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dennis lloyd
Dennis Lloyd is a heartfelt singer and frank lyricist with a dusky hybrid sound that organically incorporates classic soul influences. The multi-instrumentalist debuted in 2015 and broke through the next year with "Nevermind", a global hit that went to number one in his native Israel and elsewhere, and went platinum in numerous territories, including the U.S. Lloyd has since topped the Israeli pop chart again with "Never Go Back" and "Alien" and released "Some Days" (2021), his first proper album.
(my favourite version)
The Tel Aviv native debuted in 2015 with a couple singles and "The Breakdown" (an EP), after which he spent a year based in Bangkok, Thailand, where he wrote and recorded dozens of new songs. A handful of additional singles and accompanying videos were released across 2016 and early 2017. The most successful of the bunch was "Nevermind" a ballad quickly streamed well over a million times on its way to either topping or nearly topping charts in Israel, Austria, Germany, and Norway, and becoming successful elsewhere. Although he was active as a performer, Lloyd was comparatively quiet from a recording standpoint in 2018, but he returned to the top of the Israeli pop chart in 2019 with "Never Go Back" the biggest song off "Exident", his first EP for major-label Arista. In 2020, a third chart-topper arrived in the form of "Alien" the lead single from "Some Days", issued the following July.
Born and raised in Tel Aviv, Lloyd (real name Nir Tibor) was influenced by the music which surrounded him, as well as the alternative rock and rap metal that travelled to Israel from the US. “I grew up listening to a lot of rock music, especially Nirvana, Audioslave, Soundgarden. Linkin Park, for me, was a really special band because of the mixture between rap, hip hop and rock music,” he smiles from his home studio across a video screen. “Here in Israel, in Tel Aviv specifically, the music scene is so diverse. You have Oriental music, which I love. You have jazz music, which I love. You have reggae, rock... so many different genres here.”
On his single “Anxious”, a track he credits as being his most open and honest to date, he details the panic attacks he suffered during his ongoing litigation. Against the backdrop of pacy and optimistic production, it’s difficult to close in on the anguish detailed in his lyrics. It’s a game Lloyd plays across the album, drawing you in with instant choruses and bright harmonies, only to discover the darkness in his words.
Check out this amazing piece by THE LINE OF BEST FIT to learn more about Dennis Lloyd's fascinating journey.