❝ Where are you from? ❞
❝ The Detroit area! ❞
The nose scrunch, the slight twinge of the eye with a slight eyebrow raise- it's the face I expect whenever I tell someone where I'm from; followed by:
❝ Well that's just too bad. ❞
No, actually it's not. Detroit is not only on the rise, but it stands with its head held high because of what it's been through. Socially, economically, it's been through hell and back, but what has never left is the soul. It's beautiful- the picture above, the cover photo, although blurry, was taken on a handheld digital camera when I was 13 years old. It's still how I see the city, blurry and full of mystery.
Artists from Detroit are truly some of the most incredible people I've ever met and admired. The likes of Allee Willis- who was a tornado in the songwriting, art, theatre AND tech industries, Aretha Franklin who needs no introduction, Berry Gordy and Smokey Robinson; freaking Motown. Must I go on?
Of course I will, Detroiters are amazing.
Eminem
Stevie Wonder
The Supremes
The Temptations
Jack White
The Romantics
Lizzo (Ok she moved to Dallas at 10 but we're claiming her.)
Honorable mentions for being amazing Michigan artists:
Kid Rock & Madonna (Romeo & Bay City)
As you can see there is so much talent that has come from Detroit and there is SO much talent currently in Detroit. With tons of programs popping up, festivals on a regular basis and musicians performing more and more in the city- the art scene is thriving!
Growing up I listened to all of these artists, studied them and I admired each of them for what they brought to the table. The one thing that was consistent across the board? Soul. Regardless of their backgrounds, upbringings, color of their skin- they had soul and they had power in the words that they wrote and the words that they sang. They had power to bring people together in beautiful ways and it brings tears to my eyes thinking about it all.
I think out of all of them, Aretha has always inspired me the most...
..in my writing, in the way that I sing, in the way that I perform. The woman knew how to have fun, but she was classy. She held her own and was strong and confident and there will never be another like her. She held her heritage close and her faith closer and man did she have soul. She will forever be remembered as the queen of soul.
For those of you who don't know a lot about Aretha, she grew up in Detroit in the 1940's/50's. (Note: She was technically born in Memphis but moved to Detroit at 5 and that was her self-proclaimed home and city.) She started singing gospel at her church and even recorded her first nine tracks (vocals and piano) on recording equipment that was installed at the church specifically for her. She had her first recording contract through J.V.B Records and her first single was released in 1956 at the age of 14, just four years after her mother died of a heart attack and two years after she had her first son.
*image info below*
At 16, Aretha went on tour with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and sang at his speaking events. She even went on to sing at his funeral. In 1960 Franklin was signed to Columbia records after declining Sam Cooke's RCA offer and Berry Gordy's Tamla offer. She was dubbed the queen of soul during her short run with Columbia, where although she landed on the Billboard Hot 100 and even claimed a number one slot with her version of “Rock-a-Bye Your Baby with a Dixie Melody” by Jean Schwartz, Sam M. Lewis and Joe Young, she didn't find much commercial success with Columbia. It was often attributed to the fact that the label did not highlight or work with her incredible gospel background.
In November of 1966, Aretha moved over to Atlantic which is where she started to truly take off. With hits like Otis Reddings' “Respect” and “I Never Loved A Man (The Way I Love You)”, Aretha found her place in R&B/Soul and the Pop world.
In 1980 Aretha moved over to Clive Davis' Arista records where she planted herself for 27 years until her final move to RCA in 2014 which had control over the Arista catalog. Her final performance was on November 7th, 2017 in New York City at Elton John's charity event.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EMbPwaPD_Rs
Aretha was incredibly skilled in so many ways. An incredible piano player (trained by ear), an insanely talented vocalist and one hell of an entertainer, Aretha will be sure to live on forever. She was a civil rights activist, she strongly supported the Native American rights movement and she never shied away from using her music to take a stand.
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After living in New York City and Los Angeles, Aretha returned to her home city of Detroit in 1982 to be near to her father, who had been shot point blank, and stayed there until she died in August of 2018.
She never finished high school.
She lost her mother to divorce and then to a heart attack.
She endured two teen pregnancies at 12 & 15.
She experienced a horribly abusive marriage to a man who publicly shamed and bruised her.
She went through two divorces of her own and then broke off an engagement to the same man twice.
She bounced from deal to deal and saw the same people who raised her up in her career completely abandon her.
She lost her father after a shooting and years of being in a coma.
She lost all three of her siblings to cancer.
DESPITE all of that, she had an incredible career and still sends chills down the spines of those she left behind with her talent.
One of my favorite quotes from her, that I hold dearly:
*image info below*
I mean right there, that's exactly why I write and why I sing. To strengthen and uplift, to encourage and to be a catalyst for healing. If I can take my pain and my heart and my soul and put it into a song so that someone else can find comfort, you bet I will write as many songs as I have in me.
Aretha did things her way and she was extremely sassy. She channeled every ounce of her hurt and her trauma and rather than letting it destroy her, she sang her soul out. I honestly take that as a lesson. Things happen, life happens, crap happens and you can either choose to let it ruin and rot the rest of your life away or you can take your story and make something out of it.
❝Be your own artist, and always be confident in what you're doing. If you're not going to be confident, you might as well not be doing it.❞ – Aretha Franklin
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zv_Zoa-j2Q
I may not have grown up in the bad parts of Detroit, I grew up in metro, and I am grateful for that. Maybe I have a different view of the city because of that, but I definitely inherited the spirit that is passed around. Innovation, strength, confidence, grit- it all goes into being an extraordinary artist. I have to be honest, whenever I get stuck, especially musically, I turn to artists like Aretha and Stevie to remind me of the way that things used to be done and I am inspired once again.
Never stop believing, never stop dreaming and never forget where you came from.
Jan Persson/Redferns/Getty Images
xoxo – Ry
Click to meand tell me who inspires you!
https://twitter.com/riley_quin/status/1222268413743112194?s=20
(Thanks @PatríciaC for this awesome engagement idea!)
https://youtu.be/TtugO6WE_o4
*Please note that not all images could be sourced due to a lack of records. A few photos were procured via Rolling Stone, any photos that could be cited were. Otherwise they were gathered via internet images. As stated, original sources could not be easily traced.*
Bless the Mess: Trust Your Gut
