Bright Star Musical - Hear it. See it. Live it.

The 7 Music Genres Blowing up in 2021

Music is one thing that every single person enjoys almost daily. Most people listen to music whilst ...

Read more
The Hottest Music Collabs Featured in Fortnite

Fortnite took the world by storm when it was released back in July of 2017 and the success has laste ...

Read more
Why Sound Design is So Important in Video Games

Video games have developed a lot since the first video game was released. Image was always the most ...

Read more
How to Organise and Advertise a Successful Charity Gig

When it comes to organizing a charity event it is important that certain things are done properly to ...

Read more
The Most Successful Charity Concerts Ever

Charity concerts or as they’re also known, benefit concerts, have been around since the first benefi ...

Read more

The 7 Music Genres Blowing up in 2021

March 21, 2021March 23, 2021

Music is one thing that every single person enjoys almost daily. Most people listen to music whilst completing any tasks they have, whilst studying, to party, and whilst commuting, it’s a massive part of people’s lives. Live music is also extremely popular from open mic night to a local band playing at your local pub, to famous bands who you love where you can meet hundreds of fans who share the same love you do, either are a great experience for music lovers. Listening to music has become much more accessible as technology has developed, the thought of only being able to listen to artists that you’ve purchased records of is hard to imagine, or even using a Walkman. Now, there are many popular music streaming services that you can pay a monthly subscription for and listen to any music you want from your phone or your laptop. Some of the most popular streaming services are Spotify, Itunes, and Soundcloud.

If you’re interested in getting involved in making your own music then getting your music onto one of these streaming services is a great place to start. Soundcloud is the easiest streaming site to start with and many now successful bands have started their careers on this streaming site. You can create your own channel and upload any and all of your music onto it, people who already listen to similar artists may be recommended your music and it can help you start to build a fan base. If you want to grow your following quicker then you can buy soundcloud plays which will strengthen your channel’s credibility and make your music look popular which will make more people want to listen. The more popular your channel appears to be the more likely you are to go viral and maybe even be discovered by an agent to properly start your career.

Jazz

Although jazz music originated in the late 19th century in the African-American communities mainly in New Orleans, it is making a comeback and has spread all across the world. Whilst people have enjoyed jazz music since the 19th century it’s completely blowing up again this year and people are living for it. Jazz music has its roots based in the 12 bar blues and is filled with swing notes making it a fun music genre to listen to. If jazz is your scene then some of the best up-and-coming jazz artists include Camila Meza, Kamasi Washington, and Kendrick Scott Oracle.

Rhythm & Blues

Rhythm and blues is much more commonly known by its abbreviated name ‘R&B’. This too originated in the African-American communities but this time in the 1940s and it dominated the music scene until the 1970s. A typical band would usually be made up of a piano, a couple of guitars, bass, drums, at least 1 saxophone, and backing vocalists. Having so many instruments made a whole new sound and it is still a much-loved genre today. Some of the most popular artists who are bringing R&B back in 2021 include Kennedy Rd, Ragz Originale, and Enny.

Techno

Techno music originated back in the 1980s in Germany and is a popular type of electronic dance music. The average techno set is based around a repetitive four on the floor beat which is continued throughout the entire set. Techno music mainly uses electronic instruments such as synthesizers and drum machines to achieve the sound they want. Some of the hottest new techno artists include Karol Melinger, Sadeen Younan, and Oliver Huntermann.

Country Music

Country music’s origins are also rooted in America but this time it’s American folk music that came from cowboy and western styles of music in New Mexico and Texas. Country music is mainly ballads, usually there is an acoustic instrument such as a piano, an acoustic guitar, or a harmonica. This is a super popular genre of music and 2021 is going to be a big year for country music thanks to new artists like Curt Chambers and Ashlie Amber.

Punk

Punk really became its own genre of music in the 1970s when people felt strongly about fighting the system. These people felt like they didn’t fit into society and massively rejected mainstream music. This led to them creating their own genre of music Punk Rock. One of the biggest punk bands is still popular today: The Sex Pistols. Punk is making a comeback in 2021 as bands like Sheer Mag are carrying on this legacy.

Alternative Rock

Alternative Rock is a sub-category of Rock music that originated in the 1970s but really made its mark on music in the 1990s. This new genre emerged because the independent bands and those who differed from rock music needed their own title for their sounds. The biggest name in alternative rock is of course Kurt Cobain. There are some new great alternative rock bands emerging including Social Animals and Crown Lands.

