Our artist of the week was heard on the BBC Introducing stage at Glastonbury.
Izzy Bizu is an 19 year old singer-songwriter from South West London. Born to an Ethiopian mother and English father she grew up listening to Ella Fitzgerald, Bettye Swann, Betty Wright and James Brown and draws on these alongside new influences, such as Amy Winehouse and Adele to create a fusion of Soul, Funk, Jazz and Pop that sounds classic and brand spanking new all at once. She performed at the ILUVLIVE Open Mic in February 2013, winning over a crowd which included Emeli Sandé and Naughty Boy. However we think she sounds like Minnie Riperton.
Needless to say she won, and performed at the following ILUVLIVE event to another rapturous response. Since then she has gained enormous interest from music industry heavyweights and is fast becoming one of the most holy anticipated acts of 2014.
Wanting to tread her own path and write her album before signing a major deal (and there have been a number of offers on the table), Izzy opted to release her debut EP with the independent ILUVLIVE Records. The EP is acoustic and features six tracks including the highly acclaimed, ‘White Tiger’.
The future looks bright for Izzy who has been supporting Sam Smith this year. Listen to her new track ‘Fools Gold’ and ‘White Tiger.’
