With another standout year for music under our belt, we thought we'd sit down and ask what two music writers thought of the upcoming year, and more particularly, who they thought we should keep an eye on in 2012. First up, Marcus Dowling.
Part One by Marcus Dowling
ZEDD
If Skrillex is THE superstar, then ZEDD, the young Kaiserslautern, Germany native and signee to the progressive bass superstar's OWSLA imprint, is up next. Born into a musical family, the producer's rise started in 2009 with a Beatport-sponsored Armin van Buuren remix contest winner that lit up the blogosphere. ZEDD's glitchy, breakbeat driven sound delivers four-on the floor punishment, a hard electro meets pop melody-driven sound that fills the expectation of the moment. 2012 finds his debut EP for OWSLA, Slam the Door, on top of Beatport's electro charts. All signs point to the producer rapidly reaching superstar status by the year's end.
THE WEEKND
Toronto native Abel Tesfaye saved rhythm and blues. Whereas Odd Future-related crooner Frank Ocean's 2011 was plagued by frequent label issues that halted his growth, it was smooth sailing for Drake's OVOXO associate. He released THREE album quality mixtapes last year (House of Balloons, Thursday, and Echoes of Silence), the note-perfect overwrought emotion of a hung-over lothario winning the hearts of indie fans worldwide. What does The Weeknd look like? That's the best part. Few have any idea. The singer/producer has been sequestered in Canada throughout his entire rise to fame. His debut at 2012's Coachella festival will be one of 2012's starred and circled musical highlights. From “D.D.,” his cover of Michael Jackson "Dirty Diana," to originals like "Rolling Stone," and more, he's angling to be the most important soul man of his generation.
FEMALE RAPPERS
Kreayshawn's your class clown homegirl who can't stop getting high. Iggy Azalea, the voluptuous Aussie vixen with her mouth in the gutter. V Nasty? Kreayshawn's friend, sipping on lean with Gucci Mane and Juicy J in the corner, geeked up on dem bars, and never coming down. Azealia Banks? The true school representing Harlem homegirl; Lil Kim gone prep and Nicki Minaj in a teenage body, the hardest rhyme spitter of them all. Pop music has decided that it needs a new female rapper, Nicki's pop success having opened the door for a hipster to share space at the top of the charts. Who's the winner? Smart money says Banks, but it's honestly anybody's game.
MUNCHI
Twenty-two year old Rotterdam-based Dutch production wunderkind Munchi has had an incredible twelve months. He's unbelievably skilled at making most any sound, but moombahton, Dave Nada's accident turned Dutch house and reggaeton-tinged future sound, is his specialty. In the past year he played five giant overseas festivals, two Moombahton Massive parties, incited a riot at LA's Mad Decent Block Party, placed two tracks on MIA's Vicki Leekx mixtape, worked with a murderer's row of international producers, was named one of the most influential DJs in the world by jet-setting electro don Laidback Luke, and suffered a severe cerebral hemorrhage while on tour in Hawaii. Did I mention he got married, too? Munchi's Moombahtonista EP on Mad Decent is a big deal. Imagine Angela Davis's afro and Fela Kuti having a child who lives next door to Waka Flocka Flame and the Fania All-Stars. Confused yet? Don't worry about it. Just dance.
VOLTA BUREAU
Nu disco's hottest new nightspot could easily be Washington, DC. Combining the talents of three producers quietly regarded as heavyweights, it's a match made for four-on-the-floor ecstasy. Will Eastman is the veteran owner of DC's U Street Music Hall. This small-room dance venue is less than three years old but already internationally respected. It’s got 40,000 watts of sound and a corkwood padded dance floor, so it's a space made for optimal enjoyment of delightful dance melodies. Outputmessage and Micahvellian, whether solo or in a tandem as Dmerit, are widely beloved on the national underground. The former's "NYR" is a brilliant display of balearic piano house, while the latter is a hip hop dude with a mean bass guitar fetish. His 2011 track "Alley Cat" hit #1 on Beatport's Disco charts and got cosigned by many, the most amazing being Afrojack. In 2012, with an artist album in the offing, expect explosive disco house results.
