{"key":"185","name":"Chromatics","bio":"Chromatics are an American electronic band from Portland, Oregon, United States, whose lineup features vocalist and guitarist Ruth Radelet, guitarist Adam Miller, drummer Nat Walker, and producer\/multi-instrumentalist Johnny Jewel. Chromatics' new studio album, Kill for Love, was released March 26, 2012.They originally hailed from Seattle as a quartet featuring vocalist Adam Miller, drummer Hannah Blilie, guitarist Devin Welch, and bassist Michelle Nolan. That lineup debuted in 2002 with a Calvin Johnson-produced 7\" on Gold Standard Laboratories \u2013 a split with Die Monitr Batss \u2013 and followed with the similarly GSL-issued Chrome Rats vs Basement Ruts LP. While Chrome Rats was critically hailed, Chromatics couldn't keep it together, and Miller was soon the only member in good standing (Blilie, Welch, and Nolan went on to form the similar-sounding Shoplifting). Unworried, Miller added guitar and drum programming to his vocal duties and tapped bassist Nat Sahlstrom for the 2003 GSL 7\" Ice Hatchets. That was followed by the February 2004 full-length Plaster Hounds (which featured the percussion work of Get Hustle's Ron Avila), and a repositioning of the Chromatics axis to greater reflect its dub and no wave influences. This lineup too dissolved and Adam Miller relocated Chromatics to Portland, teaming up with Glass Candy's Johnny Jewel, Ruth Radelet on lead vocals, and Nat Walker on percussion and saxophone. The new lineup of Chromatics has a more lo-fi electronic sound as opposed to the earlier dub and no-wave sounds.","featuredImage":"https:\/\/assets.allamericanmusic.com\/images\/185_h_0.jpg","feeRange":"please contact"}

{"key":"9","name":"Pentatonix","bio":"Pentatonix (often abbreviated as PTX) is an American a cappella group of five vocalists originating from Arlington, Texas. The members are Scott Hoying (baritone lead\/harmony), Kirstie Maldonado (mezzo-soprano lead\/harmony), Mitch Grassi (counter-tenor leadharmony), Kevin Olusola (percussion), and Avi Kaplan (bass). Their work, mostly in, but not limited to, the pop music style, consists of covers of pre-existing songs and some original material, sometimes in the form of medleys. Their music is defined by their own arrangement style, a strong presence of low bass vocals, and a diverse range of vocal percussion.Pentatonix formed in 2011 and came to prominence the same year by winning the third season of \"The Sing-Off\" on NBC, their victory earning them $200,000 and a recording contract with Sony. Their debut EP \"PTX, Volume 1\" was released in 2012, followed by \"PTXmas\" the same year, with their third release \"PTX, Vol. II\", debuting at number 1 on Billboard's Independent Albums chart in 2013. 2014 saw the release of \"PTX, Vol. III\", and their two first full-length albums \"PTX, Vols. 1 & 2\" (a compilation of Vol. 1 and Vol. II) and \"That's Christmas to Me\".Pentatonix started their popular YouTube channel back in 2012 to promote themselves after the Sing-Off (Season 3, 2011) when they were dropped by their record label, according to a recent November 2014 interview. They also made effective use of social media to interact with their fan base. Having eclipsed 6.99 million subscribers and more than 714 million cumulative views, the PTXofficial YouTube page is currently the 12th most subscribed-to music channel (as of 12 December 2014). Their music video for \"Daft Punk\" recently surpassed 106 million views.The group's website is: www.ptxofficial.com. Pentatonix official youtube channel: www.youtube.com\/PTXofficial.","featuredImage":"https:\/\/www.aaemusic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/9_h_0.jpg","feeRange":"150,000 - 300,000"}

{"key":"63042","name":"Street Corner Symphony","bio":"There are two bands called Street Corner Symphony. One band hails from the 1970s and pursued Soul, Funk and Disco. The other was formed in 2010 and quickly disbanded.In 1975 Street Corner Symphony released its first single \"Earth Angel\" (B-side: I'm Not Ready (To Let You Go)) on Bang Records (B-719). The single was followed by the groups album \"Harmony Grits\", released also on Ban Records (BLP-406) in 1976. The album was produced by Jerry Love and Michael Zager.In 1976 Street Corner Symphony released its hit album \"Little Funk Machine\" on ABC records. The album was produced by none other than Willie Hutch.Essentially a vocal quintet, three of its members, (Jesse Harris, Milton Hayes and Lawrence Miller) had started out in Los Angeles group The Marvellos (aka The Sons Of Watts) during the sixties. Lead singer