Saidah Baba Talibah’s “Place Called Grace” Makes US Debut As AOL
Spinner Video of the Day
Source: Theresa Micallef, tenfourcommunications@yahoo.ca
TORONTO, ON – Following the world premiere of Toronto rock soul
songstress Saidah Baba Talibah’s
“Place Called Grace”
video on Exclaim.ca, Saidah is excited to announce the official
US premiere of “Place Called Grace” - the first video off her
scintillating The Phone Demos EP - on AOL Spinner’s Video of the
Day!
Today is also the official US release of the What’s Inside Her
Head mixtape. Presented by DJ L’Oquenz and hosted by Saidah, the
mixtape is a soulful, funky ride inside the head of Saidah Baba
Talibah featuring tracks from Janelle Monae, Chaka Khan, Raphael
Saadiq, N.E.R.D., Aloe Blacc and more, as well as two tracks
from Saidah’s Phone Demos EP.
True to the essence of the song, the “Place Called Grace” video
is set in a 1920’s speakeasy and emanates a raw and authentic
feel, while using decidedly twenty-first century techniques that
give the video its polished, classy look that is stripped down
and gritty. The video features gorgeous, eye-catching costumes
and clean and sexy choreography by Lisa Auguste (So You Think
You Can Dance) and was directed by Canadian short film director
Sarah Michelle Brown.
“Place Called Grace” video
"The Phone Demos were a beautiful accident. Donna Grantis (my
guitarist) and I were trying to remember our ideas so decided to
record them on a cellphone voice notes, and when we listened
back and shared them with other people, they caught the essence
of the raw emotion that we were trying to capture in the songs.
The beauty of the video is that it captures the raw simplicity
of the song and brings the feeling of era that the lo-fi sound
capture from a cellphone," tells Saidah.
What is The Phone Demos? (in Saidah’s words)
The lo-fi, gritty, raw quality of the phone demos came about by
accident while Saidah Baba Talibah was in a writing session.
With no studio or tape recorder to record the songs created, the
only device available to document the songs in progress was a
cell phone. The reactions to the sound of the recordings were
described as reminiscent of old blues recordings (eg. Robert
Johnson, Bessie Smith). Inspired by countless reactions,
releasing the phone demos is a way to include people in on an
entire journey—starting with the raw beginnings of the songs
--just voice, guitar and a cell phone.
With a solid foundation from her mother, Blues and Jazz singer &
actress Salome Bey, and years singing back up for the likes of
k-os, Maestro Fresh Wes, Johnny Reid and Jully Black and on
Canadian Idol, Saidah is not only an incredibly talented singer,
dancer and actress, who’s been described as Living Color-meets-Erykah
Badu and has received nothing but high praise from the likes of
NOW, AOL Spinner and Exclaim; she’s also following the cues of
innovators like Radiohead and Public Enemy and has taken an
unorthodox approach to funding her upcoming album S(cream) due
out later this year, letting fans pre-invest in it via a
campaign called Make Me Wanna S(cream), where fans are rewarded
with anything from an autographed Saidah album to a raw vegan
meal prepared by Saidah and a private dinner performance
complete with burlesque dancers, depending on the level of
investment. Find out more about Saidah's Make Me Wanna Scream
"Choose Your Own Adventure" campaign here.
::LANGFIELD
ENTERTAINMENT:: ENTERTAINMENT NEWS WITH A CANADIAN TWIST::
