{music review #1: YouTube artists!}

hello all, 

happy Sunday to you! one thing you may or not know about me, is that i'm a piano teacher. today, i am hosting a winter recital for my students. it's nothing big, but i know that my students grow a lot from playing in front of an audience, and being able to show off what they've learned this semester. 

anyways, this post is going to be the start of my music reviews. today, i'm going to be sharing some of my favorite YouTube artists that i've discovered. i don't go and search for new artists, because with the friends i have and the wide variety of genres i like, but these ones that i've either found or been shown in the past month or so, i absolutely LOVE. i, myself, am working on my first real cover, so get ready for that in the near future. okay, let's get to the real point of this, the artists & songs!

1) Daniela Andrade
i first heard of Daniela when she covered the song Poison & Wine by the Civil Wars with another artist i'll be talking about, AJ Rafael. in that video, she was very quiet and i wasn't overly impressed by her. i recently saw that she had created her own channel, and OH MY GOODNESS. i was blown away. the two videos i'm posting below are her covers of Latch by Sam Smith & Disclosure and Crazy by Gnarls Barkley. i seriously adore the tone of her voice and how she flawlessly hits high notes. she has an Ingrid Michaelson or Sara Bareilles kinda sound, but she also has this unique element to her voice that makes you love her even more. definitely fangirling over her!

Latch (cover) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e78_3GnH_1I

(favorite part of this is when she adds the little part at the end, "don't wanna let, don't wanna let you go" #boooooom)

Crazy (cover) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fzxag7U3Snk

2) AJ Rafael 
since i just talked about Daniela, i thought i'd go ahead and talk about AJ Rafael. i am a huge fan of Wong Fu Productions (if you don't know who they are or haven't seen anything by them, pause your reading of this and GO WATCH THIS VIDEO - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VSkYbgxl93Y) and AJ has starred in different videos that they've put together and so i checked out his covers. something i like about AJ is that he can sing just about any style of song. he can go from singing an upbeat, rockin' T-Swift song to singing a slow Disney ballad to singing a raw, acoustic original song. definitely go check out AJ's videos!

Beautiful Escape (an original song!) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=stsaI8aPkrI

I Knew You Were Trouble (cover) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n4BMmVh7h5w

3) Kina Grannis
my next new artist that i'm sharing with you guys is one of my favorite female vocalists of all time. her latest album Elements is so good. she has this indie pop vibe to her and she is so creative in the way that she covers songs. she has a mind for layering songs and putting in harmonies to make the song even more powerful. her videography skills are epic, too. i find my voice has a lot of a similar sound to hers so i admire her lots.

sweater weather (cover) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-nYsM9sTqxo

clean (cover) - http://youtu.be/4MzExrN1QFU

royals (cover) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5Tc-o9SWcU

bring me the night w/ Sam Tsui - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ihOCgdarFg

my dear (original) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ddTAQGUNhs&index=13&list=PLmYi5FhSDA5fKcCUAajr77YB9AKqWgnJI


hope you all enjoyed this post! see y'all next Sunday!

xo,

LJB

{ootd}

hello everyone! 

well, i had quite the afternoon with one of my best friends Scarlett (btw, go check out her blog - http://thetrendychick.blogspot.com/) at Barnes + Noble and TJ Maxx! we got some Starbucks at B+N and talked about future plans on both of our blogs. it was a great time getting to hang out & laugh together, and i'm excited for what 2015 will bring for our friendship and for our blogs!

here's my outfit of the day:

beanie: american eagle

hoodie: target

shirt: aeropostale 

jeggings: target

boots: payless

Scarlett and I have been best friends for a few years now, and I'm so thankful for her. she's the one who has always encouraged me to live in my own skin and not be afraid to take risks. she's also the one who encouraged me to start this blog and it's already one of the best decisions that i've made in a long time. i'm so thankful that God put her in my life :) thank you Scarlett for encouraging me to pursue my dreams and to keep going even, when it's hard. you're the best!

so, funny story: 

Scarlett and i had just sat down with our drinks and we were talking, and all of a sudden, Scarlett looks out the windows and goes "hey, double date!" i turn around and there's these 2 married couples walking together. the funny part about it was that they were going to the Toys R Us, next door to Barnes + Noble, of all places! haha, it was probably funnier to us than to you all reading this, but it was still hilarious to us! it was even better when they walked out 20 minutes later with a box and we were trying to figure out what they had bought.

anyways, here are a couple other pictures from our adventures:

comment below if you want more of our adventures in the future!

see you next Sunday!

xo,

- LJB

{november favorites!}

well friends, it's hard to believe that the month of November is coming to an end!
I thought it would be a perfect time to talk about my favorites this month. 

fashion:
- I have always loved boots, but this fall/winter season, I have truly began to love combat boots! I own a black and a brown pair, and I wear them all the time. I love them because you can dress them up or down and they are super comfortable. 

