There is nothing better than an outdoor summer concert, especially one at Jones Beach (seriously, what summer venue could be more perfect than one surrounded by water?). We were thrilled this morning when Long Island’s 106.1 announced the return of Summer Jam! While we would have loved to go to Summer Jam back in the late 90s/early 00s, when it was last held, the lineup this year is not to be missed!
The show will be on Sunday, June 1st at Nikon Jones Beach Theatre, and includes many of our 2014 Artists to Watch! Check out the lineup below. Buy your tickets here!
Tickets go on sale this Saturday, April 5th. Be sure to follow 106.1 on Twitter for the latest info! Visit 106.1BLI for the entire lineup and ticket info.
Follow @SykeAtNight and @BLIDanaJayson for more details!
From street performing in LA to having a song on the Pitch Perfect soundtrack, Andy Grammer has made some serious strides in his music career lately.
Andy’s new single, “Back Home” is a guaranteed smash! Co-written and co-produced by Ryan Met of AJR, the single shines as an anthem for staying grounded and remembering your hometown roots. The single will be available on iTunes April 8th!
Check out the exclusive article from RyanSeacrest.com and listen to the single below!
It’s Friday and that means it’s time for The Friday Five! This week, we’re picking five upcoming albums that we are totally excited to hear. So, let’s get started!!!
1. AJR – Title and Release Date TBD
AJR’s unique sound makes us excited about music again! The indie pop band, comprised of brothers Adam, Jack and Ryan Met, are the true definition of an independent, DIY artist. We’ve loved every song we’ve heard from them so far (seriously, it’s impossible to pick a favorite), and can’t wait to hear more! They’re tentatively naming their debut album “Living Room,” as much of the album was written, produced and recorded from their parents’ living room in NYC. The album should be released sometime this Spring. Are you ready?
While you wait for the album, make sure to download their EP 6foot1!
2. Hunter Hayes – “Storyline” (due May 6th) Hunter is another artist who makes us excited about music again. The multi-talented singer not only wrote or co-wrote every track on his self-titled debut, he also played the 30+ instruments used in the recording.We had the opportunity to attend his “Encore” release concert at Webster Hall last summer, and were blown away by his musicianship. We’re thrilled to finally be seeing Hunter live again on the “We’re Not Invisible Tour,” and for his new album, “Storyline!” And have you heard about how you can be a part of Hunter’s attempt to break the world record for most concerts in 24-hours? You can pre-order “Storyline” now and get an instant download of the tracks “Invisible” and “Wild Card!”
3. Dan + Shay – “Where It All Began” (due April 1st)
We hadn’t heard of country duo Dan + Shay until they were announced as the opening act on Hunter Hayes’ “We’re Not Invisible Tour,” but it was love at first listen when we heard their single “19 You + Me.” The duo met last year in Nashville, and started writing together the next day. If the rest of their album is anywhere near as good as the tracks they’ve released so far, including “What You Do To Me” and “Show You Off,” we may have our new favorite summer album.
4. Austin Mahone – Title and Release Date TBD
It’s hard to believe that after releasing so many hit singles, we STILL don’t know when Austin’s debut album will be released. Austin just wrapped up his first headlining tour with MTV, and we’re hoping we’ll have an announcement for a new tour and album before the summer!
Be sure to follow Austin on Twitter for updates and get his latest single, “MMM Yeah” on iTunes!
5. The Vamps – Title TBA (due April 14th in the UK; US Date TBD) Unfortunately for now there is no US release date for this album, but we are eagerly awaiting the release date! We love The Vamps energetic sound and after a very solid set at their headlining show in NYC, we’re looking forward to hearing more!
While we wait for an official US release date, you can pickup their single Wild Heart on iTunes!
Our favorite band of brothers, AJR, kicked off their spring tour with a headlining show at NYC’s Gramercy Theatre on Saturday, March 15th. It’s hard to believe this was only the band’s second headlining show, ever. They played a solid 1-hour set, including a brand new song and some covers that seriously showed off their vocal ranges.
