July 7, 2025 • 127 mins
Grammy winning singer Lalah Hathaway talks about carrying on her father Donny's legacy, working with Prince, singing overtones like it's no big deal and her deep love of video games (plus, loads of Words of Wisdom with Suga Steve).
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Of course. Love Supreme is a production of iHeartRadio. This
classic episode was produced by the team at Pandora. Hey,
what's going on, y'all?
Speaker 2 (00:10):
This is Fante Fonteglo here with this week's QLs classic.
This week we talked to my friend, my family, my
dear friend. One of the best singers on the planet.
Grammy winning singer Layla had the way she talks about
carrying on her father Donnie's legacy, working with Prince, singing
phone notes at the same time like it ain't shit,
her deep love of video games, and plus we get
(00:33):
loads of wisdom, loads of words of wisdom from my
QS brother Sugar Steve.
Speaker 1 (00:39):
This is a great episode. Check it out. Originally state
was March twenty eight, twenty eighteen pre Roma. It was amazing.
Check it out QLs Leila Hathaway QS classic. It's Fonteo Loo.
Speaker 3 (00:51):
Yeah, Supreme mother, some suprema roll called Suprema son supremo
role called Suprema suprema role called suprema so supremo roll.
Speaker 1 (01:14):
Sound of Layla's voice, Yeah yeah, but when she starts harmonizing, Yeah,
Suprema supremo role called Suprema supremo roll.
Speaker 2 (01:29):
Call my name is Fante. Yeah, I'm cashing checks. Yeah
with my nigga Layla, watching some real sex.
Speaker 4 (01:38):
Suprema son Supremo, rod come Suprema, Suprema roll call.
Speaker 1 (01:46):
My name is Sugar.
Speaker 5 (01:47):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (01:48):
I love Fela. Yeah, I love Dayla. Yeah, I love Tequila.
Speaker 1 (01:58):
Suprema some Suprea role still is flying yeah, flying high.
Yeah when Layla sings, Yeah, baby don't cry roll.
Speaker 7 (02:10):
Suprema so SUPREMEA roll call Suprema some.
Speaker 1 (02:16):
Supreme roll call.
Speaker 5 (02:18):
It's like, yeah, been called Layla, Yeah, never really minded.
Yeah because this girl stays playing you.
Speaker 1 (02:27):
Sorry, we're talking about my rod turn Suprema. Yeah, really
your turn Supreme my role call.
Speaker 8 (02:34):
My name is Layla, yeah, not Leila.
Speaker 4 (02:37):
Yeah, Supreme roll Suprema some some suprema role called Suprema
son Supremo, roll call Suprema s Suprea roll call.
Speaker 1 (03:01):
Shut up.
Speaker 8 (03:04):
My first I to give you the cord. The chord
was not really popping, just now it came out. There's
a lot of air.
Speaker 1 (03:12):
Okay, stop it.
Speaker 9 (03:17):
What's going on on the air?
Speaker 1 (03:18):
Stop it?
Speaker 9 (03:19):
I just I don't know.
Speaker 1 (03:20):
I don't stop it. Something to do with Prince probably, yeah, okay,
tell me. Okay, ladies and gentlemen, it'll come up another
episode of course, Love Supreme. I am quest love, I'm
still alive. Yeah, okay, wait, I'm just going to come
(03:40):
out and say it. Uh, that was the worst.
Speaker 6 (03:47):
Come out and say it.
Speaker 1 (03:51):
It's worth It's worth the wait. Okay, No, I'm gonna
be professional about this, all right. First of all, I
have to say, yeah, we have literally one of the
most brilliantly frightening singers ever to walk on this earth.
Speaker 8 (04:09):
Frightening. You've said that before. He told you what is
the frightening part.
Speaker 1 (04:16):
We're gonna get into it.
Speaker 8 (04:17):
She's so cuddly.
Speaker 1 (04:20):
Because I want you to know that my love for
you is beyond awe.
Speaker 8 (04:28):
Oh that's deep. I'm glad you said that, because it
doesn't feel like that.
Speaker 1 (04:33):
I know, and I know I know you feel a
certain way, maybe jokingly or maybe real a little bit both.
Speaker 8 (04:40):
But I appreciate that. I appreciate that that's deep.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
But this is from such a level of oh god,
this feels like the first episode. All right. My name
is Ques. All right. First of all, ladies and gentlemen,
please welcome Layla. Half the way you.
Speaker 8 (05:03):
Intro go down and infamy. I appreciate all of that
you had to get through this before.
Speaker 1 (05:11):
Just tell a story. Okay, Look, just the sound of
your voice talking like as I really I want us
to be BFFs. But the sound of your voice is
quasi traumatic for me. The speaking sound I love when
you talk to me.
Speaker 8 (05:30):
Yes, it's speaking sound, just regular.
Speaker 1 (05:33):
I know, it is, it is, it is, it is,
it is. But it's just that the the texture of
your voice reminds me so much of your dad that
I just have connections of I understand of that. But
it's also anytime you sing, it just psychologically puts me
(05:57):
back at being like seven years old, eight years old.
Speaker 8 (06:00):
Interesting.
Speaker 1 (06:01):
Yeah, so this is a hell of a way to
start off.
Speaker 8 (06:05):
Get it out right.
Speaker 1 (06:07):
They're just all laughing at me because they know that
this isn't fake nervousness. I'm doing it right now. Yeah,
paper bag to breathing. No, I'm good, I'm good.
Speaker 9 (06:21):
Is that the first time you've heard that? Because I'm sure.
Speaker 6 (06:23):
No.
Speaker 8 (06:24):
It's interesting to me because I know, you know, like
my box was made by my mother and father, so
I know that I sound like my parents, both my parents.
But it's interesting that people sound is deep. Sound is
like super deep. It's a transporter. So when people tell
me that it takes them to a place, I get yeah,
because I have that sound, those sounds that do that
(06:46):
for me, So I get it.
Speaker 1 (06:47):
It's deep, though, did your mom did she sing as well? Yeah?
Speaker 8 (06:51):
My mom is a singer. My parents met at Howard
in the fine arts department, and a lot of the
way he approached singing he got from her, you know, so.
Speaker 1 (07:02):
As do I.
Speaker 8 (07:03):
You know, so I definitely get it. It's interesting though,
because people say, Wow, it's so cool, you sound so
much like your dad. But I'm like, you probably sound
like your dad too, you know who who has not
answered the phone and somebody said, is this you or
your mama? This is you or your daddy? So it
makes sense to me.
Speaker 1 (07:21):
I get it now. I definitely sound like my father.
And sometimes my dad passed last January, and every time
I call home to talk to my mom, always have
to be mindful of how I say hello on the
phonecause it might sound just like him calling her.
Speaker 9 (07:36):
Anyway, talk about nowhere to go?
Speaker 1 (07:38):
But actually, can you answer all your questions and your
neal diamond voices? Yes? Absolutely? Like yeah, Like I kind
of want to bring our online relationship out to here
(07:59):
and some times when you sit on the show and
we talk about singers you love or ideas, crazy ideas
you have. Yeah, I love talking about that stuff. Anyway.
Can I assume that you were where were you born?
Speaker 8 (08:14):
I was born in Chicago. I like to think of
it as the late eighties.
Speaker 1 (08:22):
You born in the late eighties Chicago. It was born, Yes,
I feel you born what part of Chicago.
Speaker 8 (08:32):
Born on the South Side, grew up on the North Side,
moved back to the south Side before I went to Berkeley.
Speaker 1 (08:38):
Can you explain like Chicago to me? I mean, Chicago
means everything that all people. Of course, you know politicians
will use what about Chicago as a sort of reminder,
But I mean, what is when you think of Chicago?
Is it fuzzy home memories? Is it like the eye
(08:59):
roll in the air?
Speaker 8 (08:59):
Is Chicago has many things?
Speaker 1 (09:02):
To me?
Speaker 8 (09:02):
Chicago is? I mean, anybody from Chicago will tell you
we have a super strong sense of being from that place.
The city has a lot of character and holds a
lot of character. The food, the culture of the museums,
the people, the weather, the sides, the segregation. You know,
Doctor King said when he went there in the sixties
that it was the most segregated city he had ever
(09:24):
been to. So for me, Chicago, Yeah, Chicago was a
lot of things. And that's the thing when people say
I'm from la or I'm from Virginia, nobody says what side.
You know, people, Chicago's either south Side or north Side.
Speaker 1 (09:38):
That's its south Side represents what.
Speaker 8 (09:40):
That's for black folks. North Side is white folks, South
Side is black folks. There of course, there's everything in between,
and there's the West Side, but there's definitely a delineation
if you grew up in Chicago, particularly in the seventies
and eighties, like where in Chicago are you from? You know,
there's definitely that aspect, you know. So I grew up
(10:01):
in both parts of town, you know, south Side and Northside,
mostly north Side.
Speaker 1 (10:06):
So in the eighties when you were four, what I mean,
what was the environment?
Speaker 8 (10:13):
Like, Vin, I went to a performing art high school.
I don't have a huge memory of my life before
like seventh grade, sixth grade, I went to Performing Arts
High School.
Speaker 1 (10:27):
Any other notable students there that are now.
Speaker 8 (10:30):
John Cusack, Laura Flamboyle, You said John or Joanes? John
John Joan went there when I was there, it was
only the third year they had.
Speaker 1 (10:39):
Of course. Okay, that's why he said fidelity. And well
he was in shyrek as well.
Speaker 8 (10:48):
Preacher and those John Hughes films. You know, all of
those kids. Let's see Susan Tunnya. Her sister's name is
Robin Tunney, who's on the Mint Yeah, Lar flam Boyle.
I said that she's you know a lot of kids.
Speaker 1 (11:06):
So you're obviously your major was vocal.
Speaker 5 (11:09):
Yeah.
Speaker 8 (11:10):
Well see I got to the school and I sang.
I walked in, I had my sheet music and I
was singing this Anne Murray song and I was probably
thirteen or fourteen.
Speaker 1 (11:20):
You needed me, you needed me. What is what is
up with you in country? I don't know, I really
I just the midwesterns.
Speaker 8 (11:29):
It might be it might be that it might be
like I like to sing and I like tone and
growing up, those were some of the songs that captured me,
those voices and those songs like you know, you could
pull them like taffy.
Speaker 1 (11:40):
Are you the youngest or oldest in your oldest? Okay,
so you discovered the music first. Did you hang with
older cousins or anything or not? Really?
Speaker 8 (11:48):
I mean my cousins were like, you know, I have
two older cousins, really my first cousins. One of them
was like a huge kiss bas city rollers, you know there,
and the other was like Prince and that's it. Like
in her closet behind the clothes was the poster of
him in the shower with the leather, and I would
(12:10):
dip in there like I ain't getting the sweater. Yeah, yeah,
I love I love country music. I love Dolly Parton
and all that growing up.
Speaker 1 (12:22):
But how I mean, how was this introduced to you
if it's not an older cousin, older sibling, or were
you just that curious or was it your friends?
Speaker 8 (12:33):
It was not a big whoop to understand who those
people were in the seventies and eighties before I.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
Was born, right, Okay, it was.
Speaker 8 (12:41):
Nothing to see Lionel Ritchie with Dolly Parton somewhere, everything
Kenny Rogers or the Mandrell System.
Speaker 1 (12:52):
On Saturday Night, Barbara Crystal Gale.
Speaker 8 (12:57):
Yeah, all of that stuff for me, even like the Eagle,
you know, the sort of country rock. All of that
stuff was all in the same sort of collective for me.
Speaker 1 (13:06):
Oh okay, so you chose Anne Murray, you need it?
Speaker 8 (13:10):
I did. I did, and dude started playing and I
was standing up there and I said, I cried. He
was like, wait, wait wait, you got singing up the
octave and I was like, I never sing it up
the octave. He said, we'll try it. That's where you're
supposed to sing. Oh, And I was like, I cry.
(13:32):
You know this is wrong, this feels wrong. He was like,
you should try the theater department.
Speaker 1 (13:38):
Then wow, wait what talk?
Speaker 8 (13:40):
Yeah, so I did that for a little bit.
Speaker 1 (13:43):
Oh, so they I'm wrong. So they you went to
you did drama first before you.
Speaker 8 (13:48):
I did a little drama. I did music. I just
kind of basically blended in really until I got to Berkeley,
Like I tried out for different things at school and
didn't make it. I went to show choir camp. I
didn't really you know, I just kind of blended in
everywhere until I got to Berkeley.
Speaker 1 (14:04):
Well, I mean in doing that era, like were you
at all trying to pursue a music career?
Speaker 5 (14:11):
Was not?
Speaker 8 (14:13):
Really? I mean in high school, I just feel like
I feel like I was waiting for this thing to happen,
Like I at some point I came to LA when
I was sixteen or seventeen, right at the top of
Berkeley and I went to Bri remember br Jack Rapper
and Bri Yeah, and Prince was playing that year and
I just stood in that audience and I was like,
(14:36):
I love him. This is what this is. I'm supposed
to be here.
Speaker 1 (14:39):
Uh when he did Diamonds and Pearls.
Speaker 8 (14:41):
No, I was way before that. It was it was
like eighty It was before I went to Berkeley. It
was like eighty nine. Sheila came out and played and
I was like wow. I was in the hotel waiting
to get in the room where he was going to play,
and Stony Jackson was standing in front of me.
Speaker 1 (15:01):
And I was like with the curl. Yes.
Speaker 8 (15:04):
I was like, this is my ship.
Speaker 1 (15:06):
Does Stony Jackson exists without the curl? Stony Jackson came
back on something and he had a fan. I can't remember.
That's what we're talking about.
Speaker 9 (15:16):
Okay, I remember the name.
Speaker 1 (15:17):
Yea, the Stony Jet. But he came back. He was
on something fairly wasn't everybody hates Chris, That makes sense, Chris.
He had a face, he had a fad. What do
you remember Stony Jackson, Steve, did you ever watch The
White Shadow?
Speaker 10 (15:30):
Uh?
Speaker 1 (15:31):
Yeah, he was he was one of the black guys.
Speaker 9 (15:34):
That eventually, I mean but l asked me to watch
two two seven.
Speaker 8 (15:38):
He had a show, Remember that show where he was
a detective and his friend was a detective.
Speaker 1 (15:44):
Yes, how do you know that?
Speaker 8 (15:47):
I loved Stony Jackson growing up.
Speaker 1 (15:49):
It said to me that you and Fante might be
like matching wits. As far as this dude information.
Speaker 8 (15:56):
This dude, I told you. We sat in the hotel
lobby one night and chopped it up for hours. This
dude is absolutely one of my soulmates. He don't know
it yet, but that's true.
Speaker 1 (16:05):
Thank you for that, My members.
Speaker 9 (16:07):
When you find your tribe, it's nice.
Speaker 1 (16:09):
True, it's true, though, a tribe called real Sex. We're gonna.
Speaker 2 (16:17):
So when I first got on Twitter right now, this
is like early Twitter. This is like the early days
of Twitter, like O nine, O ten Twitter, Ok, Twitter
in two thousand and seven, though, well, I'm saying this
was the glory days. This is I mean, oh seven,
it was still early, and then like oh nine, that's
when people got on old teams. Cool it started popping,
(16:37):
and then like twenty eleven, twenty twelve, that was when
Trump the tumblr uh people came over and just ruined it.
So now this ship is whatever, but like now this
ship is you know then, So back then, before all
the tumbler buffoks came over, you could just talk about whatever.
And every time Real Sex came on HBO, Layla would
show up in my timeline like it was without fail.
Speaker 1 (16:59):
She would just alwayshow yep, watching real six this is episode.
I just I was like, yo, like lately you really
you watch all these them all all that I think
I've seen them all to it's.
Speaker 9 (17:15):
Like thirty of them at this point.
Speaker 8 (17:16):
It's real sex and I'm showing them. And now they've
tried to update, you know, they have news cyber sex
and all that stuff, but it's nothing like the actual
real in the cab.
Speaker 1 (17:27):
Yeah yeah, so that's that's me.
Speaker 8 (17:31):
And that's what you called me, Real Sex.
Speaker 1 (17:32):
Yeah, that's her name, Real Sex. Every time they come on,
I checked my Twitter, Yeah, Leila has the way is
right there? Different? But yes, no, no, no, it's just
this is mine. This is big sister.
Speaker 9 (17:43):
We just but does that say something about you though, Layla?
Speaker 8 (17:45):
I don't know, does it. I watch a lot of TV.
Speaker 9 (17:49):
I mean, but you know all the real sexes I do.
Speaker 8 (17:54):
Then you make friends with iknew, I knew one of
the poets?
Speaker 9 (17:57):
Yes, yeah, what city was that the poet episode?
Speaker 8 (18:01):
I feel like it was l A.
Speaker 9 (18:03):
I feel like it was.
Speaker 1 (18:04):
I was thinking d C too, but Los Angeles. How
do you know that? So quickly Google? Yes we here,
Google's lightning festways.
Speaker 9 (18:16):
Bill said, oh, google.
Speaker 1 (18:20):
That Betty. Yes, the three girls with the like kind
of harmonizing but like not really, but then they used
to be on that show and cycle. How are you
going to be on the kids show? And Betty, I'm
out outside here with you, Steve so high.
Speaker 6 (18:41):
This is all good stuff for real. I'm just like
thinking how bad real sex was. That's and I love sex.
Speaker 1 (18:51):
Was terrible, it was good, it was good, it was good.
Speaker 7 (18:57):
Here's a here's a sex house, and in the middle
of nowhere where people have sex, there's nothing.
Speaker 8 (19:03):
I'm just saying they were interesting, Like let's pay four
hundred dollars and go to upstate New York, loll along
in the mud and have sex and learn how to
play a drum.
Speaker 1 (19:13):
That's what they were doing, like have that connection caucastity.
Speaker 9 (19:20):
Yeah, you ain't watch real sex.
Speaker 1 (19:24):
I think during this period we were like living in
Europe or something. Yeah, like there's a big part of
the early nineties that I just had no television.
Speaker 8 (19:35):
Because you're probably way smarter for it, though, you.
Speaker 1 (19:39):
Know now I feel left out, like is this on?
Is this still? But I learned a lot.
Speaker 8 (19:51):
I learned a lot on that program about like furries
and people that after they cover themselves and mustard and
these are things consciousness.
Speaker 1 (20:02):
Before and this is in the nineties, Like so this
is like pre Internet. Yeah, it was pre Internet. That's
the thing. Like now you can type any pre words
and get a sexual fetish, but this was pre Google.
Speaker 2 (20:15):
So that was our real sex, was our window into
the weird sex workings of white people.
Speaker 8 (20:20):
Into mostly white people.
Speaker 1 (20:23):
It was like it was like one of them swingers coming.
It was like one nigg in the whole.
Speaker 8 (20:26):
I was like, man for the girl with the girl
with the bit in her mouth and she's a pony
and it's got the thing of her rider bag.
Speaker 1 (20:33):
That was like cosplace.
Speaker 9 (20:35):
That was like in betweens were nice to when they
stop people on the street.
Speaker 1 (20:40):
So yeah, that bit. That's where Dave gets the bit
well on Chappelle Show when he would do to talk
to people and that's yeah, that's real.
Speaker 6 (20:48):
Don't waste your time.
Speaker 1 (20:51):
It's actually kind of funny now to watch. It's more
funny now than sexual Yeah. Anyway, what did what year
did you?
Speaker 8 (21:08):
Eighty six? I got to Berkeley?
Speaker 9 (21:11):
You got there in two thousand.
Speaker 1 (21:12):
And one, Yeah, like, yeah, uh, what was your experience?
And I had?
Speaker 8 (21:21):
I had a really great experience at Berkeley. I mean
I really that was where I really my mind started going. Oh,
actual music. Like I lived on the eighth floor in
the dorms, and these cats that were in the rooms
on my hallway would bring me these records and literally
it was like they were feeding me every day. I
didn't know about John Schofield or John Abercrombie or Carla
(21:44):
Blay or you know that I was learning so much
new stuff because when I got to Berkeley, I had
like a box of tone Master cassettes, you know, a
couple of the black ones, the good ones, and the
rest were the yellow ones. I had like Janet Jackson Control,
which I had gone over Miles Davis record bootleg for
that record. I had Pat Metheni First Circle, I had
(22:05):
a Jean Luponti record. I thought, you know, I thought
I was all over the place, Like I listened to.
Speaker 1 (22:10):
Everything could have made beats.
Speaker 8 (22:13):
I had no idea.
Speaker 1 (22:14):
You're that didn't make beats.
Speaker 8 (22:16):
I didn't know.
Speaker 1 (22:16):
That's amazing.
Speaker 8 (22:18):
So I got there and I really started really listening
to things, and probably within like the first month of school,
I realized like, oh, I'm wanna hang out with these
cats because they go play every day and they let
me come play with them. So I would just show
up and not change the keys to any of the
songs and not not understand the form or what was
(22:41):
happening in the room. And I just was able to
play with them every day.
Speaker 1 (22:46):
Do you play an instrument?
Speaker 8 (22:47):
I play keys?
Speaker 1 (22:48):
Okay, so you went for keyboards or no.
Speaker 8 (22:52):
Just for singing. But you know I would show up
to like I was the only singer in the John
Schofield ensemble, you know, like we would transcribe score SCO
solos and playing the class.
Speaker 1 (23:02):
You know you're serious, is no joke.
Speaker 8 (23:06):
Yeah, I'm a SKO fan.
Speaker 6 (23:07):
Carla Blair.
Speaker 8 (23:09):
I love Carla Blae.
Speaker 6 (23:10):
People don't know about her.
Speaker 8 (23:11):
I never I know. She was the first show I
saw at Berkeley, and Hiram Bullock was in her band
at that time. And you know, I went on to
have a really beautiful friendship with him. He's gone now.
But that was the first show I saw at Berkeley,
and my hair just blew back, like, oh my god,
what are these people doing? Steve?
Speaker 6 (23:30):
What year was that?
Speaker 9 (23:32):
Eighty six?
Speaker 6 (23:33):
So right right when you were born?
Speaker 1 (23:35):
Yeah, amazing. What the mind can you captured at the
age of one.
Speaker 7 (23:42):
Yeah, I'm just trying to figure out what music she
had out at that at that time, what album?
Speaker 8 (23:48):
I don't remember what album she had out at that time.
I just remember the show was a dollar for students.
Speaker 1 (23:56):
Wow. How she get paid though I don't like the universe. Yeah,
they probably out of the student.
Speaker 8 (24:01):
They probably just didn't pay her much for it. Yeah,
they probably didn't pay much a dollar And Hirom was
up there with his bare feet, and I was like,
oh my god, this cat.
Speaker 1 (24:11):
You know.
Speaker 8 (24:12):
Subsequently, I saw Michael Brecker in that room. I saw
it's just Muhammad in that room.
Speaker 1 (24:18):
I saw.
Speaker 8 (24:19):
I saw so many people in that performance center, Like
I learned really a lot, like in that one room.
Speaker 6 (24:27):
So you must like chess, do I mean.
Speaker 1 (24:36):
I do?
Speaker 8 (24:37):
I mean, you know, I have a love for it.
Speaker 6 (24:39):
Most people go to Berkeley study have to study it anyway.
Speaker 8 (24:42):
Yeah, I mean it just comes up. It comes up. Yeah,
I think people think I'm a jazz singer. I don't
know if that's you.
Speaker 9 (24:49):
You say you sing jazz, wouldn't say it sings such times.
Speaker 8 (24:51):
I mean, I think my approaches like that. I don't
know what I would call myself, like a soul singer
or a jazz singer.
Speaker 10 (24:56):
I don't really jazz jazz singer was recorded.
Speaker 6 (25:05):
Diamonds go ahead, Yeah, I love on the rocks. We
should shot at where we are.
Speaker 1 (25:12):
Yeah, I'm sorry I forgot to mention at the top
of the show when I was being traumatized that we
are live at sunsets down studios. The I still want
to say. I know it's much more than just Prince,
but obviously I start with Prince, but yeah, much further back. Yeah,
it's opened in nineteen six doors Zeppelin twos down here?
Speaker 6 (25:31):
What else the doors uh van Halen.
Speaker 1 (25:35):
Zeppelin too, A lot of a lot of a lot
of Warner Brothers, uh at Jubie Brothers. Yeah, by minute
was made here.
Speaker 6 (25:44):
Yes, but but then the Purple Rain, obviously.
Speaker 1 (25:48):
Purple Rate nineteen ninety nine was made and here the
song Purple Range in the album in a different room,
here and a differently. The song was recorded at First
Avenue where we were a couple of but he did
a lot of over ups here, but nineteen ninety nine
was down here. Majority of around the world in the day,
like before he built Paisley Park, this was his this
(26:09):
was his playground. After the taping, I'm gonna go to
the seven eleven across the street, where he would often get.
Speaker 8 (26:16):
I'm going with you. I've been on I've been on
Prince lately, like I dreamt about him. The other night
we were we were trying to get to a gig
and we were snowed in somewhere and Jaden Smith was
there for some reason.
Speaker 1 (26:31):
Talk some more change Smith, thank you.
Speaker 8 (26:38):
It was it was like two thousand and five and
we were somewhere at a hotel literally like a a Laquenta.
He was He was sitting up in the bed and
I was laying down at the foot of the bed,
and he was saying, you could lay up there if
you want to. And I was like, I'm cool, and
we were just watching TV.
Speaker 9 (26:57):
Oh, but he says, you can lay That's interesting, you
can up there if you want to.
Speaker 8 (27:01):
I appreciated it.
Speaker 1 (27:03):
What does it all mean? Do you ever we need
like a dream interval of somebody to break up shit.
Now it makes sense to me because does he does
he still since his passing? Does does he appear to you? Often?
Speaker 8 (27:16):
And not often? Occasionally? But I got to spend a
very concentrated moment of time with him, And you know,
I had this fear in my heart, like I've been
wanting to meet him and play with him since I'm
eleven or twelve years old, and I've heard all these
things and and and you don't look at him in
(27:38):
the eye right. And when I opened for him those
few dates, he was so cool and so gracious and
so that.
Speaker 1 (27:48):
New York run was the first time that you met him. Yeah,
what year was that? That was two thousand and Oh
that show was on my birthday too, that I went.
What day, the fifteenth of December?
Speaker 8 (28:01):
I'm the sixteenth.
Speaker 1 (28:02):
Oh nice, Yeah, it was awesome, happy belated, Uh, thank you.
Speaker 8 (28:07):
I'm seventeen now, so.
Speaker 9 (28:08):
Yeah, yeah, you got something.
Speaker 1 (28:13):
We did.
Speaker 8 (28:13):
We did like four cities with him, four or five
cities with him. It was it was just cool.
Speaker 1 (28:19):
It's hard for your band to adjust because I know
that the on the on the other side of that
coin when you weren't opening those dates. Sometimes Sharon Jones
and the Daft Kings were trying to open those dates
and they wouldn't allow them to use their their equipment
and you know, like their sonic and their equipment is
is very key to their presentation. So watching Sharon Jones
(28:42):
and the dap Kings perform on MPG uh yeah, equipment
not allowed to adjust anything. Everything sounds crystal clear. Yo.
It was the funny show. It was the funniest show
I've ever It was with the exception of the horns
and the sound of Sharon's voice, like everything was like
(29:03):
nineteen ninety seven sound. It was great.
Speaker 8 (29:07):
He was so cool to us and so like magnanimous
and gracious, and he would come stand on the stage
during my soundcheck and request songs.
Speaker 1 (29:18):
Was that weird? Yeah? What kind of songs would he requests?
Speaker 8 (29:22):
He likes the song that I wrote called What Goes Around,
and he would request that. You know, so they send
you this list when you're gonna go open for him,
and it's like, please, you know, pick two or three
songs if you'd like to sing with Prince, you know,
for the songs. And I looked at the list and
I was like, I don't want to sing any of
(29:44):
these songs. I want to sing Diamonds and Pearls. I
want to do Park Sexy Dancer. He literally showed up
and his hand was here, and I looked at him
and I said, listen, I don't feel comfortable presenting myself
with you with the so I have gas. I told
him that, and he said what And I said, I
(30:10):
have gas, and I just I really want to I
really want to get into it with you where we
can be at the same place. He said, okay, what
do you want to sing? And I said, well, can
I see your set list? And he was like yeah,
And then somebody brought the set list over and I
was like, I want to do Diamonds and Pearls. I
know you don't do that anymore. He said, yeah, we
don't do that. I said, okay, why don't we do
(30:32):
sometimes the Snows in April. So I did that with him,
and that night was my birthday. And after we finished
singing sometimes the Snows in April. It's so crazy when
I think about it, like that shit actually happened. I'm
rising up on the stage. He said, all right, stand
right here, go up, take my microphone. When you get
(30:54):
up there, do whatever you want and I'll be up.
And I was like, okay, So I'm standing on this thing,
just still tripping, trying to breathe, and the thing rose
up and I was just standing there and all these
people like a and the dress was blowing and I'm
just singing sometimes and there he is again, and then
(31:16):
we're singing on the same mic, and I just I
wanted to lick him, but I knew that was.
Speaker 9 (31:25):
What is smelling.
Speaker 8 (31:25):
It were ruined. He smelled great. He was He's everything
you thought he was. And when we finished, I got
ready to leave and he said, no, no, no, come
with me, and he took me across the stage to
the other side of the stage and we did Diamonds
and Pearls. It was awesome and I said, oh my god, yeah,
I mean, I can't remember, I can't remember how much
(31:50):
we did.
Speaker 6 (31:52):
It was.
Speaker 8 (31:52):
It was an interesting interpretation of the of the record.
It wasn't like the full thing, I don't think. And
when we stood up and people were plotting, I said,
oh my god, thank you so much. It's my birthday.
That's the greatest thing ever. He said, well, I don't
celebrate birthdays. But congratulations, Am I tripping it?
Speaker 1 (32:12):
Doesn't?
Speaker 9 (32:12):
I mean a mirror?
Speaker 5 (32:12):
Maybe you can answer this, is that very courageous because
the average singer, I mean, there is no average singer
who will be singing with Prince. But it just seems
like the average person would not have felt the courage
enough to be like, yo, I don't feel comfortable.
