28-year-old Austin Mahone remains one of the most recognizable stars in pop culture. He has topped the charts for over a decade with more than 38 million followers combined across social media as well as over 5 million monthly listeners across all streaming platforms, and nearly five million YouTube subscribers.

Austin is a global multi-platinum recording artist. He has been recognized with accolades from the MTV Video Music Awards, iHeartRadio Music Awards, MTV European Music Awards, Radio Disney Music Awards, and more.  He has performed on Good Morning America, appeared on the Today Show, Live! With Kelly & Michael, Access Hollywood, E! News, Extra, The Insider, VH1, MTV; graced countless magazine covers across the world, including Teen Vogue, Wonderland, Essential Homme, GQ Italia, 1883 and YRB; as well as garnered high-profile print features in Details, Entertainment Weekly, USA Today, Texas Monthly, and the Wall Street Journal.

As a San Antonio, Texas native, Austin grew up listening to and loving country music as a fan of George Strait, Kenny Chesney, and Toby Keith just to name a few. He branched out in his teens, exploring other genres of music and was quickly influenced by Pop and R&B stars like T-Pain, Usher, and Lil Wayne. After gaining enormous popularity from posting videos on YouTube in the early 2010s, Mahone signed a record deal and toured with some of music’s biggest stars including Taylor Swift, Ed Sherran, Jason Derulo and many more.

Although his star rose in the Pop and R&B worlds, Mahone never forgot about his Country beginnings. He cultivated his roots with his latest album, A Lone Star Story, which is a captivating, authentic album that showcases his Texas heritage alongside a blend of Pop, R&B, and Rock inspirations. The 15-song passion project brings together Mahone’s life experiences, diverse influences, and innate musical sensibilities into a cohesive and authentic collection of work.

Today, Austin Mahone is based in Nashville, Tennessee, crafting his unique musical narrative. He continues to perform, write, and produce with some of Music City’s leading musicians. With the success of his recent single releases such as “Sundress”, “Withdrawal”, and “Kuntry”, the young and versatile artist is making a name for himself in the hot landscape of Pop/Country music.

Tale Of Us are Berlin-based musical partnership Karm and Matteo who are currently re-writing the rulebook for deeply moving, emotional electronic music.

Born and bred from the streets of New Orleans, Louisiana, enter into the game, 20-year-old August Alsina...

With the love and hustle of the Crescent City running through his veins, August is eager to follow in the footsteps of the NOLA music legends that paved his way. His recently inked deal Def Jam Recordings looks to be a great step in the right direction, but music wasn’t always in his future. 

August learned at an early age that drugs and money could make you, or break you. With both his father and stepfather battling crack addiction, August’s mother moved their family to Houston, Texas in search of a fresh start. But Houston provided no happy ending. For years a young August endured a home life plagued by drugs and violence. At just 14, he got word from New Orleans that is father, August Sr., lost his battle with drugs and alcohol. 

In an attempt to escape his reality, August took to Youtube, where he posted dozens of homemade performance videos. His clips covering Musiq Soulchild, Lyfe Jennings and others went viral, generating millions of views in just over a month. It seemed that he was finally taking his first steps toward a bright future in music, but just a year later, reality hit home when his best friend was shot and killed in the streets of Houston. As quickly as August appeared, he vanished form Youtube, back to the real world. With tensions mounting at home, 16-year-old August was kicked out. Alone, he returned to New Orleans and took to the streets, selling drugs as a means of survival. 

With his older brother also in the streets hustling, it wouldn’t be long before August learned that the addiction to money could be as deadly as the addiction to drugs. Just days before August’s 18th birthday, his older brother was gunned down in New Orleans East, another unsolved murder in one of the nations most dangerous cities. “I never expected them [the police] to find his killer”, August explains. “People die everyday in the streets of New Orleans. Unfortunately, death has become a way of life,” but not for August. His brother’s death became his motivation to not become a statistic, but to pursue his musical aspirations on an entirely new level.

Under the guidance of Noontime Unlimited (management and production company), August relocated to Atlanta in 2011 to begin carving his own musical path with his life experiences at the center of his artistry. He recently teamed up with Hoodrich/MMG’s own DJ Scream for the release of his debut mixtape, ‘The Product’, which spawned the internet and radio buzzing anti-love single, “Sucka” which features fellow New Orleans crooner Lloyd. 

Yet to reach 21 years old, with already a lifetime of experiences behind him, August is living proof that your past doesn’t have to dictate your future, and that life’s hardships can be the motivation required for success. With Grammy Award winning singer/songwriter The Dream prepping August’s debut project for release through his Radio Killa/Def Jam imprint, the path to success has been laid. Look for August to make 2013 his official coming out party.


Bensykess is following