Have you ever looked up to your favourite artist and thought, “Wow, I wish I could do what they do.” They do the most amazing things. As it turns out, you probably already do. Whether it’s Fortnite, Pokémon Go, or even casino games, here’s a list of 9 Musicians who enjoy gaming.
Eminem
Who would have guessed this legendary rapper often “Loses Himself” in a game of Call of Duty? In the past, Eminem has collaborated with Activision, the creators of Call of Duty, to create an exclusive song titled “Survival.” For any player who purchased Call of Duty: Ghosts, this song was added, together with his album The Marshall Mathers LP 2. To top it all off, “Survival” was used in the Ghosts trailer, and Ghost gameplay was used in the “Survival” music video.
Drake
Drake playing games has lately gone viral in the gaming industry, as he appeared on Twitch to play some games alongside Ninja. Ninja is a well-known Twitch streamer who excels in gaming. Since “the people” discovered Drake’s passion for gaming, he has acknowledged that he frequently plays games in the recording studio during his spare time.
In this day and age, not many people have the opportunity to make history by doing something for the first time. Marshmello has the good fortune to continue to be a trendsetter, not only in the electronic scene but also in the gaming world; he is the first person to perform a live concert within the confines of a video game. Marshmello not only participates in gaming when making Epic Fortnite history, but he also has his own YouTube gaming series called the Mello Cave.
Snoop Dogg
Snoop Dogg is another rapper who enjoys replacing the mic for some Call of Duty action. As a result, Activision has given him some exclusive in-game features in Call of Duty: Ghosts. Inside the game, Snoop Dogg has his own voice pack! Snoop Dogg doesn’t just play Call of Duty; he’s also been spotted playing Mortal Combat.
Zedd
This Grammy Award-winning producer does more than just produce hit songs. He is a huge game fan and enthusiast. Inside his favourite game, “VALORANT”, Zedd has inspired a new skin pack called SPECTRUM. Zedd grew up loving Counter-Strike, but he fell in love with the mechanics of Overwatch. When Valorant was released, it essentially replaced all of the other games he was playing. The best of both worlds, with a competitive edge and great mechanics that allow for some “Clutch” moments, as Zedd describes them.
Travis Scott
Travis Scott, like Marshmello, is reiterating the idea that the Meta Verse of the concert is here after 12.3 million people tuned in to his 9-minute in-game Fortnite concert. That’s the equivalent of 144 sold-out Wembley Stadiums. Following that, the concert was uploaded to YouTube, where it received an additional 14.7 million views in the days that followed, bringing the total to 27 million. Maybe this is the future of concerts?
Katy Perry
Many people like Final Fantasy, but few have the chance to become a playable character in the game. However, not many people can compete with Katy Perry. Not only is she available in the new game “Final Fantasy Brave Exvius” as a playable character, but her new exclusive song for the game “Immortal” is also included.
Ariana Grande
Would you consider getting a tattoo of your favourite game? That’s what a well-known pop star did with Pokémon. She is well-known for playing Pokémon on her Nintendo Switch. She loves the game so much that she has Eevee tattooed on her arm. According to some reports, on some rare days she spends up to 15 hours a day on her switch playing Pokémon: Let’s Go. When Pokémon Go became a reality, Ariana Grande was most likely overjoyed.
T-Pain
T-Pain loves a good game of Overwatch. This rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer enjoys most video games, including Watch Dogs and Overwatch on Twitch, but not Dark Souls. T-Pain despises that game. He frequently logs in and plays Overwatch with co-stars Zedd and deadmau5.
Games frequently get a bad rap. However, when there is a healthy balance, games can be a great way to take your mind off things, relax, and unwind. Are there some famous musicians you want to play alongside? Who is playing your favourite game?
The first thing you’ll notice in the video of ‘The Ballad Of Elvis Presley’ is Josie Cotton’s sky-high beehive hair, the likes of which we’ve not seen since the late great Amy Winehouse – or, more likely given the subject matter, Priscilla Presley. But hair like that is a good sign that we’re in for a treat, and Josie Cotton and Kevin Preston certainly don’t disappoint.
‘The Ballad Of Elvis Presley’ is just that – a biographical journey through his life and career, from his origins in Tupelo Mississippi to his demise at his Graceland estate. The collaboration between Josie Cotton and Kevin Preston – the latter with his own Elvis style bouffant – couldn’t come at a better time, with the recent release of Baz Luhrmann’s ‘Elvis’ biopic, and with a rhythm section including Lee Rocker of the Stray Cats, and Blondie’s Clem Burke, is guaranteed to find a welcome space in the hearts of not just Elvis’s fans, but also fans of great music.
