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Lazie Indie MagazineEdition -25May 2022Marianna GevorgyanBrother & SisterBernadett NyariSouthern OutlawsAmy McAllisterRoc FlowersYesterday's FateMishko M'baTai PhongDavid HelplingHarrell DavenportCCC &Lazie Indie MagazineOn CoverLYIA META

ContentEditor's CornerFeatured ArtistsSouthern OutlawsMarianna GevorgyanAmy McAllisterTai PhongBernadett NyariBrother & SisterMishko M'BaRoc FlowersYesterdays's FateDavid HelplingAnn Aria article onCanadian Content Corner &Lazie Indie MagazineLIM MerchandiseOn CoverLyia MetaLIM Page5

Editors CornerInformationThe magazine ispublished byLazie JPrint Edition 25The month ofpublishingMay - 2022Editorial TeamEditor: Jay PillaiCoordination andpromotion: ManojVerified by:Inge ZimmermannProbstColumns:Tomiko Dixon,Galaxy FM,Kathryn ShipleyAnn AriaEmma GoldbergSanthosh ChandranCover Photo:Lyia MetaCover PhotoCourtesy:Khahin MA lot more in the coming monthsLazie Indie Magazine is moving into its 3rd year existence.What started as a small souvenir for fellow indie musicianfriends has now become a well respected magazine read bymusic enthusiasts in nearly 100 countries. We have kept thefundamentals simple and that has helped the magazine togrow fast. Now we are looking at the next level of actions. Wedo have a lot of plans and in the coming months we lookforward to establishing that. There is a lot in store for indieartists and you will get to know that soon. This edition weintroduce one more Contributing Columnist, SanthoshChandran. Santhosh will interview top musicians who haveestablished themselves at the highest level and we call thecolumn Maestro Speaks... hope you will like this. This editionwe have a very electrical mix of artists coming from Armenia,Hungary, Italy, USA, Canada, France, New Zealand and manymore... and they cut across genre, instruments andgeography. This is exactly the route Lazie Indie was plannedto take and we are glad it is growing as we wanted it to be. Inthe coming months you can see a lot more announcementsfrom our side and that will be in more areas of music supportand above the magazine. We sincerely hope we can grow inthose areas too as it will be very useful for fellow Indie artistslike us. Hope you have a great time reading the Magazine. AsI always request, please share the magazine to you friendsand fellow musicians so that the stories of these great artistsreach more and more people tomorrow your interview mayalso get to more people and that is how Indie Musicians canhelp each other.Thank you, Jay PillaiLIM Page6

A year and half before we interviewed this fabulous artist from Malaysia promisingto come back with her story later as there was so much more to ask her. Well muchwater has flown and a lot more to be asked about her journey. This time we decidedto feature her again as her story is truly inspirational being someone from far east ofthe world pushing her boundaries across the world especially in USA and gettingherself recognized and awarded many times.Lyia Meta is an international multiaward-winning singer and songwriter and an exhibited visual artist. She's a full timelive performer in the Kuala Lumpur music circuit, holding residencies all over thePeninsula of Malaysia. She has been twice balloted in the Grammys and has touredacross the world with her music. She finds her greatest influences in rock and blues,yet she fearlessly defies genre barriers in every project she creates.Jay from LazieIndie Magazine speaks to this fabulous artist on her career.....LIM Page8

Jay: Hi Lyia! It’s been a year and halfsince we have spoken to each other. Whatis new at your side?Lyia(Meta): A year and a half… Wow!Time has flown by while I was focused onso many aspects of my life! Needless tosay, the pandemic took front and centrestage, however that did not deter me frommy musical and art pursuits because mycreative side was in full swing! During thefirst two years of the pandemic I recordedtwo singles (WE ARE LORDS and THISAIN'T THE WAY) and one EP (“15013”)and just recently released another EP(YOU THINK ABOUT ME), in January of2022.Jay: How is your new release shaping up?Tell us more about the release and itsreception so far.Lyia: I think it's doing amazingly well! Ithas gotten good reviews and airplayacross the globe. Written by BobMcGilpin and myself, the EP, YOUTHINK ABOUT ME, was recorded inNashville and Malaysia with McGilpinhelming the project as producer. Ascoproducer, I worked through time zonesto bring it all home. And voilà! We madesomething we're both proud of. Fusingthe elements of R&B, Soul and Funk, wedidn't strive for perfection but insteadwanted something raw and elementalwith beauty found in its rough edges. Thevideo for the third track off the EP hasalready garnered some nominations atsome Indie Film Festivals.Jay: Coming out of Malaysia and reachingout to the world, especially the USA,should have been a task for you. How didyou build your base in western rock musicscene coming from an Asian country?Lyia: I always gravitated toward myinfluences and most of them were theclassic rock artists from the 60s and 70s.It was a task finding my footing, but thelisteners in the USA, UK and Europe havebeen extremely supportive of my work. Iam a multi-genre artist who grew uplistening to the likes of Hendrix, Cream,Joplin, Muddy Waters, The Who, Blood,Sweat and Tears, The Beatles, The Stones,Led Zeppelin and many more innovativeLIM Page9

"Music and art are distinct parts of who I am. I cannot imagine living without either. Iguess time management is something I do well as I make sure I have the time to doeverything and more!"and classic acts. I don't limit myself toany genre or style and listen and absorbeverything, including classical!Geographically and in my heart and soul,I’m literally ALL OVER THE MAP!Jay: You have been in the Grammys FYCand Ballot rounds and also won quite afew international awards. What do youconsider your best achievement so far?Lyia: I am always thankful for the awardsand nominations I've received over theyears. My best achievement has been myability to do what I love and keep doing it.I write songs, produce or coproducethem, paint, exhibit and I'm a full-timeperformer. Except for the two pandemicyears that kept us out of clubs, I havealways been busy performing. Having mysongs on the Grammy Award®? firstballot (FYC) has made me realize howmany talented musicians, producers andsongwriters there are out there. It's a veryhumbling experience. You realize you're apart of a whole. This year, songs from myEP “15013” were on that first ballot inthree categories. As an “indie artist”, it’san honor being included in thenomination process.Jay: You are a gifted visual artist as well.Two questions on this! How do you findtime to manage your artistic goals in bothmusic and visual arts? What has beenyour greatest achievement in the visualarts line?Lyia: Music and art are distinct parts ofwho I am. I cannot imagine living withouteither. I guess time management issomething I do well as I make sure I havethe time to do everything and more! I'vehad a few group visual art exhibits and asolo exhibit but currently I am more of acommission artist. My art pieces havegraced the covers of two published books,been exhibited in Orlando, Hong Kong,LIM Page11

Taipei, and Malaysia, and foundhomes locally and in Europe, the UnitedKingdom and the United States. Mostfulfilling is intertwining my art with mymusic, which to a certain extent I’veachieved with my award-winning musicvideos, website and other mediumsincluding promotion efforts.Jay: Being a successful woman in musicand visual art, your story can inspireothers to follow your path. What has beenyour experience and what would be youradvice to fellow artists? What values arevital for success in the long run?Lyia: I do hope that I inspire others. Itwouldn't be a stretch to say that I've paidmy dues too many times over with manysetbacks and pitfalls being a graduate ofthe School of Hard Knocks! My advice toanyone who was interested or curiouswould be to work very hard at your craftand follow your own path. There are noshort cuts. Talent can only take you so far,hard work is your best friend anddiscipline is everything.Jay: Post COVID lockdowns, there hasbeen a surge of live music and venues areslowly getting back to normal. What isthat one lesson we all ought to learn fromthe lockdowns as artists?Lyia: We need to be fluid and agile,constantly adjusting to factors outside ofour control. Music has been around forcenturies. Although frightening, apandemic will not stop the music. Achanging of the guard may be at hand,but music is here to stay and, if we chooseto, so will we.Jay: What do you like to do most? Createart? Create music? Perform live? Andwhy?Lyia: I love it all! I am a fulltime liveperformer -- I don't think choosing one ispossible, at least not for me. With liveperformances, it's all about spontaneityand reacting to the vibes bouncing backfrom the crowd. There's no redoing, nosecond takes. It's exhilarating butexhausting and yet it's incrediblygratifying. This is often exported to mysongwriting and my art. They coexist andfeed each other. A beautiful riot ofemotions interweaving all my experiencesand thoughts. A very chaotic yet beautifulplace to be actually!Jay: Would you tell a LAZIE INDIEreader (many are fellow musicians) toexpect from LYIA META in the nearfuture? New releases? Tours?Lyia: The songwriter from my previousEP “15013”, Denise Dimin, and I will beworking on new material which we hopeto release in early 2023 at the latest! I'vealso been working for ages on a Metalalbum, one of my passion projects, withall songs written by me. This Metal albumwas to be a follow up from my award-winning single WE ARE LORDS, whichwas released in 2020 as a response to thepandemic. This has been the longest I'veever worked on a release and it's all alittle fluid at this point! But currentlyDenise and I are batting around ideas andI should be able to do both projectsconcurrently with anything else thatcomes my way, by way of collaborations,videos, visual art and appearancesworldwide. For some time now I've beendoing my regular residency shows at TheRoyal Lake Club and later this year I headto Texas to perform at THE TEXASSOUNDS INTERNATIONAL COUNTRYLIM Page13

MUSIC AWARDS then to South India for a music festival and finally to anotherCountry Music festival in Asia. I look forward to traveling again and performing infront of international audiences! I’ve had such an amazing global response fromcollaborators and those interested in finding out more about me and Malaysia thatI’ve unintentionally turned into a happy ambassador to expose others to our vibrantculture and my music and art! Ironically, this was an accidental benefit of thelockdown that allowed all of us to create new digital relationships that thendeveloped into “In Real Life” relationships! So, a success story of learning tomanage through unexpected obstacles!- Thank youPhoto credits: Khahin M and Natalie FongLIM Page15

Southern Outlaw is a 6-piece Southern Rock Band that writes some great originalsand also cover some Southern Rock tunes. Founder by Alis Walker, Bob" Furda,Dave Weilacher II, Mike Bright Jr, Tom Levak,William Putt form this SouthernRock band that has won the World Songwriting Awards- Summer 2021 an d theirsongs get airplay in radios across the world.Barbara and DJ Grant from Galaxy FMspeaks to Southern Outlaw to present them to Lazie Indie Magazine Readersthrough their column Around the Galaxy... Let us read.LIM Page17

