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http://smarturl.it/acousticsessionsep“My new album Surfers Paradise is the first time that I've really known
from the get-go exactly how I wanted the music to sound,” says Cody
Simpson. “I wanted to show the world how I'm evolving and that I’ve
really discovered who I am as an artist.” Surfers Paradise picks up
where Cody’s previous 2012 debut full-length Paradise, left off, telling
the story of how this talented teenage singer, song
writer,
and musician, now 16, traded the sunny shores of his native Queensland,
Australia, for the sunny shores of Los Angeles to pursue his dream of
being performer.
“Surfers Paradise is basically the most
famous area on the Gold Coast of Australia, where I am from,” Cody
explains. “I think this album really represents that piece of me and my
lifestyle there. Making Paradise felt like a journey to find myself as a
young adult and artist. With 'Surfers Paradise' the entire process felt
more natural, like being back home. I wanted to share that feeling with
my fans.”
Cody co-wrote every song on Surfers Paradise, which
brims with a mix of summery, upbeat and mellow pop tracks like “La Da
Dee", “Imma Be Cool” (featuring rapper Asher Roth), “Love (featuring
Ziggy Marley) and the first single “Pretty Brown Eyes” — Cody’s fresh,
new take on girls with brown eyes, like a “Brown-Eyed Girl” for 2013.
Hailed by Billboard as a “happy-go-lucky summer anthem,” the song is a
Radio Disney favorite, while the video, directed by Cameron Duddy (Bruno
Mars, Cee Lo Green, P!nk), is a YouTube sensation, earning nearly four
million views and climbing.
Surfers Paradise also shows how
Cody has matured as an artist with reflective, acoustic guitar-driven
tunes like “Awake All Night,” (which Cody wrote, produced, and performed
himself), “Sinkin’ In,” “Rainy Day,” and the yearning, nostalgic
“Summertime of Our Lives,” which Cody says is one of his favorites.
Several songs have a distinct reggae vibe, like “Love” and “No Ceiling,”
the latter featuring guest vocals by Ziggy Marley, Bob’s son and a
beloved artist in his own right. “To have Ziggy on there is just
insane,” Cody says. “It’s an honor to work with Ziggy, I have a deep
respect for his music and the music his father gave to us.”
“I
am 100 percent confident in this album,” Cody says. “I feel like the
title, the sound, and the music all go really well together and
represent exactly who I am.”
Music has played an integral part
in Cody’s life since he was a child. Watching his dad sing and play
guitar for friends and family at parties and backyard barbecues taught
him the power that music has to bring people together. Inspired, he
asked for his own guitar and began taking lessons at the age of seven.
After learning a few chords, Cody wrote his first song. He continued
practicing and soon began posting YouTube videos of himself performing
his original songs alongside stellar covers by some of his favorite
artists like Justin Timberlake, Jason Mraz, and Jack Johnson, racking up
millions of views.
In April 2010, Cody released his debut
single, “iYiYi” (featuring Flo Rida) and began to win over U.S. fans
with a series of dynamic live performances including 2010. Cody and his
family soon relocated to Los Angeles. Atlantic released his debut EP, 4
U, in December, which spawned the No. 1 Radio Disney hit “All Day.”
In September 2011, Simpson made a stunning chart debut with Coast to
Coast, which entered Billboard’s album chart at No. 12 and earned Cody
his second Radio Disney No. 1, “On My Mind.” The “On My Mind” companion
video — directed by Travis Kopach (Panic! At The Disco, 3OH!3, Boys Like
Girls) — is also a certified YouTube blockbuster with over 18 million
views. Cody currently has nearly 5 million Twitter followers and nearly
five million Facebook likes, in addition to 150 million YouTube views on
his official channel, Cody Simpson Music.
Cody has made a
host of high-profile TV appearances, including The Today Show, Live!
with Kelly, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, Bucket & Skinner’s Epic
Adventures, So Random, The Early Show, and The Ellen DeGeneres Show, not
to mention as a performer and mentor on Radio Disney and the Disney
Channel’s “N.B.T. (Next Big Thing)” talent contest. He was among the top
stars featured at Nickelodeon’s 2012 Kids Choice Awards where he
presented and took home the award for “Favorite Aussie Star,” and at
Australian Nickelodeon’s 2011 Kids Choice Awards, where he won “Awesome
Aussie,” “Aussie Muso,” and the prestigious “Super Fresh.” Cody
showcased his latest tracks “Pretty Brown Eyes” and “Awake All Night” as
part of a stellar live appearance at the 2013 Radio Disney Music
Awards.
Cody has also been profiled in a range of national
publications, while also receiving extensive TV coverage including E!
News and Access Hollywood. He starred in the 2012 original film, Finding
Cody. Presented by Warner Music Group’s original YouTube Channel “The
Warner Sound,” Finding Cody made history as the first interactive
YouTube movie featuring a major musical artist.
In addition,
Cody, a natural and charismatic performer, has toured nearly non-stop,
including his sold-out “Welcome to Paradise” headline tour, co-headline
tours with Big Time Rush, and appearances at such events as the White
House Easter Egg Roll and the Arthur Ashe Kids Day festivities at the
U.S. Open. Cody’s own Coast To Coast Tour of U.S. malls drew huge crowds
everywhere it went in 2011, with more than 3,000 fans turning out at
each of its 10 stops to see the rising teen star in action.
In
2012, Cody launched his first-ever European headlining tour and hit the
road as support for Justin Bieber’s U.S. and European Believe Tour,
playing to crowds of 20,000. “It was a great experience for me. I was
really motivated to make my show even better by watching what Justin and
his team were doing on the Believe Tour,” Cody says. “I had to prove
myself on his tour. My goal was to go out there every night, get people
up on their feet, and turn everyone in that arena into a fan of mine.”
Cody also kicked off his Paradise Tour, which visited 36 cities in
North America.
In October, HarperCollins published Cody’s
official autobiography Welcome To Paradise: My Journey, which
features never-before-seen photos and exclusive details about Cody’s life
on and off stage, including his early years as a competitive swimmer.
“I really wanted to tell my story in my own words and share my
experiences,” Cody says. “Everything I do, whether it's the music, the
live shows, and now the book, is about letting the fans get to know me
better. I want them to feel as if we’re mates.”