#MusicMonday 6

Hey, hello, hiiii. Another Monday means another music post! Half of the songs this week are brand new, and the other half are ones you might be fairly familiar with! As usual, you can recap on last week's post here. Just thought I'd also let you know that there will be a few more posts coming soon, something a bit different. Also, it's gig time again on the weekend! Read on to find out who I'm going to see...

1. Joe and Jake - You're Not Alone

Joe and Jake represented the UK at the Eurovision Song Contest over the weekend. Yes, we were near the bottom of the leaderboard as usual but we actually received far more points than what we have done in recent years (including 12 points from Malta - we love you!) and the song was a great one. I think they should be proud of themselves as they certainly did the country proud - they deserved far more than what they got. Fun fact for you, this song was actually co-written by Siva Kaneswaran from The Wanted but the band never used it on any of their albums! (They would have sounded great on this track too.)

2. Birdy - Wild Horses

This song is EVERYWHERE at the moment. I've heard it numerous times on my local radio station, on the telly etc and it's really grown on me. I've never been a Birdy fan but I adore this song.

3. MKTO - Superstitious

My favourite American duo are back with a new single, and it's most definitely one of their best! 'Superstitious' was released on Friday 13 and is full of clever lyrics as well as Tony's incredible vocals and Malcolm's crazy raps. I really hope this song cuts them the break they deserve, as they're the epitome of underrated. Also, I want them to come back to the UK as it's been nearly two years since I first/last saw them (and I've yet to witness them performing live which is a travesty).

4. OneRepublic - Wherever I Go

OneRepublic are back with a new single called 'Wherever I Go'. True to their style, it's an epic sounding track and is sure to be a hit over the next few months. If you need someone to add to your 'I need to see them live' bucketlist, these are your guys. I saw them at Jingle Bell Ball in 2014 and they completely blew me away - Ryan Tedder is unreal.

5. Nick Jonas - Chainsaw

In the lead up to his new album release, Nick Jonas has been dropping tracks for those who've pre-ordered Last Year Was Complicated. His latest offering is 'Chainsaw', which he describes as his 'most personal song yet'. The maturity in Nick's music is evident and he's poured his heart and soul into this single. It just makes me even more excited for the release of his album - every song so far is incredible.

6. Charlie Puth - My Gospel 

I've included an extra song this week, in honour of Charlie Puth who I'm going to see on Sunday. I HAVEN'T BEEN TO A GIG IN AGES, I'M SO EXCITED! It's also my first time seeing Charlie live AND I'm going to be meeting him - too much to deal with! I love his music and his album Nine Track Mind is really underrated. One of my favourite tracks from the album is 'My Gospel' which I've shared with you. I hope he sings it on Sunday, and I'll be writing a post about the gig once I'm home.

#MusicMonday 2

Hellooo! It's Monday again so I guess it's time for another #MusicMonday! These are some of the songs that I've been listening to this week. If you missed the first instalment from last week, then you can check it out here.

1. Meghan Trainor - No

I heard this song a few weeks ago but I was undecided as to whether I liked it or not. Needless to say, the more I've heard it, the more I've grown to like it. The 'My name is No' bit is still a bit annoying but I love the rest of it, it's a real bop.

 

2. P!NK - Just Like Fire (From 'Alice Through The Looking Glass')

P!NK is back! I feel like she hasn't been around for forever, but she's returned with another great song called 'Just Like Fire' which is from the new Alice Through The Looking Glass movie. The chorus is the best part of the song and it makes me want to sing along at the top of my voice.

3. MKTO - Hands Off My Heart

My American baes are back with a new single. Originally a fusion of two tracks, 'Hands Off My Heart/Places You Go', the song has now been remixed by Mysto & Pizzi and they've given it a video too. Check out the remix and the full version, both are fab.

4. Little Mix (featuring Sean Paul) - Hair

Last week, Little Mix announced that 'Hair' would be the new single from their latest album Get Weird. I think it was originally released as a promo single late last year, however it's been given a bit of a twist as pop world's favourite collaborator Sean Paul now features on it. The song is quite empowering and full of sass - girl power all the way!

5. Nathan Sykes - Stitches (Cover)

Okay so this isn't an official cover, but last week Nathan Sykes decided to share a video of him doing a vocal warm up, and it just so happened to involve him singing Shawn Mendes'  'Stitches'. My goodness, it is INCREDIBLE. The chorus in particular hit me right in the feels - Nathan has such a gorgeous tone to his voice and so passionate, even when warming up! He can sing pretty much anything, forever getting goosebumps and being in awe at his vocals.

I've been loving this song for ages so I decided to use it as my warm up! @ShawnMendes #Stitches hope you like it!!https://t.co/mQU66JHc1I

— Nathan Sykes (@NathanSykes) 14 April 2016

What are you listening to this week? Let me know! I always like suggestions of new music to listen to.

Hwyl am y tro ✌️

What I'm Listening To...

The next gig I'm going to isn't until the end of August, so seeing as I have no adventures to write about, I thought I would share some of my favourite songs that I keep on replaying at the moment!

1. John Newman - Come and Get It

iTunes

I love love LOVE John's voice. I first heard of him when he featured on Rudimental's Feel The Love back in 2012. A year later he released his own solo material, the first single being Love Me Again which was a massive hit! Last year he featured on Calvin Harris' song Blame, which to this day is one of my favourite songs. John is now back once again with his solo material, having recently released the amazing Come and Get It.  It makes me want to get up and dance!  I really hope I can go and see him live one day. I remember when he performed at the BBC Awards at the end of the last year and he was going absolutely crazy and I was just sat at home wishing I could have been there to witness it!

