Some Canadian artists are among an incredible line-up of performers set to perform at Joy Ruckus Club, the largest American Asian music festival in the world.
On September 24th, Sessions announce their partnership with the Joy Ruckus Club and unveil the lineup for the largest Asian American virtual music festival in the world, October 17th to 18th. Co-founded by digital music pioneer and former Pandora founder Tim Westergren and fellow entrepreneur and long time developer of virtual games Gordon Su, Sessions is the only platform that is spending money on marketing and production to help artists build a fanbase and earn an income. Now, Sessions is committed to partnering with promoters and booking agents to co-promote artist driven virtual festivals, beginning with Kublai Kwon’s Joy Ruckus Club.
Kublai, who has been promoting Asian artists in the US for 20+ years, believes in Sessions’ forward-thinking assessment.
“With their resources and leadership, I think Sessions can corner the market for live streaming. They are in a unique position to be the #1 player,” says Kublai.
“Together, we want to break records.”
The debut of Joy Ruckus Club in late August attracted over 700,000 music fans. Partnering with Sessions for their second festival, Joy Ruckus Club plans on expanding their reach to over 185 countries by leveraging the proprietary marketing technology of Sessions.
The Joy Ruckus Club is a humanitarian-oriented online concert series led by artists of Asian descent and is a revolution in Asian American music. 70 Asian American artists will perform in one continuous live stream from locations around the world, including North America, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, Copenhagen, London, Dubai, Vietnam, Malaysia, UK and more. Headliners include Eric Nam, Kid Trunks, Luna, Kevin Woo, DJ Cam Girl, James Lee, KAACHI, Ethan Kim and DJ Sura.
The line-up will also include three Canadian acts including Lil Waterboi, CXCX Chu Chu, and Samurai Champs.
Lil Waterboi
Lil Waterboi is an emerging Asian-Canadian emo trap artist based in Montréal. The middle child between trailblazers like Kanye West, and the insurgence of Lil’s, from which he derived his name, Lil Waterboi’s music draws also parallels from his life experiences as a middle child in his own family. His music tells a raw, unfiltered story of his life of many hardships trying to live up to family expectations. Having gone through many obstacles to pursue his passions in art, he strives to be a big brother to his community, inspiring others to follow in his footsteps. He is the founder of Bahay, an entertainment and community organization that has made some serious traction in its first year of conception. Lil Waterboi’s first single “Du Ma May,” explored themes of Asian identity in a light-hearted way, gaining attention on YouTube, and notably in the local Vietnamese community.
CXCX Chu Chu
From Europe via Vancouver to the world, CXCX Chu Chu has a punk rap and modern cyber aesthetic that you can’t mistake. She has an eye for grabbing the listeners’ attention, both on and off screen, and will surprise you with her style and flow.
“I know I always talk about how picky I am with vocalists, so whenever I hear an artist with bars I’ve GOTTA post them!” – @lofihiphop
CXCX Chu Chu is a genuine soul, whose heart-warming personality shines through both in person and on social media. She is also actively involved in elevating the lives of Asian women through her work at Asian-American-based, global publication Overachiever Magazine.
Samurai Champs
Samurai Champs is a Canadian recording and performing future-hip-hop/R&B duo. Comprised of rapper Jeah and singer Merv xx Gotti, the duo draw influence from their Southeast Asian heritage, while taking pride in their urban-Canadian identity. Blending Jeah’s versatile rap delivery with Merv xx Gotti’s emotional R&B vocals, the duo create a smooth, yet dark coalescence of contemporary hip-hop/R&B. Following their recent SMA 2019 – Hip Hop Artist of the Year award, as well as Western Canadian Music Awards (WCMAs) 2019 – Urban Artist of the Year nomination, Samurai Champs are currently touring their debut album, Cabernet Sauvignon. The album’s singles have been featured on media outlets such as Sora Music Asia and HipHopCanada, received playlist placement on Spotify’s official Just Vibing and Fresh Finds: The Wave curatorial playlists, and the album itself has been streamed over 100,000 times within the first week of its release. The album was mixed by New York’s MSR Studios alumni, Walter Jeworski, and Jazz Cartier’s JUNO Award-winning producer and engineer, Michael Lantz. The album was mastered by Chris Athens, mastering engineer behind Drake’s Grammy Award-winning album, Views. Blending the diverse sounds of Toronto’s OVO Sound label with the soulful minimalism of L.A.’s Soulection, Cabernet Sauvignon is Samurai Champs’ first full-length commercial release, and now available on all music platforms.
Samurai Champs has toured internationally and performed at festivals such as SXSW (Austin, TX), NXNE (Toronto, ON), Music Matters Live (Singapore), Reeperbahn (Hamburg, GE), The Great Escape (Brighton, UK), Tallinn Music Week (Tallinn, Estonia), Upstream Music Fest (Seattle, WA), Sound City (Liverpool, UK), BreakOut West (Edmonton, AB), and many more. Surrounding Samurai Champs’ European tours, the duo have received notable festival press highlights from significant UK media outlets. The UK’s largest independent music blog, The Line of Best Fit listed Samurai Champs as one of “20 Of The Most Exciting Bands On The Planet To See At The Great Escape.” As well, UK music news site Gigwise named Samurai Champs as one of the “11 New Bands From The Great Escape That You Need In Your Life” and “5 Top Acts to see at Tallinn Music Week.”
The largest Asian American virtual festival
Tim Westergren comments, “Sessions is dedicated to being the first global digital platform that truly serves and supports all artists and events. By launching the initiative with Joy Ruckus Festival, the largest Asian American virtual festival in the world, we are setting the bar high. Our goal is to support the overall music community, and bridge the gap between real live events and the virtual streaming world. We are investing in promoters by putting marketing money behind their events and using the full capability of our platform to generate revenue and make this a success for everyone.”
Joy Ruckus Club is a space for Asian artists from the underrepresented demographic to come together as one and showcase their talent exclusively on SessionsLive.com. Tickets are only $2.99 (USD) for early bird two-day access.
The October 17th line-up includes:
Eric Nam
Luna
Kevin Woo
James Lee
KAACHI
Ashya
DJ Sura
DJ Seduza
Cream
Devyn Moon
Keepitinside
Casper Sun
Anneston
Leo Xia
MJ Apanay
Serin Oh
Wind Meets West
Aleyna Moon
Ash Haze
itwasyohan
Band Famous
DJ Mix
DJ VIN
Bayer & Waits
LXCR
tae.jin
DISKQ
Pri
Czarina Cruz
Tash
Chris Valdez
The October 18th line-up includes:
Kid Trunks
DJ Cam Girl
Ethan Kim
Ruby Ibarra
Chow Mane
Jason Chu
Heesun Lee
Tuimi
J.Lately
CXCX Chu Chu
Lilbadkatt
Micah Street
A.J. Crew
Yejin Hong
Sawhee
Soundmaker
Alo and Gnyus
Lou Jay
Crash Dummies
Yunsik
Vincesmoke
Lil Waterboi
Koryo
Samurai Champs
Eddie Supa
Jahki Spooks
Reckless Escapades & Maruxa Lynd
Vici.PR
Russ Coson
D.A. Freshout
Tuu Yung
Rajan Sahota
Clubby Yoo
Rocky Sandoval
A.R. Chubbs
Ice Cold King
Aryan Kapoor
Boozetoast
Jeron Taek
Poet Initiative
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