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Lady Empress & Tasting Darkness
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* Weekly 1 on 1: Tamika Jones
Last night I ventured downtown to the Skye Lounge to hear a band that I’d been hearing about, but hadn’t actually heard myself. Lady Empress and Tasting Darkness is a punk, hip-hop, rock infusion band. Leading lady Empress is a regular on the DC underground scene with a style and flavor all her own. She first started generating buzz with her own little eclectic mix of belly dancing put to reggae dancehall to form what she dubs “bellydance-hall”. The talented lyricist, and bellydance-hall artist also got area recognition for her self-produced dramatic presentation entitled ‘The Ass Chronicles”. Singing and even rapping at times, Empress lead her band through a set list that never got dry. Alongside her on vocals was a young lady by the name of Niya Davis. Niya has a soulful sometimes edgy voice that worked really nicely on a couple of the numbers, in particular a funk-feel number called ‘Ghetto Wonder Woman’. A drummer, bassist, and lead guitarist held down the instrumentals quite nicely, switching up the feel with each number.
The audience got a special treat, as two of DC’s local superstars Fatso Skinny and Tamika ‘Love’ Jones were in the house. They both performed a few numbers with the band, and Fatso even went into a performance of two of the singles that he’s pushing right now.
Overall, I was pleased with the performance, though I would like to hear them again once they have been together a little longer and develop greater chemistry. Lady Empress and Tasting Darkness are something new, fun and interesting. You never know what genre they are going to hit you with, or what the lovely very fashion forward Lady Empress is going to be wearing! The next time you hear about them playing, you might want to make an effort to be in attendance. You will get a show that you won’t soon forget.
Click here to find out more! - Lee Anderson..The Examiner
Discography
"Ghetto Wonder Woman"
Soul on Fire
Sex Tantric
Get Live
Ghetto
I Am The One
Marketable (Spoken Word)
Prisoner
Love Shake Down
Destiny
Ghetto Wonder Woman
Burglar
Dey Be On Dat
Photos
Bio
Captured in her aura, all eyes are drawn to the stage.
The ears of her loyal subjects are peeled, anxiously
awaiting the complexities of her latest proclamation.
Lulled into submission, one scarily moves afraid to
miss one utterance of the voice of the Empress...
Empress was exposed to music early in life. She
grew up singing and touring the country in The Gospel Music Workshop of America. As a teenager she
performed throughout the Charleston area with a group
of local rap artists. Her love for music continued to
grow as she moved to the Washington Metropolitan area.
There she was afforded the opportunity to travel the
country with a national recording group where she
blazed the mic with energetic and innovative hip hop
lyrics.
Empress has grown and developed into an extraordinary
poetess, song writer, MC and business woman. She is
the CEO of Erica Joyner Publishing and Empress Corp. Known on the underground music and spoken word scene for her powerful and evoking lyrics, she has acquired an
expansive following in the DC Metro area.
To her credit she has collaborated on the title piece
of nationally known poetess Queen Sheba's "The
Message" CD and made her song writing debut on
Ginuwine's "The Life" project with her sensual song
"Role Play". She has also showcased her talents on
many occasions on WPFW Washington DC's "Urban Nation"
and is one of the hottest poetess to join WPGC's "Love Talk
and Slow Jams Poetry Cafe Clic” where she can be found
tantalizing audiences every Thursday night over the air waves.
Empress has also performed in showcases including
Poetology's "Real Sistah"s of Hip Hop" and Oya Speaks
in Norfolk, VA. She has graced the stage at Jokes on
Us Comedy Club and for two years Wednesday nights exploded
as you walked into Harambe, a quaint little Ethiopian
restaurant in the heart of Adams Morgan and became
instantly enticed by the sultry sound of her voice.
Her presence and energy commanded attention as she
showcased a variety of local talents as well as her
own in her open mic session.
To add to the fire, Empress has brought in the electricfying "Crunk Rock" band Tasting Darkness. The combination is explosive to say the least. With Tasting Darkness backing her this sound is so explosive and exciting, they have been compared to some of the greated from Mother's Finest. More so in todays market they have been compared to the likes of Gym Class Hero with a "twist" She
continues to write songs for various artist, write
poetry and is also working on her first screenplay.
Be on the look out for this blazin' female poet, MC,
and song writer with a sexy eclectic look and sultry
soulful voice as she dares to tell the world that she
is more than "Marketable". The essence of a true
woman, she brings a new flavor to the entertainment industry. She is the quintessential entertainer, whose rein will be unforgettable.
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