Image Credit: SUBMITTED/Andrew Allen
May 09, 2020 - 12:00 PM
Vernon singer/songwriter Andrew Allen is thinking of creative ways to share his music with the community during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The local singer, who is known for collaborations with Carly Rae Jepsen and Cody Simpson, released a new “sombre” album May 1, titled “The Writing Room.”
The album was originally recorded two years ago, but was only available to concert-goers through USB sticks. With the global pandemic, Allen wanted a larger audience to enjoy it.
“It made me think, why am I keep this thing so sacred where nobody else can get it when everyone’s stuck at home right now?” he said.
The new album, his sixth full-length release, is available on Apple Music and Spotify.
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“There’s a lot of people that maybe need to hear some of the songs as well. The songs are a little more low-key and a little more sombre than some of the other stuff I’ve released. I thought it was a good opportunity to release something that people would have the time to listen to,” Allen said.
On Saturday, Allen performed the entire album during a live-stream broadcast to fans via his Facebook page.
“With this one, I wanted to do something unique so people who have tuned in aren’t already watching the same concert and I thought since I was releasing this album, and some of these songs I’ve never played live, (I decided to) played the entire album from front to back,” he said. “It was a really fun experience.”
“It’s an interesting time and a lot of music people are missing out on big concerts… you can only watch so many pre-recorded concerts and eventually you want to see something a little more real.”
Allen is also available for private bookings, performing via Zoom or YouTube.
“We can actually talk back and forth so it actually gives people the opportunity to have their own concerts,” he said.
Allen just launched the initiative and his first guests are from Ontario, he said.
Aleen has scored five Top 10 hits in Canada. His biggest single released in 2010, "Loving You Tonight,” reached the top of the charts for more than 22 weeks and broke the US Top 30 while gaining more than four million YouTube views.
To find out more about Allen and to listen to his music, visit his website.
This story was originally published May 5.
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