In a world of over produced pop princesses and desperate record deal hungry bands, it is hard to find a genuine do-it-yourself musical sensation in the lime light. However, thanks to YouTube, many at home musicians can produce and present their songs to a world wide audience. Julia Nunes is one of YouTube’s most subscribed musical acts boasting more than 45 thousand subscribers and millions of views. Mostly a cover artist on YouTube, she has done songs from “Build Me Up Buttercup” by The Foundations to Spoon’s “The Underdog”, all on ukulele. Her first album Left, Right, Wrong is comprised of twelve original songs played on guitar. She self produced the record in 2007 on her own label—Rude Butler Music—pretty impressive for a nineteen-year-old college freshman.
Her music is simple; just her richly melodic voice accompanied by guitar. Nunes’s musical style is a balance between talented pop-guitar compositions and insightful lyrics communicating perfectly the awkward but intriguing feelings that come with post adolescent love. Nunes’s lyrics are clever and deep, sometimes self defeating, and easy to relate to. “Blushing Cheeks” is a straightforward anthem of an unrequited crush “please ignore my blushing cheeks, my ears are redder/and I’ll endure these lonely weeks ’til things get better/and I’ll be there for you/’til my heart rips in two” and “A Century” illustrates the inner dialog of a smitten girl hopeful but riddled with insecurity “Just shut up. He thinks you’re cute/ Well I wish I could just stay mute/ But I bet I mess this up again/ And he’ll think we’d be better off as friends/”. In Nune’s lyrics she shows her want for maturity but still holds on to her bright-eyed perspective of love; she writes like a teenager in transition between discovering the desire for a substantial, adult relationship but still wanting the simplicity of puppy love.
Her voice is not pitch perfect but rich and soulful enough to draw in listeners. Writing and producing her own music better transmits her emotion as if you can hear her smiling when she sings. On her YouTube videos she often overlays harmonies which make her songs rich with sound. Besides guitar she also plays the ukulele and melodica which are both sadly absent from the album. However, she promises that her latest record, coming out this month, will feature all the missing elements in Left Right Wrong including harmonies, the Uke, and even some drums and bass.
Overall Left Right Wrong is a solid first attempt by Julia Nunes to break into the music industry on her own terms and with her own style.
Score: B+ 87%
Why don’t you publish this in your student newspaper?