GET FUNKY WITH THESE NU-FUNK ARTISTS
BY BRENESSA ROACH | FEBRUARY 18 2023
If you are a fan of ‘70s funk or even a fan of newer funk songs like “Uptown Funk” by Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars, then this article is for you.
Nu-Funk is a new form of the 1970s genre funk. This form started around mid-1990’s and early 2000’s when emerging bands and artists started imitating the sound of 1970’s and 1980’s deep funk mixed with modern sounds and production techniques.
In this article, I will be sharing 6 newer artists that have the 1970’s funk style mixed with a newer sound. Let’s begin!
The Free Label is a group from Toronto, Canada that infuses Nu-Funk with R&B, soul and pop. The group consists of 6 members; Josh Daniel (lead vocalist/guitarist and saxophonist). Mathew Fantini (bassist, backing vocalist and does production), Cole Mendez (keyboardist/plays organ and synthesizers) and Malik Mungo (drummer and guitarist). They currently have 38K monthly listeners. I started listening to The Free Label in January 2022 after discovering their song “All Night” (which is actually featured on the homepage of our website). After listening to this song, I listened to the other songs of The Free Label and their style is literally so unique and so groovy. They are kind of the reason that I wanted to write this blog.
Now, not every song of theirs is Nu-Funk. For example, “All Night” is more indie-rock and “I Don’t Think” is more R&B with rap. However, their most funky song that I love is their release from October 2022 titled “On To The Next One”. This song follows the typical funk tempo and instrumental style. As well, the vocalists have a very groovy, ‘70s vocal style. This song is literally the perfect example of Nu-Funk and I had to share it since The Free Label are quite underrated still.
Listen to “On To The Next One” by The Free Label on Spotify:
Check out The Free Label on Instagram: @freelabellove
Skyler Acord is a 32 year old bassist and vocalist from Washington, DC in America. He is in the alt-metal band Issues. Additionally, he was the bassist for Twenty One Pilots on their tour in 2021. In September 2022, he made his solo-debut with the single “knew it all along” which is more R&B infused with dance-pop. However, his latest release “made of” from November 2022 is a very funky, upbeat song. I actually discovered this song in Spotify’s curated playlist “Nu-Funk”. I am a huge fan of bass and this song is so bass heavy mixed with other instruments and techniques found in ‘70s funk. I really hope Skyler releases more music in this style because it suits his voice really well.
Listen to “made of” by Skyler Acord on Spotify:
Check out Skyler Acord on Instagram: @skyduck64
PREP is a 4 member British alternative-indie band that blends many genres such as; classical, hip-hop, pop, funk and house. The band formed in 2015 and consists of Tom Havelock (vocalist), Llywelyn ap Myrddin (keyboardist), Dan Radclyffe (guitarist) and Guillaume Jambel (drummer). I recently came across PREP because of their May 2018 EP Cold Fire. I absolutely fell in love with the album cover so naturally I clicked on the EP. I was genuinely shocked when I saw the first song “Cold Fire” is a collaboration with South Korean R&B singer DEAN. I love DEAN’s music, but because I only got into Korean music around late 2017, I have missed so many of the releases around that time. Hence why I never knew about this collaboration. This EP consists of 4 songs and they all are in that Nu-Funk genre infused with other musical styles. My favourite song is “Cold Fire” which is the collaboration with DEAN.
Listen to “Cold Fire” by PREP and DEAN on Spotify:
Check out PREP on Instagram: @prepband
Louis Cole is an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He is also in the jazz-funk/electronic duo Knower alongside Genevieve Artadi. He made his solo debut in February 2010 with his self-titled debut album Louis Cole. I started listening to Louis Cole in August 2022 with the release of his single “Let It Happen”. This has become one of my all time favourite songs, but it’s more on the R&B genre side. However, my favourite song of his that has the Nu-Funk feel is his single “Park Your Car on My Face” which is featured on his newest album Quality Over Opinion which was released in October 2022. Additionally, this song and two other songs from the album are currently featured in Spotify’s curated playlist “Nu-Funk”.
Listen to “Park Your Car on My Face” by Louis Cole on Spotify:
Check out Louis Cole on Instagram: @louiscolemusic
CAPYAC is my newest discovery. They are a French house/electronic music duo consisting of Delwin Campbell and Eric Peana. They are based out of Austin, Texas and are a duo that often mix a bunch of genres into their typical house/electronic music genre. Their musical style is so unique and upbeat. I personally really like the song “GOODTIME” which is very Nu-Funk from the syncopated drum beat to the funky/warped synthesizer to the way the vocals are mixed and sang. This song is also super danceable and catchy and I especially love the instrumental outro.
Listen to “GOODTIME” by CAPYAC on Spotify:
Check out CAPYAC on Instagram: @capyac
Raja-Nee’ is a singer-songwriter from Chicago. She used to be a recording artist for Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. She has been creating solo music since 1994 with the release of her album Hot & Ready. I recently discovered her music through the Nu-Funk Spotify playlist which featured her song “Love In A Groove”. This song was released in October 2021 and it truly puts you in a groove.
Listen to “Love In A Groove” by Raja-Nee’ on Spotify:
Check out Raja-Nee’ on Instagram: @rajanee1212
You can find the songs mentioned in this article on our Spotify playlist below:
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