ANNOUNCES FIRST SIGNING, MOONSHINE, DEBUT SINGLE, “PAIN & PLEASURE” (FEAT. AMAAL NUUX, VANYFOX & ALUNA)
MOONSHINE FEATURES RESIDENT DJS PIERRE KWENDERS, VANYFOX, SAN FARAFINA, AND AKANTU, VISUAL INSTALLATIONS AND A SLEW OF LIVE MUSICIANS AND PERFORMERS THAT HAVE INCLUDED KAYTRANADA, DÂM-FUNK, LE1F, VENUS X, UPROOT ANDY, BAMBII AND BRANKO
BUY / STREAM “PAIN & PLEASURE” (FEAT. AMAAL NUUX, VANYFOX & ALUNA)
WATCH “PAIN & PLEASURE” (VISUALIZER) HERE
BUY / STREAM ALUNA’S MYCELiUM HERE
Aluna Photo Credit: Claire Farin
Multi-award-winning artist, Aluna today announces the launch of her record label, Noir Fever, in partnership with EMPIRE. The label will celebrate Black dance music, with a focus on Black women and LGBTQ+ artists.
The genesis of Noir Fever began following Aluna’s 2020-penned open letter to the dance music industry, rightfully making waves and headlines all over the world, calling out the lack of Black representation across the industry as a whole. Championing Black and queer voices both behind the scenes and on the stage, her latest album, MYCELiUM saw her collaborate with a cohort of collaborators and allies from around the world, including KOOLDRINK, Roofeeo, Pabllo Vittar, TSHA, Tchami, Kareen Lomax, MNEK and more. The critically acclaimed album saw Aluna notch her first Billboard No. 1 as a solo artist, with the song “Running Blind” (with Tchami and Kareen Lomax) landing the top spot on Billboard’s Dance/Mixshow Airplay Chart.
The first project signed to Noir Fever is Moonshine, a Montreal based collective made up of like-minded musicians, DJs, dancers, and visual artists. Their first single “Pain & Pleasure”, released today, features the JUNO Award-nominated, Somali-Canadian artist, Amaal Nuux alongside Portuguese-Angolese artist Vanyfox, and Aluna herself.
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WATCH “PAIN & PLEASURE” (VISUALIZER) HERE
Single Artwork // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES
Speaking about the track, Moonshine explain, "Pain & Pleasure” is a collaborative track between Batida’s rising star, Vanyfox and the soulful vocals of dance and R&B artists Aluna and Amaal Nuux. Born and true to our global afro-diasporic influences and identity, a catalyst to the genre blending that you hear both at our events and on our albums, this song fuses a Batida groove with an R&B grace, representing a love and synergy that can only be found on the dance floor."
The track will be featured on Moonshine’s forthcoming mixtape, due out in early 2024.
Noir Fever has also appointed Adam Cooper as Creative Director. Adam Cooper (aka Foreigner) is an LA-based strategist, creative director and DJ born in Trinidad & Tobago and raised in Caracas/Venezuela & Brooklyn/NYC. His commitment to Pan African philosophy has established Foreigner as the creator and resident DJ behind some of the wildest, most nuanced Afro Diasporic parties in Los Angeles.
Speaking about her label, Aluna reveals, "I started Noir Fever records as a key component to my 360• strategy of making sustainable and effective change to the future of Black dance music, an idea which was birthed as a response to my own letter to the Dance music industry in 2020. Investment in the recording side is essential to fostering emerging talent and by focusing on Black women and the queer community I can ensure that everyone is being uplifted. This label will work in tandem with my events company so that those who I am opening doors for are not simply walking into another closed door, I’m trying to create a path not an opportunity to slip through a crack."
Deron Delgado, Director of Operations and A&R at EMPIRE Dance adds, "We are delighted to announce our partnership with Aluna and her Noir Fever brand. Beyond her extraordinary achievements and remarkable talent, Aluna has consistently championed diversity and inclusion in the music industry, principles that have been ingrained in the very fabric of EMPIRE since our inception over a decade ago. Our shared values and objectives align seamlessly, making this collaboration a natural synergy that promises to elevate music, events, and art to a broader global audience. We are truly excited to be part of showcasing the exceptional talent that Noir Fever is bringing to the masses."
Moonshine Photo Credit: Barbara John // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES
MORE ABOUT MOONSHINE
Since its founding in 2014, Moonshine has carved out an enviable niche in Montreal’s nightlife milieu by celebrating a wide range of fledgling local talents, championing Afro-futuristic, bass-heavy, electro-funk sounds, and bringing together communities that wouldn’t necessarily cross paths otherwise. As the name indicates, the lunar-based Moonshine recipe has the collective throw an all-night, sensory-soaked party on the Saturday after every full moon in ever-shifting, unpredictable locations across the city, always strictly disclosed via text messages. With fresh cuts supplied by resident DJs Pierre Kwenders, Vanyfox, San Farafina, and AKantu, visual installations and a slew of live musicians and performers that have included Kaytranada, Dâm-Funk, Le1f, Venus X, Uproot Andy, Bambii and Branko, the parties have become a staple of the after-hours scene, in Canada and abroad, with appearances in NYC, LA, Paris, Brussels, Milan, Lisbon, London, Barcelona and Santiago just to name a few.
“The essence of Moonshine came out of parties we used to throw in our kitchens,” recalls Kwenders. “We felt like we couldn’t go out and find what we had cooked up in that kitchen. It’s one of the reasons we started Moonshine: to share that with more people who felt just like us, and who didn’t have access to such sounds or vibes.” Still going strong nine years on, Moonshine has also begun making use of the aesthetic, network, and structure it established with the parties to promote affiliated artists, expanding its vision from ephemeral moonlit soirées to an expanding catalog of genre-busting music, art, and apparel.
BUY / STREAM “PAIN & PLEASURE” (FEAT. AMAAL NUUX, VANYFOX & ALUNA)
Following a whirlwind year of touring, including a mix of festival dates as well as her own MYCELiUM headline tour, Aluna finishes up the year with a special Noir Fever event on November 11 at Elsewhere in Brooklyn, followed by a one-off headline show in Australia, November 19. For a list of dates and to purchase tickets, please visit www.alunageorge.com.
Stay tuned for more exciting news from Aluna and Noir Fever, coming soon.
BUY / STREAM MYCELiUM HERE
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MORE ABOUT ALUNA
Aluna originally got her start as one half of the beloved duo AlunaGeorge, achieving international renown with widespread acclaim, award nominations, major collaborations, and massive tours, but it wasn’t until later that she stepped truly into her power with her debut album Renaissance in 2020 (LISTEN) via Mad Decent. Co-produced by Aluna alongside executive producer Lido, and featuring contributions from Princess Nokia, Jada Kingdom, SG Lewis, KAYTRANADA, Scott Storch, GRADES, Mr. Carmack and Rema, Renaissance represented the culmination of her journey of “a Black girl in an all-white British suburb back in the day” to launching a rule-breaking revolution where rigid boundaries dissolve between culture, race, gender, and genre. Beyond generating over 100 million streams, it garnered widespread tastemaker acclaim. Pitchfork noted, “The album showcases her curatorial skills—honed from years of DJ sets, streaming playlists, and recently virtual shows as Aluna’s Room—and her range,” while Clash raved, “Renaissance sees Aluna cementing herself as one of the most exciting artists around with this iconic offering that will inspire dance records for years to come.” Now, Aluna gears up to further cement herself as one of the most important curators and voices in dance music with her second full-length solo offering, MYCELiUM.
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