Preview CD here: http://cdbaby.com/cd/carettabell
I recently had a chance to speak with Kozmik Oasis recording artist Caretta Bell, a Texas native with a sound she simply classifies as “R&B”, although I ain’t buyin’ it because my ears are hearin’ a little neo-soul. (Imagine that, me telling an artist what kind of music she makes.) Anyway, Caretta and I chatted about her brand new album, “Love’s Eye View“, as well as the struggles of being a brand new artist attempting to break into the uber difficult world that is the music business.
New recording artist or not, as far as the music is concerned - Caretta Bell has the makings of a serious hit maker in a time where the industry is certainly void of real talent! The first track I heard was “A Beautiful Surprise” which immediately brought Jill Scott to mind and, as I listened further, I heard a little Mica Paris, and then a little Erykah Badu… by the time I was done, I was convinced that, inadvertantly or not, Ms. Bell had combined a little bit of each of those ladies with a whole lot of Caretta Bell and created a sound entirely her own - and I’m totally feeling it.
Already a fan after previewing the CD, by the time I’d finished speaking with the lovely lady with the beautiful voice and equally resplendent spirit - I was officially hooked.
CARRINGTON: Hey, Ma’am! Wassup with you today?
CARETTA: I’m good, how are you? I’ve been waiting on your call.
CARRINGTON: You’re from Hawkins, Texas? Girl, I’ve been in Texas for 16 years and I have never heard of Hawkins, Texas? Where is that?
CARETTA: (Laughter) Hawkins is in northeast Texas. If you’ve heard of Tyler, it’s about twenty minutes away. It’s one of those towns where, if you blink…
CARRINGTON: OK, I was just wondering. (Laughter) When did you first realize that you could sing?
CARETTA: Wow. I’ve been singing since I was a little girl, but I would say in church. Seeing people’s reactions when I would sing. They say that I’ve been singing since I was three, but I don’t remember that.
CARRINGTON: Does anybody in your family sing?
CARETTA: My mom sings, and my grandmother sings and plays the piano and that’s where I picked up the piano - taking lessons from her.
CARRINGTON: Was there a pivotal moment where you decided that you wanted to pursue this as a career, or did it just start happening for you because you could sing?
CARETTA: I think it just kind of started happening. I wanted to sing, but then I ran into a producer named John Broussard and we worked together. After that first studio session, I was like I really want to do this, and that’s when I got serious.
CARRINGTON: How did you go about getting started after you got to Houston? Were you working a full-time job and doing gigs in between?
CARETTA: I actually came to Houston for college. I did a couple of years at the University of Houston and made some connections there. I did talent shows and joined a couple of bands…
CARRINGTON: Did you leave school in pursuit of your career?
CARETTA: I did.
CARRINGTON: And how did that go over with mama ‘nem?
CARRETTA: (Laughter) You know she hated it. Especially because I come from a long line of people who have their masters or, bachelors at the very least. Education is very important, so they weren’t happy.
CARRINGTON: So, she wasn’t feeling the hymn sangin’ at all. (Laughter)
CARETTA: (Laughter) Not at all. They’re very supportive, but you know how it is.
CARRINGTON: Are you single, dating? What’s going on?
CARETTA: (Laughter) I don’t have a boyfriend, starting to date a little bit right now - but I’m a single woman.
CARRINGTON: What label are you with?
CARETTA: I’m with an independent label in Houston called, Kozmik Oasis Recordings.
CARRINGTON: Is that K’Monte’s label?
CARETTA: Yeah, that’s right. That’s his label.
CARRINGTON: Tell me about the signing process, did it take a long time to get signed to a label?
CARETTA: You know, I had some interest from some bigger labels, but I felt that this was more ideal for me because of the money and the creative freedom that comes with being independent. It took time, though.
CARRINGTON: Do you write any of your songs?
CARETTA: All the songs on my album I either wrote, or co-wrote.
CARRINGTON: How would you classify your sound, Neo - Soul, R&B with a jazzy feel, what?
