An Ode to 'YouTube Musicians'
There's a lot of musical talent out there... and I want to share a few with you
In my recent post entitled ‘An Ode to “Live Music’, I outlined my love of live music and the fact that over the years I have sought it out more and more, both online and in the real world.
I honestly believe I have recently crossed a threshold into having a preference for live music over the professionally produced and well polished studio recordings that one hears in the traditional spaces where music is consumed.
I have always been more concerned by the content of a song and its writing than the quality of its production; to the point that I could happily listen to a grainy, ‘bedroom recording’ of a song I like that has been captured by the performer as a voice note on their phone.
Now though, I might even go as far as to say that I prefer the experience of listening to these amateur efforts to that of studio produced records. They feel more…real. More honest. More human.
It’s that very humanity that I think I am seeking in music, as I feel that mainstream music has devolved into something that is (for lack of a better word) soulless. I want to hear music that creates a genuine (albeit parasocial) human connection between the artist and myself as the listener.
This is the domain of the ‘YouTube Musician’ and there are a lot of them. Most (it has to be said) are not very good. A lot really, really suck. But that’s okay, sucking at something is a necessary step on the way to being good at something that all of us will go through as we master our craft (I hope one day to be one of those who graduates out of the ‘sucks’ category).
But some are incredibly talented and have blown me away with their music over the years and I have collated some in this article below for your enjoyment. This is just a selection of YouTube ‘content creators’ (yuck) whose music I enjoy, rather than a list of what I have judged to be quote/unquote ‘real’ musicians. Consequently, not all of these are ‘bedroom recordings’ or wholly independent artists however. Some are from more established artists who use some of the tricks of the trade to present their work in the best light. Some of the songs are produced from a decent to high standard and for which the artists have purposely filmed videos for.
But in my humble opinion, they have what I would call that humanity, and provide that illusive human connection that I am both searching for and believe is absent from the mainstream music of modernity. I hope you enjoy them and give these guys a follow on their YouTube channels to help them out. (Some need it A LOT more than others, to be fair).
Lauren Paley
Lauren is one who doesn’t lack support as she has over 2 million subscribers, but her a cappella covers are still something that I can’t get enough of and I want to highlight. Lauren discovered that the stairway of her apartment building has an incredibly lush and warm impulse response which adds a beautiful reverb when she sings. (The correct term is ‘wetness’ when describing the intensity of reverb but seriously, yuck! No!)
I could have included dozens of her videos but I have chosen ‘The Edge of Night’ from Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King because I’m a Middle-Earth nerd and I love this song.
MALINDA
Similar to Lauren Paley, Malinda utilises reverb to further accentuate her incredibly haunting and beautiful voice. She does a lot of traditional folk songs which work with her voice but I adore this cover of Bo Burnham’s ‘All Eyes On Me’ so I chose it.
Mike Masse and Jeff Hall
An oldie but a goodie. Mike’s voice is astonishing and caught me completely by surprise when I first heard this live performance of Toto’s classic hit ‘Africa’. This song is an ambitious inclusion in any acoustic musician’s set and not a risk that many dare take. Mike and Jeff do however to remarkable success. I’ve kept this cover in rotation for about a decade and never tire of it. Enjoy.
Vazquez Sounds
Two from these guys. This Mexican trio made up of siblings became YouTube stars at a very young age. Lead singer and pianist Angela Vazquez was only ten when this cover of Adele’s ‘Rolling in the Deep’ went viral and her voice is RIDICULOUS. How a TEN YEAR OLD can belt like this I will never know. 300 million views to date, this one.
But theVazquez Sibling’s talents don’t end with performing covers as they moved on to writing their own original songs, such as this one called ‘En Mi, No En Ti’, which is genuinely gorgeous. Angela was 13 at this point.
Loki Rothman
Finger tapping, (or body tapping), on an acoustic guitar is a method I have experimented with myself to little success. Namely because for a musician I lack a sense of internal rhythm and tend to play loosely with metre, drifting in and out of the correct tempo.
This admiration I have is doubled in this case as he sings what is already a difficult song to perform (Uptown Funk) over his own body tapping arrangement. I heard many acoustic musicians attempt this song and most fail because they sound clumsy. Loki however, excels and this is the best one I’ve heard yet.
Edson Lopes
I love the sound of classical guitars. Lopes makes this ridiculously difficult, 9 minute arrangement of Johann Sebastian Bach’s Toccata and Fugue seem easy and I have watched/listened to it dozens of times and still cannot recall a single mistake in his performance. Flawless technique and incredible expression combine to elevate this already stunning piece to new levels.
Walk OF The Earth
These guys are cool, (and very different from my last entry). Here is their cover of the Weeknd’s hit ‘Can’t Feel My Face’ on one of the STRANGEST instruments I’ve ever seen. They all play it concurrently and have perfect timing and harmony between them.
Nobuyuki Tsujii
This solo pianist, performing at Carnegie Hall showcases his original piece called ‘Elegy for the Victims of the Tsunami of March 11, 2011 in Japan’. Knowing the subject matter that inspired him to compose it, one can see why he is so powerfully moved while performing. It is gorgeous.
