Voices to Hear

Over at TopBlogMag I write a weekly column (when I don't miss a week like I did last week, but truthfully I'm pretty good at hitting my deadlines) about musical acts that I think need a wider exposure. People that I don't think enough people have listened to. A lot of the names I've written about will be familiar to anyone that reads this blog for any length of time. They're a lot of the same names that I talk about here (including this Month's featured Artist). It's just my way of trying to get people to hear some voices that deserve to be heard. In today's media driven hit single video world it can hard for some talents to get the recognition they need, all the big bucks are tired up in the big names and very little trickles down to help the lesser known. I'm not slamming the big names, I'm as a big fan of people like Bruce Springsteen and Wilco and Faith Hill, as anyone. There is nothing wrong with being a big name. There's a local zine published locally that spotlights the up and coming, but it does so at the expense of the bigger names. They treat anyone that has made it like they're a sellout or terrible. That's not what I think. I'm glad to see true talent make it. I hold a backseat in my admiration and like to no one for Bruce Springsteen, so that's not what this is about at all. In fact I can't read this zine any longer, I just get tired of the cheap shots. I want to highlight the positive in this column. Write about people that I think you will enjoy. So far I have written about:
1. Will Hoge
2. Shannon McNally
3. Theresa Anderson
4. Amanda Shaw
5. Maggie Brown
6. Aljendano Escovedo
7. Susan Cowsill
8. Patty Griffin
9. Lily Holbrook
10. Mary Wiess
11. Marah
12. Buddy Miller
13. Ani Difranco
14. Blind Boys of Alabama
15. Kelly Willis
16. Lori McKenna
17. Alex Ray Joel
18. Carrie Rodriquez

Check out some of these names, I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. And check out my newest column this Monday and see who I'll be talking about than.