MUSIC

Heather Mae's "Glimmer" Spins Pain into Exquisite Alt-Pop

This album is a work of empathy and raw honesty, a candid confessional and a rallying cry for everyone looking for a reason to go on.

In 2016, Heather Mae decided to dedicate her music career to helping others.

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MUSIC

Gemma Laurence's "Crooked Heart" Shines New Light On Old Sounds

The singer-songwriter draws from folk and Americana roots to craft an unusually delicate debut.

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Gemma Laurence's Crooked Heart takes its title from a line in a W. H. Auden poem—"You shall love your crooked neighbor / with your crooked heart."

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MUSIC

Louis Knight Reflects on Lost Love in "Just Kiss Me" Music Video

Up and coming singer-songwriter takes a look back at past love in his latest music video.

Louis Knight

19-year-old singer-songwriter Louis Knight takes a mature and nostalgic look at the past in his latest music video for "Just Kiss Me."

The British native shared that this song and the video were inspired by the memories that resonated when dealing with the aftermath of a long-term relationship. "I started writing this song going into my senior year of high school and I had just gotten out of this very long relationship. I hadn't really hung out or spent time with my friends in a long time so we went down to the beach in Jersey and I really wanted to capture that moment. That's kinda why this video looks back at this past relationship and intercuts with different scenes."

The video begins with Knight looking pensively at a polaroid picture of himself and an absent woman. After breaking out of this daydream, viewers are shown Knight on a stage, playing an intimate show for his friends and fans. His smooth, warm vocals guide us through the story of his previous relationship with intercut scenes of him and the girl in the photo spending their days and nights together at the beach.

The visuals are full of heartwarming moments that coincide with Knight's carefully crafted lyrics, especially poignant lines like, "We've intertwined our souls." This leaves us all the more heartbroken when we see the couple part and all the more relieved when we see their reunion in the "present" at Knight's performance. With its captivating storytelling and alluring instrumentation and vocals, "Just Kiss Me" is a strong indicator of Knight's ability to be an unapologetically vulnerable and honest musician.

This music video marks the beginning of an era for Knight. This fall the singer will be releasing his debut EP, Small Victories, which will touch on topics like relationships, loss, suicide, and hope. His next single, "Change," is due to be released this September before the release of the full EP.

"I first started writing songs when I was fourteen," shared Knight. "I think since then I've made leaps and bounds with my songwriting, and this EP that is coming out in the fall is full of very diverse tracks. I'm really excited for people to hear them all, and I hope that the messages in the tracks resonate with people."

Check out Louis Knight's music video for "Just Kiss Me" below!

Louis Knight - Just Kiss Mewww.youtube.com

Quinn Lewis

For the young and vibrant Quinn Lewis, it's imperative that his music is vulnerable.

The Australian-native, Nashville based singer-songwriter's powerful voice and raw poetic lyrics have ear steady following since his emergence in 2017. After coming off a successful tour with Kevin Garrett, Lewis's debut singles "Only Everything," and "Hanging On" were both met with critical acclaim. "With confidence and vulnerability that welcomes listeners to look inward while appreciating the joys around them," Billboard wrote, "Lewis proves his voice is one to follow."

Now, Lewis hopes his new single, "Hurt Me Now," will catapult him to the next level. "I wrote 'Hurt Me Now' when I felt stuck in the rotation of this relationship I knew was ending," Lewis told Popdust. The single is a moving tribute to lost love and a compelling fusion of indie and electro-pop. "When we shot the video, we wanted to portray the moment of knowing you're going somewhere but feeling like it's taking forever to get there," he continued. "Not being able to tell how much time is passing, but knowing that sometime soon you've got to get off the bus." Check out the premiere of "Hurt Me Now."

Sofie Mak

Grammy-nominated producer Victoria Kühne is one of Latin music's most multi-talented producers.

She was the only female producer nominated for a 2019 Grammy and worked on the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack for Desierto, by Academy Award winners Jonas Cuarón and Alfonso Cuarón. Among her long list of accomplishments is the opening of her own record label, Victoria Records, in her hometown of Monterrey, Mexico in 2015. In 2018 the studio was ranked among Mix Magazine's "Coolest New Studios," the only female-owned studio to make the list that year. The studio has since hosted everyone from The Strokes to MIA and Korn. "F**king do it and worry about the consequences later," Kühne said. "I don't know any other way. I love the concept of being the ultimate 'Renaissance Woman' who has so many sides to her."

Now, the producer wants to direct the spotlight onto her musical side. Her debut single "Vice," which premieres exclusively on Popdust, is soaked in electro-dance melodrama. "[The song] was inspired by one of my favorite paintings, 'The Garden of Earthly Delights' by Bosch," Kühne said of the track. "I am a very visual person and I found myself submerged in that painting during my whole writing process." She added that her song, along with her upcoming EP, Saints, which drops this fall, continues the narrative she's told her entire career: that women can do anything. "It's her choice to experiment with pleasure and sin, pain and pleasure, power and temptation." Kühne said of the character she portrays in the video for "Vice." "She is in control and in charge of her sexuality and her body. The bad decisions are still consciously made as they are part of an experience she chooses to have. I think there's something extremely empowering about that."

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