Speaker 9 (32:25):
Can we sing this song?
Speaker 1 (32:26):
Yeah?
Speaker 8 (32:27):
I mean I didn't want to get up there and
not take the moment like I You know, if I
had gone up and just been sitting there while he
was playing, which I did a few nights, I'd have
been better off than singing anything that I was unfamiliar
with or not connected to.
Speaker 6 (32:42):
You didn't want to sing some whack twenty song.
Speaker 8 (32:45):
That's that's now what I'm saying.
Speaker 9 (32:47):
I'm just saying most singers would.
Speaker 1 (32:51):
Yeah, why didn't you? Like?
Speaker 6 (32:54):
That's an incredible, incredible.
Speaker 8 (32:58):
He was the greatest.
Speaker 6 (32:59):
He was the greatest, incredible on your birthday?
Speaker 8 (33:02):
It's crazy.
Speaker 1 (33:03):
So when you graduated, you got how did you get
your record deal?
Speaker 8 (33:07):
I got my record deal the way they did it
in the seventeen hundreds. I made a tape and someone
took it to a record label, and a guy named
Jeff Foreman signed me.
Speaker 1 (33:17):
Do you know Jeff Foreman, I'm sure does.
Speaker 8 (33:25):
Ma's cousin. He was a rep at Virgin Records at.
Speaker 1 (33:28):
The I think mentioned him, you know episode I'm sure
you do.
Speaker 8 (33:33):
Yeah, And I got signed right when I was in school.
So I would come out here on the train and
listen demos and record demos and go back and forth
like that.
Speaker 1 (33:47):
You did four original songs or I.
Speaker 8 (33:49):
Did no original songs on the first album, No.
Speaker 1 (33:52):
No, No, no No. I'm talking about your demo that
got very taking.
Speaker 8 (33:55):
The demo was a Renee and angela song which I
cannot find, which was a banger, another ballad.
Speaker 5 (34:05):
You know.
Speaker 8 (34:05):
I had a manager at that time, right in high
school named Raynard Minor.
Speaker 1 (34:10):
I know who.
Speaker 8 (34:10):
You probably know who raynar Minor is as well. He
was a songwriter at Motown, blind songwriter who wrote your
na is Living Yes, And we wrote these songs and
they are classic. If I ever find them, I'll let
you know. I hope you don't find them before I do.
(34:32):
And we turned him in and I got a deal
like that. So I was going back and forth from
college and making the record.
Speaker 1 (34:39):
So I know on your debut record you worked with
You worked with Donzela. You also work with Andre Fisher, Yeah,
nephew of Claire Fisher and drummer Rufus. Oh, Chucky worked
on Obvious, the.
Speaker 8 (34:56):
Song obvious not Obvious. No, that was Chuckie. Don't put
that on Chucky.
Speaker 1 (34:59):
You have an own.
Speaker 8 (35:01):
Heaven knows, Derek Bramble. Chucky did a song called Sentimental Sentimental. Yes, right,
So a lot of my first record was covers, even
though you know people don't know that it's something was
a cover.
Speaker 1 (35:13):
I'm coming back, you know that for the longest Yeah,
I'm coming invest original.
Speaker 4 (35:18):
Yeah.
Speaker 8 (35:18):
Gary Taylor wrote that song for her and I learned
her version of it to sing.
Speaker 1 (35:22):
Ah. Did her version ever come out? Yeah? It was
on their first album. Oh damn, I missed that. Okay,
So what was the decision behind covering the songs or
covering obscure songs?
Speaker 8 (35:33):
People were just bringing music to me. You have to remember,
like at that point, I'm eighteen, I'm basically in my
mind on the path of like Janet Jackson. Right, I'm
making this record and they got me in like this
little tight jacket and I'm on the La River like
posed with my little weave, and they're bringing the songs
(35:55):
to me, and there are people in my ears like,
you know, don't worry about writing, They're just gonna tailor
make all this whole record for you. And I'm thinking, Okay,
this is probably that bullshit, but it's cool because I'm
on my way and I'm gonna get in and I'm
gonna do what I have to do. So I didn't
write anything on that record.
Speaker 1 (36:10):
So up until that point, including high school and including college,
and including your pursuit of a record deal, no one
was thinking was connecting the dots from your father's lineage
to your lineage as far as like your deal or whatever.
It's just like, okay, let's just I don't know if.
Speaker 8 (36:29):
They were I don't know. I don't I don't you
know there was a lite.
Speaker 1 (36:33):
Were your peers in school where that I think royalty?
Speaker 8 (36:37):
I think so, I think, you know. When I got
to Berkeley, the first thing that happened to me is
I was walking up the steps and Walter Beasley, who's
a saxophone player who was one of my instructors at Berkeley,
came up behind me and said, hey, are you Leila Hathaway?
And I said yes. He said, are you Doney's daughter
And I said yes. He said, well, get your get
your ratings. I want you to be in my ensemble.
(36:58):
And that was the first I was like, oh, just
because I'm Donnie's daughter, that's what you want. And then
I realized like oh, that people were kind of approaching
me in a different way. That was the first time
I was really aware of any kind of cachet on
that level.
Speaker 1 (37:14):
Yeah, was it in hindsight? Was it beneficial or was
you rather than just not known?
Speaker 8 (37:24):
And it's hard to say. I'd have to do it
the other way. I just don't know, you know what
I mean. I think when I walk in the door
as a singer, I recognize that I bring with me
like forty years before me. You know, I walk in
with a brand that people have already an association with,
be that traumatic or you know whatever, is that association.
(37:45):
I recognize that that precedes me when I walk in
a room. So at some point I started feeling like okay,
and I don't even think it was a conscious effort,
but I started understanding like, Okay, clearly i'ma have to
be bad as hell otherwise.
Speaker 1 (37:59):
So what is that pressure? Because that's the thing. I
part of your question at the top, like what feels
some sort of way, like how come you never told
me this or whatever? Because I also know that that
pressure of damn hathaway, it wasn't a pressure.
Speaker 8 (38:16):
Though it was mostly it was mostly me hanging out
with all these dudes knowing that.
Speaker 6 (38:24):
For me.
Speaker 8 (38:25):
Fortunately they accepted me into their little group, so that
meant I got to learn like I wasn't the girl
singing in front of the band. I was sitting with
them and smoking cigarettes and blowing over Scotch charts, you
know what I mean. I knew that aside from my lineage,
aside from the name, that I wanted to be a badass.
(38:46):
I wanted to be able to go to a session
and not be thought of as the chick singer. That
was a big deal for me. It has. It had
grown into understanding that people placed me alongside my dad
and and people began to ask like, is there any pressure?
Is there a pressure you know on you with your father?
(39:06):
And I never felt like there was a pressure. I
have always been super aware of the fact that there's
there's there's him, and there's me and we. For some
people are like this but I recognize that I can.
I can comfortably develop into a badass because I come
from the greatest that ever lived. So I have a
(39:29):
runway to work.
Speaker 1 (39:31):
With, you know what I mean.
Speaker 6 (39:32):
Yeah, I.
Speaker 2 (39:34):
I was just gonna say, just as a fan, like,
I never drew. I never drew that comparison, you know
what I'm saying, Or you know, in terms of you
talk about just having the weight of the expectations. I
think the thing that sets you apart from maybe other
people that you know come from that kind of lineage,
is that you were just dope. So it was almost
like for me, it was kind of retroactive. It's like
you hear this dope singer and then you find out
(39:56):
who her dad is, Like, oh well, okay, so at
least it's.
Speaker 1 (39:59):
Genetically unfit, that's what you said.
Speaker 2 (40:02):
It gives you more explanation. And I was like, oh,
so that's why she's okay, I get it. I mean,
you know what I mean versus some for you, versus
someone like.
Speaker 1 (40:10):
Like like Nona Gay or something. You know what I mean,
that's a little shots fired shots The things we all
do for love is a great yes, But I'm just saying,
but that's someone in that position. I like Love Records.
Speaker 8 (40:29):
For the Few.
Speaker 1 (40:32):
There was some dope songs on that record. But I'm
just saying someone.
Speaker 8 (40:36):
Somebody really committed to it, right, Yeah, I get it.
Speaker 1 (40:44):
Okay. So what I want to know is during your
your Berkeley years and which you are holding your craft,
are you actively like, are you aware that you have
the same uh texture of yes, genetically? Are you aware
(41:05):
that you have the same texture? No? And the thing
is do you try to avoid it or it's just
like fuck it? This is what I have.
Speaker 8 (41:11):
No, it is what it is, and i've and I
have as a singer. Now what it's a weird storm.
It's a perfect storm because all the girls are singing
way up here and I'm trying, and there's blood. It's
just all bad. And so as I'm trying to figure
out how to manipulate my vocal so I don't have
to be up there and in pain, then I'm finding
(41:33):
my voice, you know.
Speaker 1 (41:35):
So it hurts you to sing soprano? Or it did.
Speaker 8 (41:38):
I wasn't sure.
Speaker 5 (41:39):
You know.
Speaker 8 (41:39):
What it was was my body saying okay, you can
conform to that shit, or you can figure out what
you got. Yeah, And that's what I that's what I
learned to do.
Speaker 1 (41:48):
Okay, So when you're in the shower or just singing
to yourself in the car? Uh control? So are you
singing when I wass uf do with people?
Speaker 8 (42:00):
Told me a lot of time, Yeah, Or I'm making
up really super up to harmonies, you know, or trying
to sing hybrids on top of shit, I'm doing the
weird the weird ship.
Speaker 1 (42:11):
So do you gravitate more too male singers when you like,
who are your favorite singers?
Speaker 8 (42:16):
My favorite singers are like, you know, my dad and
Stevie and ne King Cole and Johnny Hartman and I
really love Prince and I mean there's a lot of
I definitely probably gravitate in terms of things to sing
to male songs. Like if I'm gonna put a cover
(42:37):
in the show, nine times out of ten, it's gonna
be like a Charlie Wilson cover or Maurice White cover
or you know like that.
Speaker 2 (42:45):
But yeah, Aye, the closest I'm trying to think that
even the closest female singer I can think of in
your lane is like Cassandra Wilson, I.
Speaker 1 (42:54):
Mean down there too, oh yeah, oh yeah, Jasmin's hoping.
Speaker 5 (42:58):
Yeah, I was gonna ask you, guys, have you had
conversation with some of these ladies because Sondra, Jasmine, Anita,
Tony Yep, where y'all bind on these moments of never Tony.
Speaker 8 (43:07):
I've never met Tony. I have talked to Anita about
it many times because you know, growing up, her voice
for me was one of those voices I heard and
I thought, oh this is this is hm. You know
those songs I knew I could sing no songs and
Angel became one of those songs. Like I used to
be all the time with the hair brush like and
(43:28):
when I was that age singing along with Anita Baker,
I would sing that song an octave lower under her.
Speaker 9 (43:35):
You know what was her critique of Angel?
Speaker 8 (43:37):
She liked it. You know, she told me that I
should cover all of her music.
Speaker 1 (43:42):
WOA. She was nice, nice, she's.
Speaker 8 (43:47):
She's she's beautiful, and she's another person like I was
kind of afraid to meet. But all the people I
have ever met that I really idolized have been so cool.
You know, I've been really lucky.
Speaker 5 (44:00):
You're an awesome but you're an awesome cover that also
gives it's weird. It's like you give your own version.
But it's an honor in a way.
Speaker 8 (44:06):
Yeah, but that's and that's the point, is to pay
homage to it. But I'm absolutely trying to eraseial ship
from consciousness.
Speaker 1 (44:17):
No, no, no, in a way, you can't.
Speaker 8 (44:19):
You can't make You cannot make something without what came
before it. So what I'm what I'll say there is
I want my thing to stand next to yours, and
then separately, I'm trying to create a new original from
that thing that.
Speaker 1 (44:31):
You gave me to me. The king of that well,
kings of that word, Brothers and Luther like they like
I never knew. I'm got me tell you.
Speaker 8 (44:38):
Someone else that killed that too is Donny Hathaway. Oh yeah,
I mean I did not even know that this is horrible.
Speaker 1 (44:45):
I don't know. I didn't know.
Speaker 8 (44:48):
I didn't I didn't know. My father did so many
covers and I do so many covers, but I never
no one told me that John lennamro jealous guy. And
when I heard him singing it, like when I was seventeen,
I thought, why is he singing the song? I didn't
understand it. I didn't understand it. Marvin Gay wrote What's
going on till I was like thirteen or fourteen years old,
because everybody always played my father's version of that with
(45:08):
that bridge, so I never knew that. So he had
a way of taking a cover and really interpreting it
into a new thing, and even even Superwoman. When I
listen to that, now, that's that's the one I want
to hear. I'm biased, but that's the one I want to.
Speaker 1 (45:24):
Hear from the poor black genius. I still remember the
first time I heard that Superwoman cover. I think DJ
Spinner played at one of the Wonderful parties. Party just
stopped and I think like half the room cried.
Speaker 5 (45:37):
It's a lot.
Speaker 1 (45:37):
Yeah, yeah, it's a lot.
Speaker 6 (45:40):
So uh, my dad was a dentist.
Speaker 1 (45:49):
Wait, I'm slacking, sorry forgive me.
Speaker 11 (45:52):
Here we go.
Speaker 1 (45:56):
Blessed my dad. God did you so as far as
the performance of the first record, I mean, were there
(46:17):
expectations for you to What were your expectations as far
as the outcome of your.
Speaker 8 (46:24):
My expectations, Oh, I thought I was on the way
you owned the way you got this record nowaday and
taking your picture. I had these dreams of where I
was going to be, you know, in these big places
with like fifty thousand people, and I was going to
be at you know, at MSG, and I was going
to be all these places. And what I was finding
(46:46):
out was I went into that record feeling like, at
that point in my life, I felt like a jazz musician.
I felt like I moved to LA because my label
told me I had to because our Senio was here
and you got to be in LA. But what I
really wanted to do was go to New York where
all my friends were going. And I wanted to go
to fifty five and see Mike Stern, and I wanted
(47:07):
to go see Scow and I wanted to be in
that environment where I was still creating music every day
with musicians. And I kept thinking, if I moved to LA,
I'm gonna get soft, I'm gonna make this record, and
I'm gonna do what I have to do, and it's
gonna afford me this life where I can I can
play the fifty five bar when I want with GO,
and then I can do MSD you When I had
this dream in my mind of having this kind of career.
Speaker 1 (47:31):
Yeah, this pop world and serious musician world.
Speaker 7 (47:35):
Absolutely so, I'm sorry just to interject here, it's John
Schofield for our listeners, right, is that what you're talking about?
Speaker 6 (47:41):
Yes, okay guitar player. Yes, have you worked with him
or I come across him?
Speaker 8 (47:46):
Since I have come across a lot of those those
people that I you know, got my a lot of
the synapses flying listening to their music, firing listening to
their music. I met him at International Jazz Day with
Herbie and Marcus last year and he told me that
he loved my voice, and I literally like almost went
(48:08):
down on my knees, like, yeah, huge fan.
Speaker 1 (48:14):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (48:14):
He sat in with the Roots on the Tonight show,
and so it's true.
Speaker 8 (48:19):
I know, I really I really want to play with him,
like him, just him and me. I want to just
see what happens.
Speaker 6 (48:26):
Yeah, you should, you should pursue that.
Speaker 8 (48:27):
I'm super I'm super enamored though, just because we're talking
about SCO. Just I'm super enamored with the period of SKO,
which is still warm, Electric Outlets go. You know how
you go through these sort of He's in these periods
after that was sort of the now She's Blonde period
and I'm electric Outlets, still warm, Shenoby, I mean, Shanola.
(48:49):
These are albums, yeah, Shanola, and what years are and
I'm gonna say eighty two to eighty six eighty seven.
Speaker 6 (48:57):
Mark Kelly, the bass player from the Roots, played with
Schofield for a while.
Speaker 9 (49:01):
Huge fan to Berkeley, do.
Speaker 1 (49:06):
Oh there it is.
Speaker 6 (49:08):
Shout out to Mark Kelly.
Speaker 2 (49:10):
When you after your first album and you went into
the second record, what was the because I mean we've
talked let me love you, I want you to do
that live.
Speaker 1 (49:20):
I love that song, Thank you for Like, how did that?
What was the expectation going into the second one? From
the label side, you know, it was a weird time.
Speaker 8 (49:28):
It was a time of transition for everybody in the
music industry. Everything was moving toward this where we are
right now, and I felt myself sort of feeling like, hmm,
there's an element of music that my records don't really express.
And I found at Virgin like they had just signed di'angelo,
(49:52):
they had signed Janet, they were doing a lot of things,
and I wasn't at that time. Also, Keith Crouch was
working with me on that record and he had just
started working with Brand. So I was seeing where everything
was headed and I was really excited about it. My
record didn't really express all of that, and right when
the record came out like the second week they I
got dropped, and it was the saddest period of my life.
(50:15):
And I was so happy and so sad because I
felt like, Okay, now I can move in the way
I want to move. I can make these records and
do these live in these different spaces and create the
way I want to create. And then it was another
ten years before I made a record.
Speaker 1 (50:30):
Does it feel like the end of the world like
it did.
Speaker 8 (50:33):
At that point? You know, I was like twenty five
years old, and what I couldn't understand. I couldn't understand
it because we only got through that first single, which
was let Me Love You, and I went to see
Janet Jackson and I went to see Paul Abdul, and
I couldn't understand, like, you guys wouldn't give me money
to rent a piano on a date, and you spend
(50:54):
so much money on pop music. In my mind, there
was a disparity and I couldn't really make sense of
what that was at that time.
Speaker 1 (51:03):
You know, Well, in the ten years that you were
off high, did you survive? How'd you pay the bills?
Speaker 8 (51:09):
As a working musician? I was on the road. Everybody
and their father you know Joe Sam Yeah, everything, Marcus
Miller I played with a lot. I was in his
band for many years. Uh did a lot of records.
I'm on a lot of records that some didn't even
come out here, just like session work. Yeah, Michelle's records.
Speaker 1 (51:32):
Oh yeah, which she's.
Speaker 8 (51:35):
On Earth, I'm on Heaven.
Speaker 1 (51:38):
I love that version of Heaven.
Speaker 8 (51:39):
By the way, me too. It's the slowest record ive
ever recorded in my entire life.
Speaker 5 (51:44):
Have you have you ever you said earlier that you
don't categorize yourself as a soul singer or a jazz singer.
Speaker 9 (51:50):
So, but you are were a woman of a certain
age when you came out a young woman.
Speaker 5 (51:53):
Did you ever feel some type of way that I
feel like you just skipped the urban and went right
to the urban ac.
Speaker 8 (51:59):
Yeah, that was weird. I mean I think urban had
this element of hip hop that my record didn't express,
and I recognize right around ninety three or ninety four, like, Okay,
if you don't include this, you're gonna get left in
the vortex of the mid nineties, which is Misha Paris
and Shaw, Nice, Stephanie Mills, Karen Wheeler. There were a
lot of women, a lot of women a RB. Yeah,
(52:22):
that just kind of kind of got lost in this vortex.
Speaker 1 (52:25):
But it's so weird now because now I think today
we're longing for R and without a hip hop now
without any Yeah, you know, it's interesting now.
Speaker 8 (52:36):
I mean I don't know what is R and B
right now. I don't really get it in terms of
what's new ish R and B. I'm down for whatever.
You know, people just make your music and do whatever
you're gonna do. But it's interesting to me. Someone suggested
to me that if you are like Sid from the
Internet or Sizza or Childish Gambino, there is a there
(52:57):
is a community of that rhythm and blues music that
I can identify looking at it, like you may have tattoos,
you may have big hair, you may I mean, there's
a whole entity of it. If you're looking at a
person like me that's sort of considered adult contemporary or
a black adult contemporary, there's like me Letusy, who else
(53:23):
Jill Jill not really but sort of not really, I
don't think so. I think Jill is in a different
stratosphere because she's also like a movie star I'm talking
about in terms of what's on the radio playing. She
plays on different types of stations. If you are a
black female and you didn't get in that entry point
(53:44):
with hip hop and you're not under thirty, there is
a chasm which is like R and B and dusties.
Speaker 1 (53:51):
You know, so do you feel nice?
Speaker 8 (53:56):
Absolutely?
Speaker 1 (53:57):
Yeah, well not do you feel a certain way, But obviously,
you know, it has to be weird for you to
see maybe a figure like Adele being able to pull
these rabbits out of the hat, not doing R and
B whatever, But you know, like her voices, her voice
(54:19):
is celebrated for that sort of thing.
Speaker 8 (54:22):
But it's interesting. It's has always been that way. Let's
not get it twisted. It has always been that way.
The only thing that killed me was who gets two
chances at the Grammys? That must be nice to be
afforded though.
Speaker 1 (54:39):
Because wow, George Michael tribute.
Speaker 8 (54:46):
That is something.
Speaker 1 (54:49):
If if you do not follow listen man Layla Hathaway
is a great follow on Twitter.
Speaker 5 (54:55):
Follow her right now because I A, you're telling the tram.
Speaker 1 (54:59):
I think it was the Grammys something she tweeted something.
She was like, why is fifth harmony? Yes?
Speaker 2 (55:06):
Singing three part harmonies? I said, And the thing is
you can talk your ship because it's like, ain't none of.
Speaker 8 (55:18):
I had honest questions and you know me, so you know,
for me to say fifth Harmony, four girls, three part
Harmony discussed that don't mean nothing to me. I don't
have anything against those don't.
Speaker 1 (55:29):
Forgot I forgot that with them and.
Speaker 8 (55:31):
And and their their minions so upset words.
Speaker 1 (55:35):
I didn't see that. Oh yeah, yeah it was a
little newsworthy.
Speaker 8 (55:39):
It got I mean yeah, I went. It went on
like a couple of little blogs, and one of my
singers was like, okay, let me let you know. First
there were five girls, they got rid of one girl,
and I was like, oh, okay, now I get it.
Speaker 1 (55:49):
I don't.
Speaker 8 (55:49):
I don't know who they are at all.
Speaker 5 (55:51):
Any of those twitterers, the twitter thugs say that you
can't sing anyway.
Speaker 8 (55:55):
Yes, I get a lot. I get a lot of
I mean, who is you?
Speaker 9 (56:03):
Yeah, it's more like, oh my god, hear you anyway?
Speaker 8 (56:05):
You know, people really try to make me feel like,
ooh you shady. Like normally I'm telling the truth. You know,
nobody gets two chances on the Grammys. That's the truth.
Adele is great. I don't have anything against her. She's
doing her music and God bless her, But who the
fuck is two chances on Network TV? Thought this over,
y'all just start over, and and you needed two chances
(56:29):
last year too, you.
Speaker 1 (56:31):
Got four chances. Yeah, wait, explain this to me.
Speaker 2 (56:35):
So when the first year she did, she did Hello,
she turned to Hello, and like she boy, her voice cracked.
Speaker 1 (56:42):
Well, no, she was like in the wrong.
Speaker 6 (56:46):
Hello here he recorded Hello. I'm serious, we're.
Speaker 1 (57:00):
Coming to it, man, you know what, Wait a minute,
this is where I was, okay, being at the Grammys
and being backstage. I didn't watch it. What happened?
Speaker 2 (57:13):
She she started Hello and was just in the completely
wrong key, and so then she like apologized for it, right,
She was like.
Speaker 8 (57:20):
I don't know what happened.
Speaker 1 (57:21):
It was very bad. I couldn't hear you know whatever.
So she stopped it on National TV.
Speaker 8 (57:25):
No, No, that was the first year.
Speaker 1 (57:27):
That was the first year singing it, and it was bad.
Second second year, it was.
Speaker 2 (57:31):
The George Mike Coop tribute and they had her doing
fast Low Yeah, which is like the I'm like, why
are y'all doing that?
Speaker 1 (57:37):
And it was the one she wanted to do.
Speaker 8 (57:40):
But in addition to that, they're playing the Tonic yeah,
here's your key.
Speaker 1 (57:44):
Yeah, they're playing it, and they were doing it in
a different arrangement.
Speaker 8 (57:48):
Yeah, it was.
Speaker 1 (57:48):
It was a slow dirge like arrangement.
Speaker 6 (57:51):
It was.
Speaker 1 (57:51):
It was a bad idea. It was a bad idea
from the jump. It was.
Speaker 8 (57:53):
It was all bad. And she just up And good
for her for saying, no, fuck this, I'm gonna do
this right, I'm starting over, start over. But God bless America.
Did you get that.
Speaker 1 (58:05):
It's British? Yeah, you know, because Frank Ocean did not
get not another opportunity. I understand. I don't think that's
got enough invitations you got.
Speaker 8 (58:15):
If he has said let me start over, you think
that'll let him.
Speaker 1 (58:24):
My quick time said, you got thirty more quick saying
that out.
Speaker 8 (58:34):
I get tired of uh singers that are not great.
That's just my call it.
Speaker 1 (58:40):
What you want.
Speaker 8 (58:41):
I just get tired of ship.
Speaker 9 (58:44):
Who's Who's great anymore?
Speaker 8 (58:45):
Like I can only take so much whisper, Yes, the
whisper singing is annoying.
Speaker 1 (58:50):
And children, yes, the daughters of they are the daughters
of Aliah.
Speaker 9 (58:55):
Yeah, thank God for Jasmine. I'm just that's all I
can think.
Speaker 8 (58:58):
And you don't have to be all with the with
the raw rod but singing key. You know, if there
are four of you, just somebody step out and sing
another note.
Speaker 5 (59:09):
It's ask all the question as singers, I really don't
know and this is not a shapeful question.
Speaker 9 (59:14):
But you're right, it isn't.
Speaker 5 (59:15):
But people like sid and her and uh Sizza what
we called them singers like I.
Speaker 1 (59:24):
Think sid Well personally.
Speaker 2 (59:26):
For me, Sid has improved a lot, absolutely and like
her new record if you listen to way she's singing now,
to me, she sings with a lot more confidence like.
Speaker 8 (59:35):
I would put her like with with Michael Frank. She's
like the type of singer that sings her material. Really,
you don't want her covering yo, you don't want her
covering long walk by jokes. You know what I mean?
Speaker 1 (59:47):
You guys can't. You're listening to this podcast. But the
look on Bill's face right now is like no, no, no, no, no,
not just using I know, yeah, I know what you're
It's not in the same sentence. It's kind of offensive
to me. It's not like just a virtual soul like
Bill now for said because of j Davy never getting
(01:00:09):
their props, So.
Speaker 9 (01:00:12):
A long list, Bill, It's a long list that got
on the J day.
Speaker 8 (01:00:17):
I like her vibe, I like I like when she
sings what she's written. I like her, you know what
I mean.
Speaker 1 (01:00:21):
I love ye I'm sure she's nice, but yeah, I
was always.
Speaker 8 (01:00:29):
Her Sisa is a singer. I think it's an interesting
time now because a lot of people really exemplify their time,
and that is an art in itself. If you're going
to write, you know, if your whole, if your whole
stease is like the accent and the thing and the
(01:00:50):
repetitive notes, like to me, it's math and science. But
she understands what that is. This is She's Yeah, she's
of her time. So yeah, I would definitely I like
her a lot of the stuff on her record.
Speaker 1 (01:01:03):
So how can you because I feel like you judge singers,
I mean the way that I would judge beat makers,
like I know, based on certain drum patches or certain
small just small things that the maybe light YEA would
totally get, Like, Okay, I don't see what makes this
(01:01:25):
guy is so great that you think it's you know,
that sort of thing. So are you one of those?
I can tell in eight seconds if you can sing?
Speaker 8 (01:01:34):
Yes, I can tell looking at you, if you could say.
Speaker 9 (01:01:36):
Oh, I want to know how conversation.
Speaker 1 (01:01:42):
Now you say you look at somebody, how can you.
Speaker 8 (01:01:45):
Tell what can generally glean from a person what their
voice sounds like looking at them. Like if I walk
into a room and look at everybody and take it
in and then one of them calls me on the phone,
I can tell which one of them call me on
the phone.
Speaker 1 (01:01:59):
Oh wow, that is scary.
Speaker 8 (01:02:02):
It just seems super natural to me though, you know
what I mean. It's not like a get it's the thing.
It's just it's just that's the way my ear is.
Speaker 1 (01:02:08):
So what about old girl who was on Britain Scott
Talent whatever, like everyone losing oil? Yeah, like so the
white woman from she looked crazy? And then like can't
I can't call.
Speaker 8 (01:02:22):
It normally I can't call it, but you know I
would imagine I can't say because I've seen.
Speaker 1 (01:02:27):
Her, And so just based on looking at us, you
could tell I.
Speaker 8 (01:02:32):
Have an idea of what your voices sound like. It
may be wrong, but I definitely associate you with a sound.
Speaker 5 (01:02:42):
That was not me.
Speaker 1 (01:02:48):
I actually looked at you though, I know.
Speaker 5 (01:02:50):
That's why I said, But guys didn't shocked and say
that she does something similar to this, and then she
tests people in their face.
Speaker 9 (01:02:57):
That's I was wondering. I was like, have you ever
had a conversation?
Speaker 1 (01:03:00):
Said that she could just look at someone and see
if you can sing or not.
Speaker 2 (01:03:02):
Yeah, was more like she if someone tells her that
they're a singer, she like sing sing right now, like
that's are you?
Speaker 1 (01:03:09):
Yeah, Like it's that's a cool thing, Like.
Speaker 8 (01:03:12):
That's like that you could go down in flames like that.
I never want to make anybody feel bad about anything.
Speaker 1 (01:03:20):
Do people come up to you and like, yes, can
I sing for you?
Speaker 8 (01:03:23):
Or or this happens all the time. I sound just
like your father, And I'm like, you probably don't.
Speaker 1 (01:03:33):
How do you think that one?
Speaker 6 (01:03:41):
Why that one?
Speaker 2 (01:03:48):
I love that song, so I'm thinking so I'm trying
to remember it. So you're it was ten records? No,
you say it was ten years between the album and the.
Speaker 8 (01:04:00):
Third and the third album. In that time, I made
a record with Joe sample. Yeah, and that's the duet's record.
