Nola Ade

Today we're premiering the new single from Chicago based soulstress Nola Adé, 'Cool'. The soulful jazz infused track is from the Nigerian-American musician's Debut EP, 'The Love Dance'. She tells us: "Inspiration, for me, can come from the simplest things. For this song specifically, I was walking on a subway platform in New York, and I heard a horn player playing a variation of the horn part of the song "Cool Like Dat" by Digable Planets. As soon as I heard it, I thought it was pretty dope and I started to freestyle a melody over it, then I developed lyrics from that melody. I wanted to find a way to merge that jazzy style with Soul/R&B and Hip Hop, and the song transformed into something totally different, and I loved it so much! It is, as you hear it today, a song that embodies who I am as an artist, the different levels of who I am." Listen below. - AfroPunk

Nola Adé – “Cool”

Everybody needs a little soul in their music rotation and Nola Adé has it for you with her new single “Cool.” The soulful and jazzy song can be found on her The Love Dance EP.

The song came to Nola during a walk on a subway platform in New York while a neighboring horn player played pieces of “Cool Like Dat” from Disable Planets, which sparked a melody and lyrics.

“I wanted to find a way to merge that jazzy style with Soul/R&B and Hip Hop, and the song transformed into something totally different, and I loved it so much!,” Nola tells Afropunk. “It is, as you hear it today, a song that embodies who I am as an artist, the different levels of who I am.” - Karen Civil

Check out Nigerian-American songstress Nola Adé’s jazzy single “Cool.”
Produced by Brandon Major and Nola herself, the Chicago-native says the song’s inspiration came from merely standing on a subway platform in NYC. “Inspiration, for me, can come from the simplest things…. I heard a horn player playing a variation of the horn part of the song “Cool Like Dat” by Digable Planets,"" she explained. "As soon as I heard it, I thought it was pretty dope, and I started to freestyle a melody over it, and then I developed lyrics from that melody. I wanted to find a way to merge that jazzy style with Soul/R&B and Hip Hop, and the song transformed into something totally different, and I loved it so much! It is, as you hear it today, a song that embodies who I am as an artist, the different levels of who I am.”
Upon graduating from college, Adé entered law school and became a legal intern at Rush Communications. But her love for music found her performing every Sunday night at The Village Underground open mic. When she returned to Chicago, Adé performed background vocals with acts like The Ones and at spots like The Elbo Room and Hard Rock Café, building a fan base by doing innovative covers. The exposure landed her opportunities to open for Avery Sunshine and Bilal
“Cool” will grace Nola’s indie debut EP The Love Dance coming this winter.


Read more: http://singersroom.com/content/2015-09-29/Nola-Ade-Cool/#ixzz3vh83gu9q
Read more at http://singersroom.com/content/2015-09-29/Nola-Ade-Cool/#GWmILVJUp4rPpPWG.99 - Singersroom

Nola Adé has been described as possessing “an indefatigable faith in love.” That’s a pretty heady description, and one that goes against much of the negativity that has crept into modern music. As a first generation Nigerian American, Nola has absorbed the rich musical heritage of her hometown of Chicago, and channeled it into her own brand of positive music.

Nola will be releasing her debut EP The Love Dance this Fall, teaming with Chicago jazz musician Larry Brown, Jr. to create a rich, jazzy soul album that captures the feel of the Windy City.

We’re proud to be presenting for SoulTrackers the World Premiere of the new single, “My Love, My Life, My Everything.” Nola proves herself a beautiful vehicle for the delivery of the song, with her rich alto wandering through its movements. She tells us: "'My Love, My Life, My Everything' is meant to paint a picture of love as it relates to the beauty of the elements of nature. It's a favorite of mine because of the imagery it creates in the lyrics and the story told by LBJ in the music composition. And it is another piece to my compounded definition of what love is."

Producer Larry Brown, Jr. says, "It means love. It means treasure the people that make your life worth living. I knew she could deliver it in a special way. She understood as we worked out lyrics, and it was the perfect fit."

We think you’re going to like this one. Take a listen below and get to know Nola Adé.

- See more at: http://www.soultracks.com/first-listen-nola-ade-my-love#sthash.s7Y1Qeh4.dpuf - Soul Tracks

Soul singer and Chatham native Nola Adé doesn’t like to box herself in. When we sat down to talk, she had just performed a sold-out opening show at Hyde Park’s Promontory. “I grew up just listening to the voice of Ella Fitzgerald,” she told me. “I’ve always loved her voice, but some of my influences go from Lauryn Hill to Asa—she’s a Nigerian artist—to Amy Winehouse—I do so many of her covers—to Mali Music, one of my favorite artists today. And I still have some traditional Afrobeat artists that I really love too.”

It was primarily the jazz strain in Adé’s voice that held together her set at the Promontory, but Adé made it clear, even in her short performance, that her musical range is anything but limited. Her voice—fresh, honey-coated, complex—was what pulled Patsy Cline and Chrisette Michele together as she bounced between artists and eras. At her peak, Adé’s fusion of genres seems like a genre all its own.

“I call it soul-pop,” she said. “It’s like my soul, the soul in my voice, but I’m really drawn to pop music and very upbeat sounds.”

During her opening set for touring soul singer Avery Sunshine, Adé was backed by a four-piece band and a back-up singer. She started the show with an unexpected cover of “Crazy,” written by Willie Nelson but popularized by Patsy Cline. Her transformation of the country classic, complete with stamping, rolling drums and a twinkling electric guitar, set the bar high for the rest of the act, which included staples from Adé’s various genres.

Though Adé’s influences have expanded since her youth, she cites her church choirs in Chatham as the environment that first let her to fall in love with music.

“Oh, I knew from the beginning, since I was little,” she said. “Since the second grade—I sang in the choir for my grammar school, a Catholic grammar school on 90th and Stony. I started there at their choir and literally fell in love with singing, with music.” She laughed, “I had a few solos.”

Adé enrolled in law school, but her desire to sing and to be on the stage never left. “While I was in law school I was still performing on the side—even then, I knew that this is what I wanted to do,” she said.

Those few choir solos have turned into a career, or at least the thirst for one. On the heels of her recent single, “Love,” Adé has transitioned to recording music full-time and has been trying to finish an EP for release in the new few months.

Adé’s earnest adoration of music and performance were clear during her set at the Promontory, and she sang with the same huge, confident smile she wears while considering her future. “I’m just at the beginning phase,” she said. “I’m ready for the rest.” - South Side Weekly