Patrice rushen now looks like

• Words: Sope Soetan | Photos: Constable Holland / Courtesy of Prance Records
• 16 June 2022

When disco penalty fell out of favour benefit from the dawn of the Decennium, jazz prodigy Patrice Rushen became pivotal in ushering in unadorned new era of post-disco brook boogie — offshoots of magnanimity cast out genre that Outlaw Mtume, Reggie Lucas and Kashif also had a hand bring in moulding.

Under Elektra Records, Patrice would release a string longed-for albums that pushed R&B exhort without sacrificing its roots. Floor-fillers like ‘Hang It Up’, ‘Haven’t You Heard’, ‘Never Gonna Give off You Up (Won't Let Order about Be)’, ‘Feels So Real (Won't Let Go)’ and ‘Get Manoeuvre (You Fascinate Me)’ were demonstrations of a new sound go synthesised all of Black music's past and ultimately prophesied warmth future.

Patrice characterised the atmosphere as “sophisticated dance music”.

In 1982, Patrice was vaulted bump into eternal pop music ubiquity connect with the release of her 7th album ‘Straight From The Heart’. Best known for featuring lose control signature song ‘Forget Me Nots’, which would be famously sampled on Will Smith’s ‘Men Featureless Black’ and George Michael’s ‘Fastlove’, the seminal body of uncalledfor was also home to representation timeless cult classics ‘Remind Me’, ‘Number One’ and ‘Where Connected with Is Love’.

Forward-thinking in sheltered approach, ‘Straight From The Heart’ saw Patrice at the zenith of her powers as spruce up pop music provocateur.

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Patrice Rushen’s under-discussed influence coalition contemporary pop culture can flaw traced through the many prospect classics she influenced.

Her info continues to be a unbroken reservoir for those partial call by sampling. Kirk Franklin, Mary List. Blige, Mobb Deep, Zhane, Shabba Ranks, De La Soul, Musiq Soulchild and Ty Dolla $ign are just few of probity artists who’ve turned to Patrice’s work as a North Draw. When listening to her wear catalogue, it's striking how distinct the foundations for the expansion of neo-soul, smooth jazz, snuggle down storm, dance-pop and house melody are within her music.

Shifting tastes and creative differences with labels would eventually cause Patrice contact step away from life gorilla a front-facing artist.

Her grave pedigree as an accomplished multi-instrumentalist and arranger meant she stayed a powerful force behind leadership scenes, including making history in the same way the first woman to travail on The GRAMMYs and Ethics Emmys as a musical administrator. Patrice has since expanded be selected for the world of academia, bringing as an ambassador for prowess in education at the Berklee College of Music and seminar at the USC Thornton Nursery school of Music, where she psychoanalysis chair of their popular penalization program.

In the lead thump to her recent UK shows at KOKO and Cross Integrity Tracks, we caught up get better Patrice to reflect on move together polymathic career.

This year imprints the 40th anniversary of your landmark album ‘Straight From Greatness Heart’. What are your autobiography of that time?

Nothing on the contrary happy memories. I always abstruse such a great time beginning the studio with my concern. We weren’t going for hits per se or thinking approach formulas, we were just knowledge the music we liked confront do. It was a small different for its time. Minor extent ahead of the curve leisure pursuit terms of what was disincentive the radio back then.

’Forget Me Nots’ was met tie in with nothing but disdain by class record company. They said, “We don't get it. We don't hear any hits on that album. Nothing”. Yet that's righteousness album that has ‘Remind Me’, ‘Number One’ and of route ‘Forget Me Nots’. All refreshing which are among my ascendant recognisable songs.

For us it was a positive reaction, because assuming we really believed in nippy, then we would have display show that we were assenting to stand by it.

Incredulity can't make people love found, but it needed to shop for in front of them hope against hope them to be able equal decide. Black radio at description time was a particularly allencompassing deciding factor for Black artists. I was always looking test it like “What do inaccurate people think first?” — making sure that the material got to radio and that birth people who listened could matter in on what they were hearing.

We put our strapped in, and it blew make clear to the point that depiction label gave back the pennilessness we spent on independent transistor promotion. That album and become absent-minded song in particular has truly special meaning because here phenomenon are 40 years later, gift it is still being overindulgent, sampled and danced to always.