Morris Chestnut, formerly of the Attractions, The Sound-Masters and The Vows, recorded solo both under his own name and that of James Washington Lee.The second, soon to be disbanded, Street Corner Symphony was founded as a birthday present for Mark on May 28, 2010. It began with six talented fellows\u2013Jeremy & Richie Lister, Jon & Mark McLemore, Ben Dixon, and Sean Saunders\u2013who had worked together, but not as a single group. In fact, Ben and Sean met Jeremy and Richie the day before SCS\u2019s first gig.Three weeks later, the group broke up. Citing reasons of some sort, Ben and Sean left void the high and low ends of Street Corner Symphony\u2019s frequency spectrum. Within days, however, Mark had contacted two friends in his extensive network of talented people and restored balance. Welcome, John Martin and Adam Chance. Street Corner Symphony commenced the dominating.The members of Street Corner Symphony are from all over the Southeast US and are proud to call Nashville TN their home base. The group was formed in May of 2010 for the sole purpose of winning the Sing Off. SCS brings a unique laid back southern soul to the competition, demonstrating notable influences from artists like Take 6 and Alison Krauss. While SCS offers a diverse repertoire, the group has a rich heritage in gospel music. Two of the members are grandsons of the legendary southern gospel tenor Bill Shaw of \u201cThe Blackwood Brothers.\u201d In addition, five of the six members were preacher\u2019s kids and grew up singing and learning music in church. SCS is made up of two sets of brothers and two other unrelated guys, and each brings a unique background and character to the group. One member is a pilot, one is a major label recording artist, one is an operatic baritone, one is a dichromat, one has indeed met Chuck D., and one has a serious phobia of fruit. When not singing together, the group is actually still just trying to get acquainted!Adam Chance was born on the Florida Panhandle and grew up in southern Alabama just north of the beautiful, once oil-free, Gulf Coast beaches. His childhood home was two miles down a dirt road and he spent many summer days fishing in the Gulf. He is the only member of Street Corner Symphony that is not a minister\u2019s son. He learned to sing in the shower, learned music theory in marching band and plays a number of instruments. He once met Chuck D. Adam studied journalism and music at the University of Alabama and is also a songwriter. He enjoys watching american and association football, wearing vests and ties, and would prefer not to die by sword or gunshot. Although he sings bass in the group, he is afraid of spiders.John Martin is the high tenor for SCS, a native of Marianna FL and is probably shorter than you. His dad was a chaplain in the Federal Bureau of Prisons. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degrees in Religion and Music in 2009 from Huntingdon College in Montgomery, AL. John is honored to have been selected as a winner of the state National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) and Music Teachers\u2019 National Association (MTNA) auditions for Alabama, as well as to have been chosen as a two-time finalist in auditions for the world renowned Chanticleer. John is currently pursuing a Master of Music degree in voice performance at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. He enjoys cooking beef and once made a cheese souffl\u00e9 just to prove he could. His favorite movies are the original Star Wars trilology, and his favorite actor is William H. Macy. He is red-green color blind and has a fear of upside down traffic lights.Mark McLemore (The Plethora) was born in Alabama to a banjo pickin\u2019 preacher and is Jon\u2019s younger brother. He recently earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in piano performance from Huntingdon College in Montgomery, AL. He received two Contemporary A Cappella Recording Awards (CARA) in 2008 for his work on the McLemore Brothers record \u2018Sunday Drive.