Grant: Welcome to Lazie Indie Magazinegreat to speak to you. You have had a veryexciting career so far as a Country RockOutfit. How do you feel was your journey?SO (Southern Outlaws): We are veryexcited to have several of our songswinning awards but we really give creditto our family and fans for their supporton our journey.Barbara: Who/what were your musicalinfluences. Why Country Rock?SO: Our collective musical influences arebroad, but most of all it's Lynyrd Skynyrdand Blackberry Smoke.Barbara: How do you go about writingyour songs? How do you record andproduce your music?SO: We have four of the six memberswriting Dave Weilacher ii, William Putt,Bob Furda and Arlis Walker, and we as agroup bring in everyone's talent to polisheach song. Tune Town Studio's withAward Winning Producer Mike Talancarecording our music.Grant: What do you look to conveythrough your music? A Lyrical Theme ora musical experience? Which gets yourpriority most times even though both areabsolutely important.SO: We try to write music with lifeexperiences that our audience can relateto.Grant: Which is your latest release? Welearned that you had great reviews on thesame. Do let us know more about it.SO: We would like to cover our last tworeleases, one being an original and onebeing a remake of one of Lynard Skynardssongs. Our original song that wasrecorded and released is Country Roadsto Nowhere, was written by our keyboardplayer William Putt, at his request Arlissings it. It is starting to hit the charts atthis time. We also recorded and releaseda remake of Four Walls of Raiford, it isgetting a lot of airplays and climbing thecharts steadily. We did get permissionfrom Lynyrd Skynyrd to do this song, butwe sure didn't expect to get a responseafter the release. They contacted Arlis andsaid "They love our rendition of the song”and were happy to give us 100% rights toLIM Page18

the song. We would also like to mentionour song that is really getting all theattention at this time, "Good for the Soul"has been nominated for several awardsand won several awards.Grant: What do you like the most?Writing, producing or performing?SO: This is a really tough question to givea straightforward answer but if we have tochoose we would say Live Performance.At the live performance we actually get tosee our fans react and give their feedbackon a song that we all work really hard on.Of course we like to write, as a band wework together to make these songs fit"US" and it takes each and every memberto give their input and bring in theirtalent to make the song a whole.Barbara: What is your plan for theimmediate future say, 2022 as a band?SO: We are going to continue writingsongs so that we can finish our secondalbum, we have three songs recorded forit at this time. We are also planning ondoing a USA tour, starting out in Ohiowith some local shows then we will beheaded to Atlanta, Ga where we will beplaying the pre party for the 2022 ISSAAwards at the Wild Wing Cafe on Aug.5,2022, attending the Award ceremony onAugust 6,2022. With more shows acrossthe USA. We have some opportunitiescoming our way for a possibleinternational tour, that we all are lookingforward to.Grant: How did you tide over thepandemic and lockdowns as a band?SO: The growth of the band was bornduring the pandemic, and we used thetime to write and learn songs together.We also released our first album duringthe pandemic, Southbound Train. As amatter of fact, we performed 18 showslast year when most of the local bandsstill were not playing out. We played atevery opportunity given to us.Barbara: What is the best advice given toyou and what advice would you shareLIM Page19

with young upcoming artists?SO: Hard work and dedication can makeyour dreams come true. Never give up.Don't allow anything or anyone to stopyou from following your dreams, anythingis possible.About the columnistAround the Galaxy is a columncontributed by Galaxy FM 107, NewZealand, introducing artists from NewZealand and Australia. Galaxy FM is oneof the top radio stations in New Zealandand is quickly expanding its listener baseacross the world. The authors of thecolumn, Barbara Harkins and DJ Grantare well known radio hosts at Galaxy FMhosting the popular Breakfast Show. LIMthanks team Galaxy for their support.Website- www.galaxyfm.co.nzLIM Page20

She was 7 years old when she joined music school. She played in the Children'sPhilharmonic Orchestra since she was a child and has been very active in concertsince student years, playing her country's national instrument Kanoon. We arespeaking to the extremely talented and accomplished musician from Armenia, Thewinner of World Folk Music Awards, the beautifulMarianna Gevorgyan. Mariannais one of a kind musician and she has collaborated with the best in the world on thetraditional instruments and music styles.Jay from Lazie Indie Magazine speaks tothis fabulous artist playing a very traditional instrument depicting the country'sculture and taking it across the world and winning hearts of thousands of musiclovers in each outing. Let us learn more aboutMarianna...LIM Page22

Jay: You have had a fabulous career sofar. What do you feel about the journey sofar?Marianna: I am not a careerist at all, thecircumstances just turned out that way,that is, I had a lot of investment in myprofession and it paid off. I have investedmy whole life in my art. I do not like toannounce the results of the work doneand make shows, I like to move forward,if you do a good job with taste andprofessionalism, people will appreciateand love it and it will become lasting.Sometimes I am proud that being anArmenian, living in Armenia, I canpresent myself to the world and recordvictories, but that last only for moment. Ilove my profession and I do not use it fora career, because music has a lot ofpower, it must be used correctly. Icompare my profession with theprofession of doctors, that doctors treatthe body, musicians treat the soul. Iconsider very important the maturity ofthe musician, the great love in his work,the inexhaustible database of knowledgeand ideas, the aesthetic taste, the highhuman values, of course, the talent anddiligence.Jay: Who introduced you to music. Whendid you realize that music is your career?Marianna: I did not know that I was giventhis from above, everyone chooses theirprofession, but my profession chose me, Ithink this is the magic power of music,which pushes for perfection. When I wasin school, music for me was like math, itwas a total calculation of 1, 2, 3, 4. When Igrew up, I realized that music is adifferent world and with age it absorbedme more. I did not understand when I fellin love, because music has a magical andmagical power, so I fell in love. I practicedfor many hours and now I practice, I donot stop, my fingers always play. As aprofessional and accomplished musician,I can already say that music is likemedicine, good music heals the woundsof the soul. My destiny was to become aqanun player.Jay: How did you pick up this instrumentwho introduced you to Kanoon and whoLIM Page24

were your musical influences?Marianna: I was 7 years old when I wentto music school, I was lucky enough thatmy school teacher teaches at theconservatory as well, I got a very goodeducation since I was a child. I haveplayed in the Children's PhilharmonicOrchestra since I was a child. I have beenvery active in concert since my studentyears, I have always been in a leadingposition. I have played many concerts.When I first entered Yerevan KomitasState Conservatory, I was very young andcould not have imagined that in years tocome I would be a student and graduateof that music school. I have a bachelor'sdegree, a master's degree and apostgraduate degree with honors. Sincemy student years, I have been organizingconcerts, developing interesting programswith foreign musicians and performing. Ihave participated in a number ofinternational competitions-festivals, Ihave been awarded the title of first-classlaureate, gold medal, I have specialawards "Stage Charm" and "Ambassadorof Music". I was recently awarded the"Grand Prix" at the World Competition-Festival.Jay: You have won prestigious awardsand competitions the world over. Can youtell us a bit more about them?Marianna: My achievements are based onmy failures. I am always in a struggle andcompetition with myself. If it weren't forthose big waves of the storm, my musicwould remain unreachable andinaccessible. I have paved my way myself,with great difficulty, overcoming manyobstacles. I recently participated in aninternational competition in India, whereI won first prize and a special prize, the"Ambassador of Music", which made mevery happy, as I was the onlyrepresentative to receive a special prize inthat competition. I participated in theworld competition organized by the"World Folk Vision" Global CulturalLIM Page26

Initiative, I registered a glorious victory,winning the Grand Prix - "Grand Prix" inthe category of world music. Thiscompetition is second only to the OlympicGames in its scale, with 3950representatives from 115 countries,including honored and folk artists. Therewas a record vote, the winner was decidedby 50/50 voting and the jury. This is avery important achievement, because forthe first time in history, a victory wasregistered with the Armenian canoninstrument, performed by Sayat-Nova"Eshchemed".Jay: Being from Armenia, you were ableto collaborate with many artists worldover, we have seen your collaborationswith Indian artists. Does collaboratingwith artists help in your growth as amusician?Marianna: I love originality, in art youhave to be original in order not to beduplicated by any artist, if you are reallytalented. I have had many collaborationsin my musical life. I have been organizingconcerts with foreign students since I wasa student. It is very interesting becauseyou are a representative of one nation,and the other person represents anothernation. Each nation has its own cultureand the face of each nation is its ownculture. During the epidemic, when all theconcert halls were closed and peoplecould not attend concerts directly, Ithought of a project where musiciansfrom different countries of the world,with their national instruments, wouldplay any work of Armenian culture on theonline platform. Many musicians joinedmy project and it received a greatresponse, people approved it very much. Ialso included Indian singer-musicans inmy project because they were verytalented and I love Indian culture, whichis known all over the world for its ancientand centuries-old history. Amid Mishra,who played tabla, lived in India. I wasvery impressed by his mastery, and weplayed Armenian folk dance together. Itwas a wonderful collaboration, which wasapproved by thousands of people andreceived positive reviews. The Armeniansong "Mountain Girl" was sung by Indiansinger Baishali Sarkar who has a verysweet voice, it was also very popular. Ialso played an hour-long program at thefestival dedicated to the 95th anniversaryof Indian table player Pandit Chatur Lal.Of course, it is very nice to work withartists of different nations, everyeducated artist, no matter how much hetheoretically knows, learns, the culture ofnations, but by communicating personallyyou can get a better idea of the nationalelements, color, uniqueness, culture ofeach nation. Cooperation with differentnations is very important, but onenation's culture should never be confusedwith another, it should be recognized anddeveloped.Jay: What gives you the greatestsatisfaction? Collaborating with greatartists, composing music/researching inmusic OR playing live in front of a greatcrowd?Marianna: I need a week after eachconcert to recover, because I do not justplay the notes, I live my life on stage. It isvery important for me that myperformance will nest in the souls ofpeople, be remembered, stay, theaudience will take a part of me with them.LIM Page28

Wherever I play, it becomes the best, I donot like to divide the audience by place,gender, race, I like to make my musicaccessible to everyone. I have played indifferent places in old people's homes,orphanages, kindergartens, men's andwomen's penitentiaries, my audience isvery different. I am currently working inone of the best concert halls in Armenia,where I played for the first time when Iwas making my first steps in the field ofmusic at the age of 9-10. This concert hall- Komitas Chamber Music Hall I work asa soloist in the ancient music ensemble"Tagharan" of the National Centre ofChamber Music in Yerevan, headed bymaestro Yerkanyan, and for me it is not ajob, it is my lifestyle, my musical life.Jay: What is the best advice you have gotin music and what would you advice ayoung and upcoming musician?Marianna: I value everyone's opinions; Ilisten to everyone who has opinions andadvice about me and my art. I do not liketo give advice, but I will say that everyonemust love the job they do, every jobrequires a lot of love, diligence and a lotof knowledge, of course, kindness. Art islove. It is universal and does notrecognize language, religion or enmity. Igive love, kindness and peace to the worldwith my music…- Thank youPhoto Credits:Tigran ArakelyanNarek Qochunc,Robert AsatryanInterwiev translation:Roza GrigoryanLIM Page29

My next interview I personally feel has an extraordinary knack for bringing lightand hope, to many through her music and more importantly from her community/humanitarian efforts by giving to those in need. Singer/Songwriter/EntrepreneurAmy McAllister is thriving and has been on a path maybe she was not ready for attimes, but answered the “call”. I think if I had to pull from Scripture (Corinthians16:14) to define my interview with Amy, it would be very simple, “Let everything youdo be done in love” ...So let’s get comfortable and enjoy reading this article filledwith inspiration, from“Real Talk with KShip”.LIM Page31

