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Apr
23
2007
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Musiq Soulchild Straight Up |
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Monday, 23 April 2007 |
 Soul superstar, Musiq Soulchild releases his brand new, hotly anticipated new album LUVANMUSIQ - his first as an Atlantic Records recording artist, on March 12th. It features the forthcoming new single, ‘Buddy’, out April 16th.
LUVANMUSIQ serves up a gorgeous slice of up-tempo soul, smoothly flowing into the honest narrative of ‘MsPhiladelphia’, and ‘Betterman’ and the simply stunning ballad ‘TheQuestions’. Full-bodied sounds reside on this third collection by Musiq Soulchild, which take soul music to the high level he has always reached for.
LUVANMUSIQ is a beautiful collection of signature Musiq Soulchild creations. it is woven with his enchanting stories of love and embellished with his very own poetic delivery, at a time when it is rare for an artist not to fill an album with collaborations. There is something classic in the simplicity of this album. With tracks that contain lyrics reaching right to the heart of the continuing legacy of love and music, Musiq Soulchild has evolved into a mature artist.
I speak with Musiq Soulchild about his new album and what being a Buddy really involves. He’s a genuinely talented artist full of honesty and as you are about to read, he doesn’t like to beat around the bush!
What can you tell me about the album Luvanmusiq? Is it just about love and music?
It’s pretty much what I’ve been doing on the past few projects and doing my best to contribute to the legacy of Rhythm and Blues, Soul and Hip Hop music. I’m trying to maintain a realistic perspective when it comes to performing and song writing.
Do you think it’s different to your other albums?
I don’t think it’s that different. I’m doing the same thing but the difference comes in the way that I’m inspiring the idea that there’s more to Musiq than just R&B and Neo-Soul which a lot of people classify me as.
You MC on Buddy, is that something you want to do more of?
There isn’t anymore of that on the album but I would definitely like to do more. That’s why I did the song the way I did to let people know that there’s more to Musiq than what they’ve heard before. A lot of people tend to gravitate towards ballads, which I love to do, but I want to be more. It really doesn’t matter what I do as long as there’s an audience to support it. The least I can do is inspire the minds of my audience and contribute to other genres.
Which artists influence your music?
People like Stevie Wonder, Donny Hathaway, Marvin Gaye…a lot of the Soul greats. I also like Al Green, Lennie Williams, Aretha Franklin, Chaka Khan and Prince. The list goes on! Those are my immediate influences but I’m influenced by music in general. I listen to Hip Hop, Pop, R&B, Soul, Rap, Dancehall, Conscious, Reggaeton, Salsa, Afro Beat, Progressive Jazz, Straight Ahead Jazz…
Your CD collection must reach the ceiling by now.
Well my iPod is definitely full. I’m always on iTunes and I take my iPod with me on the road. I just love music.
I heard that you don’t like writing about your personal experiences, is that true?
A lot of the songs I write or write with other people are meant to be heavily based on my personal experiences. That’s my way of keeping things real by applying the songs to my life. The songs are not autobiographical; it’s almost like a movie that I’m playing a role in. It just happens that the roles I play are based on my life experiences. I know there are other people are listening to these songs so I take an objective approach to that. It’s easier for more people to identify with it rather than making the songs case specific. By replacing the time and place, more people can apply it to their lives. It’s not just me venting on an album. That’s cool to do because music is about expressing yourself but when it comes to appealing to a mass audience; they only really care about themselves. I put it in a perspective where I’m not asking for attention or sympathy, I’m just describing a situation that people can hopefully identify with.
Do you ever have people approaching you and telling you how your music has affected them?
Yeah, those are what I would classify as my rewards and awards for people to come to me and tell me how my music has changed their lives or added something to their lives. It’s a beautiful thing and is the greatest accolade I could acquire. What matters to me the most is the affect I have on the people who support my music.
I was listening to Buddy earlier. We all have our own ideas about what it means but what does it mean to you?
You know what I’m talking about but there’s more to it. People tend to gravitate to the whole ‘friends with benefits’ idea. That’s what it is, it’s real and it happens. It’s specifically talking to single people, not people with substantial relationships, because a Buddy will mess your relationship up. It’s basically talking about when you meet someone and find an interest in them, just start out being cool. Whatever comes with it depends on the person. Everybody has their own perspective about how they live their lives. To take things to the sexual level may not be that heavy to one person but it might be a deal breaker to someone else. It’s case specific and is a song which is generally speaking on a topic and is leaving it to the people to apply to their lives however they choose to.
I think people should take heed to a lot of things that go on in humanity and stop acting like things don’t be going on. You have to know that you’re not the only person she or he is dating. They are probably dating five people at the same time. People don’t like to hear things like that but that’s what’s real. You’re not committed to nobody so you have the right to entertain whatever relationship you choose to. It’s not a good idea to think that someone you’re spending time with isn’t spending time with someone else as well. Sorry, there’s way more people in the world than just you! When you put it in that perspective it leaves you to be more responsible with the things you say, how you feel and what you think about. A lot of people don’t like to be responsible and they then complain about how they got themselves into certain situations. It’s because they weren’t thinking!
It depends on how much time you spend on getting to know a person because that person will always disappoint you. They had their life way before they met you and when things don’t work out, they’ll still have their life after you. When you take the time to get to know someone before having unrealistic expectations you might not like that person in the next few months. You would have done all that fussing and all that drama for nothing!
A buddy is an equal beneficial arrangement where both parties benefit. I’m talking about men and women here. A lot of people expect women to be all sensitive but think of a woman that has come from a long term relationship and probably has children. She’s not looking to jump into another relationship all willy nilly, she will want to take her time over it. However, she’s still a woman and may still like male company. It doesn’t necessarily have to be a sexual thing it could just mean that she likes to be in the presence of a man. For some women, it’s just a sexual thing. Everybody is different.
Why did you put Soulchild at the end of your artist name?
Music found me just as well as I found it and I acquired that name from being musically inclined. In Philadelphia, people that I knew and hung out with started calling me Musiq and that’s when I adapted it as my name. Soulchild was something that I named myself. It was a name that I intended to come out with on its own but so many people knew me as Musiq I just put it together. Later on in my career I just went by Musiq. My name has always been Musiq Soulchild, I just wanted the focus more on one part of it during that time.
You also like creating song titles with different spellings and no spaces between them, why is that?
It’s just something fun to do. There’s no real deep or philosophical thing behind it. It’s like written slang. Everyone has their own signature and this is mine. It has been done before by artists like George Clinton, Prince, Andre 3000 and Sly & The Family Stone. I just don’t put any spaces between the words in song titles. I used to do it a lot when two-ways [pagers] came out so that I could save money on characters.
Useful links: www.musiqsoulchild.com or www.myspace.com/musiqsoulchild
Words By Rashmi Shastri
Words By Rashmi Shastri
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