LP
LP is a legend in my view but, in spite of this song (Lost On You) accumulating BILLIONS of streams and the fact that she wrote the Beyonce hit ‘Halo’, most people have never heard of her. The recorded version of this song is flawless as it is but this live performance has a slightly warmer feel and has a vocal solo in the bridge that beggars belief. What a voice.
Ali Rapetti
This song, ‘For Amelia’ was something I had to actively seek out after hearing Ali play a portion of it in a recording of Berklee College seminar on songwriting hosted by legendary songwriter and music pedagogist Pat Pattison. Pat gave her some feedback on the song as an exercise in front of her whole class and made the song palpably better. I had it stuck in my head for days but the video didn’t list the song's name or link to the video. I had to look up her name and then peruse her YouTube channel until I found it.
Cassandra Coleman
Cassandra shot to fame on American Idol singing this song and the audition is as excellent as one would expect as her voice is always sublime. But I include this slightly more controlled and professional performance as it showcases her voice better and (in my humble opinion) is the best version of this song I have ever heard, including the original by ‘The Killers’ (sacrilege, I know, but as I said that’s my opinion). I am also a sucker for a piano and cello collaboration.
The Brett Domino Trio
The hilarity of this comedy duo (take your time) cannot mask their talent and their deep understanding of how contemporary music works. In this video, they satire Ed Sheeran while also deconstructing pop music songwriting formulas into ridiculously simple terms. This is funny, clever and illuminating. Genius.
Bad Lip Reading
More musical comedy. Bad Lip Reading satire the news and pop culture by replacing the original audio with the nonsense that comes from poorly reading the speaker's lips. The results are hilarious and their spoken word videos always deliver, but it was the musical talent of these guys that really struck me, particularly in this song and their other Star Wars videos. The fact that Yoda is a Frank Oz puppet and therefore is constrained by limited lip movement has allowed BLR to be even more creative and surrealist with their lyrics.
Some people find this annoying and I get it. This one is easier on the ear and showcases the lip reading interpreting better, not to mention the chorus lyrics are so clever.
James Hill.
Cover of Micheal Jackson’s ‘Billie Jean’. Body-tapping, multiple parts played simultaneously and ‘Jazz club’ style spoken word vocals, all on a Ukulele (yes, truly). This is so complex and impressive. So, so, so, difficult, but flawless. What a talent.
The Dead South
I first heard this song used as a needle drop in Netflix’s The Umbrella Academy. I’m not by any measure a Bluegrass fan but this is so cool and the lead singers voice is so raw, expressive and human. Truly good stuff.
Willie Spence
Sadly, Willie passed away at the age of 23 in 2022, but his voice remains an inspiration. In this viral video he sings the solo part in a community choir rendition of the Rihanna hit Diamonds (written by Sia) and blows everyone away. Such an amazing voice. RIP, Willie.
Jon Gomm
Jon is my favourite guitarist. He is the master of ‘body-tapping’ as anyone who has heard of him knows, but in this original song he incorporates down-tuning and re-tuning into the riff of the chorus to double the top-line that he is singing. The only way he can be this good is witchcraft, I’m certain. This is ‘Telepathy’.
Luca Stricagnoli
Just watch. I can’t explain it. So good.
I hope you enjoyed this small sample of some of the musicians I like to listen to on YouTube. There are so many more but I wanted to cover a wide range of genres and styles. Now, if you’ll indulge me, I want to showcase a few of my personal friends and acquaintances whose music inspires me.
Sass Brennan
Sass is my younger sister and a constant inspiration. Here’s her cover of The Beatles song ‘Yesterday’.
Rich Williams
My mate Rich is an astonishing musician. His talent on piano is comparable to his guitar skills, and they are ridiculous.
Bradley Burchill
Supremely talented and the most unique voice. He’s a good egg and brilliant songwriter.
Ryan Jones
Has helped me as a musician more than he will ever know. Proper Legend. Thanks Ryan.
Berry Challis
When Berry decides he wants to take the music world by storm, he will, and I look forward to it. I had the honour of having my face melted by his final performance while we were studying music together at University. This isn’t metal though, as Berry’s electric guitar shredding ability is matched by his Flamenco and Gypsy Jazz, acoustic work.
Sonny Palmer
Sonny has ‘IT’, the X factor or whatever you want to call it. A born entertainer, excellent songwriter and genuinely stand up guy.
Ruinarte
Jen is a super talented singer/songwriter and producer and a cracking pianist and synth player. She’s written loads of great songs but this one is my personal favourite.
Cat Florence
I saw Cat playing on Instagram and invited her to perform at the acoustic event I host because her mastery of the loop station she uses is incredible, not to mention her voice, guitar playing and songwriting skills.
That’s it for today. I hope you enjoyed exploring these links. I’m sure the second I publish this I’ll remember a few obvious and glaring omissions that I have failed to include in this list, but it’ll have to do for now. (If you’re one of my friends and I’ve not included your videos, that’s because I either forgot to add you or because I don’t rate you, I’ll let you decide which 😉).
If any of you know of any niche, lesser known musicians with remarkable talent then please drop a link to them in the comments, I love supporting other artists and discovering new music.
Thanks for reading
Pete Brennan - The Common Centrist