Customer Reviews

Supa Sista

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Reading poetry for the length of a CD and keeping it interesting is a pretty big challenge. Ursula Rucker does it, though. The tempo is a bit slow and unvaried, however Rucker tastefully varies her delivery enough to keep the listener engaged. Mostly she speaks, but sometimes she sings and other times kicks the rhythm to the verge of rap.

Although there were times I wished she'd rapped or sang more fully, overall I think the CD wouldn't work as well if she at all seemed like "I know reading poetry isn't interesting enough so now I'll sing or rap". By holding true to what she is - a poet of spoken word - she creates something uniquely her own.

Besides, she's supported with some incredible talent for the CD and they are obviously totally in touch with her vision. 4Hero and King Britt produce tracks. Vicki Miles make an appearance. There's also live instrumentation combined with the programming. Overall, the musical landscape of the CD has a vibe not far removed from Roni Size and Reprazent-land.

Best of all, Rucker deserves the attention she gets. Her poetry is full of strong images and themes, and she uses her gift to celebrate and skewer equally well. She slams black musicians who glorify violence ("What???"), celebrates women ("Letter to a Sister Friend"), relationships ("7"), or ponders the potential of technology ("Digichant") all with skill. Her delivery is very appealing: a soothing, spoken rhythm that oozes cool. It's so effective that even when the poetry is a little flat ("Spring"), she can carry things off.

Excellent example of someone who absolutely doesn't fit the mold, refuses to conform, and by taking the hard road creates something completely their own. Excellent!

Judging from her thought-provoking poetic-narratives sealed as gems on the ends of The Roots albums, it was a long-awaited journey to see what Ms. Rucker would do with an album all to herself. There's nothing more amazing than the power of words and when used "correctly" they can be a language and beauty of immensive and infinite meaning. Just like poets such as Saul Williams and Jessica Care Moore, Ursula brings something to the realm of spoken word that is uniquely hers yet resembling those before her. She plays with the encoded structures of language like Ntzoke, she is powerful like Nikki Giovanni, captivates bitter truths like Baraka...yet in this design she has succeed as creating her own world of prose composed over lush, mellow grooves that would easily turn your listening palace into a jazz lounge. Maybe it was the mood of the day when purchased Ursula's CD and songs like "7", "Philadephia Child", and "Womansong" spoke deeply to me because I was struggling with all the emotions and soft hysterias of my newly forming womanhood. Or perhaps it was the fact that Ursula was preaching and sermonizing the silent voices of people you seldom even notice. The women and men who carry themselves in instropection, or the sleepless and the unheard, the men and women who ride city buses all day and night, laboring their sanity for embarrassing pay checks. Ursula was expressing the observations of a setting sun--powerful yet silent. If poetry is nothing else, it is a insightful medium for us to understand and draw meaning from what has no shape and defintion, for emotions that one cannot reason with, to share dreams and nightmares that warm and threaten our conscience daily. In times as chaotic as these, where the world is in constant upset and anger and sadness have become the equilavent of breathing, Ursula's Supa Sista has come to rescue us from ourselves. Her meditations on life, love, pain, and sorrow is like a love letter to our own minds, composed carefully and thoughtfully, yet evokes more than just a simple reading.

Ursula Rucker gives us a downright interesting record here. If you think you've got her all figured out base on her slight offerings on a few of the Roots records, you're missing out. Here, she is fully produced and stretches a lot more than a poem a year on a hip-hop record might lead you to believe. In fact, her music really makes the record, lifting it well above the pale of poetry CDs on the market (what few there are) when her poems don't.

Is she the greatest poet in the world? Of course not. Her messages are often a little too obvious and preachy and her voice doesn't hit too much above her regular monotone anywhere near often enough, but man, does she know how to pick the song for the job. On tracks like "Womansong" and "7" she is working fully within her range and making great tracks out of good rhythmic and stylistic ideas.

