YOUTUBE REVIEW (KURT HUGO SCHNEIDER)

Another "segment" that I have started in my blog in called "Youtube Review". I love Youtube a lot. I visit the site almost everyday. I watch a lot of random videos and videos from my favorite vloggers (video bloggers). So, in short, Youtube in kinda a big part of my life. So, the first one in my LIST OS INSANELY AWESOME YOUTUBERS is KURT SCHNEIDER.

Well, I first heard of Kurt Schneider back in 2013 when my classmate  showed me a video of his entitled HOLIDAY MEDLEY! where he featured Victoria Justice, Max Schneider and an awesome medley of Christmas songs. 

I was really amazed and in awe of the whole production of the video because it showed a massive show of technique, skill and awesomeness. It was very unique. I haven't seen anything like it in the whole Youtube world. You should see it for yourself to believe me. VIDEO BELOW!

Let's have a quick overview on Kurt Schneider to know more about him:

KURT HUGO SCHNEIDER was born on September 7, 1988. He is now at age 27. He was born in Baltimore, Maryland but grew up in Pennsylvania. He finished high school as Valedictorian in Wissahickon High School and Magna Cum Laude in Yale University back in 2010 with a degree in Math. 

Besides having a degree in Math (which is already pretty awesome for me), Kurt was involved in musical theater back in high school and quickly developed a love for music and performance. In college, he developed his musical and technical abilities by creating content for his Youtube Channel which started back in October 2007. In 2009, he created his own production company names NoodleHouse Studios (clever name, Kurt. Such a clever name). 

In 2011, he moved to LA, where he now lives and works-composing, producing, performing and directing.

Now, he has over 3 million subscribers and over 600 million views in his Youtube videos.

Most of his works are collaborations with many singers, world famous and Youtube famous. Some of this collaborations are with Victoria Justice, Max Schneider (note: He is NOT Kurt's brother), Kina Grannis, Alex Goot and Against the Current. 80% of his videos were made with his good pal from middle school, Sam Tsui. They have been best friends since middle school and have been inseparable ever since.

He has been creating a lot of Youtube creations for almost 9 years now, and he has surpassed Youtube's usual production level by creating unique videos which showed amazing production techniques.

Favorite Video?

Woah. Well. There are a lot. I don't have a single fave video because Kurt surprises his audience every week with his videos and that's kinda amazing. But the videos that stood out for me are HOLIDAY MEDLEY!, MAROON 5 MEDLEY, WHERE YOU ARE and PASS IT ON. You guys should definitely check these videos because I really liked them. Not only the song but the technique.

Favorite Song covered?

I would probably between WHERE ARE U NOW, ROSES and PROBLEM. But, I would pick PROBLEM out of the three because he made it into something new. He made into a sweet mellow acoustic love song than that of the upbeat dancy kind of vibe.

Favorite Video Technique?

My favorite technique that Kurt always does is his One-Takes. I can't fully explain it here I guess you have to see it for yourself.

Well, that's all I have for you today. Thank you so much for your time. 

Don't forget to check on Kurt's social media accounts and Youtube videos. HE IS REALLY AMAZING!

Yours Truly,

CURIOSITY

P.S. I have a huge crush on Kurt Schneider. <3

KURT'S SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNT'S:

TWITTER - https://twitter.com/kurthschneider

FACEBOOK - https://web.facebook.com/KurtHugoSchneider?_rdr

INSTAGRAM - https://www.instagram.com/KurtSchneider/

YOUTUBE - https://www.youtube.com/user/KurtHugoSchneider

WHERE I BELONG

This post is kinda late now. Well, I'll do it anyway. 

This post is dedicated to the phenomenal, amazing, inspiring TORI KELLY.

I first heard about her through my friend. Back in 2014, she insisted that I should listen to this artist named "Tori Kelly" because we have the same voice texture (FYI, I'm also a singer so yeah). But I didn't had the time to look her up until after 4 months. I was looking up AJ Rafael at that time when I encountered their collaboration on AJ's "Taylor Swift Medley" video on Youtube. 

So I was really curious who this girl was because she was so good so I looked her up and listened to her Youtube videos and I was really amazed. I watched all her videos, even her official music videos on her Vevo Youtube Channel. She is pretty amazing. Since then, until now, I am still a big fan of hers.

So just some quick overview about Ms. Tori Kelly:

Victoria Loren Kelly a.k.a Tori Kelly was born on December 14, 1992. She slowly gained recognition after starting to post Youtube videos when she was 14. When she was 16, she auditioned for the singing competition television series, American Idol. Unfortunately, she was cut-off after Hollywood week. After being eliminated, she got back on her feet and started making her own music.

