By: Simóne J Banks
A list of the most deserving women of 2007 doing what they do best.
Peanut Butter Cookiez: Artist gets their inspiration from many things; people, places and sometimes things. Simply stated, these are the nouns of life that can drive a spirit or hinder it. Peanut Butter Cookiez is an artist that used her environment to create beauty through visual art. Reality in its rawest form might seem a bit distorted but the artistic expression still resembles a realistic approach that’s appreciated.
Born in the Philippines, but raised in Law Vegas, this half Filipino and Jamaican beauty found herself caught up in the arts. Drawing, anime, and graphic design were just some of her developing skills. However, she attributes music as the foundation to her growing desire to create art.
In a recent interview with voicesmagazine.com, she states that music helps her to build on her creativity and spontaneity. “I want to inspire minds. I want people to recognize their limitless potential as individuals by constantly creating and challenging to improve themselves as I have with my art. My art is very personal. My art describes my personality and it’s a visual translation of my emotions and thoughts.”
In the meantime, PBC has teamed up with the clothing company, Konform. Her art will be displayed on items such as T-shirts, skateboards and hats. She’s currently working on all new designs, but you can check out her published material and other pieces at www.myspace.com/iveyp
Ledisi: "I know I have something...some kind of power here, and I worry about misusing that or saying the wrong thing more than I worry about whether I'll have a voice tonight." Stated in a recent interview with http://www.soultracks.com/, how can you not expect the most sincere music from an artist that is more concerned about her message and usage of power than her voice?
Ledisi, which means “to bring forth” form the Yoruba language of Nigeria has obviously been a blessing to her. Based on her lyrics and singing ability, she only knows how to produce quality, mind blowing vocals conveying messages of the realities of life and love.
With tracks such as Best Friend, I Tried, You & Me and Joy; understanding her pain and her most pleasurable experiences will touch you deeper than expected. Ledisi’s voice compares to no other artist that is currently out. Soul music is making its appearance again and it’s beautiful when artists represent the genre so well.
Her first single, Alright, off her latest album Lost and Found tells a story of self love and faith. As stated in her bio; “I make my music to be timeless...so it can never be dated." She has definitely mastered that. She recently was named one of the top 10 faces to watch in 2007 in Billboard Magazine. Check her out. http://www.ledisi.com/
Emily King: For Emily King, growing up in New York City could be attributed to the growth of her wide-spread curiosity for her musical influences and musical tastes. As the daughter of two jazz musicians, music was always around her and eventually became her savior. From first glance, King seems precious, almost too gentle to be the creator of such lyrics that her bio states reflect her life and personality. Half African American and Italian, her song Colorblind is a song that hits close to King’s heart the most. "It sums up what I'm about, where I'm from, and gives an idea of the passion behind what I'm doing. I wanted it to be like a bio of myself."
Her album, East Side Stories is a timeline of King’s life. What has shaped her; enabled her to grow and allowed her to feel confident enough to share her story musically. Her single, Walk in My Shoes and It Was You displays her compassion towards her parents. But, not every song describes her past, she also lets loose in Hold Me and Ride and pays tribute to legends such as Bill Withers in Ain’t No Sunshine.
Experience her. In the midst of our musical and culture division where everyone is still trying to decipher if hip hop is truly dead, there are artists that just want to influence and make change through song. "I'm just finding my own culture within myself," she says. "We have a lot of division in our society, but I was never raised like that. I feel like what I'm doing right now is going to bring a lot of people together.” Check her out, http://www.emilykingonline.com/
Alice Smith: Unapologetic with a four-octave range, Alice Smith will relax you, move you and consume your thoughts. Her first solo album, For Lovers, Dreamers and Me is a testament of life in its purest form. According to Fader Magazine; “Smith is like a movie that departs radically from a familiar plot halfway through, Smith uses pop conventions to lead you to moments of genuine revelations in all the places you never expected” Some say she’s soul, and others refer to her as the new R&B, getting away from the classic love ballads and ringtone choruses. But, Smith simply states that soul to her is not a category; it’s a feeling.
Growing up in Washington, D.C. as an only child, she refers to her childhood as having a lot of “me time”. Never really thinking about the act of singing, she would just always sing. Escaping the urban lifestyle would be summers spent in Georgia. There on her family’s 69-acre farm Smith’s appreciation for music grew and later would shape her deeply rooted lyrics you hear today.
On her ten track album, she wrote four of the ten songs; Dream, Love Endeavor, Do I and Gary Song. “Half of ‘em are my songs,” she states in her bio, “the other half, I found ‘em. Mine sound like me. But, I think I’m actually surprised when people say they can tell mine from the others. Whatever, I love ‘em!”
Not sure if her album will be the initial foundation for other female “soul” artists to come forth and renew the tradition of female soul singers, but instead she equates her 1st solo album as a record she just wanted to record. “It would be nice if this stuff got to be some other, some new shit. I would be so happy. I think it would be great if this is where we’re going. I would love to be the person to do it. But I almost want to say that I didn’t intend that, but that wouldn’t be right, not exactly. What I intended was to make a record. You know?”