Indie Rock

Indie rock is another subcategory of rock that is much less heavy than normal rock. It also emerged in the 1970s and was heavily influenced by the punk rock movement. Some indie songs have really stuck like ‘Seven Nation Army’ and ‘Mr. Brightside’. Bands like Beam, Easy Life, and Bandagun are dominating the indie scene and starting to make it as popular as it once was again,

The Hottest Music Collabs Featured in Fortnite

March 17, 2021March 13, 2021

Fortnite took the world by storm when it was released back in July of 2017 and the success has lasted as it’s still one of the most popular games today. When it was released in July by the end of the month Epic Games announced that it had sold half a million digital copies of the game and by the end of August they announced that number no exceeded 1 million. There are now more than 200 million Fortnite accounts making it one of the most popular games ever, many people put this down to the fact it’s easy to run and very user-friendly.

Like most popular games there’s so many cheats available for fortnite as people want to win and improve quickly as it’s a competitive game, what is new and unusual for Fortnite is that instead of splashing out $20 an hour for maths tutors for their kids, parents are paying tutors to help their kids get better at Fortnite. This took us by surprise at first, but then we found out that one amateur Fortnite player made $3 million at a tournament and now we can see why they want their kids to become the best at this game. As Fortnite is so popular it’s had many collabs, keep on reading to find out the hottest music collabs featured in Fortnite.

Marshmello

Christopher Comstock is more well known by his stage name Marshmello. He is a well-known American DJ and electronic producer. His big quirk is that he always wears a helmet on stage to hide his face. To this day no one knows what he looks like, he does this because he wants to stay away from fame and keep his privacy. In one interview he said that he just wants to focus on creating something positive for people to enjoy and he doesn’t need fame.

In February 2019 this talented musician collaborated with the world’s most popular game, it was the first-ever in-game concert and was one of the biggest moments in all of Fortnite’s history. The in-game concert lasted 10 minutes and attracted over 10.7 million users who all had a great experience at the concert. This became Fortnite’s biggest event, with over 2 million more people attending than their next biggest event. Epic Games disabled all of the weapons in the game for these 10 minutes to allow all of the fans watching the concert to have a good time, with no hassle.

Weezer

After the success of the Marshmello concert, many other bands saw that using video games could be a great way to get their new releases out to a massive audience and get people hyped about it. In March 2019 Weezer were releasing their 13th studio album and to help promote this they also decided to collab with Fortnite. For those of you who don’t know Weezer are an American rock band that formed back in 1992 and are still together and releasing music now, their most well-known song is ‘Buddy Holly’. They didn’t perform an in-game concert but when the 8th map was launched there was a whole island on it dedicated to Wheezer, this is where 4 of their unreleased songs could be listened to for the first time. This was also massively popular and was received well by fans.

Travis Scott

Travis Scott is the latest musician to collab with Fortnite and his in-game concert was even more popular than the previous 2, attracting over 12 million users to enjoy the show.

Why Sound Design is So Important in Video Games

March 6, 2021March 8, 2021

Video games have developed a lot since the first video game was released. Image was always the most important thing in a video game and in recent years the image quality of video games has improved massively making the game feel real. The resolution is what determines the quality of the image on your screen and game consoles have been designed to handle a higher resolution which has allowed for more life-like games. The refresh rate, the texture quality, and the tessellation have also improved dramatically and all contribute to the high standard of video games we are now used to.

However, it’s not just image that is important, to make a game a great experience for the use, sound is just as important as image. Out of all our senses, it is sound that we respond to most acutely making sound almost more important than image. Audio makes important parts of games much more memorable and more enjoyable and it really helps to immerse the user in the game world as it is a big factor in setting the mood of the game and defining the characters.

The importance of sound design

Sound can massively impact our emotions, upbeat sounds can provoke happiness in us and sharp sounds can cause us to feel frightened or tense. This is a great thing for sound design in a game as if people are aware of this they can design the perfect sounds for the game to set the right mood and tone. Sound can be designed to make the players feel more like they’re in the location that the game is set in. For example, they can take sounds from desert-based countries such as instruments like the oud or the darbouka to make it feel more like an authentic experience.

Sound design isn’t just finding the right background music to match the geography and the mood of each part of the game, it’s also for the users’ interaction throughout the game. Any characters that the player will interact with throughout the game there should be audio alongside speech bubbles to make the game more immersive and enjoyable. It is also important to have sounds in various other aspects of games, like when health is low to make the player aware, encouragement when the player completes a task like defeating a boss and even little things like the sound of the player’s feet when they walk.

