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Tracy Chapman

 
Black Biography: Tracy Chapman

singer; songwriter

Personal Information

Born in Cleveland, Ohio, on March 30, 1964.
Education: Graduated from Tufts University.

Career

Singer-songwriter; released debut album, Tracy Chapman, 1988; participated in 1--nation Amnesty International tour, 1988; released Crossroads, 1989; released Matters of the Heart, 1992; released New Beginning, 1995; performed on Lilith Fair tour, 1996; released Telling Stories, 2000.

Life's Work

With a unique style that combined folk music with an African American sensibility, singer-songwriter Tracy Chapman took the pop-music world by storm in 1988. That year, her debut album was released. It sold upwards of ten million copies, and its lead single "Fast Car" became almost universally known among music fans. One of the few late twentieth-century musicians in any genre outside of hip-hop to succeed in delivering a political message to a wide audience, Chapman also helped pave the way for the resurgence of strong, independent female voices in the popular music of the late 1990s.

Chapman was born on March 30, 1964, in Cleveland, Ohio. Her parents divorced when she was four, and her mother found it extremely difficult to raise Chapman and her older sister Aneta. "Sometimes there was no electricity, or the gas would be shut off," Chapman told Time. "I remember standing with my mother in the line to get food stamps." Her mother was a music lover with a large record collection and a determination to nurture her daughter's musical talents. Chapman played the ukulele in elementary school, and later studied clarinet and organ.

Watched "Hee Haw"

It might seem easy to assume that Chapman's bent toward political folk music came about after she entered the elite educational institutions to which she later gained admission. In fact, both her interest in politics and her attraction to the guitar began while she was still in Cleveland. "As a child, I always had a sense of social conditions and political situations," she told Rolling Stone. "I think it had to do with the fact that my mother was always discussing things with my sister and me--also because I read a lot." Another influence, surprisingly enough, came from country music. "One of the things that made me want to learn how to play guitar was watching Buck Owens and Roy Clark and Minnie Pearl on Hee Haw when I was 8 years old," she told Time. "The guitars they played were beautiful."

Chapman won an ABC (A Better Chance) scholarship to the prestigious Wooster School, a prep school in Danbury, Connecticut. She honed her songwriting skills in the school's coffeehouse, starred on its basketball and soccer teams, and was heavily recruited by several top colleges as she approached her graduation in 1982. Enrolling at Tufts University outside Boston, Chapman began studying veterinary medicine, but later switched to anthropology and ethnomusicology--the study of music from outside Western traditions. She continued singing and, on one occasion, played for loose change in the busy public spaces of Harvard Square.

Chapman gained a strong following in the numerous folk coffeehouses and clubs of Boston and nearby Cambridge. She numbered among her admirers a fellow Tufts student, Brian Koppelman, whose father Charles Koppelman was an executive at the large SBK music publishing firm. Chapman's contact with the elder Koppelman, who was bowled over by her songs, led to others. She teamed with veteran manager Elliot Roberts, who had worked with folk-rock stars Joni Mitchell and Neil Young, and was signed to the Elektra record label.

Debut Album Reaches Number One

Chapman began her career almost reluctantly, showing little interest in financial gain and, at one point, turning down an offer from an independent label so as not to interrupt her studies. Promising though her first steps might have seemed, neither Chapman nor anyone at Elektra could have been prepared for the success of her debut album Tracy Chapman, which was released in 1988. The album reached the Number One position on Billboard magazine's pop charts, a rare accomplishment for an unknown newcomer. "Fast Car," a vivid, densely packed narrative of a young woman who dreams of a better future but is dragged down by a series of troubles, became one of the most widely heard songs of the late 1980s.

The album owed its success to a variety of virtues. Often compared with folk/jazz vocalist Joan Armatrading, Chapman also resembled 1960s folk icon Richie Havens in her ability to bring a distinctively African American sensibility to the predominantly white-oriented genre of folk music. However musically distant her style might seem from those of the rap artists who were beginning to flourish in the late 1980s, Chapman shared with the rappers an ambitious way with words and a desire to tell the stories of the American underclass. Some of her songs had a vaguely Caribbean sound, and she drew on the heavily verbal qualities of genres from that part of the world. That aspect of Chapman's music was reinforced visually by her trademark short dreadlocks.