The music video for ‘Ballad Of Elvis Presley’, directed by Piper Ferguson, sees Josie and Kevin in a ghost town, set loose in a saloon, a church, and a duelling ground. They’re joined by others as well, including a laid back bartender, a gunslinger, a dead ringer for Calamity Jane, and a slew of poker players. The members of the band have set up behind the swinging wooden doors of the bar, and they’re certainly ready for a showdown with anybody who even dares question that Elvis Presley is, and always shall be, The King.
You can listen to ‘The Ballad Of Elvis Presley’ below, and follow Josie Cotton online to find out more about the artist and her music on her official website, Facebook, and Instagram.
Jojo Engelbert has been on our radar for a while now, and if you’ve not yet caught on, we recommend you do so, starting with her latest release, ‘Sweet N Sour’, because it marks a new turn in her career. Still in her teens, Jojo is nonetheless an entertainment industry veteran, and we caught up with her and asked her a few questions.
We’ve been following your music career for a few years now, and we’ve seen you go from strength to strength. Your new single, ‘Sweet N Sour’ is a different tack for you stylistically, what’s the reasoning behind that and what should fans expect next?
I really found the sound I love with Sweet N Sour. Eli (big brother) shared with me a track he produced and I told him it was perfect for the sound I wanted. I’m not a pop singer. I’m drawn to a darker alternative/punk sound. As much as I liked Grown Up, it just isn’t me. So I really wanted to find my space following that release. You can expect this sound to continue and develop.
You’ve seen your older siblings growing up in the public eye on their tv shows, and you’ve also appeared with them; what has that experience been like, and has there ever been a time where you’ve thought that you would rather not be in entertainment? What would you choose to do if you weren’t a singer?
Their experiences are their own, but I was fortunate to get a sense of what the business is like from a young age. I remember when I was like six or seven years old and they had a concert and were signing autographs afterwards. That looked like a lot of fun to me. I didn’t quite understand why nobody wanted my autograph. That night, Zoey taught me a song and the following day we performed it at their concert. I got to sit at the autograph table. One person asked for it. It was my dad.
I was fortunate to have a couple great roles in regional theatre (Small Alison in Fun Home and Mary Lennox in Secret Garden) which led me to Nancy Carson (Carson Adler Agency) which led to other really cool opportunities.
My passions are acting and singing. I can’t imagine pursuing any other career.
Who most inspires your musical style? What are the top three songs on your playlist right now, and why are they there?
I draw from inspiration from the likes of Charli XCX, Olivia Rodrigo, Ariana Grande, Hayley Williams and Marina.
My current top three songs would have to be:
Forever – Charlie XCX, Go Away – Tate McRae and Womanizer – Britney Spears
We’re coming out the other side of the Covid-19 pandemic. How did it affect you, and what lessons have you learned from it that you’ll take with you, returning to normal life?
It was a terrible time for everyone. It certainly impacted opportunities to act and perform. I decided to spend the time really developing my acting skills and vocal technique. I knew I did not want to fall behind. Quite the opposite. I wanted to emerge better and stronger.
Finally, I ask this of everyone I interview: what question do you wish someone would ask you in an interview, but nobody ever does? And what’s the answer to that question?
That’s a tough one. Being a bit of an introvert, I’m OK with fewer questions. But I do want to thank you for this interview!
You can follow Jojo online on Instagram, and TikTok. Watch ‘Sweet N Sour’ below.
Anyone familiar with the music scene in New York would be aware of the talent of Jenny Bruce, who released her debut album in 1997 and went on to win the Billboard International Songwriting Contest in 2001, accepting her award at Nashville’s iconic Bluebird Cafe. She went on to build a huge following amongst the NYC crowd by appearing in festivals and clubs and appeared on stage with John Oates, Sophie B Hawkins, Vanessa Carlton and Avril Lavigne amongst others. Her songs have been featured far and wide in TV and film and to the musical bystander, things would have appeared to be going from strength to strength but this American singer songwriter was coming to a pinch point in her life that would create the need for a musical rebirth.
