By Stevie Connor. Photo Credit: Corey Miller
Multi-Platinum-selling entertainer Niko Moon has joined forces with GRAMMY Award winner Zac Brown for new release “HEAVEN HAS A BAR.”
“It’s a song of simplicity, down-homeness, and celebration. I think Zac and I find a lot of value in the simple things: Family and friends, and celebrating life is what it’s all about,” said Moon “This is about celebrating with all the people you love once you go to heaven.”
“I like the imagination in this song,” added Brown. “Whatever there is after life ends, that love of music doesn’t go away. To go see all of our heroes that have passed away and play some music, maybe that’s heaven for us.”
With a decades-long musical history that took root when they were rising artists in Georgia, Moon and Brown have created Multiple No. 1 hits together, co-writing chart toppers “Loving You Easy,” “Homegrown,” “Beautiful Drug,” “Keep Me In Mind,” and “Heavy Is The Head,” recorded by Zac Brown Band.
Moon has been performing “HEAVEN HAS A BAR” throughout his hot-selling AIN’T NO BETTER PLACE TOUR, which wraps May 4 in Toronto. With dozens of sold-out dates, Moon has been earning praise for his high-energy, good-vibe sets.
When an Atlanta booking agent offered him $200 a night, and allowed him to mix his original music in with covers songs, it was a no-brainer. Moon took the gig – loved it – and fortuitously bumped into another Atlanta musician, Zac Brown, who hadn’t yet taken his band to the national level.
The two began co-writing, and Moon became a regular collaborator, credited on five #1 Zac Brown Band hits: "Loving You Easy," "Homegrown," "Beautiful Drug" and "Keep Me In Mind" – plus "Heavy Is The Head," which topped the rock charts with Chris Cornell singing lead.
Brown, of course, was a perfect foil. His version of country is a hybrid form that blends pop, soul and Southern rock, and it suited Moon, who became a fulltime songwriter for years. When Brown formed Sir Rosevelt with Niko and Ben Simonetti, it pushed Moon’s experimental tendencies even further, melding country, pop and EDM.
That project coincided with a move to Nashville, where Moon’s creative sphere widened further. His wife, Anna Moon, snagged a pop deal with Monument, and Niko expanded his co-writing work, landing a Rascal Flatts single, "Back To Life," and supporting reggae/hip-hop artist Michael Franti as a co-writer and producer.
During the work on Franti’s Stay Human, Vol. II, Moon’s personal journey reached a tipping point, inspiring him to make his own artistic statement. He enlisted Anna and a longtime friend, guitarist/producer Josh Murty (Luis Fonsi, Brandon Heath), to co-write what became Good Time. The goal – true to the project’s title and to Moon’s development – was simply to be a positive force in the world.
Website: www.nikomoon.com
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