KShip: Amy, it is such an honor to havethis time to chat with you about a fewthings, and wow its more than a few, yourmusic career, your business life and yournew business passions that actually havebeen years in the making and have nowcome full circle. It has really beenrefreshing to watch you thrive. Youalways call certain life moments, a “GodWink” can you tell me how all of thesedifferent “life layers” has helped you growas a person and professionally?Amy: Kathryn Shipley, my beautifulfriend in life and music, I am honoredand thank you for this golden opportunityto be interviewed by you and featured inthis edition of Lazie Indie Magazine. I amso blessed and grateful and yes, Iabsolutely live my life from “God Wink toGod Wink. For anyone who doesn’t yetknow what a God Wink is, my wish is tolet you in on one of the most magicalsecrets of the Universe. An intricate partof the Divine plan, that is so big wecannot even comprehend how blessed weare. A God Wink is a personal sign fromHeaven that is often identified ascoincidence, but is actually a message ofDivine significance. The more we notice,the more Heaven sends, and life becomesmore and more magical. I love that youmentioned my dreams have been years inthe making, because some of them havetaken decades of heart, soul, blood, sweatand tears to come to fruition. I havelearned that just when I think I know thedestination in which I am headed, and thetiming in which it will happen, God andmy angels surprise me with a muchgrander plan than I could ever imagine. Adream greater than my biggest dream,and it always arrives at the perfect time.What’s meant for me will never pass meby and I have learned to let go of whatisn’t. This is a huge part of the inspirationand mission behind the music on my newalbum ‘God Dreams For Me’ and the coreof The Diamond Discovery and DiamondSoul Healing Workshops and Seminarsthat will begin in August.KShip: When did you realize you wantedto do music, do you ever think this wouldLIM Page32

be a career path for you to be on? If not,what was your true passion growing up?Amy: I was born with my heart beating tothe sound of music and for as long as Ican remember I wanted to be just likeDolly. Not only as a singer-songwriterand performer, but as a person. I love herheart, drive and sass. Her philosophy forlife, the way she lives unapologeticallytrue to herself, and her own path andpurpose. Most of all I love her passion forphilanthropy, advocacy, and giving back.It may be on a much smaller scale, but Ifeel I have remained true to my childhooddream and passion of modeling my lifeafter Dolly, and many other beautifulpeople who inspire me to become moreevery single day.KShip: Back in 2018 you told me aboutyour Vision Board, and I needed to do one(yes, I did one!), can you tell me how thatVision Board looks today? And when didyou start it?Amy: Yay K-Ship! I am so proud of youfor making your vision board! I cannotwait to see all of your visions and dreamscontinue to come true for you, and wantto Congratulate you on your new album,‘If These Boots Could Talk’. My firstvision board came to life in 2016 when Iworked in radio and television. I am notexaggerating when I tell you that everyvision on that board came true for me. Ihave recently created a new board for mylatest and greatest heart wishes. A few ofthose include; make more epic memorieswith my family, give back and contributein more massive ways, launch TheDiamond Discovery and Diamond SoulHealing workshops and seminars, TimMcGraw to cut one or more of my songsand become a voting member of theRecording Academy/GRAMMYs.KShip: Friends and family are soimportant to you, let the readers knowwhat that looks like for Amy McAllister?Any other musical artists in the family?Amy: My friends and family areeverything to me and music is a huge partof many memories I share with them. Wego to all of the award shows together andevery concert possible. My daughters allhave a love for music, and I love it mostwhen they sing with me. My grandsonLiam has an original song he wrote andrecorded, and we flew to Florida lastDecember to watch him perform at TeenStock. Even though my husband Chadcannot carry a tune, he loves music too,and is becoming more a part of the musicbusiness with our new Diamonds In TheRough Publishing Company. Faith,Family, Friends, Music, and Giving Backis what life looks like for me, I absolutelylove it and couldn’t feel more blessed.KShip: In 2020, you won the“Humanitarian Award” at the 6th AnnualJosie Music Awards in Pigeon Forge,Tennessee. It was so refreshing to see youand your husband stand there in totalshock and humble to receive thisprestigious award. What a lot of peoplemay not know is, you have so manycauses, that you help with on the daily, inyour community and outside of it as well.I know something very important to youis Suicide Awareness, can you give us aglimpse on how this came to be, one ofthe biggest things you champion in yourlife?Amy: This is a moment we will forevercherish and hold close to our hearts. WeLIM Page33

still feel honored, humbled andoverwhelmed that the seemingly smallacts of kindness we’ve done could beworthy of such a prestigious award. Wecannot thank God, you and thePassantino-Boone family enough for thisexperience that made us feel called to stepup and give in bigger ways. Chad and Ihave naturally instilled in all of ourchildren the eyes to see those who are inneed of help and the hearts to give. Ourpersonal struggles and those of our lovedones have led us to support manydifferent causes. One of those isspreading awareness for SuicidePrevention and Mental Health. It is anepidemic and affects every one of us inone way or another. Our hope is that ourplatforms and programs will help thosewho suffer to see their worth, know thathard moments are fleeting, and be awareof the tools available to help them healtheir wounds and discover strength toconquer. Our hearts burst to see morepeople finding their reason to stay andbecoming a champion for themselves andothers.KShip: Speaking of your husband Chad,he has been the guy behind the scenesthat has stood by your side, helping onthe Humanitarian side, being there foryour music career and just being that allaround family man to support you, yourchildren and grandchildren? Some of uswatched how you walked through the ringof fire, at the conference Tony Robbinshad last year. I know you could write avery strong and passionate story aboutthis, but give us a little insight, you bothhave a cool love story.Amy: Awe… thank you. It may soundcliche, but our love story is my favorite.Chadwick is most definitely one of thegood ones. He is my lover, my best friendand soulmate, and I am beyond blessed todo this life with him. We married whenwe were just babies,15 and 17, and inJanuary we celebrated 34 years ofmarriage. We have been through the firetogether and that is what has made ourlove so strong. We live to light each otherand the world around us up with our loveand contribution, and we treasure thebond we share with our children andgrandchildren.KShip: You really have a powerful innerfeeling about peace and energy, and youdo energy and meditation workconstantly for family and friends. Whendid this enter your life? I know for me thebest thing is to find peace in your life. Themore I read, I see prayer and meditationare really helping many folks get throughsome of the rough spots that many of ushave experienced or are experiencing inlife. Can you touch on this for a minute?Amy: My spiritual quest began after thepassing of my brother Brad. Although thiswas one of the first and hardest losses Ihave ever experienced, it was also the giftthat set me on a healing journey that willnever end. I owe the dark times credit forforcing me to cultivate a deeper soulconnection to God and discover my giftfor energy healing. I felt called to healmyself and do my part to help heal theworld. I am certified in many healingmethods and have created my ownmodalities which I feel have been directlyinspired through God and The DivineSpirit. Prayer and meditation are anintricate part of my spiritual practice. ILIM Page34

have witnessed endless miracles happenfor myself and others, and naturally thathas sparked my passion for helpingothers through my workshops andseminars that will launch this summer.KShip: A lot of us saw you attend yourfirst Grammy Awards with your hubbyChad a few weeks back, tell me about thatexperience/moment?Amy: Pinch me as we talk about anotherepic dream come true. We are still oncloud nine, and completely humbled wewere able to attend. We are grateful toGrammy members and friends, JustineBlazer, and Kitt and Melissa Wakeley formaking this dream possible. Beingsurrounded by the most phenomenal andtalented artists on the planet who are aspassionate about making a difference inthe world as they are about their musicwas awe inspiring. We are over the moonto be collaborating with many of them onprojects near and dear to our hearts in thenear future, including Mental Illness andSuicide Awareness. Chad and I havealways loved seeing other people succeedand watching dreams come true. We dowhatever we can to support every onepossible and that is why one of our latestdreams is to become voting members ofThe Recording Academy/Grammys.KShip: Thank you so much for your time,and Lazie Indie Magazine is honored tohave been able to give our Indie Readerfamily a bit of insight about you and yourcontinued journey. Where can we getmore info about you and your businessbrands?Amy: This was so much fun and I amhonored. Thank you, Kathryn and LazieIndie Magazine with all my heart forcreating and maintaining this incredibleplatform for Indie Artists like myself toshare the heart, purpose and storiesbehind our music. You can find me on allsocial media platforms and music outlets,as well as amymcallistermusic.com,LIM Page35

thediamonddiscovery.com andiamdesignerjewelry.com Faith, Family,Friends, Music and Giving Back is whatlife looks like for me, I absolutely love itand couldn’t feel more blessed.About the Columnist'Real talk with KShip' is a columnpresented by Kathryn WashingtonShipley who is an Award-WinningModern Country/Christian Singer-Songwriter who is recognized as One ofthe fastest-growing Indie Artists over thelast few years. She interviews top Indieartists and present them to Lazie IndieReaders through this column.Photo CreditsForevermore FilmsDavid Baker PhotographyJustine BlazerMexx HeartLIM Page36

Tai Phong is a veteran rock group from France. Founded by Khanh MAI, Tai SINHJean-Alain GARDET, Stephan CAUSSARIEU, Jean Jacques GOLDMAN and laterreplaced in 1977 by Michael JONES . Tai Phong released their first album throughWarner" in 1975 and their song "Sister Jane" was an immediate smash hit anddistributed in 16 countries. Sister Jane can still be heard on TV, radios and clubstoday! The 5th album of Tai Phong "Return of the Samuraï" was released in 2013was entirely composed by Khanh MAI. In December 2021 their album "Dragons ofthe 7th seas" came on top worldwide for progressive "Award" in Japan! Tai Phonghave started the "Dragon Tour" to celebrate their 50th anniversary this year ! Wewill tour in the USA, Canada, Japan, Europe and Australia!Emma Goldberg speakstoKhanh MAI about what kept them going for 5 decades and more...LIM Page38

Emma: Hi members of Tai Phong..., it isan honor speaking to you. You have beenaround as a band for almost five decades.Huge respect from us at Lazie IndieMagazine for hanging on for such a longtime. When you look back, how do youfeel about the journey so far?Khanh (MAI): Yes this year we celebrateour 50th anniversary and we are veryhappy to still continue our music! Whenwe started in 1972 we would not havethought to still play today but it's a lot ofwork and I think the right word is"passion". When you love what you aredoing no barriers can stop you, no matterif it's not always simple.Emma: How did you form the band? Whopicked whom? Do you all have similarmusical influences or varied?Khanh: I was working as a soundengineer at Barclay studios which werethe most famous recording studios inFrance. I play guitar and piano and mybrother played bass guitar and piano. Weboth sing as well. One day I recorded aband in which there was a good singerand I asked him to join us. Our keyboardplayer came from England and ourdrummer lived in France. We mostly hadthe same influences like YES, KINGCRIMSON, PINK FLOYD, BEACH BOYSetc. ..., but we composed all our songsourselves. My brother Thai and myselfKhanh being the main composers. Wenever played songs composed by anotherartist, because we loved composing!Emma: What made you form a band inFrance with a name from Vietnam “TaiPhong“, what does it mean and what didyou want to set out to achieve initially?Khanh: My brother and I were born inVietnam but because of the war, we cameto France when we were 4 and 5 yearsold. We could have landed in England orin the USA and still make the same musicTai Phong is the Vietnamese namemeaning Typhoon! I thought it was anoriginal name and not difficult topronounce! Our aim was to make aninternational music, not French music.Besides we sing in English. Most of oursongs are considered as progressive rockLIM Page39

which can last 10 minutes but we alsolove hit singles, short songs that last 3'30!That's the reason I composed "SisterJane", which was released in 16 countries!Emma: You have had lineup changes andhad illustrious players in your lineup likeany other long-term bands have, what doyou think made Tai Phong stand out as aband?Khanh: Well, changes were necessarybecause some musicians need to makesolo careers or musically they need notevolve, but we always found the rightmusicians to replace the ones that left thegroup. Like Jean Jacques GOLDMANwho is considered as the most lovedpersonality in France.Emma: What is your music creatingprocess? Who writes, who composes andwho produces?Khanh: In the beginning we all composed.Then as years go by, I am the maincomposer with my son Davy who is abrilliant guitarist and arranger. We bothcompose music and lyrics! Davycomposes with his guitar and I very oftenhear the music in my head, so I don'tneed an instrument to compose. For thelast ten years I produce our latest albums.They are distributed in Japan by IAC andWarner Japan.Emma: What would you all look forwardto? A successful EP/Album or a GreatLive show?Khanh: Of course for each album, we wisha worldwide success. Concerts is thereward for our albums and we had a greatsuccess when we toured in Japan in 2014.The concert halls in Osaka and Tokyowere full because in Japan Tai Phong isconsidered as a "Mythical Band"! Withthe success of our new album "Dragons ofthe 7th seas", we were asked to come backto Japan in December 2022, for a fewconcerts and to shoot a second DVD!Emma: Tell us about your latest/upcoming release?Khanh: Our latest album "Dragons of the7th seas" was recorded in very specialconditions because of the Covid! In fact,we never saw each other to record. Eachmember records in his own place. Wesent tracks to my son Davy so he could dothe mixing and mastering. Roughly ahundred tracks for each song!Emma: What is your immediate futureplan, say for 2022?Khanh: In 2022 we are composing for amusical comedy. Then we continue tomake concerts, especially in Japan for the"Dragon tour".Emma: What would you tell an upcomingmusician to keep in mind to achievesuccess in the long run in music?Khanh: For an upcoming musician, Iwould advise him to have faith in hismusic and the most important is to playor sing with a tremendous PASSION!With that in mind he can overcome all thedifficulties!- Thank youLIM Page40

