No Xtra is the brainchild of GRAMMY-nominated, multi-platinum producer/songwriter Sam Barsh and A-list vocalist extraordinaire Maiya Sykes. The 2 have collaborated on a 5-song EP that explores their shared love of soul music from the 90s and 2000s, weaving through neo-soul, early 2000s pop/R&B, and the lofi-beats and trap sounds popular in today’s sonic landscape.
Show more Show less
Maiya Sykes has been a first-call vocalist in Los Angeles since childhood, when she was cast as a choir singer in the blockbuster film “Home Alone.” She has gone on to provide background vocals for for The Black Eyed Peas, Macy Gray, Fantasia, Joss Stone, Michael Buble, Leona Lewis, Aloe Blacc and Rita Ora. She recently provided backgrounds and was featured in the Oscar award-winning film La La Land. She is the lead singer of LA-based group The Endangered, and performs frequently as a solo artist.
As a recording artist, Maiya released a dance single with DJ Manny Lehman, “Body Rock”, recorded under the pseudonym Oceana, which reached number 1 on the Billboard Dance Charts in 2009. She began working with Postmodern Juxebox in 2014, a band popular from its videos on Youtube. Her featured videos with Postmodern Juxebox have received over 3 million views and have been mentioned in Time Magazine and the Huffington Post.
Sam Barsh is a GRAMMY-nominated songwriter and producer who has written over 200 commercially released songs, and appeared on over 150 recordings to date as a producer and keyboardist. His 5 Billboard Hot 100 credits include Kanye West’s “Hurricane” feat. the Weeknd and Lil Baby, which debuted at #6 on the chart in September 2021, Logic’s Platinum-certified and MTV VMA winning single “Black Spiderman,” and the US top 10 and UK #1 smash “The Man” by Aloe Blacc, for which he received 2 BMI awards. His work has been awarded 15 Gold and Platinum certifications in the US and UK, including 3 #1 albums on the Billboard 200. Barsh received a 2021 GRAMMY nomination for Best R&B Song for co-writing the Tiana Major9 feat. EarthGang single “Collide,” which was featured in the film “Queen and Slim.” His work on Kendrick Lamar’s “To Pimp a Butterfly,” Anderson .Paak’s, “Malibu,” BJ the Chicago Kid’s “In My Mind,” Ledisi’s “Let Love Rule” and DJ Khalil’s “Elevate” from the “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” soundtrack has been awarded 3 GRAMMYs out of 8 nominations.