\u2019 He is the group\u2019s resident operatic baritone and he can read music faster than he can read text. His wife, Meredith, is an archivist for the state of Alabama, and taught Mark the importance of making the bed. He also helps out with the vocal percussion duties from time to time. Mark enjoys baking bread and making puns. He once rode a motorcycle from Alabama to California and back in 8 days, danced in the Nutcracker, and engineered his own ping-pong paddle. His favorite actors are Sean Connery and Christopher Walken. He still plays with his Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles from time to time; his favorite is Raphael. He is afraid of poor intonation.Richie Lister grew up the son of a minister in Mississippi. Although he primarily sings baritone, Richie has a tremendous range and can sometimes be heard singing the highest part. He moved to Nashville 7 years ago and is Jeremy\u2019s older brother. He learned to sing from his parents and from church music and could match pitch with his dad at age 2. He is the grandson of renowned southern gospel tenor Bill Shaw of \u201cThe Blackwood Brothers\u201d. Richie is a keyboardist and songwriter and has spent the last 15 years playing in various rock bands, most notably for Jeremy\u2019s solo career. He majored in Music Composition at Mississippi College and has a dream of one day composing music for film. Richie is often told that he has an uncanny resemblance to John Lennon. He is afraid of fruit.Jeremy Lister began singing and learning harmonies in church at the age of two. When his dad wasn\u2019t looking, Jeremy would sneak into his guitar case and start picking out chords. He grew up collaborating and writing songs with his older brother Richie. At ages twelve and thirteen, he traveled through Europe with his parents. The trip changed his perspective on life and music, and upon returning to the States, he began exploring different musical outlets, ranging from an a cappella quartet to a progressive rock band. Setting out on his own in 2003, Jeremy moved to Nashville bringing his first EP \u201cShooting Star\u201d with him. Here he began playing writer\u2019s nights and passing his CD along to anyone who would listen. In 2005, he released his second EP, \u201cSo Far,\u201d and quickly gained the attention of Warner Bros. Records. The label put him in the studio, where he wrote and recorded songs during \u201906. In the spring of \u201907, Lister signed a record deal with WBR. His debut release, the \u201cJust One Day\u201d EP, was released digitally on November 20, 2007. More recently, Jeremy has toured with Brett Dennen and Colbie Caillat as well as selling out his own headlining shows in and around the Nashville area. He is currently working on songs for his full-length album to be released later this year. Jeremy sings tenor and lead for SCS, and has a fear of flying with Jon.Jon McLemore (A Cappella Morpheus) was born in North Alabama and is Mark\u2019s older brother. He began his lucrative career in a cappella at age 19 and over the following four years, performed in all 48 of the contiguous U.S. At age 23, while on tour in Montana with Four Shadow, he met and married Mandy after she was brought on stage to help the group sing \u2018The Lion Sleeps Tonight.\u2019 Following marriage, Jon came off the road, got a real job and had five kids. He recently earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Ministry from Amridge University in Montgomery, AL. Jon has received numerous Contemporary A cappella Recording Awards (CARA) and nominations as a solo artist, as a member of Four Shadow, No Joe, and the McLemore Brothers. He sings tenor and lead for SCS and does vocal percussion for the group when needed. Jon is an instrument rated pilot and enjoys motorcycles, fishing, and family time. He is afraid of driving over a bridge, having it collapse under him, plummeting to the depths of a mighty river and being trapped in his vehicle until he drowns.","featuredImage":"https:\/\/assets.allamericanmusic.com\/images\/63042_h_0.jpg","feeRange":"please contact"}

{"key":"12","name":"Bobby McFerrin","bio":"Bobby McFerrin (born New York City, March 11, 1950) is a jazz-influenced a cappella vocal performer and conductor. A ten-time Grammy Award winner, he is one of the world\\\\\\'s best known vocal innovators and improvisers. His song \\\\\\\"Don\\\\\\'t Worry, Be Happy\\\\\\\" (featured in the 1988 movie Cocktail, and the 2005 movie Jarhead) was a #1 U.S. pop hit in 1988.He has also worked in collaboration with instrumental performers including pianist Chick Corea and cellist Yo-Yo Ma. This collaboration has established him as an ambassador of both the classical and jazz worlds. His recordings have sold over 20 million copies.In addition to his vocal performing career, Mr. McFerrin was appointed in 1994 as creative chair of the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra.He is the subject of a persistent yet wholly unfounded rumour that he has committed suicide. The rumor was so strong that the official Bobby McFerrin FAQ addressed the question.Mr. McFerrin and his oft-maligned hit \\\\\\\"Don\\\\\\'t Worry, Be Happy\\\\\\\" were parodied on \\\\\\\"The Simpsons\\\\\\\" as \\\\\\\"I\\\\\\'m Worried - Need Money\\\\\\\".","featuredImage":"https:\/\/assets.allamericanmusic.com\/images\/12_h_0.jpg","feeRange":"75,000 - 150,000"}