In fact, the music on this record is so consistently good that you'll often find yourself circumventing the poem for a soul music fix. Her tracks are informed by the recent bump in attention to actual soul music like Erykah Badu, Jill Scott and D'Angelo. The tracks are smoothed-out funk, and you can tell she's from Philly by her choices. Great stuff here, and not radio pap. You could put the music for "7", "Brown Boy" or "Letter to a Sister Friend" against almost any groove on the radio right now and watch her sales soar. Alas, radio's not that brave, and the record is just this side of too old for the short-attention span of the medium anyway. Sad. On the strength of the music on this CD, the album made it on my list of the best of 2001.

The King Britt-co-produced track "Spring" is almost worth the price of the CD by itself, and considering you probably won't get it anywhere else but off this CD, go ahead and treat yourself. It's a beautiful song amidst an album of pretty great grooves anyway, so you really can't go wrong here. This is the album that Saul Williams should have had, or at least had its theories applied to.

In a soft yet inescapable voice, performance and recording artist URSULA RUCKER's words cut
through the fabric of society like razor blades. Exposing hypocrisy, attacking injustice, she
offers a conscious and intelligent perspective on subjects ranging from the sell-out of the
hip-hop movement and black culture, to womanhood, child abuse and the environment. SUPA
SISTA isn't just rapping and singing, it is poetic warfare. The skilled and eclectic production
(Robert Yancee III, 4Hero, King Britt, and Oversoul7) breaks every boundary associated with
hip-hop, creating a genuine manifesto for black music in the 21st. century.

It's hard to put what I've just heard in proper context, but what needs to be said is that this beautiful wordsmith from Philadelphia, Pa has grasp the idea of loving your art to the point of not making what people are use to for the sake of selling records. She has blessed the literary, and musical fields with a gem of enlighten wordsmanship, and passionate delivery. The concepts and topics on the album are widespread and versatyle; Rape, Addiction,Responsibilty,Government,Mistreatment, Manhood, Womanhood, Love, Urban Youth, Lust, ...................and lastly, hiddenly( what a surprize!!!) the bonus track. The amalgamation of words and beats flow smoothly thoughout the album with no "filler" material.
Ursala is truly a Supa Sista.

If you've ever hear the bonus tracks on every Roots cd, you've been blessed to here Ursula Ruckers speak. Here poetry is so profound. And now you have the pleasure to hear her on an entire CD! This is a must have for serious music lovers. Most music on the airwaves will never compare with this artist. Pick it up!
Pick it up!Pick it up!

Here is what great writing sounds like. This is a album for those on a higher level than that of urdan radio. This is worth every dime this sista throws down in her poetry and the music both sets and suits the mood for each track. A great buy

I have heard Ursala's voice on The Roots albums and Slyk 130 and I always wondered if she had produced her own material. I stumbled on this album and is was worth every nickel. Every track on this CD is hype. This CD straddles the nexus between Spoken Word, Neo-Soul and Chill Out Music. If you buy this album you will be playing it over and over again. This album is supreme.

What a find this little plastic gem was. Now I knew of Ursula only from her great spoken word cameos on the Roots albums. But with Supa Sista the listener is able to garner an entirely new perspective of Ursula through her music. And I must say that I personally was blown away by this experience! Everything from the exquisite 'Illadelph style' production to Ursulas seemingly endless ability to flip her own style, but still remain true to form. Indeed, this album is not for everyone. Those unfortunate close minded individuals would classify this as "artsy coffee house babble" rather than allow themselves the pleasure of Ursula Rucker's sultry voice and intelligent lyrics. For those of you who don't see creative exploration as a bad thing; [...] PICK THIS ALBUM UP.

I had given up on spoken word CD's after the big let down of Eargasms - CrucialPoetics and Black Whole Styles. Ms Rucker has renewed my faith in spoken word recorded material with a wonderful blend of production, mind soothing poerty and a winning team to make it all work. A good CD without a question!

oNe