Top 10 Iconic Singers from Jacksonville, Florida

The city flag of Jacksonville, Florida, United States. Photo by Ssolbergj – Wikimedia Commons

Top 10 Iconic Singers from Jacksonville, Florida

Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of Florida, the most populous city in the state, and is the largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the seat of Duval County, with which the city government consolidated in 1968.

1. LANNDS 

A musician in the backlight stands in front of the audience and plays tambourine. Photo by Antoine J. on Unsplash

The psych-pop music of Rania Woodard and Brian Squillace has been reverberating below ground for nearly a half-decade.

As LANNDS, the duo’s dance-y electronic umami––which combines earthy samples with tripped-out atmospherics, moist guitar leads, and transcendentalist lyrics––has earned an estimable following on streaming platforms like Spotify, where they’ve amassed more than 6,000 monthly listeners.

 In 2021, LANNDS’ debut for  Boston-based Run For Cover Records, “In The Garden,” sprouted up on NPR Music’s #NowPlaying blog. The duo’s independently produced lotus EP will get the vinyl treatment in early 2022 and plans for a US tour are forthcoming.

2. Andrew Sapin 

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He was born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida; Andrew Sapin is a talented musician currently blazing his path in the field of Contemporary Pop and Soul.

He started playing piano at the age of four and was heavy influences by his musician grandfather, who initially shaped Andrew’s musical tastes with the stylings of Stevie Wonder.

Andrew continued to cultivate his musical endeavors by DJiing events in his community and teaching himself to play guitar.

3. Ebonique 

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Songstress Ebonique is no stranger to Duval’s R&B scene. But her first-class voice garnered extra attention this year. In April, the singer-songwriter released the four-song EP Edge Control, a collection of sultry R&B that drips with the kind of freedom of expression enjoyed by an artist seemingly coming into her own.

Duval musicians took notice, as Ebonique is slated to pop up as a featured artist on several releases in 2022 (stay tuned). Expect more singles and a full-length from Ebonique next year. And expect to hear many more fans singing her praises. 

4. Huan 

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Jacksonville-native Juan Mallorca aka Haun serves indie-psych-pop with a side of neo-soul that grooves along the lines of Durand Jones & The Indications. He put out four singles in 2021.

The latest, “Neverland,” offers steel-drum accompaniment to an otherwise straight-up indie-pop tune. It’s these little twists and turns that make Huan’s music pop.

The song also features a few two-bar, filtered break-beat sections that cement Mallorca’s rep as a multi-hyphenate: artist and producer. His music is a little bit disco, and a little bit emo; the ultimate combination for a feel-good bop. Consider this a little hint to get acquainted with the name so you can say you knew Huan back when indie still flowed through his veins.

5. Sailor Goon 

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Jacksonville vocalist Kayla Le’s jazzy, psychedelic pop alter ego Sailor Goon built some serious momentum in 2021. Le’s created a dynamic personality for Sailor Goon, releasing a stash of roach-length joints and a surrealist video for the downtempo bedroom pop number “Milk & Bones.”

 Goon’s latest release “Persian Rugs,” made in collaboration with multi-instrumentalists and producers Glenn Michael Van Dyke (Boytoy, Kairos Creature Club) and Lena Simon (La Luz, Kairos Creature Club), landed on NPR Music’s #NowPlaying blog.

The song is a perfect showcase for Le’s singular vocal talent and idiosyncratic creative vision, knitting together pop, R&B, and the indefinable over a relentless bass vamp, minimalist drum samples, and restrained atmospherics. 

6. Cortnie Frazier 

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Cortnie Frazier is a singer from Jacksonville. She is a vocalist from Florida.

Cortnie is very prominent in the music scene performing solo as well as in various groups such as Bold City Classics.

7. Jahny Steel 

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Jahny Steel has cut a deep groove in the local hip-hop scene in a short time. If the last year alone is any indication, Steel has quickly shifted from an emerging artist to a fully established one.

Yet his lyrics, quick-cadential delivery, and mercurial and unorthodox production choices make him the sole player in his own game; one where he perpetually revises the rules. Case in point: his latest single “Godchild,” a blend of eerie synths, distort-boom, and his triple-time trance wordplay stitching it all together.

7. Herminia Soulshine    

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Herminia is a singer from Jacksonville. She is a professional recording and touring artist.

Her infectious personality and vocal abilities, leave her audience wanting more.

8. Leo Sun

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Leo Sun, the moniker for recently transplanted Jacksonville native Matilda Phan, released two singles before jet-setting to the other coast, undoubtedly to bask in the California sun.

 Their two singles, “When You Wake Up” and “All Good,” are lighthearted without being vapid or airy––substantive, yet dreamy jaunts that worship a sunbath with someone you enjoy laying next to. 

9. Candice Rena 

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 Candice Rena is real. Singing so honestly from her heart and soul and in just the right way, combining art, story, and song in perfect unison.

10. Akia Uwanda 

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Akia Uwanda offers solo and full band services in the musical genres of Jazz, smooth jazz, Soul/Neo-Soul, R&B, and Gospel.