I had the pleasure of seeing Janelle Monae live in Las Vegas at the House of Blues in 2008. She was the opening act for Erykah Badu, who was touring the U.S. in support of her album, New Amerykah Part 1. At the time Monae had only released one EP, Metropolis: the Chase Suite. I was surprised and elated to witness a live performance that surpassed the quality of her highly produced and richly layered studio work.
The Chase suites were originally planned to be released as four separate albums. However, suites two and three were combined to create Monae’s new full length album, The Archandroid. Monae describes her newest release as an “emotion picture experience” and explains that it is intended to be listened to from beginning to end. This 18-track musical journey is difficult to categorize in any one genre. Her music channels the energy of Prince, Erykah Badu, Jimi Hendrix, shades of OutKast and Lauryn Hill. Janelle brilliantly integrates the musical stylings of classical, rock, hip-hop, funk, soul, and rap into one seamless musical experience that will leave you anxiously awaiting the fourth installment of her Chase Suites.
Janelle Monae in Murray Library’s Catalog: click here!
Artist Website: http://www.jmonae.com/
Salt Lake tour date was recently announced. : )
I have been hooked on Janelle Monae since PhatomFox introduced her to me a few weeks ago. She has an amazing sound and her videos take it to the next level. I was thrilled when “Tightrope” was used on So You Think You Can Dance last week especially with Sonya’s amazing choreography.