We were first introduced to AJR (brothers Adam, Jack and Ryan Met) at CMJ back in October, when they played a showcase at the Gramercy along with artists like Diane Birch. At the time, there were maybe 30 people in the audience. It’s amazing to see how far they’ve come in just a few short months!
The near-capacity crowd at Gramercy was dancing and singing along to every song, even tracks like “The Green and the Town” and “Married on a Hill,” which haven’t even been officially released by the band. The show also marked the first performance of a new song, “Alice By The Hudson,” which AJR described as “the perfect summer song.” We totally agree, and love the Beach Boys-influence you can hear in this song. They also played favorites off their debut EP, 6foot1, like the ukelele-driven “Growing Old on Bleecker Street” and “After Hours,” which was so much fun to hear live. They followed it up with a cover of Bastille’s “Pompeii” that (as with all of their covers) makes it impossible to go back to the original version because they just do it better!
They even brought back a song from the AJR archives, “3AM,” which was a nice addition to the set and for fans who had been around since they first started adding videos to YouTube a couple of years ago.
As if we weren’t impressed enough already, for their encore AJR sat down on the edge of the stage and beckoned their fans closer. Without microphones, they did a cover of “Wagon Wheel,” which we could hear perfectly from the back. It seemed like a fitting tribute to their days busking in Washington Square Park. They ended the show with their single “I’m Ready,” which had the whole crowd dancing and clapping along.
Having seen them before, we were expecting an incredible show, but we were seriously impressed with this show and how much they’ve stepped up their game. They have a few more dates coming up this Spring, and trust us, you do not want to miss this! At this rate they’ll be selling out arenas this time next year. We’re so excited to see what’s in store for this talented trio! Even more remarkable, AJR are a completely independent, DIY project – they write, produce and record songs in their parents’ living room in NYC and have full creative control. As they say, No Label. Just Fans.
Setlist: (not in order)
The World is a Marble Heart
The Green and the Town
Livin’ On Love
Growing Old on Bleecker Street
Married on a Hill
Everlasting Love/Eternal Light (Cover)
Alice By the Hudson
After Hours
Pompeii (Cover)
3AM
Infinity
Wagon Wheel (Cover)
I’m Ready
Upcoming Shows:
Saturday, March 22nd 2014 : Pittsburgh, PA – Macy’s Prom Event – Mall at Robinson, Main Entrance
Saturday, March 29th 2014 : Boston, MA – Red Room at Cafe 939 Sunday, March 30th 2014 : Montreal, QC Canada – La Sala Rossa
Saturday, April 19th 2014 : Philadelphia, PA – World Cafe Live
Pick up a copy of AJR’s “I’m Ready EP” on iTunes or Amazon now so you can sing along at their shows!
AJR announced they will be heading out on a few headlining shows across the East Coast & Canada this spring. Check below for dates & ticket info to see if they’ll be in your town (or anywhere you can reach by car/train/plane/etc) and get your tickets now!
AJR HEADLINING TOUR DATES:
Saturday, March 15th 2014 : New York, NY – Gramercy Theatre
Saturday, March 22nd 2014 : Pittsburgh, PA – Macy’s Prom Event – Mall at Robinson, Main Entrance
Saturday, March 29th 2014 : Boston, MA – Red Room at Cafe 939
Sunday, March 30th 2014 : Montreal, QC Canada – La Sala Rossa
Saturday, April 19th 2014 : Philadelphia, PA – World Cafe Live
Tuesday, April 22nd 2014: Los Angeles, CA – Bootleg Bar & Theatre
They will be doing meet & greets at the shows for everyone after the show!
