Even though it can be hard to let go, it’s often the mature decision to end something that’s not America’s Got Talent finalist Roberta Battaglia.

Amid cascading piano and infectious beats, Battaglia’s voice captures both the melancholy and intense liberation of choosing to call a ceasefire, whether it’s in a friendship or a romantic relationship or among family members. The music video explores the act of truce in a variety of relationships, with Battaglia walking through various scenes among people Canadian America’s Got Talent Finalist Roberta Battaglia Releases Soaring “Truce” About The Power of Forgiveness

Even though it can be hard to let go, it’s often the mature decision to end something that’s not working rather than to keep forcing it forward, even if that something is just a fight. That’s the message of “Truce,” the soaring first single by wise-beyond-her-years America’s Got Talent finalist Roberta Battaglia. Check it out on YouTube here:

The power of music has always been a vessel for connecting with others – it supersedes language, indifference, and beliefs. It is a method that has brought the farthest ends of the world closer together, and Matell’s newest releases, “Honest Man (DJ Tremelo Remix)” and “Something To Fk With (DJ Tremelo Remix)” embody that very sentiment. Check it out on YouTube here:

Matell’s passion for music has always been clear. However, there were few people who influenced him as much as actor and rapper, Aaron Carter. A handful of conversations fueled by a deep connection with music between Carter and Matell made the Colorado-based artist want to release the singles now.

After Carter’s untimely passing, it became a fire that will burn forever within Matell.

Texas-born singer/songwriter Jeremy Parsons grew up soaking in the sounds of Country Music, and now that’s the only thing running through his veins. Having taught himself to play the guitar at an early age, Parsons began performing his original songs in high school. With a genuine personality, unique humor, and heartfelt passion for his occupation, Parsons draws from his personal experience to write keenly perceptive and introspective songs.

Check out "Tickin'" on YouTube here:

“We have those moments when we sit down and look where we are,” says Parsons. “Sometimes followed by that is the thought, ‘Is this where I thought I'd be?’ or ‘Is this where I should be in my life?’"

Listen on Spotify here: open.spotify.com/track/5fDJo3TSlVNDFPztmlSjJZ?si=1ba24242cbd842bf&nd=1

Sometimes when we’ve been through hard times, music can guide us to a brighter future. Mostly composed with the post-pandemic future in mind, Caribbean-Canadian smooth jazz guitarist Jeremy Sean Hector returns with his sophomore album Light After Dark that explores many different human emotions attached to the anticipation of brighter days ahead.

The highly anticipated album Light After Dark follows the theme of new beginnings with songs titled “Joy of Life,” “Guiding Light,” and “Redemption” that build on Hector’s soothing jazz melodies from his debut album Ascension, released in 2019, that has accumulated more than 4 million streams since its release.

"I feel like in some way we can all relate to these emotions as we navigate these times. The beauty of music for me is being able to capture the sound of moments as they are felt,” says Hector.

Suzanne Cook’s new single “Same Old Tune” is a tribute to a late friend that celebrates hope and enduring love – reaffirming what matters most and a refusal to concede ground to life’s impermanence. 

Check it out on YouTube here:

Suzanne’s down-to-earth yet confident performance delivers the song’s lyrical music and poetic structure in a heartfelt, genuine way that reflects the singer’s and composer’s shared admiration of Bob Dylan—and the art of the wandering troubadour:

And the words that he’d write

For the love that he’ll share with you

And he’ll dream of a life as he sings the song.

Through good times and bad, hot and cold, dazzling and dim, there is one constant on this giant rock we call earth - the sun. In Mike Bern’s newest single, “Grateful Sun,” the award-winning artist pays homage to that which always ignites. Check it out on YouTube here:

The Tobique First Nation, New Brunswick-based singer/songwriter decided to do something a little different with this one.

“The world can be a dark place at times,” Bern explained. “I wanted to write a song that gave thanks to life itself.”

Underneath ethereal instrumentals with an indie twist, Bern serenades the sun from our universal human perspective, encapsulating our relationship with life’s shining necessity. Bern touches on the hardships we all face, and how the sun acts as a foil to the darkness, infinitely illuminating for brighter days.

Vancouver Roots Band Rusty Creek’s latest single ‘White Sails’ is a rousing salute to the tall ships that came to fish the waters off Trinity Bay, Newfoundland. The third single from the band’s 2022 album The Road of Life — lead singer and songwriter Alex Deeth’s “audio autobiography” — the song paints a vivid picture of the abundant landscape and waters that drew the first Europeans to Newfoundland.

