International Artist Spotlight: Daft Punk

INTERNATIONAL ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: DAFT PUNK

Daft Punk "One More Time"

You just might have had a feeling that since March contains St. Patrick's Day, you might "Get Lucky" with this month's theme ending on Daft Punk. May I formally introduce you to the French duo who has been rocking the dance music scene for 25 years. They have been one of the faces of EDM and House music, and have been collaborating with a lot of other world renowned artists recently. Their first album, Homework, was released  in 1997, and, while the first hit off of that album was "Da Funk," the most popular song that came off of that album was "Around The World." Discovery followed in 2001, with a few more smash hits, including the chosen song today, which was near the top of both club and mainstream charts. This allowed that album to reach #2 on the UK charts. Their most recent album, Random Access Memories, contained "Get Lucky," featuring Pharell Williams. It was their first #1 song on the UK charts, and was the most streamed new song in the history of Spotify. Given that the personas of the members of Daft Punk are largely robotic, thanks to the helmets they wear whenever they make appearances, it should be no surprise that this group also did the soundtrack for Tron: Legacy in 2008. In addition to all of their musical success, they are also very talented artists. You can see a lot of this talent on display with the products they sell, as well as some of their earlier music videos that involve animation. While I'm sure Daft Punk is not a new group to most of you, I encourage you to use an hour or two of the last day of the month to rediscover some of their music. And, don't forget to check back for the theme for April!

Learn more about Daft Punk here

Lyrics to "One More Time"

International Artist Spotlight: Lorde

INTERNATIONAL ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: LORDE

Lorde "Perfect Places"

A pop artist that can fall into a few different genres, Lorde was first introduced to the world with her single "Royals." It sat atop the Billboard charts for 9 consecutive weeks, and eventually won Song of the Year at the Grammys in 2013. Lorde hails from New Zealand, and largely gained success doing covers at first. It was her first EP that she posted on her Soundcloud account that brought her popularity, which included "Royals." She also created music for Mockingjacy, Part 1 from The Hunger Games series. Her most recent album, Melodrama, was released last year, and was nominated for Album of the Year at the most recent Grammys. She is only 21, and yet she already has a large fan base. She chose her name from her fascination with royalty, but added the "E" at the end to add more femininity to it. She has been on Time's list of most influential teenagers twice, and has also been featured on Forbes' list of 30 under 30 who are changing the world. She's just another example of a young wave of pop stars who have already gained quite a bit of acclaim at an early age. Her future appears bright, and I encourage you to give her music a listen.

Biographical information here

Lyrics to "Perfect Places"

International Artist Spotlight: Rihanna

INTERNATIONAL ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: RIHANNA

Rihanna ft. Jay-Z "Umbrella"

We're venturing to Barbados today to profile one of the most iconic women of pop music. Robyn Rihanna Fenty has only been producing music for roughly ten years, yet she has already racked up a ton of awards. She is the youngest solo artist to record 14 Billboard #1 hits. She has over 100 million gold and platinum singles on the digital scene, and has 8 Grammys to her name. Discovered by two vacationing Def Jam producers, Rihanna's career was launched with the release of her first album that brought us the dance floor hit "Pon de Replay." "Good Girl Gone Bad" was the album that really launched her into stardom, with "Umbrella" being the song of the summer that year. It also sat atop the pop, urban and crossover charts for a whole year! "Umbrella" was the song that brought Rihanna her first Grammy. Many just as successful albums and #1 hits have followed, and she's only 30! With many years remaining in Rihanna's career, we can only look forward to the next great albums and singles to come. Along with all the music success, Rihanna has also been an active businesswoman and philanthropist. She's designed various clothing and accessories, and some of the sales of these items go towards causes she's passionate about. With today' selection, take a moment to recognize the greatness of Rihanna and her music.


