You can
tell when a woman has finally come into her own. It's in the swivel of her
hips, the growl in her voice and the joy that brightens her face when she
smiles. A woman filled with confidence is a force to be reckoned with. For
singer songwriter Ledisi, that exuberance rings through on every track of her
new album The Truth. "I
changed my life!" Ledisi says with a laugh. "With every album I grow,
and with The Truth I am really starting to accept myself fully. I mean, I've
always felt great about myself, but this time I've gone to a new level." The
result is an album filled not only with Ledisi's trademark soaring ballads but
also something unexpected: a generous collection of up-tempo, beat-driven
celebrations of love and lust. Ledisi describes the effort as "vibrant,
sensual and fun. Of all of my recordings, this is definitely my favorite album
ever."
Her first single, I Blame You, is a joyful reflection on that new-found love. "This other person made me feel beautiful," she says. "And that made me look at myself and see myself in a different light." Her friend and collaborator, Claude Kelly (Britney Spears, Kelly Clarkson, Christina Aguilera) came up with title. "I came into the studio and Claude asked me how I was feeling and I said, 'I feel excited about myself,'" she recalls. "I told him someone was making me smile and he thought of the idea of blaming the other person for building me up. But of course, that only works if you are open to it." "That song was the beginning of me letting go," she continues. "I realized, it's okay for you to leave something that's not working. Of course, it's scary to realize the truth and then go ahead and make a move. But that's what you have to do. Basically it comes down to, are you going to stay here and be miserable or are you going to leap and go for what you want?"
Ledisi says while creating Lose Control, which she co-wrote with long-time producer Rex Rideout (Luther Vandross, Angie Stone, Will Downing), she drew on the experiences of people around her. "I asked Rex, how does it feel to feel to be married?" she recalls. "And I asked another producer, how does it feel to be single? And I thought to myself, wouldn't it be nice if people started getting excited about getting intimate? We don't have enough songs like that, songs that describe romance. Wouldn't it be good to describe what we are going to do in a classy intimate and aggressive way? Why can't women lead?"
Ledisi explains that her new music is a reflection of her journey of self-discovery. "There was a time when I felt like I had to please everybody," she says. "Now I'm like 'I don't care anymore,' I just want to be fully out there and be the person I really am, which is someone who loves being open and fun." But all this self love didn't enter Ledisi's life without her shedding some baggage. In 88 Boxes, Ledisi tells an intimate tale of a failed relationship. "If you would have said 'I loved you,' I would have turned around and stayed. But you said nothing. Did you really love me?" Ledisi sings on the hauntingly beautiful track that is as mournful as it is memorable.
"88 Boxes is about me letting go," she explains. "I was moving out and had to count how many boxes I had for the moving truck. For women, it's hard for us to leave things and people that we love. We stay in situations almost like martyrs to ourselves. At the same time I was leaving, I am recognizing that the other person didn't want me to leave but didn't know how to say the words, 'Don't go.' In 88 Boxes, I am being somewhat sympathetic to that...but I am also focusing on the reality of what is...the end of a love affair."
The track, which Ledisi had originally penned as a poem, was recorded in a single take. "I laid it down in the dark," she remembers. "Everyone had been telling me how I should record the song, but my vocal producer, Roland Jack, who is like a brother to me, said, "Led I want you to do what you wrote. Forget all these people. Get your butt in that booth and sing the truth. When I came out the room everybody had their mouths open like, "Oh my God!" It was one of the hardest songs to record and it's honest."
Ledisi's courage to be so vulnerable isn't the only positive byproduct of her transformation. "Over the past few years, I've really had to ask myself, 'Who are you and what do you want to be,'" she reflects. "I did some mediation and I started working out hard. Not like how I used to where I would do a couple of crunches and then drink a soda! Now I'm really challenging myself. And I love this girl! She's free and uninhibited and having fun with life. I've learned that when you really love who you are, it radiates! It all starts from the within. It all starts from accepting The Truth."
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