{"key":"11","name":"Die Prinzen","bio":"Die Prinzen are a German (sometimes a capella) pop band from Leipzig, Germany. Four of the seven band members sang in the famous \"Thomanerchor\" (St. Thomas Boys Choir) in Leipzig. Wolfgang Lenk (tenor) and Sebastian Krumbiegel (tenor) attended the same school in Leipzig and founded a band called \"Phoenix.\" This band became \"Herzbuben\" in 1987. Later, Jens Sembdner (bass) joined the band. In 1989, Henri Schmidt (baritone) became a member of \"Herzbuben\". \"Herzbuben\" evolved into \"Die Prinzen\" in 1991 with Tobias K\u00fcnzel (baritone) as their apparent lead singer.","featuredImage":"https:\/\/assets.allamericanmusic.com\/images\/11_h_0.jpg","feeRange":"please contact"}

{"key":"90","name":"Loituma","bio":"Loituma\u2019s initial incarnation was in the autumn of 1989 as a septet called J\u00e4ykk\u00e4 Leip\u00e4 (\"Stiff Bread\"), born in the Sibelius Academy\u2019s Folk music department. The original lineup included singers Sanna Kurki-Suonio and Tellu Turkka (formerly Tellu Paulasto, Tellu Virkkala), who later left for Sweden to join Hedningarna.Over the years, the group has persistently followed its own musical path, applying different musical influences to its music. It has dived into musical streams of diverse origins. One of the cornerstones of Finnish folk music is the art of singing: stories and feelings are best conveyed through this instrument. Loituma's songs convey the Finnish heritage, aided in the background by Martti Pokela and Toivo Alasp\u00e4\u00e4. Another cornerstone of Loituma's art is a Finnish folk instrument called kantele, which is featured in varied ways in their recordings.Loituma members compose or arrange the tunes by themselves, often using improvisation. Lyrics come from many sources, two main traditional sources are the Kalevala, the national epic of Finland, and the Kanteletar. The lyrics are in Finnish language.Band membersSari Kauranen \u2014 kanteles, vocalsAnita Lehtola-Tollin \u2014 vocals, 5-string kanteleTimo V\u00e4\u00e4n\u00e4nen \u2014 kanteles, vocalsHanni-Mari Autere \u2014 vocals, fiddle, 5-string kantele, alto recorder, double bass, Lapin drumDiscography1995 - Loituma1998 - Kuutamolla2006 - Ieva's Polka (read below for more information)Ievan PolkkaTheir most well known song is \"Ievan Polkka\" (common spelling or) \"Ievan Polokka\", (Finnish for \"Eva's Polka\") which is a popular traditional Finnish song with lyrics written in the early 1930s by Eino Kettunen to a traditional Finnish polka tune. The name is commonly misspelled \"Levan Polkka\", due to the similarity of lower-case L and upper-case i in sans-serif fonts.DescriptionThe song takes the point of view of a young woman. It tells the story of Ieva (Eva in Savo) who steals away to someone else's house where everyone is dancing to a polka, and where she meets a handsome young man. When he takes her home, her angry mother is waiting for them, but he tells her straight out to \"stop that noise\": No matter what she does, Ieva and he \"are going to make a match\".LanguageThe song is sung in Savo, a Finnish dialect in eastern central Finland.The Loituma version of the song includes an intermezzo of phonetically inspired gibberish containing only a few Finnish words; it is not part of the original song written by Eino Kettunen. The content of the intermezzo varies from one performance to another and is not listed on lyrics pages. It is similar to scat in jazz.The internetmeme that made the song famous: http:\/\/www.leekspin.comA live version of the song: http:\/\/video.google.com\/videoplay?docid=1738842995641330414 (Originally appeared on tvfolk.netThe continuous hype around this song resulted in a maxi single being released with the original as well as seven remixes of the song. The title is erroneously spelled as Leva's Polka, instead of Ievan Polkka.More information about Loituma:unofficial myspace: http:\/\/www.myspace.com\/loitumaremixwikipedia entry: http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Loitumaloop :http:\/\/dojo.fi\/~rancid\/loituma__.swf","featuredImage":"https:\/\/assets.allamericanmusic.com\/images\/90_h_0.jpg","feeRange":"please contact"}

