I love Janelle Monae. I saw her name around last year @ SXSW (missed her performance) and she did NYC’s AfroPunk Fest…but it took me a second to really dig deep. So…happy to see new songs from her. ‘Tightrope‘ features Outkast’s Big Boi and I can see ‘Cold War‘ (simple + relevant: “This is a cold war, you better know what you’re fighting for”) getting a Tiesto remix, haha. Her new album ‘The Archandroid‘ is out May 18th.
‘Sincerely Jane” from her album ‘Metropolis: The Chase Suite‘ is such a perfect example of a smart pop song. Sort of like how Lauryn Hill’s ‘Doo Wop (That Thing)‘ was constructed – warning against the ills of the world with an optimistic, feminine, almost mentoring perspective (without being dogmatic). Unfortunately, the song didn’t break at radio, even with support from P. Diddy and Big Boi.
I love her character, Cindy Merriweather, an android on the run in a futuristic world. I’m not surprised after reading this piece in Interview Magazine, that she’s influenced a lot by Octavia Butler + Bladerunner (amongst others).
She’s the type of pop star I want to see in 2010…challenging boundaries, singing truth, having fun, can dance like hell and just something good for not only young girls…but everyone.
She says, “I don’t have to do anything by default.” – HEAR HEAR!