Johannesburg, 22 June 2022: Apple Music today announced South African R&B singer and songwriter, Nanette as the latest artist in its Up Next program, a local version of its global emerging artist platform.
“Being selected for Apple Music Up Next is nothing short of a dream. Being able to shape the future I wanna see using my reach and music has been such a beautiful experience and to be recognised for that in any way is humbling. Music will forever be the healing force and a universal language. Huge shoutout to Apple for all the love!” she says.
Nanette’s partnership with talent manager and businessman, Rich Mahogany, led to her working with her current producer, Lee Global, which in turn opened doors for her signing to Universal Music South Africa, and featuring on Una Rams’ “rendezvous” and lordkez’s handmedowns.
During South Africa’s initial lockdown in 2020, Nanette began work on her debut album, bad weather (2022), available to stream on Apple Music in Spatial Audio, which finds her revelling in a refined ‘90s R&B sound. Influenced by the soulful voices of Nina Simone, Jhene Aiko, Etta James and Janet Jackson, Nanette developed an innate love for storytelling, which she flexes in the therapeutic lyrics over nine tracks.
As the latest Up Next artist to be spotlighted in South Africa, Nanette will be featured across Apple Music’s South African Up Next playlist.
About Apple Music’s Up Next Program
Up Next is Apple Music’s monthly artist program geared towards identifying, showcasing and elevating rising star talent. Each month, Apple Music’s editorial team selects an artist to promote, utilizing the full force of the platform to raise awareness of the artist to its growing global audience of music fans. The vast Up Next roster of past talent includes Grammy-nominated and critically lauded talent like 6lack, Daniel Caesar, H.E.R., Greta Van Fleet, Khalid, Amy Shark, Billie Eilish, Sabrina Claudio, Sigrid, Mr Eazi, Stefflon Don, Bad Bunny, Juice WLRD, Bazzi, Jax Jones, NCT 127, Summer Walker, Tierra Whack, Dean Lewis, Pink Sweat$, Koffee, Megan Thee Stallion, Burna Boy, Clairo, Lunay, Jessie Reyez, Orville Peck, Victoria Monét, Ingrid Andress, Conan Gray, Don Toliver, Rema, BENEE, Holly Humberstone, Natanael Cano, Givēon, beabadoobee, Arlo Parks, Tate McRae, Zoe Wees, Morray, Fousheé, Amorphous, Tems, Parker McCollum, Jay Wheeler, Shenseea, Omar Apollo, Jvck James and aespa.
In 2022, Apple Music’s Up Next artist program has expanded into its sixth year and includes a curated companion Up Next playlist featuring a dynamic class of new and emerging artists, thoughtfully hand-picked by Apple Music editors from around the world. The playlist is genre and country agnostic and represents a line-up of artists our global editors are passionate about and eager to expose to a larger audience. In March 2021, Apple Music expanded the Up Next program to feature localized campaigns that highlight artists across the U.S., U.K., Australia/New Zealand, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Greater China, India, Italy, Japan, Korea, Latin America, Netherlands, Nigeria, Nordics, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, Thailand, and Turkey.
About Apple Music
Apple loves music. Apple revolutionized the music experience with iPod and iTunes. Today, the award-winning Apple Music celebrates musicians, songwriters, producers, and fans with a catalog of over 90 million songs, expertly curated playlists, and the best artist interviews, conversations, and global premieres with Apple Music Radio. With original content from the most respected and beloved people in music, autoplay, time-sync lyrics, Lossless Audio, and immersive sound powered by Spatial Audio with Dolby Atmos, Apple Music offers the world’s best listening experience, helping listeners discover new music and enjoy their favorites while empowering the global artist community. Apple Music is available in over 165 countries and regions on iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac, Apple Watch, Apple TV, HomePod mini, CarPlay, and online at music.apple.com, plus popular smart speakers, smart TVs, and Android and Windows devices. Apple Music is ad-free and never shares consumer data with third parties. More information is available at apple.com/apple-music.