A well-traveled artist should take in all the experiences they can from their journey. Music has its own individual style on each corner of the globe. Our recent discovery Céline Rudolph has found a way to tie together all her exotic locale influences into one unique sound that is all her own.
The vocalist and composer spends her time between Berlin, São Paulo, Paris and New York taking a piece of each with her. Although based in the Jazz genre, African and Brazilian rhythms can be felt crafting an experimental sound. Céline Rudolph even blends multiple languages into her music including English, Portuguese, French and German. Her voice has been heralded as a “jewel of European vocal jazz.”
Now Céline Rudolph is set to release her new album PEARLS on June 21st, 2019. For this one, she came to Brooklyn, New York to work with co-producer Jamire Williams. The resulting lead single “Pearls” shows the diversity. They managed to take singer-songwriter vocal styling and blend it within an urban Jazz based genre. The elegant instrumentation builds the base for an atmospheric exploration of sound. Céline’s vocals are the true highlight as she shows techniques that demand attention.
We had the chance to chat with Céline Rudolph to get a little deeper into what she is able to create. Enjoy the interview here:
What first drew you into creating music?
My parents listened to a lot of music; I grew up with Brazilian classics and French chansons and started writing my own songs on the guitar by the age of 12. Back then, everything I wrote was in French, my mother’s language.
How would you describe the Céline Rudolph sound?
Coming from a jazz background and being rooted in Brazilian music, my sound has always been rhythmic and inspired by the cities I visited: São Paulo, Paris, Dakar, and Lisbon. For PEARLS I went to New York City and my sound became more urban, groovy, singer-songwriter like. I love to paint with my voice and create wild improvisations.
Who were some of your biggest influences?
Coming from a jazz background and being rooted in Brazilian music, my sound has always been rhythmic and inspired by the cities I visited: São Paulo, Paris, Dakar, and Lisbon. For PEARLS I went to New York City and my sound became more urban, groovy, singer-songwriter like. I love to paint with my voice and create wild improvisations.
Tell us about your latest single “Pearls”. How did it all come together?
I first heard drummer Jamire Williams (who has worked with Robert Glasper, Solange Knowles, John Mayer or Herbie Hancock) in a Berlin Club. I was centripetally drawn into the energy that emanated from Jamire – such enormous power, a thundering whirlwind. It electrified me and stirred my own inner whirlwind. I showed him my new song „Pearls“ and all the music I had written the last year. We finally decided collaborating on a whole album! On the Brooklyn Recording Studio session we also had pianist Leo Genovese (Esperanza Spalding group), Lionel Loueke on guitar and bassist Burniss Travis (known for his collaborations with rapper Common). Complex compositions got transformed into living and breathing music and we spend a good time together, having a lot of fun. We jammed, worked hard, laughed and in the end we recorded the album in three days and nights.
What do you hope the listener takes away from a Céline Rudolph song?
I hope that one enjoys the groove, the soundscapes, together with the lyrics – and connects in a personal way. But honestly: sometimes it’s okay to just have a dance and sing out loud to a good song 😉
What are the future plans for your career?
I have already recorded a lot of albums of different color and I’m pretty sure that PEARLS isn’t the last one. And I also love the adrenaline, the here and now, the surprise and the power which the stage grants me. Touring through Africa with Lionel Loueke last summer has been an inspiring adventure, so I plan to explore more countries next year. I love to bring excellent musicians together and to travel and be inspired by foreign languages, sounds, and cultures.
Keep up with more from Celine Rudolph on her WEBSITE.