Check out “White Sails” on YouTube here:

We may be barreling towards winter, but Gyptian and Serani are still dropping heat to keep you dancing with their newest dancehall smash hit, “She Got It.” Check it out on YouTube here:

Smooth reggae guitar licks and heartfelt dancehall rhythms keep fans coming back for more as these Billboard-charting reggae connoisseurs debut their newest single produced by Trizo of Konsequence Muzik and distributed by ONErpm Afro-Caribbean.

“She Got It” is a feel-good banger meant to infect listeners with inescapable urges to dance and pull a partner close. The composition and production of Gyptian and Serani’s work is professional at best, with “She Got It” serving as proof that you can mix business and pleasure.

Friendly Giants boomed to life during the mandatory lockdown of 2020 when John Wittmayer and Shawn Fisher met and workshopped each other’s songs. As bands go, the duo added more talent to their collective, adding James Stephens, Barry Jones, Amy Heasman and Holly Schweitzer. Trevor Yost incorporates drums into some of the band’s discography. Each member lends their respective talent, be it Fisher on violin, Jones on trumpet, or Wittmayer on vocals.

Stephans

“The sum of our parts creates music that we all identify with, and this sharing is what thrills us to keep creating,” Wittmayer says.

On their new track, “Dancing By Myself,” Heasman leads the vocal track with a dark, haunting call to a past lover or close friend. She croons, “What do you see when you look inside me? What do you feel when you brush up beside me? Why can’t you know if you can dance by my side? I'm not a muse for your own gain. I’m not a fool to play your games.”

Check out “Dancing By Myself on YouTube here:

Toronto pop darling Victoria Alex is back, this time asking: “Let’s Pretend”.

The Torontonian behind the smash, “Screaming”, is solidifying her pop prowess on her latest single. “Let’s Pretend” features a hypnotic melody, crushing beats, and slung together With Alex’ signature powerhouse vocals.

Listen on Spotify here: open.spotify.com/track/5JZ35S4rsqNZmpjerG4W8M?si=bb6fdf2be7594daf&nd=1

“The song is about meeting someone and being infatuated by them, the moment you see them.  You know you can’t be with them, but you pretend that you are,” Victoria says, adding: “You just start living in your own head. It’s about that moment when you choose something unhealthy for yourself; you can’t stop. It really comes from a place of insecurity, which we’ve all experienced, if not with love, then with something else in our lives. Hopefully people will connect and find comfort in knowing they aren’t alone.”

Social media, constant internet connectivity, and a bottomless pit of not-so-reliable information always aimed at attention attraction are bringing the world to a boil. The Otherness calls for young cultural rebels to stand up and get loud in its latest single, “A New Resistance.” Check it out YouTube here:

The Argentine band now based in Berlin wrote the song by the end of its EU tour in 2021, inspired by the constantly unfolding events around them. The tour had been hamstrung by a COVID, and it seemed that nothing but chaos could be found.

Still, The Otherness considered it important to use its music to uplift and bring people together, not wallow in despair. The vocals and instrumentals in “A New Resistance” are delivered with positivity and delight, even if the lyrics themselves outline a grim reality.

Your Ex And I are a band in it for the right reasons. The Montreal-based rock group comprises five pals with very positive musical chemistry poised to explode on the scene with the debut single, “For All the Loves.” Check it out On YouTube here:

The mysterious comrades in Your Ex And I, comprised of frontman/keyboardist Danny, lyricist Gor, bassist Guillaume, guitarist Frank, and drummer Simon, have all paid their dues playing and working in musical fields and are suitably realistic about their motives and goals.

“We are not kids dreaming in technicolor,” said Danny. “We came together with the right people and the right vibe, so it was ‘let’s all have fun with this.”

Reality bites. Whaddaya say?

Welcome to Numb Tongues’ latest single, “Whaddaya Say,” which hits hard on the harsh truth that each one of us faces - reality isn’t all that great. Check it out on YouTube:

The Toronto-based funk rock band’s song cements a scathing review of reality, illuminating much of the nihilistic aspects common within contemporary Western society. Over a groovy tune and high-pitched vocals that center around the chaos many have felt for years, Numb Tongues lays down a raw look at modernity.

Lead vocalist Jonah Grinberg outlines what has him so dismayed, then asks the prominent question at the forefront of every doomers’ mind:
“I’m feeling trapped, everybody’s putting on a mask
But Halloween was a couple months back
So why’s everyone trying to act like they’re not scared?”