GHOSTE – Photo credit: Shervin Lainez
In 2015 she released an EP ‘Firefly in a Jar’ which included the single ‘Giving Up the Ghost’ which felt like a heart breaking goodbye to her Mother with lyrics like: “I still come undone when it’s time to say goodbye” and “I hear your voice softer than the breeze, you speak to me, the rustling of leaves, I don’t care why there’s a part of me that will never say goodbye, giving up the ghost” which is backed by a repeated mantra of “I’m not giving up”. This EP marked a return after a self-imposed step away from music of ten years and Jenny was quoted as saying:
“It’s such a long story. To sum it up. I didn’t write for myself for over a decade. I bottled everything up and locked it in a jar. Especially the feelings of loss after my Mother died. That loss broke my heart and hurt so much that I kind of shut down. Thing is, I became a mother around the same time. It was a very confusing period in my life. These songs are little life rafts that I wrote to pull myself up and out of a numbing sea”
It was to be 5 years later that Jenny released album GHOSTE, the name of which may have sprung directly from the thought of giving up the ghost by becoming GHOSTE, the silent e at the end almost suggesting anything but silence. Officially giving up the ghost and adopting GHOSTE meant that Jenny was able to emerge from the critically acclaimed and award winning song writing of the past to become something different but the same, a butterfly from the chrysalis of her song writing past. The eponymous album under the new name came out in 2020 and immediately caught the eye; the powerful song writing was of course still there but there was an ethereal quality in the electro pop style that suggested a musical rebirth.
GHOSTE – Photo credit: Shervin Lainez
Jenny has been asked about the name and she recalls:
“My late Mom cautioned me that after you turn 50 nobody listens to you and you become invisible, a ghost. Having crossed the 50-yard line, myself, I would tell her that aging doesn’t make you invisible. Trying to be something you are not, does.”
There are so many things we can draw from this simple and yet revealing statement. The nod to the 50-yard line suggests so much more than a number of birthdays and hints that Jenny sees this as a half way mark in her career before she goes on the offensive. There’s a real suggestion that up until now, she was trying to be something she wasn’t. She has garnered huge success from an early contractual agreement to write for TV and film but this comes with certain shackles that musically she seems determined to cast aside. The fact that she has moved away from the possibility of invisibility and being a ghost by becoming something more than a ghost, hence the added e, is a definite statement of intent that she will be heard.
Scroll forward to now and we see music from the artist in the shape of a five track EP show casing last year’s album release. The haunting music, excuse the pun, brings to mind the vocals of Kate Bush or Annie Lennox, artists whose vocal style has inspired so many of today’s singers and producers. Assisted by Matt Anthony, producer and composer, GHOSTE’s new music is the culmination of over a decade of collaboration that has finally found its wings.
The track listing of the teaser EP for the album could be the chapters of a book; ‘slow motion’, ‘deep water’, ‘fix you’, ‘hold on’ and ‘brick by brick’ suggest a progression of a career but all tracks are infused with Jenny’s inimitable style. GHOSTE even manages the almost impossible feat of covering a Coldplay song, often attempted but rarely adding anything. In this instance Jenny brings new nuance to the lyrics within the framework of this musical rebirth.
GHOSTE – Photo credit: Shervin Lainez
The selection opens with ‘Slow Motion’, an upbeat opener which quickly works its way into your memory before moving to the stunning ‘Deep Water’, which has a cinematic feel to it which builds with a beautiful ‘deep water’ refrain reminiscent of Ennio Morricone before a Kate Bush like climax; it’s a song that is so stunningly layered and the stand out track for me. Next is ‘Fix You’ which GHOSTE covers with real style; I’m sure that Chris Martin would love the almost galactic feel to the production of this wonderful song. The penultimate track, ‘Hold On’ is another wonderfully layered track with very moving lyrics and great production, much in the style of Jack Garratt, the superb UK artist. ‘Brick by Brick’ opens with the line ‘It’s a long way back, I can hear you calling’ and that feels like a direct reference to this musical return and the heartbreaks and life changing episodes that have made up the fabric of Jenny’s life since her self-imposed hiatus. The lyrics are a wonderful reworking of the three little pig’s children’s story and references the rebuilding of a musical vision but in brick this time; a suggestion that this time she will not be “blown down”.
There is so much emotion in this release and so much underlying story telling. Like the production, it will haunt you in stages. Firstly, you will love the wonderful electro pop cinematic quality of the music, then you will fall in love with Jenny’s wonderful voice, reminiscent of artists past but also reminding me of the brilliant Riva Taylor, a UK artist equally inspired by Kate Bush, but finally the thing that will stay with you forever will be the incredible lyrics; the honesty, the baring of a soul and the feeling that this is the start of a new exciting journey built on the lessons of the past. It turns out that the 50 yard line is just the beginning.
