April 11, 2013
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• Article sur DigitalophoneKellylee to release new album April 16 on Universal Music Canada
April 11, 2013
Kellylee will unveil her own spin on music by Kanye West, Eminem, Alicia Keys, A Tribe Called Quest and many more! The new record will be available in-stores and online as of Tuesday, April 16.
Kellylee started singing as a member of the Toronto Mendelssohn Youth Choir, but her initial career aspirations were anything but musical. She obtained degrees at Carleton University in legal studies and English literature, but her destiny took a different direction: she initially courted tennis, but a debilitating ankle injury cut short that career dream. Then along came bassist Lonnie Plaxico; impressed by her performance at a jam session at the Ottawa Jazz Festival, he encouraged her to record an album and enter the Thelonious Monk Jazz Vocal Competition in Washington. "I literally went from singing in the shower to the Kennedy Center stage," Kellylee remembers. "I wasn't a professional musician before that." Today, her fans admire her as an "in-between" artist, between jazz and soul, between Lizz Wright and Erykah Badu.
At once charismatic and sensual, Kellylee opens her pores to the action around her, constantly swaying and dancing, punching the air to match the downbeat of the drumsticks; strumming an imaginary guitar, losing herself in the melody and the movement, drawing you in with her hypnotic spell. It's an insidious flair, this ability to entrance her audience so convincingly. Kellylee says she feels most at home on stage, performing in her bare feet. "The stage is my favourite place to be, and performing without shoes is more comfortable."
The idea for I Remember When was born in 2010 at a jazz concert, You and the Night and the Music, at the Olympia Music Hall in Paris. It was there that Kellylee met Sébastien Vidal, a programming director for radio station TSF Jazz. Later, in New York, Vidal introduced the young singer to producer and pianist Eric Legnini. The two men were so taken with Kellylee's energy that they invited her to do a session that would reflect just that... because Kellylee Evans is an artist so totally contemporary that it seemed only natural to let her record an album that would showcase her personality. The release reflects her great affinity for the songs of Eminem, John Legend and Kanye West, and her ability to transfer them to her own world, where jazz, soul and hip hop mean everything. It also includes seamless renditions of yesterday's classics, as well as her own adaptations and a few of her own compositions, written with Eric Legnini.
Kellylee tells us the story behind a few of the songs on her new album:
"My Name Is"
This was inspired by two of Eminem's songs, "My Name Is" and "Stan." What I have always loved about him is his flow, and his lyrics and stories are so striking.
"One More Lover"
An original inspired by Snoop Dogg. I started the lyrics with a playground rhyme, and we combined two Snoop Dogg samples and that West Coast sound.
"Built To Fly"
This is one of my favourites on the album. We built the song on top of Dr. Dre's "Big Egos", a song that recalls all of rap's mythology and those artists who want the spotlight. I've always loved comic book culture, and I just imagined that we are all superheroes in our own way.
"And So We Dance"
I first heard the original, "Alors on Danse" by Stromae, in France, and played it for friends, who loved it but didn't understand the lyrics. I decided to adapt it. It's not a translation. Actually, it was the melody I liked the most: when you hear it in a club you can't resist it; you want to get up and dance. We've already done it live with my group, and the audience just loves it.
"If I Was Your Woman"
I first discovered this one sung by Alicia Keys, and then I went back to the Gladys Knight version. The bass line is intoxicating. Adding this standard to my repertoire was an honour.
"Lose Yourself"
Another Eminem song: it's the first one I wanted to do for this project. The idea behind it is universal, whether you like rap or not; the words reach everybody.
"Only You"
Musically, this one has a very classic, soul-funk vein. As for the lyrics, they tell a story about loving someone who really only loves himself.
"You Got Me"
The theme has elements of a track by A Tribe Called Quest, "Electric Relaxation," where a guy is talking to a girl. This is more or less the response.
"Amazing"
This is a Kanye West piece. It gives me energy. The more you listen to it, the stronger the impression that you're extraordinary, untouchableKellylee, 'And So We Dance' and OFFTv
March 06, 2013
Kellylee returns to the 25th Annual Women's Blues Revue at Massey Hall
October 15, 2012
• Buy TicketsKellylee - Ottawa Fashion Week
October 14, 2012
For more information visit http://www.ottawafashionweek.ca
