This week it’s time to face the music. Literally. This week’s YouTubers to Watch brings two amazingly talented musicians to you amazing readers of *tba.
YouTube has proven itself to be quite an efficacious platform to launch careers in the music business, enabling artists to shift their voices from the screen and the world wide web onto real stages all over the world.
I’m talking about Kurt and Max Schneider. And although their names couldn’t sound any more German, they’re from the ‘land of the free and the home of the brave’.
The two brothers own individual channels on YouTube but collaborate frequently. Whereas Kurt plays various instruments and rather acts as the ‘piano man’ in the background in his music videos (but he also sings), Max is predominantly a ridiculously gifted singer (but also plays the piano, the guitar, and occasionally the ukulele), hitting some very impressive high notes in all of his covers and original songs.
And – in this more or less rare case – their success proves their talents. Max was offered a record deal a while back (he’s now signed to Pete Wentz’s record label DCD2) and already announced a new album.
The two musicians focus on contemporary music (mostly the top 40) and regularly team up with other YouTubers as well as musicians known from TV series such as Liz Gillies or Victoria Justice.
Of course, sometimes I just have music videos on YouTube played in the background while working on other tasks, but what I like about the Schneider’s music videos is their simplicity, their focus on the essence of a song – the voices. Oftentimes, the videos only show the singers in a dim light, the camera slowly encircling the protagonists. No fancy distractions.
And other times the music videos include impressive choreographies, showcasing Max’s ‘danceabilities’.
One of my current favourites must be a cover of John Legend’s ‘All Of Me’. The two brothers paired up with Zendaya Coleman for this one. A genius move. Max and Zendaya’s voice harmonize brilliantly and manage to truly convey the emotions of the song.
If you’re looking for some new voices in your life and for your playlist, do yourself a favour and subscribe to Kurt and Max Schneider.
– Maria
Maria was listening to Ray LaMontagne’s ‘Be Here Now’ while writing this article.
