Talent show guru Simon Cowell is taking his popular television formula to find new stars seeking fast fame to YouTube, joining a growing trend of companies using the Internet to bypass traditional broadcasters. Cowell, the mastermind behind global TV franchises “The X Factor” and “Got Talent”, unveiled plans on Monday for the first global audition channel, called The You Generation, that will be launched in 26 countries on March 20. Syco Entertainment, Cowell’s joint venture with Sony Music, said it had teamed up with YouTube to run 26 fortnightly contests over the next year to give people the chance to upload audition videos showing their skills and win a cash prize. Our mission is to discover the world’s next big YouTube stars and showcase their amazing and unique talents on The You Generation channel,” they said in a joint statement. YouTube, the video-sharing website set up in 2005, has become a new way to uncover talent, most notably launching the career of Canadian teen pop star Justin Bieber. Read more

Buzz Track: Hypnotized

Mary Has A Gun is a band from France that blends the catchiness of pop music and massive energy of rock. There has been a considerable buzz around them over the Internet as they landed in the French Rock magazine “Rock One”. Considered one of the foremost rock bands in France, they were signed on Universal Music France. The band flew to Montreal to record their new full-length album with Canadian producer Luc Tellier. Check out the latest track ‘Hypnotized’ as the band is available for a distribution as well as a promo deal.
Contact: ltellier@gmail.com

Buzz Track: Heart Divided

I was instantly captivated listening to Heart Divided by upcoming British artist Dymond. She grew up listening to the likes of Beethoven, Handel, Vivaldi, Tchaikovsky, Lauryn Hill,  and The Supremes. Dymond describes “Heart Divided,” her début single, as a song about being faced with the dilemma of having to choose between things that you love.
Contact: iamdymond@gmail.com

Prince loomed over South By Southwest Music–first as a rumor, then as a confirmed booking that sent fans scurrying around Austin for a ticket giveaway, and finally as a smooth force whose nearly three-hour performance ended at 3 a.m. He led his 22-piece New Power Generation band through a dizzying run of classics, obscurities and covers.

He followed an emphatic set by A Tribe Called Quest, whose four members were tight despite rapper Q-Tip’s quip that they got hired for the show “at the last minute.” Later, pausing among songs like “Can I Kick It” and “Bonita Applebum,” when he sensed the crowd wasn’t reciprocating Tribe’s energy, he cracked, “maybe we should break up again for the third time.” Read more

Buzz Track: Those Times Are Gone

Fallen Riviera were formed by members attending the Berklee College of Music in Boston. They hit the studio with British record producer Ken Scott widely known for being one of the 5 main engineers for The Beatles. The track “Somebody Take Me” is now in rotation on terrestrial FM radio programs such as KWSS, KTHO, and KRHV and they released their full length on March 5th.
Contact: management@fallenriviera.com