Games with great sound design

Some of the highest-rated games for sound design may surprise you. The Sims had a great sound design team working on it, instead of having to develop the game slightly differently for release in each country they created their own language: Simlish. It’s completely untranslatable which makes it much more imaginative and it gives the user the opportunity to pick their own tone and tempo of their avatar’s voice.

League of Legends is another highly rated game for sound design amongst other things. League of Legends has many great features, the sound design of the game has been highly rated by game critics as it does a great job of getting the user immersed in the League of Legends universe. There are some other great features that make League of Legends a great game, if you can tweak your command prompt this is how you appear offline in league of legends which is a feature users love as it allows them to climb the ranks without their friends knowing that they’re playing. Other games with great sound design include Portal 2, Bioshock, Dead Space, and Overwatch.

How to Organise and Advertise a Successful Charity Gig

February 23, 2021February 22, 2021

When it comes to organizing a charity event it is important that certain things are done properly to ensure that the vent runs smoothly, that everyone has a good time, and most importantly that you raise money for your chosen cause. If you are worried about your charity event’s organization I would highly recommend that you compartmentalize everything you need to avoid the dreaded situation of forgetting something important that could negatively impact the event.

Choosing a Venue

One of the most important aspects of any event would be the venue, you need to make sure that you choose a venue that has plenty of space to host and entertain a large group of people. If you are having trouble finding the right venue for your charity event then it may be a good idea to advertise. Many venues also offer their space in return for the guest’s purchase of drinks during the event, this is a great way to save some money that would otherwise be spent on hiring out entertainment space meaning that you could have additional funding to help make the event better.

Advertising Your Event

Advertising is key no matter what kind of event you are hosting, if people do not know about your plans then you may find yourself without the maximum number of guests. Advertising doesn’t have to be complicated and you can spread the word pretty easily simply by putting together some flyers or creating a social media advertisement. As this is a charity event it makes sense to take advantage of the free advertising platform which social media provides and again will save you money that can be spent elsewhere. Within your advertising content, you should make it clear which cause you are supporting with your event, as this is one of the main selling points behind your event and will definitely encourage more people to buy a ticket.

Entertainment

With a charity event entertainment is key to making sure that your guests have a good time, you may find that some entertainment acts are willing to attend your event for publicity and to help your chosen charity which would be great as it will save you money. The entertainment doesn’t have to be extravagant but it is crucial if you want to keep your guests happy and entertained and more likely to stay for a longer time. Entertainment also provides a great opportunity to raise extra money as you could implement some games into the event.

If you want to use your entertainment to raise extra money for your cause I would recommend simple games such as a raffle, tombola, or a simple game of bingo. Any game where people can buy tickets to win something is a great idea as it not only raises extra cash but it also provides a few hours of fun.

Food and Drink

One of the most important things to your guests attending your event would have to be the food and drink, it would be a good idea to offer a complimentary drink to show that you are making the effort to have a good time. In terms of your drinks, you can get away with charging as long as the selection and quality of your beverages are up to par, simple things like providing ice can create a good impression on yourself so making sure you have access to an ice machine is ideal if you need to make a lot of ice so that everyone can have a nice cold beverage. It is the little touches like these that are going to win your guests over and ensure that everyone has a great time.

The Most Successful Charity Concerts Ever

February 10, 2021February 2, 2021

Charity concerts or as they’re also known, benefit concerts, have been around since the first benefit concert back in 1971. They came about when people realized that instead of just asking celebrities and influencers to donate their own money to charitable causes it would benefit the charities more to have them perform.

If they perform and donate and proceeds towards the charity, then the charity would be getting money from every single ticket sold. On top of this, the celebrities encourage people who are watching or attending to also donate to the charity, and as they have influenced many people to listen which brings in even more money to the charity. It also helps to raise awareness for the charity which can lead to long term financing for the charity as the specific charity that has been selected to receive the donations will be remembered, this means that if people want to donate to charity in the future the selected charity will still be on their minds.

Benefit concerts also generate a lot of media attention which also helped the selected charity. For charity concerts to be effective for charity then there need to be top musicians, actors, and entertainers. They also must make sure that what they have lined up for the charity concert is enough to attract and keep thousands of people interested. Over the last 50 years, there have been some amazing charity concerts that have done just that, keep reading to find out which charity concerts have been the most successful.

