Chris Lake & Sammy Virji Are “Summertime Blues”
GRAMMY®-nominated, chart-topping artist Chris Lake and UK-based DJ/producer Sammy Virji team up on “Summertime Blues” featuring Nathan Nicholson, released today via Black Book Records/Astralwerks. “Memories are useless, I’ve gotta let ‘em go,” Nicholson sings – and letting go is inevitable as Lake and Virji underpin The Boxer Rebellion frontman’s poignant vocals with a joyous, propulsive anthem poised to ignite summer dancefloors.
Chris Lake said, “I’m so happy I got to work on this track with Sammy and Nathan. I’ve loved their music and vibes for a while. I’m super proud of how ‘Summertime Blues’ turned out. We wanted a drop that felt like the warmth of sunshine and that’s how it makes me feel.”
Sammy Virji adds, “Really excited to get ‘Summertime Blues’ out there, was great to work with Chris and Nathan on the single – so gassed for everyone to hear how it turned out.”
Lake and Virji received a thunderous reaction when they teased “Summertime Blues” at Sammy’s recent sold-out show at Sound Nightclub in Los Angeles. EDM Identity observed, “The night reached its peak when Chris Lake made a surprise appearance, sending the crowd into a frenzy with unreleased tracks and collaborations. The unexpected fusion of garage and tech house left fans, craving more, cementing the night as a historic moment on Hollywood Blvd.”
After closing out Coachella’s Mojave stage with Chris Lorenzo with their project Anti Up, Lake plays Denver’s Mission Ballroom tonight – the first of a two-night stand. His summer festival dates include Under Construction sets with Fisher at Parklife in Manchester, UK and HARD Summer in Los Angeles. “Lake’s positively on fire,” said DJ Mag US in this recent cover story. With combined global streams of his songs surpassing one billion, the GRAMMY®-nominated musician has returned repeatedly to Billboard’s Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart with recent hits like “A Drug From God” – his collaboration with Grimes’ new AI girl group, NPC – the long-awaited ID “In The Yuma” (Ft. Aatig), which reached 32 Spotify viral charts around the globe, and “Beggin’” with Aluna (which has amassed over 70 million combined global streams). Founder of the pioneering record label Black Book Records, Lake has helped launch the careers of Cloonee, Miane, HoneyLuv, Mochakk and numerous other rising artists.
Virji has swiftly made his mark on the electronic music space, proving to be both a pioneer and innovator of the UKG renaissance. He’s has had an incredible start to the year with “If U Need It” becoming his best performing single to date, a sold-out debut North American tour and a string of accolades from Spotify (Mint Ones To Watch), Radio 1 (Future Artist Of The Month + Rising Star), Music Week (Making Waves Feature) and Soundcloud ascending artist. He recently played a special B2B set with Disclosure in Amsterdam. In this recent feature, beatportal said, “It’s true: Virji is officially worldwide. But this newfound stardom represents a moment much bigger than the Sammy Virji project: It represents a UK Garage global revolution.”
As frontman for U.K. indie-alt band The Boxer Rebellion, Nicholson has enjoyed global success seeing the band through six studio albums and numerous global tours. He has also lent his vocal and songwriting talents to the likes of KYGO, Gryffin, Calum Scott, Duke Dumont, Tinlicker, Claptone, Gordo, Hayden James, J. Worra and KC Lights, amongs others. Nathan opened the 2023 Edition of the Amsterdam Dance Event performing with Tinlicker and The Metropole Orchestra, and his latest co-write “DNA” opened 2024 in the UK Top 10 Official Singles Chart for recording artist Billy Gillies.