Speaker 2 (01:04:06):
Okay, Okay, how did how did that come about? Hey, y'all,
how did y'all first have.
Speaker 8 (01:04:11):
Been playing with him since like ninety two or three
with Marcus Miller? Okay, and we were in Japan. We
were at the Blue Note and we were having dinner
one night and I said, Joe, we should make a record.
He said, girl, we should, Let's do it when we
get home. Do you any of y'all know Joe Sample? Yes,
I mean he was like one of the funniest realist
(01:04:32):
people I have ever met in my entire life. And
we got back and we made that record. I went
in and sang with them with the band for like
the first day so that they could get everything done.
And I realized every time Joe would change the time
or something would happen, like I was getting tired. So
I said, let me just if you pick your tempos,
I'll just sing everything and you have it to play too.
(01:04:54):
And then I went in on the following Monday with
Al Schmidt and just sang the record down. So the
whole record is all just one singing down.
Speaker 1 (01:05:03):
Doesn't that damage your voice though? After a while, which
you mean you're saying that you just did the entire
record of one setting.
Speaker 8 (01:05:10):
Yeah, No, it's like singing five songs. It's like a
half a showy.
Speaker 1 (01:05:15):
You mentioned those Japan Blue Note runs. I gotta ask,
was it two or three shows a day. Two?
Speaker 8 (01:05:23):
Who does three shows a day?
Speaker 1 (01:05:24):
Neil fucking Diamond, I'm sorry it wasn't cute.
Speaker 8 (01:05:32):
Three shows a day is a whole lot. I've only
done that once.
Speaker 1 (01:05:35):
Well, I was going to say that doing doing that
Japan run like getting your sleep and hard adjusting. Always
that after that first show.
Speaker 8 (01:05:46):
And that in between they.
Speaker 1 (01:05:49):
Have the food for you that you got the items
on top of.
Speaker 8 (01:05:51):
Everyone's sleeping on those couches over there. Yeah, yes, that's
what they wake you up to do the second show.
It's very hard.
Speaker 1 (01:05:58):
Yo.
Speaker 8 (01:05:58):
Do you feel like when you're at the Blue Note
or when you're in Japan? When I feel like I'm
in Japan, the entire country feels like a recording studio
to me.
Speaker 1 (01:06:04):
It's tight. Sound is tight.
Speaker 8 (01:06:07):
It's literally like the sound in the streets is kind
of dead to me. So when I'm in a space,
I feel like I'm in a recording studio.
Speaker 1 (01:06:16):
It's true.
Speaker 8 (01:06:18):
Yes, with the Babbling Brook playing Yes, Yes Yes.
Speaker 5 (01:06:22):
Can I ask you about the Joe Sample album because
it's funny It was one of my favorites. But I
wanted to ask you about the photo that you guys
have on the cover because it always it's I know,
it's very endaring and sweet, but I figured, like, what
did y'all, How did y'all decide that this is what
we're gonna do?
Speaker 8 (01:06:35):
This is exactly the cover. The man said, whispering is here,
like you're telling him something? And I said, all right, Joe,
I'm telling you something. And he said, don't stick your
tongue in mine. And that is exactly the photo that's
on that record. He was a crazy person, one of
(01:06:58):
the greatest storytelling I've ever met. I would sit at
his knee and just listen to him talk. Marcus Miller
is the same way. But Joe used to tell these
stories about, you know, being in the Fifth Ward, being
stopped by police on the way to a gig and
everybody being made to get out on the street and
play their instruments, and because he played the piano, they
(01:07:20):
would make him dance.
Speaker 1 (01:07:23):
That's Houston. He's from Houston. Okay.
Speaker 9 (01:07:25):
Yeah, who knew Joe sample was from the Fifth War?
Speaker 1 (01:07:28):
Yeah, I didn't know.
Speaker 6 (01:07:29):
I had no idea.
Speaker 1 (01:07:29):
I always just associated him with La No, Wow, that's dope.
Speaker 9 (01:07:33):
Did you have any issues in your evolution of your look?
Speaker 7 (01:07:37):
Oh?
Speaker 9 (01:07:37):
Yeah, in the beginning, you know, the hair was different.
Speaker 8 (01:07:40):
The hair was different. It was a we delicious time
in the nineties. Everybody had to weave, and I wanted locks,
and everybody said, you can't have locks because that's not
it's not what they do. What that was a big deal?
Speaker 1 (01:07:51):
When?
Speaker 9 (01:07:51):
Was that like when you first.
Speaker 1 (01:07:54):
Out the sky? Though?
Speaker 8 (01:07:55):
Yeah, I mean I literally for that record, I look
like that for about a half an hour hour and
then went inacted my regular ship. She cleans up. Well,
I don't know. I think I think it's at certain
points there was a lot of excuse me, confusion about
(01:08:17):
what to do with me, Like this girl is, first
of all, she reads books and she likes jazz, and
I would get in these conversations where I'm going on
I'm going on BT to talk to Donny Simpson and
he's going to ask you who you like. Now we
know that you like train and Wayne and you like
you know, Bud Powell. You can't say that, thank you, Yeah, please.
(01:08:40):
You got to say Luther Vandross, you got to say
Joe to See, you got to say.
Speaker 1 (01:08:43):
You know, I had a whole little yea, the not
the Trainers, the little media. Yeah.
Speaker 8 (01:08:51):
Yeah, that's how long I've been in this business. No, yes, yes,
oh man, Yeah, they coach you. They don't want you
to you know, they don't want you to look like
you know too much.
Speaker 1 (01:09:04):
So do you feel that when you got to outrun
this guy, that was the moment where you actually took
control of in a way.
Speaker 8 (01:09:10):
Yeah. I had been signed to a label called Mojazz.
Speaker 1 (01:09:13):
Yeah, Motown Wayman, that label.
Speaker 8 (01:09:17):
Yeah, and yeah we made a whole record and then
the label just folded and I was like shit, no jazz.
Speaker 5 (01:09:28):
Uh.
Speaker 8 (01:09:28):
And then I took some of that stuff and moved
into the next record, which was Outrun the Sky. And
I felt like at that point, like, oh, okay, I'm
starting to marry the things that I want to do,
Because in the nineties I would listen to like Merry
Records and Faith Records, and I would think, how come
to people don't bring me those types of records? How
come people don't bring me the beats? How come I
want to dance? I like, I played video games, and
(01:09:51):
I ride a skateboard, and I got a truck with
a subway for the lights up pink. Why don't I
get these Why don't I get this really interaction from people?
Speaker 1 (01:09:59):
Yeah?
Speaker 9 (01:10:00):
Temporary?
Speaker 8 (01:10:00):
Yeah, because because people had a perception I've been telling
you forever we got to make a country record. He
was traumatizedzed. So the biggest, the biggest ache for me
in this industry is kind of like, oh my god,
I love you, I really want to work with you,
and then nothing, nothing, Who is that?
Speaker 9 (01:10:22):
In your mind?
Speaker 1 (01:10:23):
Everybody?
Speaker 8 (01:10:24):
Everyone? I can everyone, almost everyone, because.
Speaker 5 (01:10:31):
In my mind I just know that you know what
she's speaking about specifically, not that she was talking about you,
because in my mind, I'm like, is she talking about
for real?
Speaker 1 (01:10:40):
No?
Speaker 8 (01:10:40):
No, because I got to work with for real? We're
still supposed to make a record, you know. And And
the first cat that actually said I really want to
work with you and really did it was Mike City.
Mike City came to a show and was in the
back of the room like sing I'm coming back. He
was heckling me. He said, I want to.
Speaker 1 (01:10:57):
Get you in the club.
Speaker 8 (01:10:59):
Yeah, I want to get you on the radio. I
want to do this for you. And we started writing together.
So he's one of those cats that showed up. But
I mean the actual love that I get from people.
People say, do you feel like you're underrated? And I
feel like, no, I'm super highly fucking rated.
Speaker 1 (01:11:18):
I'm highly would you just say underappreciated them.
Speaker 8 (01:11:21):
Under underheard, underserved, I'm super appreciated.
Speaker 5 (01:11:27):
Like yeah, black thought of I'm like a secret and
a lot of you know, right like the singer's favorite, singer.
Speaker 10 (01:11:36):
Favorite Sea, the jazz singer's favorite, over the joy.
Speaker 1 (01:11:51):
So like with the new record with oh well, before
we get to the new record ahead, I wanted to
ask you about the Darters of Soul to what was
that experience?
Speaker 3 (01:12:02):
Like?
Speaker 8 (01:12:02):
It was cool? Uh, Sandra sat Victor put that together.
Who used to be the lead of the family stand
absolutely it was me? Uh and dear con Nina Simone's daughter. Yes,
I want to call her Lisa, Yeah, Joyce Kennedy, Nonah Hendricks,
Joyce do changes yes she I mean it was killer
(01:12:25):
we did. It was a really short run, but we
were in Europe, so we were really it was a
really beautiful time. We tried to get it booted back up,
and it's so hard to sell anything of quality in
the United States. That is, you know, it's a hard sell.
But that was a really good time for me because
I wasn't on the road a lot. We would go
(01:12:45):
do like the Poory Jazz festival and they would come
take our picture and put it in a museum. You know,
it was a really good time and playing with those
people was really great.
Speaker 1 (01:12:55):
Do you okay, do you have do you have have
a tribe? Or are you this lone oasis?
Speaker 8 (01:13:04):
I'm a lone wolf, but.
Speaker 1 (01:13:07):
Because I feel that the only the only true way
to sell product is either through the controversial means of
which you know, the public wants blood and it's thirsty
for you know, curious about whatever, a backstory or kind
(01:13:28):
of a tribe association. Yeah, I mean if you take
Kendrick's current situation, I mean time, nine times out of ten,
if you see a tde associated you know, act or whatever,
you'll at least peep it for three seconds on the internet.
Speaker 8 (01:13:46):
You get get what that association is.
Speaker 1 (01:13:48):
Right? So is it hard to start a community of
of people to gather eight or nine of you, especially
when you know I would I'm not saying that it
would be intimidating, but I think that what you bring
(01:14:09):
to the table, And I'm not I don't even mean
like your lineage, but you know there's in my mind
it's just like no bullshitting And I almost feel not unworthy.
But I know a bullshit you say no, no, no,
(01:14:32):
But I'm just saying that a lot of times, a
lot of my Eureka arrival moments comes at the from
a place where a lot of mistakes have to be
made before I'm like, ah, this is what I'm bringing
to the table where I just feel like, you know,
you could start saying Mary had a little lamb right
(01:14:52):
now and this shit would be spot on bullseye. You
know what.
Speaker 8 (01:14:56):
I feel like I have a tribe. It's interesting because
what people perceive of me as kind of like this
jazz urban adult contemporary type singer. That is, that is
a part of who I am. But my tribe is
like Robert Glasper like I'm on the Kendrick to Pimp
a Butterfly, Like they sample one of my entire songs
for that record. I did a session three weeks ago
(01:15:20):
with Quick, I did a session with Battlecat and Exhibit
two weeks ago. I work with Terris Martin. I find
that I have this initiative called real music rebels. I'm
generally kind of the only female and a collective. If
I find myself in a collective, there are other women
like me, but I find that if you are a
(01:15:41):
musician that has a sort of education in that field,
and you you play jazz and you play pop and
you play like glasspur or somebody I completely relate to.
You know, I feel like I can go true as well.
He's crazier than I am. But I mean, either one
of us could go to any set on any bandstand
(01:16:04):
and blend in or stick out. You know, I'm just
prepared as a musician to ex experience like what that means,
like to come on and play with you guys. It's
not even fair because you know it's bumpers and that's
kind of you know that take advantage of it in
the room when we rehearse, like, okay, let me just
breathe it in. I'm super into music. I'm gonna I'm
(01:16:25):
gonna make a record with Nancy Wilson and a record
with Kendrick Lamar.
Speaker 1 (01:16:28):
No.
Speaker 8 (01:16:29):
I already made a record with Nancy Wilson. I'm saying
last year, what was that like, Yes, she was not there,
but the record is killer. It's Terry Lane Carrington's record,
which is called I can't bring it to my mind
right now. I'm saying, over the course of a year.
For me, that's making a record with Nancy and with
Kendrick and with Quick and Snoop, and then with Vince
(01:16:51):
Mendoza and then maybe with Anita Baker and then you know,
I'm all over the place in terms of what I
can do.
Speaker 1 (01:16:59):
What is his name? See Wilson project coming up?
Speaker 8 (01:17:01):
It's not a project, it's it's Terry Lynn Carrington's record.
Are you looking it up? Rummer? Yes, back from Yeah,
she's a she's a producer.
Speaker 9 (01:17:11):
She's bigger than that now. But I'm just giving from yeah.
Speaker 1 (01:17:13):
But she she that was like saying Michael Jordan, the
actor from uh yeah, Hey.
Speaker 9 (01:17:20):
Guys, it's all right, what Civilians.
Speaker 8 (01:17:22):
She made a record that featured me and Lettusy and
and Natalie Cole and sha Ka Khan and Liz Wright
and it's a great record. And Nancy Wilson was on
that record, and I crafted some padding around her vocal,
which is for met us everything. I love Nancy Wilson, you.
Speaker 1 (01:17:40):
Know, aside Nancy Wilson. Wilson's story. So it's us on
tour with Lauren Hill back in ninety nine and Lauren
Hill's like towards the end of the end of the set.
It's like a big ass moss pit right in front
of the stage, and she's doing the encore like everything
is everything, and then mid verse she said stop the song.
(01:18:04):
Stop the song stop, stop stop stop. Got hang on.
She's like she looks in the mospit. She's like Nancy.
Speaker 8 (01:18:13):
Wilson in the marsh pit.
Speaker 1 (01:18:15):
Why are you in the moshpit? She was like she
was just in the middle. Like it was just like
some smells like teen spiritshit like Nancy Wilson was in
the middle of She's another great storyteller.
Speaker 5 (01:18:27):
Oh man, Yeah, I feel like we just haven't seen
her a lot lately. She doesn't go out attle worried.
Speaker 8 (01:18:33):
Last time I saw her, she told me, she said,
I'm not going to be doing this much longer.
Speaker 6 (01:18:37):
Oh wow.
Speaker 8 (01:18:39):
She's just she's she's she's comfortable and she's happy and
she's with her family and she's good. She just ain't
making records right now. And and Terry recorded her for
that record, and I wanted to just add some color
for her, you know, kind of breathing. You know, it's cool.
Speaker 1 (01:18:55):
Oh that what's up? I always wanted to ask you
about out your record. The word it all begins record
with Ernie g What's what was that like? Because I
love that song, like I love that song. You know,
I love the album, but I love.
Speaker 8 (01:19:10):
That song too. Bobby Sparks brought me that song, ah okay,
and the moment I heard it, I was like, oh
my god, that that that whole baseline, the movement of
that record. Sometimes I put it on it makes me
very happy. I still have not met him.
Speaker 1 (01:19:25):
Oh so you y'all, Wow, y'all for in exchange it?
Damn he Si.
Speaker 8 (01:19:33):
He gave Bobby that record and said get this record
to her, and then I wrote the lyric and the
melody and everything and recorded it.
Speaker 1 (01:19:39):
Oh okay. So in the studio, who's your who's your
right here? So to speak?
Speaker 2 (01:19:44):
Like you clearly, if you're with an engineer, you have
someone that's like, okay, maybe you can do that again better,
or like who gives you feedback during your sessions?
Speaker 8 (01:19:53):
Whomember I'm working with, you know, I keep it like
a tight circle. I ultimately am harder on myself than
anyone will let a lot of times, if I'm working
on my own stuff, it's hard because when I go
to work with people, which happens a lot, I'll sing
it once and they won't let me. They won't let
me go again, and I'm like, you don't discover anything
like that, you know. I appreciate the fact that it's
(01:20:17):
whatever is on the top of your head, you know,
And it's the spontaneity of it. And it's exciting for
me to go into a session and not know what's
going to happen. And that's what you got. But there
are things listening back. I wish I had taken a
little more time with so for me, in my sessions,
everybody's allowed to talk. It's all super democratic. Ultimately, I
am gonna be like, Okay, that wasn't that's that was terrible?
Speaker 1 (01:20:42):
What was that? And what is it that you're what
you're listening for?
Speaker 6 (01:20:45):
Like what it?
Speaker 1 (01:20:45):
Because I'm trying to imagine what does a terrible Leyla
Hathaway take sound like, Oh, it.
Speaker 8 (01:20:49):
Could be cracky, it could be just clams floating out.
It could be the color is wrong for me. It's
about color a lot of times, you know, or that
didn't taste right happen or you know, let me just
make that prettier, or it's any number of things.
Speaker 9 (01:21:06):
Do you have like physical rituals and no warm ups. No,
not even the fun.
Speaker 1 (01:21:10):
Wait you don't do is seth riggs warm up.
Speaker 8 (01:21:13):
Things sometimes I do with my singers, like if they're
doing it, I'll do it with them. Yeah, but not really.
Speaker 1 (01:21:20):
It's not necessary to warm up your voice. No, I
think it is, But I talk all day, so yeah,
I was going to say, I get the feeling. There's
there's two types of singers, I know, like the the
rigorous exercise like the quote professional singers that do all that,
and then there's the singers that talk and sing twenty
(01:21:46):
four to seven to themselves. Are you one of these
in public? And I don't mean like in public like
in a Fame Way breakout and song now, but like
when you're home alone, are you talking to yourself?
Speaker 5 (01:21:58):
Are you?
Speaker 1 (01:21:59):
No?
Speaker 9 (01:22:00):
Not really, not out loud.
Speaker 8 (01:22:02):
My voice is always in some sort of state of
warmth because of the quality of my voice. So I
recognize that even when it's cold, like right now, it's cold,
and if I sang it would sound okay on the
okay scale, it would not sound okay.
Speaker 1 (01:22:19):
To me where we are right now it's cold to you,
like my voice would be cold.
Speaker 8 (01:22:23):
Yeah, okay, because I haven't sang and I'm sitting here
on a mic and it doesn't sound necessarily. My speaking
voice to me is super annoying. It's like a weird
mirror that is like you're looking at really close.
Speaker 1 (01:22:35):
Really yeah, you have a very saltry speaking very yeah,
I know, but I wonder here's the thing. I was like,
I wonder if Layla's trying to nerd up her. No,
this is me a voice.
Speaker 8 (01:22:56):
This is super mean.
Speaker 1 (01:22:57):
But the line between a point extra voice and it's crazy,
a very I imagine your your phone, your nighttime phone
voice is on some next ship.
Speaker 8 (01:23:09):
It's regular. My mourning phone voice is definitely Susan Plashett
all day, the references, all day, Bob. It's very low.
My voice is just really low by nature. And I
practiced kind of talking up higher. I got intimidated at
some point, like girls don't talk like that, and I
(01:23:29):
started sort of trying to lift it up and make
it bubblier and more.
Speaker 1 (01:23:32):
You know, I think that you're on the Kathleen Turner
very soldier. M we wait, speaking of where it all begins, Steve,
you should note that she worked with Phil Ramone.
Speaker 8 (01:23:52):
Could you what was He's awesome? I loved him so much.
Speaker 6 (01:23:55):
Produce something for you.
Speaker 8 (01:23:57):
Well, we did this thing when we worked on that record,
We had a live We had a chance to go
into Capitol Live and record in the A room and
it was going to be Auschmidt and Phil Ramon. So
I got to record four of my records with them
that day. And it was awesome because basically he just
walked around and smiled and that's magnanimous and made jokes
(01:24:18):
and he's really cool.
Speaker 1 (01:24:20):
Yeah, I'm sorry, Oh no, I just wanted to talk
to you about your new record, honestly, and the hate.
Well we talked, you know, we talked.
Speaker 2 (01:24:31):
This is offline, but how I guess a lot of
your traditional R and B fans are like.
Speaker 1 (01:24:37):
They mad mad as hell.
Speaker 8 (01:24:39):
They mad because the saxophone on the record and the
record I cussed on the record. I cussed on Outrun
the Sky too, But they missed that record. You know,
people really have come to know that they can come
and just suckle on my bosom and I will rock
(01:24:59):
them to sleep and remind them of their mother.
Speaker 10 (01:25:02):
You know.
Speaker 8 (01:25:02):
Michelle told me, she said you are my sexy Mehelia,
Oh my god, And I said, that is the worst
up to But I get it. I get it. I
get that there is something in me that for people
is provocative, but it's also genetic, like a genetic, soulful
memory of their mother. I understand that.
Speaker 1 (01:25:24):
Wait, because I know it's coming. I want to suckle.
I'm sorry, I do, it's coming. I just I'm sorry
pressed the tugar before you even got to say it.
Hilarious on a circle. But I really like the new record.
(01:25:54):
I think it's dope.
Speaker 2 (01:25:54):
I like that, and I mean we I texted you
all the ship before, but no, I like that you
that you're not You play a lot younger than you are.
I think you know what I'm saying. What I mean
by that is just like I think a lot of
times it's three instead of twenty eight. Yeah, exactly, And
I mean right, and I mean a lot of times
(01:26:14):
people in the ac or urban contemporary they kind of
aged themselves too early, you know what I'm saying. It's
just like, dude, you, I look at somebody like Charlie
Wilson that can sing over whatever and be timeless, you
know what I'm saying.
Speaker 1 (01:26:27):
And so the thing I do like about your record
is that you're doing stuff that will be considered young.
Speaker 2 (01:26:34):
But you have the flexibility to do it, and the
shit is dope and like there's only nine songs like
this is yeah.
Speaker 8 (01:26:39):
I mean honestly, I started it as an EP and
then I thought, oh, we could keep going, and then
we just kept going. But the record to me feels
like my record's in the nineties, you know what obvious
and you gotta going on and the Chucky Records and
the Keith Crouch records. I love those records. So for me,
it was about presenting something that was a little bit different, you.
Speaker 1 (01:26:59):
Know, and talk about Tiffany because I don't really know
if I've heard of is a.
Speaker 8 (01:27:04):
Young woman producer, songwriter, singer. We did the whole record together.
She has records out, she got a new single out
right now. And it was exciting to me to work
with one person. I didn't know going into that that
would that's what I was doing, you know, I had
never done a record with just one person. I'm getting
(01:27:26):
ready to start working with a cat named Phil Boudreaux.
What come on, man, do you understand how excited I am?
Speaker 1 (01:27:36):
Phil is uh.
Speaker 2 (01:27:37):
He's one part of a group AOI, which is him
and Dewan Parkerdwan Parker as a producer, keyboard player. He
used to be in Dre's camp, like back during like
the Lost Ones era. I think that's him on the
Lost Ones. I think, but like Lost Ones and all
those records around that, like seven, I was like, wait
(01:27:58):
a minute, now, jay Z Lost Ones. But yeah, and
so they have a group called ao E that is
fucking amazing and Phil also is.
Speaker 8 (01:28:07):
A producer, player, keyboard player.
Speaker 1 (01:28:10):
And he's just fucking stupid.
Speaker 8 (01:28:12):
Yeah that ep I listened to it. Probably it's one
of them. Is my like my wake up alarm which
one never know me?
Speaker 1 (01:28:19):
Oh my god? Yeah, that's.
Speaker 9 (01:28:24):
Adding him to my pandora right now.
Speaker 1 (01:28:26):
It's on a well Field bow Drow. He has a
solo I'm called Ethoist Dope, but just ao E is
the uh that's hard to google.
Speaker 8 (01:28:34):
Get ready getting ready to work with him. I'm very
very excited about.
Speaker 1 (01:28:39):
I won't end on that something some.
Speaker 8 (01:28:44):
I'm excited. I told him I wanted to record this
Dion Warwick record, which one?
Speaker 1 (01:28:47):
Do you know?
Speaker 8 (01:28:47):
This song in between thanks you Hold Me Close in.
Speaker 1 (01:28:55):
It's on track of the Cat.
Speaker 8 (01:28:57):
I don't know. It's a background song, insane. It is
a beautiful record and I can't wait to record it.
I get excited like by songs.
Speaker 1 (01:29:11):
Yeah, never know. It's funny you mentioned that because never
know me. I told him that that reminded me of
a back kind of melody.
Speaker 8 (01:29:16):
It is gorgeous, isn't it. It's kind of like a
Willy Walker melody as well? You know what I mean.
It's kind of like that record imagination in a way.
Oh my god, that's a it's a it's a killer.
It's a killer record.
Speaker 1 (01:29:29):
That's what I wouldn't pick your brain on. Just quirky ship.
I feel like you're the person that like probably knows
like Marlo Thomas is free to be you and me
like I sh.
Speaker 8 (01:29:53):
Wow, wow, I haven't thought about that in a long time.
Speaker 1 (01:29:58):
Yeah, but I mean it, I never I always wanted
to avoid the cliche questions like where your desert island
disco or whatever? But what a desert out of video games? Hmmm?
Speaker 8 (01:30:12):
All right, I'm a Final Fantasy person. But the last
episode of Final Fantasy they fucked it up totally and
turned it into like Entourage, just like it's like four
dudes in a car.
Speaker 1 (01:30:23):
So I've never gotten I never got.
Speaker 8 (01:30:25):
Into the Japanese.
Speaker 1 (01:30:28):
Okay, I have no idea.
Speaker 9 (01:30:29):
What you guys are talking.
Speaker 1 (01:30:30):
About the video games?
Speaker 9 (01:30:31):
I do that beyond that, that's phrasing.
Speaker 8 (01:30:34):
I was just saying, I just got to switch. That's
pretty fun.
Speaker 1 (01:30:37):
I was looking at the switch, but I was like,
I mean, are you still keeping for a switch?
Speaker 8 (01:30:44):
Right?
Speaker 6 (01:30:44):
Hair?
Speaker 1 (01:30:44):
Oh that's what I was. I was like, why are
you carrying brother purse? Look like a clutch.
Speaker 8 (01:30:54):
The remotes are so small they don't make sense.
Speaker 1 (01:30:58):
I had to buy the prop control.
Speaker 9 (01:30:59):
You take them off, you leave yours on.
Speaker 1 (01:31:01):
It depends, I mean, if I'm doing it handheld.
Speaker 8 (01:31:03):
Okay, So I had a handheld game like that before,
which was called The Atari Links.
Speaker 1 (01:31:08):
Yes, I remember, I remember that. I remember that. I
remember that.
Speaker 9 (01:31:12):
Mm so, are you like a Mario? What's your I'm
I was gonna say, are you the Mario person? Are
you the gun?
Speaker 8 (01:31:19):
Things?
Speaker 1 (01:31:21):
First person shooting?
Speaker 8 (01:31:21):
I like them. I get tired of them. I really
miss like, really good full games with stories, you know
what I mean.
Speaker 1 (01:31:30):
That's why I like The Last of Us.
Speaker 8 (01:31:33):
I started it, Oh my god, I got stuck in
the warehouse. I never finished it.
Speaker 1 (01:31:38):
It's like the greatest screenplay. It was better than a
lot of movies that came out I will now too.
It's coming. So how do I get back on the bandwagon?
Because I'm the guy that actually switched?
Speaker 8 (01:31:51):
Get a switch?
Speaker 1 (01:31:53):
I got like a stock of this stuff, like sitting
in the closet. Never like I'll give it away for Christmas?
Keep it?
Speaker 8 (01:32:00):
I mean, yeah, I mean I got like I have everything,
but I still have everything?
Speaker 1 (01:32:06):
Can I even get back on the bandwagon? Get back on?
Speaker 8 (01:32:08):
I mean I think I got a Merlin last what Merlin?
Speaker 6 (01:32:12):
Marlin?
Speaker 8 (01:32:13):
Remember Merlin? Yeah, my friend gave it to me for
my birthday.
Speaker 1 (01:32:18):
You have Merlin?
Speaker 8 (01:32:19):
Where is Merlin now? He's out on the porch.
Speaker 6 (01:32:22):
I was addicted to that. I ever broken one.
Speaker 1 (01:32:25):
You have been on my life? And what is now?
It's a it's a game.
Speaker 6 (01:32:27):
It was.
Speaker 8 (01:32:27):
It's a game system. It looks like a big red phone.
Speaker 1 (01:32:30):
Yo, Marl. Yeah, I'm seventy one. Yeah, yeah, there's that
separates us. YEA Merlin was like right after that, you know,
right after the like the home the first home system
of television.
Speaker 8 (01:32:45):
Yeah, precedes like Simon handheld.
Speaker 1 (01:32:50):
You know, it's like the first.
Speaker 8 (01:32:52):
Remember that.
Speaker 1 (01:32:53):
I do not I've never seen this before. You have
a working Maryland?
Speaker 6 (01:32:58):
I do it works?
Speaker 1 (01:33:00):
I cannot love you more than this moment?
Speaker 8 (01:33:03):
Right?
Speaker 6 (01:33:03):
Can you have live nearby and.
Speaker 8 (01:33:07):
Over by the airport?
Speaker 1 (01:33:10):
Where is this?
Speaker 8 (01:33:11):
Oh man, my friend gave it to is in mint condition?
I need to finance.
Speaker 1 (01:33:15):
I need to google that person loves you to Death,
because there's one on Amazon right now. Do you remember much.
Speaker 8 (01:33:26):
That's cheap?
Speaker 7 (01:33:27):
Do you remember the game Einstein? It was like it
was sort of like it was Simon, but it was
like what the Jewish parents bought that we couldn't we
couldn't get. They didn't want to play for Simon, so
they got It was like a rectangle and it had
for for you know, yeah, this is not a joke.
It's called Einstein. Yeah, seriously, after after Simon was like,
(01:33:50):
it was like the it's like an a person.
Speaker 1 (01:33:53):
Super remember that one? Everyone? Did you ever get into Doom?
Speaker 6 (01:34:04):
You were you were doing?
Speaker 8 (01:34:05):
I get My eyes were like, okay, I need people
in the scenes. I want to be you know, I
would play Call of Duty now, but generally I'm gonna
get into a group and listen to everyone cussing and
then hide in the corner and pick people off at
the angles. That's what I'm gonna do.
Speaker 1 (01:34:21):
So for me, the shooters are like, I get bored fast,
so Final Fantasy and then what else? What else?