About the ColumnistEmma Goldberg is French Pop Singer,Composer, Video Producer, Authorwriting in Italian, Spanish, English,French. She also is a radio host in Radio242 UK introducing independentmusicians to audiences across UK, Franceand the nearby countries. Emma has herown radio show called Just like Emmawhich is maintained here for the columnshe contributes to Lazie Indie Magazine.LIM Page41

Bernadett Nyari comes from Budapest, Hungary, and was born into a musicianfamily. Her maternal grandfather was József B. Suha, one of Hungary’s greatestviolinists as well as composer. His compositions are played worldwide to this day.She began learning to play the violin at age 6 but only decided to dedicate her life tomusic following a concert tour in Italy when she was 13. From the age of 18, shecontinued her studies at the Music Academy in Graz, Austria and became thestudent of Professor Silvia Marcovici, an outstanding world-renowned violin soloist.She originally studied classical music but since her dream was to bring joy to allkinds of audiences with her favorite musical genres, she perfected numerous stylesof music on her violin in the most varied ways. –Bernadett has become a globaltraveler entertaining audiences by performing in many countries since she was 18. –To listen to her play is to feel her passion. – From a young age her only wish was toLIM Page43

make people happy with her music. – Herpowerful stage presence is underlinedmake people happy with her music. – Herpowerful stage presence is underlined bya captivating elegance. – In 2018 she waslisted as one of the most successful peopleof Hungary. Bernadett is maybe not whatyou expect from a violinist… In her ownwords: “There are so many differentstyles of music in the world, as there areso many foreign languages. Regardless ofthe different styles, music still remainsthe most beautiful international language.Although I studied classical music foryears, but when I realized that I couldbring happiness to audiences by playingan evergreen song, film music or a jazztune, I then decided I would play all typesof music so that I can make everyonehappy. My show offers an incredible arrayof musical styles, showing as I mentioned,the endless possibilities playing theviolin. It is a true variety selection…classical, folk, film music, musicals, jazz,country… all played in my personal stylewith my own arrangements. Miles ofStyles. I hope that everyone will find theirfavorite.” Join violin virtuoso Bernadettas she performs a selection of yourfavorite songs from classical music,movies and Broadway along with hernative Hungarian style all performed witha modern twist. A night of music foreveryone to enjoy! So laugh, cry andwatch in awe as the virtuoso daughter ofHungary puts her bow to the strings.Lazie Indie Magazine spoke to BernadettNyarito know more about her musicaljourney so far and about her plans forfuture.Thanks to Michael Stover and MTSManagement for introducing thisfabulous musician toLazie IndieMagazine. Let us read...LIM Page44

LIM: You have had a rising career inmusic so far creating a substantial fanbase worldwide with our music. Whenyou look back, how do you feel was yourjourney so far?Bernadett (Nyari): I think I am very luckyto be, where I am at the moment. I stillhave so many things to achieve in my lifeof course. But when I think about wheredid I start, I know I came far and I amvery thankful for that.LIM: Who were your musical influencesand how did you arrive at this genre youplay?Bernadett: There are so many classicalmusicians who influenced me a lot.Heifetz, Oistrakh, Kogan etc. Most of all,my grandfather. However, my dream hasalways been to showcase the unlimitedpossible music styles playing the violin.LIM: How do you go about selecting yoursongs?Bernadett: I have been traveling andperforming around the world since I was13 years old. I met so many people and Iperformed to so many different types ofaudience. I always ask them what theirfavorite song is. In all these years I learntso much about people's music styles ingeneral. Every time I select a song, I amthinking about my audience. Always. Ifthey will like it, how they would like it,etc.LIM: How do you record and produceyour music? Do you have any specialgear/recording system which you feel isimportant to bring out the kind of voiceyou want? If so, why?Bernadett: Most of my songs I record inBudapest, Hungary as my producer isfrom there. We work together since 2016.I usually go to his studio and webrainstorm together. When we both knowwhat we really want, we start to record.LIM: Where do we find your music on theinternet?Bernadett: Spotify, Apple Music, iTunesApple musichttps://music.apple.com/hu/album/hungarian-dance-no-5/1464838196?i=1464838197LIM Page45

"I am 100% myself only, when I am on stage".iTunes https://music.apple.com/hu/album/miles-of-styles/1464838196Spotify https://open.spotify.com/artist/1EjvrerFnXl0Au0qYfjOeJ?si=iN5F59o5Q4ieVn51y4RtkQYoutube: www.youtube.com/bernadettofficialLIM:What gives you the kick, writing,producing or playing live and why?Bernadett: This is my life. That's whatgives me the kick. There is nothing I lovemore than playing. I love writing andproducing as well, but what makes me thehappiest is performing. To be on stage. Togive music to the audience. To give love tothe audience. To give them passion and tomake them forget their bad days... tobring them out from the grey days. I loveit so much. I am 100% myself only, whenI am on stage.LIM: Tell us about the success of yoursingle "Redemption”?Bernadett: Usually I play cover songsonly, so this was my first original songwhich I released. I was very excited aboutit, because I just couldn't wait for thereaction of the people. Both. Positive andnegative. It made me very happy, becauseit was a huge success. Most of the peopletold me, if they wouldn’t know, that it wasmy song, they would know immediately,because it just sounds like me. The otherbest compliment about Redemption was,that everybody who listened to it once,they were singing the melody all day. Ithink that is just the best compliment amusician/composer can get.LIM Page47

LIM: How are you coping with the newrealities post the Covid scare especiallywhen the live music scene is hit hard?Bernadett: Honestly, it was the mostdifficult time in my life. I always used tobe very busy with traveling, performingand having concerts all around the world.In 2020 after Covid hit, I had nothing foralmost a year. This has never happened inmy life. I missed to play music and Imissed to perform very, very much. I amvery thankful, that finally we wentthrough this and I hope it will neverhappen again.LIM: What are your immediate futureplans say, for 2022?Bernadett: You mean for May? I have avery important concert in May and I amvery excited for that. The biggestHungarian event in the USA will takeplace on May 12, 13 and 14. My version ofthe song 'America The Beautiful' becamethe official song of the event and theorganizers asked me to have a concert onthe last day of the event. I am honoredand I can't wait. Other than that, I willhave some exciting video shoots in thenear future and also some Europeantours.LIM: Being a very successful musicianyourself what would you tell an upcomingmusician to keep in mind when a) he/sheis struggling to get recognized and b) oncehe/she has just made a mark in the sceneand needs to sustain here?Bernadett: Unfortunately I don't think Ican give you a perfect recipe for that. Ithink the most important thing is tobelieve in yourself. First of all, music isthe most beautiful international languagewhich connects people from all aroundthe world. If you can connect people withyour music... What is magic. If you enjoywhat you do and you do it with your heartyou can only go forward in your life.Believe in yourself and never give up.LIM: Thank you for your time and it wasgreat speaking to you.Bernadett: Thank youLIM Page48

Brother & Sister, Melody and Vaylor Trucks-fronted Allman Family Tribute on tourthis Spring and Summer throughout the USA, are taking their place among thefinest bands influenced from that important musical era. In addition to Melody andVaylor Trucks, Brother and Sister include Eric Sanders (The Yeti Trio, Col. BruceHampton), Garrett Dawson (Butch Trucks and the Freight Train, The Bird Tribe),Willis Gore (Bonnie Blue, The Melody Trucks Band) and Matt Stallard (ChrisDuarte Group). Their recent set at Suwannee Rising featured a tribute to Vaylor andMelody's musical roots, the Allman Brothers Band, as they are the two eldestchildren of Allman Brothers Band co-founding member and drummer, ButchTrucks. Melody and Vaylor are interviewed in this month’s issue ofLazie IndieMagazine, below.LIM Page50

LIM: What's the overall music conceptbehind the Brother & Sister project?Vaylor: There’s an amazing music campthat happens every year in the Catskillscalled Roots Rock Revival. It was foundedby our father, Butch, along with OteilBurbridge and Luther and CodyDickinson. I have been one of the artists/instructors there since 2016. One of theguest artists we had a few years ago wasJeff Franca - drummer for ThieveryCorporation. He and I had kind of abonding moment over Stevie Wonder’searly 70s music and decided to do aproject together. That ended up being anAllman Brothers tribute project out ofColorado called The Family Peach - a verylimited kind of run with Jeff, Melody, me,Todd Smallie, Bill McKay, my primarymusical collaborator Eric Sanders andlocal guitarist James Dumm. When wereturned from Colorado, Eric was actuallythe one that suggested getting a similarproject together in the southeast, so webegan scouting for musicians that wethought could take on the material. I’mhappy with the lineup we have. GarrettDawson played with me in Butch Trucksand the Freight Train Band and PeteOrensten and I had a hippie/prog/jamtrio for a while called BonobosConvergence. Willis Gore comes fromMelody’s solo project and Matt Stallardhas been Eric’s go-to bassist for allmanner of music for years. Because that’sthe thing I wanted to do with this band. Ididn’t want us to go the route oftraditional tribute bands. The model I amusing is that of Dweezil Zappa and hisZappa Plays Zappa project. Rather thantrying to put together a band that lookedand sounded like The Mothers ofInvention with their same costumes andprops, he instead put together anensemble that was capable of performingthe music the way the composer intended.That’s what I want to do here - executethe music of the Allman Brothers not notefor note but keeping true to both thecomposed and the improvisationalelements present in their music.Melody: Vaylor's response is the perfectLIM Page51

answer for this question. The players thatare part of this project approach themusic with the right intentions.LIM: As the children of legendary rockerand founding Allman Brothers Banddrummer Butch Trucks, how do youproperly carry on the legacy and richtradition of Southern rock?Vaylor: Properly? Oh wow, if there’s aproper way I’m probably not doing it. Formost of my musical existence I have triedto acknowledge my lineage by attemptingmaintain an encyclopedic knowledge ofthe Allman Brothers’ material (no easyfeat), while simultaneously trying toestablish my own voice that is distinctenough from their sound and approachthat, theoretically at least, people couldhear and enjoy what I do withoutimmediately drawing comparisons.Mostly, though, I never miss anopportunity to evangelize the fact thatthere’s more to what the Allman Brotherscreated than is typically inferred by thelabel “Southern Rock”; there is a largeamount of jazz and sophisticated musicalcomponents in the songs of the AllmanBrothers.Melody: Not sure if there is a "proper"way..., but I am always brought back tohow our father approached music ingeneral. Letting yourself get into thosemusical spaces where ego is lost and truecommunication between the players isachieved. As he would say "sometimes it'sa train wreck", but those times when it'snot - there's no better feeling on Earth.LIM: Brother and Sister have beenbooked to play some of the bigger Jamband-type Festivals this Summer,including the recent Suwannee Rising andthe upcoming Peach Festival. Thoughtson this?Vaylor: I’m so very grateful - we loveplaying the festivals! Over the years, all ofus in the band have played many festivalslike Wanee, Music Midtown, Sunfest, etc.in our other projects. Suwannee Rising, Ifelt, went very well this year. It was greatto be back at Spirit of Suwannee MusicPark. It was great to reconnect with somefriends I hadn’t seen in years. And we’reall really looking forward to PeachFestival. Montage Mountain is a beautifulpark and the vibe there is alwaysamazing.Melody: Incredibly grateful and excited!Suwannee Rising was such an amazingweekend! Being back at Spirit of theSuwannee always feels like coming home.After spending every Spring there for overa decade attending the Wanee Festival,being able to play there just feels right. Ican't wait to get up to Montage Mountainfor Peach Fest!LIM: Melody and Vaylor are also hostinga special monthly "Blue Jay ConcertSeries" in Jacksonville at the Blue JayListening Room, with guest appearancesby well-known musicians such as LutherDickinson, Jimmy Hall and others. Whoare some upcoming artists who will beappearing as part of this Concert Series?Vaylor: The next one we have coming upis in June and that’s with VictorWainwright and Pat Harrington. I’mreally looking forward to that - it will beour first one with a pianist and theopportunity for bigger arrangements andmore involved tunes is something I amreally looking forward to. Beyond that, wehave several folks who have expressedLIM Page52

