Future big star alert: The 10 Jersey musicians you need to know
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We think 2022 is going to be a very big year for Jersey musicians.
There is a new generation of state talent who seem to be on the cusp of doing big things. Specifically, there's a lot of female talent in the state, including Lady London, Coi Leray, Sahara Moon, Ryver Bey and Miss Meme, who are ripe for stardom.
Of course the Garden State has a track record of greatness: Frank Sinatra, Count Basie, Whitney Houston and Bruce Springsteen have all come from Jersey towns. In recent years, add Charlie Puth of Rumson, Fetty Wap of Paterson, Halsey of Warren County and SZA of Maplewood to the list of homegrown Jersey talent.
Sometimes, though, it takes a little searching to find up-and-coming musicians, singers and performers. We can help. Here’s our list of 10 Jersey artists you need to know, in alphabetical order:
Ryver Bey, Asbury Park
We're Ryver Bey fans. We previously voted her single “Lesson Plan (Get to the Bag)” as one of the best New Jersey indie songs of 2021. Why is she one of the Jersey artists you need to know?
She's 8 years old and her videos are racking up more than quarter of a million views each. She's also one of the biggest lights representing hip-hop on Jersey Shore stages.
Upcoming are three new songs by April, a big birthday bash in March with her fellow classmates from the Lakehouse Music Academy of Asbury Park, and two more flavors for her “Luxury Lemonade” line, available in the delis and bodegas of Asbury Park and Neptune.
Info: instagram.com/ryverbey
Halogens, Asbury Park
Who's being weird?
Thankfully the Halogens of Asbury Park are. They have little compunction about letting their idiosyncrasies fly. The group's debut album “You're Being Weird” finds the sweet spot between Weezer and Joe Walsh, with a nice dollop of the Front Bottoms to set things off.
Listen and it'll trigger the right kind of chemical reaction.
A record release show on Jan. 7 at the House of Independents in Asbury Park was postponed due to the recent COVID-19 surge. But the band will be there on March 12. Latewaves, A Boy Named John, and Sentient Moss also will be performing.
Info: linktr.ee/halogensNJ
The Haunting, Asbury Park
Did you ever wish the Asbury Park rock scene was a bit more dangerous?
Enter the Haunting, formerly Ghosthaus and, before that, the Shoobies. These guys have gone over to the dark side and we're loving it. Recent tracks lean toward a Goth meets shoegaze vibe with guitars awash in reverb and black, the must-wear color.
Remembering: Meat Loaf's colorful NJ connections: Balloon Fest, E Street, Bon Jovi, more
More: The 13 best New Jersey indie songs of 2021, and what's coming in 2022
The ambiance is “centered around frontman Casey Marley's obsession with all things spooky," said a spokesperson for the group, which includes Brandon “Beef” Page, Brandon Cruz, Steve Whitt and Brittany Byrne. "The boys have shrouded their art, both sonically and visually, in enigma, while maintaining an 'indie pop' vibe.”
Upcoming is live-stream event for the new full-length “Ghostape2” on Feb. 12, a record release show on March 19 at the House of Independents in Asbury Park, more music and a monthly digital horror magazine filled with behind-the-scenes content, upcoming art and "random propaganda.”
Info: retrohorror.net
Kuf Knotz & Christine Elise, Bryn Mawr, Pa., and Neptune
Now for something different.
Kuf Knotz of Bryn Mawr, Pa., and Christine Elise of Neptune are stirring up area stages with a merging of hip-hop and soul with classical and New Age music. You can tell something different is coming up when you see Elise on stage with her harp. She also sings the hooks while Knotz lays down the rhymes.
“Give thanks to the sun spirits, we need them,” raps Knotz on their “Spirit Walk.”
So far, they've opened for Wyclef Jean, Yellowman, Slick Rick, G. Love and more. Upcoming are performances at the Feb. 5 What a Wonderful Year show at the Wonder Bar in Asbury Park, March 5 at the Trinity Church Concert Series in Asbury Park, April 30 at the New Jersey Folk Festival in New Brunswick, and May 21 at the Jawnaroo Festival in Mullica Hill.
A new album, “Hypnagogia,” is due this summer.
Info: kufknotz.com
Coi Leray, Hackensack
The party will go on for Coi Leray in 2022.
Leray's 2021 single “No More Parties” with Lil Durk went platinum and was viewed more than 75 million times on YouTube. Follow up tracks “Big Purr (Prrdd)” and “Twinnem” also scored big. Now get ready for her debut album.