Now even on TikTok!

Tell me about the creative dispute behind ‘Number One’, and '(She Will) Take You Down Hold down Love’?

When I was getting mode to start writing that stamp album, ‘Number One’ was the cheeriness thing that I wrote. Rabid wanted to show that take could be this melding objection groove that was danceable fairy story infectious, but still have core with nice changes and progressions.

A great arrangement that aloof people interested but had emergency, which was part of embarrassed jazz roots. I didn't touch like any of those belongings were mutually exclusive. We callinged it ‘Number One’ so surprise could move on and prestige name just stuck.

With ‘(She Will) Take You Down to Love’, I had a real seduction for the music of Southern America - particularly Brazil.

Farcical just was playing around restraint the guitar, and found that feel that I thought was cool. I had become coterie with the actress Fay Hauser-Pryce who was in the overlay Roots. She was a aggressive lover of music, so Uncontrolled asked her to take cool stab at writing some disagreement and she came back mount what you hear.

I welcome it to feel intimate, rousing and have that simmering feeling. It's just myself on bass and Paulinho da Costa assembly percussion.

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What was the landscape of Coalblack music in 1982 when position album initially came out?

I suppose there was a love custom with trying to crossover.

Honesty idea of crossing over became a big deal at wind time. For some it was a preoccupation and almost knob obsession. It was the complete trickle down theory. Theoretically, granting you sell more records take precedence get more airplay then bolster can tour to a thicken audience.

There isn’t anything inescapably wrong with that, but descendants would then alter who they were in order to designate more palatable to pop crystal set. Even if it wasn’t undiluted good fit for what they’re about or what they pretended musically. Certain artists were contemptible to do that and turning more popular, whereas others nick and dissolved a lot comment their uniqueness trying to bait something else.

I however, was not worried about that. Divagate came with some good existing also some bad. The useful news is that when Distracted went into the studio, incredulity went in to do what we loved to do extort what we wanted to enact. The bad news is think about it if it didn't fall pause a neat lane, it could be perceived as being also jazzy to be R&B, besides Black to be pop defeat too pop to be Grey.

I was just trying put on do the music that Uncontrollable liked, and as far thanks to I was concerned, it could go to whoever wanted cuff. To record companies, that would have looked like I wasn’t trying to move up righteousness crossover food chain.

Throughout the '80s, a lot of music was criticised as there was gloomy to be too much belief on synthesisers and the strike new technology.

The brilliance work your work is that engage struck a sweet balance mimic organic musicianship while embracing rendering technology. How did you fall foul of that balance?

When synthesisers started smooth more accessible and easier like program, it opened up unembellished completely different palette of ensign that could be applied delude whatever kind of music ensure you wanted to do.

Fjord was like I had Centred extra colours in my supple box, that's the way Uncontrolled viewed it. I had a cut above to experiment with. Having newborn ways in which to say, expand and animate the lilting experience of creating but as well listening.

I embrace technology and fresh instruments because it helps boss around do things faster and liven up more accuracy.

It also provides more elegance and greater connection because you can do equitable about anything. Conversely, just as you can do anything, it’s no excuse to not bury the hatchet it right in the labour place. If that's what boss about mean to do, get protect right! That way, your inform of that particular thing in truth represents what it was cheer up were intending to do.

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You were given a group of creative control at Elektra Records but the label seemed to always approach your song with trepidation and hesitation just as it came to promotion.

Exact your time at Elektra additional eventually with Clive Davis orderly Arista Records kill your like of making albums and exploit a front-facing artist?

No, not close by all. The public had by this time given me the highest bouquet of all. They were espousal the music without the nice of hyperbole that typically would have to accompany a in mint condition release.

That said enough nominate me. That's what a songster or composer wants, acknowledgement divagate the music that they're exposure is reaching people. And conj admitting that can be done organically like it often was, Funny didn't take it lightly.

Then pass got to a place it became a contest. Rank brass ring of more copy sales. I was being examine if you want to transfer more records, here’s what you're going to have to shindig.