interest and we’re actively workingtowards getting dates confirmed, but Idon’t think we’re at a place to announceanything past June just yet.Melody: "The Blue Jay Sessions" issomething very near and dear to myheart. Blue Jay Listening Room, ownedby Cara Murphy, is one of my favoritevenues, hands down. This series isallowing us to not only play musictogether (I LOVE playing music withVaylor), but we also get to bring in someof the best musicians out there. Our nextweekend is June 10th and 11th with VictorWainwright and Pat Harrington.LIM: What are some 'Desert Island Discs'you each would take with you to listen to(DID means that's all you could listen toon the island). Name at least 5 artists.Vaylor: Limiting it to just 5 might betough, but I’ll try. The two albums thatjump to mind immediately are “BitchesBrew” by Miles Davis and “Solstice” byRalph Towner. I never ever get tired ofeither one of those. Along with FrankZappa, John McLaughlin and RalphTowner are my two biggest heroes onguitar. Picking only one Zappa albummight be impossible though. Can wepretend that everything from Hot Rats toOne Size Fits All is a single album andinclude that? After that, there are dozensthat could go into the two remainingspots. Bookends by Simon and Garfunkel,Wooden Smoke by Mike Keneally, TheNatch’l Blues by Taj Mahal, The 1969recording of Pierre Boulez conducting theCleveland Orchestra performingStravinsky’s Rite of Spring, Stevie’sInnervisions, Word of Mouth by JacoPastorius, Escalator Over The Hill by PaulHaines and Carla Bley, Ask The Ages bySonny Sharrock, We Like It Here bySnarky Puppy, Live At the Regal by B.B.King, I Can See Your House From Hereby John Scofield and Pat Metheny, YoungGifted and Black by Aretha Franklin,Wave by Antonio Carlos Jobim, BlackMarket by Weather Report, In The JungleGroove by James Brown, Trout MaskReplica by Captain Beefheart and theMagic Band, Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell,Chick Corea, The Beatles, The Meters, Icould do this all day (smiles).Melody: Wow... this is a tough one....Only 5? I am going to assume that wouldbe 5 outside the sphere of our family'smusic, because that comes with meeverywhere. Stevie Wonder (Pick one -Innervisions, Talking Book, Music of MyMind, Songs in the Key of Life), LittleFeat (Once again - pick one - Waiting forColumbus, Dixie Chicken, Feats Don'tFail Me Now), Aretha Franklin - I NeverLoved a Man, Edie Brickell - Ghost of aDog, anything by Kaleigh Baker..... toomany to only have one spot left.... TheMeters, Dr. John, the Band, JamesTaylor, CSNY, Carole King, Joni Mitchell.LIM: We all know, it’s hard to peek intothe future with any degree of certainty,but let's try: Where do you both seeBrother & Sister being as a band,musically, recordings and shows-wise,five years from now?Vaylor: It’s really hard to say. It would bea fine thing indeed if the music of theAllman Brothers still resonated enoughwith folks that this project would remainviable. I can tell you for certain that 2023is going to be a pretty big year for us, if allgoes as we hope. Next year is, after all, theLIM Page53

50th anniversary of the release of theBrothers & Sisters album, and wedefinitely have plans to celebrate that.Mostly I’m really happy to be makingmusic with my friends and family, and tothe capacity that I’m able to do so, I’d liketo continue. Melody: Hopefully still goingstrong. I see it as an honor to get to playthis music with these players.LIM: Any thoughts to share with ourreaders about Brother & Sister oranything else?Vaylor: After 2 years of not playing live atall, it’s been amazing getting theopportunity to take the stage and makemusic again - and with a 7 piece band, noless. Mostly, though, I’m still comingdown from the emotional intensity of thepast couple of years - and in many ways Ifeel they’re still ongoing. But I believe inart. I believe in creativity and expression.I believe that making positive connectionswith people any way you can is always aworthwhile endeavor.Melody: I am incredibly grateful to bedoing what we are doing now. My brotheris an inspiration to me both musically andas a human being. Eric, Garrett, Pete,Willis and Matt are all amazingmusicians, but they are also genuinelywonderful people. I am also grateful foreveryone who chooses to come and spendtheir time with us when we play. It'swonderful to have the opportunity to getback out again.Connect with Brother & Sister:www.brotherandsister.band/epkinstagram.com/broandsis_band/twitter.com/broandsis_bandfacebook.com/broandsisband- Thank youLIM Page54

Wherever Mishko goes, other musicians are quick to hear from him. The paradox ofthis often discreet and reserved bass player is that you always notice him! A look, anattitude and above all a flamboyant bass playing make you remember the first timeyou saw and heard Mishko! This personal and musical charisma, his attachment tohuman values command respect and have enabled him to lead a successful career inso-called popular music as in traditional or improvised music. Thus, he hasmultiplied collaborations with leading artists such as Raul de Souza, BarbaraHendricks, Ziskakan, Lucky Ali, Ray Charles, Shy Ben Tzur, Selva Ganesh, DidierLockwood, Johnny Halliday, Guthrie Govan... A long stay in India has furtherenriched the artistic spectrum of this open mind, always eager to learn about othercultures. If his return to Reunion was precipitated by the ups and downs of life,today he blesses the destiny that brought him back to this island: He finds there inLIM Page56

the diversity of his influences a richcrucible to express all his artistic maturityacquired over this rich journey.Guitar virtuosoSanthosh Chandran startshis new column "Maestro Speaks"speaking to this fantastic musician.Santhosh (Chandran): Hi Mishko,welcome and thank you for participatingin my column Maestro speaks in LazieIndie Magazine, great to speak to you, myfriend. You have had a fabulous career asa musician so far, when you look backhow do you feel your journey was?Mishko: Thanks Santhosh. A long career,yes, a fabulous? I have still to wait toknow. Anyway, if I look back, I feel I hadthe chance to embrace many differentkinds of music; from Western classicalMusic to Rock, Jazz, Rai, Carnatic andHindustany Music etc. But moreimportant to me, the possibility to shareexperience with many musicians from allover the world taught me the fact thatMusic is a universal language.Santhosh: Who initiated you to music andhow did you to turn into Bass Guitar?Mishko: I started the music school at theage of five studying the clarinet and musictheory. My clarinet teacher, Mr. Delpech,was quite strict and I didn't like that.Much later, I understood its philosophyand I applied its method to theinstruments that I had the opportunity topractice afterwards. I started the drums,which was not taught at that time at tenyears old. Later, my older brother playingguitar, I got into it too. I started playingbass by chance with the orchestra inwhich my brother was playing and I lovedit. I felt in love with bass.Santhosh: You have played with greatartists. What would be the few greatqualities you can list from them that youcould gather from working with them?Mishko: The main quality would behumility. I was able to observe that themore talented an artist is, the morehumble he is. I think it's because theLIM Page57

more competent you are the more youcan realize the immensity of yourdomain; here the music. On top of that,you have to be humble to be able to learnand in music, you learn for life. The othernecessary qualities are hard work,perseverance and patience. The threewalk together.Santhosh: What are your latest projects?Where can we find them on the internet?Mishko: After living in India, I have beenon Reunion Island since 2017. I met verygood musicians and singers there, whichallowed me to continue my musicaljourney in other directions. I startedvarious collaborations. With the singerSundri Feeling, I produced and co-composed a cd which is currently out onthe platforms: Sundrihttps://fanlink.to/SundriFeeling-MusicI'm also part of SlySugar band. We released a cd in earlyApril: Divided.https://deezer.page.link/QDaw5ShGVaiDFJ8k7And the Clip video: https://youtu.be/6u9RxCorrBoI was able to put together a jazz trio,Mishko M'ba Trio. We have recorded a cdand live videos which we hope will bereleased at the end of the year.Discussions with a label are in progress.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ebvP7GFJUf0&t=3sSanthosh:What makes you satisfied? Agreat song created, or a fantastic liveperformance pick your absolute favoriteand why?Mishko: It's a very difficult question toanswer. The first thing that comes tomind is that music is a language, so itwould be a live performance. But in thestudio, we also talk between musicians. Idon't really enjoy composing on my own.Music acquires meaning when there is anexchange. I cannot fail to speak of theexperience we had together with Arka.The way we composed, arranged andrecorded in Selva Ganesh's studiotogether for weeks followed by concerts inIndia and the USA might be my absolutefavorite example. It was very hard,moreover having to stop for reasonsbeyond my control. But luckily I had andI still have many happy experiences.Santhosh: I have seen you hum alongwith your lines when you improvise. Doesit help?Mishko: It helps me, I think, to have a bitof a singer's phrasing. On bass, you canplay non-stop for hours. With the hum, Ihave to stop at some point. That beingsaid, it is only instinctive anduncontrolled.Santhosh: Even though you are from adifferent culture how would you manageto do Indian Carnatic rhythms so easily?How do you adapt to cross culturalmusic?Mishko: I first came to India in 2001 torecord the album Rymayer with theRéunion group Ziskakan. I was thedirector and I was impressed by the easeof the musicians to understandReunionese music. As I congratulatedhim, the santoor player, Ulhas Bapat,simply replied: Music is music. I havealways kept this answer in mind. Shehelped me a lot when I came to live inIndia. When I was younger, I had a badexperience with Zouk. I didn't know at alland found myself in the studio notLIM Page58

knowing what to do. I tried to copy and itwent very badly. From that day, I learnedthat you just have to be yourself and openyour ears and your heart.Santhosh: You have often told me thatyou communicate with nature. Can youelaborate on that?Mishko: We are used to seeing the worldanthropocentrically. As if everything hadbeen created just for us. The humility Iwas talking about earlier includeslistening to everything around us. As amusician, I think we are a mediumbetween the material and the spiritual. Idon't think the human being is superiorto anything. We are part of a whole thatwe do not understand very well. Music isa subtle language that allows beyond theaesthetic side to express, as AldousHuxley says, the inexpressible.Santhosh: How do you view spirituality inmusic, are there times when music takesyou to that zone? How would you explainit?Mishko: I have been said in India thatpracticing an instrument is a kind of yoga.I was surprise but now I quite agree withthis. This goes back to your previousquestion. When I think of Nature, Iinclude minerals, of course, but alsoobjects. In the same way, spiritualityinvites itself into all aspects of life. Andfor me, music is the means that humanbeings have found to represent time,therefore life. There is no music withouttime. I think music begins when the cycleof birth and death of notes begins.Without time, it is the eternal Ohm.Music comes with rhythm, is the death ofone note, the birth of another and thusthe creation of melody and harmony.Santhosh: Finally, what was the bestadvice you got which you can share withupcoming musicians who are looking tomake a mark, and what would be yourown words of wisdom to them?Mishko: I don't know if it's the best, butit's the first from Mr. Delpech, my clarinetteacher. First of all, work on the sound,the notes will come by themselves. Andlater, practice the scales and exercisesvery, very slowly. It took me, I believe,more than twenty years to understandand then admit it. When you're young,you want everything right away. We thinkwe are going faster without realizing thatwe are learning some mistakes that willbe difficult to get rid of. As for me, I cantell them to be aware of how lucky we areto be doing something we love. But aboveall, don't be afraid to miss something. Lifeteaches us many things with ourmistakes. At the end of the day, it's justmusic.- Thank youLIM Page59

