Capital Hip Hop Soul: Kyonte'

Soul-singer Kyonte, based in the Washington, DC area, is primed for fame. Already touring regularly as a support vocalist for singer Raheem Devaughn, Kyonte has been amassing a following for his brand of contemporary soul that stays true to its R & B roots. But, Kyonte, is a multi-layered artist who has not only garnered attention as the show’s main attraction, but as a budding producer as well. Last year, he earned a GRAMMY nomination for his production of Devaughn’s popular anthem “Woman” and he continues to win awards locally in his hometown for his work in front of and behind the microphone. I caught up with Kyonte' while on assignment for SoulTrain.com. Check out an excerpt below from the Q & A and visit the SoulTrain.com site HERE for the full interview.

SoulTrain.com: People may not realize it, but, in addition to touring with him, you co-produced Raheem Devaughn's hit "Woman" which was nominated for a Grammy. Tell us a little about your role as a producer and some other artists you've worked with.

Kyonte: As a producer, I mainly feel that its my job to push everyone around me to the limit and beyond. Whether it’s musically or personally, I enjoy working with people that give me that energy in return.

SoulTrain.com: You are a DC-based artist, garnering a lot of attention locally as a singer and producer, but you've done a lot nationally and internationally as well. You seem to have passed the point of being an emerging artist and have really created a presence for yourself. What are some next steps you think you want to take as your career blossoms?

Kyonte: As things develop, I'm hungry to deliver great music and be the total package. For the last 6months, I've been working on developing my character and being more disciplined. I've learned over the years that your talent and ability can take you many places but its your character that will sustain you and allow you to grow and evolve into the next stages of your life and career.

SoulTrain.com: Your debut CD What's That Sound has been generating buzz, with some calling you the next big thing to come out of DC following the very-popular Raheem Devaughn. Tell us about some of the response you've been getting to your CD and a little bit about the theme of your CD.

Kyonte: First off, the theme is 831-- 8letters 3words 1meaning. It means I LOVE YOU and the EP itself deals with not just relationship type love but more so a love of living and the things that come along with it. I've received an amazing response from the CD...especially in the UK and Japan. They love me and I love them right back. Here in the states, people listen and they often ask "why aren't you signed?" I love the people so much. They give me perspective.

Read the rest of the Q & A HERE

-Khadijah "Moon" Ali-Coleman

Capital Hip Hop Soul: Choklate (@choklate)

Many artists dreamed of success in the entertainment industry before they even started on their journey.  Some artists, like soul singer Choklate, however, followed a different direction before realizing that music was her passion.  But--lucky for us-- after realizing that she had dreams to sing and with the support of an encouraging employer goading her on, she decided to follow the path that has brought her music to our ears.

Born in Seattle, WA and raised in San Diego, CA,  Choklate is a Seattle-based singer/songwriter who infuses various genres into her music. She has performed on stages with Bilal, Eric Roberson, Raheem DeVaughn, Dwele and other artists who fall into the neo-soul genre.  Choklate has released two albums -- Choklate (2006) and To Whom It May Concern (2009)-- and she credits the "Left Coast"--her term for both Washington and California--with its heavy Hip Hop and R & B influences for having a huge impact on her "musical being". 





Choklate will be featured along with DC singers Eva Kennedy and Snúhgie Stocks, in LivSuite presents Spring Soul Session Vol. 1 on April 29th at Washington DC's Twelve Restaurant and Lounge.  We caught up with her for a Q &A before the big event.


Choklate's "Grown Folks" music video from her album To Whom It May Concern:

Liberated Muse: What was your initial reaction that you will participate in the Spring Soul Session Vol. 1 event on April 29th? 


Choklate: I was just happy to be afforded the opportunity to return to an area that initially gave me so much love and support in the very beginning of my career and returning in a manner that I think will serve both myself as a performing artist as well as the fans that like the music that I do.  [I'm] very excited about the show.

Liberated Muse: What do you have in store for the audience at the Spring Soul Session Vol. 1 event? What should they expect?

Choklate: A really passionate, humbled and grateful person on stage singing honest songs that she wrote [with] a great crew of musicians.  That's what they can expect.  I'll leave pieces of my heart and journey [with] them and hopefully they enjoy the experience."

Liberated Muse: What is the meaning behind your stage name, "Choklate"?

Choklate: It was a [nickname] that stuck.  Someone referred to me as Choklate Angel once when I first started doing music and I hated it.  I got them to drop the Angel part as I [was] quite a [tomboy] at the time but the Choklate part stuck... couldn't shake it for the life of me.

Liberated Muse: How would you describe your sound? 

Choklate: I don't have a sound.  I'm rebellious.  I sound like freedom.  I do anything I feel like doing. I sing what I want, what the music tells me to...sometimes it's soul, sometimes it's rock, sometimes it's hip hop, sometimes it's dance, pop...whatever I want to sound like at the moment is what I sound like at that particular moment.

Liberated Muse: What is your preference: being a live performer, recording in the studio, or both? Please elaborate.

Choklate: I love both. I think in the studio you get to breath[e] life into your creative impulses and lay them down and pad them and embellish them but then on stage you get to really tell the story.  Really lay it all on the line. I think I'm rather boring in the studio honestly but I feel like the fire comes from me live, when I remember the moments the songs where written or the scenario that prompted them. I enjoy the exercise of the vocals [more so] on stage than I do in the booth cause you can belt out your pain or happiness and it's almost tangible but I'm finding a nice balance more recently.

Liberated Muse: Please describe any feelings you get when you perform.

