Museums & Music

WITTERQUICK, Mara Tancu and Amy Monzon Top This Week's BEAT100 World Music Video Chart!

WITTERQUICK finish in the top spot of this week's World Music Video Chart with their hit original track 'TheOtherside'! The English band, based in Exeter, only formed 18 months ago but have already made a splash with their debut single gaining over 10,000 views since December. This popularity has also extended to theBEAT100 community; 'The Otherside' shot into the top 5 within its first week of chart entry, quickly rising to1st place just one week later! The upbeat rock track has racked up over 1300 views on BEAT100 alone as well as gaining three Gold Awards from the BEAT100 A&R team. All of the WITTERQUICK members have been part of various bands over the years, honing and developing their talents before finally combining their individual musical tastes 18 months ago. The group have since written over 20 original songs but only the best of the bunch make the final cut. They tell BEAT100 'We pick out the songs we love, the songs that have that energy in them that is so lacking in music for the last decade or so. With the response we’re getting, after only being active for a short while, it’s clear that we’re not alone. We have something that other bands don’t.' Influenced by rock sounds from the 70s and 80s, WITTERQUICK gain their inspiration from bands such as Guns and Roses and Pink Floyd, along with more modern bands who carry this classic rock sound into the 21st century, such as Biffy Clyro and Brand New. The fledgling musicians have made a great start to their musical careers and have gained a great response for their debut track 'The Otherside' which will officially be released on March 10th. Currently, WITTERQUICK are preparing for various support slots over the next few months and, most excitingly, are gearing up to record their debut EP in just three weeks time! Talking to BEAT100 about their upcoming busy schedule, WITTERQUICK say, 'We couldn’t be more excited to get these songs out, and because we’re unsigned we can release what we want, when we want.'

Second place in this week's chart was won by Romanian songstress Mara Tancu! Mara has won over theBEAT100 community with the sweet and strong vocals that she provides on a variety of cover songs. Her winning track this week is a passionate cover of 'Going Nowhere' originally by British girl band, Little Mix. The track has won her three Silver awards and currently has over 1300 views on BEAT100 alone. The young singer gains inspiration from her idol Christina Aguilera as well as other influential young female artists such as Pixie Lott and Little Mix. Mara says that she admires her idols and looks to them when recording her impressive cover tracks, however, she strives to develop her own style and add her own personal twist to her music. Mara tells BEAT100 'Music is my happiness. I feel a great pleasure just listening to it and I am so grateful that God gave me the necessary qualities to be able to sing. Although it's a cliché, MUSIC IS MY LIFE!'. Despite her young years, Mara has taken part in various national and international singing contests, proving her talent and finishing in the Top three in every single one! Mara has also gone so far to claim national TV fame after appearing on the international Next Star Romania contest which aired on one of the country's most popular channels. For now, Mara is working on honing her talent and challenging herself as much as she can in order to perfect her performance and develop her musical style. She aims to one day share the stage with her idols and we are sure that she is not very far away from achieving her goal!

Californian pop star Amy Monzon finished in third place this week with her debut original single 'Love Song'. Amy, from San Diego, California only released 'Love Song' at the beginning of the year but is already gaining amazing recognition, including three Gold awards from the BEAT100 A&R team! As a child Amy would often sing her favourite song, Celine Dion's 'My Heart Will Go On', to her imaginary legions of fans and now it seems that Amy is well on her way to achieving her childhood dream. Amy's love for music continued throughout college after she joined a girl band in her freshman year. After leaving the band to focus on her studies, the budding singer decided to pursue a solo career after her graduation. Despite only beginning to post songs on YouTube one year ago, Amy has already performed at some legendary venues, including House of Blues, Whiskey a Go-Go and Gibson Amphitheater. She also enjoys regularly performing at a variety of venues in her local area and is steadily growing a solid fan base who love her upbeat pop style. Amy's winning track this week, 'Love Song' may have only been released a few weeks ago but the powerful pop production and catchy lyrics make it seem as if the young singer is a seasoned professional. We can see Amy progressing far in her music career and can't wait to see her in the charts again!

Written for www.BEAT100.com