It’s like the saying, “You’ll always get what you’ve gotten, if you always do what you’ve done.” Smith is that change, bringing soul back into music that is often referenced as soul music. Perhaps what listeners were missing was the passion…its back. Check her out, http://www.alicesmith.com/
Ayo: Beauty in its purest form, her voice is like the kiss on the back of your neck. This German born musician equates her nomadic lifestyle to her free form singing range that surprises you with every note she reaches. Her musical identity, she states could be summed up from her living between Paris and New York. Both cities shaped and molded her into the Ayo you must encounter.
She’s eclectic. Her taste in music was influenced by artists such as Pink Floyd, Fela Kuti, Soul Children, Bob Marley and more. “I’m definitely Bohemian by nature, preferring a nomadic lifestyle. Not having a home? That is freedom.” According to her bio, her life has been an emotional rollercoaster. As a little girl, she left for Nigeria with her father due to his desire not to follow customs even though her grandmother wanted her to stay, and to her, that was the first “blow” to her spirit. Her middle name, Olasunmiboi in Yoruba means; She who is born elsewhere, but who will come back full of prosperity. Each time you hear her voice, it’s a new beginning for her. Each song tells a story, a piece of her life that might have been painful or joyous, but whatever it may be, its truth.
Her album was finished in five days and recorded entirely live. “I need to feel the musicians to really thrive…I feel at my best when I’m performing live. Whether you’re solo or accompanied by a group, you can’t lie.” She’s bittersweet, beautiful and simple. Her debut album Joyful: Ayo is a composition of 12 tracks that will feed your spirit and leave you open. Check her out, you will not be disappointed! http://ayomusic.artistes.universalmusic.fr/
Amanda Diva: You might recognize the name Amanda Diva. Many knew her as “the face of hip hop” for MTV2, as a member of the Atlanta based DJ crew "The Aphilliates,” her morning show “Breakfast at Diva’s” on Sirius Satellite Radio’s HipHopNation/40, on air Monday through Friday from 6am-12pm and as a contributor for XXL Magazine and AllHipHop.com. But, what some didn’t know is that she stepped in as the new face of Floetry after the “floacist” Natalie Stewart left and joined the “songstress” Marsha Ambrosius for the Floetry Remixed Tour. Many that attended the concerts didn’t like the change, but I say welcome it!
Amanda Diva not only brings a different vibe to Floetry as the “Lyri-Sista”, but her approach is so down to earth that she ends up captivating you before you have a chance to judge her. You may have seen her performing on Russell Simmons’s Def Poetry Slam stage, or heard her wicked fusion of rapping and singing on her It’s Bigger Than Hip Hop, The Mixtape Volume 1 (2004) or her Still Sucka Free Volume 1 Mixtape.
But, if you are still unaware of who this brilliant woman is, check her out; http://www.amandadiva.com/. She brings the realities of politics, education, social awareness and activism to hip hop. With all those qualities combined, is the reason why hip hop is not dead! As stated in her bio, “Amanda Diva puts them (lyrics) in an explosive rhyme/song format that forces the highest sadiddy to come down to earth, and the most thorough thug to awaken his intellect.”
December 7th will mark the release of LIFE, the 1st part of The Experience Trilogy; a three part series of EP’s. She’s dedicated to making music that people can live to. Along with her long resume as an emcee/poet. She is also a painter and her abstract depiction of hip hop, her love of Black people and life in its rawest forms can be seen and purchased on her website as well.
The hip hop community is ready for a female emcee like Amanda Diva. There aren’t too many females representing an image that is beyond the physical and in this delicate time where music is being critiqued more than ever, having someone true to their word represent for the ladies is a fresh start.
HEAVy: “My bite’s venomous!”
This will be a rare addition to the list of ladies slept on during 2007 because HEAVy is a duo. Front singer, Nicky Guiland and producer Casey Benjamin are geniuses when it comes to creating sounds so grave, a live show will leave you jaw dropping and worn out. In short, you will find yourself playing their album on rotation, because their music is that good!
As lead singer, Nicky is an icon in her own right. She’s determined and her music reflects her love and passion for the art of words and the fusion it has with a melody. She’ll play with you, mold your thoughts and keep you vulnerable with her voice alone. She came up with the name HEAVy based on the responses they would receive after performances. Their music was always equated as being heavy and amazing live. Tracks such as Time, Venomous and Countdown and Can’t Be the Way display sheer funk, ease and an intensity of a rock and roll/ hip hop fusion. It’s in your face, direct and you can’t help but to press repeat.
Representing Jamaica, Queens, NY, both artists are no novice to music or creativity. Their myspace.com bio sums up their sound pretty well. “With Nicky drawing favorable comparisons to a young Chaka Khan (and of course Minnie), and Casey playing off Nicky's etherealisms on keys and with his distinctive production, HEAVY updates the Groove Theory model of the 'power duo' to fantastic results with seemingly limitless possibilities.”
Their album, JAzzmonEY$$ dropped October 2007. They have no boundaries and their sexy, unapologetic sound has to be one of the freshest sounds released in 2007. Their message; take risks, live, love and learn. Do something different and check out http://www.heavymusic.net/
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