2016 Tortuga Music Festival in Ft Lauderdale

Blake Shelton

Huka Entertainment is pleased to announce Rock The Ocean’s Tortuga Music Festival, now a three-day event, has added even more amazing performers to its already stellar music line-up. Joining country superstar headliners Blake Shelton, Tim McGraw and Dierks Bentley will be: Billboard’s Top New Country Artist of 2015 and rising star Kelsea Ballerini, innovators of deep southern soul St. Paul & the Broken Bones, high-energy, straight country honky-tonker Jon Pardi, Kristian Bush, whose debut solo album was dubbed by Country Weekly as the "feel-good album of the year" and the beautiful duo Muddy Magnolias who Elle Magazine described as a “country, soul, and R&B cocktail that's heavy on harmony and candid, occasionally gritty, lyrics.” The fourth annual festival returns to the sands of Fort Lauderdale Beach Park in Florida on April 15th, 16th and 17th. Fans will enjoy a one-of-a-kind Tortuga experience at our oceanfront event, including sun, friends, songs, and sand as well as an exclusive viewing deck with a pool for VIP attendees.

Also joining the headliners in the initial wave of performers announced are: genrebending multi-platinum star Sam Hunt, “Die A Happy Man” hit-maker Thomas Rhett, country chart-topper Billy Currington, raucous country-rocker Kip Moore, legendary rockers Lynyrd Skynyrd, funk and soul fusion band Michael Franti & Spearhead, powerhouse vocalist Randy Houser, “Freaks Like Me” crooner Joe Nichols, “Buy Me A Boat” dynamic live performer Chris Janson, “Smoke” supergroup A Thousand Horses, Florida native southern rock swamp band JJ Grey & Mofro, “Ex’s and Oh’s” blues pop-sensation Elle King, iHeartRadio personality Bobby Bones and his comedy band the Raging Idiots, “Little Bit Of You” singer Chase Bryant, country quintet Old Dominion and “Burning House” songbird Cam. Tortuga brings the best emerging artists as well and this year is no exception with: LANco, Waterloo Revival, Native Run, Walker County, Tucker Beathard, Old Southern Moonshine Revival, Ryan Hurd, Courtney Cole, and Drew Baldridge.

Regular priced festival tickets are now available, with three-day General Admission at $199 and VIP at $899. Complete festival pricing can also now be found at www.tortugamusicfestival.com. 

Tim Mcgraw

Last year’s sold-out festival drew a record-breaking attendance of more than 75,000 music fans from all over the world. Proceeds from Tortuga Music Festival ticket sales have contributed more than $250,000 toward marine and ocean research and conservation organizations to date.

Produced and promoted by HUKA Entertainment, Tortuga Music Festival features the hottest artists in country, rock and roots music as well as Rock The Ocean’s Conversation Village, which hosts more than a dozen organizations dedicated to marine research and conservation. The event serves to celebrate the festival’s ocean side setting while raising awareness of issues impacting the world’s oceans and supporting marine research and conservation, as well as protection of the festival’s namesake – sea turtles that nest annually along South Florida’s Atlantic seaboard.

For additional information, and to sign up to be the first to receive updates, including lineup announcements, ticket on sales, special offers and more, visit Tortuga Music Festival on the following platforms:



Web: www.tortugamusicfestival.com 

Twitter: @FestivalTortuga 

FB: www.facebook.com/TortugaMusicFestival

Sister Hazel Is Still Rockin'

There are a few people in South Florida who believe everything and everyone found in the city of Gainesville, Florida are closely related to the University of Florida. Of course, that is far from reality. Gainesville is a thriving community filled with wonderful citizens. Also of interest is the cultural side of life in Gainesville, especially music. That is why I thought it was important, not only for the Gainesville community but also for the entire state of Florida, to feature the music group Sister Hazel. The band has enjoyed a long music career and appears to be positioning for several more years in the entertainment industry. The band continues to actively tour the country, and has just recorded their ninth studio album Lighter In The Dark. The album is scheduled for release February 2016. If you get a chance, you might want to preorder right now. For now, if you do not know anything about Sister Hazel, read this post and learn about one of Florida’s great musical treasures.

Edward Reid

Originating from Gainesville, FL, Sister Hazel is comprised of five gifted, seasoned musicians whose well-spring of natural talent has been called "one of the Top 100 Most Influential Independent Performers of the last 15 years" by Performing Songwriter Magazine.

In the 20+ years that they have been recording and performing as a band, they have accomplished something that, for most artists, is only a dream: they have built a career with a solid foundation, seemingly impenetrable by the shifting sands of the record industry and the economy. From a musical perspective, the band has always had the same approach to the creative process. The engine that drives them is based on the fundamental principles that attracted the attention of a major label, garnered hit singles on the radio and endeared them to a legion of avid fans: well-crafted, hook-infused songs complimented by solid instrumentation and lush harmony vocals.

