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Goapele

 

"What I really appreciate about the music that I grew up to is that I feel like I can play those albums now and still hear something new. It's still relevant. That's how I want my music to be perceived. It's what I strive for." -Goapele

 

Goapele (pronounced "gwa-pa-lay") is a multi-faceted artist whose lyrical themes range from political activism to romantic sensuality to deep spiritual truths, while her music combines elements of soul, hip-hop, jazz and rhythm and blues into a smooth and seductive blend uniquely her own.

 

Her debut album, Even Closer, began as a ten-song EP (entitled "Closer") that Goapele and her family distributed as an independent release in 2001, eventually selling 3,000 copies based on ecstatic word-of-mouth endorsements and her growing reputation as an incandescent live performer. In 2002, Goapele reworked her now highly collectible debut EP, adding five new songs, and, along with her brother, Namane, and Theo Rodrigues, formed the indie label Skyblaze for the purpose of distributing the album now called Even Closer.

 

The indie version of Even Closer was an immediate regional hit, at one point outselling 50 Cent's Get Rich or Die Tryin' in the Bay Area. The album's indie incarnation has, to date, Sound Scanned more than 60,000 units and climbed into the Top 100, reaching #63 on Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. A three-star review of Even Closer in Rolling Stone, who singled out Goapele as one of its "Ten Artists To Watch," praised her "...distinct vocal sensibility..." calling Goapele "...a balance of steamrolling Chaka Khan power and yoga-girl suppleness that's full of promise." Billboard invoked Nina Simone and Sade as influences while stressing that "...this classic chanteuse-in-the making is definitely her own woman of substance."

 

While Even Closer brought Goapele to her initial nationwide attention, audiences continued to pack into clubs ranging from New York's famed S.O.B's to the Bay Area's fabled Fillmore Auditorium and Yoshi's, where her debut run sold-out four shows in two nights. In its review of her live performances, the San Francisco Chronicle noted that Goapele is a "...petite songstress with a voice that can fill a stadium... She has been gaining popularity here as an elegant romantic who weaves poetic narratives.... The introspective and airy vocals combined with sassy grooves make Goapele a bit of an urban music anomaly... The rising star ran through a repertoire that borrowed as much from African stars such as Miriam Makeba as it did Stevie Wonder, Sade and Nina Simone. The evening's highlight came with a bilingual rendition of 'Soweto Blues,' a hybrid of jazz and African styles that featured three South African vocalists and a conga player tearing up the stage while Goapele urged the audience to sing along in a celebration of self-determination."

 

Perhaps it is the local Bay Area publication, Urban View, which best summed up Goapele's artistry, "Her vocals shatter souls, leaving audiences begging for more.... She can vocally capture the heart of anyone." She possesses one of the most alluring and powerful voices within the new soul genre, injecting her poignant words with both soul and substance.

 

Goapele—who was influenced by music from Stevie Wonder, Etta James, Nina Simone, Billie Holiday, Aretha Franklin, Bob Marley and Prince as well as by community, political and social issues—would like to further develop as an artist, vocalist and musician. Written and recorded on both the East and West coasts, Even Closer is the fruit of Goapele's labor and inspiration. The Urban View Newspaper reports, "She doesn't just sing, she rips it. She can't hold back. But then again, moving forward is what Goapele is all about."

 



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