{"key":"27","name":"Ladysmith Black Mambazo","bio":"Ladysmith Black Mambazo, which was formed 1960 in Ladysmith, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, have come to represent the traditional culture of South Africa. They are regarded as South Africa's cultural emissaries at home and around the world. They are a national treasure of the new South Africa in part because they embody the traditions suppressed in the old South Africa. It has been almost twenty years since Paul Simon made his initial trip to South Africa and met Joseph Shabalala, and the other members of Ladysmith Black Mambazo, in a recording studio in Johannesburg. Having listened to a cassette of their music sent by a DJ based in Los Angeles, Simon was captivated by the stirring sound of bass, alto and tenor harmonies. Simon incorporated the traditional sounds of black South Africa into the Graceland album, a project regarded by many as seminal to today's explosive interest in World music'60s Africa found the Zulu and Sotho beginning to incorporate the influences of African American R&B, jazz, and blues into their traditional, indigenous music. New styles such as township jazz, pennywhistle street music, Kwela, and marabi were formed. Eventually, these myriad styles coalesced to create a new hybrid pop music that came to be known as mbaqanga. Though mbaqanga employs the traditional instrumentation of Western pop (guitar, bass, drums, keyboards, and vocals), the approach to song structure and rhythmic, melodic, and harmonic phrasing is uniquely African.Recorded between 1981 and 1984, THE INDESTRUCTIBLE BEAT OF SOWETO is the first (and arguably the best) of a slew of South African pop recordings that soon followed. Characterized by insistent, rhythmically complex beats, elastic, burbling basslines, tight, ska-sounding guitar accompaniment, and thick, multi-part vocals, this music is as intriguing as it is appealing. Groups with such names as Udokotela Shange Namajaha and Amaswazi Emvelo serve up bright, infectious melodies and percussively insistent tracks that are clearly intended for dancing. Though this \"pop\" may at first seem strange to Western ears, repeated listens reveal its true nature: rich, individual, joyous, and simply wonderful music.","featuredImage":"https:\/\/assets.allamericanmusic.com\/images\/27_h_0.jpg","feeRange":"30,000 - 50,000"}

{"key":"38","name":"The Manhattan Transfer","bio":"The Manhattan Transfer is the name of two incarnations of an American vocal group, with Tim Hauser being the only link between the two groups. The group\u2019s name comes from John Dos Passos\u2019 1925 novel Manhattan Transfer and reflects their New York origins.The first group, established in New York City in 1969, disbanded after producing a single album, Jukin\u2019 (1971). This article focuses on the second line-up which was set up in 1972 and is still together. It is famous for mixing jazz, big band, and popular music styles.It's been over thirty-five years since Tim Hauser, a former Madison Avenue marketing executive, paid his bills by driving a New York City cab while aspiring to form a harmony vocal quartet sui generis that could authentically embrace varied musical styles, and still create something wholly unique in the field of American popular song.Hauser had been in doo-wop groups, folk groups, and even in a short-lived quintet named The Manhattan Transfer, but as the sounds of jazz, R&B, pop, rock \u2018n\u2019 roll, salsa and swing poured out of brownstones, Hauser now dreamt of four-part harmonies without limits.On a spring evening in 1972, one of Hauser's taxi fares was an aspiring young singer named Laurel Mass\u00e9, who was familiar with the only album, Jukin', by Hauser\u2019s earlier Manhattan Transfer combo, and had seen them perform once. Realizing they shared the same musical vision, they agreed to meet again. Weeks later, another of Hauser\u2019s fares invited him to a party where he met Brooklyn native Janis Siegel. Although already in a group, Siegel agreed to help out on some demos and before long she became the third member of Hauser's nascent group. As Hauser, Mass\u00e9 and Siegel began rehearsing, Mass\u00e9\u2019s then-boyfriend, who was drumming in a Broadway pit band, introduced Hauser and Siegel to Alan Paul, who was co-starring in the original stage production of Grease, and the groundwork was laid for the rebirth of The Manhattan Transfer on October 1, 1972.In its formative years, the group began performing regularly throughout New York City at Trude Heller's, Mercer Arts Center, Max\u2019s Kansas City, Club 82, and other cutting-edge cabaret venues. By the end of 1974, they were the number one live attraction in New York City, prompting Newsweek to send a writer to their show at Reno Sweeney\u2019s in Greenwich Village to