Speaker 8 (01:34:27):
You like Mario, Zelda, you know, Zelda, Donkey Kong, all those.
But I also like love Halo, and you know, I
like a lot of the original games. I didn't like Tried,
I tried, It's not it passed over. It's not for us.
Speaker 5 (01:34:45):
It's that video game they made a movie out of.
I just watched it on a lot of them, seriously,
like the Battle.
Speaker 8 (01:34:53):
Ratchet and Clay.
Speaker 9 (01:34:54):
It was like a whole dragon.
Speaker 1 (01:34:57):
Mortal Kombat. You the codes for like all the things
aalties and wow wow yeah yeah yeah. A new Mortal
Kombat now is like super fucking brow now, like, yeah,
super graphic. It's crazy.
Speaker 9 (01:35:15):
Yeah, I mean the way they snapped the heart out
must be like real crazy.
Speaker 8 (01:35:21):
It's like the slow motion pan into the jaw breaking.
I love that.
Speaker 1 (01:35:27):
Come here, so you're a gamer? What else do you do?
Speaker 8 (01:35:33):
I have a dog, This dog I do. His name
is Boston.
Speaker 1 (01:35:39):
What kind of dog?
Speaker 8 (01:35:40):
He's a b Shan?
Speaker 6 (01:35:42):
Huh?
Speaker 8 (01:35:43):
What a b Shan?
Speaker 1 (01:35:46):
That's like a black name.
Speaker 8 (01:35:48):
What He's like one of those dogs that was bred
to entertain in the circus. They have the fluffy little Afro,
the white dog with the fluffy.
Speaker 1 (01:35:58):
Afro carrying Louis.
Speaker 8 (01:36:00):
No, he's big and he's he doesn't look like that.
He's he's super scrappy.
Speaker 1 (01:36:04):
Okay, and his name is Boston. Boston. I thought it
would be sewn. That's the type.
Speaker 8 (01:36:10):
No, and you know I'm DJing now, I'm trying talk
about it. Wait a minute, I'm trying. And I had
I had a birthday party a couple of weeks ago,
and then Battlecat showed up and I was like, I'll
just wait till you finished. I just wait.
Speaker 1 (01:36:25):
I'm certain that you can curate music as good as
you sing it, and you have rhythm.
Speaker 8 (01:36:32):
Thank you from your lips. I hope. What's interesting to
me is to look at two records now that in
my head before, like oh if I had a if I,
if I had a Janet Jackson a cappella for when
I think of you, can I put it over anything?
On the Weather Report? Eight thirty records?
Speaker 1 (01:36:54):
How can I?
Speaker 8 (01:36:55):
What can I do?
Speaker 1 (01:36:56):
Wait? Was that you that told me the greatest set? Yeah?
Well he did a return Forever something for He played
his fourteen minute return Forever song and came out of
it and it worked central heating, by cold, by heat wave,
by heat wave, and it worked, and it worked like
it was just the most cathartic experience because it's like
fourteen minutes of just fucking chaos and then all of
(01:37:17):
a sudden and it's like, oh, yes, I love those
moments that was that it was wild. I would never
try that. That's a holy grail moment for a DJ.
Speaker 3 (01:37:27):
No.
Speaker 1 (01:37:27):
I think the art of DJing really is and you know,
like parents sort of ask me, now, you know, it's
like there's a generation of button pressure kids or whatever.
So I don't know if I should enable them and
just you know, create start creating a generation of DJ's
that I'm a hate. Once they turn to understand, it's
(01:37:48):
gonna happen whether you do it or not. Right. But
the thing is is that I tell them that, above
all else one, you should really love music. That's that's
the number one impetus. Yeah, And I think that the
art of DJing really is knowing or at least having
a good guest to which for any song you play,
(01:38:09):
there should be five songs that can perfectly exactly right
and you're just playing some sort of psychological you're playing
psychological control with your.
Speaker 8 (01:38:19):
Audience absolutely and telling them a story along the way,
Like when we play we have sometimes we put Rocket
with You in a set, right, So at the end
of Rock with You, we played that vampom. We stay
there and then I sing like fifteen Michael songs over
that vamp right, you know, And it maintained a melody,
(01:38:40):
just singing it in that key.
Speaker 2 (01:38:42):
Right, you know, and yeah, you can do it, Okay, Yeah,
talk to me about because we talk about it. Talking
to me about covering, Well, I guess recovering I'm coming
back on what was that like to revisit that twenty.
Speaker 8 (01:38:55):
Years I love that record and I knew going in
that it was a song I wanted to record live
because the arrangement that we have of it is so
different from the other arrangement. It was just one of
those songs I knew, Like when we asked people what
do you want to hear the shows, that's the number
one record that they want to hear, Which is interesting
(01:39:17):
to me because no matter how much people say, you know,
maybe he picked up the tempo to show a little
and do this and do that, people want to come
and be wrung out and they love that record.
Speaker 1 (01:39:26):
And that was that was never officially a single right now. No,
that's amazing.
Speaker 8 (01:39:31):
No, you know Gary Taylor wrote that song.
Speaker 1 (01:39:33):
He's yeah, he wrote whispers and yes.
Speaker 8 (01:39:37):
He also wrote the song that I demoed that he
then gave to Anita Baker, which is good love you
know that record, Thanks for that. I demoed that record
(01:39:59):
for an to basically I did it for my record,
and he's like, you know, my kids want to go
to college. So I was like, yes, let's do it.
So that was my first kind of sort of interaction
with her. I was so excited that when I heard
her she was singing it sort of in the way
I was singing.
Speaker 1 (01:40:16):
I was like, wow, you know you're do you have
an original your copy of it? Wow? That can you
cook to? Yeah?
Speaker 9 (01:40:35):
She'll go to dish over there lately.
Speaker 8 (01:40:37):
You know, I will make a chicken real quick. It
seems simple, but yeah I would. I would just make
a whole chicken with your size, might make some greens,
you know.
Speaker 1 (01:40:48):
You know. Okay, wait are you Jack and are you
find out for me?
Speaker 9 (01:40:57):
Oh? Yeah, that's what I was doing. Yeah, potato, I.
Speaker 8 (01:41:02):
Think right now is the pot roast? Like I'm trying
to really perfect.
Speaker 1 (01:41:05):
A pot roast. I mean my first pot roast.
Speaker 8 (01:41:07):
Dude is super meat and potatoes.
Speaker 5 (01:41:09):
Dude.
Speaker 8 (01:41:09):
He is from Nebraska, so.
Speaker 1 (01:41:13):
Wow to raise Wait you said you made a pot roast.
So all those posts that was you cooking? Oh? I
thought you were watching people cook cook me my bad. Okay,
it's fun now that the pot rolls. The crock pot
is also a life saving to.
Speaker 8 (01:41:29):
You put it on and just like I like the
big Dutch obb and I like to just cook it
really slow.
Speaker 1 (01:41:39):
So are you satisfied with life?
Speaker 6 (01:41:46):
Pot roast? No?
Speaker 5 (01:41:50):
Just and.
Speaker 1 (01:41:52):
Where you are right now? Are you satisfied? M I
mean all artists are insatiable, but are you? Is there
anything left? You know? Oh?
Speaker 8 (01:42:05):
God?
Speaker 1 (01:42:06):
Yeah? Well, I mean okay, that's a bad question. Ask
is there anything Everyone wants a world domination, but kind
of like Denar on heat, like that whole thirty seconds thing, like, ye,
is there something behind you that makes you want a
lot's wife turn around and just be like okay, let
me I want the number one pop single.
Speaker 8 (01:42:24):
Or yeah fuck it? I mean yeah, I want all
that I want. I want to I want to see
what my potential is. I'm on the path. I feel
like I'm just like, literally, I'm singing for twenty years
or twenty three years on record, and then one day
(01:42:45):
I just sing a chord on a record. What will
happen in twenty years from now, Like, I don't know
what's gonna happen. I really want to realize what I have,
and I feel like I'm just at the top of
it right now.
Speaker 1 (01:42:58):
I would agree you to me, You're one of the
few people I know that it seems like, you know,
have a twenty plus years in it. Really just feel
like you're just getting started.
Speaker 8 (01:43:06):
And I feel like it is crazy to me, Like
I know a lot of girls went like that, and
I feel like I'm sort of you know. At times,
it has felt like it ebbed off and then it
would creep up a little bit. But I feel like
I'm on the path. I definitely would like the opportunity.
There seems to be a weird like when I go
(01:43:27):
to radio stations or when we do pitches for TV,
when we do all the stuff, people are always like,
oh my god, we love you. I have your record
in my car. I sang your father song at my
father's funeral. Your record and your dad's record got me
through divorce all of these, uh, these monumental landmarks that
(01:43:49):
people have me in their life, and it's hard to
plug those in in a mainstream way. It's it's a
it's a weird situation for me because like I'm from Chicago,
they don't really play my records in Chicago on the radio.
Whenever I go through Chicago, I make time to go
to the radio station and meet everybody. I know, everybody.
(01:44:10):
I've sang it, everybody's kids birthday, you know what I'm saying,
Like everybody loves me, and there's no you know, I've
been seeing these a lot.
Speaker 1 (01:44:18):
Of people, people like the idea of people that have help.
Speaker 8 (01:44:21):
The concept of it, and.
Speaker 9 (01:44:24):
Yeah, can you not alone?
Speaker 8 (01:44:26):
I recognize that, I believe.
Speaker 1 (01:44:30):
Oh yeah. But see, the thing is is, as long
as you avoid the crazy potholes and you don't seem
like a person that I will say that we'll really
truly separates you from a lot of the contemporaries of
(01:44:51):
yours that I personally know and personal life male and female.
Is you don't seem to have, at least on surface,
any any saboteur kind of spirit about you. You seem
rather fearless, and your approach to stuff, mistakes could be
(01:45:14):
made or whatever. Let me try this out. Let me okay,
let me get with this good. Let me try snarky puppy.
Let me go into like you're just you're curious about it,
and you just with reckless abandonment. You just you just
indulge yourself in it, which is good because a lot
of times, a lot of singers I see, they will
second guess and talk themselves out of a good thing
(01:45:36):
and that sort of thing and tailspin until you know
it's fifteen years between albums.
Speaker 2 (01:45:44):
Yeah, that's sort of okay. So before I wrap up, okay,
oh well yeah, we talk about your grammy, Well you
have multiple singing.
Speaker 1 (01:45:55):
Can I can I can? I can I make this
to my personal therapy moment. Okay, I'm gonna get a
for this, but it's just her and I in the
room right now. One, how long have you had that gift?
Speaker 8 (01:46:09):
Since I was probably twelve or thirteen.
Speaker 1 (01:46:12):
That's the thing though, when I asked you, like and
your alone and stuff for you to perfect something like that.
Speaker 8 (01:46:18):
First of all, it's no, it's in the shower. I'm
in the shower, like what can I do with it?
And I'm gonna show it to people. What is this?
What can I do it? And people are like, well,
I don't know, it's cool, what can you do with it?
And then I did it on a John p Key
record and he kept it.
Speaker 1 (01:46:36):
John p Key of all Things, Yes, quis No, this
is like ten years ago. Oh okay, okay, he kept it.
Speaker 8 (01:46:44):
I did it as a joke at the end of
his record.
Speaker 1 (01:46:46):
You know crash Cuts got ky Yeah, yeah, be in
my friend. Yeah wait, I'm putting that out there. If
anyone knows how we can get the crash cuts, I
need him on the show.
Speaker 6 (01:47:07):
A crash Cut.
Speaker 1 (01:47:09):
It's a spirit. Let it modify in your life.
Speaker 6 (01:47:12):
He's the truth.
Speaker 1 (01:47:14):
He's a lie. Focus on Jesus. Jesus.
Speaker 8 (01:47:21):
Just the fact that I was like, well, I did
it for him and he kept it. And then people
said you should do it on records, and I said, well,
it's not cool on a record because people can think
you manufactured.
Speaker 1 (01:47:33):
They can't see it.
Speaker 8 (01:47:34):
So when I do it live for people, and I
can do it in key and it's in context, then
people see it. But if you ever have watched that
video with Snarky Puppy, I am realizing at that moment, Oh,
I can do this. The first time is whack. Second
time I started like, okay, just fucking go for it.
The third time it was clean, and then they changed keys,
(01:47:56):
and then I was able to change with them. I
did not know what Corey is going to play, so
that what is that called?
Speaker 1 (01:48:03):
What is that?
Speaker 8 (01:48:03):
I don't know. It's not called anything. It's funny. People
on YouTube like that is polytonic. I don't know what.
I don't know. Anybody else I don't know. I think
I have, I have not heard it.
Speaker 1 (01:48:15):
Is it hard to produce on the spot? Like like
whistling on the mic.
Speaker 8 (01:48:26):
Sometimes it's a fourth. Sometimes I can get a six,
like a major sixth.
Speaker 1 (01:48:30):
Not that I asked you to do it in this spot.
Speaker 9 (01:48:33):
I had no idea what you'a were talking about until
at the moment.
Speaker 8 (01:48:36):
It's feel ugly right now.
Speaker 1 (01:48:38):
You don't realize that she can harmonize with herself.
Speaker 5 (01:48:40):
Yes, but I didn't know what specifically when you were like,
what is that that you and you should patent that.
Speaker 1 (01:48:45):
I did not know what you meant. Now and that's
since twelve you've been able to do that.
Speaker 8 (01:48:49):
Yeah, in some form, it always just sounded. There are
some things I'm working on that when I get them,
they're going to be awesome. Like I'm really working on
finding the fundament note and then work in the overtone
over that. It sounds like shit right now, but when
I can get it, it's going to be killer. I'm
still working on those chords. They don't always come out
(01:49:11):
like I like, and they don't always I'm not in
control of the color of it, and right now I
can still only do it or an ooh on awe sound.
So for me, it's not perfected. It's just something I
still I just have in my back pocket that nobody
else can do. It's just way my instrument is set up.
Way my instrument is set up.
Speaker 1 (01:49:31):
But that's the thing though, Like you just did that
so effortlessly. But I know you have to have a
place of trial and err and experimentation, and where does
that happen?
Speaker 6 (01:49:45):
Just right just now, I'm for really you can do
that thing where you go I can't do it, you
know what I'm talking about?
Speaker 1 (01:49:53):
That do it?
Speaker 6 (01:49:53):
What like when you stub your toe or when you see.
Speaker 1 (01:49:58):
Something like that? What's that one?
Speaker 6 (01:50:06):
Do that?
Speaker 1 (01:50:08):
Like that?
Speaker 6 (01:50:08):
That's pretty impressive? Impressive? I was being sincere, but I
came off the opposite. But I think I can't do that, So.
Speaker 1 (01:50:29):
I didn't know I could do it till I just
tried it. Well, yeah, I'm.
Speaker 8 (01:50:33):
Trying to learn how to sing overtones right now, right
but this sounds crazy and everybody can't hear.
Speaker 1 (01:50:39):
It, so okay, so so mmm.
Speaker 8 (01:50:50):
Like I can hear it in my head. I know
you guys can't hear it. I'm only getting a third
and a fifth, so I'm working on that and one
day I'm going to do it somewhere and it's going
to flower into this thing and people will say wow,
and they will be like, when did you work on it?
Speaker 1 (01:51:05):
I'll be like, so you are out of this world
and and again, not in an alien way or whatever,
(01:51:27):
simply brilliant.
Speaker 8 (01:51:29):
Can we can we just say we love each other
now and we'll just be friends. The last time I
saw you, you were like, you said, I find a word.
You said something, and I said, I thought I told
you that. I said, let's do what? What what did
we cover? Joelene?
Speaker 5 (01:51:49):
Yeah?
Speaker 8 (01:51:50):
And I said I've been telling you we should do that,
and you said, yeah, but now we're friends, And I
said I thought we was friends.
Speaker 1 (01:52:02):
Was yes, Well, one day I'll get over myself and
and and and be able to be in front of
your brilliance. Remember that time I came.
Speaker 8 (01:52:15):
To see you Indiangelo in the studio at that time.
Speaker 1 (01:52:19):
Doing the Voodoo period.
Speaker 8 (01:52:21):
This was like six seven years ago. Do y'all were
working listening to stuff? You don't remember?
Speaker 1 (01:52:33):
You have to remind me. It's we were in New York.
Speaker 8 (01:52:36):
I came a boy to hang out ham I do
with me and my cousin. You guys were working on
some stuff, listening to some Michael Jackson stuff.
Speaker 6 (01:52:45):
All right, So obviously they weren't just they weren't working
on stuff. They were just listening to.
Speaker 8 (01:52:51):
Just listening to.
Speaker 1 (01:52:53):
Yes, yes at uh uh.
Speaker 6 (01:52:56):
S MSR at MSR forty eighth Street or something like that.
Speaker 5 (01:53:01):
Can I just ask all the question that the music
fans are thinking right now, like, is there any chance
in the future, now that we've ironed this ship out,
that we can get like some roots lailor ship or something.
Speaker 9 (01:53:12):
Oh my god, I mean, I just I'm sorry, Ma.
Speaker 1 (01:53:14):
I know you like to put it on the spot,
but I'm like, no, listen, what I want to make
absolutely positively ten thousand percent clear is that I've always loved.
Speaker 9 (01:53:25):
Oh yeah, let's get to the work.
Speaker 1 (01:53:29):
I need you listening, car.
Speaker 5 (01:53:37):
But seriously, the fans they want, that's what they want,
especially like as you know right now and the life
and times, I just feel like there's something there.
Speaker 8 (01:53:58):
It's so nice to work with a band too. What
they never happen then you need that.
Speaker 1 (01:54:02):
Yeah, okay, she has the job. You don't have to. Yeah,
I'm not bullshitting. Yes, I would love to work with
Let's do it. There is a radio so that we're
documenting for the world here, it's like we have, like
you can a million listeners right now. Yeah, Leila, I
(01:54:23):
thank you so much. Thank you. Oh two questions.
Speaker 8 (01:54:27):
It goes so fast, doesn't it. It goes over. It
gets over so fast.
Speaker 1 (01:54:29):
It's not when it's right, when it's done right. So
I hope this question doesn't anger you because I don't
know how you feel about this particular record, but your
very first single. Some people don't like talking about their
very first records. So Inside the Beat, Oh, I didn't
know this record existed until.
Speaker 8 (01:54:48):
So Inside the Beat was a demo that we didn't
even give that demo to the people to get a deal.
So whoever boot like that and made it into a single.
People come to me and say I love you since
the eighties, and I'm like, well, no, I didn't have
any records in the eighties, just born.
Speaker 1 (01:55:05):
Yeah.
Speaker 8 (01:55:05):
That record came out, and then I did a Japanese
cigarette commercial where I recorded night and Day Wow, and
they made it into a record. It's for sale now
in Japan and it was for a cigarette commercial.
Speaker 1 (01:55:17):
And when you buy it, that explains the cover.
Speaker 8 (01:55:20):
It doesn't make any sense.
Speaker 1 (01:55:21):
It makes absolutely It's like two random white people and
you know it's a jack.
Speaker 8 (01:55:26):
So it's a dude with a teddy bear and a
ham at a bar smoking a cigarettes. I don't know
what it's for, but that record, I'm just scatting at
the end of it a cappella and they kept it
for the record. So a lot of things happened in
the eighties, but that record is so that's a funny
record to me.
Speaker 1 (01:55:42):
I have to find that now. Have you ever heard it.
I've never heard it. I didn't know it existed until
like a couple of hours.
Speaker 8 (01:55:45):
Let me just sing you the hook inside the beat?
Speaker 1 (01:55:50):
Was it.
Speaker 5 (01:55:55):
That?
Speaker 8 (01:56:02):
It's a super super disco type you know, occasionally I
got throw it into a DJ's eighties. It's super eighties.
Don't judge me.
Speaker 1 (01:56:10):
When you hear I'm gonna love it probably. And my
final question, how did you hook up with Martin Ware
and uh Ian the I can't remember his name?
Speaker 8 (01:56:19):
People.
Speaker 1 (01:56:19):
Yeah, for.
Speaker 8 (01:56:21):
After my first record, I did a lot of records.
They were one of the groups of folks that approached
me and said, hey, can you come and be on
our record? And Billy Preston was there and we record
that slide tune. I don't even know. I just got
really lucky based on my first record. People came to
me that I would not have associated with the type
(01:56:43):
of music I was recording, Like Marcus Miller came and
I started working with him until now.
Speaker 1 (01:56:47):
You know.
Speaker 8 (01:56:48):
So, I don't know how I got so lucky.
Speaker 1 (01:56:52):
I just because I always thought that was kind of
a strange pairing. I mean, the end result was great,
but it's not one that I would have.
Speaker 8 (01:56:58):
I have a record out now with a cat called
Miss Jukes. You know that record. It's a really interesting record.
I don't know how this kid knows who I am.
You know, he's a huge star somewhere else in the world.
And I made a record with him, and I don't
know how that happens. I have lots of records. People
say I have all your albums, even the obscure ones,
and I'm like, no, you don't. There are records that
(01:57:20):
I'm on in Japanese that only came out like in Fukuoka.
Like really, you know? So I just keep getting lucky.
Speaker 1 (01:57:29):
What's your favorite market to perform?
Speaker 8 (01:57:32):
I love Atlanta, I love Tokyo. I haven't been a
whole lot of places. Actually, LA is becoming one of
my favorite places to play. It was a hard place
to play in the beginning because people would just come
sit and look at me, right, you know, But that
happens everywhere I go. Like there's a certain amount of
(01:57:53):
people in the front row that are just kind of
like in some sort of weird I see your father trance,
you know, which I recognized.
Speaker 1 (01:58:02):
Sorry, it's all right. How did the Mary tour end
up going?
Speaker 8 (01:58:08):
It was cool, It was a lot of fun. It
was great to be in front of her audience, even
though I know that part of that audience is kind
of my audience as well. Every night, my DJ would say,
how many of y'all this is your first Layla Hathaway show,
and a lot of hands went up, and that told me, like,
I'm in the right place. You know, I'm getting in
front of folks.
Speaker 1 (01:58:24):
That's awesome. I'm good. Okay, Well Layla, anyone, anyone? Anyone?
Thank you?
Speaker 6 (01:58:35):
What was the song we worked on at Electric Lady?
First time I met you? It was like a.
Speaker 1 (01:58:41):
Was it a Mary J.
Speaker 8 (01:58:42):
Blige record?
Speaker 5 (01:58:45):
I did do that?
Speaker 1 (01:58:46):
I was assist which one?
Speaker 8 (01:58:48):
What was I producing?
Speaker 1 (01:58:49):
Mary J.
Speaker 8 (01:58:49):
Blige and Stevie Wonder?
Speaker 1 (01:58:50):
No?
Speaker 6 (01:58:51):
No, no, it was Is that a Christmas song?
Speaker 9 (01:58:53):
Maybe you dropped that though that that happened once?
Speaker 6 (01:58:57):
Was it might have been a cover of of This
Christmas for some like.
Speaker 8 (01:59:03):
I just did. I just did that for Spotify for
the first time. Wait, what year was it you remember?
Speaker 6 (01:59:08):
It would be the late nineties something like that or
early two thousands.
Speaker 8 (01:59:15):
You remember who the session was with?
Speaker 6 (01:59:17):
No, I don't remember much of anything.
Speaker 8 (01:59:18):
I hear you, man, I don't know. I feel like
I've always known you. I don't know if I ever
tell you that. There's something about you that I feel
like I have always known, and I don't.
Speaker 5 (01:59:29):
Know what that is.
Speaker 1 (01:59:30):
Every engineer you've ever met, No, but you.
Speaker 8 (01:59:33):
Remind me of this kid I went to high school
with named Todd Heckman, who gave me a lot of records.
There's something about you I connect with, not I don't
know what that is.
Speaker 1 (01:59:41):
All right, Maybe it's the records.
Speaker 6 (01:59:44):
Maybe I'm going over to house and.
Speaker 1 (01:59:53):
So have you? Have you? Have you fulfilled your bucket
list as far as the people that you've wanted.
Speaker 8 (02:00:01):
To almost work with almost, I mean, ship, Well, there's
a lot left. I mean, but if I got hit
by a bus today, I have to say, well.
Speaker 1 (02:00:13):
We did.
Speaker 8 (02:00:13):
Prince did, Billy Preston, Anita Shaka, Vince Mendoza, Herbie Wayne,
Dizzy Little.
Speaker 1 (02:00:30):
Wow.
Speaker 8 (02:00:30):
I don't know, I really there's a lot of people left, and.
Speaker 1 (02:00:37):
Now we got to work together because I don't want
to be on the I don't. I don't want to.
Speaker 8 (02:00:43):
I want to be I already already know. There's there's
a few people I really want to work with that
I talk to every time I see them about working
and I know it's not going to happen to go around.
Who Stevie? You haven't worked with him yet, not officially.
Speaker 1 (02:00:58):
Man, I would have thought he would have been the
first one. He can't.
Speaker 8 (02:01:00):
He's he's he's you know, yeah, we we always talk
about it. He's got a song for me. I need
to go. I need to call him. I'm gonna call Aisha.
I'm gonna keep calling. I'm gonna keep trying to do
it every time, but I don't know that it's gonna happen.
Speaker 1 (02:01:14):
Wait a minute, and it's okay, no, wait wait now
I'm thinking that's the thing. Yeah, now I'm thinking what
song would she be good for? No, because one time
I heard him trying to give Knocking on your Door
to Jennifer Hudson really and I was like, no, I
(02:01:37):
was Jennifer husband. But it's just that song, right, Yeah,
I'm jealously you know what, I think I might know one.
We have to we have to can't play it on there, damn. Okay,
y'all saying y'alluys really Stevie stuff going on? We would
(02:01:58):
never say that, and thank you. Never know that public
throwing us under the bus on your own radio shown. Yes,
even the Pandora people are looking at you. You say,
woman's wrong drinking. Yeah, I got some underleased from literally
Stevie J, some underly Steve J track that he did
for the mister Dalvin record.
Speaker 2 (02:02:19):
Yeah, yeah, it came out on Everick it came out,
it did, mister Yeah, wait, mister.
Speaker 1 (02:02:28):
Had a album met a morph Morphic single was called
and actually that's why he did those DJ Blad interviews
by himself. I was wondering why, like he was getting
the star treatment, like he had a project out, but
well this was like ninety yeah, it was came it
was back in the day. No, no, that horrible.
Speaker 9 (02:02:50):
It was not heard him saying the joint.
Speaker 2 (02:02:55):
His mister Davin jams was always the soundtrack jams. Like
his soundtrack jams.
Speaker 1 (02:02:59):
He has one true o G that was on Dangerous Mind.
There was there was another one that was you know what,
I want an episode where you two just Cisco and
Ebert whoever that is, whoever that is Wells and Ebert,
every R and B record. No, I'm down for that.
(02:03:22):
It's an art watching these two like go Got Got
Over I never heard of before, obscure B sides and soundtrack.
Speaker 11 (02:03:31):
Songs you never heard of, mister Belvedere. All right, so yeah,
so Stevie, yeah, Stete, all right.
Speaker 8 (02:03:42):
There's a lot of people though, you know, because when
I mean people, they say I want to make a
whole record with you. They don't say we want to
make a song like That's why I came to see
D'Angelo that night. He's another one. I keep telling him
we should make the Blackish record. Ever, we should do
it now, while we're both living. We should both we
should do it now.
Speaker 9 (02:04:00):
Give her our chances of mere what you think?
Speaker 8 (02:04:01):
Every time he says it, he says, you know, I
love you. I want to do it. Let's do it.
Speaker 1 (02:04:09):
It's more on b it's more. I wish d Angela
was on the show for three words were words. We
had a wager. What was the wager everybody was going
to get? It was one hundred one thousand, one thousand
dollars Christmas bonus. They said that I could never get
d angel on the show. And it just so happens
(02:04:30):
that Dangela had to stop by the studio to pick
something up nice and I love it. And then he
went out for a pack of cigarettes and never came back.
Right pulled the black Daddy on us. Black dad anyway.
H yeah, I thank you for coming on the show.
Speaker 8 (02:04:47):
Thank you, thank you.
Speaker 1 (02:04:48):
I had so much fun with you, man, thank you,
thank you. We want to do this for a long time.
We've been trying to we're trying to catch this other
and stuff.
Speaker 9 (02:04:57):
Thank you so much for doing this, making it happen.
Speaker 8 (02:05:00):
How long you're gonna be here.
Speaker 1 (02:05:02):
Forever? We're shooting forever. He'll be here forever, well, not forever.
I mean, we're going to do a couple more episodes
and then you know, I'm in town to like Tuesday Wednesday, you.
Speaker 8 (02:05:14):
Want to go bowling or something?
Speaker 9 (02:05:15):
Yeah, I live here, let's go.
Speaker 1 (02:05:17):
Where do you live?
Speaker 9 (02:05:18):
Hollywood?
Speaker 1 (02:05:19):
So yeah, I thank you for coming on the show. Leila,
appreciate it. Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you,
thank you, thank you. Appreciated and we will we will
work in the future. So on behalf of the team,
Supreme Crew on, behalf of the teams.
Speaker 9 (02:05:34):
You're not part of the team, so you ain't gonna
say our names. It's not usually like Bill, you know.
Speaker 1 (02:05:39):
Yeah, we want some individual credit, all right, Sugar Steve
and in Boston, Bill and font Tikeolo and sweet Feet.
It's like, is sweet feet all right? It's might be
(02:06:03):
so yeah, Actually, Lela, we we sort of did work together.
Now that I think of it, it does not count. Well,
then then you and Nancy Wilson didn't count, then.
Speaker 8 (02:06:12):
It does count.
Speaker 1 (02:06:13):
That does count record Technically we work together because of
the Hidden Figure soundtrack that the Roots just totally remade.
Speaker 8 (02:06:23):
Uhn' wait to hear the whole thing.
Speaker 1 (02:06:25):
Yes, it's it's freaking awesome and we're gonna release it
for a record store day. Yeah. And this is your
contribution called Surrender and my favorite joint on the record. Yeah,
thank you. West Love Supreme is a production iHeartRadio. This
(02:06:49):
classic episode was produced by the team at Endora. For
more podcasts from iHeart Radio, visit the iHeart Radio app,
Apple podcast, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.
