Interview: Corinne Bailey Rae

Popstar with hot new album discusses soul music, Wordsworth and the Death Of The Author

by Peter CulshawMonday, 08 February 2010

Corinne Bailey Rae: deconstructed pop star

I meet Corinne Bailey Rae upstairs at Ronnie Scott’s in Soho – she wanders into the room and a couple of record company types intercept her. I hear phrases like “consumer segmentation”, “demographics”, “functionality of streaming” floating across the room – it sounds like someone has a new type of iPhone app they want her to sign up to. She looks polite, if a bit bemused. But in a depressed record business, Corinne Bailey Rae is a really big deal.

How it can go from really shrunken down to a massive high in the course of a song: I like songs that pull you around like that.'

Album: Corinne Bailey Rae - Black Rainbows

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Permalink Submitted by Lisa Ansell (not verified) on Mon, 08/02/2010 - 13:54

I enjoyed this article very much. I met her once, while she was still singing in Leeds, and after being blown away by her performances in this little club, was doubly blown away by just how nice she was. I hope we hear a lot more from her, in future.

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Permalink Submitted by Nikiola1234@goo... (not verified) on Thu, 13/01/2011 - 12:05

Thank you for this article, and yes WOW! since seeing her performance on 'Later' and reading about her, i am now officially a huge fan, have just ordered and am waiting for new album 'The Sea' to arrive. I love music and the emotions it can make you feel (am big radiohead fan) and I found it fascinating to discover that she listened to radiohead as like radiohead her lyrics are wonderful, this is intelligent music. I like artists who can connect with their music and draw you in and make you feel. That to me is what music should be. The rare commodity these days that is the singer/songwriter/performer.

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