FEATURE:
Spotlight
ALL PHOTOS/IMAGES: Getty Images/Artist
Georgia Anne Muldrow
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WHAT with the music industry swelling and expanding…
it gets harder to detect and identify the musicians worth sticking with. You have the flash-in-a-pan artists that seem interesting and then fade without a trace. There are some that look promising but they falter and you wonder why. Music is a tough and competitive stable that packs a lot of promise but little longevity. When you look at Georgia Anne Muldrow, you realise there is a natural-born star who is ready to add her voice to the musical history books. She was born in Los Angeles to the acclaimed Jazz musician, Ronald Muldrow, and was exposed to music at a young age. It was not only Jazz that was rattling around the mind of the impressionable Muldrow: spirituality and religion played as much a part as local vibes and dishes. Muldrow graduated in L.A. and soon moved to New York for the New School’s Jazz program – where she met fellow students Robert Glasper and Bilal. Whilst immersed in the N.Y.C. scene; she was hooked by the eclectic artists and the myriad opportunities around her. The devastating effects of the World Trade Center attacks led her to move back to L.A. Muldrow was on the Subway, underneath the attack, when it happened; it was to have a profound effect and shook her badly.
Since 2001, the songwriter has produced a range of albums; from Olesi: Fragments of an Earth (2006) to 2009’s Early; through to Owed to Mama Rickie (2011) and 2015’s A Thoughtiverse Unmarred. Listening to Muldrow and you get a combination of classic Soul/Hip-Hop artists and something unique. Rapper Mos Def, when trying to distil her essence, threw in name likes Roberta Flack and Nina Simone; Ella Fitzgerald…I could add Billie Holiday and Lauryn Hill. The way she expresses herself is unlike anything out there. There is the Hip-Hop expressionism and rhythmic cadence; a physicality and poetic candour that none of her peers possesses. One gets flavours of Amy Winehouse but, to be fair, comparing Georgia Anne Muldrow to others too firmly would do her a disservice. You have this individual who wants to put her aura and magic into the world. Over the past twelve years or so; she has raised her profile and brought her music to a mass of hungry and stunned faces. Eyes and ears are turning her way. A new single, Overload, is out and already gaining a lot of love. Pitchfork have already had their say:
“Muldrow finds peace in comfortable places: She cozies up to the kind of sumptuous and psychedelic R&B beat she forged with Madlib on 2012’s Seeds and offers gratitude for an all-consuming romantic love. “I’m on overload and overdrive/I’m overwhelmed,” she sings in the chorus, her voice punching through the syllables until she stretches into a final declaration of solidarity: “I built this lifetime trust up in you…
…The giddiness of that romance is palpable. Anxious gusts of hi-hats blow through, a reminder of how draining love can be. But they’re outmatched by a warm keyboard line that wraps itself around her voice in the same way two people wrap themselves around one another after a long day. Here, she can give while she receives; “I’m there for you like air,” she coos near the song’s end. It’s a tender exchange that mirrors the political unity that’s sure to follow; after all, waking up is always easier when you do it in someone else’s arms”.
It is impossible to know how far Muldrow can go and what she can do to music. There is a lot of talk about gender imbalance and racial bias in the industry. We are in a tense time where there is imbalance and a lot of problems present. Muldrow, in a way, seems like a guiding voice and, when you are at your most stressed, relaxed the bones and opens the mind. You cannot listen to the woman sing and remain passive and unmoved. Her songs are a transcendent and life-altering experience. Before I end this feature; I will bring in an interview from a few years ago that explored Georgia Anne Muldrow and what makes her tick. I wonder how far she can go and what the future holds for her.
Muldrow is one of those artists who has a loyal fanbase but has not been given the mainstream pass she deserves. We are looking for heroines and heroes that can change the scene and make genuine progress in the industry. Muldrow seems like one of those talents who can inspire the next generation and remain in the public consciousness for many years to come. I am excited to see whether a new album is due; what she has planned regards touring and where she is headed. Let me take you to that Afropunk interview (from 2015) and a couple of questions that popped out:
How has your family influenced you?
“It was ingrained in me to never commit to an instrument that my parents did. It was the sense of rebellion and not wanting to commit to anything personally. However not wanting to disappoint them was something I had to break through, it brought a lot of pain. My parents showed me Coltrane and it changed me forever”.
How have you faced any issues because of your image?
“There have been a lot of things, people saying that I need an image consultant, people saying we are too revolutionary. I’m just saying what people are thinking in the streets. I think it’s that kind of thing. Being told I’m too black for TV. The distancing from people feeling like people are scared of me sometimes, it’s not us it’s what we represent”.
It is an exciting and great time for Georgia Anne Muldrow. Overload is upon us and people in the U.K. have been stunned and hooked. It is getting a lot of praise in the U.S. and, before long, it will spread around the world. Muldrow has been influenced by her parents but has chosen her own path; she has defied those who say she is too black for T.V. and not what they (producers and production companies) are looking for. Her defiance and incredible talent speak louder than the limitations placed before her. The discrimination and ignorance that comes from T.V. companies remind me of the days of MTV and Michael Jackson’s struggle. He faced issues getting his videos on the station and faced racism and ignorance. The passion and energy he put into defying the odds led him to be crowned the King of Pop. Although the situation is different for Muldrow; she has come against those who feel she is not ‘ideal’ and ‘perfect’ – she will have the last laugh and rise to the top of the music tree. If you are not familiar with Georgia Anne Muldrow; make sure you get behind her music and discover a truly wonderful artist. Her new single, and its title, gives impressions of excess and a need for some restraints. When it comes to this U.S. treasure; it is simply impossible to have too much…
OF such an incredible force of nature.