Towerlight Profile: Karyzthma

Posted on February 21, 2012 by Tyke

There is a new kid in town that you may not have heard of but will soon, gospel artist singer,rapper and songwriter: Karyzthma or (Charisma).

He is the latest discovery of talent by music producer Ronald “Tyke” Oliver creator of Towerlight Records.

This 31 year old talent got started in music with R&B, which in of itself is a little different, as most start in the church and then become R&B artist, but in this case it is reverse.

This transformation took place in 2002 when Karly Robbins, his real name, was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. After enduring the shock of that news and the rehabilitation it took to regain his mobility, during this period he decided to strengthen his relationship with his creator and vowed to devote his music only to the Gospel field.

Karly joined the army in 1998, decided to stay and live in Europe and Germany. He says he performed on stage in clubs and learned a lot about the music industry. He says” It is very different over there, all of the music is all together, there are no boundaries”.

He also growing up sang a lot in church with his mom, which I imagine made it much easier to return to his roots in Gospel.

Influenced heavily by such acts as John P. Kee a veteran in the gospel field, but says he also loves Anita Baker and made it a point to say Ralphael Saddiq of Tony Toni Tone fame, had a big impact on his philosophy of exploring music to the fullest.

Karly is just concentrating on songwriting, producing and vocals. The tracks that I have received are full of smooth, funky and emotional gospel music that the masses are going to love once they are fully introduced to this new talent on Towerlight Records.

Look for an upcoming album by KARYZTHMA.. a fantastic gifted musician..It will be worth the wait…

Towerlight Review: M.Brownie/Forever Thankful

Posted on February 20, 2012 by Tyke

I have listened to the debut single release by the talented music producer/songwriter, Matthew Brownie called “Forever Thankful”.

If you know the history of this stellar award winner and co- writer of the gospel hit “Never could have made it”, music phenom and master keyboardist with perfect pitch, you are not surprised that he has hit a bulls-eye with this music production.

As soon as it comes on it is obvious that the production is superior with slick sound effects, warm synths and an interesting intro only those that know what they are doing could conceive. Then it goes into this fantastic groove, packed with a fun bouncy beat that captures your ear right away. Just as your head is bop-pin to that, he breaks it down into this melodic piano that is just well..wonderful.

I also immediately felt the spirit of God throughout the song and had the feeling of thankfulness, which is the whole point that Matt is making..

You have got to download this GEM right away. If you want inspiration mixed with thought provoking music YOU HAVE COME TO THE RIGHT TUNE.

“Forever Thankful” is God sent..Thanks Matt.

Download this tune at: http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/forever-thankful-single/id503899497

Look for a full interview of Matthew Brownie coming soon!

Houston’s Death: a reminder of the Pressure

Posted on February 20, 2012 by Tyke

What a phenomenal voice.. there is no doubt Whitney Houston’s vocal chords were the best in the business, however, the word business is what i’m focusing on. The music industry is overrun with sharks, accountants, lawyers, promoters and just downright evil people that do not have the best interest of the artist in mind. Of course not all people fit this category in the industry, but far too many people do, especially those surrounding the types of stars of Whitney’s status.

Millions and millions of dollars come into play and we all know – the love of money is the root of all evil. This is not to suggest that the artist themselves do not bare some responsibility of the choices they make for their lives, however, most of them that get thrown into stardom are not made aware of the pressures that go with that type of fame and fortune.

This writer personally would rather make less money and have no where near the fame if it means I have to compromise first my artistic freedom and the quality of my personal life.

This is one of the reasons I believe that independent record labels and independent artist are growing in popularity. It is far less pressure and much more freedom and control over the final product. It may not be as lucrative, but what difference does it make to have millions of dollars but can’t enjoy it or worse lose your life in the process.

Whitney’s music will be here for hundreds of years to be enjoyed all over the world, it’s just tragic that she is not around to enjoy it as well.

Towerlight Profile: Chris Brownie

Posted on February 16, 2012 by Tyke

Recently, a real good friend of mines family member, has just moved to my hometown and I anticipated him coming because I hadn’t seen him since he was a little kid.

He is now 27 years old and of course mature beyond his years.

I checked their churches website where he attends and is very active in the ministry, as I thought about visiting.

I see a music button to click, so I go there and see a photo of Chris and some music tracks to click.

I click a track, listen to several others, and my mouth dropped to my knees!

AMAZING music!! tight beats, melodic sounds, great hooks and smooth grooves- I became an instant fan!

The next day I spoke with Chris and he was amazed that I was amazed. My first thought was he was just being modest, but the more I spoke with him it was apparent that he had no idea how good he really was.

Enough about my feelings and shock…This talented gospel songwriter and track master started at the age of 11 years old although this almost didn’t happen as one of his brothers wanted him to explore other instruments due to his oldest brother already being accomplished on the keys.

(by the way – his oldest brother is an accomplished award winning music producer and songwriter…get to that in another article.)

It is very obvious to me that Chris is just a true lover of music in it’s purest form. He says ” I’m very eclectic musically, I love all kinds of styles and genres.

Some of his earliest influences were his older brother Matthew, Ben Tankard a popular gospel jazz artist and he made it a point to mention George Benson, specifically the- Breezin Album, which is a classic.

Chris is currently working part time with some new Alesis equipment his father ( a pastor and former music producer also) has just recently purchased, which I hope will lead to more music.

Chris has aspirations as time will permit, to work with other artist in the near future, produce more great music and launch more of it in cyberspace for potential fans to have access to it.

Tyke to Chris…I am here to make sure that happens!!

VIsit Chris on Facebook

http://www.facebook.com/tykeoliver#!/profile.php?id=764914342

Music tracks by Chris:http://www.rehobothnewlife.com/MUSIC.html

Independent artist need Independent Labels

Posted on February 15, 2012 by Tyke

There are more independent music artist than ever before, or at least it seems that way. Actually the number statistically is probably about the same, we just never knew about the artist that had know way of being exposed in the past.