One Love Manchester

In May 2017 a tragedy struck Manchester after there was a terrorist attack in Manchester Arena during the Ariana Grande concert. 2 weeks later Grande and her manager organized one of the biggest charity concerts in history to raise money for the Manchester Emergency Fund. The concert starred many famous celebrities who were happy to show their support for Grande including Justin Bieber, Coldplay, Mac Miller, and Miley Cyrus. Although there were so many top performers there that night Grande stole the show. People were amazed that she had managed to return to perform in Manchester so soon and she looked incredible too, if you want to look as good as Ariane did that night then check out the facemedstore for all your face and skincare needs.

The Concert for Bangladesh

This was one of the first big charity concerts, it was organized by The Beatles guitarist George Harrison and Ravi Shankar. It was a pair of charity concerts in Madison Square Gardens in New York City. They were trying to raise money and awareness for those who had become refugees as a result of the Bangladesh Liberation War genocide. This was important to them as prior to the charity concert there was not much international coverage of this tragedy so they wanted to make as many people aware as they could and encourage support. Many hit artists at the time volunteered to perform including Harrison’s ex-band member Ringo Star as well as Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, and Billy Preston. This concert was huge, 40,000 people attended to show their support, and over $250,000 was raised for the relief fund for Bangladesh.

The Concert for New York

This concert was held in Madison Square Gardens in New York following the devastating 9/11. This was a massive shock to America and the rest of the world, this charity concert was a way to honor the police and firefighters who gave their lives that day and to be a start to rebuilding from the tragedy.

This is one of the most successful charity concerts to this day, it involved many top musicians including Paul McCartney from The Beatles, Mick Jagger, Elton John, and David Bowie. The most memorable performance from the Concert for New York was The Who, their performance was short but emotional and it had such an impact on so many of the viewers it led to Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend receiving Kennedy Centre Honors seven years later. Alongside the top musicians, there were also short films by some well-known directors including Martin Scorsese and Spike Lee. Many politicians were there to also show their support including Hilary Clinton. This event raised over $30 million making it one of the most successful charity concerts ever.

2020 Look Back: The 6 Biggest Breakout Stars on Spotify

January 25, 2021

In 2020 many of us turned to music as a way of escaping the daunting situation we are all currently in, thanks to so many of us turning to our favorite musical artists for entertainment and pleasure we have seen a lot of musical stars climb the ratings on Spotify to become some of the most popular music providers on the platform. Spotify is a great music subscription service that has a wide range of different artists and you can even Spotify plays kaufen to get the premium subscription where you can listen to music offline while you are on the go.

Spotify also offers custom playlists catered to certain moods and events so that users can have access to all of their favorites without having to make their own queue of music. This saves time that would otherwise be spent searching through your albums or playlists to find the right music for the atmosphere, and you can now relax with the ready-made playlists compiled from your listening history. There is also a wide range of Spotify picks playlist that is public for all account holders to use, with categories like the Top 40 which is updated weekly you can keep track of who is doing well in the music industry and listen to their latest work.

Sia

With the release of her new album, Sia has had much success with her unique voice and ability to create pop hits over and over again with her following only getting bigger with each record release. Sia’s popularity has not gone unnoticed by Spotify with her featuring on over fifteen Spotify premium playlists for three weeks running, this is one of the longest periods that an artist has been featured and is a sign of respect for Sia’s work.

Vampire Weekend

Vampire Weekend is another great creator and they are known for their unique style of indie music, they have also had great success in recent years with many appearances on very popular Spotify playlist recommendations. The playlists that are made are based upon what songs are popular within each genre of music, so the fact that they have been shown so much reflects just how many people out there are listening to their music and subscribing to their accounts to keep up to date with their latest tracks.

The Weeknd

The Weeknd is a pretty current artist in terms of being popular and the fact that he has many appearances placing high on a mix of music charts all over the world. His unique and very relaxing style of rap, hip hop music has proven to be very popular, especially during 2020 it seems that we were all looking to The Weeknd to provide some much-needed therapy during these troubling times. He has had many hit songs appear all over the range of relaxing pop playlists that Spotigyu provides featuring songs like Blinding Lights and Starboy to name a few.

