JUSTIN BIEBER’S FORMER “BOYFRIEND”, THE MALE TAYLOR SWIFT, AND A GAY LOVERS’ TIFF IN THE DESERT – YES, THAT’S THE SOUND OF 2018, SAYS MARC ANDREWS.

MARC ANDREWS.

NBT / BOOKS

THE NEXT BIG THING

THE HOT NEW HUNK: ANIMAL VENTURE

He’s been on the scene for almost a decade using his real name, Fernando Aragones. But the handsome muso decided it was time to create a new persona and so – Animal Venture it is. Fusing South American funk with coastal Aussie folk he’s been compared to Stevie Wonder. “I love how music can transport you to different times and places”, Animal reckons, “and how it can break boundaries between language and culture. It moves you, even if you’re standing still. That’s cool.” Animal Venture’s debut album, Forrest St, features the single Animal and if it’s cool, cruisey beach music you’re after you’ve come to the right place. That Fernando, sorry, “Animal” is also easy on the eye does not hurt one bit.

LE FILLE FRANÇAISE: JAIN

Twenty-five-year-old Jain is already blowing up in her homeland, France with her debut album Zanaka going to #5. Calling her “the Northern Hemisphere’s Lorde” isn’t off the mark. Along with Christine And The Queens, Jain proves that modern French pop is exportable. Jain’s song Makeba, about South African singer, Miriam Makeba, caught the attention of Jaden Smith, who broadcast the song live to more than 100 countries on internet radio. Jain’s background is that of a true global citizen. Born in France, she lived in Dubai, Congo and Abu Dhabi as a child, which has given her pop-tastic music an African and Middle Eastern flavour. If that all sounds too lofty, check out her debut single Come, which topped the French charts complete with a goofy sci-fivideo.