- pattern leggings have become a huge part of my wardrobe. I bought a similar pair like the ones below & i've really enjoyed them. in the month of December, i'm planning to purchase some more, so you will definitely be seeing them in my future ootd's/ootn's!

music:

- as i've mentioned before, i have a very eclectic taste in music. this month, i've really been loving Taylor Swift's new album 1989. It is such a wonderful album and I love how well it was pieced together. my favorite songs from the album are Style, Wildest Dreams, and I Know Places.

- here are some random songs that i've been loving this month:

-- Santa Barbara by Nick Jonas

-- Love Too Much by Hunter Hayes

-- The Heart Wants What It Wants by Selena Gomez

-- Amnesia by 5 Seconds of Summer

-- Get Back in My Life by Maroon 5

-- Til Summer Comes Around by Keith Urban

-- Say You Love Me by Jessie Ware

-- It's Always You by Kris Allen

(side note: i will be creating a Spotify account soon so you all can follow me & see what i'm listening to! once i join, i'll post my profile on Twitter, so go follow me @singinginstyle!)

miscellaneous:

- i've been OBSESSED with the Carrie Diaries this month. I legit started season 1 on Monday morning and was finished with season 2 by Wednesday night. if you haven't seen it, you should definitely check it out!

- i've also been trying to get different things at Starbucks instead of the usual drink i always get. my friend Emily and i went out last night for a late night coffee run, and i tried the white chocolate mocha and i loved it! 

- i've also been trying some new hair products out, because with my crazy curly hair, i have to use specific things to help control frizz and also keep my curls in line. the lady that cuts my hair suggested the Paul Mitchell tea tree oil shampoo and i've loved it! i tend to have a dry scalp in the fall/winter months and this has helped tremendously already! this is great shampoo for any hair type and keep my hair very shiny and healthy!

well, that's all for now! see you in my next post.

xo,

- LJB

{this is me}

hello world!

this is my first post here on Singing in Style. i am so excited to post on this blog and connect with those of you who read this. i thought i should introduce myself. 

here are the basic things that i thought you all should know about me:

1. my name is LJB. i am 18 years old, and i am a high school senior and i live in the middle of some lovely cornfields in the middle of Illinois. even though i don't live the big city life quite yet, i still have a huge passion for my two greatest loves: music + fashion.

2. music is my everything. it is my way of getting out my emotions + feelings. some people draw, paint, dance, read, write - well, i sing and play piano. on this blog, i will be posting cover of songs (+ hopefully some of my originals!), current playlists, favorite artists of the moment, along with other random posts!

3. fashion is something that i've really gotten into these past 2 years. one of my best friends Scarlett started her own blog (http://thetrendychick.blogspot.com/), and she's really encouraged me to post a blog of my own! i feel that something new to bring to the world of fashion/beauty + i want to share with all of you amazing readers! on my blog, i will be doing haul posts, outfit of the day/night (ootd's/ootn's), monthly favorites, & others!

4. my relationship with God is my number one priority. i am a worship leader at my church + one of the most important parts of my life. i strive to glorify God with all that i do, and every part of my life. this is not going to be a blog strictly about that, but do know that there will be parts of this blog that include God + my relationship with Him.

5.  here are some random fun facts:

- i love Starbucks - especially their white hot chocolate

- my favorite season is fall (#sweaterweather <3)

- my current tv show obsessions are grey's anatomy, new girl & the carrie diaries.

- my favorite music artists are hunter hayes (who i get to meet in less than a month!), john mayer, maroon 5, kari jobe, sam smith, steffany gretzinger, jeremy riddle + ingrid michaelson. 

- as you can already tell, i have an eclectic taste in music + i am proud of it.

- my family includes my beautiful mama + my amazing 9 year old little brother. my dad passed away unexpectedly 2 1/2 years ago. my family and i are extremely close and i absolutely don't know where i'd be without them.

- my favorite colors are rose pink, gray, + light turquoise.

- i take a lot of pictures. like a whole lot.

i hope you enjoy reading this blog + i look forward to getting to know you all as well!

much love,

- LJB