Ironically there are no textbooks
or classroom instructions that could help one balance the
equations of Kedar Massenburg's newest protege, ALGEBRA. The
Atlanta native insists that one can only discover her sonically.
As an R&B solo artist with such a simple solution, when
mainstream success seems to be more about the right hair,
nails and make -up, Algebra is the perfect curriculum for
breathing life back in to a genre overwrought by factory made
clones.
No stranger to performing, Algebra has been
lending her melodic voice to projects by Monica and Bilal
for years. However, singing for other artists was about as
out of character for her as having someone write songs for
her. "Even when someone else wrote a song specifically
for me, I felt like I was still being a background singer
for myself."
As the music scene in Atlanta became the hot
bed of popular music, Algebra taught herself to play guitar
and performed regularly at open mics. This pivotal point in
her career afforded her the time to develop her writing and
performance skills even further without the harness of a prescribed
format. "Soon you learn not to care what others think,
you learn to perform for you. I would come back week after
week and I learned to perform for balance and for freedom.
I was becoming alive."
This organic approach permeates her music.
Algebra can easily be pop, rock, rap funk or crunk, yet she
can breathe ballads effortlessly.
Collaborating with award-winning songwriter and producer Brian
Michael Cox on "What Happened" quickly proved to
be a true showcase of her brilliance. This soulful ballad
is delivered so honestly and with such vulnerability that
it appears as an autobiography.
Algebra's definitive voice and identity is
one of full disclosure. "I don't want to be boxed,"
she asserts. The litmus test of what she would create lies
in being relatable and in offering complete truth in every
word she sings. On the song "Nothing To Prove" she
boldly introduces herself with no apologies. She places all
of herself on display and invites listeners to look past her
stunningly beautiful physical and into her prayerful, soulful
mental.
As the first artist to be released on the
revamped Kedar Entertainment Group, Algebra enters the contemporary
soul music landscape following legacies created by artists
like D'Angelo, Erykah Badu and India.Arie all of whom developed
under the watchful eye of Massenburg. However her sound is
unique. Algebra at first is unassuming, but it takes mere
moments for you to recognize that she is not just a tempest
in a teapot but more like the catalyst of a paradigm shift.
With there being only two universal languages
in this world - Math and Music; fate would have it, southern
songbird Algebra represents both! |