Vocal Arts

Jonny Stewart: Music of the Wellermen

Jonny Stewart is a bass singer, an engineer for studio and live sound, and an arranger/director. Jonny’s arrangements and mixes have been streamed over twenty million times on Spotify, although it bears mentioning that fourteen million of these were for TikTok sea shanty ‘Wellerman’, by the Wellermen. In addition to his work with the Wellermen, Jonny sings in London-based group NoVI, alongside freelance choir and session work.

Peter and Jonny talk about the rise of sea shanties, going viral on short-form media, going on tour, audio engineering, mixing & mastering, future plans for The Wellermen, and much more. Please welcome Jonny Stewart.

Teagan Earley: The Voice of Athena

Teagan Earley is a Chicago-based singer, actor, and producer, and the proud co-founder of Sisters First Productions—a Tony and Emmy award-winning production company and entertainment fund that seeks to support women, early career artists, early stage businesses, and other vehicles for underrepresented voices using cutting edge technology and original, hybrid content. Throughout her performance career, which includes theatre, concert, and opera credits, she has trained with world-class instructors such as Melissa Foster, Betsy Wolfe, Kiera Duffy, and Nathan Gunn. Her voice is currently being featured as Athena on the Original Concept Album of "EPIC" - the musical that first went viral on TikTok and has amassed more than 100 million views (and counting), debuted as #9 on Spotify with more than 3 million streams in its first week (doubling that to 6 million by the end of its second week), and climbed to the #2 Cast Albums spot on the Billboard Charts, surpassed only by "Hamilton".

Peter and Teagan talk about the origins of EPIC: The Musical, what it was like to be involved with that project from the ground up, the challenges and triumphs of being a live performer, career goals and ambitions, potential collaborations, upcoming endeavors, and much more. Please welcome Teagan Earley.

Davide Dalmonte: Bass Singing Prodigy

Davide Dalmonte is a 19-year-old bass singer, songwriter, and producer. He has amassed over 1.5 followers on TikTok via covers, adding bass lines to popular TikToks via the duet feature. Lately, Davide has entered the world of original music, with new songs coming out in the near future. 

Peter and Davide talk about creating music in short form media, what it's like to "go viral," distortion of singing expectations due to the "TikTokification" of music, career and musical goals, psychological challenges of being a creator with a large following, our admiration for other creators in the space, like Bobby Bass, Marwan Ayman, Danny Brevik, and much more. Please welcome Davide Dalmonte.

Colm McGuinness: Video Game Vocals

Colm McGuinness is an Irish composer, producer, musician, and singer. Primarily, he composes and works as a studio artist in the video game sphere for major titles like Critical Role, League of Legends, and more. In addition, Colm produces high-quality covers for his YouTube channel and streaming services, where he has garnered hundreds of millions views/streams, and millions of followers. In the online space, he has become well-known for his extensive vocal range and instrumental prowess. 

Peter and Colm talk about composing music for major video games, artistic goals, dealing with haters, working as a bartender, making lemonade out of lemons (a "limoncello cocktail," rather) when the pandemic hit in 2020, vocal range, social media, and much more. Please welcome Colm McGuinness in his first-and-only appearance on a podcast.

If you'd like to take your singing to the next level, Colm and I highly recommend StudioBrev, the most handsome of all voice studios! Check it out here: https://crm.studiobrev.com/webinar-registration-page-9946-3885?am_id=peter_barber

Charlie Hopkinson: One Man, 100 Voices

Charlie Hopkinson is a UK impressionist with over 500 million views across platforms. Best known for his impressions of Morgan Freeman, David Attenborough, the Peaky Blinders, and now, many of the iconic voices from the Star Wars universe, Charlie has gained the requisite popularity to go on tour for stand-up comedy, where he brilliantly incorporates impressions into his act. 

Peter and Charlie talk about creating impressions, voice acting, building an online platform, incorporating impressions into stand-up comedy, the challenges of performing live as an impressionist, and Charlie even does a number of his famous impressions in real time. Please welcome Charlie Hopkinson.

