featured artists

Andrea Marr

Since 1999, Andrea Marr has been delivering her brand of feel-good, high-energy original funk, groove, blues and soul music around Australia. Through sheer hard work she has earned a place in the thriving Melbourne blues scene as one of its most sought after live acts.

Andrea has established herself as the real deal by winning a number of awards including:

  • The 2002 VIC/TAS Female Artist of The Year for her album โ€œSassifiedโ€
  • The 2005 Blues Performer of The Year Award

With these awards under her belt, Andrea has gone on to become a regular on the Australian festival circuit doing headline spots and playing alongside the best acts from Australia and overseas. With the 2005 Blues Performer of The Year Award, she was able to go on to represent Australia in the International Blues Challenge in Memphis Tennessee in 2006 to critical acclaim. Her next CD โ€œWatch Me Work Itโ€ received international airplay with the title track being included on the US โ€œNational Women In Bluesโ€ CD that promotes and launches the new wave of US blues women. Andrea was the only non-American female included in this compilation.

In 2008, she released her album โ€œLittle Sister Got Soulโ€. The album received rave reviews and international airplay as well as winning the 2009 Australian Female Blues Artist of The Year, the 2009 VIC/TAS Female Blues Artist of The Year, and the 2009 VIC/TAS Best Self-Produced Blues CD of The Year. In 2010, Chicago-based blues label โ€œBlue Skunk Musicโ€ picked up โ€œLittle Sister Got Soulโ€ for re-release in the US and the album hit No.18 on the US Living Blues Charts in February 2011.

In 2012, The Andrea Marr Band won the MBAS Blues Performer of The Year competition and was sent to represent Australia in the International Blues Challenge in Memphis Tennessee for the second time. The band reached the semi-finals, playing at the internationally renowned BB Kingโ€™s Blues Club on Beale Street Memphis.

Andrea then branched out to expand her funk and soul sound and formed The Funky Hitmen.

The band is based in Melbourne and features a killer eight-piece line up playing Andreaโ€™s original soul and funky tunes. Chicago-based record label Blue Skunk Music released the EP โ€œSass & Brassโ€ in 2013. It received international airplay and critical acclaim.

Then in 2014, Andrea teamed up with producers Damien Reilly and Danny Saber to work on New York-based writer Michael Jamesonโ€™s song โ€œSummer Loveโ€.

Going back to the blues, Andrea Marr Band then released a live album called โ€œLive at the MBAS House Of Bluesโ€ in July 2015. The album charted in the top 25 of The Australian Blues and Roots Charts for six months, received airplay in the UK and Germany and was picked up by over 160 US blues radio stations. The album was nominated for โ€œAlbum Of The Year,โ€ โ€œSong Of the Year,โ€ โ€œBand Of the Year,โ€ and โ€œArtist of the Yearโ€ in the VIC/TAS Blues Awards. It was also nominated for โ€œSong Of The Yearโ€ for Andreaโ€™s original song โ€œWho Am I To Judge Youโ€ at The Australian Blues Music Awards.

Collaboration with hip-hop R&B artist Markia created something new for Andrea Marr fans, when her original gospel R&B song โ€œGratefulโ€ was released in 2015. The song received international airplay and charted in Sri-Lankaโ€™s biggest music program YES FMโ€™s Home Grown Charts. It stayed in the top 15 for 26 weeks in a row, reaching a whole new audience. The song was then picked up by Generation Entertainment and remixed as a soul/house track by New York DJ Lenny Fontana and also by Sydney DJ Sunset Child (release date June 2016).

Andreaโ€™s next 2016 release was the powerhouse soul single โ€œForce Of Natureโ€ with her Funky Hitmen and in March 2017 she released a roots/rock track called โ€œSweet Addictionโ€ with guitarist Brian Strafford. In 2016 Andrea also wrote a song-writing book called โ€œThe Songwritersโ€™ Handbookโ€ to teach her students how to write and produce original music โ€“ the book is available on theย Music page.

In 2017 Andreaโ€™s original song โ€œGratefulโ€ was a finalist in the Great American Songwriting Contest and โ€œForce of Natureโ€ won a silver medal at the Global Music Awards.

Andreaโ€™s new album โ€œNaturalโ€ was released in October 2017. The album is a true taste of Memphis soul/blues and has received rave reviews in the Australia, US, UK and Germany since its release on October 1. It has also been played Australia wide, in Canada, France and all over the US.

โ€œThis has all the heart and soul of classic soul, funky enough to make James Brown sit up and take notice โ€ฆ in a world full of people trying to sound like their favourite star, Andrea Marr is a bona fide original โ€“ 100% the real dealโ€ย โ€“ Bill Wilson, US review

โ€œAs with all the great soul that came out of Stax and Atlantic in that halcyon bygone age and what Daptone Records currently do better than anyone else, Miss Andrea Marr combines passion, energy, and S.O.U.L with melodies and hooks to die forโ€ย โ€“ Rocking Magpie, UK review

โ€œPure nostalgia to the era of Stax and Motown comes back to life on this album. Images of Aretha Franklin or Betty Wright are burned back on my retina when listening to the album. Andrea Marr is an 18 carat soul diamondโ€ย โ€“ Rootsville, Belgium

โ€œThe first thing you are going to notice when you listen to Andrea Marr is that hugely-soulful voice. She has a passion for the music of Motown, Stax, Etta, Aretha, Sharon Jones, and JB, and sheโ€™s got the chops to pull it off. Andrea and The Hitmen get it tight, right, and outta sight. Fans, since the untimely passing of Sharon Jones, someone has to step up and carry the soul torch forward. Why not Andrea Marr? Sheโ€™s shoโ€™ nuff a natural!โ€ โ€“ย Don and Sherylโ€™s Blues Blog,ย USA

To buy the album, visit theย Music page.

In May 2018 the โ€œMcNaMarr Projectโ€ was formed, with Andrea joining forces with powerhouse vocalist/guitarist and songwriter John McNamara. Johnโ€™s 2017 release โ€œRolling With Itโ€ hit #1 on the US Roots Music Reportโ€™s Contemporary Blues Singles Charts and #1 on the Amrap singles charts, received three nominations at the Australian Blues Music Awards and won โ€œSong of the Yearโ€ the McNaMarr Project won the solo/duo section of the Blues Challenge in Melbourne on September 9th 2018 and are off to represent Australian Blues in Memphis in January 2019. McNaMarr Project brings the true sound of soul blues with their love of Stax, Chess and Motown written into every song.

To keep up to date with Andreaโ€™s live shows, visit theย gigs page

Andrea Marrย is aย DJ Central Recordsย and Blue Pie Records USA artist.ย Andrea is published by Blue Pie Publishing USA for the โ€œSummer Loveโ€ collaboration below.

 

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