Today, Woolungah/Wollongong-based artist Charbel returns with the new single ‘Wavy’, which comes alongside the announcement of his signing to Farmer & The Owl/BMG. The silky track pairs Charbel’s velvety vocals with slick beats, showcasing a glimpse of what Charbel has to offer. Alongside the release comes a video-game style music video. On the single, Charbel details: ‘WAVY is about the feelings of your ego being out of control. Sometimes to control the feelings you need to pop your own bubble’.
On the signing, Ben Tillman, co-founder of Farmer & The Owl, details; ‘Wollongong has always been a pretty guitar rock town, with a simultaneous club culture existing too. So we were mesmerised when we first stumbled upon this small pocket of hip-hop / RnB & bedroom producers, who were tucked away in the outer suburbs of the Gong. Standing front & centre of this newly flourishing scene was Charbel. He demands attention in the most humble & subtle way. Gentle but commanding. His music and attention to detail, across the entire artistic direction of the project, is one to behold. When we saw him perform live, on top of everything else, we realised he really was the full package. We’re so thankful & excited to get to work with this truly unique & creative artist, and cant wait to see what’s going to come from it.’
Charbel adds; ‘I’m super honoured to join the Farmer & The Owl & BMG team. I look forward to this union as we will bridge together to bring new vibrations to the Australian music scene. From being a young kid exposed to acts on the Farmer & The Owl label, I’m extremely proud and honoured to be able to shine a light on the Wollongong Hip-Hop/R&B scene with hopes to bring it to the forefront of Australian and worldwide audiences.’
Charbel has been sitting on something big. He’s achieved plenty already in his still-blossoming career, including releasing his debut mixtape Passion Fruit while still in high school and linking up with the likes of Urthboy, Kid Pharaoh and Kyoshi on various tracks. He’s established himself as one of the more promising young prospects beneath Australia’s so-called urban music umbrella – a spectrum he facilitates through a multifaceted approach across niche corners of hip-hop and rnb, as showcased on songs like 2019’s ‘River of Neglect’ (boasting nearly 170,000 streams on Spotify alone). Garnering acclaim from the likes of triple j, triple j unearthed, FBi, Triple R and The Edge, 2019 saw Charbel win the triple j Dream Fest competition, as well as the triple j NIDA competition. Returning with his latest single, ‘Wavy’, Charbel provides an is an impactful taste of what is to come.
‘Wavy’ is out now. Listen here.
