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Multi-platinum Quartz Hill Records’ Joe Nichols is one of country music’s most-lauded recording artists. A 21st century traditionalist, Nichols is an artist who is both timely and timeless – one who has racked nearly 2 billion music streams including a half-dozen Number 1 singles and ten Top 10 hits with a sound that blurs the boundaries between country music’s past and present. It’s an approach that has earned Nichols three GRAMMY nominations, a CMA award, an ACM trophy, a CMT “Breakthrough Video of the Year” Award as well as multiple gold and platinum-certified records. Nichols’ additional honors include awards from Billboard, Radio & Records and Music Row Magazine as well as a New York Times “Best-Albums-of-the-Year” nod. The celebrated star has appeared on national media programs ranging from the ACM Presents: Superstar Duets on CBS to The Tonight Show, Jimmy Kimmel Live, The View, Entertainment Tonight and Austin City Limits. He also made his big screen debut in the feature film, Murder at Yellowstone City.
Nichols released his long-awaited new album, Good Day For Living, on February 11, 2022. The 13-song collection features previous single and title track, “Good Day For Living,” his first top 20 and rising at country radio in nearly a decade. His brand new radio single, “Brokenhearted” – also from his Good Day For Living album and written by Rhett Akins, Marv Green, and John Thomas Harding, officially impacted country radio on June 20 and was among the most added.
In 2020, Kyle McKearney was restless and ready to start something new. After spending time in Nashville and being a part of many varied musical projects, he settled in Alberta and began posting YouTube videos of himself performing cover songs. It was the start of a creative reinvention, and two years later Kyle’s debut solo album Down-Home received a Canadian Country Music Association award nomination for Alternative Country Album of the Year.
Yet, that was only one of the accolades that have boosted Kyle McKearney’s status as Canada’s biggest breakthrough independent country/Americana artist of 2022. He also earned two Western Canadian Music Award nominations, was named a SiriusXM Top of the Country semi-finalist, placed second in Alberta Music’s Project Wild (for which he was awarded $75,000), shared stages with The Black Crowes, Kip Moore, Our Lady Peace and Dean Brody, all while racking up over one million global streams.
Kyle hasn’t wasted any time building on that momentum. Fans have been treated to new music over the past several months with the singles “Mercy,” “River Rain” and “Grandfather” displaying Kyle’s maturation as a songwriter, while still showing off his powerful voice and his evolving collaboration with Juno Award-winning producer/guitarist/songwriter Russell Broom. It’s all there as well on the latest single, “Whispering Pines,” a soaring duet between Kyle and his wife Sarah that immediately belongs in the conversation of songs at the cutting edge of country music’s current renaissance.
“I wrote ‘Whispering Pines’ while I was working a shift job,” Kyle explains. “It was two weeks away from home at a time in a place where I felt isolated. This song speaks to so many families’ situations; one parent working away while the other takes care of things at home. It can be very tough and can take its toll on any relationship.”
Such honest emotions have formed the bedrock of every song Kyle has written to date, a reflection of being born and raised in small-town northern British Columbia, and his family’s Metis heritage. Kyle grew up listening to country and bluegrass, both of which sparked his interest in music. He would later explore rock and pop sounds with various projects, including playing guitar in the band that accompanied the touring production of Queen’s We Will Rock You.
With the onset of the pandemic, Kyle was left virtually back at square one, although in some ways it became a blessing in disguise. Returning to his country roots, Kyle quickly found his voice and hasn’t looked back since.
With Kyle’s sound encompassing not only country, but blues, R&B and rock ‘n’ roll as well, he exemplifies everything the Americana genre represents: music for anyone who appreciates pure heart and soul.
In a sea of carbon-copy producers, The Funk Hunters have cultivated their signature sound by creating forward-thinking electronic music that is influenced by old school funk, soul and hip-hop.
As longtime friends, collaborators, and multi-dimensional artists, Nick Middleton and Duncan Smith’s chemistry is perfectly aligned. Middleton steers the band’s studio efforts, having produced, co-written, and mixed their debut album, TYPECAST. And Smith anchors the project’s live show with an indefatigable charisma that compliments Middleton’s thoughtful production. Together they combine their powers as DJs, resulting in a brilliant technical display of creative collaboration between 4 turntables.
Their vision has resonated with both listeners and industry tastemakers alike, with their music amassing over 50 million track streams across their catalog of original productions, remixes and collaborations. Winners of the Electronic/Dance Artist of the Year at the Western Canadian Music Awards, The Funk Hunters also reached #1 on the Billboard Dance Club Chart with an official remix of U2’s “Love Is Bigger.” Their catalog also includes other official remixes for Big Gigantic, Gramatik, Opiuo, Haywyre, The Polish Ambasador, Dub FX, Selena Gomez, and Imagine Dragons.
In addition to studio work, The Funk Hunters enjoy a vibrant global touring career with major festival plays at Coachella, Life Is Beautiful, Lightning in a Bottle, Electric Forest, Osheaga, Outside Lands, Burning Man, and Shambhala. They consistently play to the biggest dance floors in the world – frequent collaborator Chali 2na of Jurassic 5 fame has called them “the selectah’s of the century.”
Funds raised from both the Live Industry Auction and the Gala go to support STARS and the critical services that they provide to our businesses, communities and families.
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