CORE Creatives x Hotel Cafe Pop Up Event

LA-based Montana native, Willow Stephens is an award winning songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and recording artist. Her undercover classical and jazz chops are wrapped in a shiny, pop sensibility with lyrics that cut straight to the heart. When she is not having contagious amounts of fun on stage with her band, you can find Willow live streaming music on Twitch to her international community of fans several times a week. Her sophomore album Future Classic offers a fresh and unique blend of groovy introspective pop, R&B, and a whole lot of heart; it’s music to get you out of your funk and back in your groove.

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Joe Marson is a gypsy soul with a calling to make music. He refers to it as Electric Soul Magic and has been putting all of his experience into lyric and song ever since he was a young California boy obsessed with his mother’s acoustic guitar.

Joe has toured throughout the US, Europe, and Asia, playing shows, colleges, house shows, and festivals and has opened for Tedeschi Trucks Band and Marcy Playground. He has had songs placed in movies such as Marvel’s Deadpool as well as on multiple shows on Netflix, FX, ABC, and more.

After 14 years of being a singer and a songwriter, Joe mysteriously lost his voice for 2 years. Naturally this was a very heavy time—but as he began to heal his soul, his voice miraculously came back and he fell in love with writing music all over again. The extremes of the highs and lows of his life journey can be heard in his voice and songs.

Everywhere we travel and everything we see and do shapes who we become. A seemingly never-ending globe-trotting sojourn highlighted by unforgettable experiences a la studying yoga in India and recording in Mexico City, a dynamic upbringing, and innate creativity define the music of soul singer, songwriter, and producer Alana Hil. After generating millions of streams and attracting the likes of GRAMMY® Award winner Printz Board [Black Eyed Peas, Keyshia Cole] to her corner, she formally introduces herself on her independent 2023 mixtape, 12:30, and much more to come.

“When you listen to me, I want you to feel inspired to be your full truest self,” she exclaims. “I hope you feel the gritty, raw earth in the music.”

Her truth always resided in music. Growing up in Kentucky, she developed her talents in vocal lessons as a kid and by participating in theater competitions. During eighth grade, her mom married a preacher, and Alana found herself immersed in the culture of a black gospel church in Cincinnati. The choir embraced her talent and encouraged her to even perform solos throughout high school. At the same time, she listened to everyone from Luther Vandross, Dolly Parton, and Lauryn Hill to Janis Joplin, Ella Fitzgerald, and Jay Z. After attending Middle Tennessee State University, she sold all of her belongings, moved to Maui, and pursued music full-time. Life twisted and turned with spells in Aspen, Australia, Thailand, Bali, and Mexico where she performed and recorded with various collaborators. 2018 saw her embark on another life-changing trip, studying music at the Northern Indian School of Classical music and yoga and mantra in the Himalayas.

“More than ever, I realized music could be a tool for healing,” she notes.
Various creative projects followed. She joined forces with Isaac Chambers and Ryan Herr, under the moniker Swan Hil, on the Moments EP in 2021. The title track notably generated over 232K Spotify streams and counting. On its heels, she linked up with Alexis Rodriguez on Otra Vida EP. A chance encounter at Los Angeles hotspot Black Rabbit Rose kicked off her partnership with Printz. He heard her singing, and they decided to hit the studio together. They carefully constructed what would become 12:30. With Printz’s immersive instrumentation and
three-dimensional production, Alana breathed new life into generational anthems such as “Human Nature” by Michael Jackson, “Smells Like Teen Spirit” by Nirvana, and “Rolling in the Deep” by Adele, adding a twist of otherworldly R&B as transmitted through her richly dusky vocal delivery.

Meanwhile, the original single “Beautiful” threads her sugar-coated, smokey tone through a haze of hypnotic, throwback beats. It builds towards an instantly irresistible affirmation, “We’re beautiful with a shining light, beautiful with a reckless side.”

“That’s me and my girls,” she goes on. “We’re super into sustainability and living a sustainable lifestyle, which means taking care of our bodies in a very serious way. We all have disciplined practices within yoga, meditation, and eating in ways that benefit the earth as well as our bodies, but we party pretty hard too. Polar opposite ends of the spectrum. Living life, you need to have balance.”

Ultimately, such balance definitely catalyzes her creativity.