Jessie Ware — Tough Love
∩→ Pořád je to elegantní a hedvábná záležitost, která udržuje hlubší emoce ve středobodu dění. K nominaci ji chyběl kousíček, stačilo udělat jednu nebo spíše dvě písně více intimněji. Ovšem o tom, že je to nejpůvabnější zpěvačka, s jakou jsem se letos setkal, není pochyb. © Jessie Ware © Daniel Lewis 2012, Pictured is Jessie Ware photographed at the Village Underground in Shoreditch, London.
Birth name: Jessica Lois Ware
Born: 15 October 1984 in London, England
Location: Clapham, South London, UK
Album release: October 10, 2014
Record Label: Island Records (PMR, Island, Interscope)
Duration: 58:08
Tracks:
01 Tough Love 3:27
02 You & I (Forever) 3:59
03 Cruel 3:52
04 Say You Love Me 4:18
05 Sweetest Song 3:27
06 Kind of...Sometimes...Maybe 3:34
07 Want Your Feeling 4:22
08 Pieces 3:26
09 Keep On Lying 3:29
10 Champagne Kisses 3:23
11 Desire 3:12
12 All On You 5:13
13 Share It All 4:18
14 The Way We Are 3:30
15 Midnight Caller 4:38
℗ 2014 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
Producers: BenZel, Emile Haynie 8, Ford 7 + 14, Julio Bashmore 13
Writers:
∩→ Jessie Ware 1
∩→ Ware, Miguel 2, 6
∩→ Ware, James Ford, Dave Okumu 3
∩→ Ware, Ed Sheeran 4
∩→ Ware, Okumu, Sam Dew 5
∩→ Ware, Dev Hynes 7
∩→ Ware, Jimmy Napier, William Phillips 8
∩→ Ware, Julio Bashmore, Dew 9
∩→ Ware, Dew 10, 12
∩→ Ware, Paul Jefferies, Daniel Daley 11
∩→ Ware, Romy Madley-Croft 13
∩→ Ware, Napier 14
∩→ Ware, Ford 15
Education:
∩→ Ware was educated at Alleyn's School, a co–educational independent school in Dulwich in South London, followed by the University of Sussex, where she took a degree in English Literature.
∩→ After her studies, she briefly worked as a journalist at The Jewish Chronicle, did sports journalism at The Daily Mirror and worked behind the scenes at TV company Love Productions. There she was a colleague of Erika Leonard, otherwise known as E. L. James, the author of Fifty Shades of Grey. © Handout
REVIEW
By Helen Brown | 11:42 AM BST | 07 Oct 2014 | Score: ****
Jessie Ware, Tough Love, review: 'a sleek, satiny affair'
Jessie Ware's new album is a superior slice of small hours electro–pop, says Helen Brown
∩→ With her business–like ponytail and understated vocals, Jessie Ware's appeal is a restraint that's seen her described as a 21st century Sade. The former Jewish Chronicle reporter says she didn't really want to disrupt the smooth surface of her 2012 twilight soul debut, Devotion, with an "identity".
∩→ News that she was getting "upbeat" and "personal" on her second record suggested she risked abandoning her USP in a bid for more mainstream pop success. ∩→ But fans can relax. While Tough Love is a more playful record, it's still a sleek, satiny affair that keeps its deeper emotions contained.
∩→ Producers Benny Blanco (Katy Perry, Rihanna) and Two Inch Punch (Justin Timberlake) have pushed Ware to experiment successfully with her voice, shunting her mature alto up an octave on the title song.
∩→ Everybody's using Eighties effects at the moment, but Ware has subtle and tactile fun with them — you can almost feel the soft, hexagonal drum pads on tracks like Cruel. Ironically, when she presses hardest for a big, personal connection (as on the boy band–style verse of the Ed Sheeran song Say You Love Me) she sounds least distinctive. But those are minor niggles about a genuinely superior slice of small hours electro–pop. :: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/ © Jessie Ware w Warszawie — 25 września 2014 r. — Zobacz zdjęcia z ...
REVIEW
By Andy Baber | posted on 7 Oct 2014 | Score: ****
∩→ From singing backing vocals for Jack Penate at live shows to releasing her critically–acclaimed and Mercury Prize–nominated debut album, Jessie Ware’s rise over the past few years has been impressive to say the least. In fact, the plaudits for 2012’s Devotion were such that the 29–year–old ended up with nominations in the British Breakthrough and British Female categories at the 2013 BRIT Awards.
