Ursula Rucker is one of the premiere spoken word recording artists in the music industry today. As a poet and performance artist, Ursula has enchanted critics and fans across the globe with her diverse repertoire, captivating vocals and accessible poetic verse. Since 1994, Ursula has shared her songwriting talent and mesmerizing voice with an array of recording artists and producers including King Britt, 4 Hero, Jamaaladeen Tacuma, Josh Wink and The Roots. Each was drawn to the soft spoken eloquence and undeterred honesty which have become Ursula’s signature. Born and raised in Philadelphia, Ursula began documenting her observations of the world when she was just a girl. A graduate of Temple University’s journalism program, she kept her creative writing as a prized, personal possession until she was prepared to share her gift with the world. In 1994, Ursula introduced an open-mic night audience at Philadelphia’s Zanzibar Blue to the beauty and urgency of her poetry. Word quickly spread throughout the city of Ursula’s poetry and stage performance, which has been described as "strong, vulnerable, wounded and raging." Producer King Britt was quick to recognize Ursula’s talent and invited her to create her first spoken word recording, the 1994 club classic, Supernatural (Ovum/Slip N Slide UK). Dance music fans and spin doctors were quickly enamored with Ursula’s mystical vocals. According to Britt, while the original and remixes of Supernatural were celebrated in clubs all over the globe, the most popular version remains the acapella.
Critics were quick to compare Ursula to celebrated writers like Sonia Sanchez and Nikki Giovanni. Coincidentally, when Ntozake Shange was unable to provide The Roots with a spoken word contribution for their debut album do you want more?!!?!! (Geffen, 1994), they called on Ursula to fit the bill. The Unlocking, which closed do you want more?!!?!!, introduced Ursula to the world of progressive hip-hop and led to subsequent invitations to close The Roots follow-up albums iladelph halflife (Geffen, 1996) and the certified gold record things fall apart (MCA, 1999). The alluring poetic tales Ursula created for The Roots contain subject matter that was motivated by genuine concern and heightened consciousness. Whether exploring sexual exploitation as in The Unlocking or introducing the lifestyle of a crack-dealing single mother in Adventures in Wonderland, Ursula provided listeners with an intimate glimpse of urban reality. Ursula has been described as part of a growing movement that is slowly adapting its aural sensibilities to women, particularly in the hip-hop and urban music divisions. Counteracting male artists who casually linger on tales of black whoredom, Ursula plays an essential role in the rise of a new crop of female recording artists who deliver strong, intelligent, and visionary feminine flavor.
In countless reviews, many critics cite the value of Ursula’s work with The Roots, 4 HERO and others. The onslaught of press inquiries resulted in nods, features and demands for more of her work, in URB, VIBE, XXL, Panache, Philadelphia Inquirer, and Straight No Chaser. To date, Ursula has performed her work at an array of venues, universities and festivals including the Montreax Jazz Festival, the 1999 Winter Music Conference, the Theater of the Living Arts, the Painted Bride Arts Center, and Drexel University. Ursula has toured with Jamaaladeen Tacuma, SYLK130, and 4 HERO in the United States and Europe. Ursula is pleasantly surprised by the reception her spoken word recordings and live performances have received. With inquiries for live performances throughout the United States and Europe, Ursula is looking forward to presenting her work, with original accompaniment by DJ/Producer Robert Yancey III, during the summer of 1999. Ursula’s upcoming releases include the mermaid-fantasy driven Circe for Guidance Recordings’ spoken word compilation Urban Renewal and the haunting single Soon for Unbound, a benefit album for Mumia Abu Jamal. Additionally, the highly anticipated re-release of Supernatural will be dropped in the UK on Slip N' Slide in the near future. In September, Ursula will settle into recording sessions for her first solo album on Ovum Recordings (Sony/Columbia). CONTACT: KELLY SLOANE, TOFFEE MANAGEMENT @ 215-413-2328 (June 1999)
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| Artist: The Roots f/ Ursula Rucker Album: Things Fall Apart  RealPlayer, free, Required to hear
the audio on AALBC.comReturn
to Innocence Lost Muffled sound of fist on flesh Blows to chest No breath Air gasps You ain't nothing but white trash, bitch! With each hit, each kick, each...broken rib Crack, Crack! Bones are crying Mommy's crying and bleeding And pleading And then... Daddy wants to fuck Dick hard, swelled with power rush And as if all that wasn't enough Mommy's seven months heavy with birth As...Daddy grunts and cursed drunk nothings in her bloodied ear (singing softly) First...lullaby First...Son...will...ever...hear And never forget Mommy almost bled to death when she have him...finally She'd already lost...three Uterus-bruised, shredded, and weak From being daily beat And Friday nights were the worse and... Daddy never came with flowers Instead he spent hours at some corner spot With some bar pop named Cookie Putting his thing down Soiling Mommy's sheets with... Sweet...talk shit, Cookie's cheap lipstick, Hair grease, sperm, and jezebel juice To hell with the good news that... He was a father for the first time His thirst for wine and women Clouded his vision... No warm welcome for mother and son Just... The rank smell of ass-crack, funk, and cum But Mommy's prayerful strength-her best defense She...burned the dirty linens Made a fresh bed Laid sleeping First Son down And never made a sound As she purged her scourge With birth-blood and quiet tears Watching as her fears and love and sacrifice Lie there in his soft skin and new life Breathing, dreaming, fresh from God's eye Mommy's little survivor Like...her Mommy called crazy and scorned 'Cuz she two more born One boy soon after The girl much later and... Although they were both sung the same lullabies of hate Her...First Son, the first one Whose...womb-world was profaned Came of age playing street games With Stewie, Rezzie, and Little Brother 'Till his heart start to wither In pain and shame Blamed Mom for the wrong she let Daddy do to her And him... Let...sins of the Father cause his Innocence to wander Found out amongst thieves Chose to squander his dreams Stopped believing in himself Become prodigal with his life Make impossible shit right with... Gang-ties, crime, lies Erase wise, woeful words of Mother Replaced them with absurdities of others Who had also lost their way Played a different kind of street game now First Son plunged deep Speak street-family vows Espouse no causes but his own See, he couldn't protect Mommy's neck from Daddy's grasp Or...protect Mommy's ass from Daddy's wrath Couldn't shield her ears from... Daddy's foul-mouthed, liquor-breath jeers His only defense-served be confidence Brown bottles housed his swift descent Phones called cops on block frequent for his shenanigans Now...Daddy and him twins in addiction Driven to false-hearted heavens and friends By liquefied demons Had become what he despised from Conception 'til End Destined for a demise Survived nine lives of staying high Conning, jewelry-pawning, arrests, theft Womanizing...only for money, never for sex Bullet in chest, baseball bat to the head Left for dead So, eyes wide and glassy Speech...slowed and slurred Lips twitched with caked-up codeine candy And mouth corners one December 24th Mr. Hide and False Friend Took final ride to suburban supplier Shots were fired by the gray man With shaky hand But not shaky enough to miss... Hit...Lost Boy in back So-called Friend runs for door Leaves First Son blood-born Lying alone in blood on cold floor Death was the cause of... Returning to Innocence Lost... Baby 'Sis awake for dawn on Christmas morn To Mommy's sobs and shakes Daddy's silhouettes of regret All past, omitted, and absolved by lost As they clung to each other Knowing...
This is courtesy of Typed by: eesteves@lynx.neu.edu |
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Related Links
SYLK130 website
http://www.ovum-rec.com/Sylk130/bio.html
4 HERO Interview
http://www.fused.com/dnb/reflec/4hero.htm