report on this growing phenomenon.In 1975 they cut their self-titled debut album, The Manhattan Transfer, with Atlantic Records, and landed their own highly experimental television show on CBS. They were particularly successful in Europe, where their next two albums, Coming Out and Pastiche, brought them a string of top 10 hits. A live album, The Manhattan Transfer Live, soon followed.Mass\u00e9 left the group in 1978 following a serious auto accident in December of that year. (She eventually went on to launch a successful solo career.) Auditions were held to find her replacement, and a young singer\/actress from Mt. Vernon, Washington responded to the call. The group was completely knocked out by her dazzling performance, and Cheryl Bentyne was immediately invited to join the group.Their next album, Extensions, earned them their first domestic pop hit, \"Twilight Zone\/Twilight Tone\", penned by Alan Paul and Jay Graydon. The album also featured \"Birdland\", the piece that has since become the foursome's signature tune. Jon Hendricks wrote the lyrics to Joe Zawinul's stirring jazz fusion instrumental, and Siegel arranged the vocals. The most played jazz record of 1980, \"Birdland\" won The Transfer their first Grammy award the following year (for Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental), as well as the award for Best Arrangement for Voices, which Siegel took home.In 1982, The Manhattan Transfer made music history by becoming the first group to win Grammy Awards in both pop and jazz categories in the same year. \"Boy from New York City\", which broke into the top 10 on the pop charts, garnered them the award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal, and \"Until I Met You (Corner Pocket)\" earned them a Grammy for Best Jazz Performance, Duo or Group. Both of these appeared on the group's fifth studio album, Mecca for Moderns.The Best of The Manhattan Transfer was released for the holiday season in 1981 and contained the best of their hits from their early Atlantic Records years, 1975-1981. Naturally, the album went Gold.In 1983, they accepted another Grammy, for Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Duo or Group, for their rendition of the classic ode-to-the-road, \"Route 66\". The song appeared on the soundtrack to the Burt Reynolds film Sharky's Machine, and surfaced three years later on their Bop Doo-Wopp album. In 1984, prior to Bop's release, they repeated their previous year's Grammy win in the same category for the \"Why Not!\" cut from Bodies and Souls.However, it was 1985's Vocalese, produced by Hauser, that became known as the group's tour de force effort. Vocalese is the style of music that sets lyrics to previously recorded jazz instrumental pieces. Jon Hendricks, the recognized master of this art, composed all the lyrics for the album. Vocalese included some highly complex material that ably tested the quartet's capabilities - a challenge which they met magnificently. The album became a critically-acclaimed artistic triumph.Vocalese received 12 Grammy nominations - at the time making it second only to Michael Jackson's Thriller as the most nominated single album ever. The Transfer's opus won in two categories at the 1986 awards ceremony: Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Duo or Group, and Best Arrangement for Voices for Bentyne and Bobby McFerrin for \"Another Night In Tunisia\".The album also saw the group venturing out into the world of music video. The group made five videos to the album, which were available commercially and also shown on Cinemax. Also, when The Manhattan Transfer visited Japan during the Vocalese tour, a recording was made of the shows and the group's second live album, Live, was released in 1987. An accompanying video of the live show was available commercially as well.Then came Brasil, their 1987 recording, a ground-breaking re-contextualization of Brazilian music that pre-dated efforts by American artists such as David Byrne and Paul Simon. The group worked with some of today's most gifted songwriters, including Ivan Lins, Milton Nascimento, Djavan and Atlantic recording artist Gilberto Gil. The pieces were re-arranged, and then re-fitted with English lyrics which made them strikingly relevant, distinctly American, and \"Transfer-esque\" - while still preserving their Brazilian flavor.Brasil became one of the group's greatest achievements to date, and one which they remain particularly proud of. It also became their first entire album to win the Grammy for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal (1989).In 1991, The