2022-2023 BPMI Artists
BPMI Live is proud to have worked with the following artists during the 2022–2023 academic year:
AWFBEAT
Awfbeat is an East Coast–based, hip-hop inspired duo comprised of Universal Hunte and Grant Glazier. After enrolling in a pre-college program at Carnegie Mellon University, they both reunited on the first day of freshman year and began creating music together. Paying homage to a wide range of legendary artists and musical styles, the duo’s first attempt at combining their talents was the pop/funk fusion record, Better Than Me. Since then, the duo has shared the stage with bülow and Fedd the God, had their music featured in the Netflix Original series, Boo, Bitch, and has accumulated over 3 million streams on Spotify.
CLIFFORD
Pairing brutal riffage with a passionate performance, CLIFFORD epitomizes the infectious nature of progressive/technical deathcore. Having met months before starting college in Boston, band members Drake Plotkin (vocals), Thomas Reuter (guitar), Lucas Koughan (bass), and Luke Green (drums) discovered a shared vision for what would become the band’s debut album, Soulless. Featuring blistering riffs and powerful breakdowns, the album demonstrated the band’s ability to write both the memorable and the technically brilliant. CLIFFORD’s outlandish sound incorporates a modern edge while maintaining the authenticity fans of deathcore, tech-death, and other extreme metal genres crave. This eccentricity in their shows has on more than one occasion caught the attention of the Boston Police Department.
The band members have taken a liking to multiple visual art mediums throughout their careers, especially graphic design. Designing their brand and album covers was a rewarding process that led to their mystifying image. Members of CLIFFORD have studied under David Marvuglio (Ice Nine Kills) and Joe Stump (Alcatrazz, Yngwie Malmsteen, Bon Jovi), and shared stages with Avatar, Jared Dines, and Ryan Bruce (Dragged Under). Some of the members' heaviest inspirations are Archspire, Meshuggah, Veil of Maya, Vildhjarta, Monuments, Animals as Leaders, Periphery, and many more. For CLIFFORD, the vision has always been to create songs for their audience to “headbang their brains out” and “lose their minds.” Their music can be found on all streaming platforms.
VIVIENNE ARTUR
Vivienne Artur is unconventionally building a bridge between authentic country and dark dream-pop to deliver an introspective listening experience. Artur utilizes songwriting as a way to document and reflect on all parts of her life from childhood to the present, inspiring her to write vulnerable, relatable, and fragile songs. After 10 years of classical vocal training, Artur enrolled at Berklee College of Music, where she currently collaborates with top producers, arrangers, and songwriters. What started originally as a school assignment transpired into a year-long project now known as her debut EP, Everything I Am. Taking inspiration from a wide variety of artists including Gracie Abrams, Bon Iver, and Taylor Swift, Artur’s unique sound breaks molds and crosses genres while staying true to her country roots. When not in the studio or on stage, Artur can be found posting and interacting on TikTok and hosting mini-concerts over Zoom for her fans. She also loves to learn new languages and is currently working on her French and German. Vivienne Artur’s music can be found on all streaming platforms.
TYLER CHRISTIAN
With their raw, inventive and nostalgic sound, Tyler Christian creates music that inspires listeners to express their stories unapologetically. Christian has always had the intention of tapping into another atmosphere, blending R&B, pop, and rock; they bring you into a world that they describe as “boundless.”
Christian began perfecting their craft at a performing arts high school in Georgia, and began garnering buzz after being featured on the front page of several local media outlets. At only 22 years old, Christian has already opened for Jade Novah, who has worked closely with Beyoncé, Rihanna, and Lady Gaga, and has studied under Grammy nominee Tia Fuller (Beyoncé, Kelly Rowland, Dionne Warwick, Janelle Monáe, Chaka Khan, Aretha Franklin). They are no stranger to the Lollapalooza stage, having performed alongside pop artist AIIDA in 2022. Christian is also the musical director and frequent featured soloist for the a cappella group Pitch Slapped.
Christian’s cover of the 1982 Culture Club hit “Do You Really Want to Hurt Me” gained the attention of Boy George himself, “This version of the song is right up my street … Hearing this song, interpreted from a new generation, is exciting, as the message is still the same.”