Catchy choruses and funky guitar walks are all to familiar to Waterloo, ON DJ/Producer Christopher Mihas, better known as Moves After Midnight. Christopher’s tenacity for electro-funk is captured in his newest single, “I See Right Through You” – check it out on YouTube here:

Synth-pop is a form of artistic expression that seems to impact each new generation of music appreciators while leaving a groovy stain on producers who grew up with and work within the genre. Inspired heavily by the music of his youth, Christopher pays homage to 80’s pop-funk music with this electro-funk dance track.

“I See Right Through You” is Christopher’s most recent release under the moniker Moves After Midnight following a string of releases, including October 2021 debut EP Fluorescent Memoirs, and more recently a smash single “Vanity Prayers” in September 2022.

Hot on the heels of the Native American Music Award nominated Rock & Roll City, Midnight Sparrows – the brainchild of Métis, Cree, and Dene musician Blair Bellerose – is releasing its much-anticipated follow-up, Born in the City.

Check out “Butterfly Wings” on YouTube here:

Identifying as Métis his entire life, the Vancouver-based musician is now also a proud member of Fort McKay First Nation thanks to a successful, women-led challenge to the Indian Act, which allows for more significant gender equity in passing on Indian status through the maternal family line. However, Blair also proudly retains his Métis identity.

Midnight Sparrows play guitar-driven hard rock that combines elements of classic rock, power pop and old-school heavy metal.

Niagara Falls-based alt rockers James Blonde encapsulate the restorative magic and magnetic appeal of the nightlife with their new single “Back To Life”.  Because no matter how dull and lackluster – or depressed and lifeless – one might temporarily feel, everyone knows that the best cure is a well-timed night out. Check it out on YouTube here:

Ukubonga [Gratitude], the new recording from South African singer Lorraine Klaasen and South African guitarist, composer, arranger, musical director and producer Mongezi Ntaka is a collection of songs from the Southern Africa’s Township music songbook and features songs written by some of Southern Africa’s celebrated singers and composers. Lorraine & Mongezi decided to show gratitude to the dedicated artists who endured and survived some of the most brutal and humiliating experiences a human can experience while pursuing their musical careers to support their families. Both Lorraine & Mongezi experienced some of the conditions that this generation of artists experienced in South Africa during the dark years of apartheid but not to the extent experienced by these celebrated artists whose songs Lorraine and Mongezi are borrowing to remind Africans of the basic concept of gratitude.

Kit Vale is the solo project of Toronto-based singer/songwriter Jen Simpson, whom you may know as the stunning voice of Canadian rockers Neon Bloom. Inspired by a diverse mix of musical tastes ranging from post-punk to hip-hop, Simpson uses Kit Vale as a project that combines elements of these influences and every genre in between. They have culminated in a melodic synthesis of sound filtered through her distinct gothic, garage-glam style.

Listen on Spotify here: open.spotify.com/track/1Xq6l3rrfObOAHhx0WH9CQ?si=d6d51367575e43e4&nd=1

“Pet” is Simpson’s second single under the Kit Vale moniker and was produced by the legendary Rob Sanzo. The track was co-written with bassist Robert Lechner, Simpson’s bandmate from her former group, along with Tony Sjoman and Walter Gardner, the Brooklyn-based The Never Evers. While The Never Evers thought they would never ever release the eight songs they recorded together, the powerful performance on “Pet” could no longer be contained.

Check out “Pet” on YouTube here:

A wistful pop ballad with a subtle jazz feel, Harriet Chung’s latest single “Old Montreal” relates a timeless situation to a history-rich locale, love lost in a romantic city. Offering a different local vibe from her earlier single “Vancouver,” “Old Montreal” is introspective, just this side of sad, questioning a star-crossed relationship gently, without bitterness or anger:
Maybe your flight began to depart
As I strolled along Clock Tower Beach
You’re off to break another heart
In some distant land so far out of reach.

Check out “Old Montreal” on YouTube here:

Autumn is often symbolic of deep transition, of parts of nature – and our natures – dying to make way for the new. Toronto-based rockers A Short Walk To Pluto, endorsed earlier this year by Howard Stern on his top-rated SiriusXM show, illustrate that poetically in their folksier but no less tight new single “Give Me Grace” – Check it out on YouTube:

A soaring, jangly, acoustic ballad about the transformational power of love perfectly captured in a song, “Give Me Grace” tells the story of two separate people eventually destined for one another. The first narrator, the woman, feels trapped in an internal, everlasting winter, where the sun can’t break through a sky seemingly made of ice.  The second verse tells the story of the male protagonist’s isolation and longing for companionship throughout a beautiful and fiery, yet lonely and daunting, autumn.