Choklate: I dunno, I'm always pretty nervous to begin w/ and then I black out sometimes and then sometimes it's like talking to a [bunch of] friends while interacting w/ the audience...sometimes I get sad, overwhelmed, really charged up [with] energy like a lightening bolt strikes me...sometimes I get stuck [with] a massive brain freeze on stage, like I've been sucking on a 7/11 Slurpee.... It's a strange place that conjures all sorts of feelings inside.

Liberated Muse: You traveled to various countries such as France, Italy, Sweden, and many others.  What are your feelings about traveling to different countries?

Choklate: It's a blessing to have been to those places. To have seen other cultures and how they live and how they enjoy life and do things differently.  The different foods and such etc. The language, the vibe of the parties, the fans.  It's always a humbling experience. You never realize how big the world is until you set your eyes on a place you never knew existed and then how small it is when they are singing the songs along [with] you. It's all just been a real blessing to have seen and witnessed.

Liberated Muse: As a songwriter, what are your inspirations to write songs?

Choklate: Real life. Real emotions. Real feelings. The moments and people and situations in life that demand a melody."

Liberated Muse: On your website, you stated music wasn't an option initially.  What was the turning point in your life that changed your mind about pursuing music as a career? 

Choklate: I'm always stumped [with] this one. I can't [even] pinpoint the actual moment or point... I guess when my boss fired me and said that I should go and chase my dreams.  Or at least [that's] the point I remember today. She said that she couldn't stand by and watch me lead both lives anymore...heck her husband and mother were fans and she just wanted me to go and chase it... she let me return when things got slow cause I was addicted to working a regular job and they needed someone who knew the ropes so it worked...I'm still on the fence. It's a tough job/career...always looking for the right position [with] the right kind of flexibility and a steady paycheck so that I can do both work and music...[I'm] petrified sometimes thinking that one day it will spit me out after it's devoured my very being, we'll see tho.

Liberated Muse: What are your thoughts about your fans? What are your thoughts about non-supporters (haters) of your music?

Choklate: I really love my fans. I really do. I can't do music without them. They are the reason I can still do this at this point in my career. When I ask them to pray for me they do. Whenever I'm in the dumps about something a few of them will chime in and encourage me or send me positive thoughts, vibes or quotes. I love them. They're bomb dot com. Real talk. My non supporters/haters? I don't even have time to consider them.

Liberated Muse: Lastly, are there any other thoughts, opinions, etc. you would like to share with us? 

Choklate: I appreciate all the people that take a moment to learn my story, to share my music [with] their family, friends and [co-workers]...you are my industry and I am grateful to you for extending to me this amazing platform". And i'm an e-social site junkie so come find me!!!



Tickets to the LivSuite event can be purchased now.

TO GET CONNECTED WITH MS. CHOKLATE, VISIT HER WEBSITES:
www.twitter.com/choklate
www.choklatemusic.tumblr.com
www.facebook.com/choklatemusic
www.memusic.com/choklate
www.myspace.com/listen2chok
www.reverbnation.com/choklate

-Candace "Ama" Boahene




 Candace "Ama" Boahene is an up and coming peformer and online writer with a promising future in Entertainment by God's grace.  She is an MSU Alumnae and strives for educating individuals about the importance of the arts. Visit her profile on Liberated Muse HERE.

Raheem Devaughn Creates a "MasterPiece"

(In photo: Raheem Devaughn on the cover for his single "Bulletproof" which features the rapper Ludacris. Raheen released his new CD The Love and War MasterPeace yesterday admidst excellent critic reviews)


DC home-grown artist Raheem Devaughn is one of the most talented folks to be from the area, following in the footsteps of one of his vocal idols, Marvin Gaye. Yesterday, he released a new CD that has upped the game in an increasingly more creatively stagnant mainstream market. Raheem Devaughn's new CD The Love and War Masterpeace is superior and yet another great CD starting off 2010 right. It's worth copping today!

With a resounding introduction speech from none other than Dr. Cornel West, Raheem Devaughn’s new CD begins with an exclamation point that doesn’t end, even after the last song. “…we talkin about revitalization…”

Dr. West says about this CD and that is what this CD does—it revitalizes the game, taking it next level. Raheem does what Marvin Gaye did so effortlessly it seemed—speak of political and social issues within a musical landscape that never lacks in rich soul melodies and grit. Raheem’s sound is heavily marked by Marvin Gaye’s influence on this CD, particularly on the endlessly beautiful “Garden of Love” and this new project would make the legend proud. Where other Marvin imitators like Chico Debarge and Robin Thicke have borrowed only from his sound, Raheem has used Marvin’s sound as a springboard to create a contemporary fusion of old and new. With Ludacris on the first track “Bulletproof”, Raheem brings us the next chapter in the book that Marvin’s “What’s Going On” began about our lives “…here, overseas and across the waters…”

Raheem is evidently in a mood of collaboration (as we saw with his recent video feature on Tabi Bonney’s “Fever”) and this CD is heavy with featured guests on songs besides Ludacris, including Wale on the head-nodder “Greatness”, Damian Marley on the socially critical “Revelations 2010” and Malik Yusef on the very sexy ballad “Fragile”. Every single one of these collabos work. Wale adds the necessary lyrical flow “Greatness” without taking the focus away from Raheem while Marley on “Revelations 2010” adds the funk to this already soul-blazed song about the social and political war on Black men.

The best collaboration on the CD, however is “Nobody Wins a War” which is 100 times better than any tribute song we’ve heard with a heavy set of celebrity vocalists on the mic. This song features Raheem on lead with verse and chorus sung by the likes of Jill Scott, Bilal, Anthony Hamilton, Algebra, Chrisette Michele, Shelby Johnson, Ledisi, Citizen Cope, Dwele, Chico DeBarge and Rudy Currence. Pure beauty.

Listen to this song on Soulbounce.com by clicking HERE