About the ColumnistSanthosh Chandran is an ace guitaristknown as the inventor of theIndo-Flamenco style of guitar playing. Hehas also developed on his own, a uniqueguitar-based instrument called Geena. Hehas played along with masters of musicfrom both east and west and traveled allacross the world with his music. Aproducer and performer of music, He isalso a very respected tutor and haschurned out many great guitarists whoare now spreading their music and skillsall over the world.Santhosh Chandranseeks to present some of the greats ofmusic through this column"Maestro Speaks".LIM Page60

Born Pietro Nannucci in Prato/Italy in 1999, Roc Flowers moved to United States atthe age of 2 and lived also in Morocco and Spain, write and sing in English but alsoItalian, Spanish and French. Passionate of music, he listened and listen diversegenres and artists. He started to write lyrics and music at age 16 and evolved in amulti genres artist, hip hop/rap, nujazz, pop, reggae with deep messages to his fansand listeners. Roc Flowers words “My vision is to create art that transcends bordersand boxes. I want to collaborate and create with artists from all over the world whileexperimenting with all kinds of sounds and genres, making music that empowershuman beings. Exploration and innovation are the key. There are infinite ideas inthe air and it is up to us to grab them and turn them from something mystical intosomething material. He participated to several collaboration projects withinternational artists and musicians from various countries and genres like FabrizioLIM Page62

Bosso (jazz/Italy), Stefano De Donato(funk/Italy), Sonny King (hip hop/rap/USA), Ismaila Mbaye (ethnic/Senegal),Antonio Farao (jazz/Italy), BurcuKaradag (ethnic/Turkey) and achievedmultiple awards at the Global MusicAward and a nomination at theHollywood Music in Media Awards in2021. His song “Speak Life 3.0” wasfeatured during NAMM 2021 in LosAngeles in the Mark Bass program. Hesigned with Music for Love/QJP Musicrecording label in 2019 just before theCovid pandemic started.Jay from Lazie Indie Magazine speaks tothis upcoming superstar... Check out!Jay: Hi, Roc Flowers, welcome to LazieIndie Magazine, great to speak to you.You have had a very exciting career so faras a musician. How do you feel was yourjourney?Roc (Flowers): Thank you for thequestions. I believe my music journey isjust getting started, I really beganfocusing on music just two years ago so Ifeel like I still have an entire universe todiscover. I really enjoy songwriting andcreating paintings with music, I want tolearn how to play all kinds of instrumentsbut for me the goal is to become thegreatest songwriter I can be rather thanbecoming the greatest musicians. I wantto use music to tell stories.Jay: Who/what were your musicalinfluences? Out of the genres of musicthat you create and perform, what is yourabsolute favorite and why?Roc: To me everything is an influence,even the music I personally don’t like insome way, shape or form influences me.Inspiration and influence however aretwo different things I guess, my greatestinfluences I would say are the music myfather played for me when I was a littlechild, Bob Marley, Miles Davis, CarlosSantana and Dizzie Gillespie. Pink FloydLIM Page 63

also is a massive influence for me. I mustsay, I don’t have a favorite genre, that isan impossible question for me to answerI’m afraid, I live and breathe music 24/7.Jay: How do you go about writing yoursongs? How do you record and produceyour music?Roc: Every song is different, I almost gointo a trance when I write or play orproduce. I sometimes feel like it issomething much bigger than me speakingthrough me, I see musical creation as avery mystical experience. I am only 22years old but when I create, for a briefmoment, I feel eternity and infinityflowing. I don’t have a process, I just trustTHE process.Jay: You sing in Italian, English, Frenchand Spanish and across genres … how doyou navigate through the languages andgenres especially when each of theselanguages carries the cultural aspects too.How do you match that?Roc: When it comes to singing in differentlanguages I am blessed to have beenraised in environments that pushed me tothink in different languages, if I think in alanguage I can surely write and sing in it.I am blessed to have been exposed to somany different cultures so this aspect ofchanneling the culture isn’t much of anissue, I am always myself though, I do notchange my energy whether I’m makingfolk music in Italian or rap in English. Itry to keep the same spirit always and justbe myself.Jay: Which is your latest release? Welearned that you had great reviews on thesame. Do let us know more about it.Roc: My latest release is a Soundcloud EPcalled Lofi Philosophy, it is a veryexperimental creation that melanges newage rock with 90’s lofi hip-hop along withsome instrumental music that I produced.Jay: What do you like the most? Writing,producing or performing?Roc: I haven’t performed much so fornow I would have to say between writingand producing and to be honest I cannotdecide, I think writing and producing atthe end of the day are all one. I do believehowever that for now I am more of acreator and visionary than the final endproducer, so I will say I am moreabsorbed by writing than producing inthis moment of my artistic path.Jay: What is your plan for the immediatefuture say, 2022 as a musician? Got toknow that there are some very excitingprojects lined up for you. Do tell us moreabout them.Roc: When it comes to more officialreleases the next months will bringforward my more official projectsincluding OVISION, an album where Icollaborated with great musicians fromItaly and my debut solo album AlwaysSearching for Freedom which I plan torelease in fall of 2022. These projects aregoing to be both very special. I wrote allthe lyrics and sung everything inOVISION, coming up with the concept ofthe album in terms of vocal aestheticand the general story the music will tell.Jay: You are signed with Music for Loveand QJP Records. Tell us about workingwith them and the support they give tomusicians like you.Roc: I believe in Music for Love greatly; itis my father’s label and my father is avisionary in his own way while it is still avery small label as of right now in termsLIM Page65

of numbers etc. I believe Music for Lovein the next thirty years could become oneof the most revolutionary entities inmusic history. The flower is just startingto be watered, time will show the truevision and the potential Music for Lovehas. After seeing how some of the “major”labels work, along with most managers inthe music business etc. I am happy towork with people I love and trust, I wantto keep my inner circle small.Jay: What is the best advice given to youand what would you share with fellowyoung artists?Roc: The best advice I have received isfrom my dear friend Ismaila Mbaye, agreat musician and philosopher fromGoree, Senegal. He speaks about the “artof living” often and I simply want tochannel my art of living into my music, Iwould give the same advice to any creatoron this planet. Follow your heart andnever go against what you stand for toplease others.- Thank youLIM Page66

Yesterdays Fate is a band formed by songwriters from Canada and Ireland. Theirmusic takes listeners to a distant place within the genres of pop/rock with theireclectic catalogue of melody driven songs. A prime fusion of emotive vocals,expressive keyboards and powerful guitar licks where each member gets a platformto showcase their talent and shine in the limelight. It is in their individualuniqueness that their collective power and star quality is found, a great contrast totheir name as their musical journey continually unfolds to their destined globalreach.Jay from Lazie Indie Magazine speaks to Yesterdays Fate to know more aboutthem. A big thanks to Big Records for introducing the band toLazie IndieMagazine.LIM Page68

Jay: Hi, this is Jay from Lazie IndieMagazine, Great to speak to you!. Youhave had a very exciting run as a band.How do you feel was your journey so far?YF (Yesterday's Fate): Hi Jay, first offthanks for having us! The journey hasbeen amazing, to be working with thesame group of friends for this long hasbeen a blast and we still feel like we cankeep improving and writing new songsthat will make an impact.Jay: How did this trans-national bandcome together? Who picked whom?YF: We actually formed after we did apost in MySpace – yup it’s been a while!We had a number of music demoswithout vocals and couldn’t find anyonethat matched our vision as a vocalist/writer. So we posted an ad with a link toour demos on MySpace. Damian sent usback a recording with his vocal takes andit was awesome. He’s over in NorthernIreland and we are in Canada so westarted writing over skype and here weare!Jay: Who were your musical influencesand how did you arrive at this genre youplay?YF: Do you share similiar musicalinfluences as a band? Our influences aresimilar – Jim and I are really into thebands like The Beatles and Pink Floyd, wealso really love the rock bands of the 80sand throw in 90s grunge for me as well.Damian has a wide range from currentcountry but also the British scene of the80s/90s – Oasis, Stereophonics forexample. He still says Aqua and theirsong I’m a Barbie Girl is a massiveinfluence - we thought it was a joke atfirst but it might be trueJay: How do you go about writing yoursongs? How do you record and produceyour music?YF: Usually one of us will come up with amusical snippet – maybe it’s just a roughguitar/vocal take or a musical idea withno vocals – from there we start layeringand developing it over e-mail. Once wehave something we all like we have ourguitar player Jim at his ImaginationFXstudio engineer the tracks. We have aLIM Page69

great network of drummers and bassplayers that we use as we love having alive sound and feel in our recordings.Jay: Where do we find your music on theinternet? Which is your latest release?YF: Like all hard working Indie bands wehave our social media band sites onFacebook, Instagram, Soundcloud andYouTube. We are also on streamers likeSpotify and Apple music. Our latestrelease is a song called Best Life which isdoing well – it came out just a fewmonths ago.Jay: What gives you the kick, writing,producing or playing live and why?YF: All of the above honestly but wedefinitely have spent most of our timewriting and I think we all get a massivekick out of hearing a new idea and thencollaborating on the development of it.Pretty cool to take an idea out of theuniverse and turn it into a song! Liveshows are coming up though so we arereally excited – or as Damian would saychuffed - to play live again for the firsttime in over 6 years!Jay: The lockdown brought the industryto a halt for some time but many in musicused it for creating new music. How didyou spend this lockdown as a band?YF: Honestly things didn’t change toomuch for us – we were so used to writingand collaborating online that we just kepton rolling along! One of our proudestmoments though was writing a song earlyon in the lockdown called Stay at Home insupport of all of the front line medicalworkers. It went over really well as wehave family in that profession and we areforever grateful!Jay: What are your immediate futureplans?YF: We will be performing for the 1st timein over six years this June so we havebeen busy rehearsing for that and we havea number of new singles and videos thatwill be coming out before and during thesummer, including a collaboration remixIM Page70

on of one of our songs called Caught in the Headlights with Ed Sheeran’s cousinJethro Sheeran aka Alonestar.Jay: What is the best advice given to you and what would you share with fellowyoung artists?YF: There is always temptation to follow trends and orient your writing towards that– we did for a number of years in attempt to “chase the business” but ultimately youhave to be true to what your collective influences bring for you as a band and trustthat you will create songs that are honest to your sound!Jay: Thank you for your time and it was great speaking to you.YF: Thank you as well – we enjoyed the interview!LIM Page71

Tomiko Dixon Grand Blues Review presents the young and upcoming blues artistHarrel Davenport.Artist: Harrell 'Young Rell' DavenportGenre: BluesInspired by Jimmy Reed. At a very young a Harrell has demonstrated his talent asan upcoming star in the blue scene. Granddaughter of BluesTomiko Dixon speaksto Harrell 'Blues Boy' Davenport to know more about his career so far and his plansto entertain Blues Audience in the near future. Let us read on...LIM Page73

