Now that Ray BLK has been hyped sufficiently as the winner of this year’s BBC Sound Poll, it makes sense to search in her immediate vicinity for the NEXT next big thing.
Next week BLK headlines Annie Mac’s first AMP Collected night of the year, at which the Radio 1 DJ and premier tastemaker brings her favourite current acts to the Jazz Cafe in Camden.
She’ll be joined by Alma, who is far better than her status as 2013’s fifth place Finnish Idol, er, finisher, would suggest. Now 21, Alma-Sofia Miettinen has managed over nine million YouTube views and a platinum hit in Germany as the powerhouse voice of DJ Felix Jaehn’s dance pop single, Bonfire. She sounds even better on her own singles, Karma, Dye My Hair and the imminent Chasing Highs, which unite the sunny house sound of the moment with her tough vocals for something with more of an edge than most of the current pop hits.
In the popular video for Dye My Hair, with its chorus, “I would dye my hair blonde for you,” she looks like she’d do nothing of the sort. Ignore the comment box rabble arguing over the significance of her unvarnished appearance, and concentrate on some brilliant tunes.
Annie Mac Presents, March 23, Jazz Cafe, NW1 (0844 847 2514, thejazzcafelondon.com); May 16, Oslo, E8 (020 3553 4831, oslohackney.com)