Of course. Love Supreme is a production of iHeartRadio. This
classic episode was produced by the team at Pandora. Hey,
what's going on, y'all?
Speaker 2 (00:10):
This is Fante Fonteglo here with this week's QLs classic.
This week we talked to my friend, my family, my
dear friend. One of the best singers on the planet.
Grammy winning singer Layla had the way she talks about
carrying on her father Donnie's legacy, working with Prince, singing
phone notes at the same time like it ain't shit,
her deep love of video games, and plus we get
(00:33):
loads of wisdom, loads of words of wisdom from my
QS brother Sugar Steve.
Speaker 1 (00:39):
This is a great episode. Check it out. Originally state
was March twenty eight, twenty eighteen pre Roma. It was amazing.
Check it out QLs Leila Hathaway QS classic. It's Fonteo Loo.
Speaker 3 (00:51):
Yeah, Supreme mother, some suprema roll called Suprema son supremo
role called Suprema suprema role called suprema so supremo roll.
Speaker 1 (01:14):
Sound of Layla's voice, Yeah yeah, but when she starts harmonizing, Yeah,
Suprema supremo role called Suprema supremo roll.
Speaker 2 (01:29):
Call my name is Fante. Yeah, I'm cashing checks. Yeah
with my nigga Layla, watching some real sex.
Speaker 4 (01:38):
Suprema son Supremo, rod come Suprema, Suprema roll call.
Speaker 1 (01:46):
My name is Sugar.
Speaker 5 (01:47):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (01:48):
I love Fela. Yeah, I love Dayla. Yeah, I love Tequila.
Speaker 1 (01:58):
Suprema some Suprea role still is flying yeah, flying high.
Yeah when Layla sings, Yeah, baby don't cry roll.
Speaker 7 (02:10):
Suprema so SUPREMEA roll call Suprema some.
Speaker 1 (02:16):
Supreme roll call.
Speaker 5 (02:18):
It's like, yeah, been called Layla, Yeah, never really minded.
Yeah because this girl stays playing you.
Speaker 1 (02:27):
Sorry, we're talking about my rod turn Suprema. Yeah, really
your turn Supreme my role call.
Speaker 8 (02:34):
My name is Layla, yeah, not Leila.
Speaker 4 (02:37):
Yeah, Supreme roll Suprema some some suprema role called Suprema
son Supremo, roll call Suprema s Suprea roll call.
Speaker 1 (03:01):
Shut up.
Speaker 8 (03:04):
My first I to give you the cord. The chord
was not really popping, just now it came out. There's
a lot of air.
Speaker 1 (03:12):
Okay, stop it.
Speaker 9 (03:17):
What's going on on the air?
Speaker 1 (03:18):
Stop it?
Speaker 9 (03:19):
I just I don't know.
Speaker 1 (03:20):
I don't stop it. Something to do with Prince probably, yeah, okay,
tell me. Okay, ladies and gentlemen, it'll come up another
episode of course, Love Supreme. I am quest love, I'm
still alive. Yeah, okay, wait, I'm just going to come
(03:40):
out and say it. Uh, that was the worst.
Speaker 6 (03:47):
Come out and say it.
Speaker 1 (03:51):
It's worth It's worth the wait. Okay, No, I'm gonna
be professional about this, all right. First of all, I
have to say, yeah, we have literally one of the
most brilliantly frightening singers ever to walk on this earth.
Speaker 8 (04:09):
Frightening. You've said that before. He told you what is
the frightening part.
Speaker 1 (04:16):
We're gonna get into it.
Speaker 8 (04:17):
She's so cuddly.
Speaker 1 (04:20):
Because I want you to know that my love for
you is beyond awe.
Speaker 8 (04:28):
Oh that's deep. I'm glad you said that, because it
doesn't feel like that.
Speaker 1 (04:33):
I know, and I know I know you feel a
certain way, maybe jokingly or maybe real a little bit both.
Speaker 8 (04:40):
But I appreciate that. I appreciate that that's deep.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
But this is from such a level of oh god,
this feels like the first episode. All right. My name
is Ques. All right. First of all, ladies and gentlemen,
please welcome Layla. Half the way you.
Speaker 8 (05:03):
Intro go down and infamy. I appreciate all of that
you had to get through this before.
Speaker 1 (05:11):
Just tell a story. Okay, Look, just the sound of
your voice talking like as I really I want us
to be BFFs. But the sound of your voice is
quasi traumatic for me. The speaking sound I love when
you talk to me.
Speaker 8 (05:30):
Yes, it's speaking sound, just regular.
Speaker 1 (05:33):
I know, it is, it is, it is, it is,
it is. But it's just that the the texture of
your voice reminds me so much of your dad that
I just have connections of I understand of that. But
it's also anytime you sing, it just psychologically puts me
(05:57):
back at being like seven years old, eight years old.
Speaker 8 (06:00):
Interesting.
Speaker 1 (06:01):
Yeah, so this is a hell of a way to
start off.
Speaker 8 (06:05):
Get it out right.
Speaker 1 (06:07):
They're just all laughing at me because they know that
this isn't fake nervousness. I'm doing it right now. Yeah,
paper bag to breathing. No, I'm good, I'm good.
Speaker 9 (06:21):
Is that the first time you've heard that? Because I'm sure.
Speaker 6 (06:23):
No.
Speaker 8 (06:24):
It's interesting to me because I know, you know, like
my box was made by my mother and father, so
I know that I sound like my parents, both my parents.
But it's interesting that people sound is deep. Sound is
like super deep. It's a transporter. So when people tell
me that it takes them to a place, I get yeah,
because I have that sound, those sounds that do that
(06:46):
for me, So I get it.
Speaker 1 (06:47):
It's deep, though, did your mom did she sing as well? Yeah?
Speaker 8 (06:51):
My mom is a singer. My parents met at Howard
in the fine arts department, and a lot of the
way he approached singing he got from her, you know, so.
Speaker 1 (07:02):
As do I.
Speaker 8 (07:03):
You know, so I definitely get it. It's interesting though,
because people say, Wow, it's so cool, you sound so
much like your dad. But I'm like, you probably sound
like your dad too, you know who who has not
answered the phone and somebody said, is this you or
your mama? This is you or your daddy? So it
makes sense to me.
Speaker 1 (07:21):
I get it now. I definitely sound like my father.
And sometimes my dad passed last January, and every time
I call home to talk to my mom, always have
to be mindful of how I say hello on the
phonecause it might sound just like him calling her.
Speaker 9 (07:36):
Anyway, talk about nowhere to go?
Speaker 1 (07:38):
But actually, can you answer all your questions and your
neal diamond voices? Yes? Absolutely? Like yeah, Like I kind
of want to bring our online relationship out to here
(07:59):
and some times when you sit on the show and
we talk about singers you love or ideas, crazy ideas
you have. Yeah, I love talking about that stuff. Anyway.
Can I assume that you were where were you born?
Speaker 8 (08:14):
I was born in Chicago. I like to think of
it as the late eighties.
Speaker 1 (08:22):
You born in the late eighties Chicago. It was born, Yes,
I feel you born what part of Chicago.
Speaker 8 (08:32):
Born on the South Side, grew up on the North Side,
moved back to the south Side before I went to Berkeley.
Speaker 1 (08:38):
Can you explain like Chicago to me? I mean, Chicago
means everything that all people. Of course, you know politicians
will use what about Chicago as a sort of reminder,
But I mean, what is when you think of Chicago?
Is it fuzzy home memories? Is it like the eye
(08:59):
roll in the air?
Speaker 8 (08:59):
Is Chicago has many things?
Speaker 1 (09:02):
To me?
Speaker 8 (09:02):
Chicago is? I mean, anybody from Chicago will tell you
we have a super strong sense of being from that place.
The city has a lot of character and holds a
lot of character. The food, the culture of the museums,
the people, the weather, the sides, the segregation. You know,
Doctor King said when he went there in the sixties
that it was the most segregated city he had ever
(09:24):
been to. So for me, Chicago, Yeah, Chicago was a
lot of things. And that's the thing when people say
I'm from la or I'm from Virginia, nobody says what side.
You know, people, Chicago's either south Side or north Side.
Speaker 1 (09:38):
That's its south Side represents what.
Speaker 8 (09:40):
That's for black folks. North Side is white folks, South
Side is black folks. There of course, there's everything in between,
and there's the West Side, but there's definitely a delineation
if you grew up in Chicago, particularly in the seventies
and eighties, like where in Chicago are you from? You know,
there's definitely that aspect, you know. So I grew up
(10:01):
in both parts of town, you know, south Side and Northside,
mostly north Side.
Speaker 1 (10:06):
So in the eighties when you were four, what I mean,
what was the environment?
Speaker 8 (10:13):
Like, Vin, I went to a performing art high school.
I don't have a huge memory of my life before
like seventh grade, sixth grade, I went to Performing Arts
High School.
Speaker 1 (10:27):
Any other notable students there that are now.
Speaker 8 (10:30):
John Cusack, Laura Flamboyle, You said John or Joanes? John
John Joan went there when I was there, it was
only the third year they had.
Speaker 1 (10:39):
Of course. Okay, that's why he said fidelity. And well
he was in shyrek as well.
Speaker 8 (10:48):
Preacher and those John Hughes films. You know, all of
those kids. Let's see Susan Tunnya. Her sister's name is
Robin Tunney, who's on the Mint Yeah, Lar flam Boyle.
I said that she's you know a lot of kids.
Speaker 1 (11:06):
So you're obviously your major was vocal.
Speaker 5 (11:09):
Yeah.
Speaker 8 (11:10):
Well see I got to the school and I sang.
I walked in, I had my sheet music and I
was singing this Anne Murray song and I was probably
thirteen or fourteen.
Speaker 1 (11:20):
You needed me, you needed me. What is what is
up with you in country? I don't know, I really
I just the midwesterns.
Speaker 8 (11:29):
It might be it might be that it might be
like I like to sing and I like tone and
growing up, those were some of the songs that captured me,
those voices and those songs like you know, you could
pull them like taffy.
Speaker 1 (11:40):
Are you the youngest or oldest in your oldest? Okay,
so you discovered the music first. Did you hang with
older cousins or anything or not? Really?
Speaker 8 (11:48):
I mean my cousins were like, you know, I have
two older cousins, really my first cousins. One of them
was like a huge kiss bas city rollers, you know there,
and the other was like Prince and that's it. Like
in her closet behind the clothes was the poster of
him in the shower with the leather, and I would
(12:10):
dip in there like I ain't getting the sweater. Yeah, yeah,
I love I love country music. I love Dolly Parton
and all that growing up.
Speaker 1 (12:22):
But how I mean, how was this introduced to you
if it's not an older cousin, older sibling, or were
you just that curious or was it your friends?
Speaker 8 (12:33):
It was not a big whoop to understand who those
people were in the seventies and eighties before I.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
Was born, right, Okay, it was.
Speaker 8 (12:41):
Nothing to see Lionel Ritchie with Dolly Parton somewhere, everything
Kenny Rogers or the Mandrell System.
Speaker 1 (12:52):
On Saturday Night, Barbara Crystal Gale.
Speaker 8 (12:57):
Yeah, all of that stuff for me, even like the Eagle,
you know, the sort of country rock. All of that
stuff was all in the same sort of collective for me.
Speaker 1 (13:06):
Oh okay, so you chose Anne Murray, you need it?
Speaker 8 (13:10):
I did. I did, and dude started playing and I
was standing up there and I said, I cried. He
was like, wait, wait wait, you got singing up the
octave and I was like, I never sing it up
the octave. He said, we'll try it. That's where you're
supposed to sing. Oh, And I was like, I cry.
(13:32):
You know this is wrong, this feels wrong. He was like,
you should try the theater department.
Speaker 1 (13:38):
Then wow, wait what talk?
Speaker 8 (13:40):
Yeah, so I did that for a little bit.
Speaker 1 (13:43):
Oh, so they I'm wrong. So they you went to
you did drama first before you.
Speaker 8 (13:48):
I did a little drama. I did music. I just
kind of basically blended in really until I got to Berkeley,
Like I tried out for different things at school and
didn't make it. I went to show choir camp. I
didn't really you know, I just kind of blended in
everywhere until I got to Berkeley.
Speaker 1 (14:04):
Well, I mean in doing that era, like were you
at all trying to pursue a music career?
Speaker 5 (14:11):
Was not?
Speaker 8 (14:13):
Really? I mean in high school, I just feel like
I feel like I was waiting for this thing to happen,
Like I at some point I came to LA when
I was sixteen or seventeen, right at the top of
Berkeley and I went to Bri remember br Jack Rapper
and Bri Yeah, and Prince was playing that year and
I just stood in that audience and I was like,
(14:36):
I love him. This is what this is. I'm supposed
to be here.
Speaker 1 (14:39):
Uh when he did Diamonds and Pearls.
Speaker 8 (14:41):
No, I was way before that. It was it was
like eighty It was before I went to Berkeley. It
was like eighty nine. Sheila came out and played and
I was like wow. I was in the hotel waiting
to get in the room where he was going to play,
and Stony Jackson was standing in front of me.
Speaker 1 (15:01):
And I was like with the curl. Yes.
Speaker 8 (15:04):
I was like, this is my ship.
Speaker 1 (15:06):
Does Stony Jackson exists without the curl? Stony Jackson came
back on something and he had a fan. I can't remember.
That's what we're talking about.
Speaker 9 (15:16):
Okay, I remember the name.
Speaker 1 (15:17):
Yea, the Stony Jet. But he came back. He was
on something fairly wasn't everybody hates Chris, That makes sense, Chris.
He had a face, he had a fad. What do
you remember Stony Jackson, Steve, did you ever watch The
White Shadow?
Speaker 10 (15:30):
Uh?
Speaker 1 (15:31):
Yeah, he was he was one of the black guys.
Speaker 9 (15:34):
That eventually, I mean but l asked me to watch
two two seven.
Speaker 8 (15:38):
He had a show, Remember that show where he was
a detective and his friend was a detective.
Speaker 1 (15:44):
Yes, how do you know that?
Speaker 8 (15:47):
I loved Stony Jackson growing up.
Speaker 1 (15:49):
It said to me that you and Fante might be
like matching wits. As far as this dude information.
Speaker 8 (15:56):
This dude, I told you. We sat in the hotel
lobby one night and chopped it up for hours. This
dude is absolutely one of my soulmates. He don't know
it yet, but that's true.
Speaker 1 (16:05):
Thank you for that, My members.
Speaker 9 (16:07):
When you find your tribe, it's nice.
Speaker 1 (16:09):
True, it's true, though, a tribe called real Sex. We're gonna.
Speaker 2 (16:17):
So when I first got on Twitter right now, this
is like early Twitter. This is like the early days
of Twitter, like O nine, O ten Twitter, Ok, Twitter
in two thousand and seven, though, well, I'm saying this
was the glory days. This is I mean, oh seven,
it was still early, and then like oh nine, that's
when people got on old teams. Cool it started popping,
(16:37):
and then like twenty eleven, twenty twelve, that was when
Trump the tumblr uh people came over and just ruined it.
So now this ship is whatever, but like now this
ship is you know then, So back then, before all
the tumbler buffoks came over, you could just talk about whatever.
And every time Real Sex came on HBO, Layla would
show up in my timeline like it was without fail.
Speaker 1 (16:59):
She would just alwayshow yep, watching real six this is episode.
I just I was like, yo, like lately you really
you watch all these them all all that I think
I've seen them all to it's.
Speaker 9 (17:15):
Like thirty of them at this point.
Speaker 8 (17:16):
It's real sex and I'm showing them. And now they've
tried to update, you know, they have news cyber sex
and all that stuff, but it's nothing like the actual
real in the cab.
Speaker 1 (17:27):
Yeah yeah, so that's that's me.
Speaker 8 (17:31):
And that's what you called me, Real Sex.
Speaker 1 (17:32):
Yeah, that's her name, Real Sex. Every time they come on,
I checked my Twitter, Yeah, Leila has the way is
right there? Different? But yes, no, no, no, it's just
this is mine. This is big sister.
Speaker 9 (17:43):
We just but does that say something about you though, Layla?
Speaker 8 (17:45):
I don't know, does it. I watch a lot of TV.
Speaker 9 (17:49):
I mean, but you know all the real sexes I do.
Speaker 8 (17:54):
Then you make friends with iknew, I knew one of
the poets?
Speaker 9 (17:57):
Yes, yeah, what city was that the poet episode?
Speaker 8 (18:01):
I feel like it was l A.
Speaker 9 (18:03):
I feel like it was.
Speaker 1 (18:04):
I was thinking d C too, but Los Angeles. How
do you know that? So quickly Google? Yes we here,
Google's lightning festways.
Speaker 9 (18:16):
Bill said, oh, google.
Speaker 1 (18:20):
That Betty. Yes, the three girls with the like kind
of harmonizing but like not really, but then they used
to be on that show and cycle. How are you
going to be on the kids show? And Betty, I'm
out outside here with you, Steve so high.
Speaker 6 (18:41):
This is all good stuff for real. I'm just like
thinking how bad real sex was. That's and I love sex.
Speaker 1 (18:51):
Was terrible, it was good, it was good, it was good.
Speaker 7 (18:57):
Here's a here's a sex house, and in the middle
of nowhere where people have sex, there's nothing.
Speaker 8 (19:03):
I'm just saying they were interesting, Like let's pay four
hundred dollars and go to upstate New York, loll along
in the mud and have sex and learn how to
play a drum.
Speaker 1 (19:13):
That's what they were doing, like have that connection caucastity.
Speaker 9 (19:20):
Yeah, you ain't watch real sex.
Speaker 1 (19:24):
I think during this period we were like living in
Europe or something. Yeah, like there's a big part of
the early nineties that I just had no television.
Speaker 8 (19:35):
Because you're probably way smarter for it, though, you.
Speaker 1 (19:39):
Know now I feel left out, like is this on?
Is this still? But I learned a lot.
Speaker 8 (19:51):
I learned a lot on that program about like furries
and people that after they cover themselves and mustard and
these are things consciousness.
Speaker 1 (20:02):
Before and this is in the nineties, Like so this
is like pre Internet. Yeah, it was pre Internet. That's
the thing. Like now you can type any pre words
and get a sexual fetish, but this was pre Google.
Speaker 2 (20:15):
So that was our real sex, was our window into
the weird sex workings of white people.
Speaker 8 (20:20):
Into mostly white people.
Speaker 1 (20:23):
It was like it was like one of them swingers coming.
It was like one nigg in the whole.
Speaker 8 (20:26):
I was like, man for the girl with the girl
with the bit in her mouth and she's a pony
and it's got the thing of her rider bag.
Speaker 1 (20:33):
That was like cosplace.
Speaker 9 (20:35):
That was like in betweens were nice to when they
stop people on the street.
Speaker 1 (20:40):
So yeah, that bit. That's where Dave gets the bit
well on Chappelle Show when he would do to talk
to people and that's yeah, that's real.
Speaker 6 (20:48):
Don't waste your time.
Speaker 1 (20:51):
It's actually kind of funny now to watch. It's more
funny now than sexual Yeah. Anyway, what did what year
did you?
Speaker 8 (21:08):
Eighty six? I got to Berkeley?
Speaker 9 (21:11):
You got there in two thousand.
Speaker 1 (21:12):
And one, Yeah, like, yeah, uh, what was your experience?
And I had?
Speaker 8 (21:21):
I had a really great experience at Berkeley. I mean
I really that was where I really my mind started going. Oh,
actual music. Like I lived on the eighth floor in
the dorms, and these cats that were in the rooms
on my hallway would bring me these records and literally
it was like they were feeding me every day. I
didn't know about John Schofield or John Abercrombie or Carla
(21:44):
Blay or you know that I was learning so much
new stuff because when I got to Berkeley, I had
like a box of tone Master cassettes, you know, a
couple of the black ones, the good ones, and the
rest were the yellow ones. I had like Janet Jackson Control,
which I had gone over Miles Davis record bootleg for
that record. I had Pat Metheni First Circle, I had
(22:05):
a Jean Luponti record. I thought, you know, I thought
I was all over the place, Like I listened to.
Speaker 1 (22:10):
Everything could have made beats.
Speaker 8 (22:13):
I had no idea.
Speaker 1 (22:14):
You're that didn't make beats.
Speaker 8 (22:16):
I didn't know.
Speaker 1 (22:16):
That's amazing.
Speaker 8 (22:18):
So I got there and I really started really listening
to things, and probably within like the first month of school,
I realized like, oh, I'm wanna hang out with these
cats because they go play every day and they let
me come play with them. So I would just show
up and not change the keys to any of the
songs and not not understand the form or what was
(22:41):
happening in the room. And I just was able to
play with them every day.
Speaker 1 (22:46):
Do you play an instrument?
Speaker 8 (22:47):
I play keys?
Speaker 1 (22:48):
Okay, so you went for keyboards or no.
Speaker 8 (22:52):
Just for singing. But you know I would show up
to like I was the only singer in the John
Schofield ensemble, you know, like we would transcribe score SCO
solos and playing the class.
Speaker 1 (23:02):
You know you're serious, is no joke.
Speaker 8 (23:06):
Yeah, I'm a SKO fan.
Speaker 6 (23:07):
Carla Blair.
Speaker 8 (23:09):
I love Carla Blae.
Speaker 6 (23:10):
People don't know about her.
Speaker 8 (23:11):
I never I know. She was the first show I
saw at Berkeley, and Hiram Bullock was in her band
at that time. And you know, I went on to
have a really beautiful friendship with him. He's gone now.
But that was the first show I saw at Berkeley,
and my hair just blew back, like, oh my god,
what are these people doing? Steve?
Speaker 6 (23:30):
What year was that?
Speaker 9 (23:32):
Eighty six?
Speaker 6 (23:33):
So right right when you were born?
Speaker 1 (23:35):
Yeah, amazing. What the mind can you captured at the
age of one.
Speaker 7 (23:42):
Yeah, I'm just trying to figure out what music she
had out at that at that time, what album?
Speaker 8 (23:48):
I don't remember what album she had out at that time.
I just remember the show was a dollar for students.
Speaker 1 (23:56):
Wow. How she get paid though I don't like the universe. Yeah,
they probably out of the student.
Speaker 8 (24:01):
They probably just didn't pay her much for it. Yeah,
they probably didn't pay much a dollar And Hirom was
up there with his bare feet, and I was like,
oh my god, this cat.
Speaker 1 (24:11):
You know.
Speaker 8 (24:12):
Subsequently, I saw Michael Brecker in that room. I saw
it's just Muhammad in that room.
Speaker 1 (24:18):
I saw.
Speaker 8 (24:19):
I saw so many people in that performance center, Like
I learned really a lot, like in that one room.
Speaker 6 (24:27):
So you must like chess, do I mean.
Speaker 1 (24:36):
I do?
Speaker 8 (24:37):
I mean, you know, I have a love for it.
Speaker 6 (24:39):
Most people go to Berkeley study have to study it anyway.
Speaker 8 (24:42):
Yeah, I mean it just comes up. It comes up. Yeah,
I think people think I'm a jazz singer. I don't
know if that's you.
Speaker 9 (24:49):
You say you sing jazz, wouldn't say it sings such times.
Speaker 8 (24:51):
I mean, I think my approaches like that. I don't
know what I would call myself, like a soul singer
or a jazz singer.
Speaker 10 (24:56):
I don't really jazz jazz singer was recorded.
Speaker 6 (25:05):
Diamonds go ahead, Yeah, I love on the rocks. We
should shot at where we are.
Speaker 1 (25:12):
Yeah, I'm sorry I forgot to mention at the top
of the show when I was being traumatized that we
are live at sunsets down studios. The I still want
to say. I know it's much more than just Prince,
but obviously I start with Prince, but yeah, much further back. Yeah,
it's opened in nineteen six doors Zeppelin twos down here?
Speaker 6 (25:31):
What else the doors uh van Halen.
Speaker 1 (25:35):
Zeppelin too, A lot of a lot of a lot
of Warner Brothers, uh at Jubie Brothers. Yeah, by minute
was made here.
Speaker 6 (25:44):
Yes, but but then the Purple Rain, obviously.
Speaker 1 (25:48):
Purple Rate nineteen ninety nine was made and here the
song Purple Range in the album in a different room,
here and a differently. The song was recorded at First
Avenue where we were a couple of but he did
a lot of over ups here, but nineteen ninety nine
was down here. Majority of around the world in the day,
like before he built Paisley Park, this was his this
(26:09):
was his playground. After the taping, I'm gonna go to
the seven eleven across the street, where he would often get.
Speaker 8 (26:16):
I'm going with you. I've been on I've been on
Prince lately, like I dreamt about him. The other night
we were we were trying to get to a gig
and we were snowed in somewhere and Jaden Smith was
there for some reason.
Speaker 1 (26:31):
Talk some more change Smith, thank you.
Speaker 8 (26:38):
It was it was like two thousand and five and
we were somewhere at a hotel literally like a a Laquenta.
He was He was sitting up in the bed and
I was laying down at the foot of the bed,
and he was saying, you could lay up there if
you want to. And I was like, I'm cool, and
we were just watching TV.
Speaker 9 (26:57):
Oh, but he says, you can lay That's interesting, you
can up there if you want to.
Speaker 8 (27:01):
I appreciated it.
Speaker 1 (27:03):
What does it all mean? Do you ever we need
like a dream interval of somebody to break up shit.
Now it makes sense to me because does he does
he still since his passing? Does does he appear to you? Often?
Speaker 8 (27:16):
And not often? Occasionally? But I got to spend a
very concentrated moment of time with him, And you know,
I had this fear in my heart, like I've been
wanting to meet him and play with him since I'm
eleven or twelve years old, and I've heard all these
things and and and you don't look at him in
(27:38):
the eye right. And when I opened for him those
few dates, he was so cool and so gracious and
so that.
Speaker 1 (27:48):
New York run was the first time that you met him. Yeah,
what year was that? That was two thousand and Oh
that show was on my birthday too, that I went.
What day, the fifteenth of December?
Speaker 8 (28:01):
I'm the sixteenth.
Speaker 1 (28:02):
Oh nice, Yeah, it was awesome, happy belated, Uh, thank you.
Speaker 8 (28:07):
I'm seventeen now, so.
Speaker 9 (28:08):
Yeah, yeah, you got something.
Speaker 1 (28:13):
We did.
Speaker 8 (28:13):
We did like four cities with him, four or five
cities with him. It was it was just cool.
Speaker 1 (28:19):
It's hard for your band to adjust because I know
that the on the on the other side of that
coin when you weren't opening those dates. Sometimes Sharon Jones
and the Daft Kings were trying to open those dates
and they wouldn't allow them to use their their equipment
and you know, like their sonic and their equipment is
is very key to their presentation. So watching Sharon Jones
(28:42):
and the dap Kings perform on MPG uh yeah, equipment
not allowed to adjust anything. Everything sounds crystal clear. Yo.
It was the funny show. It was the funniest show
I've ever It was with the exception of the horns
and the sound of Sharon's voice, like everything was like
(29:03):
nineteen ninety seven sound. It was great.
Speaker 8 (29:07):
He was so cool to us and so like magnanimous
and gracious, and he would come stand on the stage
during my soundcheck and request songs.
Speaker 1 (29:18):
Was that weird? Yeah? What kind of songs would he requests?
Speaker 8 (29:22):
He likes the song that I wrote called What Goes Around,
and he would request that. You know, so they send
you this list when you're gonna go open for him,
and it's like, please, you know, pick two or three
songs if you'd like to sing with Prince, you know,
for the songs. And I looked at the list and
I was like, I don't want to sing any of
(29:44):
these songs. I want to sing Diamonds and Pearls. I
want to do Park Sexy Dancer. He literally showed up
and his hand was here, and I looked at him
and I said, listen, I don't feel comfortable presenting myself
with you with the so I have gas. I told
him that, and he said what And I said, I
(30:10):
have gas, and I just I really want to I
really want to get into it with you where we
can be at the same place. He said, okay, what
do you want to sing? And I said, well, can
I see your set list? And he was like yeah,
And then somebody brought the set list over and I
was like, I want to do Diamonds and Pearls. I
know you don't do that anymore. He said, yeah, we
don't do that. I said, okay, why don't we do
(30:32):
sometimes the Snows in April. So I did that with him,
and that night was my birthday. And after we finished
singing sometimes the Snows in April. It's so crazy when
I think about it, like that shit actually happened. I'm
rising up on the stage. He said, all right, stand
right here, go up, take my microphone. When you get
(30:54):
up there, do whatever you want and I'll be up.
And I was like, okay, So I'm standing on this thing,
just still tripping, trying to breathe, and the thing rose
up and I was just standing there and all these
people like a and the dress was blowing and I'm
just singing sometimes and there he is again, and then
(31:16):
we're singing on the same mic, and I just I
wanted to lick him, but I knew that was.
Speaker 9 (31:25):
What is smelling.
Speaker 8 (31:25):
It were ruined. He smelled great. He was He's everything
you thought he was. And when we finished, I got
ready to leave and he said, no, no, no, come
with me, and he took me across the stage to
the other side of the stage and we did Diamonds
and Pearls. It was awesome and I said, oh my god, yeah,
I mean, I can't remember, I can't remember how much
(31:50):
we did.
Speaker 6 (31:52):
It was.
Speaker 8 (31:52):
It was an interesting interpretation of the of the record.
It wasn't like the full thing, I don't think. And
when we stood up and people were plotting, I said,
oh my god, thank you so much. It's my birthday.
That's the greatest thing ever. He said, well, I don't
celebrate birthdays. But congratulations, Am I tripping it?
Speaker 1 (32:12):
Doesn't?
Speaker 9 (32:12):
I mean a mirror?
Speaker 5 (32:12):
Maybe you can answer this, is that very courageous because
the average singer, I mean, there is no average singer
who will be singing with Prince. But it just seems
like the average person would not have felt the courage
enough to be like, yo, I don't feel comfortable.
Speaker 9 (32:25):
Can we sing this song?
Speaker 1 (32:26):
Yeah?
