Aloe Blacc

Egbert Nathaniel Dawkins III (born January 6, 1979), known as Aloe Blacc (/ˈæloʊ blæk/), is an American soul artist, vocalist, songwriter, actor, record producer, businessman and musician. He is best known for his singles "I Need a Dollar", UK No. 1 single "The Man", and for writing and performing vocals on Avicii's "Wake Me Up", which charted at #1 in 22 countries.

Early life

Egbert Nathaniel Dawkins III was born in Southern California's Orange County to Panamanian parents. Growing up in Laguna Hills, he began playing a rented trumpet in third grade. When it made more sense to buy the instrument, Blacc had what he later described as a "very specific moment" in his evolution as a musician. "It forced me to be serious about it. I couldn’t just do it to get out of the class room," he said in a 2010 interview. His exposure to LL Cool J in fourth grade was equally significant. "It wasn’t too far off from the trumpet moment...I had a Hip Hop moment and a musician moment."

Blacc attended the University of Southern California, and graduated in 2001. He worked briefly in the corporate sector, for EY.

Greatest hits album

A greatest hits album, sometimes called a "best of" album or a catalog album, is a compilation of songs by a particular artist or band. Most often the track list contains previously released recordings with a high degree of notability. However, to increase the appeal, especially to people who already own the original release, it is common to include remixes and/or alternate takes of popular songs; even new material (previously unreleased). At times a greatest hits compilation is the original release for songs that have themselves been released as a single and charted successfully.

Notable compilations

Madonna's The Immaculate Collection is the best selling greatest hits compilation by a solo artist; all of the songs on it are presented in different versions than the original hit versions. The Eagles' Their Greatest Hits (1971–1975) is the best selling greatest hits compilation by a group and also one of the ten best selling albums in history. Greatest hits albums are typically produced after an artist has had enough successful songs to fill out an album release. Some artists, such as Mariah Carey, Madonna, Janet Jackson, Britney Spears, Elvis Presley, Michael Jackson, The Beatles, Kenny Rogers, Aerosmith, Kiss, U2, Dolly Parton, Journey, Los Tigres del Norte, Queen, Kylie Minogue and Billy Joel, have released multiple greatest hits albums through their long careers. Some greatest hits albums are released only at the end of the artist or group's career. For example, My Chemical Romance released a greatest hits album after they disbanded. Other artists, like Eminem have released hits albums in the center of their success. He released Curtain Call: The Hits in 2005 and then Shady XV as a compilation album in 2014.

Carry You

"Carry You" is a song by English boy band Union J. It was released in Ireland and the United Kingdom on 2 June 2013 as their debut single and the lead single from their debut studio album, Union J (2013).

Background

During a performance in Cardiff on 15 December 2012, Union J announced that they had signed a recording contract with Sony Music. It was later revealed, in January 2013, that the record label was that of sub-division, RCA Records. On 14 January, it was announced that Union J were in London recording their debut single that day, and on 8 April 2013, the group confirmed the title and release of their debut single, "Carry You". This was followed by the unveiling of the accompanying artwork, which also debuted the band's logo.

The track was given its radio premiere on 22 April, which was followed by the upload of an audio version of the single on the official Vevo account for Union J. Whilst explaining the meaning behind the single, band member Jaymi Hensley said, "The message of the song is [that] we've been on a massive rollercoaster the last year with each other, and it's about being there for each other." He also revealed, "It's there for the fans, we really wouldn't be here without them."

Lift Your Spirit

Lift Your Spirit is the third studio album by American soul singer Aloe Blacc. The album was released on October 25, 2013, through Interscope Records, the album was released in the United States on March 11, 2014 and April 7, 2014 in the United Kingdom. The album has charted in Austria, Germany and Switzerland. The album includes production and co-songwriting from DJ Khalil, Pharrell Williams, Elton John, Theron Feemster and Rock Mafia. Strings for the entire album were arranged and recorded by Daniel "Danny Keyz" Tannenbaum. The album received a nomination for the Grammy Award for Best R&B Album at the 57th Grammy Awards in 2015.

Background

In an interview with Billboard in the US he talked about his new album saying, "It's called 'Lift Your Spirit, and on I've got production by Pharrell Williams, the Rock Mafia, DJ Khalil -- and we're working on making a fantastic album that blends together a lot of different styles of music -- in sort of the same way we blended dance music and country on 'Wake Me Up!"

Carry You Home

"Carry You Home" is the third single from James Blunt's second studio album, All the Lost Souls written and composed by Donnie Cash. The single was released on 24 March 2008. The song peaked at No. 20 on the UK Singles Chart. The song had already debuted at No. 173 in September 2007, solely on download sales of the album All The Lost Souls. The single was Blunt's last release to be available on three different physical formats.

Release

The single was released on three different physical formats. CD1 includes an exclusive live recording of "Young Folks", taken from the live lounge sessions on BBC Radio 1. CD2 includes a live version of "Same Mistake", recorded in Ibiza, as well as the video for "Carry You Home" and an exclusive live AOL video of "1973". The 7" single includes an exclusive live recording of "Wisemen", also recorded in Ibiza.

Music video

The video for the song, shot entirely in black and white, shows the story of a man travelling to return personal belongings of a dead soldier to the soldier's wife. The video was filmed in Dorset, south-west England, and features scenes of Wareham railway station, houses and the valley in Swanage, the region around St. Aldhelm's Head and the twelfth-century St. Aldhelm's Chapel. The combat scene was shot at Bovington Camp, where Blunt had been stationed during his service in the British Army, and features soldiers from the camp.