Johntá Austin is an songwriter and singer in Jermaine Dupri’s So So Def camp.  A vet to the entertainment world, Mr. Austin has been putting in work since eight years old (how many of us can say that?).  Back in the 90’s Johntá Austin was sign to RCA records, before being dropped in favor of them push Tyrese Gibson.  The ironic thing is, Austin ended up penning at song for Tyrese, entitled, Sweet Lady. Besides writing for Tyrese, Austin has written songs for Mariah Carey (We Belong Together, Don’t Forget About Us, It’s Like That, and Shake It Off) and Mary J. Blige (Be Without You).  For all the great singer/songwriters, only a handful have broken into the mainstream in the past few years (Ne-Yo, The Dream, and Keri Hilson).  Johnta Austin has the talent and skills to breakthrough, it’s just all about timing.  Check out his track, Ghetto Girl, and after the jump 10 Love Commandments (spin off of Biggie’s classic, 10 Crack Commandments)

Johntá Austin – Ghetto Girl

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Swedens most popular girl group Those Dancing Days, will be in New York City tonight at the legendary Mercury Lounge, this marks there first ever gig here in the states. A mixture of Northern Soul & Pop would be the perfect fusion to describe there sound. When I first got a chance to hear there music, I knew they would be a pretty big deal, there everything you could want from a girl group at there age (all under 20) in case your wondering. While in town Bassist Mimi decided to stop through for a quick interview to discuss the orgins of TDD, traveling to the Big Apple & the definition of a popular foot game in Stockholm.

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A couple of days ago we had our weekly staff meeting.  Hollywood Q asked everyone what was currently playing on their IPODs (or MP3 players).  When it was my go I named, Mr Hudson and The Library and Audioslave.  But there was one group I left out and wanted the staff and you guys to know about, their name is Stateless.  I’ve been listening to their self-titled album non-stop for the past month.  Granted this album dropped in 2007, but our goal is to introduce you guys music that is overlooked and unheard.

The Leeds based group, Stateless consists of Chris James (lead vocals, keyboards, guitars), kidkanevil (turntables, sampling, programming), Justin Percival (bass, vocals), Dave Levin (drums) and Rod Buchanan Dunlop (FX, programming, keyboards).  Their album is a mixture of rock, trip-hop, and electronica. Check out Bloodstream and let us know what you think.

Stateless – Bloodstream

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If your not familiar with the name then we guarantee by years end, you will be.  Jesse Boykins III is without a doubt one of the most interesting artists to hit the music scene in a very long time.  He’s single handedly (music wise) restored my faith in the soul genre.  A fresh face indeed to carry on the future of a genre that has birthed the likes of Marvin Gaye, Sam Cooke & Donnie Hathaway.  Jesse recently stopped by the cafe for an interview that included a very weird moment with a comedic legend.

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We introduced you to D. Julien way back in October.  Between that time and now he’s been featured on numerous blogs and websites.  To name a few, 2Dopeboyz (dope site), HiphopDX, and most recently he was artist of the week on MySpace.  We aren’t saying we helped him, we’re saying this kid grind is on a whole new level.  Late last year we got a chance to interview D. Julien.  Take a moment and learn more about the man known as D. Julien.

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The Blow is a Lo-fi/Electro duo made up of Khaela Maricich and Jona Bechtolt.  Way back in 2004 they released an EP entitled, Poor Aim: Love Songs.  I first heard about this group thanks to the glorious site known as Pandora.  Doing what any smitten listener would do, I download a couple of tracks (legally..of course) and listen to it.  Being a sucker for poppy songs, I fell in love with their track, Hey Boy.  It’s a track about a girl being left in the cold by a guy. For a better explanation I’ll let Khaela tell you how she came up with the song after the jump.

Props to Nick for tracking down this gem.

The Blow – Hey Boy

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What other way to close up the week here at the cafe, then to have our first interview of the new year with New Look, the Electro-Pop/Soul duo out of the burrough of hits, Brooklyn New York.  If you’ve been a consistent reader of the site then you’d know how much I’ve grown to love the music Sarah Ruba & Adam Pavao are pumping out, not to mention they’re the only thing I’ve been listening to since there Free Ep release. Recently, they stopped by the cafe to discuss what exactly New Look is all about!

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I’ve talked about Ours plenty of times since opening up the Cafe, late last year, but never ran a feature on them.  Well, Ours is today’s Cafe Spotlight.  Ours is the brainchild of Jimmy Gnecco (picture of above).  They’ve been through countless band members since their inception in 1992, but the one constant is Mr. Gnecco.  The band today (and we literally mean today) is made up of Jimmy Gnecco (vocals, guitar), Static (guitar), Locke (guitar, keys) and Race (bass).

There are certain music groups or musicians that make you wonder why aren’t they famous. By famous, I mean having national fame and selling out huge venues every night. Ours is one of those groups. I was first introduced to them back in 2001. I remember seeing a video on MTV2 with a dude dressed in tight leather clothes running up and down the screen. Now normally I would change the channel without hesitation, but it was something about his voice that made me give the video a chance. Honestly, I was so impressed by Jimmy Gnecco’s voice that I download some of Our’s music. Great move! The few tracks I heard were so good that I bought the CD. The name of the video was Sometimes and eight years later I still listen to their first CD, Distorted Lullabies.
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Today I woke up thinking it was Wednesday, so you can imagine my surprise and how agitated I was when I found out I was robbed a whole day. When I made it to the shop I was shuffling through cd’s  and found a gem I kinda overlooked, Heidi Happy’s 2008 album “Flowers, Birds & Home.”Swiss artist, Priska Zemp aka Heidi Happy, was born with music talent running through her veins. Her mother is a classically trained soprano, her father sings in several choirs. Even her brother and sisters are in bands.

Happy’s album, “Flowers, Birds & Home,” stirs emotions and feelings in all that listen to it.  When you listen to it you feel like you stumbled upon a open diary and started reading through it.  One track that stood out was  ‘I think I’m in Love,’ (below).  That track showcases her original, seductive, sensual, and, flawless voice.   Innocence and yet a sense of reality behind her words.

If you looking for an album full of ballads and love songs, this isn’t it.  It’s just a girl with a guitar wearing her emotions on her sleeve.  We wouldn’t have it any other way.

Heidi Happy – I think I’m In Love

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Download: Zshare

Heidi Happy [Official Page] [MySpace]

Sometimes you don’t have to go out to record shops, check MySpace, or hit a  show to find good music. Sometimes it ends up in your inbox! Today’s second Cafe Spotlight goes to the talented, Brittany Bosco.   The electro/soul artist hails from Savannah, Georgia and is ready to make her mark.  We got our hands on her ‘Spectrum Ep‘, which has been popping from our speakers all week.  From what we’ve been able to listen to Ms. Bosco sound is her own.  If your a fan of refreshing music (of course you are, your on this web site), then check out Brittany Bosco’s, ‘8-trak.’

Lastly, grab Bosco’s eight-track ep after the jump. (Thanks Karen!)

Brittany Bosco | 8-Trak

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Brittany Bosco[MySpace]

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