major organs?
And my blood.

Maybe a kidney?
A kidney? No!

Did your parents come out to see you on tour with The Weeknd?
Actually, one day my dad was listening to the radio and he phoned me up excitedly shouting "guess who's on the radio? Vampire Weekend!"
I was like: "That's cool dad, but that's not who I'm on tour with!"
It was so funny. He was so proud.

Does he know the difference now?
Now he knows. He came to a bunch of the shows. He's so supportive and awesome.

Notoriously, you have your personal phone number listed on Facebook. Have you had any proposals yet?
Yeah! I've had a few!

Have you met up with any of them?
No I haven't. I haven't met any of them.

I suppose that's for the best.
Maybe. Or maybe they're my soul mates. You never know.