In case you’re new here, here’s what you need to know about AJR:
AJR is a complete DIY project – brothers Adam, Jack & Ryan write and produce all of their own music, and even mix and record songs in their living room. The NYC-based band got their start busking in parks, and has since opened for acts like Hoodie Allen, Demi Lovato, The Wanted, and most recently The Vamps. Their mix of the musical styles of the 50s and 60s, with modern influences, gives them a unique sound. These multi-talented brothers play everything from the ukelele to the melodica on stage, and their energetic live performance is not to be missed.
Make sure you download a copy of the “I’m Ready EP” on iTunes or Amazon before the show! Stay tuned for more dates.
It seems like the term “boy band” is being very loosely thrown around these days. Just because a group of young, good-looking men are in a band together, this does NOT make them a boy band. If you go by this rule, then we’d have to call The Strokes and Vampire Weekend boy bands. I think we can universally agree that they are not.
So, what exactly is a “boy band” then? Let’s consult the dictionary!
Boy band (noun): a group of young men who perform popular songs together and dance as a group.
Now compare this to the definition of a band:
Band (noun): a group of musicians who play music together.
See the difference? The biggest being that boy bands DANCE. We’d also add that they tend to dress in matching/similar outfits, and are known for their harmonies.
Just because a group of young, cute guys are in a band, and in many cases being marketed to younger audiences, it does NOT mean they are a boy band. Now, here are some examples.
We were lucky to see The Vamps first NY show last night! It was amazing to see how much support The Vamps have in the US, especially since they only released their first single in the States a couple of days ago! Hard to believe that this was actually their first headlining show — ever! The Vamps are fresh from a string of nights opening for Taylor Swift at the O2 Arena in London, where I’m sure they learned a thing or two (like, make sure you know how long the stage is)
They gave a high energy performance and their fun stage presence had them interacting with fans and fellow band mates, even taking a moment to take selfies with a fan’s phone that had been thrown onstage. (Fangirl note: This is not a good idea, please don’t throw objects of any kind at band members. They thank you in advance.)
The Vamps opened with their single, “Wild Heart,” and played crowd favorites like “Can We Dance” and their new single “Last Night.” They also debuted some new material, and rocked covers of “Mr. Brightside” and “Cecilia”! Check out our video for “Girls On TV” below.
Opening act AJR totally won over the sold out crowd, and had the whole venue moving to their single “I’m Ready” by the end of their set. It’s incredible to see how the support for AJR keeps growing and growing! The crowd was chanting “AJR! AJR!” as the boys took the stage, and you could feel the excitement and energy in the air. We’re sure AJR made quite a few new fans last night! Their performance was amazing as usual, and we can’t say enough good things about these talented brothers.
If you missed AJR (or need to see them again ASAP, we totally get it), make sure to get tickets to their March 15th headlining show at the Gramercy while you still can! They’ll be announcing more East Coast dates soon as well.
And stay tuned for more info on The Vamps – with a warm welcome like this, we are sure they’ll be back stateside in no time.
Share the “I’m Ready” video with your favorite celeb on twitter (and be creative!) The winner gets a signed t-shirt and mini-posters. The contest starts now and ends Saturday, February 8th at 5pm. What are you waiting for..start tweeting!
As the legend goes, AJR got their first big break when they tweeted a link to the song to Sia, who loved the song so much she asked the boys for a meeting!
We can’t wait to see AJR open for The Vamps later this month at their sold-out Gramercy Theatre show!
If you live in Los Angeles, we are totally jealous of you right now for 2 reasons:
1. You probably don’t even own a real winter coat and are walking around in t-shirts in January
2. AJR is having a show there on Monday! (And it’s free!)
Don’t miss this opportunity to see AJR in a small venue .. they were just named Pop Artist of the Month on Z100 and just keep getting bigger and bigger!
What? School Night
When? Monday, January 13th 2014 at 8pm
Where? Bardot 1737 Vine St, Hollywood, CA 90028
Why? So you can say you were there at the beginning
RSVP and get all the info at School Night Follow AJR on Twitter for more updates
Not in LA and still want more AJR? Listen to them host Hit-Bound on Hits 1 on Sirius XM this weekend
secretfangirls 