Speaker 8 (32:27):
I mean I didn't want to get up there and
not take the moment like I You know, if I
had gone up and just been sitting there while he
was playing, which I did a few nights, I'd have
been better off than singing anything that I was unfamiliar
with or not connected to.
Speaker 6 (32:42):
You didn't want to sing some whack twenty song.
Speaker 8 (32:45):
That's that's now what I'm saying.
Speaker 9 (32:47):
I'm just saying most singers would.
Speaker 1 (32:51):
Yeah, why didn't you? Like?
Speaker 6 (32:54):
That's an incredible, incredible.
Speaker 8 (32:58):
He was the greatest.
Speaker 6 (32:59):
He was the greatest, incredible on your birthday?
Speaker 8 (33:02):
It's crazy.
Speaker 1 (33:03):
So when you graduated, you got how did you get
your record deal?
Speaker 8 (33:07):
I got my record deal the way they did it
in the seventeen hundreds. I made a tape and someone
took it to a record label, and a guy named
Jeff Foreman signed me.
Speaker 1 (33:17):
Do you know Jeff Foreman, I'm sure does.
Speaker 8 (33:25):
Ma's cousin. He was a rep at Virgin Records at.
Speaker 1 (33:28):
The I think mentioned him, you know episode I'm sure
you do.
Speaker 8 (33:33):
Yeah, And I got signed right when I was in school.
So I would come out here on the train and
listen demos and record demos and go back and forth
like that.
Speaker 1 (33:47):
You did four original songs or I.
Speaker 8 (33:49):
Did no original songs on the first album, No.
Speaker 1 (33:52):
No, No, no No. I'm talking about your demo that
got very taking.
Speaker 8 (33:55):
The demo was a Renee and angela song which I
cannot find, which was a banger, another ballad.
Speaker 5 (34:05):
You know.
Speaker 8 (34:05):
I had a manager at that time, right in high
school named Raynard Minor.
Speaker 1 (34:10):
I know who.
Speaker 8 (34:10):
You probably know who raynar Minor is as well. He
was a songwriter at Motown, blind songwriter who wrote your
na is Living Yes, And we wrote these songs and
they are classic. If I ever find them, I'll let
you know. I hope you don't find them before I do.
(34:32):
And we turned him in and I got a deal
like that. So I was going back and forth from
college and making the record.
Speaker 1 (34:39):
So I know on your debut record you worked with
You worked with Donzela. You also work with Andre Fisher, Yeah,
nephew of Claire Fisher and drummer Rufus. Oh, Chucky worked
on Obvious, the.
Speaker 8 (34:56):
Song obvious not Obvious. No, that was Chuckie. Don't put
that on Chucky.
Speaker 1 (34:59):
You have an own.
Speaker 8 (35:01):
Heaven knows, Derek Bramble. Chucky did a song called Sentimental Sentimental. Yes, right,
So a lot of my first record was covers, even
though you know people don't know that it's something was
a cover.
Speaker 1 (35:13):
I'm coming back, you know that for the longest Yeah,
I'm coming invest original.
Speaker 4 (35:18):
Yeah.
Speaker 8 (35:18):
Gary Taylor wrote that song for her and I learned
her version of it to sing.
Speaker 1 (35:22):
Ah. Did her version ever come out? Yeah? It was
on their first album. Oh damn, I missed that. Okay,
So what was the decision behind covering the songs or
covering obscure songs?
Speaker 8 (35:33):
People were just bringing music to me. You have to remember,
like at that point, I'm eighteen, I'm basically in my
mind on the path of like Janet Jackson. Right, I'm
making this record and they got me in like this
little tight jacket and I'm on the La River like
posed with my little weave, and they're bringing the songs
(35:55):
to me, and there are people in my ears like,
you know, don't worry about writing, They're just gonna tailor
make all this whole record for you. And I'm thinking, Okay,
this is probably that bullshit, but it's cool because I'm
on my way and I'm gonna get in and I'm
gonna do what I have to do. So I didn't
write anything on that record.
Speaker 1 (36:10):
So up until that point, including high school and including college,
and including your pursuit of a record deal, no one
was thinking was connecting the dots from your father's lineage
to your lineage as far as like your deal or whatever.
It's just like, okay, let's just I don't know if.
Speaker 8 (36:29):
They were I don't know. I don't I don't you
know there was a lite.
Speaker 1 (36:33):
Were your peers in school where that I think royalty?
Speaker 8 (36:37):
I think so, I think, you know. When I got
to Berkeley, the first thing that happened to me is
I was walking up the steps and Walter Beasley, who's
a saxophone player who was one of my instructors at Berkeley,
came up behind me and said, hey, are you Leila Hathaway?
And I said yes. He said, are you Doney's daughter
And I said yes. He said, well, get your get
your ratings. I want you to be in my ensemble.
(36:58):
And that was the first I was like, oh, just
because I'm Donnie's daughter, that's what you want. And then
I realized like oh, that people were kind of approaching
me in a different way. That was the first time
I was really aware of any kind of cachet on
that level.
Speaker 1 (37:14):
Yeah, was it in hindsight? Was it beneficial or was
you rather than just not known?
Speaker 8 (37:24):
And it's hard to say. I'd have to do it
the other way. I just don't know, you know what
I mean. I think when I walk in the door
as a singer, I recognize that I bring with me
like forty years before me. You know, I walk in
with a brand that people have already an association with,
be that traumatic or you know whatever, is that association.
(37:45):
I recognize that that precedes me when I walk in
a room. So at some point I started feeling like okay,
and I don't even think it was a conscious effort,
but I started understanding like, Okay, clearly i'ma have to
be bad as hell otherwise.
Speaker 1 (37:59):
So what is that pressure? Because that's the thing. I
part of your question at the top, like what feels
some sort of way, like how come you never told
me this or whatever? Because I also know that that
pressure of damn hathaway, it wasn't a pressure.
Speaker 8 (38:16):
Though it was mostly it was mostly me hanging out
with all these dudes knowing that.
Speaker 6 (38:24):
For me.
Speaker 8 (38:25):
Fortunately they accepted me into their little group, so that
meant I got to learn like I wasn't the girl
singing in front of the band. I was sitting with
them and smoking cigarettes and blowing over Scotch charts, you
know what I mean. I knew that aside from my lineage,
aside from the name, that I wanted to be a badass.
(38:46):
I wanted to be able to go to a session
and not be thought of as the chick singer. That
was a big deal for me. It has. It had
grown into understanding that people placed me alongside my dad
and and people began to ask like, is there any pressure?
Is there a pressure you know on you with your father?
(39:06):
And I never felt like there was a pressure. I
have always been super aware of the fact that there's
there's there's him, and there's me and we. For some
people are like this but I recognize that I can.
I can comfortably develop into a badass because I come
from the greatest that ever lived. So I have a
(39:29):
runway to work.
Speaker 1 (39:31):
With, you know what I mean.
Speaker 6 (39:32):
Yeah, I.
Speaker 2 (39:34):
I was just gonna say, just as a fan, like,
I never drew. I never drew that comparison, you know
what I'm saying, Or you know, in terms of you
talk about just having the weight of the expectations. I
think the thing that sets you apart from maybe other
people that you know come from that kind of lineage,
is that you were just dope. So it was almost
like for me, it was kind of retroactive. It's like
you hear this dope singer and then you find out
(39:56):
who her dad is, Like, oh well, okay, so at
least it's.
Speaker 1 (39:59):
Genetically unfit, that's what you said.
Speaker 2 (40:02):
It gives you more explanation. And I was like, oh,
so that's why she's okay, I get it. I mean,
you know what I mean versus some for you, versus
someone like.
Speaker 1 (40:10):
Like like Nona Gay or something. You know what I mean,
that's a little shots fired shots The things we all
do for love is a great yes, But I'm just saying,
but that's someone in that position. I like Love Records.
Speaker 8 (40:29):
For the Few.
Speaker 1 (40:32):
There was some dope songs on that record. But I'm
just saying someone.
Speaker 8 (40:36):
Somebody really committed to it, right, Yeah, I get it.
Speaker 1 (40:44):
Okay. So what I want to know is during your
your Berkeley years and which you are holding your craft,
are you actively like, are you aware that you have
the same uh texture of yes, genetically? Are you aware
(41:05):
that you have the same texture? No? And the thing
is do you try to avoid it or it's just
like fuck it? This is what I have.
Speaker 8 (41:11):
No, it is what it is, and i've and I
have as a singer. Now what it's a weird storm.
It's a perfect storm because all the girls are singing
way up here and I'm trying, and there's blood. It's
just all bad. And so as I'm trying to figure
out how to manipulate my vocal so I don't have
to be up there and in pain, then I'm finding
(41:33):
my voice, you know.
Speaker 1 (41:35):
So it hurts you to sing soprano? Or it did.
Speaker 8 (41:38):
I wasn't sure.
Speaker 5 (41:39):
You know.
Speaker 8 (41:39):
What it was was my body saying okay, you can
conform to that shit, or you can figure out what
you got. Yeah, And that's what I that's what I
learned to do.
Speaker 1 (41:48):
Okay, So when you're in the shower or just singing
to yourself in the car? Uh control? So are you
singing when I wass uf do with people?
Speaker 8 (42:00):
Told me a lot of time, Yeah, Or I'm making
up really super up to harmonies, you know, or trying
to sing hybrids on top of shit, I'm doing the
weird the weird ship.
Speaker 1 (42:11):
So do you gravitate more too male singers when you like,
who are your favorite singers?
Speaker 8 (42:16):
My favorite singers are like, you know, my dad and
Stevie and ne King Cole and Johnny Hartman and I
really love Prince and I mean there's a lot of
I definitely probably gravitate in terms of things to sing
to male songs. Like if I'm gonna put a cover
(42:37):
in the show, nine times out of ten, it's gonna
be like a Charlie Wilson cover or Maurice White cover
or you know like that.
Speaker 2 (42:45):
But yeah, Aye, the closest I'm trying to think that
even the closest female singer I can think of in
your lane is like Cassandra Wilson, I.
Speaker 1 (42:54):
Mean down there too, oh yeah, oh yeah, Jasmin's hoping.
Speaker 5 (42:58):
Yeah, I was gonna ask you, guys, have you had
conversation with some of these ladies because Sondra, Jasmine, Anita,
Tony Yep, where y'all bind on these moments of never Tony.
Speaker 8 (43:07):
I've never met Tony. I have talked to Anita about
it many times because you know, growing up, her voice
for me was one of those voices I heard and
I thought, oh this is this is hm. You know
those songs I knew I could sing no songs and
Angel became one of those songs. Like I used to
be all the time with the hair brush like and
(43:28):
when I was that age singing along with Anita Baker,
I would sing that song an octave lower under her.
Speaker 9 (43:35):
You know what was her critique of Angel?
Speaker 8 (43:37):
She liked it. You know, she told me that I
should cover all of her music.
Speaker 1 (43:42):
WOA. She was nice, nice, she's.
Speaker 8 (43:47):
She's she's beautiful, and she's another person like I was
kind of afraid to meet. But all the people I
have ever met that I really idolized have been so cool.
You know, I've been really lucky.
Speaker 5 (44:00):
You're an awesome but you're an awesome cover that also
gives it's weird. It's like you give your own version.
But it's an honor in a way.
Speaker 8 (44:06):
Yeah, but that's and that's the point, is to pay
homage to it. But I'm absolutely trying to eraseial ship
from consciousness.
Speaker 1 (44:17):
No, no, no, in a way, you can't.
Speaker 8 (44:19):
You can't make You cannot make something without what came
before it. So what I'm what I'll say there is
I want my thing to stand next to yours, and
then separately, I'm trying to create a new original from
that thing that.
Speaker 1 (44:31):
You gave me to me. The king of that well,
kings of that word, Brothers and Luther like they like
I never knew. I'm got me tell you.
Speaker 8 (44:38):
Someone else that killed that too is Donny Hathaway. Oh yeah,
I mean I did not even know that this is horrible.
Speaker 1 (44:45):
I don't know. I didn't know.
Speaker 8 (44:48):
I didn't I didn't know. My father did so many
covers and I do so many covers, but I never
no one told me that John lennamro jealous guy. And
when I heard him singing it, like when I was seventeen,
I thought, why is he singing the song? I didn't
understand it. I didn't understand it. Marvin Gay wrote What's
going on till I was like thirteen or fourteen years old,
because everybody always played my father's version of that with
(45:08):
that bridge, so I never knew that. So he had
a way of taking a cover and really interpreting it
into a new thing, and even even Superwoman. When I
listen to that, now, that's that's the one I want
to hear. I'm biased, but that's the one I want to.
Speaker 1 (45:24):
Hear from the poor black genius. I still remember the
first time I heard that Superwoman cover. I think DJ
Spinner played at one of the Wonderful parties. Party just
stopped and I think like half the room cried.
Speaker 5 (45:37):
It's a lot.
Speaker 1 (45:37):
Yeah, yeah, it's a lot.
Speaker 6 (45:40):
So uh, my dad was a dentist.
Speaker 1 (45:49):
Wait, I'm slacking, sorry forgive me.
Speaker 11 (45:52):
Here we go.
Speaker 1 (45:56):
Blessed my dad. God did you so as far as
the performance of the first record, I mean, were there
(46:17):
expectations for you to What were your expectations as far
as the outcome of your.
Speaker 8 (46:24):
My expectations, Oh, I thought I was on the way
you owned the way you got this record nowaday and
taking your picture. I had these dreams of where I
was going to be, you know, in these big places
with like fifty thousand people, and I was going to
be at you know, at MSG, and I was going
to be all these places. And what I was finding
(46:46):
out was I went into that record feeling like, at
that point in my life, I felt like a jazz musician.
I felt like I moved to LA because my label
told me I had to because our Senio was here
and you got to be in LA. But what I
really wanted to do was go to New York where
all my friends were going. And I wanted to go
to fifty five and see Mike Stern, and I wanted
(47:07):
to go see Scow and I wanted to be in
that environment where I was still creating music every day
with musicians. And I kept thinking, if I moved to LA,
I'm gonna get soft, I'm gonna make this record, and
I'm gonna do what I have to do, and it's
gonna afford me this life where I can I can
play the fifty five bar when I want with GO,
and then I can do MSD you When I had
this dream in my mind of having this kind of career.
Speaker 1 (47:31):
Yeah, this pop world and serious musician world.
Speaker 7 (47:35):
Absolutely so, I'm sorry just to interject here, it's John
Schofield for our listeners, right, is that what you're talking about?
Speaker 6 (47:41):
Yes, okay guitar player. Yes, have you worked with him
or I come across him?
Speaker 8 (47:46):
Since I have come across a lot of those those
people that I you know, got my a lot of
the synapses flying listening to their music, firing listening to
their music. I met him at International Jazz Day with
Herbie and Marcus last year and he told me that
he loved my voice, and I literally like almost went
(48:08):
down on my knees, like, yeah, huge fan.
Speaker 1 (48:14):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (48:14):
He sat in with the Roots on the Tonight show,
and so it's true.
Speaker 8 (48:19):
I know, I really I really want to play with him,
like him, just him and me. I want to just
see what happens.
Speaker 6 (48:26):
Yeah, you should, you should pursue that.
Speaker 8 (48:27):
I'm super I'm super enamored though, just because we're talking
about SCO. Just I'm super enamored with the period of SKO,
which is still warm, Electric Outlets go. You know how
you go through these sort of He's in these periods
after that was sort of the now She's Blonde period
and I'm electric Outlets, still warm, Shenoby, I mean, Shanola.
(48:49):
These are albums, yeah, Shanola, and what years are and
I'm gonna say eighty two to eighty six eighty seven.
Speaker 6 (48:57):
Mark Kelly, the bass player from the Roots, played with
Schofield for a while.
Speaker 9 (49:01):
Huge fan to Berkeley, do.
Speaker 1 (49:06):
Oh there it is.
Speaker 6 (49:08):
Shout out to Mark Kelly.
Speaker 2 (49:10):
When you after your first album and you went into
the second record, what was the because I mean we've
talked let me love you, I want you to do
that live.
Speaker 1 (49:20):
I love that song, Thank you for Like, how did that?
What was the expectation going into the second one? From
the label side, you know, it was a weird time.
Speaker 8 (49:28):
It was a time of transition for everybody in the
music industry. Everything was moving toward this where we are
right now, and I felt myself sort of feeling like, hmm,
there's an element of music that my records don't really express.
And I found at Virgin like they had just signed di'angelo,
(49:52):
they had signed Janet, they were doing a lot of things,
and I wasn't at that time. Also, Keith Crouch was
working with me on that record and he had just
started working with Brand. So I was seeing where everything
was headed and I was really excited about it. My
record didn't really express all of that, and right when
the record came out like the second week they I
got dropped, and it was the saddest period of my life.
(50:15):
And I was so happy and so sad because I
felt like, Okay, now I can move in the way
I want to move. I can make these records and
do these live in these different spaces and create the
way I want to create. And then it was another
ten years before I made a record.
Speaker 1 (50:30):
Does it feel like the end of the world like
it did.
Speaker 8 (50:33):
At that point? You know, I was like twenty five
years old, and what I couldn't understand. I couldn't understand
it because we only got through that first single, which
was let Me Love You, and I went to see
Janet Jackson and I went to see Paul Abdul, and
I couldn't understand, like, you guys wouldn't give me money
to rent a piano on a date, and you spend
(50:54):
so much money on pop music. In my mind, there
was a disparity and I couldn't really make sense of
what that was at that time.
Speaker 1 (51:03):
You know, Well, in the ten years that you were
off high, did you survive? How'd you pay the bills?
Speaker 8 (51:09):
As a working musician? I was on the road. Everybody
and their father you know Joe Sam Yeah, everything, Marcus
Miller I played with a lot. I was in his
band for many years. Uh did a lot of records.
I'm on a lot of records that some didn't even
come out here, just like session work. Yeah, Michelle's records.
Speaker 1 (51:32):
Oh yeah, which she's.
Speaker 8 (51:35):
On Earth, I'm on Heaven.
Speaker 1 (51:38):
I love that version of Heaven.
Speaker 8 (51:39):
By the way, me too. It's the slowest record ive
ever recorded in my entire life.
Speaker 5 (51:44):
Have you have you ever you said earlier that you
don't categorize yourself as a soul singer or a jazz singer.
Speaker 9 (51:50):
So, but you are were a woman of a certain
age when you came out a young woman.
Speaker 5 (51:53):
Did you ever feel some type of way that I
feel like you just skipped the urban and went right
to the urban ac.
Speaker 8 (51:59):
Yeah, that was weird. I mean I think urban had
this element of hip hop that my record didn't express,
and I recognize right around ninety three or ninety four, like, Okay,
if you don't include this, you're gonna get left in
the vortex of the mid nineties, which is Misha Paris
and Shaw, Nice, Stephanie Mills, Karen Wheeler. There were a
lot of women, a lot of women a RB. Yeah,
(52:22):
that just kind of kind of got lost in this vortex.
Speaker 1 (52:25):
But it's so weird now because now I think today
we're longing for R and without a hip hop now
without any Yeah, you know, it's interesting now.
Speaker 8 (52:36):
I mean I don't know what is R and B
right now. I don't really get it in terms of
what's new ish R and B. I'm down for whatever.
You know, people just make your music and do whatever
you're gonna do. But it's interesting to me. Someone suggested
to me that if you are like Sid from the
Internet or Sizza or Childish Gambino, there is a there
(52:57):
is a community of that rhythm and blues music that
I can identify looking at it, like you may have tattoos,
you may have big hair, you may I mean, there's
a whole entity of it. If you're looking at a
person like me that's sort of considered adult contemporary or
a black adult contemporary, there's like me Letusy, who else
(53:23):
Jill Jill not really but sort of not really, I
don't think so. I think Jill is in a different
stratosphere because she's also like a movie star I'm talking
about in terms of what's on the radio playing. She
plays on different types of stations. If you are a
black female and you didn't get in that entry point
(53:44):
with hip hop and you're not under thirty, there is
a chasm which is like R and B and dusties.
Speaker 1 (53:51):
You know, so do you feel nice?
Speaker 8 (53:56):
Absolutely?
Speaker 1 (53:57):
Yeah, well not do you feel a certain way, But obviously,
you know, it has to be weird for you to
see maybe a figure like Adele being able to pull
these rabbits out of the hat, not doing R and
B whatever, But you know, like her voices, her voice
(54:19):
is celebrated for that sort of thing.
Speaker 8 (54:22):
But it's interesting. It's has always been that way. Let's
not get it twisted. It has always been that way.
The only thing that killed me was who gets two
chances at the Grammys? That must be nice to be
afforded though.
Speaker 1 (54:39):
Because wow, George Michael tribute.
Speaker 8 (54:46):
That is something.
Speaker 1 (54:49):
If if you do not follow listen man Layla Hathaway
is a great follow on Twitter.
Speaker 5 (54:55):
Follow her right now because I A, you're telling the tram.
Speaker 1 (54:59):
I think it was the Grammys something she tweeted something.
She was like, why is fifth harmony? Yes?
Speaker 2 (55:06):
Singing three part harmonies? I said, And the thing is
you can talk your ship because it's like, ain't none of.
Speaker 8 (55:18):
I had honest questions and you know me, so you know,
for me to say fifth Harmony, four girls, three part
Harmony discussed that don't mean nothing to me. I don't
have anything against those don't.
Speaker 1 (55:29):
Forgot I forgot that with them and.
Speaker 8 (55:31):
And and their their minions so upset words.
Speaker 1 (55:35):
I didn't see that. Oh yeah, yeah it was a
little newsworthy.
Speaker 8 (55:39):
It got I mean yeah, I went. It went on
like a couple of little blogs, and one of my
singers was like, okay, let me let you know. First
there were five girls, they got rid of one girl,
and I was like, oh, okay, now I get it.
Speaker 1 (55:49):
I don't.
Speaker 8 (55:49):
I don't know who they are at all.
Speaker 5 (55:51):
Any of those twitterers, the twitter thugs say that you
can't sing anyway.
Speaker 8 (55:55):
Yes, I get a lot. I get a lot of
I mean, who is you?
Speaker 9 (56:03):
Yeah, it's more like, oh my god, hear you anyway?
Speaker 8 (56:05):
You know, people really try to make me feel like,
ooh you shady. Like normally I'm telling the truth. You know,
nobody gets two chances on the Grammys. That's the truth.
Adele is great. I don't have anything against her. She's
doing her music and God bless her, But who the
fuck is two chances on Network TV? Thought this over,
y'all just start over, and and you needed two chances
(56:29):
last year too, you.
Speaker 1 (56:31):
Got four chances. Yeah, wait, explain this to me.
Speaker 2 (56:35):
So when the first year she did, she did Hello,
she turned to Hello, and like she boy, her voice cracked.
Speaker 1 (56:42):
Well, no, she was like in the wrong.
Speaker 6 (56:46):
Hello here he recorded Hello. I'm serious, we're.
Speaker 1 (57:00):
Coming to it, man, you know what, Wait a minute,
this is where I was, okay, being at the Grammys
and being backstage. I didn't watch it. What happened?
Speaker 2 (57:13):
She she started Hello and was just in the completely
wrong key, and so then she like apologized for it, right,
She was like.
Speaker 8 (57:20):
I don't know what happened.
Speaker 1 (57:21):
It was very bad. I couldn't hear you know whatever.
So she stopped it on National TV.
Speaker 8 (57:25):
No, No, that was the first year.
Speaker 1 (57:27):
That was the first year singing it, and it was bad.
Second second year, it was.
Speaker 2 (57:31):
The George Mike Coop tribute and they had her doing
fast Low Yeah, which is like the I'm like, why
are y'all doing that?
Speaker 1 (57:37):
And it was the one she wanted to do.
Speaker 8 (57:40):
But in addition to that, they're playing the Tonic yeah,
here's your key.
Speaker 1 (57:44):
Yeah, they're playing it, and they were doing it in
a different arrangement.
Speaker 8 (57:48):
Yeah, it was.
Speaker 1 (57:48):
It was a slow dirge like arrangement.
Speaker 6 (57:51):
It was.
Speaker 1 (57:51):
It was a bad idea. It was a bad idea
from the jump. It was.
Speaker 8 (57:53):
It was all bad. And she just up And good
for her for saying, no, fuck this, I'm gonna do
this right, I'm starting over, start over. But God bless America.
Did you get that.
Speaker 1 (58:05):
It's British? Yeah, you know, because Frank Ocean did not
get not another opportunity. I understand. I don't think that's
got enough invitations you got.
Speaker 8 (58:15):
If he has said let me start over, you think
that'll let him.
Speaker 1 (58:24):
My quick time said, you got thirty more quick saying
that out.
Speaker 8 (58:34):
I get tired of uh singers that are not great.
That's just my call it.
Speaker 1 (58:40):
What you want.
Speaker 8 (58:41):
I just get tired of ship.
Speaker 9 (58:44):
Who's Who's great anymore?
Speaker 8 (58:45):
Like I can only take so much whisper, Yes, the
whisper singing is annoying.
Speaker 1 (58:50):
And children, yes, the daughters of they are the daughters
of Aliah.
Speaker 9 (58:55):
Yeah, thank God for Jasmine. I'm just that's all I
can think.
Speaker 8 (58:58):
And you don't have to be all with the with
the raw rod but singing key. You know, if there
are four of you, just somebody step out and sing
another note.
Speaker 5 (59:09):
It's ask all the question as singers, I really don't
know and this is not a shapeful question.
Speaker 9 (59:14):
But you're right, it isn't.
Speaker 5 (59:15):
But people like sid and her and uh Sizza what
we called them singers like I.
Speaker 1 (59:24):
Think sid Well personally.
Speaker 2 (59:26):
For me, Sid has improved a lot, absolutely and like
her new record if you listen to way she's singing now,
to me, she sings with a lot more confidence like.
Speaker 8 (59:35):
I would put her like with with Michael Frank. She's
like the type of singer that sings her material. Really,
you don't want her covering yo, you don't want her
covering long walk by jokes. You know what I mean?
Speaker 1 (59:47):
You guys can't. You're listening to this podcast. But the
look on Bill's face right now is like no, no, no, no, no,
not just using I know, yeah, I know what you're
It's not in the same sentence. It's kind of offensive
to me. It's not like just a virtual soul like
Bill now for said because of j Davy never getting
(01:00:09):
their props, So.
Speaker 9 (01:00:12):
A long list, Bill, It's a long list that got
on the J day.
Speaker 8 (01:00:17):
I like her vibe, I like I like when she
sings what she's written. I like her, you know what
I mean.
Speaker 1 (01:00:21):
I love ye I'm sure she's nice, but yeah, I
was always.
Speaker 8 (01:00:29):
Her Sisa is a singer. I think it's an interesting
time now because a lot of people really exemplify their time,
and that is an art in itself. If you're going
to write, you know, if your whole, if your whole
stease is like the accent and the thing and the
(01:00:50):
repetitive notes, like to me, it's math and science. But
she understands what that is. This is She's Yeah, she's
of her time. So yeah, I would definitely I like
her a lot of the stuff on her record.
Speaker 1 (01:01:03):
So how can you because I feel like you judge singers,
I mean the way that I would judge beat makers,
like I know, based on certain drum patches or certain
small just small things that the maybe light YEA would
totally get, Like, Okay, I don't see what makes this
(01:01:25):
guy is so great that you think it's you know,
that sort of thing. So are you one of those?
I can tell in eight seconds if you can sing?
Speaker 8 (01:01:34):
Yes, I can tell looking at you, if you could say.
Speaker 9 (01:01:36):
Oh, I want to know how conversation.
Speaker 1 (01:01:42):
Now you say you look at somebody, how can you.
Speaker 8 (01:01:45):
Tell what can generally glean from a person what their
voice sounds like looking at them. Like if I walk
into a room and look at everybody and take it
in and then one of them calls me on the phone,
I can tell which one of them call me on
the phone.
Speaker 1 (01:01:59):
Oh wow, that is scary.
Speaker 8 (01:02:02):
It just seems super natural to me though, you know
what I mean. It's not like a get it's the thing.
It's just it's just that's the way my ear is.
Speaker 1 (01:02:08):
So what about old girl who was on Britain Scott
Talent whatever, like everyone losing oil? Yeah, like so the
white woman from she looked crazy? And then like can't
I can't call.
Speaker 8 (01:02:22):
It normally I can't call it, but you know I
would imagine I can't say because I've seen.
Speaker 1 (01:02:27):
Her, And so just based on looking at us, you
could tell I.
Speaker 8 (01:02:32):
Have an idea of what your voices sound like. It
may be wrong, but I definitely associate you with a sound.
Speaker 5 (01:02:42):
That was not me.
Speaker 1 (01:02:48):
I actually looked at you though, I know.
Speaker 5 (01:02:50):
That's why I said, But guys didn't shocked and say
that she does something similar to this, and then she
tests people in their face.
Speaker 9 (01:02:57):
That's I was wondering. I was like, have you ever
had a conversation?
Speaker 1 (01:03:00):
Said that she could just look at someone and see
if you can sing or not.
Speaker 2 (01:03:02):
Yeah, was more like she if someone tells her that
they're a singer, she like sing sing right now, like
that's are you?
Speaker 1 (01:03:09):
Yeah, Like it's that's a cool thing, Like.
Speaker 8 (01:03:12):
That's like that you could go down in flames like that.
I never want to make anybody feel bad about anything.
Speaker 1 (01:03:20):
Do people come up to you and like, yes, can
I sing for you?
Speaker 8 (01:03:23):
Or or this happens all the time. I sound just
like your father, And I'm like, you probably don't.
Speaker 1 (01:03:33):
How do you think that one?
Speaker 6 (01:03:41):
Why that one?
Speaker 2 (01:03:48):
I love that song, so I'm thinking so I'm trying
to remember it. So you're it was ten records? No,
you say it was ten years between the album and the.
Speaker 8 (01:04:00):
Third and the third album. In that time, I made
a record with Joe sample. Yeah, and that's the duet's record.
Speaker 2 (01:04:06):
Okay, Okay, how did how did that come about? Hey, y'all,
how did y'all first have.
