The latest smooth jazz vocalist to hit the scene is Maxine Hardcastle.

Yes, she is the daughter of British smooth jazz composer Paul Hardcastle. Maxine sings and has co‑writing credits on three song on Hardcastle 4. They are “Smooth Jazz Is Bumpin'," “Was It Love” and “Where Are You Now.” Maxine is co‑writing and performing on tracks with 'Nate Harasim' winner of the up and coming smooth jazz producer award in the United states.

The budding young singer's voice is a real treat, and recalls frequent Hardcastle collaborator Helen Rogers (Rogers will be back on the next Jazzmasters' CD). Maxine was the inspiration for an old Hardcastle song called «Maxine,» and she also had a spoken‑word monologue throughout a song called «Look to the Future» from the Hardcastle 2 album released in 1996.

Ironically, Maxine turned 19 years old in April 2006. You may recall that Hardcastle had a worldwide dance smash back in 1985 with the song “19,” which used spoken‑word reports from Vietnam throughout the song that described the average age of American combatants as 19.

«It’s the first time that she’s actually done something really popular in the studio, and she really likes this type of music,» says Paul Hardcastle. «Her songwriting’s getting very, very good at the moment, and I think she’s got a great future ahead of her.»

We agree.

Maxine has had several of her tracks signed to Hed Kand, Ministry of sound which features on a number of Hed kandi Albums distributed world wide, including 'It's Gunna Happen', 'Another Chance' (featuring a remix by Richard Earnshaw) 'Walking With A Smile' and 'Bringing me Back'.

Maxine is currently signed to violent music and is involved in the project 'Alice DJ' set to be released this year. Maxine DJ's in venues across Britain and stands in good stead for high profile performances in 2010.