ON THE RISE
ORLANDO, Fla. — Everyone needs affirmation and that’s what Giles offers in his new single, ‘Alive’ which debuted on the Digital Radio Tracker Global Top 200 Airplay chart at No 116 on April 9.
A fast song that sends a message of hope and worthiness to everyone who listens, Giles released three versions on YouTube last month — including a visualizer version and a version that shows the lyrics. But to get a true measure of the artist’s talent, one really needs to listen to the unplugged version.
Recorded on a simple Canon camera, Giles plays the beat on the piano and sings the song without the fancy studio and digital enhancements that you see in the video or streaming version of the song. It leaves no doubt regarding Giles’ talent and the heart with which he spreads his message of encouragement and empowerment.
“That was my goal to let people know that I really do have some competence musically and that it’s not a bunch of studio tricks,” Giles said. “I wanted to showcase not only my musicianship and my ability to produce on a high level, but also my ability to rap on a high level and to sing on a high level and do the things that make me feel unique as an artist. I wanted to overdose on that a little bit, just really show the world what I had to offer. I didn't know at the time that this was going to be the single that I came out with, but I knew it was a possibility.”
Producer, singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, rapper, audio engineer, arranger, and composer; Giles, formerly known as Vthov, has worked as pianist and lead musician on “What Does Freedom Mean” off the Soundtrack to the Oscar winning major motion picture "Twelve Years a Slave.” Giles has also worked as the principal arranger for Cody ChesnuTT's critically acclaimed sophomore album "Landing on 100.”
Giles said his previous stage name came from the nickname his friends gave him in school combining his first name, Alvin, with Beethoven, to come up with Vinthoven, then the shortened version Vthov.
When he decided to reboot his entertainment career, Giles decided to reboot completely and go with his surname instead of returning to that previous stage name. Now he just has to deal with people figuring out whether to pronounce his name with the hard “G” or the correct way with the soft “G,” like “Jiles.”
“I decided to rebrand and ‘Vthov’ was so hard for people to say and even if they heard it they couldn’t spell it, so it wasn’t easy to find my music just from hearing people talk about it,” Giles said. “So I did what any reasonable person would do and switched my name from one thing that was difficult to pronounce to something else that was difficult to pronounce. Now I’m dealing with the ramifications of that, but that is actually my surname so I’m a little less flexible.”
Now Giles is setting off with new music, including “Alive,” which was released in March, and another single coming out soon called “Grinders and Hustlers.”
Giles said when he plays “Alive” before a live audience, it’s fun to watch the awe on people’s faces when he plays with just a bassist and drummer and himself on the piano.
“This is my first time putting out music in a while so some people who are familiar of my artistry as a live performer have the sense of me covering other people’s music,” Giles said. “But they weren’t really familiar with what I could do as a song-writer. Some people who have never heard the song in its recorded form, their first interaction with the song is hearing me replicate it live without all the production elements. Just me playing the piano, sometimes with a drummer, and for them to have that response lets me know that irrespective of the production value, it’s a good song. It’s a strong, well-written song, and that’s all you could ever ask for as a song-writer.”
Giles said “Grinders and Hustlers” is another song with a message, honoring those who go out and work hard at whatever they do, whether they’re college students, contractors, or they work in a board room.
“I wanted those people to feel that their hard work is valued as well and it’s something they should be proud of,” he said. “And it’s something I’m proud of watching them excel in those areas. That’s kind of a twist on it, I’m saying something that’s been said before about acknowledging people who grind and people who hustle but I’m doing it through a different lens.”
Giles said he plans to continue performing and promoting and he may put these two singles with other music he’s preparing into an album soon.
Follow Giles on all social media and streaming platforms:
Website: https://gilesmusic.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Official_Giles
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OfficialGilesMusic
Instagram: http://instagram.com/officialgilesmusic/
Tik Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@officialgilesmusic
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/OfficialGilesMusic
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/68TzkIrPgDqHPko5ZHvxqV
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Pop and soul singer Sharon Watkins is preparing to share her very first album in 2023. Working alongside producer Sam Miller (known for his work with The Hoosiers and One Direction), she is following up with her newest release, The One That Got Away, which arrives on 18 November 2022. The track is a tender acoustic ballad that tells the story of leaving behind a harmful relationship, finding strength, and welcoming a fresh start. With gentle piano arrangements and Sharon’s unmistakable soulful voice, the song captures an intensely emotional journey.