CARETTA: I think you can hear elements of everything, but I really think that it’s straight up R&B. There are definitely a couple of neo-soul tracks on there, but I call it R&B.
CARRINGTON: If you had to categorize yourself, what artist would you stand next to?
CARETTA: That’s so hard because as artist, we want to believe that we’re so original, (Laughter) but I would say Tamia. We have a similar style in her older stuff.
CARRINGTON: Man, I love old school Tamia, she was so smooth. She made that music that made you want to be in love.
Caretta: She is great!
What’s the name of the album?
CARETTA: Loves Eye View.
CARRINGTON: What’s the first single?
CARETTA: It’s called “Breath of Fresh Air“.
CARRINGTON: Do you have a favorite song on the album?
CARETTA: I have a couple but if I had to pick one, it would probably be, “How Do I Love Thee”.
CARRINGTON: I’m a writer and, it’s really easy to read someone else’s stuff and be envious because they’re so successful when the work just isn’t that great. Do you ever hear a song on the radio and you’re like, “I would have torn that song up!”?
CORETTA: (Laughter) You’ll drive yourself crazy with that. My theory is, “What’s for me is for me.”
CARRINGTON: Are you ready for fame?
CARETTA: I think so. If you’d asked me that four or five years ago, I probably would have said yes, but looking back - I wasn’t.
CARRINGTON: What level of fame do you think that you’ll be comfortable with? Beyonce’ - where the money is great, but you give away your entire life because you’re known globally? Mary - where you’re very famous within the African American community, but you can still go certain places and people not know who you are? Or Like a Jill Scott, where you’re very successful, but you can still have that level of anonymity that you can blend into the crowd, leaving you with the ability to still be “Caretta” to a certain degree?
CARETTA: Lord, if you bless me with that, I’m gonna roll with it, but I’m not looking for that. I’d be very comfortable with an underground success. I don’t have to be this mega - superstar, I’d be satisfied with someone on a lower scale.
CARRINGTON: Tell me about the process of making the album, did you record a lot of songs?
CARETTA: We recorded fifteen songs and thirteen made it onto the CD. It was such a hellacious process. Recording an album is no joke - it’s a lot of hard work and time.
CARRINGTON: How hard was it to decide which songs to leave off of the album?
CARETTA: It’s hard because they’re all your babies, especially with me writing most of the material, they all hold a special place in my heart. It made it a bit easier because of the flow of the album.
CARRINGTON: After all the hard work you’ve done, all the time it took to get to this point, what was it like to finally have a tangible copy of your work and be able to actually hold it in your hands?
CARETTA: I’m smiling right now just thinking about it! (Laughter) I waited so long and put in so much hard work, so I’m grinning right now. It was like, “Yes! It’s finally here!”
CARRINGTON: So, now that the CD is out - do your friends and family expect you to have a whole bunch of money?
CARETTA: (Laughter) No, we already let them know - we have not arrived yet!
CARRINGTON: When you listen to music, who do you listen to?
CARETTA: Robin Thicke is one of the newer artist, but I also love Stevie Wonder and old school Faith Evans. I just moved and I’m unpacking CD’s and rediscovering music that I’d kind of forgotten about.
CARRINGTON: On a scale of one to ten, how would you rate, “Love’s Eye View”?
CARETTA: Is that really a fair question? (Laughter) Of course, I think it’s a very, good album and people will enjoy it so, it’s definitely a ten in my book.
CARRINGTON: Where do you plan to be professionally, in the next five years?
CARETTA: Probably working on my third album. I’d like to be doing some touring overseas and maybe having a little bit more notoriety so that when you mention Caretta Bell, people will know who I am.
CARRINGTON: Where can people pick up the album?
CARETTA: It’s on iTunes and you can also pick it up at http://www.cdbaby.com/
CARRINGTON: It was a pleasure talking to you, sweetie. I wish you much success!
CARETTA: Thank you so much, Carrington
Caretta Bell
Love’s Eye View
Kozmik Oasis Records
Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/carettabell
Label: http://www.kozmikoasis.com/