Through their lyrics, Christian explores themes of failed relationships, but sonically takes listeners into a space that leaves the tears at home. The experience of Tyler Christian’s music feels freshly distinct, and has a “uniquely them” stamp on every song. Tyler Christian’s debut EP “Reasons” will be released in 2023 and available on all streaming platforms.
VIVI RINCON
A refreshingly raw storyteller, indie-pop artist vivi rincon invites her audience along on her journey towards self-acceptance. Though her songs embrace hope, she makes it a point to never leave out any of the messiness: “I give myself permission to be angry,” she says. Growing up with dreams of becoming a Broadway dancer, songwriting became rincon's escape when dancing became too unhealthy for her mental wellbeing and she began to struggle with body image. Today, sharing her experience as a queer woman is another central theme in her art. She explores her personal relationships and the impact of the discrimination her community faces. Her sound is informed by alternative folk (Phoebe Bridgers), alternative rock (Paramore), and the Latin pop her parents loved (Maná). Her viral debut single, “if we lived on the moon,” produced by Rachel Caridi, has amassed over 1.3 million streams on Spotify. This success led to a collaboration with producer Matt Martin (Faye Webster, COIN) and a deal with AWAL (Lizzy McAlpine, mxmtoon, Little Simz). Her latest single, “overflow,” earned her a feature on Rolling Stone Magazine’s “All the Songs You Need to Know.” Her music can be found on all streaming platforms.
ED ROX
Ed Rox is a rapper from Carolina, Puerto Rico, who surprises with an untraditional new collection LA TRILOGIA, which promises to be a trend in the urban genre. His talent lies in producing his beats and wordplays, like putting together words, with an unusual style, resulting in funny stories and smart and entertaining street language. Empowered and confident, Ed Rox wants to show his fans another way of doing rap, with a different symbology, putting into focus other realities but using a bit peculiar language, always standing for his beliefs and sending, through his lyrics, a clear message. This can be seen in some of the songs of his latest collection LA TRILOGIA: “Mucho Gusto,” “La Ciencia,” and “Bájale 1000,” which are perceived as the starting point of his musical career. Since his first release he has delighted his fans—known as the “Purple Demons”—with new music the 28th of every month, earning him the nickname Mr. 28. He is showing everyone that he is here to stay, he is impressing with his unique rapping style, and has been baptized by his colleagues as the real definition of elastic tongue.
JVK
With the energy and chaos of old-school rock 'n' roll and a modern touch of sympathy and empowerment, JVK commands the crowd as soon as it steps on stage. Originating in Boston, the band started out as the solo project of lead vocalist, Jo Krieger. Through encounters at local shows and responses to want ads, Krieger was introduced to Alix Breda (bass), Troy Welling (drums), Donny DeFala, and Syd Lane (guitars). The instant chemistry between the group formed the band JVK. Since opening for Frances Forever in NYC and conquering just about every sweaty basement in the Northeast, their loyal audience is showing up to see the band fill bigger and bigger venues. JVK’s debut EP, Hello, Again, best represents the band’s intent to embark with its listeners through an ominous, almost spiritual sonic journey. JVK strives to create music that will leave its listeners feeling confident and empowered, through relatable lyrics combined with memorable guitar riffs. You can listen to JVK’s music on any streaming platform.
KIERAN RHODES
If you mixed Elton John's melodies with Randy Newman's wit-filled lyrics and Chris Martin's silky vocals and put them on a baseball diamond, you'd get Kieran Rhodes. Rhodes was on track to play serious college baseball when he discovered his love for music and began writing songs and teaching himself to play piano. In his own words, Rhodes’s songs are “like watching movies,” each one telling a different story and bringing you into a new world for a few minutes. His single, "What Got into You," earned him an honorable mention in the 2021 American Songwriter Contest (with judges Paul Stanley, 3OH!3, Taylor Momsen, Julian Casablancas, Ziggy Marley). More recently, Rhodes became known for his viral audition on Season 17 of America’s Got Talent, where he won the hearts of millions around the world including judges Simon Cowell, Sofia Vergara, Howie Mandel, and Heidi Klum. The audition with his original song "Disengage," which chronicles a heartbreaking battle with depression, became a viral hit on YouTube, garnering over 15 million views. It has been praised by many including Billboard and GoldDerby. Rhodes’s music can be found on all streaming platforms.