Ledisi will release her new album on Expansion Records November 7th, 2005. The album will feature creative input from Steve Harvey, who recently impressed us with his collaboration for Brigette’s Starlite Lounge.
[edit: It looks like the release date has been changed and the album won’t be out in early November…unfortunately no news about a confirmed release date later this year. So I guess we just have to wait and listen to Ledisi’s previous albums.]
H2O Productions is the team of wife and husband Nicole and Mark Hamilton and like for example Yolanda Charles and Miles Bould and their Mamayo project their objective is to bring back music that evokes some kind of emotion…music that you can relate to on a personal level. Mark and Nicole made tracks and wrote songs in the basement for the past few years and finally have set up a studio in Philadelphia. With the a little help from fellow artists they’ve recently released a ten track album full of good songs bridging the gap between soul, nu soul and R&B/urban.
Furthermore Mark and Nicole introduce us to some impressive new artists like Peter Hadar who adds his vocal magic to the midtempo dance song Need Love. Chinahblac is another new name for me who lays down her soothing voice around the irresistible ballad Bae-Be. I really love the arrangement of the lead and background vocals on this song.
Na2 has a rich and soulful voice and actually it’s his performance that makes Let This Go so good. Unfortunately Let This Go is the only song that disappoints me a little bit in the instrumental department with its bubbling sound which I’ve really heard too often in a ballad.
Tanya and Stanley M. Cooke are a husband and wife duo too, but compared to Mark and Nicole Hamilton they are already veteran musicians who have recorded jazz, R&B, gospel and classical music over the years. On Over And Over Tanya and Stanley deliver a soulful performance over an 80s inspired song.
While it may be widely accepted and be considered as a sign of virility if a male has two lovers, Ebony tells the story of being torn between two loves from a woman’s point of view on the thought-provoking Can’t Let Go.
There’s even a song that features Nicole Hamilton herself on vocals, the floating midtempo groover Nevermind.
The name most of you may be familiar with is Eric Roberson (Erro) who appears on the deep and soulful I Dare U To Stay.
Abbey Dobson’s 4 The Love may also be wider known since this lovely modern soul gem was the winner of the 2004 Heineken Music Initiative. For The Love (Of Music) seems to be Mark’s and Nicole’s maxim and you’ll certainly discover it, if you listen closely to this labour of love. All in all While U Wait is an inspiring showcase of the talents of the Hamiltons and the singers involved. Hopefully we will hear more from all of them in the future.
Tracklisting of While U Wait: 1. Abby Dobson - 4 The Love/ 2. Peter Hadar - Need Love/ 3. Wynter - Love Like This (So Good It Hurts)/ 4. Eric Roberson - I Dare U To Stay/ 5. Chinahblac - Bae-Be/ 6. Na2 - Let This Go/ 7. Tanya And Stanley M. Cooke, III. - Over and Over/ 8. Ebony - Can’t Let Go/ 9. Nicole - Nevermind/ 10. Samuel III. - Nursery Rhymes | released 2005 H2O Productions
For more infos visit h2o-music.com and cdbaby.com.
[If you want to discuss Mark & Nicole Hamilton’s music, you can leave your comment below and also use the forum]
Tyme recently suprised us with her very inspiring debut album A Matter Of Time. If you’re looking for soul music with a purpose with political and in your face lyrics then it’s time for Tyme. But enough of the pun, here’s the jazz-not-jazz interview with Tyme.
Q: Please tell me something about your musical influences, where you’re coming from and how and why you’ve decided to pursue a career in the music business?
Tyme: Some of my musical influences are Marvin Gaye, Jill Scott, Musiq, Billie Holliday, The Jones Girls, Stevie Wonder, The Beatles…I have a lot. Anyone that has a message in their music intrigues me.
Music has been a part of me since I was a child. It was very hard to try to pursue a career in anything else. When I first went to college, I was a biology major. By the end of the first semester, all of my classes were in music.
Q: Songs like Shorty or Momma offer some food for thought. Please tell me more about the stories behind these songs and what inspires you to write your lyrics in general.
Tyme: Shorty is a song I wrote on the plane ride back from Pennsylvania after my younger brother was killed. We kept talking about him coming to stay with me in Los Angeles but unfortunately he never made it. Momma is a song that actuall happened to a member of my family. Anytime I write it is going to be a story. Life inspires me.
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