In 2012, she finally released her first ever EP that she produced, wrote and mixed herself. It was entitled "Handmade Songs by Tori Kelly". The following year, Scooter Braun became her manager after seeing her Youtube Videos and introduced her to Capitol Records, where she signed a record contract.

She released her second EP entitled "Foreword" on October 2013 as her first major label release.

Last year, on June 23, 2015, Tori released her debut album entitled "Unbreakable Smile". The lead single of the album, Nobody Love, became her first US Billboard Top 100 appearance. Because of her achievements lately, she was nominated Best New Artist during the 58th Grammy Awards.

• HANDMADE SONGS BY TORI KELLY

This EP showed an overview of Tori Kelly being an artist. It showed her own outlook on society, on love, on fame and on her music. It was purely about who she was as a person and as an artist. It was remarkable. I really loved it. The song that really stood out, for me, in the EP was Confetti because the message was enlightening. It told me that you don't have to be rich and famous to be happy. That you should be happy right now with what you have and just live your life to fullest because you don't know what tomorrow brings for you so just be happy and don't wait for the confetti to fall.

• FOREWORD 

In this EP, she still showed us that Tori Kelly flare. This was the EP that brought her the recognition since it was her first ever record label EP. The unique thing about this EP is that it has no specific genre. Some say that it's Soul, while others say R&B and some say it's Pop. But, for me, it's just pure heart. It's love. Made with love. It doesn't belong to any genre because it's the heart of the songs that matter. The one song that I really admired was Paper Hearts. Not only because I could totally relate to it but it has a different texture to it. At first, it sounds like a very typical heartbreak song but once you really listen to it, different musical techniques are shown. The song is very subtle but very heartwarming. Also, I really love the message that no matter what you do, you can't forget about the happy times you spent with the person that you loved and you also hope that he won't forget those things, too. 

• UNBREAKABLE SMILE 

This was a breakthrough in her career because Tori Kelly finally released her debut album. This album reached a lot of milestones. This album reached #2 in the US Billboard Top 200. She even collaborated with the amazing Ed Sheeran in one of the tracks of the album. My favorite track in the album was Funny. Well, Funny was released as one of her Youtube videos back in the day and I really liked it then and I was really happy that she included it in the debut album. The song talks about her outlook on society. How every single thing always have two sides. How change is a constant thing in this world and how helpless people are not to see that. It's really inspiring and eye-opening. The heart and soul given to the song is really breathtaking and that what makes it really special.

Well, with that, you can see how amazing and inspiring Tori Kelly is. If you don't believe me, you can visit her Youtube channel to see it and hear it for yourself. She can really move hearts and that is a quality every artist should have. To be able to inspire many people. Tori Kelly really is an artist to keep in the music industry.

Yours Truly,

CURIOSITY

TORI KELLY'S SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS:

Youtube:

https://www.youtube.com/user/ToriKelly OR https://www.youtube.com/user/ToriKellyVEVO

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/torikelly/

Twitter - https://twitter.com/torikelly/

Facebook - https://web.facebook.com/torikellymusic/?fref=ts

Website - http://www.torikellymusic.com/

BOOK REVIEW (BELZHAR)

Well. Basically, what I'm doing in my blog right now is reviewing about random things that I usually encounter in my life. So here we go. The book review series. (Wat.)

So just recently, I have finished reading entitled Belzhar. It took me a week to finish the book so you can say it was pretty amazing. 

Just an overview about the book. Belzhar was written by Meg Wolitzer. The book was published back in 2014 and was published by The Penguin Group. 

Cover Photo of Belzhar by Michael Miranda

Well, the book was basically about a girl named "Jam" and her experience in The Wooden Barn. The Wooden Barn is a specialized school for troubled teens. Well, I am just going to spoil you a little bit. So Jam here has a traumatizing experience causing her parents to decide to make her enroll in The Wooden Barn just for a semester. Then, she got involved in a subject called Special Topics in English where only a few chosen students are allowed to be enrolled in that subject. In her stay, her experience in the school gets more interesting every single day with the help of her red leather journal.

I will let you discover those experiences yourselves. Because it is a great damn book. When you finish a chapter, all you want to do next is read the next chapter. You are going to be totally caught up in the plot. 

First, this book is totally relatable, not only for me but to every teen. It's very eye-opening to the reality of life. I think every person out there can really relate to this book.

Second, it's everything in one book. It's about love. It's about adventure. It's about finding yourself. It's about mystery. It's about sorrow. It's about life. It's about friends and relationships. It's about everything. It's diverse. That's one of the things I like in a book. Diversity. It keeps things interesting.

Last, a plot twist is always nice. Even though the plot twist of this book is kind of fatal and boring and kind of expected but it still keeps the story have a dynamic side which is good.

So with those, I totally recommend you to read this amazing book by Meg Wolitzer. 

Belzhar

Yours Truly,

CURIOSITY