Tomiko: Who inspired your most recentproject and or music?Harrell: The person who inspired mymusic the most would have to be JimmyReed. As well as myself and my life.Tomiko: Who would you most like tocollaborate with and why?Harrell: Bob Stroger and Billy Branch andthe reasons why is because they are reallytwo of thousands of blues singers/musicians in Chicago. That still do bluesmusic and show business how it was doneback then. Which is the true sincere way.Tomiko: What is one message you wouldlike to give other artists that are inspiredto get into the entertainment industry?Harrell: My message to others is don’t beafraid to ask questions. Strive and havethe hunger and passion to share yourmusic to the world. Don’t be afraid to beyou and always be confident.Tomiko: Which entertainer(s) do youadmire the most and why?Harrell: The main entertainers I admirethe most are people like Birdlegg Pittman,Charles Wilson, Billy Branch, BobbyRush, James Brown, Little Milton, myselfand many more. Because of not only theirvoices and their songs their stagepresence and high energy.Tomiko: What is the best advice beengiven to you?Harrell: To be yourself and stand up forwhat you believe in. Also not to let anyoneknock you down and if you do strive to getback up.Tomiko: What’s next for you? Do youhave any upcoming gigs or events?Harrell: Yes, I have a couple of gigscoming up which I’m unsure of dates yet.Tomiko: How would you best describeyour music or project?Harrell: My music is traditional,contemporary, warm, some smooth, somerough but all energetic andheartwarming. Some about bad timessome about good times but all is real rawblues with a feeling.Tomiko: On a scale of 1 to 5 (5 being thehighest): What rating would you giveLIM Page74

yourself on this music or project?Harrell: I’d give myself and my music a 5.- Thank youAbout the ColumnistThis column is contributed by TomikoDixonwho is the granddaughter of theGreat Willie Dixon and also the youngestinductee to the Blues Hall of Fame and anAmbassador of Blues.Lazie IndieMagazineis glad and honored to join hercause to keep the spirit of Blues alive.LIM Page75

David Helpling is a California-based guitarist, keyboardist, recording artist and filmcomposer of ambient and electronic music. “Music is always in my head. That’s howI write. I’m always dreaming.” His solo releases include his debut, Between Greenand Blue and Sleeping On The Edge Of The World. His collaborative ventures withJon Jenkins resulted in a trilogy of beloved albums: Treasure, The Crossing, andFound. Rune continued his solo journey into ambient guitar explorations of newplaces under the sea. Now, in 2022, David has revealed his double album, IN.Crafted over a decade, this rich release is a multi-instrumental take on theinfinitesimal and the infinite, rich with vocal and instrumental collaborationsfeaturing Miriam Stockley, Nidhi Bhatmuley, Matthew Stewart, Benjy Wertheimerand Matthew Schoening.Jay from LIM speaks to David Helpling...LIM Page77

Jay: Hi David, it is an honor speaking toyou. This is Jay from Lazie Indie!!! Youhave had a fabulous career as a guitarist/producer. When you look back, how doyou see your career over all these years?David(Helpling): I suppose my career hasfallen into place as I moved through themany discoveries of using traditionalinstruments in very untraditional ways.Early on, echo units and modulationdelays shaped how I perceive electricguitar to be. At almost the same time, Idiscovered the art of sampling and whatsynthesizers are truly capable of. So with“space guitar” on one side and dreamysynths on the other, my first record justsort of happened. Each subsequent recordwas a reflection of deeper and furtherdiscoveries. So I kept pushing, searchingand dreaming and the “career” wasfollowing me in the form of larger andlarger sounding records.Jay: Coming to your guitar works, whowere your musical influences? Why didyou pick up ambient music as your maingenre?David: It started with U2 I think… in earlyhigh school it was the sound of The Edge,Charlie’s sound on the Simple Mindsrecords and a few others that soundedlike the most magical thing in the worldto me. In my quest for this mysticalchiming guitar sound I went deep intoeffect pedals and signal processing (this isstill happening). As I was building myrefrigerator-sized rack of effects I foundmyself spending most of my time makingthe guitar sound like something fluid andendless… this annoyed band mates andended up with me making my own music.I didn’t choose Ambient as a genre, itchose me I think.Jay: You have had a great run in whateverroles you took so far as a guitarist, filmmusic composer, producer and more.What keeps you going equally strong inwhatever you take up?David: To be honest, when it comes torecorded music I really just want toimpress anyone that experiences it. Iwant people to have an emotionalLIM Page78

reaction to anything I create. This isperfect for thriller and horror scoreswhere a strong emotional reaction is thevery thing you're hired for. I have moreideas than I will ever have time toexplore. The projects are stacking up as Iam determined to move forward andcreate something that no one has heardbefore. When I am gone there willcertainly be many unfinished grand ideas.Jay: You have done music scores for filmsand TV serials the world has watched andheard. What do you consider before youpick up a movie project and how do yougo about working with that?David: Well, I have been very fortunate toget projects with a certain amount ofintegrity and challenge. Film-wise theyhave been horror or thrillers which Iabsolutely love to create. Most of the TVwork is rather commercial. I also own acouple of music publishing companiesthrough which I publish most of thecommercial music. This is what reallykeeps the fires burning in the castle. Lastyear I was chosen out of many to createseveral signature mnemonics for the newDiscovery+ streaming platform. Theproducers cited both my commercialwork and my ambient releases when Iwas awarded the project. This is the firsttime these two worlds have collided.Jay: As a guitarist and producer, you haveplayed along with greats whom the musicworld reveres. Tell us, who was yourabsolute favorite to work with and why?David: My favorite would have to beworking with vocalist Miriam Stockley. Ifyour readers are not familiar I highlyrecommend a search. I have been a hugefan of everything she has touched sincethe early 90’s. She brought her veryspecial sound and techniques to twosongs from IN - “Slipping” and “I Too AmComing Home”. I had so much funlayering, treating and building all of herparts for these tracks. There is simply nosoul on this planet that comes close to theLIM Page79

enthralling and very intimate perfectionthat is Miriam Stockley… can you tell howmuch I love working with her?Jay: What is your favorite thing to do:Write, produce or play live?David: Well, I love making huge soundingrecords and I have no plans of stopping,but I do not often perform live. I deal witha certain amount of stage fright and to behonest, at this point it would take amassive ensemble to recreate the soundof my music for a live performance…especially music from IN.Jay: Can you tell us a bit about your latestproject? Where on the internet can wefind your music, apart from music scoresfor films?David: IN is a 13-track double albumcreated over a 10-year writing andrecording odyssey. It is an epic, sonicallyexpansive recording of infinitesoundscapes, intricate pulsating guitars,synths, and thundering percussion. INwas released on April 15th on SPM(Spotted Peccary Music) and iseverywhere you can stream music. It’salso on Double CD and a rather insanelycrafted Double Vinyl package. There arequite a few incredible music videos up onthe official YouTube channel, including 4from IN: https://www.youtube.com/c/DavidHelplingOfficial “An ocean ofbeautiful sounds that reverberate deepwithin you, sending warm waves ofpleasure that gently crash against yoursoul and bring solace. Deep and intimateexperience.” - Takeshi “This new albumby the Californian guitarist exposes nearly90 minutes of acoustic-electronic musicthat mixes its wild rhythms with lunarballads and where chills, if not tears, areborn in the recesses of an intense,dramatic and poignant music.” - SylvainLupari “A lot of attention was paid todetail, mixing and mastering this highlyemotive music.” - Bert Strolenberg “IN isan exploration of that magic space: anexpanse of delicate subtlety andminuscule vibrancy that suggests apoignancy of existence itself,” - BTFasmer "Cosmic energy is at play.Helpling seems to be communicating withworlds far beyond ours.” - Beth AnnHiltonJay: Being a top guitar player and aproducer, what in your opinion makes agreat guitarist?David: I don’t feel that I am quitequalified to answer such a big questionwith any kind of authority. I myself usethe guitar in such an odd way comparedto most that I feel a bit poorly versed inthe works of the great guitarists of ourtime. I would say though, that anyguitarist that can create and find a uniquevoice and distinctive style to set themapart is indeed a great one.Jay: What was the best advice given toyou? What would be your advice to anaspiring Indie artist who is talented andwilling to put that extra effort?David: I suppose my advice to aspiringartists would be to create music foryourself and only for yourself. If there arerules, break them. Any grand ideas mustbe taken seriously no matter the cost.How much time you spend on your art isirrelevant. In the end it is a piece of youand will live on forever in the minds andhearts of those that let it in. Isn’t thatenough to compel you to create the mostbeautiful and powerful piece of art even ifLIM Page80

it takes years? Make something new, make something you and share it with pride…for it will be your best work and will end up changing the world. We thank you foryour time and for sharing your thoughts with our readers. Thank you so much fortaking the time to listen to my music and to ask such deep and challengingquestions.Jay: Thank you for speaking to Lazie Indie Magazine.LIM Page81

History of Canadian Content CornerandCanadian Content Conversations SeriesIntroductionLazie Indie Magazine’sSecond Year Anniversary!In celebrating the magazine’s second Anniversary, I decided to write a piece on myreflections on working with Lazie Indie Magazine and how I came to be one of thewriters as well as what my contributions have been, over the last two years.In July of 2020, I was approached by Jay Pillai and asked if my band Dream Ariawould like to be featured in his new magazine called Lazie Indie Magazine, whichoffers music and the arts as its content. I was happy to hear from him and gratefulfor the chance for my band to appear in his up and coming publication. From what Icould see, even in its earliest conception, I knew it was likely going to be a greatsuccess. I noticed that the quality and care shown by Jay, the Lazie Team and withinthe magazine, was very professional and that the artists were world class. As a teaserpromotion, he was kind enough to create a video advert of my band(https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=260987112103308) and as promised, myband was included in the magazine’s second edition(https://madmagz.com/magazine/1795775?fbclid=IwAR20kKUgJjcl4dzmsCM86wFe-fAjEDRwE1LbvZt_sx0RxzkZ_2Vl5otr_ik#/page/4).The band and I were very appreciative, especially to be presented along with somany other very talented artists from around the world, of all styles. I felt that theall-inclusiveness of every genre was very powerful and important. Not long after thesecond edition’s release, Jay asked if I would be willing to write my own column forthe magazine and feature any artists who personally inspired me as a musician. Iwas very surprised as I had never before been given such a wonderful writingopportunity of that nature. I of course happily accepted his kind offer! I chose one ofmy earliest music influences to write about; Streetheart. I took a leap of faith andgathered as much courage as I could and contacted Jeff Neill (Guitarist ofStreetheart) and asked if it would be ok with him and the band if I did a piece onthem. He thankfully answered with a resounding “Yes!” It was a learning curvebecause I generally had only been writing lyrics, poems, and short stories up to thatpoint. After some research and communications with Jeff, I realized that it wouldnot be possible to create a short article on the band since they are long standingCanadian music iconic legends. They deserved more. I advised Jay of this and heproposed doing an entire full magazine feature on Streetheart in order to tell moreof their inspiring story! I was most grateful to Jay and the magazine team forallowing me this new wonderful chance to create something I had not consideredattempting before. It felt as though I was beginning to spread my wings in a sense.LIM Page83

