Kings favorite Nate Merchant drops his 5th and last single this year I Hate It Here. Since his first release the Los Angeles indie artist has been stuck in the 80’s and doesn’t plan on moving from the neon era. Next year in 2022, when the pandemic over, everything will make sense and the 80’s will make a full blown resurgence. The track was produced by John Taylor from Duran Duran.

Merchant says: “I wrote I Hate It Here during the lockdown back in 2020. It’s really a song that was therapeutic for me and helped me handle being isolated. Initially the production was much darker but Isaiah Tejada got his hands on it and created a beautiful arrangement of sparkly synths which I thought was a great juxtaposition to the lyrics. This was also the first tune I got to work on with John Taylor of Duran Duran who helped bring it across the finish line.”

Adele was the music industry’s big 4th quarter story. She delivered a great album even though “30” only sold 1.4 million copies since its release. Her previous album, “25,” sold 3.8 million in its first week. We are in a different landscape and the new album can’t compete in a 2015 era, that’s except if you’re Morgan Wallen.

Adele’s Vegas show is a big ticket. The pre-sale tickets ranging from $85 To $685 are now being resold with prices ranging from over $1,000 to more than $37,000.

The big winner is Morgan Wallen. The country rising star earned a #1 album in 2021 that sold over 3 million copies. The country boy was cancelled and dropped from awards shows and his agents and managers pretended to drop him but they couldn’t completely distance themselves and walk away from the cash cow. His fans love him and Morgan is sticking around.

For a 2nd year in a row, it looks the Grammys will be postponed again due to covid concerns.

The show was booked at the Crypto.com Arena, CBS bur the Recording Academy are looking at other locations.

The Hollywood Bowl with its outdoor settings, has been rumored as a potential location to hold the show, weather permitting.

Mayor Bill de Blasio said Thursday that the amount of people allowed to attend New Year’s Eve celebrations at Times Square will be limited to about 15,000 from a usual number of 58,000.

What about the 2023 Grammys? They say the third time is a charm, or maybe not.

The Shadowboxers released Breaking Habit via DistroKid. You’ll love if you like the indie sounds of the 90’s. Think early Coldplay and The Shins.

Starting out as a backing band for the Indigo Girls then recently working and touring alongside mentor Justin Timberlake, the trio of Scott Tyler, Matt Lipkins and Adam Hoffman says this:

“Breaking Habits’ title speaks for itself. It’s a song as much as it is a mantra for anyone who’s struggled with growth. The smallest changes can feel like monumental challenges and this song is a reminder that you’re not alone in that fight.”

The trio has upcoming headline shows at Basement East 1/7/22 in Nashville and Terminal West on 1/15/22 in Atlanta.

Look out for Michael Rice and the track Do You Love Me At All. It’s a big piano ballad, a melody and lyric that could come out of the mouth of Lewis Capaldi or Duncan Laurence.

The 22 year old from the UK recorded the vocals in his bedroom and racked up over 500,000 views in the first 24hrs and has nearly 750,000 on TikTok.”

He first made waves with a track that went viral on social media, and was spotted and invited to audition for a new BBC singing show ‘All Together Now’. He won, landing him the opportunity to represent the UK at the 2019 Eurovision. His song ‘Bigger Than Us’ went on to hit the charts in Sweden, Denmark becoming a UK Top 10 single.
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