If you want to learn more, click here


Lyrics to "Umbrella"

International Artist Spotlight: Carlos Santana

INTERNATIONAL ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: CARLOS SANTANA

Carlos Santana ft. Rob Thomas "Smooth (Stereo)"

Today we take a trip to Mexico to profile one of the greatest guitarists of all time, Carlos Santana. Santana has been showcasing his guitar talent with his band for over four decades. He started out playing in legendary places such as The Fillmore, and even performed at the legendary Woodstock Festival in 1969. He's the winner of 10 Grammy Awards, including 9 for a single project, Supernatural, which is where today's classic song comes from. 1998 brought their induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, OH. With the release of an album in 2014, he became just one of two Billboard artists to produce a top 10 album for 6 consecutive decades. I could go on and on with all of the prestigious awards and honors that Santana has collected throughout his career. However, I think his music speaks for itself. A lot of his songs, no matter which decade they are from, are well known and recognizable fairly quickly. Aside from a fantastic music career, Santana has also been an active philanthropist, especially in donating to various children's foundations. Santana has emerged as both a legendary musician and a wonderful human being, and I encourage you to take the time to listen to some of his classics.

You can learn more about Santana here


Lyrics to "Smooth (Stereo)"

International Artist Spotlight: Dua Lipa

INTERNATIONAL ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: DUA LIPA

Dua Lipa "Blow Your Mind (Mwah)"

Exactly a month ago, this blog introduced Dua Lipa. She probably didn't need an introduction though, as she's been blowing up top 50 charts in multiple countries for close to a year now. Dua Lipa, while born in London, is ethnically Albanian, and her parents moved to London from Kosovo. She moved back to Kosovo with her family in 2008, before returning back to London to launch her rising music career. At first, she started a career as a model before moving on to music. The song featured today was her first song to enter the Billboard U.S. charts, coming in at 72. She has been featured on tracks with Martin Garrix and Sean Paul. Last month's song "New Rules," was the first number one hit for her in the U.K., and the first female artist to reach that spot since Adele in 2015. She was also the most streamed woman of 2017 on Spotify in the U.K. It appears she's got a bright future ahead of her, as she is starting to work on her second studio album. I am definitely a big fan of hers, and love her voice. I certainly hope you'll enjoy and explore more of her music as well. 

Lyrics to "Blow Your Mind (Mwah)"

International Artist Spotlight: Flume

INTERNATIONAL ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: FLUME

Flume ft. Moon Holiday "Insane"

Today, we are going into the world of EDM. Harley Edward Streten, better known as Flume, is a DJ hailing from Australia. He has become really well known over the last few years, producing hits like "Never Be Like You" featuring Kai, and "Say It" featuring Swedish pop star Tove Lo. While those songs came off of the album Skin, there was one album prior to that, which gained him popularity throughout Australia. Many of his songs feature other artists on vocals, which, when combined with his mixes, create some fantastic dance songs. He also produces songs for artists, most notably Lorde. I had the pleasure of getting to see Flume perform live at Firefly last summer, and it was such a great experience. The crowd loved it, and there's few better ways to get pumped up at one in the morning, in my opinion. I'm looking forward to what Flume has for us in the future, as well as continuing to enjoy what he's already given us. I hope you are too. 

Lyrics to "Insane"

International Artist Spotlight: Nelly Furtado

INTERNATIONAL ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: NELLY FURTADO

NELLY FURTADO "SAY IT RIGHT"

Before  I write about today's featured artist, I just wanted to apologize for the long delay between posts. My laptop stopped working a few weeks ago, and that prevented me from being able to update the blog daily. Have no fear, I have come into possession of a new laptop, and the blog is now back up and running! Thank you for your patience, and I am hopeful that there will be no more hiccups.

Today's choice for the international artist spotlight comes from Canada, although she was born to Portuguese parents. Nelly Furtado is one of the most well known women of pop over the last two decades. She has been singing since the age of 4, and it has now turned into a very successful career. Her first single of her career was "I'm Like A Bird," which could just have easily been a great selection for the song today. Ever since then, she has been pumping out hit after hit with each new album released. Her most successful album was Loose, where we got wonderful hits like "Promiscuous" (her first #1 song) and "Maneater", as well as the song featured today, which was her most successful song worldwide. Throughout her career, Furtado has stayed very close to her Portuguese roots, including some of the language throughout her music, as well as writing a song off of her second album that became the theme for the 2004 European Football Championship, where the finals were held in Lisbon. She is also an active philanthropist. While most of you have probably listened to her music before, I hope you'll enjoy this small bio, and refresh yourself with some of Nelly Furtado's music today.

