‘Eén brok energie op het podium.’ De jury van de Grote Prijs van Nederland was tijdens de finale overtuigd van de muzikale kwaliteiten van Annika. Anneke van Giersbergen zei bij de jurybeoordeling: “Annika is een vrouw die haar mannetje staat”.Dat muziek maken is wat zangeres Annika Boxhoorn wil doen mag duidelijk zijn.
De afgelopen jaren maakte zij deel uit van La Grace (met o.a. Kit Carrera van The Deaf en Youri de Bruijn van de Supra Naturals), Sodimitriop’s Hiphopkloon, The Devil’s Blood (als backingvocalist) en van een aantal experimentele electronica acts, waaronder een met drummer Jornt-Jan Bras (Boom Boom de Terre, La Boutique Fantastique).
De zangeres tourde deze zomer on haar eentje langs de westkust van Amerika en Canada. Dit resulteerde tot een berg nieuw materiaal. Die liedjes zal zij de komende tijd met alleen een gitaar en haar stem als wapen ten gehore gaan brengen. In het najaar staat er onder meer het Popera project van Jules Deelder op het program. Ook kun je haar stem horen op de nog uit de komen single van rapper Raymzter.
Tessa Nikopoulos
It might look pure, it might seem challenging, it might sound raw, she might act stubborn, it could be sweet, but it is nothing more than her soul that cries out from her toes. Tessa’s original songs shift in-between pop, rock and folk in which she sings about theme’s that are important in her life. What can vary from “heavy brokenhearted” songs to “fight for women-rights” songs. “As long as it means something to her, it’s worth writing about.”
Is Tessa Nikopoulos a newcomer in the “world of music”? No, not really. A music degree at Codarts in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Being a co-founder of a still existing songwriters collective in Rotterdam ‘Nultien’. Booking artists for organizations like the ‘Eurogames’. Playing in bars, music stages and on festivals like ‘Motel Mozaique’, in The Netherlands and Belgium, solo or with a band. It kept her busy, but was not enough for Tessa. Her craving for adventure and independence was stronger than the pressure of staying in a network of musicians that she’d been working on for the past 7 years. It brought her to North-America with only her guitar and her songs. And she is ready for new challenges, audiences and experiences.
Delouise
Delouise is een nieuw project rond singer/songwriter Wies.Wies heeft al een album uitgebracht (Delivery in a Fortnight) onder de naam ‘Wies’ waarmee ze door heel Nederland heeft getourd en als support heeft gediend bij artiesten als Beth Hart, Kane en Direct. Door het eerste succes wordt er met smart gewacht op het komende album van haar tweede project ‘Delouise’.
Will Knox
Will Knox is an alt-folk songwriter from Hammersmith, London UK. At 18, Knox moved to Boston USA to pursue his music career, and has since landed support slots for the likes of Art Garfunkel, Sami Yusuf, Andy Grammer, Brendan James, Matt White, Pete Francis (of Dispatch), and Tyrone Wells. Since moving to New York shortly after, Knox derived inspiration from the city that never sleeps for his debut album The Matador and the Acrobat, voted one of Shred News’ “Top Ten Albums of 2009”. The city had a major effect on his writing style: Armed only with a pen and notebook, he’d ride the subway for hours, observing this new, rich, frenetic underground world—or as one Matador track describes it, the “Belly of the Beast.” The resulting visionary melodies, hooks, and intricate arrangements create a stunning world where the songs hold optimism amongst a backdrop of shadows and darkness, as echoed by the stunning album-artwork of Bruce Holwerda.
In 2011 he used inspiration from New York’s long forgotten asylum on Blackwell’s Island (now Roosevelt Island) to set the scene for his Comic Book & 5 track EP, Lexicon. This unique concept combined Knox’s lyrics with the comic-book artwork of Robin Ha, and a Download Code on the inside cover to retrieve the songs. No CD’s, no records, just a comic book & a download code. The EP has recently been released as a free iPad & iPhone App. Will has since been busy writing for a new album, as well as co-writing for a number of diverse projects. Most recently Knox penned the lyrics to Sami Yusuf’s single ‘Forgotten Promises’, a collaboration with the World Food Programme aimed at raising money to help WFP sustain and scale-up its humanitarian operations in the Horn of Africa.