Such songs as "Talkin' Bout a Revolution" espoused an uncompromising political message that was light-years away from the shiny dance pop that was the norm during the late 1980s. Chapman became the subject of intense publicity for some months after the release of her debut album. She won Best New Artist and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance Grammy awards, and several other major awards. Expectations ran high for Chapman's sophomore release, Crossroads, which was released in 1989.

Sales Slipped

Crossroads sold four million copies, a smash hit by any standards except for those of an artist whose debut album had sold ten million. Sales slipped further with the release of Chapman's third album, Matters of the Heart, in 1992. Some critics speculated that the public had grown tired of Chapman's political themes. However, like many other folk-oriented artists, Chapman had been writing songs for many years before making her first recording. She had gradually exhausted her storehouse of material and, as she recorded subsequent albums, was unable to write new material under the glare of publicity and celebrity.

Indeed, when Chapman's New Beginning album put her back near the top of the charts in 1995, it was due to the success of a song, "Give Me One Reason," that she had written a decade earlier while still in college. Fans still flocked to Chapman's concerts, and public admiration of her music's distinctiveness remained strong. She became a star attraction on the all-female Lilith Fair tour in 1996. After the release of the New Beginning album, Chapman took a leave of absence from the recording process. "I felt like my life was on this cycle that was beyond my control," she told Time. "Making records and touring, making records and touring, and in that process not being at home and not being settled. They weren't particularly happy times."

Chapman re-emerged in 2000 with her fifth album, Telling Stories. Reviews were mixed, with Interview praising the album's "intimate and personal" quality and noting approvingly that Chapman "doesn't make an album until she's got something to say." Entertainment Weekly was less enthusiastic, remarking that "Chapman remains an enigma: an intelligent, levelheaded craftsperson unable to convey any emotion beyond resignation." Whatever the future direction of her career, Chapman had already fulfilled the ambition of the woman she depicted in the song "Fast Car": to "be someone, be someone."

Awards

Three Grammy awards, including Best New Artist, for Tracy Chapman, 1988.

Works

Selected discography

  • Tracy Chapman, Elektra, 1988.
  • Crossroads, Elektra, 1989.
  • Matters of the Heart, Elektra, 1992.
  • New Beginning, Elektra, 1995.
  • Telling Stories, Elektra/Asylum, 2000.

Further Reading

Books

  • Contemporary Musicians, volume 4, Gale, 1991; volume 20, Gale, 1997.
  • Graff, Gary, ed., MusicHound Rock: The Essential Guide, Visible Ink, 1996.
  • Larkin, Colin, ed., The Encyclopedia of Popular Music, Muze UK, 1998.
  • Smith, Jessie Carney, ed., Notable Black American Women, Book II, Gale, 1996.
Periodicals
  • Billboard, February 12, 2000, p. 11.
  • Entertainment Weekly, February 18, 2000, p. 86.
  • Interview, March 2000, p. 88.
  • Life, August 1988, p. 60.
  • The Nation, July 6, 1992, p. 30.
  • Playboy, July 1988, p. 26.
  • Rolling Stone, September 22, 1998, p. 54.
  • Time, March 12, 1990, p. 70; February 28, 2000, p. 92.
Other
  • Additional information for this profile was obtained from http://www.allmusic.com.

— James M. Manheim

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Quotes By: Tracy Chapman
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Quotes:

"I'm a hopeful cynic."