∩→ The record — produced by The Invisible’s Dave Okumu — was a breath of fresh air compared to the generic pop being produced at the time, with Ware’s soulful and sophisticated sound far more interesting than fellow BRIT Award nominees Emeli Sandé and Rita Ora. As a direct result of Devotion’s subtle brilliance, Ware quickly found herself playing to an ever–expanding fanbase across the world in a punishing tour schedule.
∩→ However, the madness of the post–Devotion period contributed significantly to the creation of her highly anticipated follow–up, Tough Love. The album’s title track, which also has the duty of leading off the record, was written by Ware “after a really gruelling period of shows, to the point where I had just completely run out of energy”. It is telling as well, with the beautifully understated track displaying the same world–weariness that made her debut so engrossing.
∩→ “It’s already that time that you hope my mind is true/ and I’ve been thinking of what to say or not to do/ So you wanna be a man about it, do you?” she sings, with her delicate, seductive vocal, over a flickering riff and sparse, atmospheric beats. The song lays down the foundation for a record that continues to draw on the expansive palette of synths heard on Devotion, while also adding new layers to take her to the next level.
∩→ One of the most obvious changes in direction on Tough Love is demonstrated on second single Say You Love Me, which was recorded with hit machine Ed Sheeran — who had previously worked with one of the record’s producers, Benny Blanco. It is Ware’s clearest attempt at trying to break into the mainstream, with the sultry soul ditched in favour of a big pop ballad that sounds very much like one of Sheeran’s own, barring the female vocal.
∩→ Considering that her best charting track from Devotion, the infectious Wildest Moments, only reached Number 46 in the UK Singles Chart, it was perhaps understandable that she decided to enlist Sheeran. Yet, while the song does feel like a departure — the chorus breaks into a full blown choir towards the end — Ware manages to pull it off and still retain all the qualities that made her such an engaging artist in the first place.
∩→ There is also a confidence in the song that reverberates throughout the rest of the LP, which results in Tough Love being far less downbeat than its predecessor. ∩→ Champagne Kisses is more playful than Ware has ever been before, with its scattered beat building towards a chorus that captures her incredible vocal range, while Sweetest Song and Cruel revolve around irresistible R&B hooks and spacious synths.
∩→ That said, there are still moments of melancholy in the elegant You & I (Forever), which sees Ware’s effortless vocal rest on a luscious bed of swarming synths, and the dramatic pop ballad Pieces. But it is the fun side of Tough Love that really makes a mark, with tracks such as the magnificent Want Your Feeling — a collaboration with Dev Hynes (Blood Orange) — and the electrifying Keep On Lying confirming what a special talent Ware is.
∩→ By the record’s conclusion, it really feels as though Jessie Ware has taken a significant stride forward. Tough Love may not be perfect — Kind of… Sometimes…Maybe lacks the direction that is evident elsewhere — but for the most part, it is an assured collection of songs that exudes the confidence of an artist at the peak of her powers. If Ware did feel any pressure to replicate the success of her debut, it certainly doesn’t show here.
∩→ That said, there are still moments of melancholy in the elegant You & I (Forever), which sees Ware’s effortless vocal rest on a luscious bed of swarming synths, and the dramatic pop ballad Pieces. But it is the fun side of Tough Love that really makes a mark, with tracks such as the magnificent Want Your Feeling — a collaboration with Dev Hynes (Blood Orange) — and the electrifying Keep On Lying confirming what a special talent Ware is.
∩→ By the record’s conclusion, it really feels as though Jessie Ware has taken a significant stride forward. Tough Love may not be perfect — Kind of… Sometimes…Maybe lacks the direction that is evident elsewhere — but for the most part, it is an assured collection of songs that exudes the confidence of an artist at the peak of her powers. If Ware did feel any pressure to replicate the success of her debut, it certainly doesn’t show here. :: //www.musicomh.com/
Website: http://jessieware.com/10th/
Biography
∩→ A diverse handful of guest appearances and solo singles across 2010 and 2011 situated Jessie Ware in a line of remarkable soul–inspired U.K. vocalists that includes Tracey Thorn, Sade, Lisa Stansfield, and Caron Wheeler. Ware, a native of South London, England, arrived with background vocals for Man Like Me and Jack Peñate and took the lead on RackNRuin's "Soundclash," where she revealed a voice powerful enough to be heard and felt over a frantic breakbeat–driven production. By the end of 2010, she issued "Nervous," a collaboration with SBTRKT. The following year was even more productive. Her first 2011 release was "Valentine," a sighing/swooning duet with vocalist/producer Sampha. It was followed by two appearances on SBTRKT's self-titled album, one of which — the garage/broken beat hybrid "Sanctuary" — also featured Sampha. "The Vision," the title track on dubstep producer Joker's 4AD debut, was the most impressive showcase for Ware yet, and she closed out the year with another solo single, "Strangest Feeling," a somewhat emotionally wrenching track produced by the Invisible's Dave Okumu. Okumu and Julio Bashmore collaborated with Ware for the singer's first release of 2012, the plush sophisti–pop single "Running." An album, Devotion, followed on Island that August. It debuted at number five in the U.K. and was shortlisted for the 2012 Mercury Prize.