For much of the last decade, Sister Hazel has built an empire of 'Hazelnuts' through savvy marketing, hard work, and plain-old, undeniable talent. They also host two annual fan-centered events; their “Hazelnut Hang” in Charleston, SC and The Rockboat, a cruise featuring nonstop opportunities for fan / artist interaction. "The only way we can keep doing what we are doing is by having our fans continue to connect and support us," said Drew Copeland. Commercial pursuit’s aside, at the heart of this band is their desire to do good work. The band itself is named after a now-famous missionary from the Gainesville area who has dedicated her life to making a difference in the lives of her fellow humans. Sister Hazel the band is true to their namesake, having taken on two major charitable projects with Feed The Children and Lyrics For Life. Lyrics For Life is a charity founded by singer Ken Block as a memorial for his younger brother, Jeffrey. It unites musicians and celebrities for concerts and auctions to benefit cancer research and patient-care charities.

  

With their 9th studio album, Lighter In The Dark, in the works, the band is embracing their roots and their Florida Music influences wholeheartedly. This legacy has always caused the band’s music to defy genre classification and to blur the lines between rock, country, and southern rock. As their first studio album in more than 5 years, the guys are certainly eager to get the new music to their loyal fan base and to work the new music into their high energy live shows as they continue to tour the country in 2016.

The dream for all musicians is to find a way to use their gifts to support themselves and their families at the same time they are enriching the lives of others. For Sister Hazel, it's an honor to be living that dream every day.

ENTANGLED PUBLISHING CEO AND HIT SONG PRODUCER LAUNCH NEW MUSIC VENTURE

Leveraging the success of Entangled Publishing’s author-centric business model, CEO and publisher Liz Pelletier has partnered with hit songwriter and producer David Elliott Johnson to form Entangled Music Group and a new musician-centric business model. Entangled Music plans initial focus to be on their first label, Subtext Records, which releases "character inspired" soundtracks based on new and popular books for inclusion with purchase, as well as streaming. Separate tracks will also be available for purchase on all major retailers.

“Music is an amazing medium for storytelling and evoking strong emotions,” says Liz Pelletier, Publisher at Entangled Publishing. “In this digital age, the pairing of music inspired by books creates multimedia novels that can not only enhance the reading experience, but allow the work to become part of our everyday lives and playlists.”

Subtext Records leaps over previous platform hurdles for enhanced e-books via a unique combination of embedded technologies, separate retail availability of enhanced content, and streaming capabilities on their own website platform. In addition, authors and artists are now able to reach new market segments via agreed upon cross-promotion licensing terms, bringing together avid readers and avid music lovers.

“I was super excited when I was approached to be included in this amazing opportunity to add original music inspired by the Lux Series into the actual novels,” says #1 NYT Bestselling Author Jennifer L. Armentrout. “It’s been an exciting process, and I hope the readers enjoy the music as much as I have, plus the additional insight into Kat and Daemon.”

Gold and Platinum award-winning songwriter and producer David Elliott Johnson, recognized for his most recent #1 single and Grammy-nominated Blake Shelton song, "Over", is excited to bring his 30 plus years of music business acumen to this new arena of original artist-inspired soundtracks for books.

“In this time where music seems to hold no value, it is important to evaluate the current systems of creation distribution,” says David Elliott Johnson, President of Entangled Music. “I’m excited to be a part of a new venture that has not only developed new creative outlets for artists and songwriters to be promoted and discovered, but also the ability to generate quality revenue streams for those artists and songwriters. Entangled Music is a new music model, one that works for everyone involved.”

About Liz Pelletier

Liz Pelletier is the co-founder, CEO, and publisher of Entangled Publishing, an independent publisher of romantic fiction in both the adult and young adult markets distributed globally by Macmillan Distribution. Since its first release in July 2011, Entangled has published more than 970 titles, including the #8 bestselling book of 2012 by Jennifer Probst, as well as the blockbuster young adult novel, Obsidian, by Jennifer L. Armentrout. Entangled has since grown to thirteen imprints, with 42 titles appearing on the USA Today Bestsellers list and 14 titles on the NYT Bestsellers list. Currently, Entangled releases approximately 30-45 titles per month in digital-first format and 2 per month in simultaneous print and digital formats.