Artist: Tracy Chapman
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See Tracy Chapman Lyrics
  • Born: March 30, 1964, Cleveland, OH
  • Active: '80s, '90s, 2000s
  • Genres: Rock
  • Instrument: Vocals
  • Representative Albums: "Tracy Chapman," "Collection," "Where You Live"
  • Representative Songs: "Give Me One Reason," "Baby Can I Hold You," "Fast Car"

Biography

Tracy Chapman helped restore singer/songwriters to the spotlight in the '80s. The multi-platinum success of Chapman's eponymous 1988 debut was unexpected, and it had lasting impact. Although Chapman was working from the same confessional singer/songwriter foundation that had been popularized in the '70s, her songs were fresh and powerful, driven by simple melodies and affecting lyrics. At the time of her first album, there were only a handful of artists performing such a style successfully, and her success ushered in a new era of singer/songwriters that lasted well into the '90s. Furthermore, her album helped usher in the era of political correctness -- along with 10,000 Maniacs and R.E.M., Chapman's liberal politics proved enormously influential on American college campuses in the late '80s. Of course, such implications meant that Chapman's subsequent recordings were greeted with mixed reactions, but after several years out of the spotlight, she managed to make a very successful comeback in 1996 with her fourth album, New Beginning, thanks to the Top Ten single "Give Me One Reason."

Raised in a working class neighborhood in Cleveland, OH, Chapman learned how to play guitar as a child, and began to write her own songs shortly afterward. Following high school, she won a minority placement scholarship and decided to attend Tufts University, where she studied anthropology and African studies. While at Tufts, she became fascinated with folk-rock and singer/songwriters, and began performing her own songs at coffeehouses. Eventually, she recorded a set of demos at the college radio station. One of her fellow students, Brian Koppelman, heard Chapman play and recommended her to his father, Charles Koppelman, who ran SBK Publishing. In 1986, she signed with SBK and Koppelman secured a management contract with Elliot Roberts, who had worked with Neil Young and Joni Mitchell. Roberts and Koppelman helped Chapman sign to Elektra in 1987.

Chapman recorded her debut album with David Kershenbaum, and the resulting eponymous record was released in the spring of 1988. Tracy Chapman was greeted with enthusiastic reviews, and she set out on the road supporting 10,000 Maniacs. Within a few months, she played at the internationally televised concert for Nelson Mandela's 70th birthday party, where her performance was greeted with thunderous applause. Soon, the single "Fast Car" began climbing the charts, eventually peaking at number six. The album's sales soared along with the single, and by the end of the year, the record had gone multi-platinum. Early the following year, the record won four Grammys, including Best New Artist.

It was an auspicious beginning to Chapman's career, and it was perhaps inevitable that her second album, 1989's darker, more political Crossroads, wasn't as successful. Although it was well-reviewed, the album wasn't as commercially successful, peaking at number nine and quickly falling down the charts. Following Crossroads, Chapman spent a few years in seclusion, returning in 1992 with Matters of the Heart. The album was greeted with mixed reviews and weak sales, and Chapman had fallen into cult status. Three years later, she returned with New Beginning, which received stronger reviews than its predecessor. The bluesy "Give Me One Reason" was pulled as the first single, and it slowly became a hit, sending the album into the U.S. Top Ten in early 1996. It was a quiet, successful comeback from an artist most observers had already consigned to forever languish in cult status. Telling Stories followed in early 2000. Let It Rain followed two years later. For 2005's Where You Live, Chapman co-produced the album with Tchad Blake. Our Bright Future, co-produced by Chapman and Larry Klein, appeared in 2008. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
Wikipedia: Tracy Chapman
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Tracy Chapman

Tracy Chapman in Bruges 2009
Background information
Born March 30, 1964 (1964-03-30) (age 45)
Origin Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
Genres Folk, blues, alternative rock, pop, soul
Occupations Singer–songwriter, musician
Instruments Vocals, guitar, harp, bouzouki, banjo, clarinet, keyboards, organ, percussion, harmonica
Years active 1988–present
Labels Elektra Records
Website Official Site

Tracy Chapman (born March 30, 1964) is an American singer–songwriter, best known for her singles "Fast Car", "Talkin' 'bout a Revolution", "Baby Can I Hold You", "Give Me One Reason", "The Promise" and "Telling Stories". She is a multi-platinum and four-time Grammy Award-winning artist.[1]