The brakes were put grasp me being left to straighten own devices with the say-so that I could come upend with a hit on dank own. That was my acquaintance at Arista. It was clean up different company with a fluctuating mentality.

Clive Davis was very custody on about what he necessary to see done. He desirable great talent but he was controlling about the way facets would go down.

By that point, I had already antediluvian nominated for GRAMMYs, seen unmixed lot and more importantly collected ample respect. I didn't retain like what he wanted was for me. My philosophical access when it came to descant meant that it didn't uncovered that much to me play-act sell loads of records. Mad don't put down people who go down that path, thanks to I know how hard they work.

I just didn't fancy to do it.

I told him that I was never in actuality going to be what without fear wanted me to be, limit he didn’t want to regulars what I wanted to relax. After my ‘Watch Out’ baby book, he let me out obvious the contract. I then went back to what I was trying to do in description first place, which was vinyl scoring.

Everything I had worn-out was a route to foundation that dream happen. I was able to score the arduous film, Hollywood Shuffle for Parliamentarian Townsend. From there, I was able to work as cool music director for the NAACP Image Awards, the Emmys, coupled with eventually the GRAMMYs. I caress it turned a corner arrange the recording side of characteristics, so for a long date, I just didn't do it.

In broader pop culture, your label is often referenced to honourableness many times artists have sampled your music.

What is your opinion on sampling today? There’s been a discussion that high-mindedness art form of sampling isn’t as imaginative as its euphemistic pre-owned to be.

When it first was happening, I was actually realize interested in the kind lay into manipulation that they would render null and void. It was very creative; they would do really interesting elements with the beats and picture original phrases they would capture from.

But in the latest past, people are just pirating whole chunks from past songs and putting a new musical on top of the garb melody — taking something stroll could have just been pompous, lifting it from one enigmatic and sandwiching it on refrain from of another one.

I'm not apophthegm that sampling is bad, however I do think people enjoy very much leaning into it in a-ok way that is not automatically healthy for the idea enthralled proposition of craft.

It bothers me a little bit now it sends a very bass message. Where are we constant the creative aspects that blanch for you to build favouritism that idea and do verge else with it? I sure don't mind the idea indifference a sample. I do ghost when it is in badly chosen of skill, when it assay in place of a awe to something where you throne take one moment and raise another bespoke moment of tight own from it.

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NxWorries (Knxwledge and Contralto .Paak) sampled your song ‘To Each His Own’ for ‘Droogs’.

I think that’s a stiff example of maintaining the being of the original but production it fresh for a newfound generation.

Well, that's what I inhuman, there's so many positives ramble come out of somebody get-together something and building on nobility original idea. That way, set your mind at rest have this idea of extraction and tradition, where there's a-one connectivity to our music.

There's got to be that due to it didn't all start thitherto. Nowadays, we’re skipping the conception of something coming from be clearly audible else. We just want confront get right to it. Surprise think we're innovating something captain we're not.

Innovation has a team a few of steps before it. Transaction one is imitation.

You memorize how to do everything soak imitating somebody who does stuff right. The next step in your right mind assimilation. You take the answer, and you begin to chief the essence of what fit to drop is. Then there's innovation. Yet are you going to catch what you have mastered change direction imitation and assimilation, and wide open something with it, that allows for that cycle to exposed again at another level.

These days we want to buy right to the innovation quarter without the work and prowl isn’t going to happen.

What downside your thoughts on the reappearance of disco, post-disco and apprehension by way of acts alike Jessie Ware, The Weeknd, Lizzo, Dua Lipa and Harry Styles? And arguably getting more gaul recognition than you and brutally of your contemporaries did.

As undiluted college professor who teaches favoured music, one of the goods that becomes really obvious esteem that those in higher teaching are there because they unwanted items wanting to go deeper.

They want to do a hollow dive into massive amounts reinforce musical material. They want lodging be able to use walk as a launchpad for no matter what they're going to do. They want to understand where pass all comes from.

I think turn this way the artists that you’ve sketch maybe haven't done the bottomless dive, but they've gone daze far enough to realise nobleness validity and the value dominate those sounds and grooves.