About David Elliott Johnson

David Elliott Johnson is a successful songwriter, drummer, and record producer. His song writing has landed him Top 10 hits around the globe. His latest success with Country superstar and judge on the hit TV show “The Voice”, Bake Shelton, gained him Gold and Platinum awards with the Grammy-nominated song, “Over”. This original composition of David’s was #1 on the Billboard Hot Country charts in Canada and the US for 2 weeks. He has also had hit radio success in Spain and Bulgaria. As a 3rd generation drummer he has shared the stage with musical legends Bruce Springsteen, Don Henley, Sheryl Crow, and Tito Puente, to name a few. David has also made a name for himself with some of the biggest names in film and television based on his compositions and orchestral arrangements. The majority of his music was composed, performed, and produced by himself in his own production facility, The Sound Asylum, based in the beautiful beach community of historic St Augustine, Fl.

About Entangled Music

Entangled Music an independent music company founded by Entangled Publishing CEO Liz Pelletier and Grammy-nominated songwriter David Elliott Johnson with two initial labels: Subtext Records which specializes in soundtracks for popular books, and Caffeinated Records which focuses on debut solo albums. The first singles from Subtext Records were released on November 2, 2015 and feature original music for the young adult sci-fi thriller listed by Buzzfeed.com as one of the most anticipated novels of 2015, FORGET TOMORROW. 

Raquel Sofia Back Home at University of Miami

Raquel Sofía 

When I started publishing the Florida Music Letter in this electronic form, I previously launched a music blog called Weekly Music Commentary two years earlier. The two publications were different because Florida Music Letter featured music makers from the state of Florida. It also was not limited to popular artists, as I have featured music studios, colleges, events and venues. Nevertheless, I always knew the day would come when I featured an artist in both publications. In fact, I was looking forward to the time and opportunity for the occasion. However, I did not think it would take place in the same month. I have accomplished what I thought would happen three years into publishing Florida Music Letter. After interviews and events featuring so many fine Florida musicians, the first has found her place in both publications. Raquel Sofia, the rising Latin singer/songwriter is the featured Florida musician this month. Last week Raquel appeared in concert at the Festival Miami 2015. The performance was held at the Gusman Concert Hall on the campus of her alma mater University of Miami. I’m sure you will enjoy her story.

Edward Reid

Raquel Sofía graduated from the University of Miami with a bachelors degree in studio music and jazz. Originally from Mayaüez, Puerto Rico, she plays guitar and sings in Spanish, English and Portuguese.

Singer/songwriter Raquel Sofía is a Spotify “2015 Artist To Watch,” grossing over 3.6 million streams on Spotify in just 6 months, and over 9 million streams to date.  Winner of the Rudy Perez Songwriting Award, her first single “Agridulce” was named one of Beats Music’s “Best of 2014 Pop” songs.

A digital phenomenon, Raquel Sofía’s first EP, Te Odio Los Sábados, has already received over 7.6 million streams on Spotify. Her “Tiny Desk Concert” on NPR has more than 72,000 views.  She is the first Latin artist on “Vevo DSCVR,” with over 100,000 views.

Raquel Sofía’s big break came singing backup for Juanes on MTV Unplugged. She then toured as opener and backup singer with Juanes, appearing at the Latin Billboards Music Awards, Billboard Music Awards, and Latin Grammys.  She sang backup for Shakira at the 2014 American Music Awards, Tonight Show, and The Voice (UK).

Raquel Sofía recorded vocals for the Grammy winning track “Ula Ula” by Illya Kuryaki & The Valderramas, featured in Target’s “Summer Up” campaign, and she wrote and performed on HBO’s 2015 Game Of Thrones Mix Tape.

click the link below to read the article featuring Raquel Sofia in Weekly Music Commentary

Weekly Music Commentary - Raquel Sofia

Festival Miami—Florida’s Premier Live Music Festival—provides world-class musical programming in diverse styles to all of South Florida, as it continues its cultural and community legacy. The University of Miami Frost School of Music hosts Festival Miami on its picturesque Coral Gables campus in comfortable and intimate venues including the newly renovated Maurice Gusman Concert Hall and the Weeks Center for Recording and Performance. Festival sponsors enjoy high-impact visibility and advertising throughout the festival including stage banners, printed program books, brochure mailers and throughout our extensive media campaign.

Festival Miami presents 25 to 30 concerts each October and November featuring Grammy Award winning and internationally acclaimed musical guest artists, master faculty artists, and award-winning student ensembles. Several events are offered free of admission each season and educational components such as master classes, open rehearsals, and hosted conversations with artists are also presented. Residents and visitors to South Florida are invited to partake in all that Festival Miami has to offer - from world premieres and symphonic concerts, to chamber music presentations and jazz performances, and much more.

click the link below for more information about Festival Miami

Festival Miami 2015

photos by Amanda Julca