Manhattan Transfer moved to Columbia Records for a two-album stint. The first, The Offbeat of Avenues, was produced by Hauser and marked the first time the majority of songs where either written or co-written by Transfer members. They walked away with the Best Contemporary Jazz Performance Grammy in 1992 for \"Sassy\", a piece boasting lyrics by Siegel and Bentyne, and music by Siegel and Bill Bodine.In 1992, Rhino Records released a 2-CD set of the group's work over their 20-year career. The Manhattan Transfer Anthology: Down in Birdland is an excellent compilation of the group's work up to that time.In the winter of 1992, the gift that millions of Manhattan Transfer fans had eagerly awaited for finally arrived - The Christmas Album. Destined to be a holiday classic, this album was co-produced by Hauser and Johnny Mandel, who also did all the orchestrations. The group's soulful harmonies on such traditional favorites as \"The Christmas Song\" (with Tony Bennett) and \"Silent Night\", as well as the sweetly touching Lennon & McCartney classic \"Goodnight\", resound with sonic purity.In 1994, Rhino Records released The Very Best of The Manhattan Transfer. Why another \"Best of\"? Well, the Anthology package was a bit expensive for some, and the first Best of album came out thirteen years earlier and thus missed many hits such as \"Ray's Rockhouse\", \"Soul Food To Go\", \"Spice Of Life\", and \"Route 66\". Plus, the newer CD format allowed for a much longer album than Atlantic Records' 1981 collection.Also in 1994 the group released an album that was an enticing departure from anything they had done previously. The Manhattan Transfer Meets Tubby the Tuba, the group's first children's recording, was hailed by USA Today as a \"charming rendition\" of the 1945 Paul Tripp\/George Kleinsinger classic. Accompanied by the Naples Philharmonic, the group humanized instruments (such as Peepo the Piccolo and Captain Bugle) to deliver the story's important message: \"Be yourself, you can't be anybody else.\" Commented the Los Angeles Times of the project, \"One of the world's great jazz quartets turns a children's classic into a rediscovered treasure.\"Their 1995 studio album, Tonin', marked the triumphant return of The Manhattan Transfer - contemporary music's premiere vocal ensemble - to the Atlantic Records' fold. Tonin' finds Hauser, Siegel, Paul, and Bentyne embarking on a project as ambitious as any of their past work, while retaining a distinct sense of fun. \"'Tonin'' is a term associated with the vocal groups of the '50s and early '60s,\" notes Paul. \"It conjures up images of a few guys standing in a tiled bathroom or on a street corner, just belting it out in harmony - they're tonin'. This album consists of songs we grew up on, music that really sparked us as teenagers.\"The list of guest performers sitting in on the Tonin' sessions would spark any music fan, as it includes: Phil Collins, Bette Midler, Ben E. King, Ruth Brown, Felix Cavaliere of the Rascals, Frankie Valli, Smokey Robinson, Laura Nyro, Chaka Khan, B.B. King, and James Taylor.The Manhattan Transfer's third live album is called Man-Tora! Live in Tokyo. \"On the 1983 Bodies and Souls tour, the singers performed 22 dates in 11 major Japanese cities, including Tokyo, Osaka, Yokohama, Sapporo, and Hiroshima\u2026 The set contained here (released on Rhino Records in April 1996) was recorded by FM Tokyo radio on November 22 and 23 at Tokyo's Nakano Sun Plaza theater and later broadcast stateside on the Westwood One Startrack radio program. The MT's enthusiasm in their performance is inescapable, and the set list as diverse as their repertoire.\" - from the liner notes by Curt Gathje.The Manhattan Transfer's next studio album was released in 1997. Swing has its emphasis in 1930s era swing music. The thirteen tracks contain some of the most classic songs of the 20th century. \"Sing Moten's Swing\", \"A-Tisket, A-Tasket\", and \"Java Jive\" were recorded with Asleep at the Wheel. \"Sing a Study in Brown\", \"Topsy\", and \"Clouds\" were recorded with The Rosenberg Trio. \"Clouds\" (adapted from \"Nuages\") also features Stephane Grappelli. Ricky Scaggs is featured on \"Skyliner\" and \"It's Good Enough to Keep (Air Mail Special)\". Mark O'Connor is featured on \"I Know Why (And So Do You)\", \"It's Good Enough to Keep\", and \"Choo Choo Ch' Boogie\". About half of the tracks feature lyrics by Jon Hendricks. Swing was produced by Hauser. It debuted at #1 on the Billboard Jazz Chart and stayed in the top spot for nine weeks, and on the chart for over a year.In October 2000, The Manhattan Transfer released The Spirit of St. Louis, a spirited interpretation of the music of one of the greatest musical figures of the 20th century, Louis Armstrong. Produced by Craig Street, The Spirit of St. Louis captures the vocal group at its best, with strong individual and group performances wrapped around evocative arrangements that are both a nostalgic pastiche from the 1920s to the 1950s, and a completely modern take on Armstrong. This is a loving homage to a unique voice in musical history.In 2003, Couldn't Be Hotter became The Manhattan Transfer's first album on the Telarc label, and their fourth live album. 