About the author: Sitting comfortably at the confluence of the underground and mainstream, Marcus Dowling is one of Washington, DC's rising freelance journalists. Quoted as an underground music expert in The Washington Post and UK's Mixmag, his present schedule includes writing for the Washington City Paper, DC cultural megablog Brightest Young Things, the Pink Line Project, On Tap Magazine, Washingtonian, leading urban alternative site The Couch Sessions (thecouchsessions.com), national quick deals site Scoutmob.com and working as editor-in-chief of the official site for US electronic dance music's quickest rising new sound, moombahton.com. Follow Marcus on Twitter, @marcuskdowling
Part Two by Alexander Rose
DELILAH
Every major record label has their fair share of hidden talent. For Atlantic Records, it is the young singer-songstress from the UK, Delilah. Raised around the vibrant live music scene in London, Delilah began to write powerful emotion-filled songs after the passing of her father in 2002. With only a few singles under her belt, Delilah is beginning to gain ground, with several of her tunes being featured on the BBC. Not to be pigeonholed into any particular genre, Delilah has even enlisted the production abilities of the legendary UK dubstep producer, Skream, for the track “Layby.” The 20-year-old singer draws influence from all ends of the music spectrum – from Aaliyah to Adele, Little Dragon to James Blake. There is no telling how far Delilah will go in 2012.
JACKMASTER
If you remove Jackmaster’s status as an alumnus of the prestigious Red Bull Music Academy, his credit for co-founding the London underground party collective, Numbers, and even his acclaimed FabricLive mixtape, you are still left with a producer whose list of achievements outshines many of those around him. All it takes is one listen to a Jackmaster live set to tell that his musical taste is, in itself, a force to be reckoned with. Do not be surprised to see the tickets for his March US tour that you thought you could get at the door instead hitting the underground resell network.
GESAFFELSTEIN
Whether he is performing solo or back-to-back with labelmate Brodinski on the current Bromance Tour Gesaffelstein is a new breed of electronic producer. Emerging in 2011, the dark and heavy sounding elements that form his signature production style make Gesaffelstein a safe bet for any label. The French producer has released standout singles under Tiga’s Turbo label, as well as Busy P’s major label, Ed Banger Records. When interviewing Busy P earlier this year, I found that the young French producer had caught the eye of the label founder, who listed him as one of his favorite artists of 2011. Look out for the sharp dressed, cigarette-smoking Gesaffelstein to hit a club near you in 2012.
JAI PAUL
A quick Google search for ‘Jai Paul’ reveals little to no information about the mysterious producer whose only notable track was initially released in 2007 as a demo on MySpace. It was not until 2010 that people started to take notice of his beautifully crafted song, “BTSTU,” which received heavy airplay from several BBC DJs. In 2011 he was signed to XL Recordings, and in April, he released an edited single version of “BTSTU.” It did not take long before rapper Drake stumbled across his track, which inspired him to release a track, “Dreams Money Can Buy,” that heavily sampled “BTSTU.” Hell, even Beyonce sampled the track on her tune, “Til The End of Time.” If an XL Recordings contract was not enough to bring new Jai Paul material to light, 2012 will give the elusive producer all the time he needs to record a follow up to his first-hit wonder.
ARAABMUZIK
Already a reputable name in the hip-hop production game, araabMUZIK’s unique skill set when placed behind an MPC Drum Machine has allowed the young Sri Lankan producer to be booked for any number of music festivals. Whether he is playing to a packed tent at the jam-band oriented Camp Bisco festival in upstate NY or alongside one of the more eclectic lineups at the upcoming Coachella festival in California, araabMUZIK has been given the title “MVP of the MPC.” With more festival appearances already booked for the upcoming summer, araabMUZIK shows no sign of slowing down.