Marwan Ayman: Acapella Prodigy

Marwan Ayman is a 20-year-old acapella musician from Egypt who gained fame on YouTube as a member of The Bass Gang. His viral "build-up" covers contributed significantly to his rise in popularity, and have earned him nearly 20,000 subscribers on YouTube. As a member of The Bass Gang, he has written many of the group's most popular arrangements, including; Hide and Seek feat. Lauren Paley, Emperor's New Clothes, and Arabian Nights. Marwan is considered by many to be the greatest young talent in the acapella world, and is recognized for his abilities to not only write and produce music, but for his video editing skills as well. 

 

Peter and Marwan talk about the current state of acapella, the evolution of acapella, living in Egypt, growing up in a musical family, favorite projects, arrangement process, and much more. Please welcome Marwan Ayman.

Gavin Dunne: Miracle of Sound

From the guest: "I'm Gav, an independent producer/songwriter & singer from Ireland. My music and songs, under the name 'Miracle Of Sound,' cover a vast range of genres & styles from metal to folk to classical. They have become popular through grassroots word of mouth and gathered over a billion cross-platform digital streams, with my biggest hit 'Valhalla Calling' (which I wrote & performed solo) gathering over 120 million streams. 

 

I love to celebrate great stories in my songs and many of them are inspired by the characters & tales in TV, Videogames, books & movies. I often work on cross promotion with various videogame industry companies including Ubisoft, Bioware, EA, Larian and Bethesda for titles such as Mass Effect, Assassin’s Creed, Divinity Original Sin 2, Wasteland 2 and Watch Dogs. My music is known for addictive, catchy hooks, empowering themes and a diverse range of genres & song structures.

 

Peter and Gavin talk about writing music that gets heard by the millions, Gav's writing process and production style, getting fired from non-musical jobs, controversy over cover songs, and much more. Please welcome Gavin Dunne.

Corvyx: Authentic Artist

Alternative enigma Corvyx concocts an elixir of cinematic dark pop, pairing his ethereal productions with haunting vocals that drip with raw emotion and power. He dons a self-proclaimed “space witch” aesthetic and, with his 5 octave range, has captivated an audience of nearly 1M+ social followers he calls his Corvyx Coven. His name finds origin in the magical Corvus (”Raven” in Latin) for he too has become a messenger for the misunderstood. With nearly 200K YouTube subscribers and 24 million+ YouTube views and growing, Corvyx has proven himself an undeniable visionary and a musical force.

 

Casper Fox: Behind the Brand

Casper Fox is a brand manager and musician, who has contributed significantly to the success of groups like The Bass Gang and The Wellermen, as well as the personal brands of creators like Peter Barber and Jennifer Glatzhofer. 

Will Liverman: The Future of Opera

Called, “a voice for this historic moment” (The Washington Post), GRAMMY Award-winning baritone Will Liverman is the 2022 Beverly Sills Artist Award recipient and co-creator of The Factotum (Lyric Opera Chicago, 2023 world premiere). This season’s engagements include the Metropolitan Opera (X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X, Roméo et Juliette), Opera Philadelphia (10 Days in a Madhouse, world premiere), Dayton Opera, Tanglewood, Caramoor, Cincinnati Song Initiative, Lexington Philharmonic, Houston Symphony, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, The Washington Chorus, Grand Rapids Choir of Men and Boys, Nu Deco Ensemble, and Experiential Orchestra. He’s Artistic Advisor for Renée Fleming’s Song Studio at Carnegie Hall. Liverman’s Dreams of a New Day: Songs by Black Composers (Cedille Records, 2021) was nominated for a GRAMMY Award for Best Classical Solo Vocal Album. He’s an alumnus of the Ryan Opera Center (Lyric Opera of Chicago), The Juilliard School (M.M.), and Wheaton College (B.M.). www.willliverman.com. Please welcome Will Liverman.