Her earlier singles, Proud and Stranded, have already connected with listeners in a big way, reaching more than 250,000 views on YouTube and 150,000 streams on Spotify. With this momentum building, Music News sat down with Sharon to talk about her music and what comes next.
Hi Sharon How are you?
Doing really well thanks! So excited about all the momentum we’ve had with our first 3 singles, honestly, it has been insane to have had BBC radio interviews, rotations, global press coverage and to have won an international song contest in such a short space of time!!
Tell us about your latest release ‘The One That Got Away’?
Well, it starts out as a real wintery piano ballad, portraying that moment when you suddenly realise that someone you're with is messing you around. Then, with the help of big strings and orchestral percussion, it develops into a powerful "I'm over you" song…. It is really a defiant two-fingers up at the ex that never appreciated you until it was too late. It moves from the turmoil of still having feelings for that person, cutting lose and moving on to triumphant recovery, knowing that you made the right decision.
The music video is visually stunning and the dance is beautiful, talk to us about the filming of this video and the creative decision to use dance to express the meaning of the track.
Thank you, that means a lot! We’re really pleased with the way the video came out. Me and my brother, Sammy J Stopford, who has been my partner in crime on this whole album project, knew very early on that we wanted a contemporary dance that portrayed the turmoil in this song. I also knew I wanted the video to express the mental turmoil you go through after finishing a relationship and the underwater medium just seamed such an ideal metaphor for that. We put out a request for dancers and choreographers on Instragram not thinking we would get much interest. One of our lessons on this project is that you can’t pore the right energy into a project if you don’t love the music and so this was the main pre-requisite for dancers…. “please only contact us if the song inspires you!”…. we couldn’t believe the response!! We ended up watching so many amazing dance videos from such talented people. Our album is about adult life lessons and so we knew we wanted a believable couple, that had a great connection and were old enough to have gone through an adult relationship and breakup. We chose Florivaldo Mossi (Michael Jackson in West End Show “Thriller”) & Ashley Cavell (Star of many shows, including ABBA Fever) as they are both incredible dancers but also fit the storyline so well. I couldn’t believe it when Choreographer, Stewart Arnold (choreographer & dancer to Kate Bush) agreed to work on the project!!
The writing in the song is very personal. Was it emotional pouring these emotions into lyrics?
Honestly, it is like an exorcism. Songwriting is how I process and deal with life’s ups-and-downs and so I would be lost without that outlet. It forces me to really dig deep on my emotions towards things. You can’t write songs about superficial stuff, otherwise it just sounds cliché.
What do you hope people take away from ‘The One That Got Away’?
I feel like it’s the song you need a friend to play you when you have broken up from someone and are feeling injured and unsure. You need someone to tell you that you missed a bullet and one day that ex will look around and realise that they lost something very special. I have had people reach out already and tell me how relatable the message is and that it has helped them… this is the biggest compliment of all!!
Talk to us about your influences as an artist.
I grew up in Manchester surrounded by an incredible 90’s music scene, in a house where my dad played everything from The Beatles to Zappa. I then spent 8 years living in the states, picking up some great American influences like Carole King. I have now made Nottingham my home, which is where I recorded the album and I have honestly really been enjoying the return in popularity of singer-songwriters like Lewis Capaldi and Tom Odell …. So all-in-all a pretty varied range of influcences… making for an eclectic pop album that I hope you all like.
Going back briefly on the video, you collaborated with some great people on the video such as Stewart Arnold who worked closely with Kate Bush and Florivaldo Mossi, noted for being Michael Jackson in Thriller Live. Tell us about your experience working with them.
It's been the stuff of dreams really. I am a massive Kate Bush fan and to work with Stewart was like a dream come true. He and I had some long conversations about our vision for this video and the turmoil I wanted to portray. His ability to translate that into dance is something amazing to watch. I had the honour of watching him choregraph the dancers on the morning of the shoot and it was like watching a master at work, the artistic ideas that he brought to this project were incredible. Flori Mossi and Ashley Cavell are both experienced dancers but seeing the way they clicked together, and their interaction and interpretation of the song just blew me away.
What can we expect from you next?
Well, we have 3 more singles coming ahead of the album launch in 2023, so make sure you follow me on Spotify to keep up with those (Sharon Watkins) and we’re also going to be doing a series of “Live Lounge” performances of our tracks ahead of the album release so follow me on socials @sharonwatkinsofficial to keep an eye out for those.
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