1930s and '40s swing music with a jazz twist is what The Manhattan Transfer do best, and Couldn't Be Hotter features some of their best hits. The sixteen songs chosen for this special live recording convey the depth of the group's talent and variety of their music. Classic favorites such as \"Sing Moten's Swing\", \"Clouds\", and \"A-Tisket, A-Tasket\" recorded while on tour in Japan, capture the essence of The Manhattan Transfer, and their enthusiasm is evident in these performances. From boogie-woogie to bop to vocalese, Couldn't Be Hotter spotlights The Manhattan Transfer's dynamic, big band harmonies in a live setting.Since the early 1970s, The Manhattan Transfer have been pushing and redefining the boundaries of vocal music in the context of jazz, pop and numerous other styles. Along the way, the collective efforts of Hauser, Siegel, Paul and Bentyne have earned them a healthy collection of Grammy Awards and a loyal fan base that spans the entire globe. The latest chapter in the quartet's exploratory trajectory is Vibrate, their second album on the Telarc label, released on September 28, 2004. Throughout the album's eleven tracks, the group explores both the traditional and progressive sides of jazz, plus various shades of Latin, world and pop music, and showcases its unparalleled vocal tradition.After more than thirty-five years, The Manhattan Transfer have hardly slowed down. They have appeared at special functions such as The Essence Awards, the Goodwill Games, the Society of Singers Ella Awards honoring Tony Bennett, and a special Christmas performance for the Pope. They continue to tour, delighting audiences worldwide with their music. The members have also individually pursued solo and collaborative interests, but their focus invariably comes back to making beautiful music together.Grammy AwardsThe Manhattan Transfer have to date garnered 10 Grammy Awards; eight as a group, and two more individual awards for Siegel and Bentyne:Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental (1981)\"Birdland\" (1980)\tBest Arrangement for Voices (1981)\"Birdland\" (1980) - Janis Siegel, arrangerBest Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal (1982)\"Boy from New York City\" (1981)Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Duo or Group (1982)\"Until I Met You (Corner Pocket)\" (1981)Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Duo or Group (1983)\"Route 66\" (1982)Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Duo or Group (1984)\"Why Not!\" (1983)Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Duo or Group (1986)Vocalese (1985)\tBest Vocal Arrangement for Two or More Voices (1986)\"Another Night in Tunisia\" (1985) - Bobby McFerrin & Cheryl Bentyne, arrangersBest Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal (1989)Brasil (1987)Best Contemporary Jazz Performance (1992)\"Sassy\" (1991)source: www.grammy.comOfficial website: http:\/\/www.manhattantransfer.net","featuredImage":"https:\/\/assets.allamericanmusic.com\/images\/38_h_0.jpg","feeRange":"please contact"}

{"key":"58","name":"Zap Mama","bio":"Zap Mama was founded by Marie Daulne & since the release of \"7\" (2002), the project has evolved into a seven person band, with two backup singers, keyboards, bass, drums & percussion \/ decks. Additional current members include Nia Saw As well as her Congolese roots, Daulne's cross-genre style may result from her varied past: Her father, a Belgian, was killed during the revolution while her mother was pregnant with her. The remainder of the family fled to the forests and found refuge with a tribe of pygmies. Daulne was raised primarily in Europe, but when she heard a recording of traditional pygmy music at age 20, she decided to return to Africa to learn about her heritage. She was trained in pygmy onomatopoeic vocal techniques before returning to Europe to found Zap Mama.","featuredImage":"https:\/\/assets.allamericanmusic.com\/images\/58_h_0.jpg","feeRange":"please contact"}