LOS
ANGELES (India.Arie Official Website) - In an age when many musicians
aspire to a record deal by sounding like this week's chart-topping
favorites, India.Arie found herself inked to a major label by bucking
those very same trends. Her sound is as unique and individual as it is
intimately familiar-a seamless blend of classic R&B, jazz, soul and
folk that is honest, unpretentious, uplifting and straight from the
heart.
Born into a family of performers-her mother was a
professional singer, her father is retired basketball star Ralph
Simpson-India's early exposure to a wide range of music inspired her
very intimate and personal style of writing. Her first album, Acoustic
Soul garnered rave reviews and countless accolades, including no less
than seven Grammy nominations, an impressive feat for a previously
unknown artist. This early success led to an extended tour with
legendary smooth jazz singer Sade.
India's
studio, in the basement of her Atlanta home, is based around a small
ProTools setup, with a Mackie 32.8 recording console and a pair of
Mackie HR824 monitors. While working in commercial studios has its
appeal,
India has developed a fine appreciation for the advantages of
working at home. "I like both scenarios for different reasons, but I
love the intimacy of working here. I've got all my instruments around
me, and it's so inspiring to be able to grab hold of an idea as it's
happening. I like to record my own vocals, usually with nobody around."
The
musical ideas and developed while on the road became the basis for her
second album,
Voyage to India. "My favorite songs on the album were
started at six AM after working all night in the studio," she recalls.
"I just stayed up writing, and the songs just flowed out. Looking back,
that was really my favorite time, just recording demos on my eight
track at home, then going into the studio the next day and laying it
down, while it was still fresh and raw."
Typically, her songs
begin with a guitar/vocal demo, with her Godan or Takamine guitar miked
direct into the Mackie mixer, and vocals captured by a vintage Neumann
via a Neve preamp. "I usually record my vocals right up front, really
close to the mic. I just set up with my guitar, right here in front of
the mixer, and that's how I work. The Mackie is really easy to work
with."
For India.Arie, her home studio is a sanctuary for laying
down ideas and working on arrangements. "I've only done tracking in
this room up 'till now, but my next album will include material
recorded here," she explains, adding that lately she's feeling more
confident in the mixes she's getting out of her own studio.
"My
Mackie monitors have really made a difference in the way things sound
in this room. I love they way they sound - they're so crisp and clean.
They're the first pair of really good speakers I've ever had in my
studio, and they've done wonders for my mixes. They're not going
anywhere!"
