Father Knowles Best
Ben Barna
May 14, 2008
Matthew Knowles is proud of his daughters, no doubt. His eldest Beyoncé once won a talent competition at the age of seven, singing John Lennon’s "Imagine," and has apparently gone on to achieve some success in the music and film industries. His youngest daughter Solange’s greatest professional success came when she starred opposite Hayden Panettiere in Bring It On: All or Nothing, moving 750,000 copies in its first week, making it one of the best-selling straight-to-DVD titles ever. But yesterday, when Mr. Knowles mentioned that impressive figure, it was a mere sidebar to the real reason we found ourselves in a Universal Music boardroom with Jay-Z’s father-in-law. Flanked on all sides by Solange glamour shots, Mr. Knowles was there to boast his daughter’s latest and greatest artistic achievement, her upcoming album SoL-AngeL and the Hadley St. Dreams. Unorthodox title, unorthodox record.
When Ashlee Simpson danced a jig to musical stardom, it was in direct opposition to her sister’s assembly-line bubbly pop. But no matter how hard Ashlee tried to rock out of her sister’s shadow, she was always defined by who she wasn’t, not who she was. So when Mr. Knowles told us that Solange’s new album “was for that hipster kid, for that intellectual kid, and for that skater kid,” we were skeptical. No need, jaded journalist, because Hadley St. Dreams surprised on all angles. The album features a “dream team” of production, songwriting, and appearances from visionaries like the Neptunes, Mark Ronson, Q-Tip, Lil Wayne, Bilal, Cee-Lo, Lamont Dozier, and even Scottish electronic duo Boards of Canada. And Solange, who has written songs for Destiny’s Child, has a knack for personal lyrics, crammed into exploratory arrangements. The album is an astral throwback to Motown’s heyday that travels beyond R&B to the farthest frontiers of pop music and beyond. Solange describes the sound of her record as if the Supremes, the Marvelettes, Dusty Springfield, and Minnie Riperton “were making their music today, with a modern touch.” You can listen to the Neptunes-produced first single “I Decided” on Solange’s MySpace page, and look for the video, which features Solange channeling a young Diana Ross, coming soon to a YouTube near you.
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