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Reality RocksEXCLUSIVE: Blake Lewis Signs To Republic Records, Teases New Tune
“American Idol” Season 6’s beatboxing runner-up Blake Lewis hasn’t released a full-length album since his underrated 2009 Tommy Boy Records release, Heartbreak On Vinyl (the follow-up to 2007’s Audio Day Dream, which came out on the “Idol”-affiliated BMG). But he has never stopping working, recording, and collaborating, and those tireless efforts are finally paying off….as Yahoo!’s Reality Rocks is thrilled to exclusively announce that Blake has signed to major label Republic Records (home to Drake, Florence + The Machine, Alex Clare, Gotye, and many more). Blake’s third album, officially titled Portrait Of A Chameleon, will be released by Republic this spring.
Portrait’s first single, “Your Touch,” will debut on a massive, global scale this Tuesday, but below is a 30-second snippet of the hard-charging electro-anthem’s killer chorus. Sounds like Blake and Republic may have a hit on their hands:
Obviously, it is nearly impossible for any artist, particularly one that came to fame via a reality show, to get a second or third chance in the music business. But Blake cites more than just hard work when he is asked how he bucked the industry’s odds. “Besides my devotion to my craft, I really owe my career to my fans,” he stresses. “After my television experience, it opened a lot of doors into people’s lives and as soon as my music hit, the response was overwhelming. My fans truly keep me alive and striving to become a better version of myself every time I write a new album. I've been performing music for more than half my life, and my gratitude to the people who have supported me has never faltered. My fans rule! With that said, continuing to write, produce, and compose has brought a lot of new relationships to the table within the industry, which has allowed me different opportunities to keep working and collaborating through my music.”
So what can fans expect from the new album? “The vibe of Portrait Of A Chameleon is fun, sexy, and positive,” says Blake. “The sound that I have been striving for is somewhat of a hybrid. The foundation of instruments are guitar Rhodes, beatbox, and ‘Decepticon’ bass—which I coined because my co-producer is an amazing sound designer and all the bass noises sound like evil Transformers. Everything we have made for this album is handcrafted, coming from an organic place. I’ve been writing it for over a year, and throughout that time I get inspired in different ways, so the sound is ever-evolving. I’ve also had the honor and pleasure writing with one of my favorite frontmen from one of my favorite bands—I don’t want to name names yet! This project is really close to my heart, so I've only reached out to people I trust and care about. My last couple of albums had too many people involved, and the creative had become lost because of it.”
Watch this space for more details on Portrait Of A Chameleon and the global launch of “Your Touch” (trust me, it is going to be huge)…but in the meantime, check out some bonus instrumental audio of “Your Touch” below. Congratulations to Blake on his new record deal and new phase of his career!
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