reviews for "searching"

2008-10-25T05:22:00.000-07:00

“Searching”, Speech DeBelleI’ve no idea who Speech DeBelle is, but this is one of the prettiest and most vulnerable songs I’ve heard in a long time. I gather she’s English, and the choice to rap over an acoustic guitar and not much else definitely keeps things sincere enough to avoid the traps of white British hip-hop. This feels like reading some really sad girl’s diary, rooting for her to make it, but not sure that she will.

By Dan Solomon
dansolomon.com

Review in IDJ - November 2008

SINGLE OF THE WEEK SPEECH DEBELLE – Searching (Big Dada) - Sublime London hip hop flavours over a chilled out inner city acoustic folky tune and some beautifully delicate guitar that skips over some clever drum ‘n bass flavoured rhythm. All quiet and restrained and powerfully delicate and they say misery loves company. And she throws up such delicate soothing sounds, such a youthful voice and you kind of think things are all good in her world until you focus in on what she’s actually saying and what she’s gone through and how she’s quietly lashing out at everything and how grim everything really is. Even the cats were (are?) filthy in her world and the bleak outlook really does contrast with that beautiful music, gets right in to your head and stops you - find yourself worrying about her. Is this her positive response? Is this too bleak? Dirty needles and all hope gone, but then it can’t be? Not when the music is so full of uplifting positive hope? Damn there’s some serious mind-messing depth here, and she sounds so young and how can she come out with all this? What the hell has gone on (still goes on?) in her world? Want to go out now find her now and make sure she’s OK! Searching searching, this is powerful London hip hop, this is something really powerfully different - the contrasts, the beauty and the bleak, the warmth, the depth (and the soothing instrumental second track that really is needed). Catch twenty two at two a.m in the hostel and whooooooosh! This debut single certainly is something – Acoustic soulful emotive hip hop and she calls it speech therapy – that and a whole whole lot more.

RESONANCE 104.4FM - SINGLE OF THE WEEK

My new myspace page

2008-10-25T02:36:00.000-07:00

Hey...this is my first blog on my new myspage page and really, its the first of a new chapter for me. Three months ago I was moaning at my A&R and arguing with my label manager for moving too slow (I still havn't mastered patience.....and probaly never will...im resigned to the fact now) A couple months later and progress is so fast...im trying to keep up. My label has been pushing my first single on white label through pluggers (very important ppl...get one!). "searching" is meant to be a low key affair (a label might do that to make it seem like I dont have a deal cause most people have more respect for a rapper the harder they think your struggles been..yea, that is what hip hop's about now!!!) After about 2 weeks its been playlisted on the two biggest radio station in the UK as well as some smaller ones in and out of London. Its looking nice still...im smilling...I cant lie!!
I was doing some thinking last nite and I notice something...it seems when I was doing the "wrong" things my God did I meet the wrong people...really there no good reason to be in crack den...hopefully the youngers catch on to that. Now I feel like im doing the "right" thing, im meeting the right people....like Juliette my manager and my band G, Kareem and Barney (I'll have up video's of our rehearsal's soon)...saying that I have met some amazing talents and clean hearted people along the way!! what im trying to say in a long drawn out way is....I think im "moving in the right direction".....

I just wish my friend Frenchie was here to see it.........

www.myspace.com/speechdebellemusic

www.myspace.com/speechuk

http://uk.youtube.com/SpeechDebelleTV