To sit with stillness – however uncomfortable it may be, with all possible emotions coming up – is a necessary part of being a human being, and even more necessary to be creative. Quarantine has been a forced opportunity to explore that stillness.

Sasha Smith is a self-made artist born in San Sebastián in the Basque Country in Northern Spain. Smith was brought up speaking English at home, Spanish while playing in the street, and Basque at school. “I’m a mix of all these different cultures that come from my family and where I’ve lived,” says Smith. “I have family spread out across the globe, from Australia to Argentina.” After receiving his first electric guitar at the age of 13, Smith was hooked. He fell into the craft of songwriting and felt deeply inspired by legends like John Frusciante.

“Holding On” follows the November 2020 release of “POWER” – Andreas Moe’s interpretation of the Kanye West hit – and provides listeners with a taste of what is to come on his 2021 EP. As a five-time Platinum-certified songwriter, Moe has worked with artists around the world such as Avicii, John De Sohn, Tiesto, Cheat Codes, Omi & Sabrina Carpenter. Having opened for artists like Gabrielle Aplin, Kodaline and for John Mayer during The Search For Everything Tour performing at the famed O2 Arena in London and the Stockholm Globe Arena, Moe is an experienced performer – garnering millions of fans worldwide. In December 2019, Andreas Moe was invited to perform at the Avicii tribute concert in Stockholm alongside international stars including Rita Ora, David Guetta & Kygo in front of a 60,000 strong audience.

Alternative indie duo Moon Rise City have released their empowering new single “Crawling Slowly” on January 8. The song was written to provide solace to those going through a difficult time and provide them with the courage to find what’s best for them. “It’s about hearing your inner truth, the pull between following your head or your heart, right and wrong, fight or flight,” says Moon Rise City. The song touches on a toxic relationship and how a person can feel entranced by the ups and downs. “Behind your darkness, I’m in heaven,” member Lauren Tracy sings with a sultry, alluring voice. “Crawling slowly, but somehow I’m falling down.”

Retro-pop singer-songwriter Micah Edwards has released his sweet and festive holiday single “December 26”. Premiering on pop-culture tastemaker Parade as one of “The 35 Best New-ish Christmas Songs You Need To Add To Your Playlist This Year”, Micah Edwards is ranked among top Christmas classics by artists like Dolly Parton, Katy Perry, Liam Payne, Chicago, Taylor Swift, Jonas Brothers, Carrie Underwood, and several others.

I picked up a free newspaper called The New Agora with an article about stepping into this new form of masculinity and fatherhood with a quote from Goethe that hit me in the gut…” There are only two lasting bequests we can hope to give our children, one of these is roots, the other, wings.”