Speaker 8 (01:04:11):
Been playing with him since like ninety two or three
with Marcus Miller? Okay, and we were in Japan. We
were at the Blue Note and we were having dinner
one night and I said, Joe, we should make a record.
He said, girl, we should, Let's do it when we
get home. Do you any of y'all know Joe Sample? Yes,
I mean he was like one of the funniest realist
(01:04:32):
people I have ever met in my entire life. And
we got back and we made that record. I went
in and sang with them with the band for like
the first day so that they could get everything done.
And I realized every time Joe would change the time
or something would happen, like I was getting tired. So
I said, let me just if you pick your tempos,
I'll just sing everything and you have it to play too.
(01:04:54):
And then I went in on the following Monday with
Al Schmidt and just sang the record down. So the
whole record is all just one singing down.
Speaker 1 (01:05:03):
Doesn't that damage your voice though? After a while, which
you mean you're saying that you just did the entire
record of one setting.
Speaker 8 (01:05:10):
Yeah, No, it's like singing five songs. It's like a
half a showy.
Speaker 1 (01:05:15):
You mentioned those Japan Blue Note runs. I gotta ask,
was it two or three shows a day. Two?
Speaker 8 (01:05:23):
Who does three shows a day?
Speaker 1 (01:05:24):
Neil fucking Diamond, I'm sorry it wasn't cute.
Speaker 8 (01:05:32):
Three shows a day is a whole lot. I've only
done that once.
Speaker 1 (01:05:35):
Well, I was going to say that doing doing that
Japan run like getting your sleep and hard adjusting. Always
that after that first show.
Speaker 8 (01:05:46):
And that in between they.
Speaker 1 (01:05:49):
Have the food for you that you got the items
on top of.
Speaker 8 (01:05:51):
Everyone's sleeping on those couches over there. Yeah, yes, that's
what they wake you up to do the second show.
It's very hard.
Speaker 1 (01:05:58):
Yo.
Speaker 8 (01:05:58):
Do you feel like when you're at the Blue Note
or when you're in Japan? When I feel like I'm
in Japan, the entire country feels like a recording studio
to me.
Speaker 1 (01:06:04):
It's tight. Sound is tight.
Speaker 8 (01:06:07):
It's literally like the sound in the streets is kind
of dead to me. So when I'm in a space,
I feel like I'm in a recording studio.
Speaker 1 (01:06:16):
It's true.
Speaker 8 (01:06:18):
Yes, with the Babbling Brook playing Yes, Yes Yes.
Speaker 5 (01:06:22):
Can I ask you about the Joe Sample album because
it's funny It was one of my favorites. But I
wanted to ask you about the photo that you guys
have on the cover because it always it's I know,
it's very endaring and sweet, but I figured, like, what
did y'all, How did y'all decide that this is what
we're gonna do?
Speaker 8 (01:06:35):
This is exactly the cover. The man said, whispering is here,
like you're telling him something? And I said, all right, Joe,
I'm telling you something. And he said, don't stick your
tongue in mine. And that is exactly the photo that's
on that record. He was a crazy person, one of
(01:06:58):
the greatest storytelling I've ever met. I would sit at
his knee and just listen to him talk. Marcus Miller
is the same way. But Joe used to tell these
stories about, you know, being in the Fifth Ward, being
stopped by police on the way to a gig and
everybody being made to get out on the street and
play their instruments, and because he played the piano, they
(01:07:20):
would make him dance.
Speaker 1 (01:07:23):
That's Houston. He's from Houston. Okay.
Speaker 9 (01:07:25):
Yeah, who knew Joe sample was from the Fifth War?
Speaker 1 (01:07:28):
Yeah, I didn't know.
Speaker 6 (01:07:29):
I had no idea.
Speaker 1 (01:07:29):
I always just associated him with La No, Wow, that's dope.
Speaker 9 (01:07:33):
Did you have any issues in your evolution of your look?
Speaker 7 (01:07:37):
Oh?
Speaker 9 (01:07:37):
Yeah, in the beginning, you know, the hair was different.
Speaker 8 (01:07:40):
The hair was different. It was a we delicious time
in the nineties. Everybody had to weave, and I wanted locks,
and everybody said, you can't have locks because that's not
it's not what they do. What that was a big deal?
Speaker 1 (01:07:51):
When?
Speaker 9 (01:07:51):
Was that like when you first.
Speaker 1 (01:07:54):
Out the sky? Though?
Speaker 8 (01:07:55):
Yeah, I mean I literally for that record, I look
like that for about a half an hour hour and
then went inacted my regular ship. She cleans up. Well,
I don't know. I think I think it's at certain
points there was a lot of excuse me, confusion about
(01:08:17):
what to do with me, Like this girl is, first
of all, she reads books and she likes jazz, and
I would get in these conversations where I'm going on
I'm going on BT to talk to Donny Simpson and
he's going to ask you who you like. Now we
know that you like train and Wayne and you like
you know, Bud Powell. You can't say that, thank you, Yeah, please.
(01:08:40):
You got to say Luther Vandross, you got to say
Joe to See, you got to say.
Speaker 1 (01:08:43):
You know, I had a whole little yea, the not
the Trainers, the little media. Yeah.
Speaker 8 (01:08:51):
Yeah, that's how long I've been in this business. No, yes, yes,
oh man, Yeah, they coach you. They don't want you
to you know, they don't want you to look like
you know too much.
Speaker 1 (01:09:04):
So do you feel that when you got to outrun
this guy, that was the moment where you actually took
control of in a way.
Speaker 8 (01:09:10):
Yeah. I had been signed to a label called Mojazz.
Speaker 1 (01:09:13):
Yeah, Motown Wayman, that label.
Speaker 8 (01:09:17):
Yeah, and yeah we made a whole record and then
the label just folded and I was like shit, no jazz.
Speaker 5 (01:09:28):
Uh.
Speaker 8 (01:09:28):
And then I took some of that stuff and moved
into the next record, which was Outrun the Sky. And
I felt like at that point, like, oh, okay, I'm
starting to marry the things that I want to do,
Because in the nineties I would listen to like Merry
Records and Faith Records, and I would think, how come
to people don't bring me those types of records? How
come people don't bring me the beats? How come I
want to dance? I like, I played video games, and
(01:09:51):
I ride a skateboard, and I got a truck with
a subway for the lights up pink. Why don't I
get these Why don't I get this really interaction from people?
Speaker 1 (01:09:59):
Yeah?
Speaker 9 (01:10:00):
Temporary?
Speaker 8 (01:10:00):
Yeah, because because people had a perception I've been telling
you forever we got to make a country record. He
was traumatizedzed. So the biggest, the biggest ache for me
in this industry is kind of like, oh my god,
I love you, I really want to work with you,
and then nothing, nothing, Who is that?
Speaker 9 (01:10:22):
In your mind?
Speaker 1 (01:10:23):
Everybody?
Speaker 8 (01:10:24):
Everyone? I can everyone, almost everyone, because.
Speaker 5 (01:10:31):
In my mind I just know that you know what
she's speaking about specifically, not that she was talking about you,
because in my mind, I'm like, is she talking about
for real?
Speaker 1 (01:10:40):
No?
Speaker 8 (01:10:40):
No, because I got to work with for real? We're
still supposed to make a record, you know. And And
the first cat that actually said I really want to
work with you and really did it was Mike City.
Mike City came to a show and was in the
back of the room like sing I'm coming back. He
was heckling me. He said, I want to.
Speaker 1 (01:10:57):
Get you in the club.
Speaker 8 (01:10:59):
Yeah, I want to get you on the radio. I
want to do this for you. And we started writing together.
So he's one of those cats that showed up. But
I mean the actual love that I get from people.
People say, do you feel like you're underrated? And I
feel like, no, I'm super highly fucking rated.
Speaker 1 (01:11:18):
I'm highly would you just say underappreciated them.
Speaker 8 (01:11:21):
Under underheard, underserved, I'm super appreciated.
Speaker 5 (01:11:27):
Like yeah, black thought of I'm like a secret and
a lot of you know, right like the singer's favorite, singer.
Speaker 10 (01:11:36):
Favorite Sea, the jazz singer's favorite, over the joy.
Speaker 1 (01:11:51):
So like with the new record with oh well, before
we get to the new record ahead, I wanted to
ask you about the Darters of Soul to what was
that experience?
Speaker 3 (01:12:02):
Like?
Speaker 8 (01:12:02):
It was cool? Uh, Sandra sat Victor put that together.
Who used to be the lead of the family stand
absolutely it was me? Uh and dear con Nina Simone's daughter. Yes,
I want to call her Lisa, Yeah, Joyce Kennedy, Nonah Hendricks,
Joyce do changes yes she I mean it was killer
(01:12:25):
we did. It was a really short run, but we
were in Europe, so we were really it was a
really beautiful time. We tried to get it booted back up,
and it's so hard to sell anything of quality in
the United States. That is, you know, it's a hard sell.
But that was a really good time for me because
I wasn't on the road a lot. We would go
(01:12:45):
do like the Poory Jazz festival and they would come
take our picture and put it in a museum. You know,
it was a really good time and playing with those
people was really great.
Speaker 1 (01:12:55):
Do you okay, do you have do you have have
a tribe? Or are you this lone oasis?
Speaker 8 (01:13:04):
I'm a lone wolf, but.
Speaker 1 (01:13:07):
Because I feel that the only the only true way
to sell product is either through the controversial means of
which you know, the public wants blood and it's thirsty
for you know, curious about whatever, a backstory or kind
(01:13:28):
of a tribe association. Yeah, I mean if you take
Kendrick's current situation, I mean time, nine times out of ten,
if you see a tde associated you know, act or whatever,
you'll at least peep it for three seconds on the internet.
Speaker 8 (01:13:46):
You get get what that association is.
Speaker 1 (01:13:48):
Right? So is it hard to start a community of
of people to gather eight or nine of you, especially
when you know I would I'm not saying that it
would be intimidating, but I think that what you bring
(01:14:09):
to the table, And I'm not I don't even mean
like your lineage, but you know there's in my mind
it's just like no bullshitting And I almost feel not unworthy.
But I know a bullshit you say no, no, no,
(01:14:32):
But I'm just saying that a lot of times, a
lot of my Eureka arrival moments comes at the from
a place where a lot of mistakes have to be
made before I'm like, ah, this is what I'm bringing
to the table where I just feel like, you know,
you could start saying Mary had a little lamb right
(01:14:52):
now and this shit would be spot on bullseye. You
know what.
Speaker 8 (01:14:56):
I feel like I have a tribe. It's interesting because
what people perceive of me as kind of like this
jazz urban adult contemporary type singer. That is, that is
a part of who I am. But my tribe is
like Robert Glasper like I'm on the Kendrick to Pimp
a Butterfly, Like they sample one of my entire songs
for that record. I did a session three weeks ago
(01:15:20):
with Quick, I did a session with Battlecat and Exhibit
two weeks ago. I work with Terris Martin. I find
that I have this initiative called real music rebels. I'm
generally kind of the only female and a collective. If
I find myself in a collective, there are other women
like me, but I find that if you are a
(01:15:41):
musician that has a sort of education in that field,
and you you play jazz and you play pop and
you play like glasspur or somebody I completely relate to.
You know, I feel like I can go true as well.
He's crazier than I am. But I mean, either one
of us could go to any set on any bandstand
(01:16:04):
and blend in or stick out. You know, I'm just
prepared as a musician to ex experience like what that means,
like to come on and play with you guys. It's
not even fair because you know it's bumpers and that's
kind of you know that take advantage of it in
the room when we rehearse, like, okay, let me just
breathe it in. I'm super into music. I'm gonna I'm
(01:16:25):
gonna make a record with Nancy Wilson and a record
with Kendrick Lamar.
Speaker 1 (01:16:28):
No.
Speaker 8 (01:16:29):
I already made a record with Nancy Wilson. I'm saying
last year, what was that like, Yes, she was not there,
but the record is killer. It's Terry Lane Carrington's record,
which is called I can't bring it to my mind
right now. I'm saying, over the course of a year.
For me, that's making a record with Nancy and with
Kendrick and with Quick and Snoop, and then with Vince
(01:16:51):
Mendoza and then maybe with Anita Baker and then you know,
I'm all over the place in terms of what I
can do.
Speaker 1 (01:16:59):
What is his name? See Wilson project coming up?
Speaker 8 (01:17:01):
It's not a project, it's it's Terry Lynn Carrington's record.
Are you looking it up? Rummer? Yes, back from Yeah,
she's a she's a producer.
Speaker 9 (01:17:11):
She's bigger than that now. But I'm just giving from yeah.
Speaker 1 (01:17:13):
But she she that was like saying Michael Jordan, the
actor from uh yeah, Hey.
Speaker 9 (01:17:20):
Guys, it's all right, what Civilians.
Speaker 8 (01:17:22):
She made a record that featured me and Lettusy and
and Natalie Cole and sha Ka Khan and Liz Wright
and it's a great record. And Nancy Wilson was on
that record, and I crafted some padding around her vocal,
which is for met us everything. I love Nancy Wilson, you.
Speaker 1 (01:17:40):
Know, aside Nancy Wilson. Wilson's story. So it's us on
tour with Lauren Hill back in ninety nine and Lauren
Hill's like towards the end of the end of the set.
It's like a big ass moss pit right in front
of the stage, and she's doing the encore like everything
is everything, and then mid verse she said stop the song.
(01:18:04):
Stop the song stop, stop stop stop. Got hang on.
She's like she looks in the mospit. She's like Nancy.
Speaker 8 (01:18:13):
Wilson in the marsh pit.
Speaker 1 (01:18:15):
Why are you in the moshpit? She was like she
was just in the middle. Like it was just like
some smells like teen spiritshit like Nancy Wilson was in
the middle of She's another great storyteller.
Speaker 5 (01:18:27):
Oh man, Yeah, I feel like we just haven't seen
her a lot lately. She doesn't go out attle worried.
Speaker 8 (01:18:33):
Last time I saw her, she told me, she said,
I'm not going to be doing this much longer.
Speaker 6 (01:18:37):
Oh wow.
Speaker 8 (01:18:39):
She's just she's she's she's comfortable and she's happy and
she's with her family and she's good. She just ain't
making records right now. And and Terry recorded her for
that record, and I wanted to just add some color
for her, you know, kind of breathing. You know, it's cool.
Speaker 1 (01:18:55):
Oh that what's up? I always wanted to ask you
about out your record. The word it all begins record
with Ernie g What's what was that like? Because I
love that song, like I love that song. You know,
I love the album, but I love.
Speaker 8 (01:19:10):
That song too. Bobby Sparks brought me that song, ah okay,
and the moment I heard it, I was like, oh
my god, that that that whole baseline, the movement of
that record. Sometimes I put it on it makes me
very happy. I still have not met him.
Speaker 1 (01:19:25):
Oh so you y'all, Wow, y'all for in exchange it?
Damn he Si.
Speaker 8 (01:19:33):
He gave Bobby that record and said get this record
to her, and then I wrote the lyric and the
melody and everything and recorded it.
Speaker 1 (01:19:39):
Oh okay. So in the studio, who's your who's your
right here? So to speak?
Speaker 2 (01:19:44):
Like you clearly, if you're with an engineer, you have
someone that's like, okay, maybe you can do that again better,
or like who gives you feedback during your sessions?
Speaker 8 (01:19:53):
Whomember I'm working with, you know, I keep it like
a tight circle. I ultimately am harder on myself than
anyone will let a lot of times, if I'm working
on my own stuff, it's hard because when I go
to work with people, which happens a lot, I'll sing
it once and they won't let me. They won't let
me go again, and I'm like, you don't discover anything
like that, you know. I appreciate the fact that it's
(01:20:17):
whatever is on the top of your head, you know,
And it's the spontaneity of it. And it's exciting for
me to go into a session and not know what's
going to happen. And that's what you got. But there
are things listening back. I wish I had taken a
little more time with so for me, in my sessions,
everybody's allowed to talk. It's all super democratic. Ultimately, I
am gonna be like, Okay, that wasn't that's that was terrible?
Speaker 1 (01:20:42):
What was that? And what is it that you're what
you're listening for?
Speaker 6 (01:20:45):
Like what it?
Speaker 1 (01:20:45):
Because I'm trying to imagine what does a terrible Leyla
Hathaway take sound like, Oh, it.
Speaker 8 (01:20:49):
Could be cracky, it could be just clams floating out.
It could be the color is wrong for me. It's
about color a lot of times, you know, or that
didn't taste right happen or you know, let me just
make that prettier, or it's any number of things.
Speaker 9 (01:21:06):
Do you have like physical rituals and no warm ups. No,
not even the fun.
Speaker 1 (01:21:10):
Wait you don't do is seth riggs warm up.
Speaker 8 (01:21:13):
Things sometimes I do with my singers, like if they're
doing it, I'll do it with them. Yeah, but not really.
Speaker 1 (01:21:20):
It's not necessary to warm up your voice. No, I
think it is, But I talk all day, so yeah,
I was going to say, I get the feeling. There's
there's two types of singers, I know, like the the
rigorous exercise like the quote professional singers that do all that,
and then there's the singers that talk and sing twenty
(01:21:46):
four to seven to themselves. Are you one of these
in public? And I don't mean like in public like
in a Fame Way breakout and song now, but like
when you're home alone, are you talking to yourself?
Speaker 5 (01:21:58):
Are you?
Speaker 1 (01:21:59):
No?
Speaker 9 (01:22:00):
Not really, not out loud.
Speaker 8 (01:22:02):
My voice is always in some sort of state of
warmth because of the quality of my voice. So I
recognize that even when it's cold, like right now, it's cold,
and if I sang it would sound okay on the
okay scale, it would not sound okay.
Speaker 1 (01:22:19):
To me where we are right now it's cold to you,
like my voice would be cold.
Speaker 8 (01:22:23):
Yeah, okay, because I haven't sang and I'm sitting here
on a mic and it doesn't sound necessarily. My speaking
voice to me is super annoying. It's like a weird
mirror that is like you're looking at really close.
Speaker 1 (01:22:35):
Really yeah, you have a very saltry speaking very yeah,
I know, but I wonder here's the thing. I was like,
I wonder if Layla's trying to nerd up her. No,
this is me a voice.
Speaker 8 (01:22:56):
This is super mean.
Speaker 1 (01:22:57):
But the line between a point extra voice and it's crazy,
a very I imagine your your phone, your nighttime phone
voice is on some next ship.
Speaker 8 (01:23:09):
It's regular. My mourning phone voice is definitely Susan Plashett
all day, the references, all day, Bob. It's very low.
My voice is just really low by nature. And I
practiced kind of talking up higher. I got intimidated at
some point, like girls don't talk like that, and I
(01:23:29):
started sort of trying to lift it up and make
it bubblier and more.
Speaker 1 (01:23:32):
You know, I think that you're on the Kathleen Turner
very soldier. M we wait, speaking of where it all begins, Steve,
you should note that she worked with Phil Ramone.
Speaker 8 (01:23:52):
Could you what was He's awesome? I loved him so much.
Speaker 6 (01:23:55):
Produce something for you.
Speaker 8 (01:23:57):
Well, we did this thing when we worked on that record,
We had a live We had a chance to go
into Capitol Live and record in the A room and
it was going to be Auschmidt and Phil Ramon. So
I got to record four of my records with them
that day. And it was awesome because basically he just
walked around and smiled and that's magnanimous and made jokes
(01:24:18):
and he's really cool.
Speaker 1 (01:24:20):
Yeah, I'm sorry, Oh no, I just wanted to talk
to you about your new record, honestly, and the hate.
Well we talked, you know, we talked.
Speaker 2 (01:24:31):
This is offline, but how I guess a lot of
your traditional R and B fans are like.
Speaker 1 (01:24:37):
They mad mad as hell.
Speaker 8 (01:24:39):
They mad because the saxophone on the record and the
record I cussed on the record. I cussed on Outrun
the Sky too, But they missed that record. You know,
people really have come to know that they can come
and just suckle on my bosom and I will rock
(01:24:59):
them to sleep and remind them of their mother.
Speaker 10 (01:25:02):
You know.
Speaker 8 (01:25:02):
Michelle told me, she said you are my sexy Mehelia,
Oh my god, And I said, that is the worst
up to But I get it. I get it. I
get that there is something in me that for people
is provocative, but it's also genetic, like a genetic, soulful
memory of their mother. I understand that.
Speaker 1 (01:25:24):
Wait, because I know it's coming. I want to suckle.
I'm sorry, I do, it's coming. I just I'm sorry
pressed the tugar before you even got to say it.
Hilarious on a circle. But I really like the new record.
(01:25:54):
I think it's dope.
Speaker 2 (01:25:54):
I like that, and I mean we I texted you
all the ship before, but no, I like that you
that you're not You play a lot younger than you are.
I think you know what I'm saying. What I mean
by that is just like I think a lot of
times it's three instead of twenty eight. Yeah, exactly, And
I mean right, and I mean a lot of times
(01:26:14):
people in the ac or urban contemporary they kind of
aged themselves too early, you know what I'm saying. It's
just like, dude, you, I look at somebody like Charlie
Wilson that can sing over whatever and be timeless, you
know what I'm saying.
Speaker 1 (01:26:27):
And so the thing I do like about your record
is that you're doing stuff that will be considered young.
Speaker 2 (01:26:34):
But you have the flexibility to do it, and the
shit is dope and like there's only nine songs like
this is yeah.
Speaker 8 (01:26:39):
I mean honestly, I started it as an EP and
then I thought, oh, we could keep going, and then
we just kept going. But the record to me feels
like my record's in the nineties, you know what obvious
and you gotta going on and the Chucky Records and
the Keith Crouch records. I love those records. So for me,
it was about presenting something that was a little bit different, you.
Speaker 1 (01:26:59):
Know, and talk about Tiffany because I don't really know
if I've heard of is a.
Speaker 8 (01:27:04):
Young woman producer, songwriter, singer. We did the whole record together.
She has records out, she got a new single out
right now. And it was exciting to me to work
with one person. I didn't know going into that that
would that's what I was doing, you know, I had
never done a record with just one person. I'm getting
(01:27:26):
ready to start working with a cat named Phil Boudreaux.
What come on, man, do you understand how excited I am?
Speaker 1 (01:27:36):
Phil is uh.
Speaker 2 (01:27:37):
He's one part of a group AOI, which is him
and Dewan Parkerdwan Parker as a producer, keyboard player. He
used to be in Dre's camp, like back during like
the Lost Ones era. I think that's him on the
Lost Ones. I think, but like Lost Ones and all
those records around that, like seven, I was like, wait
(01:27:58):
a minute, now, jay Z Lost Ones. But yeah, and
so they have a group called ao E that is
fucking amazing and Phil also is.
Speaker 8 (01:28:07):
A producer, player, keyboard player.
Speaker 1 (01:28:10):
And he's just fucking stupid.
Speaker 8 (01:28:12):
Yeah that ep I listened to it. Probably it's one
of them. Is my like my wake up alarm which
one never know me?
Speaker 1 (01:28:19):
Oh my god? Yeah, that's.
Speaker 9 (01:28:24):
Adding him to my pandora right now.
Speaker 1 (01:28:26):
It's on a well Field bow Drow. He has a
solo I'm called Ethoist Dope, but just ao E is
the uh that's hard to google.
Speaker 8 (01:28:34):
Get ready getting ready to work with him. I'm very
very excited about.
Speaker 1 (01:28:39):
I won't end on that something some.
Speaker 8 (01:28:44):
I'm excited. I told him I wanted to record this
Dion Warwick record, which one?
Speaker 1 (01:28:47):
Do you know?
Speaker 8 (01:28:47):
This song in between thanks you Hold Me Close in.
Speaker 1 (01:28:55):
It's on track of the Cat.
Speaker 8 (01:28:57):
I don't know. It's a background song, insane. It is
a beautiful record and I can't wait to record it.
I get excited like by songs.
Speaker 1 (01:29:11):
Yeah, never know. It's funny you mentioned that because never
know me. I told him that that reminded me of
a back kind of melody.
Speaker 8 (01:29:16):
It is gorgeous, isn't it. It's kind of like a
Willy Walker melody as well? You know what I mean.
It's kind of like that record imagination in a way.
Oh my god, that's a it's a it's a killer.
It's a killer record.
Speaker 1 (01:29:29):
That's what I wouldn't pick your brain on. Just quirky ship.
I feel like you're the person that like probably knows
like Marlo Thomas is free to be you and me
like I sh.
Speaker 8 (01:29:53):
Wow, wow, I haven't thought about that in a long time.
Speaker 1 (01:29:58):
Yeah, but I mean it, I never I always wanted
to avoid the cliche questions like where your desert island
disco or whatever? But what a desert out of video games? Hmmm?
Speaker 8 (01:30:12):
All right, I'm a Final Fantasy person. But the last
episode of Final Fantasy they fucked it up totally and
turned it into like Entourage, just like it's like four
dudes in a car.
Speaker 1 (01:30:23):
So I've never gotten I never got.
Speaker 8 (01:30:25):
Into the Japanese.
Speaker 1 (01:30:28):
Okay, I have no idea.
Speaker 9 (01:30:29):
What you guys are talking.
Speaker 1 (01:30:30):
About the video games?
Speaker 9 (01:30:31):
I do that beyond that, that's phrasing.
Speaker 8 (01:30:34):
I was just saying, I just got to switch. That's
pretty fun.
Speaker 1 (01:30:37):
I was looking at the switch, but I was like,
I mean, are you still keeping for a switch?
Speaker 8 (01:30:44):
Right?
Speaker 6 (01:30:44):
Hair?
Speaker 1 (01:30:44):
Oh that's what I was. I was like, why are
you carrying brother purse? Look like a clutch.
Speaker 8 (01:30:54):
The remotes are so small they don't make sense.
Speaker 1 (01:30:58):
I had to buy the prop control.
Speaker 9 (01:30:59):
You take them off, you leave yours on.
Speaker 1 (01:31:01):
It depends, I mean, if I'm doing it handheld.
Speaker 8 (01:31:03):
Okay, So I had a handheld game like that before,
which was called The Atari Links.
Speaker 1 (01:31:08):
Yes, I remember, I remember that. I remember that. I
remember that.
Speaker 9 (01:31:12):
Mm so, are you like a Mario? What's your I'm
I was gonna say, are you the Mario person? Are
you the gun?
Speaker 8 (01:31:19):
Things?
Speaker 1 (01:31:21):
First person shooting?
Speaker 8 (01:31:21):
I like them. I get tired of them. I really
miss like, really good full games with stories, you know
what I mean.
Speaker 1 (01:31:30):
That's why I like The Last of Us.
Speaker 8 (01:31:33):
I started it, Oh my god, I got stuck in
the warehouse. I never finished it.
Speaker 1 (01:31:38):
It's like the greatest screenplay. It was better than a
lot of movies that came out I will now too.
It's coming. So how do I get back on the bandwagon?
Because I'm the guy that actually switched?
Speaker 8 (01:31:51):
Get a switch?
Speaker 1 (01:31:53):
I got like a stock of this stuff, like sitting
in the closet. Never like I'll give it away for Christmas?
Keep it?
Speaker 8 (01:32:00):
I mean, yeah, I mean I got like I have everything,
but I still have everything?
Speaker 1 (01:32:06):
Can I even get back on the bandwagon? Get back on?
Speaker 8 (01:32:08):
I mean I think I got a Merlin last what Merlin?
Speaker 6 (01:32:12):
Marlin?
Speaker 8 (01:32:13):
Remember Merlin? Yeah, my friend gave it to me for
my birthday.
Speaker 1 (01:32:18):
You have Merlin?
Speaker 8 (01:32:19):
Where is Merlin now? He's out on the porch.
Speaker 6 (01:32:22):
I was addicted to that. I ever broken one.
Speaker 1 (01:32:25):
You have been on my life? And what is now?
It's a it's a game.
Speaker 6 (01:32:27):
It was.
Speaker 8 (01:32:27):
It's a game system. It looks like a big red phone.
Speaker 1 (01:32:30):
Yo, Marl. Yeah, I'm seventy one. Yeah, yeah, there's that
separates us. YEA Merlin was like right after that, you know,
right after the like the home the first home system
of television.
Speaker 8 (01:32:45):
Yeah, precedes like Simon handheld.
Speaker 1 (01:32:50):
You know, it's like the first.
Speaker 8 (01:32:52):
Remember that.
Speaker 1 (01:32:53):
I do not I've never seen this before. You have
a working Maryland?
Speaker 6 (01:32:58):
I do it works?
Speaker 1 (01:33:00):
I cannot love you more than this moment?
Speaker 8 (01:33:03):
Right?
Speaker 6 (01:33:03):
Can you have live nearby and.
Speaker 8 (01:33:07):
Over by the airport?
Speaker 1 (01:33:10):
Where is this?
Speaker 8 (01:33:11):
Oh man, my friend gave it to is in mint condition?
I need to finance.
Speaker 1 (01:33:15):
I need to google that person loves you to Death,
because there's one on Amazon right now. Do you remember much.
Speaker 8 (01:33:26):
That's cheap?
Speaker 7 (01:33:27):
Do you remember the game Einstein? It was like it
was sort of like it was Simon, but it was
like what the Jewish parents bought that we couldn't we
couldn't get. They didn't want to play for Simon, so
they got It was like a rectangle and it had
for for you know, yeah, this is not a joke.
It's called Einstein. Yeah, seriously, after after Simon was like,
(01:33:50):
it was like the it's like an a person.
Speaker 1 (01:33:53):
Super remember that one? Everyone? Did you ever get into Doom?
Speaker 6 (01:34:04):
You were you were doing?
Speaker 8 (01:34:05):
I get My eyes were like, okay, I need people
in the scenes. I want to be you know, I
would play Call of Duty now, but generally I'm gonna
get into a group and listen to everyone cussing and
then hide in the corner and pick people off at
the angles. That's what I'm gonna do.
Speaker 1 (01:34:21):
So for me, the shooters are like, I get bored fast,
so Final Fantasy and then what else? What else?
Speaker 8 (01:34:27):
You like Mario, Zelda, you know, Zelda, Donkey Kong, all those.
