India.Arie

singer; songwriter

Personal Information

Born India Simpson on October 3, 1975, in Denver, CO; daughter of Marie Simpson, (fashion designer) and Ralph Simpson, (minister and former NBA player).
Education: Savannah College of Arts and Design, studied jewelry making.

Life's Work

India.Arie's sound has been described as feel good and uplifting. It has been called Neo-soul and R&B. And even though she has only recorded one album to date, critics are calling her music the work of an artist. In 2001 India.Arie took the music world by storm with her debut album, Acoustic Soul, and no matter how she was described or in what category her music was placed in, she seemed unstoppable.

Began Singing as a Toddler

Arie remembereds singing as early as one years old. "We sing at church and at home, at Christmas," she told Ebony. Her mother, Marie, now known only as Simpson, was almost one of early Motown's singing acts, so the music is in her blood. She was born in Denver to Simpson and former NBA star Ralph Simpson.

In 1988 she and her mother moved to Atlanta where she turned to the music in her past to deal with the difficulties of being an adolescent. "While I was growing up, I dressed differently. I liked different music. I looked different," she explained in Ebony. But the teasing did not force Arie to change; it only made her stronger and more expressive which is the key to her music. She expressed herself musically as a child, but focused on singing songs that already existed. She appreciated singers and songwriters like Stevie Wonder and Donnie Hathaway so much that she didn't take her own music seriously. "I didn't write songs; I just sang, and that wasn't enough for me," she said on her website, www.indiaarie.com. After high school, Arie moved away from music and explored another creative direction by enrolling in jewelry making classes at the Savannah College of Arts and Design after graduation. Music, however, wouldn't stay out of her life for long.

In 1995 Arie learned to play the guitar and began writing her own music. "I jumped on it right away and I was out playing my first two songs within a month." She had taken up several different instruments during her middle and high school years and always sang in the school choir, but Arie found her true musical muse in the guitar. She first played her own original music at small venues, including coffeehouses, just to have an audience hear it. The songs Arie created were about her life experiences and the lessons in courage she had learned along the way. To reach a larger audience, she eventually formed an independent label, Groovement/Earthseed. She released a compilation record that featured several new artists and earned her a spot at the 1998 Lilith Fair concerts in St Louise and Nashville.

Released Acoustic Soul

During that time, Arie caught the attention of Motown executive, Kedar Messenberg. He was so impressed with her music and style that he offered Arie a recording contract that would not require any of the musical or image changes that artist are often required to adhere to. "With Kedar I felt I could express myself the way I wanted to," she said to Ebony. He allowed Arie to record and reach the public without compromising her style or integrity.

A two-year process that produced one of 2001 most critically acclaimed releases is what emerged from their deal. The debut album, Acoustic Soul, mixed the experiences of Arie's life in friendly melodies over folk, jazz and R&B elements in the music. It also featured the artist on her acoustic guitar. Arie wrote or co-wrote most of the songs on the album. The release reached platinum status by 2002 selling more than one million units. The effort was so powerful that it earned Arie a spot as the opening act on the Sade Tour in 2001. Arie had completed the transition from coffee house artist to star by playing stadiums that housed more than 20,000 listeners.

Arie mentioned on her website that she simply wanted her music to be heard. Her first single, Video, became the positive affirmation that was heard around America. She quietly gained momentum as one of the few artists celebrating black beauty and loving oneself. She appeared on the Oprah Winfrey show with other artists of her caliber where Oprah personally thanked her for making Video. Acoustic Soul featured many other must-hear songs such as Brown Skin, Promises, Ready for Love, and Beautiful. Each song highlighted her writing skills and sultry alto voice. A review from People Weekly praised Arie for remembering the blues half of R&B music at a time when most artists are focusing on the beats and rhythms.

Arie liked her music being classified as feel good music and considered herself in good company. She was trying to bring a spiritual energy to her work. "My album is inspired by the power of the words and knowing that the things you say are a motivational force," she explained in Jet. "The more you say something, the more it creates that energy around you...Speak words of beauty and you will be there."

Honored Greats

Because of the inspiration she received from great musical artists that came before her and the support she received from her family, Arie included several passages on her album to honor these people. She mentioned artists as varied as Sam Cooke, John Coltrane, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and Karen Carpenter. Calling on the energy of past greats apparently worked because her release received another distinction that pleased the artist; the most Grammy nominations of any African American artist in 2002. She received seven nominations in total that included Album of the Year, Best Song of the Year and Best New Artist. Although she lost in all of the categories, Arie was honored by the nominations. She even attributed the nominations with giving her album a second wind that pushed sales over the platinum mark.

Fame also came with her many nominations and busy debut year. Arie considered the recognition something to get used to. She was admittedly a moody person who had been determined not to let the music business change her, "But now I meet a lot of people and I have to learn how to still communicate with people, open-heartedly, no matter what kind of mood I'm in," she told Jet. "That has been a real challenge." Arie expressed her ultimate feelings about music best on her website. "I think music has the ability to heal, the ability to destroy, to teach," she said. " ... It just goes. It's like pure energy that lives forever." India.Arie's music promises to raise the bar for feel-good music and appeal to both fans and critics alike.

Awards

Grammy Nominations-- Video, Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best R&B Song, 2002; Acoustic Soul, Album of the Year, Best R&B Album, 2002; Best New Artist and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.

India.Arie

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