You know, the countless ones that sent in the demo but the secretary at the major record company that you sent it to, just so happened to lose it on her desk, that is if it ever made it to her desk.

You may be one of those people that can relate to this story, but that day is over!

Since the emergence of the Internet ,technology and the information age, there are very few major record companies left that are profitable.

Don’t get me wrong, Sony, Warner Bros.,Arista and some of the big boys will always be there, but their influence is not the same as it once was.

Now i’m not saying if Clive Davis calls you, that you don’t take that call and scream to the top of your lungs that he is on the other end, Im just saying things have changed quite a bit in the music industry and will continue to do so.

Indie artist should seek out and explore Indie labels, the opportunities are endless.

Do your research and find one that sounds like it fits what you want to do, of course you have to have a good product, talent and they have to want you too.

Make sure it’s a win win situation, your comfortable and their is flexibility in their appraoch to your music.

Artist need labels, labels need artist..its that simple.

Indie Labels offer Flexibility

Posted on February 14, 2012 by Tyke

The best thing going for running or being signed to an independent record label is flexibility.

With all of the new tools , technologies and forms of media being created it seems almost everyday now, indie labels have to adapt to what is going on to maximize exposure to their music and artist.

Sometimes this can seem an overwhelming task, but nothing is more fun and exciting and it definitely keeps you on the edge.

I always have an ear open to what is going on weather in music trends, music production, statistics about media trends, new artist and talent and just the overall news about the music industry in general. It seems you learn about something and a week later something else is coming down the pike.

This means there is opportunity all over the place if you are willing to focus and learn.

I explain to artist to always be willing to adapt, without changing what you do well , also be willing to maximize your talent and gain exposure with what is happening now.

So if you are a musician into jazz, gospel, soundtracks, instrumentals or whatever genre, use your indie label as a mechanism to gain success.

You can go Global

Posted on February 9, 2012 by Tyke

Music is everywhere now and it seems it always has been.Today it is more true than ever before. With the advancement of new technologies, the opportunities are endless for music producers and songwriters.

Social media sites like Youtube,Twitter,Facebook and the thousands of people and fans you can reach through these mediums has never been higher.

Add in the way people are logging on through cell phones, Itunes, ipads, ipods,notebooks and pc’s, not to mention all of the interactive music websites out there and it is hard to keep up.

I am still amazed to this day how someone can purchase the music I produce within seconds from any part of the world with a click. I post my music on the web and instantly I have access to the global market place.

I speak to young artist and songwriters all of the time and I am amazed at how many of them still are stuck thinking only about their local markets.Don’t get me wrong, that’s a really cool place to start maybe, but you are no longer stuck there.

As a matter of fact, the same amount of time that you use to market your music locally will probably take you longer than to market it globally if you know what you doing.

So weather you are into jazz, songwriting, arranging, instrumentals or soundtracks or maybe your are vocalist….THINK GLOBAL!

Take your craft seriously

Posted on February 7, 2012 by Tyke

If you are a music producer,musician, songwriter or artist that wants be taken seriously in the music industry, it is imperative that you study your craft and know what your doing.

With information so readily available through so many sources, there really is no excuse for not being well informed about any area of music that you are involved in.

I tell young aspiring musicians all of the time to know everything about everything, of course that’s impossible, but you get the point.

I had a young kid tell me he was interested in rapping and he was pretty good. I asked him did he know the first rap record that was successful, he looked at me like I was on another planet. When I said ” Rappers Delight” he looked at me as if I ordered a fancy ice cream dessert, he had know idea. I immediately lost respect for his talents.

I said ” how can you be a part of a music genre and not know how it began? Where it came from?

This is just a small example of what I run into with a lot of so called artist today.

I was fascinated watching Quincy Jones on an interview one day on cable, and the interviewer asked ” with all of your success in music, what would you tell aspiring artist and music producers how to be successful? I sat there in my chair waiting for this magical and mystical advice he was about to give, then he said simply “know your stuff man”.

The simplicity of that statement says it all!

Towerlight Records on Youtube

Posted on February 2, 2012 by Tyke

If you want to see some fantastic videos from an independent label that is growing by leaps and bounds, check out Towerlight Records Youtube channel.

With over 59 videos to choose from and subject matters that cover politics, social issues,inspirational messages and christian values,also,music genres that include jazz, gospel, soundtracks, instrumentals,easy listening and commercial jingles.

Recently the channel reached a mark of over 260,000 upload views and over 10,000 channel views.

The videos are creative, well produced and entertaining.

Check out the channel at: www.youtube.com/tykerider or go to the website at: www.towerlightrecords.com

New Artist Coming to Towerlight

Posted on January 26, 2012 by Tyke

Towerlight Records is looking forward to the future. With a stable of artist already in it’s portfolio, they plan on adding great new talent very soon for the 2012 season.

Busta Browne - a fantastic gospel producer and songwriter is on the docket with his debut album.

Ken Brumfield - a talented and gifted jazz and gospel keyboardist who has already partnered with Towerlight with music video projects.

Sonji Hawkins- the sister of the creator of Towerlight Records and gospel keyboardist/songwriter, her debut album is in the beginning stages.

Chris Brownie- a unbelieveable gospel music producer, keyboardist and songwriter. Towerlight has an initial verbal agreement and looks to finalize a deal soon.

Also look for additional albums from music producer and creator of Towerlight, Ronald”Tyke”Oliver and music produced by him for trumpeter, Joshua Dalton,gospel rapper Lady C and guitarist Bret Huotari.

The future is super bright this year for the exciting label..Towerlight Records.