Fifteen Minutes of Fame: An Independent Artist Music Review Blog

Originally Published on June 8th, 2025 Spotlights This publication will feature music released by artists on the date of June 6th.  Sleep Station  by  Zeynep Sophia ,  Makeup: After Midnight  by  Rockstar & Elise ,  Hypnotized  by  Isey , and  Maze in my Mind  by  Georgie Najar .  Sleep Station by Zeynep Sophia About the Artist Zeynep Sophia  didn’t actually submit for the June Campaign. She first submit for a review by Fifteen Minutes of Fame in September and I have been following her music since then. Sophia, out of Lancashire, is a pianist and her instrumental releases are often very ambient, imaginative, and create an entire plane of sound, in spite only incorporating the playing of one instrument.  Zeynep Sophia has had many releases in the last year. Dating back to April of 2024, she first released the single  Chambers  and would subsequently release 1-2 songs per month until September when sh...

Originally Published on June 8th, 2025 About the Artist I remember the first time in heard  Amity . He had just released his single  Bite Me!  and I remember just being down away by the vocal performance he turned in. I remember the song not sounding like I expected it to, given the title. The smooth, silky, and soulful R&B sound just settling over the keys and percussion. I remember being pulled from the melody to lyrical passages like, “And where do devils and damn gods begin? Where do you draw the line?” then being pulled back to a melodical line that forced me to stop analyzing and just listen. I was instantly hooked. Amity debuted at just 15 years of age. In just a short time, he had been featured in The Guardian, he has won an RBE music excellence award and he has been deemed a Royal Albert Hall’s Future Maker Artist. He has been featured in ASBO magazine as “one to watch,” and he has been a resident artist at London Soho’s Spice of Life. Bite Me! is Amity’s deb...

Originally Published on June 2nd, 2025 About the Artist “Trying to create something that feels good all around.” -  Jed Harrelson , via his Spotify Bio. Most of the time, when I review a new artist, I have recently heard about their music via a submission. Sometimes, I happen across their music through social media.  That is what happened a few months ago, while scrolling on TikTok. I came across a  video  where a guy, wearing a camo tee shirt was dancing in a field, holding an instrument and singing into a mic that were not plugged into an amp (this was done on purpose, intentionally noticeable), and he was singing and dancing to a song that did not match his image or voice.  As I continued to listen, the song got more and more impressive. Before I knew it, I was running over to Spotify to listen to  Bad Habits .  Harrelson, currently calling Nashville home, is a blues rock musician who has a soulful connection to the rhythmic and lyrical style of his...

Originally Published on June 1st, 2025 As I write this article, it has not escaped me that the next recap article I write will be on the anniversary of when I started Fifteen Minutes of Fame. I cannot believe it. I want to do something special next month to commemorate the anniversary. But, before we get there, we have to talk about what an great month May was! What Happened in May? May was an incredibly productive month for Fifteen Minutes of Fame as we published new articles, new recaps, new blind reactions, and our first two spotlight articles! The Fifteen Minutes of website doubled its views from last month, as we are currently at more that, 2,100 views, and more than 50 likes and comments on the website! We have also crossed into the double-digits with subscribers! I am happy to say that my vinyl collection has grown as I went crazy on my first ever Bandcamp Friday. I want to know if you are going to be releasing a vinyl record. I would love to add it to my collection! Since start...

Originally Published on May 30th, 2025 Spotlights As this Spotlights feature is a new one, I am still figuring out how I want to do it. Here’s where I have landed so far: I think it would be cool to do a Spotlights article every Friday and it will feature releases from 3-4 artists on the day of the article.  I know I like to present myself in a way that makes it look like Fifteen Minutes of Fame are more organized than we are. Admittedly, sometimes it is just a process of throwing spaghetti on a wall to see if it sticks. I do think this is the best way to feature spotlight articles every week. These features can be of new artists who haven’t been covered, or they might feature recaps of artists who have been covered, but I like the idea of publishing with the excited energy of the new release.  Take, for instance, today. TAKEOVER by Uta K About the Artist If I am being honest, October may have the biggest month for Fifteen Minutes of Fame, to date. It was the biggest month for...

Originally Published on May 23rd, 2025 About the Artist Who doesn’t love a story of redemption? Fighting for independence? Taking back what is rightfully ours? I love those stories. As independent artists, sometimes we tend to turn a blind eye to the surgeon general warning label that comes with signing to a record label. We ignore the warning signs that are before us when working in the industry. We let ourselves get distracted by the chance to hear our song on the radio, or stand on a stage and perform in front of an audience that are screaming our lyrics back to us. I’ve had that dream. I’m sure most of us have.  The truth is the music industry can turn those dreams into a nightmare really fast. Nothing can be more overwhelming than a dispute over the rights to music. The music industry controls the narrative in today’s mainstream music . There isn’t a talent big enough to change that. Yet. Even  Taylor Swift  famously found herself in a battle over the rights to her m...

Originally Published on May 23rd About the Artist One of the best resources a musician has is their dreams. They are an experience that can only be interpreted by the person that has them. We can ultimately say the same thing about perspective, but to a degree, that may reference a more shared or relative experience, like a break up or the loss of a parent or friend. Dreams are amplifications our perspective; doorways into our subconscious. As writers, the ability to accurately translate a dream can have profound, meaningful results. Chris Groom , aka  cfgkeys  had a dream. A dream about his father. He found the words and the melody to articulate it. Groom, a UK independent recording artist, approaches songwriting where he is in that moment. Per Groom, “I don’t stick to one style or genre. Sometimes it’s rough around the edges, sometimes it’s more polished, but it’s always honest.” (Bandcamp bio) As I understand how he explains his songwriting process, I imagine it to be a ver...