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Biography
Born in Berlin, Germany in the late ’60’s Johnson’s father was an Army Sergeant Major and a saxophonist and her mother a health care worker. The family moved to Washington D.C. where the singer changed her surname to Ndegeocello meaning “free like a bird” at the age of 17.
The singer began learning the ropes on Washington D.C.’s go-go circuit in the 1980’s with the bands Prophecy, Little Bennie and Rare Essence. The singer moved to New York City, U.S. after studying music for a short time at Howard University. Ndegeocello soon stood out from the pack performing solo with a bass guitar, drum machine and keyboard and caught the attention of Madonna’s Maverick label.
Ndegeocello’s debut album in 1993 “Plantation Lullabies” was produced with the help of David Gamson, André Betts and Bob Power. The album received much critical success and spawned the hit “If That’s Your Boyfriend (He Wasn’t Last Night)” and was awarded three Grammy nominations for her effort. Released a year after brought Ndegeocello to the mainstream performing a cover of Van Morrison’s “Wild Night” a duet with singer John Mellendcamp, which reached No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Her long awaited follow-up album “Peace Beyond Passion” got its release in 1996 and peaked at No. 63 on the Billboard 200, higher than her debut and was nominated for Best R&B album. Produced by Gamson, the album features the song “Who Is He (And What Is He to You?” a Bill Withers’ cover, which became a U.S. club hit, topping Billboard’s club chart.
Three later after a little collaborative work with Queen Pen on the track “Girlfriend” the singer released her third studio album “Bitter” released in 1999. 2002 saw her released the sprawling mixtape “Cookie: The Anthropological Mixtape” followed by “Comfort Woman” in 2003. The subsequent album “Dance of the Infidel” saw Ndegeocello include a host of jazz influences and collaborate with a number of musicians from the jazz world.
Ndegeocello’s sound is defined by her eclecticism and reluctance to do the same thing twice, with R&B, funk, soul as well as hip-hop and jazz influencing her sound, she has long been renowned for her distinctive genre blend and has often been credited for sparking the neo-soul movement.
In keeping with Ndegeocello’s unpredictability she made her debut on the classical label Decca with the album “The World Has Made Me the Man of My Dreams” featuring guitarist Pat Metheny. Since then she has released “Devil’s Halo” in 2009 a pop-inspired album, “Weather” in 2011 on Naïve Records, “Pour une Âme Souveraine: A Dedication to Nina Simone” and the highly introspective 2014 release “Comet, Come to Me”.
Live reviews
Outside Your Door is one of my favourite jazz tracks, and hearing Meshell Ndegeocello open her show with the beautiful track was awesome. Her pianist was the first to the stage and sat behind a selection of four keyboards, and played an extended introduction for Ndegocello whilst the rest of the band made their way to the stage. The combination of the jazzy power ballad element of the song alongside the R&B elements of the track is a perfect fusion, and hearing it live was incredible.
With ten Grammy Award nominations to her name, Meshell’s music has been said to have sparked the neo-soul movement in this era. Hearing her perform live really gave me a depth of comprehension of her lyrics, and her performances indulge in the narrative of her stories. She spoke to the audience comfortably and honestly, explaining the motivations of each lyric, and it was wonderful to hear first hand from her about her experiences in feminism and activism that come across in her music.
Her soulful jazz band are incredibly talented, and their harmonies with Ndegeocello bring yet another layer of talent to the performance. Hearing Comet, Come to Me live was magical, as well as hits from her older albums. It was a really special show for me.
yazhow
I really enjoyed the concert! However, there were a few things which could have worked out better: First of all - the strange positioning of the band members: Meshell herself was mostly orbiting an area far back on the stage - feeling quite distanced from the crowd. This is probably not how you command a stage - rather how to open up a vacuum for other band members' Egos. Meshell's delicate bass playing and her soulful and strong vocals become often drowned within the leaden layers of guitar and keyboard sounds and effects. Moreover neither of them seemed overly motivated. Jebin Bruni's keyboards were strangely 1) directed towards the back of the stage, 2) yet put upfront - resulting in an ever wiggling buttocks-show nobody asked for. [More precise timing would have been a greater treat] However, in the best moments of the evening -like on "Friends" or "See Line Woman"- the band seemed to drop their individual desire of recognition for the greater good: Great music.
david-meixner
Great Space, Great People, and Great couple of sets! Meshell rocked the house! Le Poisson Rouge did a great job of keeping it intimate and rockin'! Meshell's style fits that kind of space. The staff at Le Poisson Rouge were professional and friendly. No matter where you stood in the venue, you had a great view of the stage. All of the fans seemed polite and friendly and especially conscious of whether or not they were blocking your view. This is a wonderful thing to have, because my view was limited.
lissayoung
I loved the performance even though the venue was lacking seating. This was a detail that should never be left out when going to see anyone in concert.
Her voice is so timeless and beautiful it made me feel like I was back in the day listening to her. She’s one of the best to ever do it! Love her and wish I could follow her on the rest of her tour.
She said she like Columbus so hopefully she will be back sooner than later!
terra-person
IT WAS THE BEST VENUE AND CONCERT! I HAD NOT BEEN TO THE FORD SINCE THE REMODEL.
Me’Shell killed it. THE HUMOR, the talent, the humility was just a place I needed to be last night
I love that the Ford told us to say hello to our neighbor! What a nice way to begin. AND ME’Shell ended telling us to be kind.
WHAT A MOVING AND POWERFUL NIGHT OF MUSIC AND MAGIC AND LOVE
THANK YOU
dreamshaper-thomas
Concert advertised that it was from 6-8:30. We waited in line for an hour before we were seating and the concert began at approximately 7:15. She sang for a little over an hour and most of the songs were not her originals. She sang TLC, Atomic Dog, Al B sure and Force MDs. Very disappointing show.
carla-spence
Excellent concert!!!!!!!!!! Superb! Thoroughly enjoyed Meshell's performance. Atmosphere was static. Cannot wait for the next performance................The venue was very intimate with a great sound and good visibility.
Thank you for putting it all together.
natalia-abramova
Meshell delivered a great set with songs ranging from most of her 11 albums. Most were from the Nina Simone collection and were clean and engagingly presented. I would have liked to hear from from her recent album. Excellent show overall.
jeffrey-sneed
Very nice..and relaxing show .. however I do wish she would have sang more of her songs. There seem to be a bunch of instrumental moments not singing,she did mention that she was under the weather. I do love her voice. Nice show
Luckygma112
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