2. Years and Years - Shine

iTunes

After the mammoth success that was 'King', Years and Years have done it again with their latest single Shine. It's not as catchy as King however it is equally as good in it's own way, it's one of those songs that you just want to sing along to. I really like Olly's vocals and the lyrics to the chorus.  They are another act that I would love to see live one day!

3. Conrad Sewell - Hold Me Up

iTunes

Conrad Sewell is an Australian singer and you may know him from having featured on Kygo's hit single 'Firestone'. When I first heard Hold Me Up, I was intrigued as to who sang the song so I used Shazam to find out. Funnily enough, a few days later my local radio interviewed him and since then they play this song on a regular basis. I think Conrad has a really unusual voice and I've grown to love this song so much! He has previously supported Ed Sheeran and will support Jess Glynne and Maroon 5 later on this year which will no doubt increase his popularity.

4. Aston Merrygold - Get Stupid

iTunes

I couldn't not mention this song!  Get Stupid is Aston's first solo single and my gosh it's everything I could have hoped for and more.  It's such a feel good song and every time I hear it I have to dance ad sing along really loudly (which, as anyone who's experienced me singing will know, is an utter travesty as I am tone deaf but the song  requires you to get your stupid on, right?!).  I really hope that this song charts highly for Aston, he seriously deserves it.  I'm so excited to see him solo for the first time at Fusion Fest, no doubt this song will be just as epic live as it is recorded!

5.  MKTO - Bad Girls EP

iTunes

Last but not least, the American baes MKTO.  They released their Bad Girls EP last week and to be honest I hadn't been hyping myself up for it as the last few times, their singles haven't been released in the UK.  However I was scrolling my timeline and saw a French fan say that she'd downloaded it so I looked on iTunes, and low and behold it was available in the UK!! I don't know whether it's to do with the fact that music releases have changed from a Sunday to a Friday to coincide with global releases but either way I was so flippin' excited to have new music from them!!  I'd already heard Bad Girls so I skipped to the other three tracks, Afraid of the Dark, Monaco and Just Imagine It.  The latter two are beautiful songs but I've got to say that Afraid of the Dark is my absolute favourite.  I was hooked within seconds, it's by far my most played song in the last week!

What's everyone else listening to atm?  Leave a comment below :-)

Hwyl am y tro ✌️

Baby you're so classic <3

Around 7 years ago, Disney Channel was the in thing to watch, and although I was probably too old for it even then, I would often tune in, one of my favourites being As The Bell Rings.

This was a ten minute show, documenting the ins and outs of school break times and what the characters would do. It was here that I first discovered Tony Oller, one of the stars of the show alongside Demi Lovato. This was the first episode I ever saw and subsequently I fell in love with Tony and forever wanted to be Demi loool! http://youtu.be/kZM12S-UG4c

Fast forward to 2013, where I saw an advert online for a film called The Purge, with one of the staring roles going to Tony. This reminded me of my obsession with him when I was younger so I casually did a search on him to discover he was now in a duo called MKTO. 

Possibly the best/worst thing I did was check out some of their covers, and also an original song they'd just released called 'Thank You'. I instantly fell in love with this duo, their music made me feel that it was ok to be yourself even if that meant you were a misfit. The only downside to loving MKTO (which stands for both Malcolm Kelley Tony Oller and misfit kids total outcasts) was that they lived in America, making it highly unlikely that I would ever meet them.

Despite this, I continued to support them along with my twinny Miriam, and we could only dream that one day they might come to the UK. We've had their album shipped from Australia, I bought their tshirt from America, we've stayed up late for livestreams and shows, and supported as much as we could from the UK! We've even emulated a picture of them, seeing as we are the female version lol! *i won't share the pic bc cringe*

At the end of April they announced that they'd be coming here in May and from that point on we panicked, trying to think when/where and generally failing at being detectives haha!

Despite all the stress, last week our dream came true when they visited Manchester and Kent, meaning we both got to meet our American baes :) the only thing that would have made it more perfect was if we could have met them together!

I went to Manchester on Monday, and it was the most surreal experience! There was only 4 of us, which was disappointing considering the amount of people that wanted them there but it was short notice! I can't complain as it meant we had an extremely pleasant experience with no screaming fangirls or people hogging haha!

As soon as they came out of the car, I heard Tony say "wow look at that shirt!" about my MKTO tee and they were both so happy to see I was wearing proper merch! One of the other girls started taking selfies so Tony said to me "hey we gotta take a selfie, it's the in thing right now" in the most beautiful American accent ever <3 

I'd be lying if I said I wasn't dying a bit inside, seven years in the making that selfie!!!!

Malcolm came over next, and he's so casual it's hilarious! He was proper lovely and said we needed more selfies haha!

Whilst they were in for their interview I had a chance to try and take in what had just happened but to be honest, even now nearly a week on, I still feel as if I'm dreaming! As they were leaving, I got another picture with Tony and they signed my album!

(It did say 'love you' until I smudged it ffs)

Mum also managed to capture some shots whilst I was chatting...

The morning after, I woke up to a very excited Miriam telling me to look at Tony's Instagram immediately!!

He seriously made my life with this!! Malcolm and Tony are two of the nicest people I've met, they're so talented and I only hope that they make it here in the UK so that they come here more often! It sounds promising that they will be back soon, as they are releasing their single 'Classic' on June 29th and their album on July 7th!

I think I've rambled enough for this post, so I'll leave you with the brilliant video for Classic! http://youtu.be/4Ba_qTPA4Ds

Hwyl am y tro ✌️