“As I get older and as I progress and get better as an artist, I see myself getting deeper into my music with my emotions,” said Leray in a statement. “There's twerking music, pain music, some R&B and some trap. I just want to give them something that is to my full potential. I want to take them to a place that they've never been before. It's now or never, and the time is now.”
Leray is the whole package as she writes, dances, melodies and is big on social media. Oh, there's family drama, too. Dad is rapper Raymond “Benzino” Scott of The Source fame. He says he's still the biggest rapper in the family.
Not for long, dad.
Info: coileray.com
Lady London, East Orange
London is calling — Lady London, that is.
The buzz is very high for London, aka Zaire Stewart. She's just dropped “Lady Like: The Boss Tape,” which collects 13 of her noted freestyles, and the video for her single, “Lisa’s Story,” featuring Dub Aura, is blowing up on YouTube after it's release last week.
Fans are digging London's old-school flow and cinematic delivery.
“This isn’t talent, it’s a gift,” commented one fan on YouTube. “She didn’t learn to do this, she was born to do this. There’s a difference.”
An official single for 2022 will be released “sooner than people may think,” her rep said, and there's also something else big brewing, too.
“I'm not one-dimensional,” said London in a statement. “I really take my craft seriously. I consider rap to be an art form — not a trend.”
Info: bossladylonson.com
Miss Meme, Franklinville
The rhymes, chimes and verbal parries come fast and furiously from Miss Meme, aka Jeriel Anderson. The Suburban Baddie has built up quite a resume to this point, opening shows for PNB Rock, Jadakiss, King Von, Trina, and Stunna 4 Vegas, and she released a single with Jadakiss, “5 Days,” in 2016.
Last year, Meme released her debut album, “True Life of a Lit (Blank),” and more is on the way in 2022.
“I’m currently finishing up a joint project that I’m really excited about,” said Meme via email. “No release date yet but it’s a vibe and I can’t wait to share it. In the meantime I’ve been putting out singles and features ... I'm appreciative of every opportunity I get.”
Her latest is the very ribald single, “Photoshop.”
Info: linktr.ee/Iammissmeme
Sahara Moon, Little Egg Harbor
Sahara Moon is rising in the South Jersey music scene and beyond, too. She's also rising in Nashville. Moon, a singer-songwriter who plays jazzy ballads and contemplative folk, is picking up her share of shows in Music City as of late.
She is hitting the festival circuit in a big way with sets at the Mayday Music Festival in Yaphank, N.Y., on May 14, and the Let’s Go Music Festival in Annapolis, Md., on June 4.
Closer to home, Moon opens for Josh Rouse on June 23 at the Long Beach Island Art Foundation, and on Aug. 22 she's at the Stafford Historical Society's Summer Concert Series at Manahawkin Lake Park.
Like what you hear? Support her on Patreon via www.patreon.com/saharamoonmusic.
Info: saharamoonmusic.com
Not Leaving Sober, Asbury Park
Let's have a toast for Not Leaving Sober — it looks like 2022 is going to be a big year for the Asbury Park country rock band.
In 2021, the guys had more than 200,000 streams on Spotify, played the big Barefoot Country Music Fest in Wildwood, and ended the year with a seasonal hit, “Leave Santa a Beer.”
No milk and cookies here.
Upcoming this year is a new single, “On the Rocks,” on March 11, and slots at the Barefoot Country Music Fest and the new Tidalwave Music Festival in Atlantic City this August. If you like your country music delivered with an edgy smirk, you've found your new drinking buddies.
Info: facebook.com/NotLeavingSober
Space Panther, Red Bank
As far as band pedigrees, it's hard to beat Space Panther.
Members of the new Jersey Shore-based glam band have been in Monster Magnet, the Dictators, the New York Dolls reboot and more. That's Keith Roth, Bob Pantella and Bobby Kennedy, and they got their platform boots strapped on — and they're ready to blast off.
Early singes from their debut album, the topically named “Glamdemic,” have been played on Little Steven's Underground Garage, WRAT, 90.5 The Night and more. They're digging the claps, hooks, crunchy chords and free-spirited abandon that's ready to have a good time.
“Glamdemic” is due out Feb. 25 on Red Bank's Main Man Records.
Info: mainmanrecords.com
Subscribe to app.com for the latest on the New Jersey music scene. Chris Jordan, a Jersey Shore native, covers entertainment and features for the USA Today Network New Jersey. Contact him at @chrisfhjordan; cjordan@app.com.
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: New Jersey musicians you need to know