Contents

Biography

Chapman was born in Cleveland, Ohio where she was raised by her mother. Despite not having much money, her mother recognized Tracy's love of music and bought her a ukulele at the age of three[2] Tracy Chapman began playing guitar and writing songs at the age of eight. She says she may have been first inspired to play the guitar by the TV Show Hee Haw.[3]

Chapman was raised Baptist and went to an Episcopalian high school.[4] She was quickly accepted into the program A Better Chance, which enabled her to attend Wooster School in Connecticut; she subsequently attended Tufts University.[5] At Tufts she studied anthropology and African studies.[6]

In the mid-90s Chapman dated author Alice Walker.[7]

In May 2004, Tufts honored her with an honorary degree of Doctor of Fine Arts, for her strongly committed contributions as a socially conscious and artistically accomplished musician.

Chapman often performs at and attends charity events such as Make Poverty History, amfAR and AIDS/LifeCycle. She currently lives in San Francisco and says she enjoys going to the beach, going to the woods, a really good meal with friends, and fresh organic food.[8] Chapman maintains a strong separation between her personal and professional lives. “I have a public life that’s my work life and I have my personal life,” she said. “In some ways, the decision to keep the two things separate relates to the work I do."[9]

Career

During college, Chapman began street-performing in Harvard Square and playing guitar in coffeehouses in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Another Tufts student, Brian Koppelman, heard Chapman playing and brought Chapman to the attention of his father, Charles Koppelman. Charles ran SBK Publishing and in 1986 signed Chapman. In 1987, after Chapman graduated from Tufts, he helped sign her to Elektra Records.[10]

At Elektra, she released Tracy Chapman (1988). The album was critically acclaimed, and she began touring and building a fanbase. Soon after she performed it at the televised Nelson Mandela 70th Birthday Tribute concert in June 1988, Chapman's "Fast Car" began its rise on the US charts, eventually becoming a #6 pop hit on the Billboard Hot 100. "Talkin' 'bout a Revolution", the follow-up, charted at #75 and was followed by "Baby Can I Hold You", which peaked at #48. The album sold well, going multi-platinum and winning three Grammy Awards, including an honor for Chapman as Best New Artist. Later in 1988, Chapman was a featured performer on the worldwide Amnesty International Human Rights Now! Tour. According to the VH1 website, "her album helped usher in the era of political correctness - along with 10,000 Maniacs and R.E.M., Chapman's liberal politics proved enormously influential on American college campuses in the late '80s".[11]

Her follow-up album Crossroads (1989) was less commercially successful, but still achieved platinum status. By 1992's Matters of the Heart, Chapman was playing to a small and devoted audience. However, her fourth album, 1995's New Beginning proved successful, selling over three million copies in the U.S. alone. The album included the hit single "Give Me One Reason", which won the 1997 Grammy for Best Rock Song and became Chapman's most successful single to date, peaking at #3 on the Billboard Hot 100. Her next album was 2000's Telling Stories, which featured more of a rock sound than folk. Its hit single, "Telling Stories", received heavy airplay on European radio stations and on Adult Alternative and Hot AC stations in the United States. She toured Europe and the US in 2003 in support of her sixth album, Let It Rain (2002).

Where You Live, Chapman's seventh studio album, was released in September 2005; a brief supporting tour in major US cities followed in October and continued throughout Europe over the remainder of the year. The "Where You Live" tour was extended into 2006; the 28-date European tour featured summer concerts in Germany, Italy, France, Sweden, Finland, Norway, the U.K, Russia and more. On June 5, 2006, she performed at the 5th Gala of Jazz in Lincoln Center, New York, and in a session at the 2007 TED (Technology Entertainment Design) conference in Monterey, California.

