Fresh 102.7 Artist Corinne Bailey Rae
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Corinne Bailey Rae
At the end of 2005, editors and DJs were still getting their heads around the spelling of her name as Corinne Bailey Rae rapidly ascended to the top of ‘the next big thing’ polls. Twelve months later, with a no.1 album nearing triple platinum in the UK, further gold and platinum sales awards across the globe including over a million in America where Corinne’s debut created history by entering the Billboard chart at 17 (the highest ever chart debut for a UK artist in the US), it is clear to see that this soulful songstress is currently a lady with the world at her feet. Add to all this one of the year’s biggest hit singles around the world in the shape of ‘Put Your Records On’, a whole host of awards including Mojo and Q Awards for Best Newcomer, two MOBO Awards and now three Grammy nominations, plus a string of sold out tour dates and a mountain of incredible press articles singing her many praises including Billboard magazine hailing her debut album as one of the albums of 2006 in their annual Critic’s Top 10, and Corinne now sits firmly amongst the ranks of established artists she once aspired to be.
From ‘next big thing polls’ hailing her imminent success to ‘end of year polls’ celebrating it, Corinne has had an undeniable impact on the world’s music scene. Truly an astonishing and unprecedented feat for a UK artist in just twelve short months.
So let us remind ourselves of how this incredible musical journey began. It was back in November 2005 that we heard her sing the very first note of her very first EP. It was called ‘Like A Star’, a slice of sublime blues delivered by a voice that pins you, in the softest but most persuasive of ways, to the wall; a voice that floats up effortlessly, full of caress, subtlety and the very purest quality. A voice that was, and still is, a discovery to treasure. A voice that belonged to a young woman not from somewhere musically exotic - say, Mississippi or even Manhattan - but just east of the M1: Leeds. A voice that belongs to the now multi platinum artist, Corinne Bailey Rae.
"I started off singing in church, I suppose, but people think it must have been a gospel church because of the whole, you know, black assumption," she says in reference to her mixed-race background. "But it wasn't gospel at all, it was just your regular brethren church, very middle-class, where we would sing these harmonies every Sunday. It was always my favourite part of the service, the singing."
A move to a down-at-heel Baptist church followed, where the choir alternated between traditional hymns and the slightly less orthodox Primal Scream wig-outs. "We changed the words though," explains Corinne. "We didn't want to offend the regular churchgoers, now did we?" Singing in this way every week led to a broadening of Corinne’s tastes and when her youth leader offered to buy her an electric guitar she grabbed the opportunity, quite literally, with both hands. So began her love affair with making music, and she soon developed a healthy appetite for one of the most innovative bands that rock and roll had to offer, namely, Led Zeppelin.
"I loved that band during my teens," she says. "I wanted, somehow, to follow in their footsteps, and to create music of my own."
This she has duly done. Via a faltering indie band, an English literature degree and a determination that simply would not wane, she arrived fully-formed, and with a musical poise that set her head and shoulders above pretty much anybody you could call her peer. Her debut album is sublime, full of tiptoeing delicacy and wraparound warmth, "I loved that band during my teens," she says. "I wanted, somehow, to follow in their footsteps, and to create music of my own."
This she has duly done. Via a faltering indie band, an English literature degree and a determination that simply would not wane, she arrived fully-formed, and with a musical poise that set her head and shoulders above pretty much anybody you could call her peer. Her debut album is sublime, full of tiptoeing delicacy and wraparound warmth, "I loved that band during my teens," she says. "I wanted, somehow, to follow in their footsteps, and to create music of my own."
This she has duly done. Via a faltering indie band, an English literature degree and a determination that simply would not wane, she arrived fully-formed, and with a musical poise that set her head and shoulders above pretty much anybody you could call her peer. Her debut album is sublime, full of tiptoeing delicacy and wraparound warmth, and wraparound warmth, and one that merges the spirit of Billie Holiday with the statuesque soul of Erykah Badu. Even a cursory listen will tell you that its creator is something rather special.
Corinne Bailey Rae was born and raised in Leeds, the oldest of three daughters to a West Indian father and a Yorkshire mother. At school, she studied classical violin to a high standard, but any ambitions to take this to a higher level were quickly scotched when the afore-mentioned Zeppelin adoration took hold. By the time she turned 15, Corinne was also obsessing over female-led, indie noiseniks like Veruca Salt and L7, and wanted to start her own band. And so she did. Its name was Helen.
Helen? "I know, I know," she says in defence. "What can I say? We were 15 years old, and thought that Helen was a cheeky, indie kind of thing to do. It seemed clever at the time." She smiles. "Admittedly, it seems less so now."
And so she went off to Leeds University where she studied English Literature and spent evenings working as a modern-day hatcheck girl in a local jazz club. Every now and then she was allowed to sing with the band, and from those evenings new ideas began to form. By now, Corinne was writing songs that she wanted to perform solo, and was moving away from all things indie into more soulful territory. By the time EMI signed her in the spring of 2005, she had 10 years of experience tucked neatly under her belt, knew exactly what she wanted and just how to get it.
"I am a fan of jazz, but not the muso kind," she says. "I hate all the noodling, which is why I love classic songs: because they are so pure and succinct. That's what I tried to do with my own songs. They are short and sweet, to the point. I like the idea of leaving people wanting more, not less, you know?"
And so, inspired as much by Björk and Massive Attack as, say, Jill Scott, she went into the studio and came up with her debut album. It is in Corinne's own words, "a little bit of everything: it's chilled out, acoustic, kooky, atmospheric and soulful. I'd also be tempted to say it comes from a very organic place, but that would sound pretentious, so I won't."
And if she writes about the staple of all great soul songs - love - then she does so with less emphasis on its pink fluffiness than its unwritten complexities and multiple challenges. "I'm interested in the things that no one ever tells you about in relationships, about how love works in terms of expectation versus reality."
Because of this, songs like ‘Till It Happens To You’, ‘Like A Star‘ and ‘Choux Pastry Heart’ are unusually intimate, each sparkling with a storytelling honestly that her peers can only dream of.
"The response has been amazing," she says, "and that has been very satisfying, because all this feels so right to me. Writing songs - playing music - is, I know, precisely what I should be doing with my life."
As the awards, sales and praises have proved, the response really has been amazing, and yet the story just keeps growing. With a new single ‘I’d Like To’ scheduled for release in February 2007, an upcoming UK tour which kicks off in March, the release of her first ever live DVD and the continued success of her self titled debut album it would seem there is no stopping Corinne: here is a brand new superstar, one whose voice will be heard for many years to come.
Nick Lachey - Official Site
Nick Lachey on MySpace
Courtesy of www.corinnebaileyrae.net
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