In NYC, the fall weather has been harvesting creativity for producer Matty Amendola, who is transitioning out of a busy summer, and into an even busier September. In the last month, it seemed Matty was in the studio 24/7, consumed with several artists he's been working with, from independent, new artists to established big names. Matty recently developed and produced a song for a 17-year-old Venezuelan singer, who's debut single is slated to drop early 2013. On the other side of the spectrum, Matty was recently producing a session for another new project with some notable artists, as he posted photos of being in the studio with producer/musician, Mark Hudson (Aerosmith/Ringo Starr/Ozzy Osbourne). Jody Porter, from the band Fountains Of Wayne, has also been tweeting about being in the studio with Matty Amendola for his new solo material. With vast array of projects going on at the 825 Records' studio, be sure to stay tuned!
Amendola, who is known to be social media savvy, has recently joined Instagram, and quickly learned how to utilize the social network to make new fans, while having fun, posting his iPhone photos. "I love photography, so I do enjoy sharing pictures through a platform where people are interested in seeing them; but my main question was, how can I use this opportunity to reach a younger audience, without bombarding them with promotional material?"
Photo by Tim Shahady
Matty's efforts were successful; by coining the hash-tag '#BestAfroOnInstagram,' Matty's photo reached close to 1,000 likes in under an hour, in addition to several thousand more reactions through re-posts, Twitter shares, and a spike in "likes" on his Facebook fan page. "I knew it was corny and I wasn't taking myself very seriously, but there's nothing wrong with that sometimes; and it worked. People agreed that it was the best afro on Instagram and genuinely wanted to know who I was. It helped me to connect with a new network of people on a more personal level. It was only a matter of days before people told me they went straight to iTunes and downloaded some of my previous work."
Aside from his '#BestAfroOnInstagram' campaign (stay tuned for more to come by following @mattyamendola), Matty has additionally utilized Instagram to post photos of the artists he's working with in the 825 studio, as well as new gear and tricks to getting some of his signature, production sounds.
To the Masses...
825 artist Jay Shepard, who's debut solo album, Harsh Mistress, dropped in July, will be returning to NYC, in full force and fury, on October 2nd, @ Rockwood Music Hall. Jay, who has recently been building quite a buzz for his debut, is currently featured on newsstands, with an eight-star review in this month's Music Connection magazine, and a full page feature in Brazil's leading entertainment magazine, "Speak Up"; he has also been receiving a great amount of support from other indie blogs and online magazines. (Check out this feature here from Rising Magazine)
Staying true to his promise that he would do something special when his Facebook page hit the 2000 like mark, Jay traveled back to his hometown in South Carolina, to perform a surprise show last week.
Whether you've yet to see Jay and his live band perform, or have seen them and know what an incredible show it is, we hope to see you at 10pm, on October 2nd, for a free show (donations appreciated and CD's on sale for $7), at the legendary, Rockwood Music Hall, in NYC.