An article is one thing but a wholemagazine another! We then decided to doan abridged version feature for theregular magazine edition and then notlong after publish the full magazinetribute. Fortunately both were a successtherefore Jay kept me on as acontributing writer which is when Iofficially chose the “Canadian ContentCorner” (aka “CCC”) title for my newcolumn. I felt that I should representCanada because I have far too many timesseen Canadian talent fall under the radaron the global playing field. Canada is notthe only nation to encounter obstacles,which is why the magazine representingall musical styles from all over the planetis much needed. Jay and the Lazie IndieMagazine have more than done a stellarjob at doing so over the past two years. Ipledged to continue writing aboutCanadian artists with the new column. Iasked Jay if he would be ok with meembarking on conducting Zoominterviews with artists to work in tandemwith the column and call them “CanadianContent Conversations”. He liked the ideaso I rolled with it. My first Zoominterview was with the legendary DarbyMills, formerly of the famous Canadianband Headpins and now solo with herband The Darby Mills Project. I wrote ashort article about her as well as anotherfull magazine feature.Listed below are all the works I have donewith the Lazie Indie Magazine including avery special tribute to the incomparableNeil Peart of RUSH and a Zoom interviewwith the illustrious Donna Halper who isnoted for discovering RUSH and helpingthem to catapult to famedom.LIM Page84

Past Articles and FeaturesStreetheart Article:https://madmagz.com/magazine/1817229?fbclid=IwAR0XaVbtOYZ3FTAzCws0MXCpqFhQWfyPJ4pqOYsGby-_Z3WLpVHTWdmLIWo#/page/75Streetheart Full Feature Magazine:https://madmagz.com/magazine/1819813#/Karen Barg/Luminous StringQuartetArticle: https://madmagz.com/magazine/1831827?fbclid=IwAR08JaH_fYSJLcSnYUbxpztX746i9F-VRJZ5PHjHOFHhEtIw24TWPhzGIoQ#/page/32Darby Mills Article:https://madmagz.com/magazine/1845463?fbclid=IwAR37uaVdj8xQ4Zw2-Ni6uQn6lEftnT4RRFR3Nhui_1jE3Wy5_RJIomZ88XY#/page/80Darby Mills Full Feature Magazine:https://madmagz.com/magazine/1847801#/page/1Darby Mills Zoom Interview:https://youtu.be/DiZbTRRl6qgDonna Halper Feature Article:https://simplebooklet.com/lazieindiemagazineedition17september272021release#page=67Donna Halper Zoom Interview:https://youtu.be/m4M8YWGnukoLIM Page85

Neil Peart Full Feature Magazine:https://simplebooklet.com/lazieindiemagazinespecialeditionneilpeart1#page=1Current FeatureMost recently, I was pleased to announceon behalf of myself and the Lazie IndieMagazine, the OFFICIAL Premier ofthe Canadian Content Cornermagazine feature for the SpecialTribute Series. I felt it was preeminentto create this piece due to the currentevents unfolding within Canada inregards to Truth and Reconciliation andother ongoing issues in relation toIndigenous Peoples. Therefore I chose tohighlight the wonderfully talentedAlso within-Canadian Indigenous Art: Learn“Why Indigenous art is important toCanada.”Intro: Due to there being manyincredible Indigenous artists in Canada, Ichose a modest selection to interview andmention at this time; most of whomgraciously answered seven interviewquestions. Also included are links toothers in the hope that readers willfurther explore as well as more ofCanada’s inspiring Indigenous talents. Itis plain to see how and why the artistsinstill a deep sense of pride, honour,wisdom, beauty, bravery, and strength aswell as spirituality, in the variedcommunities within Canada and aroundthe globe.Canadian Indigenous artists BettyAlbert, Clayton Gauthier, Jordan MBurns, Kalum Teke Dan, Michael“Cy” Cywink, Pesch VeronicaNepooseand Vince Fontaine. It alsoincludes special, extra mentions of thelate Canadian Indigenous icons VinceFontaine and Jacquie Black withthoughts on them from Karen Barg(Luminous String Quartet/IndianCity), and Jeremy Koz (Indian City).There is some additional information onthe bands Eagle and Hawk and IndianCity as well as some other “HonorableMentions”, (Donny Parenteau et al)andInuit references. Also, you will see avery unique and moving story about abeloved Canadian “Spirit Tree” named“Woody”! I have also included a“Foreword” on what it means to mepersonally to be a Canadian today inregards to Truth and Reconciliation(“Foreword-Moving Forward:How to be aCanadian Today: Ignorance is not Bliss”).Dedication: This Special Edition featuremagazine is dedicated to Vince Fontaineand Jacquie Black. Both recently madetheir journey to the hereafter. They weretwo leading lights in the Indigenousmusic family; both having worked tosupport and connect other artists. Theirwork of education and inclusivity willcontinue to inspire non-Indigenouspeoples to actively strive for truereconciliation.Thank You To: The artists who took thetime to express their candid thoughts onthemselves and their contributions to theMusic & Arts fields as well as theirfeelings about some of the current eventsunfolding within Canada.Other Relevant Links: Truth andReconciliation Commission of Canada,Indian Residential School SurvivorsSociety Help Hotline etc…LIM Page86

The DIRECT LINK to the CCC Indigenous feature is: https://simplebooklet.com/canadiancontentcornerfulledition4?fbclid=IwAR0qgS8aHaCYOhPR5Z0iY4yJ42sr0ZfMAcfrrv47eOhHB_FVKylRhvS8eFI#page=1Thank You to Jay Pillai and the Lazie Indie Magazine Team for their integralhelp in creating not only this feature, which saw me ‘branch out solo’ for the veryfirst time, but also for all the guidance and support thus far.LIM Page87

History of Lazie Indie Magazine’s Beginningswith Commentary from Creator Jay PillaiLazie Indie ContributorsColumnists &InterviewersAnn Aria BurstynTomiko DixonBarbara Harkins and DJGrant - GalaxyFM-NZLJorg KleinKathryn Washington ShipleyLyia MetaEmma GoldbergDarshan ShankerSanthosh ChandranBack End TeamProof ReadingInge Zimmermann ProbstPromo Creation andMarketing SupportManoj PillaiFounding Editor andInterviewer - Jay PillaiBeing an Indie artist for more than 30 years,it was a tough ride for Jay. When hestarted in 1991 with his friend Manoj, theywere considered crazy and irrelevant in thelocal music scene as they were performingoriginal Rock songs that Jay had written.He felt that India being a country that hasits “own music”, that it was not the right demographic fortheir material. It took many years to reach people whoappreciated their particular style of Rock. In time, theinternet helped them take their music across the world. Hisband joined many communities to promote their musicwhere they at last felt truly heard and respected. They grewa fan base who love their music. From that point, Jay wentlooking for opportunities to introduce and connect artistslike his band from both sides of the oceans and worked ona wide variety of music related projects in what he calls“bits and pieces”. Lazie Indie Magazine was the outcome ofthe friendships he had forged with Indie musiciansworldwide while promoting his music. His friend Manojwas steadfast in his belief in him and supported Jaythrough thick and thin. When Jay started LIM, he had afew things in mind. Firstly, musicians have an unspoken“understanding” of each other, so who better to representtheir “own”. Secondly, he felt that it should be a trueinternational magazine and not become attached to anyone musical geography. And thirdly, he wanted every artist,big named or otherwise, to have excellent coverage in themagazine and not just small mentions such as quarter-pagereferences. He firmly believes that every artist deservestheir fair chance to be noticed. He went on a quest to findcontributors and began to study each potential one wellbefore he asked them to write about fellow musicians. Hefelt they had to have a genuine interest to support fellowmusicians and also the capability to present them in aprofessional and entertaining manner. He insisted thateach person would need to state their identity to thereaders in their respective columns so that people wouldsincerely appreciate their efforts which in turn could helpinspire them to stay onboard. The magazine is a fullyvolunteer based entity. To Jay’s delight, the quality andefforts from the distinguished contributors has only grown.Each one has spent their valuable time to present fellowartists with utmost care which they might not even do forLIM Page88 Lazie Indie Contributors

themselves. It is plain to see the power ofhelping one another. Jay feels that if youkeep your goals simple, and authentic, theworld and universe, can come to yourdoor. Lazie Indie Magazine shows thatyou do not need a huge surplus of moneyor fame in order to build somethingwhich the world appreciates. For Jay, theBeatles song comes to mind, "All YouNeed is Love”. “The artists who writenow are those we previously featured inthe magazine. I had spent a lot of timewith each of them, noting theircapabilities and interest as well asinclination to help fellow artists and whenI felt the time was right, I approachedthem. We have been very cognizant ofadding people who will be able to offerthe most diverse and broad coverage andtypes of columns. It has been a veryrewarding and interesting journey.Readers so far average 30k for regulareditions and 4-5k for special editions,spread across 87 countries as per FBgroup data. Featured artists are frommore than 30 countries so far, all genresincluded. Almost 2k pages and more350+ artists have been interviewed. All ofthis began with only 5 artists and 20pages. A one man army to start with. Ineed to add a special commendation toInge Zimmerman-Probst for helping toproofread more than 2k pages of contentso far, although each writer does theirown proofing as well. One of my closefriends and a good artist once said that‘All Independent musicians are self-seekers who will not put in an ounce ofeffort to support a fellow artist’. Thatcomment in fact helped push me to put inthose extra efforts and now I am actuallyproud and happy to tell him that I havediscovered otherwise. Indie artistsactually help fellow artists selflessly andthey do a better job at it!”- Jay Pillai,Lazie Indie Magazine Founder/Editor/ Designer/PromotorIn ClosingJay Pillai has been modest and humble,hard working, tireless, encouraging,resourceful, supportive, kind, graciousand extremely dedicated. I cannot thankhim and the rest of the LIM Team enoughfor first approaching me those two yearsago and featuring my band and thengiving me the incredible opportunity towrite a column that is now a full-timesection of his fantastic and ‘ever- growing’magazine. I am in very good companywith the other writers, contributors, andartists! I am most grateful. I will continueto strive to serve the magazine as well as Iam able, in any capacity I can. Thank youto the readership. You continue to inspireour teams and the featured artists fromaround the globe, with your kind words ofsupport and loyalty. Keep reading andsharing theLazie Indie Magazinewhich allows us to celebrate the efforts ofsome phenomenal musicians/artists whodeserve to be seen and heard across theworld! And please join me in wishingLazie Indie Magazine a Happy 2ndAnniversary! I hope for the magazine,much continued success which withoutthe readers, artists and Lazie Team,couldn’t have happened. Kudos to you allwith gratitude! Well done! We are allMusicians/Artists helping otherMusicians/Artists and I feel humbledLIM Page89

to be a part of this extraordinary team.There will be lots more coming soon soplease stay tuned!. You can access thisarticle and other current/previousLazie Indie Magazine editions throughFacebook, and Digital News Stands-Magzter and Issuu.Cheers and Bless!Ann “Aria” Burstyn,CCC (Canadian Content Corner) &Canadian Content ConversationsSeries for the Lazie Indie Magazine,Singer for Dream Aria,Mother, Photographer, Artist, Advocatefor Human Health and Wellness, Loverof and Advocate for Animal/NatureHealth and Wellness, Seeker and Sharerof Truth and Beauty in all thingsSpiritual and The Divine by way of Art,Music and Nature with a mission toencourage, inspire and uplift othersalong their journey in life…Canadian Content Corner FacebookGroup:https://www.facebook.com/groups/3200350113546169/Ann Aria’s Offical Website:www.annburstyn.comAnn Aria’s Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/ann.burstyn.9/Dream Aria Facebook Page:https://www.facebook.com/AnndreamariaLazie Indie Official Website:https://www.lazieindiemagazine.com/Lazie Indie Facebook Group:https://www.facebook.com/groups/692319491585520/LIM Page90