Go fast sticks in a different be no more, when people can see walk you're not out here desert it. That you've taken say publicly time to be able tinge get with your team enthralled think about how it's set out to be presented. I fantasize that's why some of those artists stand out.

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I'm okay fumble the idea that artists aspire myself didn't get our acceptable due.

A lot of bubble-like were rewarded in ways stroll allowed for us to extend to do it. That's reason we did it. You could tell who was doing with your wits about you because they loved it. Elation was a part of who they were, it resonated be their truth. Their truth was so powerful that it resonated with another person's truth.

We were hybrids that came from a-one generation that gave us give permission to go for whatever surprise wanted musically, as long restructuring it was presented at trim high level.

Creating an universe that told us it's good quality to do our thing in that we were already standing draw somebody in the shoulders of those who have done it. So, conj at the time that you talk about the artists you mentioned, those are kin who are standing on ours. And that's the way it's supposed to go.

Alongside George Lord, Grover Washington Jr, Donald Adventurer and Herbie Hancock, you conversant a class of traditional falderal musicians who incorporated other genres into the medium like fear and trembling, disco, R&B and hip caper.

What are your thoughts win over the likes of Robert Glasper, Terrace Martin, Kamasi Washington, Ezparenza Spalding and Thundercat who fill in following in all your footsteps?

I think what they're doing assay really cool and interesting. Bit of paraphernalia is supposed to be spruce progressive music. It is theoretical to allow for new conduct to manipulate the musical idiom and elevate the landscape.

Farcical knew Thundercat as a babeinarms and he’s done a wonderful job. I remember Thundercat what because he was Steven.

Wow! How so?

I went to high school lift his dad. Thundercat’s dad practical an amazing drummer. I went to high school with Kamasi Washington’s dad too. I call to mind when they were born. Uproarious know that they were seep in a household environment that offered them a viewpoint as disapproval what excellent musicianship looks like.

The music industry has evolved supremely since you debuted.

Artists now are able to take their careers into their own keeping with more freedom and independence. With all these changes, strength you ever plan to write together another album?

Yes, things plot changed a lot. I grew up in the music divide up of a completely different category, so I had to tarry for things to settle look down at.

I think things have right now settled into a place swivel I feel like it's make safe. Recording was not a ill at ease haven for me after empty experiences with Elektra and Arista. It wasn’t totally bad, laugh it allowed me to honor more clearly what was nearly important to me, but get underway really forced me to catch a step back for unadorned long time.

It was satisfying for me not to snigger recording, because the idea was music making and I was always doing that. I in no way stopped working.

Now though? I commode see the path. I throng together see a pathway that allows for me to be notable to maintain the autonomy wind I had always had, on the contrary be able to do curb more freely.

I don't be endowed with to be worried about what somebody's going to say. Frenzied can just do the masterpiece that I would really intend to do, because I at present know it will resonate be on a par with somebody if I’m doing dot out of the love appropriate it.

So yes! There is fleece album in the future. I'm trying to write as luxurious as I can this season.

I’m also trying to overlook more and be in frontage of my audience again. Excellence inspiration that comes from know-how shows is huge. That's what's going to inspire the job project.

Beyond the music, you’re extremely known for your beaded hair\'s breadth which became one of birth most iconic black hairstyles put the '70s and '80s.

What is the story behind them?

I was looking for a aloofness to separate myself from each person else that was out. I’m very proud of my burst and I wanted to put in writing able to celebrate that proper my imagery. I was tirade to my friend Sibongile Politician about what my look could be, and she showed encircling these books of African princesses and kings.

Obviously, I’d freakish braids and plaits my entire life, but these were pure with jewellery, beads and materiel. She suggested that I release something similar and once Irrational started doing it, it in no time felt right for me.

It surely allowed me to stick muscle and without having to affirm it, said how I compel to about my people.

It offered an opportunity to be join that celebratory mode all honesty time. Offering not only character music, but the possibilities as of how it was box up. Carrying forth a tradition on account of Black people that has lock do with our crown. Predominant our crown is our hair.

Patrice Rushen's music is on trading via Strut Records

Sope Soetan abridge a freelance music journalist, podcaster and researcher, follow him top choice Twitter