Artists You Should Know: Solange

 

 

For my first installment of Artists You Should Know I chose to write about songwriter and R&B singer Solange. My hope with posts such as this one is to shed light on artists who are talented and deserve more attention. Solange is an artist who hasn’t let anyone tell her to be more commercial because she values her creativity that much. She has the knowhow to write more commercial songs as evidenced by the writing credits on songs by members of Destiny’s Child; ‘Obsession’, ‘Simply Deep’ (which features Solange), and ‘Love’ were performed by Kelly Rowland, ‘We Break The Dawn’, and ‘The Movement’ were performed by Michelle Williams, and ‘Why Don’t You Love Me’, ‘Get Me Bodied’, and ‘Upgrade U’ were performed by Beyoncé (who just happens to be Solange’s older sister). 

 

With her famous ties, you might expect big pop productions but that was only the case for her debut album; Solange began recording “Solo Star” when she was fourteen and because of that she followed what would be popular according to the big names she worked with. On “Solange And The Hadley Street Dreams” she takes over creative control by penning all but one of the twelve tracks on the standard release. She had a vision for the record so she was cautious and careful to choose producers who would understand and respect that vision. The disc as a whole evokes a disco vibe with some electronic additions and features candid lyrics about life, relationships, and the comparisons between her and Beyoncé. The first track on the album is called ‘God Given Name’ and she croons “I’m not becoming expectations/I’m not her and never will be/Two girls going in different directions/Striving towards the same galaxy/Let my star light shine on its own/No, I’m no sister/Just my God given name.”

 

 

 

Images from the album photo shoot and the music videos that accompany the album are beautiful and adherent with the sixties/seventies vibe of the music. On album and single covers, she appears with big hair and quirky, colorful dresses. Much like on the album, Solange exercises her creative control by directing or co-directing each of her three music videos. In the video for first single “I Decided” she appears with backup singers in homage to The Supremes. The video incorporates images important to pop culture from the 1960's through the present before making a foray into the future. Making her directorial debut with “Sandcastle Disco”, Solange uses modern technology to play giant instruments with her funky footwear-clad feet and incorporates lyrics and animations to create a fun, youthful video. Some of the costumes she wears are outrageous but that only adds to her charm when cooing “Ba-ba-ba-ba-baby don’t blow me away.” Third and final single, ‘T.O.N.Y.” (which stands for “The Other Night (oh wh)Y” ) has a plot driven video. It features Solange figuring out what to do after a one night stand results in pregnancy. Cee-Lo Green and Kid Cudi make appearances in the video with Cudi as the “love interest” for lack of a better term. All three videos are worth the watch but ‘Sandcastle Disco’ is my favorite.

 

 

 

Solange is a true artist: she’s got a great voice, she writes her own music, and she’s got a vision for her work. She acknowledges that her style of music won’t bring her to mass fame but doesn’t care because that’s not what she’s after. This message is evident in all released cuts from “Hadley Street Dreams” but is even more potent in the leaked track ‘F*@k The Industry (Signed Sincerely).’ She states “I'll never be picture-perfect Beyoncé/Fly like J-Lo/Or singing baby like Shanti/I barely comb my hair, yeah that's on a good day/I don't care what the hood say/I ain't street like Keyshia/Ain’t never tried to be/And I got soul in my soul/But not quite like Mary/Ain't nothing really R&B about me… But everything I'm not/Makes me everything I am.” She celebrates her differences and isn’t afraid to tell everyone off for trying to change her. The unforgiving honesty in this track makes it one of my favorites by Solange. My other favorites include ‘Sandcastle Disco’, ‘I Decided’, ‘Dancing In The Dark’, 'Cosmic Journey' and ‘This Bird’.

 

 

 

Note: ‘F*@k The Industry (Signed Sincerely),’  ‘This Bird’, and ‘Valentine’s Day’ contain lyrics that may be offensive to some people. 

I hope my post highlighted how talented Solange is and why she should be more known and respected. Comments, suggestions, and constructive criticism are all appreciated and encouraged. Hope everyone's having a good week.