Lyrics to "Say It Right"

International Artist Spotlight: Zara Larsson

INTERNATIONAL ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: ZARA LARSSON

Zara Larsson "Lush Life"

Swedish pop sensation Zara Larsson has been making music since she was ten. At that time, she won Sweden's version of America's Got Talent, and, with a cover of Celine Dion's "My Heart Will Go On," her music career was underway. The song featured today was released in 2015, and was her first big international hit, including here in the United States. Since then, she's had a few other songs gain international acclaim and released her first studio album. Her accolades thus far include Time magazine's 30 most influential teenagers of 2016 and being named on Forbes' "30 under 30 Europe" segment. This particular song is very upbeat, and is all about having fun. In Larsson's own words, "live with no regrets and enjoy the moment." She also describes this song as a perfect summer song, as that tends to be when most people take the opportunity to live that way. Needless to say, Larsson's future is bright, and I believe she's on the verge of being one of pop's next biggest mega artists.

Lyrics to "Lush Life"

International Artist Spotlight: Shakira

INTERNATIONAL ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: SHAKIRA

Shakira ft. Wyclef Jean "Hips Don't Lie"

Shakira is the best selling Colombian artist of all time. Her music is widely popular throughout the world, including the United States. Which, if you know about her, would have been far fetched when she first started making music. It took her quite a few years before she broke through on the American charts. The album Laundry Service, which contained the song "Whenever, Wherever," was what broke through that barrier. It reached number 3 on the U.S. album charts, according to biography.com. She has been a judge on The Voice, and has won 3 Grammys throughout her career. She's also a very active philanthropist, having her own charity foundation as well as being a UNICEF ambassador. The song featured today topped the charts in 55 countries, according to Genius. I'm sure most of you will recognize this, as well as many other songs by her. Enjoy today's pick, the second most successful Latin American artist behind Gloria Estefan.

Here is the full biography used today

Here is her website, which provides plenty of information, including her extensive philanthropy

Lyrics to "Hips Don't Lie"

International Artist Spotlight: Kaleo

INTERNATIONAL ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: KALEO

Kaleo "No Good"

If you're looking for a band to really rock out to, than may I introduce you to Kaleo. They are a rock band with a blues sound hailing from Iceland. Their debut album A/B showcases their unique sound. According to the band's website, this album is inspired by vinyl records of old, where there were two sides to the record. Each side of of the vinyl allowed the artist to put on display different sides of their musical talent. Kaleo approaches their album the same way, with the front half filled with that blues rock sound, while the back half is filled with softer ballads. "No Good" is a representation of that blues rock sound, and it is also the opener to the album. It's a great way to start off a pretty great album. I did get to see Kaleo in person at the Firefly Music festival last summer, and they are just as impressive live. I highly encourage you to check out this group from Iceland.

If you want to learn more about them, check out their website

Lyrics to "No Good"

International Artist Spotlight: Lukas Graham

INTERNATIONAL ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: LUKAS GRAHAM

Lukas Graham "Mama Said"

A song that samples "Hard Knock Life" can't be terrible, can it? You probably know who Lukas Graham is from the song "7 Years," since that's the song that launched him into the spotlight. I also believe that today's selection, "Mama Said," was also played on the radio quite a bit. It's a simple, upbeat song about appreciating the things that you have in life. The lyrics stress not needing to have all these extravagant things to be happy. It also talks about following your dreams, with Lukas' personal story as an example. Lukas Graham is actually a pop band from Copenhagen, Denmark. Lukas, the lead singer, has used his life and background as inspiration for a lot of his music, and you can tell within the lyrics. He grew up in a fairly poor neighborhood in Copenhagen, yet made it out to the success he has now as a musician. However, he always likes to share that success back to where it all started. 

For the rest of the month, each day will feature an artist from a different country around the world. Hope you enjoy this month's theme!

Check out their website for more info!

Lyrics to "Mama Said"