Macklemore

A classic artist to find success very early on in his time on Spotify would have to be rap and R&B artist Macklemore, his work as a stand-alone artist as well as his multiple collaborations with other stars such as Ed Sheeran and Kesha have proven to be very popular. The success of his latest album called Gemini would have to be one of the best albums he has created and the listening rates on Spotify are a great example of why he has been so successful, his songs have made several appearances on Spotify playlists meaning that he has a large following on the application.

Lewis Capaldi

Lewis Capaldi would have to be one of the quickest music success stories to ever occur, since the summer release of his single Someone, You Loved and the swift release of his first album soon after he has become quite a sensation. Lewis is known for the high range of his voice and his love story appeal that he brings to his music and this has done him very well in terms of creating some pretty good music. He has been seen on many Spotify official playlists and for good reason with his relaxing songs, I don’t think that his success is going to falter any time soon.

Fall Out Boy

The final breakout star on this list that has seen much success both in general and on Spotify would be fall out Boy, their high energy music and amazing vocals have seen them see much growth in popularity with every album. They have had many songs featured in popular Spotify play; lists and have had a huge amount of people following their accounts and listening to their music. This has resulted in them placing very high in many music charts all over the world showing that they truly are a global sensation.

The 6 Most Popular UK Artists of All Time

January 24, 2021

The United Kingdom (UK) is host to some of the most famous and influential musical artists of the past century. Below is a list of the most popular UK singers and groups of all time.

Pink Floyd

Pink Floyd was an English Rock band founded in London by students Syd Barrett, David Glimmer, Nick Mason, Roger Waters, and Richard Wright. They were one of the first psychedelic rock groups to become famous from the 1960s subculture, helping it gain popularity in the mainstream and later becoming an influencer of the progressive rock genre. Whilst their time together was often fraught with conflicts between members and the core five group members only performed together for five months, their music was commended for its experimentation and thought-provoking lyrics. They are one of only seven artists to sell over 200 million units of their music through record sales.

Queen

Queen was made up of members Freddie Mercury, Brian May, Roger Taylor, and John Deacon. They formed in 1970, finding success in their second album Queen II in 1974. Their album titled Greatest Hits was released in 1981 and is still the best-selling album of all time in the UK. Lead singer Freddie Mercury died in 1991 due to complications from AIDs and posthumously appeared in the band’s final album, Made in Heaven that was released in 1995. Their song Bohemian Rhapsody brought progressive rock to the mainstream. It is also the UK’s third best-selling single of all time as well as being the only song in history to reach the UK Christmas number one twice that was performed by the same artist.

Cliff Richard

At the start of his career, Cliff Richards was recognized as a rebellious rock and roll singer, however, he has since come to focus on contemporary Christen music. He has had many successes outside the world of music, starring in many Hollywood films in the 1960s. He is also a known philanthropist, giving away one-tenth of his income to charity every year since 1966. Tied with Elvis Presly, he is the only singer to make the UK singles chart in six consecutive decades.

Led Zeppelin

Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones, and John Bonham formed the rock band Led Zeppelin in London in 1968. They were one of the pioneers of heavy metal and are credited by critics as one of the most influential and successful bands in history. In 1980, John Bonham died and as a result, the band broke up although they have worked together and held reunion tours since.

Elton John

Sir Elton John was born Reginald Kenneth Dwight in London in 1947. Raised in a council house by his restrictive parents, John used music as a form of escapism which would later be reflected in his flamboyant stage costumes. He began playing piano at a young age, eventually getting lessons from the age of seven and being accepted into the Royal Academy of Music at eleven. He came out as bisexual in the Rolling Stones magazine in 1976 and later as gay in the same magazine in 1992. Along with his partner David Furnish, they become one of the first couples to have a civil partnership in 2005 on the day it became legal. The 2019 film Rocketman tells the story of Elton John’s personal and professional life with Taron Egerton in the starring role. He has sold 350 million units worldwide making him the second highest-selling UK artist.

The Beatles

Of course, The Beatles were going to make this list as not only are they the most popular boy band in the UK but the entire world. Hailing from Liverpool, members John Lennon, Paul McCartney and George Harrison have been together since 1958 with Ringo Starr joining the group in 1962. They brought British slang to mainstream and worldwide notoriety, not afraid to incorporate their working-class roots into their songs. Not only are they the most popular UK artists of all time they are also the best-selling music act of all time, selling 600 million units worldwide, and the only artists to sell over 400 million. That’s 200 million more than any other artist, a number that in of itself is only held by a handful of people.