Chapman composed original music for the American Conservatory Theater production of Athol Fugard's Blood Knot, an acclaimed play on apartheid in South Africa staged in early 2008.[12]

On November 11, 2008, Atlantic Records released Chapman's eighth studio album, Our Bright Future.[13] Following the album's release, Chapman completed a 26-date solo tour of Europe. She toured Europe and selected North American cities on an encore tour during the summer of 2009. She was backed by Joe Gore on guitars, Patrick Warren on keyboards, and Dawn Richardson on percussion.[14] Gore and Richardson also reside in San Francisco.[15]

Discography

Contributions

Duet songs:

Covered songs:

Cover versions:

  • "Sorry (Baby Can I Hold You?)" — Foxy Brown on the Taxi riddim produced by Steely & Clevie.
  • "Baby Can I Hold You?" — reached number 2 on the UK chart in 1997 performed by Boyzone.
  • "Talkin' Bout a Revolution" — Reel Big Fish, "Our Live Album Is Better Than Your Live Album", Disc 1, 2006.
Awards and achievements
Preceded by
Jody Watley
Grammy Award for Best New Artist
1989
Succeeded by
Milli Vanilli
Preceded by
Whitney Houston
for "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)"
Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance
1989
for "Fast Car"
Succeeded by
Bonnie Raitt
for "Nick of Time"
Preceded by
Steve Goodman
for Unfinished Business
Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album
1989
for Tracy Chapman
Succeeded by
Indigo Girls
for Indigo Girls
Preceded by
Glen Ballard and Alanis Morissette
for "You Oughta Know"
Grammy Award for Best Rock Song
1997
for "Give Me One Reason"
Succeeded by
Wallflowers
for "One Headlight"

References

  1. ^ GRAMMY Winners Search
  2. ^ Williamson, Nigel. Tracy Chapman Biography, liner notes, Collection, http://www.about-tracy-chapman.net/biography-by-nigel-williamson-2001/, July 2001, Kent, England
  3. ^ Martin, Michael. "Without Further Ado, Songstress Tracy Chapman Returns", National Public Radio, August 20, 2009, http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=112056043&ft=1&f=1003
  4. ^ Martin, Michael. "Without Further Ado, Songstress Tracy Chapman Returns", National Public Radio, August 20, 2009, http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=112056043&ft=1&f=1003
  5. ^ About Tracy Chapman
  6. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. All Music Guide, http://www.pandora.com/music/artist/tracy+chapman
  7. ^ Wajid, Sara. "No retreat", The Guardian, December 15, 2006, http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2006/dec/15/gender.world
  8. ^ Martin, Michael. "Without Further Ado, Songstress Tracy Chapman Returns", National Public Radio, August 20, 2009, http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=112056043&ft=1&f=1003
  9. ^ Associated Press, "2002 – Tracy Chapman still introspective?", All About Tracy Chapman, http://www.about-tracy-chapman.net/2002-tracy-chapman-still-introspective/, New York
  10. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. All Music Guide, http://www.pandora.com/music/artist/tracy+chapman
  11. ^ http://www.vh1.com/artists/az/chapman_tracy/bio.jhtml Vh1.com Retrieved on 20 March 2009.
  12. ^ "A.C.T. Tackles Big Issues in Fugard's Blood Knot". American Conservatory Theater website. http://www.act-sf.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=5339&news_iv_ctrl=-1. Retrieved 18 March 2009. 
  13. ^ "Tracy Chapman". Atlantic Records official website. http://www.atlanticrecords.com/tracychapman. Retrieved 16 March 2009. 
  14. ^ M., Aurelia, "Tracy Chapman European / US Tour Dates 2009", All About Tracy Chapman, http://www.about-tracy-chapman.net/2009-tracy-chapman-tour-dates-2009/, December 22, 2008
  15. ^ Chapman, Tracy. Mentioned live at The Fillmore, San Francisco, California, August 21, 2009

External links


 
 
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Andie MacDowell: Saturday Night Live (TV Episode) (1989 Comedy TV Episode)
Crossroads/Tracy Chapman (2008 Album by Tracy Chapman)

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