But I also like love Halo, and you know, I
like a lot of the original games. I didn't like Tried,
I tried, It's not it passed over. It's not for us.
Speaker 5 (01:34:45):
It's that video game they made a movie out of.
I just watched it on a lot of them, seriously,
like the Battle.
Speaker 8 (01:34:53):
Ratchet and Clay.
Speaker 9 (01:34:54):
It was like a whole dragon.
Speaker 1 (01:34:57):
Mortal Kombat. You the codes for like all the things
aalties and wow wow yeah yeah yeah. A new Mortal
Kombat now is like super fucking brow now, like, yeah,
super graphic. It's crazy.
Speaker 9 (01:35:15):
Yeah, I mean the way they snapped the heart out
must be like real crazy.
Speaker 8 (01:35:21):
It's like the slow motion pan into the jaw breaking.
I love that.
Speaker 1 (01:35:27):
Come here, so you're a gamer? What else do you do?
Speaker 8 (01:35:33):
I have a dog, This dog I do. His name
is Boston.
Speaker 1 (01:35:39):
What kind of dog?
Speaker 8 (01:35:40):
He's a b Shan?
Speaker 6 (01:35:42):
Huh?
Speaker 8 (01:35:43):
What a b Shan?
Speaker 1 (01:35:46):
That's like a black name.
Speaker 8 (01:35:48):
What He's like one of those dogs that was bred
to entertain in the circus. They have the fluffy little Afro,
the white dog with the fluffy.
Speaker 1 (01:35:58):
Afro carrying Louis.
Speaker 8 (01:36:00):
No, he's big and he's he doesn't look like that.
He's he's super scrappy.
Speaker 1 (01:36:04):
Okay, and his name is Boston. Boston. I thought it
would be sewn. That's the type.
Speaker 8 (01:36:10):
No, and you know I'm DJing now, I'm trying talk
about it. Wait a minute, I'm trying. And I had
I had a birthday party a couple of weeks ago,
and then Battlecat showed up and I was like, I'll
just wait till you finished. I just wait.
Speaker 1 (01:36:25):
I'm certain that you can curate music as good as
you sing it, and you have rhythm.
Speaker 8 (01:36:32):
Thank you from your lips. I hope. What's interesting to
me is to look at two records now that in
my head before, like oh if I had a if I,
if I had a Janet Jackson a cappella for when
I think of you, can I put it over anything?
On the Weather Report? Eight thirty records?
Speaker 1 (01:36:54):
How can I?
Speaker 8 (01:36:55):
What can I do?
Speaker 1 (01:36:56):
Wait? Was that you that told me the greatest set? Yeah?
Well he did a return Forever something for He played
his fourteen minute return Forever song and came out of
it and it worked central heating, by cold, by heat wave,
by heat wave, and it worked, and it worked like
it was just the most cathartic experience because it's like
fourteen minutes of just fucking chaos and then all of
(01:37:17):
a sudden and it's like, oh, yes, I love those
moments that was that it was wild. I would never
try that. That's a holy grail moment for a DJ.
Speaker 3 (01:37:27):
No.
Speaker 1 (01:37:27):
I think the art of DJing really is and you know,
like parents sort of ask me, now, you know, it's
like there's a generation of button pressure kids or whatever.
So I don't know if I should enable them and
just you know, create start creating a generation of DJ's
that I'm a hate. Once they turn to understand, it's
(01:37:48):
gonna happen whether you do it or not. Right. But
the thing is is that I tell them that, above
all else one, you should really love music. That's that's
the number one impetus. Yeah, And I think that the
art of DJing really is knowing or at least having
a good guest to which for any song you play,
(01:38:09):
there should be five songs that can perfectly exactly right
and you're just playing some sort of psychological you're playing
psychological control with your.
Speaker 8 (01:38:19):
Audience absolutely and telling them a story along the way,
Like when we play we have sometimes we put Rocket
with You in a set, right, So at the end
of Rock with You, we played that vampom. We stay
there and then I sing like fifteen Michael songs over
that vamp right, you know, And it maintained a melody,
(01:38:40):
just singing it in that key.
Speaker 2 (01:38:42):
Right, you know, and yeah, you can do it, Okay, Yeah,
talk to me about because we talk about it. Talking
to me about covering, Well, I guess recovering I'm coming
back on what was that like to revisit that twenty.
Speaker 8 (01:38:55):
Years I love that record and I knew going in
that it was a song I wanted to record live
because the arrangement that we have of it is so
different from the other arrangement. It was just one of
those songs I knew, Like when we asked people what
do you want to hear the shows, that's the number
one record that they want to hear, Which is interesting
(01:39:17):
to me because no matter how much people say, you know,
maybe he picked up the tempo to show a little
and do this and do that, people want to come
and be wrung out and they love that record.
Speaker 1 (01:39:26):
And that was that was never officially a single right now. No,
that's amazing.
Speaker 8 (01:39:31):
No, you know Gary Taylor wrote that song.
Speaker 1 (01:39:33):
He's yeah, he wrote whispers and yes.
Speaker 8 (01:39:37):
He also wrote the song that I demoed that he
then gave to Anita Baker, which is good love you
know that record, Thanks for that. I demoed that record
(01:39:59):
for an to basically I did it for my record,
and he's like, you know, my kids want to go
to college. So I was like, yes, let's do it.
So that was my first kind of sort of interaction
with her. I was so excited that when I heard
her she was singing it sort of in the way
I was singing.
Speaker 1 (01:40:16):
I was like, wow, you know you're do you have
an original your copy of it? Wow? That can you
cook to? Yeah?
Speaker 9 (01:40:35):
She'll go to dish over there lately.
Speaker 8 (01:40:37):
You know, I will make a chicken real quick. It
seems simple, but yeah I would. I would just make
a whole chicken with your size, might make some greens,
you know.
Speaker 1 (01:40:48):
You know. Okay, wait are you Jack and are you
find out for me?
Speaker 9 (01:40:57):
Oh? Yeah, that's what I was doing. Yeah, potato, I.
Speaker 8 (01:41:02):
Think right now is the pot roast? Like I'm trying
to really perfect.
Speaker 1 (01:41:05):
A pot roast. I mean my first pot roast.
Speaker 8 (01:41:07):
Dude is super meat and potatoes.
Speaker 5 (01:41:09):
Dude.
Speaker 8 (01:41:09):
He is from Nebraska, so.
Speaker 1 (01:41:13):
Wow to raise Wait you said you made a pot roast.
So all those posts that was you cooking? Oh? I
thought you were watching people cook cook me my bad. Okay,
it's fun now that the pot rolls. The crock pot
is also a life saving to.
Speaker 8 (01:41:29):
You put it on and just like I like the
big Dutch obb and I like to just cook it
really slow.
Speaker 1 (01:41:39):
So are you satisfied with life?
Speaker 6 (01:41:46):
Pot roast? No?
Speaker 5 (01:41:50):
Just and.
Speaker 1 (01:41:52):
Where you are right now? Are you satisfied? M I
mean all artists are insatiable, but are you? Is there
anything left? You know? Oh?
Speaker 8 (01:42:05):
God?
Speaker 1 (01:42:06):
Yeah? Well, I mean okay, that's a bad question. Ask
is there anything Everyone wants a world domination, but kind
of like Denar on heat, like that whole thirty seconds thing, like, ye,
is there something behind you that makes you want a
lot's wife turn around and just be like okay, let
me I want the number one pop single.
Speaker 8 (01:42:24):
Or yeah fuck it? I mean yeah, I want all
that I want. I want to I want to see
what my potential is. I'm on the path. I feel
like I'm just like, literally, I'm singing for twenty years
or twenty three years on record, and then one day
(01:42:45):
I just sing a chord on a record. What will
happen in twenty years from now, Like, I don't know
what's gonna happen. I really want to realize what I have,
and I feel like I'm just at the top of
it right now.
Speaker 1 (01:42:58):
I would agree you to me, You're one of the
few people I know that it seems like, you know,
have a twenty plus years in it. Really just feel
like you're just getting started.
Speaker 8 (01:43:06):
And I feel like it is crazy to me, Like
I know a lot of girls went like that, and
I feel like I'm sort of you know. At times,
it has felt like it ebbed off and then it
would creep up a little bit. But I feel like
I'm on the path. I definitely would like the opportunity.
There seems to be a weird like when I go
(01:43:27):
to radio stations or when we do pitches for TV,
when we do all the stuff, people are always like,
oh my god, we love you. I have your record
in my car. I sang your father song at my
father's funeral. Your record and your dad's record got me
through divorce all of these, uh, these monumental landmarks that
(01:43:49):
people have me in their life, and it's hard to
plug those in in a mainstream way. It's it's a
it's a weird situation for me because like I'm from Chicago,
they don't really play my records in Chicago on the radio.
Whenever I go through Chicago, I make time to go
to the radio station and meet everybody. I know, everybody.
(01:44:10):
I've sang it, everybody's kids birthday, you know what I'm saying,
Like everybody loves me, and there's no you know, I've
been seeing these a lot.
Speaker 1 (01:44:18):
Of people, people like the idea of people that have help.
Speaker 8 (01:44:21):
The concept of it, and.
Speaker 9 (01:44:24):
Yeah, can you not alone?
Speaker 8 (01:44:26):
I recognize that, I believe.
Speaker 1 (01:44:30):
Oh yeah. But see, the thing is is, as long
as you avoid the crazy potholes and you don't seem
like a person that I will say that we'll really
truly separates you from a lot of the contemporaries of
(01:44:51):
yours that I personally know and personal life male and female.
Is you don't seem to have, at least on surface,
any any saboteur kind of spirit about you. You seem
rather fearless, and your approach to stuff, mistakes could be
(01:45:14):
made or whatever. Let me try this out. Let me okay,
let me get with this good. Let me try snarky puppy.
Let me go into like you're just you're curious about it,
and you just with reckless abandonment. You just you just
indulge yourself in it, which is good because a lot
of times, a lot of singers I see, they will
second guess and talk themselves out of a good thing
(01:45:36):
and that sort of thing and tailspin until you know
it's fifteen years between albums.
Speaker 2 (01:45:44):
Yeah, that's sort of okay. So before I wrap up, okay,
oh well yeah, we talk about your grammy, Well you
have multiple singing.
Speaker 1 (01:45:55):
Can I can I can? I can I make this
to my personal therapy moment. Okay, I'm gonna get a
for this, but it's just her and I in the
room right now. One, how long have you had that gift?
Speaker 8 (01:46:09):
Since I was probably twelve or thirteen.
Speaker 1 (01:46:12):
That's the thing though, when I asked you, like and
your alone and stuff for you to perfect something like that.
Speaker 8 (01:46:18):
First of all, it's no, it's in the shower. I'm
in the shower, like what can I do with it?
And I'm gonna show it to people. What is this?
What can I do it? And people are like, well,
I don't know, it's cool, what can you do with it?
And then I did it on a John p Key
record and he kept it.
Speaker 1 (01:46:36):
John p Key of all Things, Yes, quis No, this
is like ten years ago. Oh okay, okay, he kept it.
Speaker 8 (01:46:44):
I did it as a joke at the end of
his record.
Speaker 1 (01:46:46):
You know crash Cuts got ky Yeah, yeah, be in
my friend. Yeah wait, I'm putting that out there. If
anyone knows how we can get the crash cuts, I
need him on the show.
Speaker 6 (01:47:07):
A crash Cut.
Speaker 1 (01:47:09):
It's a spirit. Let it modify in your life.
Speaker 6 (01:47:12):
He's the truth.
Speaker 1 (01:47:14):
He's a lie. Focus on Jesus. Jesus.
Speaker 8 (01:47:21):
Just the fact that I was like, well, I did
it for him and he kept it. And then people
said you should do it on records, and I said, well,
it's not cool on a record because people can think
you manufactured.
Speaker 1 (01:47:33):
They can't see it.
Speaker 8 (01:47:34):
So when I do it live for people, and I
can do it in key and it's in context, then
people see it. But if you ever have watched that
video with Snarky Puppy, I am realizing at that moment, Oh,
I can do this. The first time is whack. Second
time I started like, okay, just fucking go for it.
The third time it was clean, and then they changed keys,
(01:47:56):
and then I was able to change with them. I
did not know what Corey is going to play, so
that what is that called?
Speaker 1 (01:48:03):
What is that?
Speaker 8 (01:48:03):
I don't know. It's not called anything. It's funny. People
on YouTube like that is polytonic. I don't know what.
I don't know. Anybody else I don't know. I think
I have, I have not heard it.
Speaker 1 (01:48:15):
Is it hard to produce on the spot? Like like
whistling on the mic.
Speaker 8 (01:48:26):
Sometimes it's a fourth. Sometimes I can get a six,
like a major sixth.
Speaker 1 (01:48:30):
Not that I asked you to do it in this spot.
Speaker 9 (01:48:33):
I had no idea what you'a were talking about until
at the moment.
Speaker 8 (01:48:36):
It's feel ugly right now.
Speaker 1 (01:48:38):
You don't realize that she can harmonize with herself.
Speaker 5 (01:48:40):
Yes, but I didn't know what specifically when you were like,
what is that that you and you should patent that.
Speaker 1 (01:48:45):
I did not know what you meant. Now and that's
since twelve you've been able to do that.
Speaker 8 (01:48:49):
Yeah, in some form, it always just sounded. There are
some things I'm working on that when I get them,
they're going to be awesome. Like I'm really working on
finding the fundament note and then work in the overtone
over that. It sounds like shit right now, but when
I can get it, it's going to be killer. I'm
still working on those chords. They don't always come out
(01:49:11):
like I like, and they don't always I'm not in
control of the color of it, and right now I
can still only do it or an ooh on awe sound.
So for me, it's not perfected. It's just something I
still I just have in my back pocket that nobody
else can do. It's just way my instrument is set up.
Way my instrument is set up.
Speaker 1 (01:49:31):
But that's the thing though, Like you just did that
so effortlessly. But I know you have to have a
place of trial and err and experimentation, and where does
that happen?
Speaker 6 (01:49:45):
Just right just now, I'm for really you can do
that thing where you go I can't do it, you
know what I'm talking about?
Speaker 1 (01:49:53):
That do it?
Speaker 6 (01:49:53):
What like when you stub your toe or when you see.
Speaker 1 (01:49:58):
Something like that? What's that one?
Speaker 6 (01:50:06):
Do that?
Speaker 1 (01:50:08):
Like that?
Speaker 6 (01:50:08):
That's pretty impressive? Impressive? I was being sincere, but I
came off the opposite. But I think I can't do that, So.
Speaker 1 (01:50:29):
I didn't know I could do it till I just
tried it. Well, yeah, I'm.
Speaker 8 (01:50:33):
Trying to learn how to sing overtones right now, right
but this sounds crazy and everybody can't hear.
Speaker 1 (01:50:39):
It, so okay, so so mmm.
Speaker 8 (01:50:50):
Like I can hear it in my head. I know
you guys can't hear it. I'm only getting a third
and a fifth, so I'm working on that and one
day I'm going to do it somewhere and it's going
to flower into this thing and people will say wow,
and they will be like, when did you work on it?
Speaker 1 (01:51:05):
I'll be like, so you are out of this world
and and again, not in an alien way or whatever,
(01:51:27):
simply brilliant.
Speaker 8 (01:51:29):
Can we can we just say we love each other
now and we'll just be friends. The last time I
saw you, you were like, you said, I find a word.
You said something, and I said, I thought I told
you that. I said, let's do what? What what did
we cover? Joelene?
Speaker 5 (01:51:49):
Yeah?
Speaker 8 (01:51:50):
And I said I've been telling you we should do that,
and you said, yeah, but now we're friends, And I
said I thought we was friends.
Speaker 1 (01:52:02):
Was yes, Well, one day I'll get over myself and
and and and be able to be in front of
your brilliance. Remember that time I came.
Speaker 8 (01:52:15):
To see you Indiangelo in the studio at that time.
Speaker 1 (01:52:19):
Doing the Voodoo period.
Speaker 8 (01:52:21):
This was like six seven years ago. Do y'all were
working listening to stuff? You don't remember?
Speaker 1 (01:52:33):
You have to remind me. It's we were in New York.
Speaker 8 (01:52:36):
I came a boy to hang out ham I do
with me and my cousin. You guys were working on
some stuff, listening to some Michael Jackson stuff.
Speaker 6 (01:52:45):
All right, So obviously they weren't just they weren't working
on stuff. They were just listening to.
Speaker 8 (01:52:51):
Just listening to.
Speaker 1 (01:52:53):
Yes, yes at uh uh.
Speaker 6 (01:52:56):
S MSR at MSR forty eighth Street or something like that.
Speaker 5 (01:53:01):
Can I just ask all the question that the music
fans are thinking right now, like, is there any chance
in the future, now that we've ironed this ship out,
that we can get like some roots lailor ship or something.
Speaker 9 (01:53:12):
Oh my god, I mean, I just I'm sorry, Ma.
Speaker 1 (01:53:14):
I know you like to put it on the spot,
but I'm like, no, listen, what I want to make
absolutely positively ten thousand percent clear is that I've always loved.
Speaker 9 (01:53:25):
Oh yeah, let's get to the work.
Speaker 1 (01:53:29):
I need you listening, car.
Speaker 5 (01:53:37):
But seriously, the fans they want, that's what they want,
especially like as you know right now and the life
and times, I just feel like there's something there.
Speaker 8 (01:53:58):
It's so nice to work with a band too. What
they never happen then you need that.
Speaker 1 (01:54:02):
Yeah, okay, she has the job. You don't have to. Yeah,
I'm not bullshitting. Yes, I would love to work with
Let's do it. There is a radio so that we're
documenting for the world here, it's like we have, like
you can a million listeners right now. Yeah, Leila, I
(01:54:23):
thank you so much. Thank you. Oh two questions.
Speaker 8 (01:54:27):
It goes so fast, doesn't it. It goes over. It
gets over so fast.
Speaker 1 (01:54:29):
It's not when it's right, when it's done right. So
I hope this question doesn't anger you because I don't
know how you feel about this particular record, but your
very first single. Some people don't like talking about their
very first records. So Inside the Beat, Oh, I didn't
know this record existed until.
Speaker 8 (01:54:48):
So Inside the Beat was a demo that we didn't
even give that demo to the people to get a deal.
So whoever boot like that and made it into a single.
People come to me and say I love you since
the eighties, and I'm like, well, no, I didn't have
any records in the eighties, just born.
Speaker 1 (01:55:05):
Yeah.
Speaker 8 (01:55:05):
That record came out, and then I did a Japanese
cigarette commercial where I recorded night and Day Wow, and
they made it into a record. It's for sale now
in Japan and it was for a cigarette commercial.
Speaker 1 (01:55:17):
And when you buy it, that explains the cover.
Speaker 8 (01:55:20):
It doesn't make any sense.
Speaker 1 (01:55:21):
It makes absolutely It's like two random white people and
you know it's a jack.
Speaker 8 (01:55:26):
So it's a dude with a teddy bear and a
ham at a bar smoking a cigarettes. I don't know
what it's for, but that record, I'm just scatting at
the end of it a cappella and they kept it
for the record. So a lot of things happened in
the eighties, but that record is so that's a funny
record to me.
Speaker 1 (01:55:42):
I have to find that now. Have you ever heard it.
I've never heard it. I didn't know it existed until
like a couple of hours.
Speaker 8 (01:55:45):
Let me just sing you the hook inside the beat?
Speaker 1 (01:55:50):
Was it.
Speaker 5 (01:55:55):
That?
Speaker 8 (01:56:02):
It's a super super disco type you know, occasionally I
got throw it into a DJ's eighties. It's super eighties.
Don't judge me.
Speaker 1 (01:56:10):
When you hear I'm gonna love it probably. And my
final question, how did you hook up with Martin Ware
and uh Ian the I can't remember his name?
Speaker 8 (01:56:19):
People.
Speaker 1 (01:56:19):
Yeah, for.
Speaker 8 (01:56:21):
After my first record, I did a lot of records.
They were one of the groups of folks that approached
me and said, hey, can you come and be on
our record? And Billy Preston was there and we record
that slide tune. I don't even know. I just got
really lucky based on my first record. People came to
me that I would not have associated with the type
(01:56:43):
of music I was recording, Like Marcus Miller came and
I started working with him until now.
Speaker 1 (01:56:47):
You know.
Speaker 8 (01:56:48):
So, I don't know how I got so lucky.
Speaker 1 (01:56:52):
I just because I always thought that was kind of
a strange pairing. I mean, the end result was great,
but it's not one that I would have.
Speaker 8 (01:56:58):
I have a record out now with a cat called
Miss Jukes. You know that record. It's a really interesting record.
I don't know how this kid knows who I am.
You know, he's a huge star somewhere else in the world.
And I made a record with him, and I don't
know how that happens. I have lots of records. People
say I have all your albums, even the obscure ones,
and I'm like, no, you don't. There are records that
(01:57:20):
I'm on in Japanese that only came out like in Fukuoka.
Like really, you know? So I just keep getting lucky.
Speaker 1 (01:57:29):
What's your favorite market to perform?
Speaker 8 (01:57:32):
I love Atlanta, I love Tokyo. I haven't been a
whole lot of places. Actually, LA is becoming one of
my favorite places to play. It was a hard place
to play in the beginning because people would just come
sit and look at me, right, you know, But that
happens everywhere I go. Like there's a certain amount of
(01:57:53):
people in the front row that are just kind of
like in some sort of weird I see your father trance,
you know, which I recognized.
Speaker 1 (01:58:02):
Sorry, it's all right. How did the Mary tour end
up going?
Speaker 8 (01:58:08):
It was cool, It was a lot of fun. It
was great to be in front of her audience, even
though I know that part of that audience is kind
of my audience as well. Every night, my DJ would say,
how many of y'all this is your first Layla Hathaway show,
and a lot of hands went up, and that told me, like,
I'm in the right place. You know, I'm getting in
front of folks.
Speaker 1 (01:58:24):
That's awesome. I'm good. Okay, Well Layla, anyone, anyone? Anyone?
Thank you?
Speaker 6 (01:58:35):
What was the song we worked on at Electric Lady?
First time I met you? It was like a.
Speaker 1 (01:58:41):
Was it a Mary J.
Speaker 8 (01:58:42):
Blige record?
Speaker 5 (01:58:45):
I did do that?
Speaker 1 (01:58:46):
I was assist which one?
Speaker 8 (01:58:48):
What was I producing?
Speaker 1 (01:58:49):
Mary J.
Speaker 8 (01:58:49):
Blige and Stevie Wonder?
Speaker 1 (01:58:50):
No?
Speaker 6 (01:58:51):
No, no, it was Is that a Christmas song?
Speaker 9 (01:58:53):
Maybe you dropped that though that that happened once?
Speaker 6 (01:58:57):
Was it might have been a cover of of This
Christmas for some like.
Speaker 8 (01:59:03):
I just did. I just did that for Spotify for
the first time. Wait, what year was it you remember?
Speaker 6 (01:59:08):
It would be the late nineties something like that or
early two thousands.
Speaker 8 (01:59:15):
You remember who the session was with?
Speaker 6 (01:59:17):
No, I don't remember much of anything.
Speaker 8 (01:59:18):
I hear you, man, I don't know. I feel like
I've always known you. I don't know if I ever
tell you that. There's something about you that I feel
like I have always known, and I don't.
Speaker 5 (01:59:29):
Know what that is.
Speaker 1 (01:59:30):
Every engineer you've ever met, No, but you.
Speaker 8 (01:59:33):
Remind me of this kid I went to high school
with named Todd Heckman, who gave me a lot of records.
There's something about you I connect with, not I don't
know what that is.
Speaker 1 (01:59:41):
All right, Maybe it's the records.
Speaker 6 (01:59:44):
Maybe I'm going over to house and.
Speaker 1 (01:59:53):
So have you? Have you? Have you fulfilled your bucket
list as far as the people that you've wanted.
Speaker 8 (02:00:01):
To almost work with almost, I mean, ship, Well, there's
a lot left. I mean, but if I got hit
by a bus today, I have to say, well.
Speaker 1 (02:00:13):
We did.
Speaker 8 (02:00:13):
Prince did, Billy Preston, Anita Shaka, Vince Mendoza, Herbie Wayne,
Dizzy Little.
Speaker 1 (02:00:30):
Wow.
Speaker 8 (02:00:30):
I don't know, I really there's a lot of people left, and.
Speaker 1 (02:00:37):
Now we got to work together because I don't want
to be on the I don't. I don't want to.
Speaker 8 (02:00:43):
I want to be I already already know. There's there's
a few people I really want to work with that
I talk to every time I see them about working
and I know it's not going to happen to go around.
Who Stevie? You haven't worked with him yet, not officially.
Speaker 1 (02:00:58):
Man, I would have thought he would have been the
first one. He can't.
Speaker 8 (02:01:00):
He's he's he's you know, yeah, we we always talk
about it. He's got a song for me. I need
to go. I need to call him. I'm gonna call Aisha.
I'm gonna keep calling. I'm gonna keep trying to do
it every time, but I don't know that it's gonna happen.
Speaker 1 (02:01:14):
Wait a minute, and it's okay, no, wait wait now
I'm thinking that's the thing. Yeah, now I'm thinking what
song would she be good for? No, because one time
I heard him trying to give Knocking on your Door
to Jennifer Hudson really and I was like, no, I
(02:01:37):
was Jennifer husband. But it's just that song, right, Yeah,
I'm jealously you know what, I think I might know one.
We have to we have to can't play it on there, damn. Okay,
y'all saying y'alluys really Stevie stuff going on? We would
(02:01:58):
never say that, and thank you. Never know that public
throwing us under the bus on your own radio shown. Yes,
even the Pandora people are looking at you. You say,
woman's wrong drinking. Yeah, I got some underleased from literally
Stevie J, some underly Steve J track that he did
for the mister Dalvin record.
Speaker 2 (02:02:19):
Yeah, yeah, it came out on Everick it came out,
it did, mister Yeah, wait, mister.
Speaker 1 (02:02:28):
Had a album met a morph Morphic single was called
and actually that's why he did those DJ Blad interviews
by himself. I was wondering why, like he was getting
the star treatment, like he had a project out, but
well this was like ninety yeah, it was came it
was back in the day. No, no, that horrible.
Speaker 9 (02:02:50):
It was not heard him saying the joint.
Speaker 2 (02:02:55):
His mister Davin jams was always the soundtrack jams. Like
his soundtrack jams.
Speaker 1 (02:02:59):
He has one true o G that was on Dangerous Mind.
There was there was another one that was you know what,
I want an episode where you two just Cisco and
Ebert whoever that is, whoever that is Wells and Ebert,
every R and B record. No, I'm down for that.
(02:03:22):
It's an art watching these two like go Got Got
Over I never heard of before, obscure B sides and soundtrack.
Speaker 11 (02:03:31):
Songs you never heard of, mister Belvedere. All right, so yeah,
so Stevie, yeah, Stete, all right.
Speaker 8 (02:03:42):
There's a lot of people though, you know, because when
I mean people, they say I want to make a
whole record with you. They don't say we want to
make a song like That's why I came to see
D'Angelo that night. He's another one. I keep telling him
we should make the Blackish record. Ever, we should do
it now, while we're both living. We should both we
should do it now.
Speaker 9 (02:04:00):
Give her our chances of mere what you think?
Speaker 8 (02:04:01):
Every time he says it, he says, you know, I
love you. I want to do it. Let's do it.
Speaker 1 (02:04:09):
It's more on b it's more. I wish d Angela
was on the show for three words were words. We
had a wager. What was the wager everybody was going
to get? It was one hundred one thousand, one thousand
dollars Christmas bonus. They said that I could never get
d angel on the show. And it just so happens
(02:04:30):
that Dangela had to stop by the studio to pick
something up nice and I love it. And then he
went out for a pack of cigarettes and never came back.
Right pulled the black Daddy on us. Black dad anyway.
H yeah, I thank you for coming on the show.
Speaker 8 (02:04:47):
Thank you, thank you.
Speaker 1 (02:04:48):
I had so much fun with you, man, thank you,
thank you. We want to do this for a long time.
We've been trying to we're trying to catch this other
and stuff.
Speaker 9 (02:04:57):
Thank you so much for doing this, making it happen.
Speaker 8 (02:05:00):
How long you're gonna be here.
Speaker 1 (02:05:02):
Forever? We're shooting forever. He'll be here forever, well, not forever.
I mean, we're going to do a couple more episodes
and then you know, I'm in town to like Tuesday Wednesday, you.
Speaker 8 (02:05:14):
Want to go bowling or something?
Speaker 9 (02:05:15):
Yeah, I live here, let's go.
Speaker 1 (02:05:17):
Where do you live?
Speaker 9 (02:05:18):
Hollywood?
Speaker 1 (02:05:19):
So yeah, I thank you for coming on the show. Leila,
appreciate it. Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you,
thank you, thank you. Appreciated and we will we will
work in the future. So on behalf of the team,
Supreme Crew on, behalf of the teams.
Speaker 9 (02:05:34):
You're not part of the team, so you ain't gonna
say our names. It's not usually like Bill, you know.
Speaker 1 (02:05:39):
Yeah, we want some individual credit, all right, Sugar Steve
and in Boston, Bill and font Tikeolo and sweet Feet.
It's like, is sweet feet all right? It's might be
(02:06:03):
so yeah, Actually, Lela, we we sort of did work together.
Now that I think of it, it does not count. Well,
then then you and Nancy Wilson didn't count, then.
Speaker 8 (02:06:12):
It does count.
Speaker 1 (02:06:13):
That does count record Technically we work together because of
the Hidden Figure soundtrack that the Roots just totally remade.
Speaker 8 (02:06:23):
Uhn' wait to hear the whole thing.
Speaker 1 (02:06:25):
Yes, it's it's freaking awesome and we're gonna release it
for a record store day. Yeah. And this is your
contribution called Surrender and my favorite joint on the record. Yeah,
thank you. West Love Supreme is a production iHeartRadio. This
(02:06:49):
classic episode was produced by the team at Endora. For
more podcasts from iHeart Radio, visit the iHeart Radio app,
Apple podcast, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.
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Laiya St. Clair
Questlove
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