∩→ It’s a sizzling day in suburban south london and jessie ware is still in holiday mode. she strolls in her back garden, grass between her toes, occasionally ferrying loose tea, fresh fruit and a range of Brixton–bought baked goods from the kitchen. she offers a slice of something full of cheese and courgettes. “this is what a slow–burning debut album can get you,” she giggles, “proper quiche.”
right now, jessie’s life is in a rare moment of calm — but that’s all about to change. in a few hours, “tough love”, her first new single in two years will debut on radio 1 as zane lowe’s hottest record in the world. it will turn the ignition on a hectic schedule leading up to the release of her second album this autumn. on top of all the promo, shows and finishing touches the next few weeks entails, jessie is also getting married.
∩→ Most of us want to curl up on the day before we go back to work. does she get those pangs of back–to–reality angst?
∩→ “Nahh,” she cackles, with the same gleeful enthusiasm she had when discussing her first single. “i’m very aware that i haven’t had an album out for a couple of years. i wanted to get this record done and get it out. actually, this whole time i’ve been waiting for people to hear these songs. i can’t wait.”
∩→ This hunger to be heard is a relatively new trait for jessie. when she first started singing she side–stepped the glare of the spotlight, initially performing as a featured artist on club tracks by sbtrkt and joker, preferring alliance over eminence.
∩→ But that all changed in 2012 with the release of her debut album devotion. recorded with little fanfare in low–key sessions with dave okumu of the invisible, it became one of the most critically acclaimed albums of the year, lauded by everyone from pitchfork to Heat magazine and nominated for the Mercury Prize. Plaudits were followed by an ever–expanding fanbase, meaning ware was constantly on tour as she gained millions of new devotees from across the world. those new fans included the biggest stars in the world, with everyone from Katy Perry to Taylor Swift piling on the praise.
∩→ In fact it was the mania of Jessie’s schedule that led to “tough love”’s creation. It was written last may, “after a really gruelling period of shows, to the point where i had just completely run out of energy.” Ware took a breather for a few weeks in new york and began working on this understated, sore love song, where attraction and heartbreak are ambiguous.
∩→ “It’s been an interesting year,” she says. “i got engaged, i’ve had all these new experiences. and there’s some of that on the record, but i still wanted to return to that theme from the first record of unrequited love. i was drawing on a lot of past experiences, cleansing myself of those demons. even songs i thought i’d imagined on the day, i now totally realise that they’re about a certain boy or a certain time. i’m trying to get this all out before i’m going to be a happily married woman.”
∩→ The record’s executive producers are Benzell (a new production duo made up of pmr labelmate two inch punch and Katy Perry and Ke$ha super–producer benny blanco). As is always the way with Jessie, those that were let inside the process quickly became family — “Benny’s just become an annoying older brother. i spent passover with them in long island, it was comforting to see how similar his family were to mine.”
∩→ You can hear the leaps in production and songwriting that come with experience and an expanded team. while the record still draws on the suave, svelte palette of synths and bass heard on devotion, they’re combined with more confident choruses and lush arrangements. jessie’s stunning vocal is brought to the fore — it often feels she’s whispering right in your ear.
∩→ Devotion collaborators dave okumu and james ford worked with Jessie again, but there are also a few household names on the record this time round. Miguel, who had previously worked with Jessie on her remix of his track “adorn”, wrote with her on a string of sessions in the us. A long cry from her Makeshift Studio in Okumu’s lewisham front room, he would bring R&B royalty in to hear their work — J.Cole could be seen poking his head round the door.
∩→ “Oh god and there was one night with miguel, where we were celebrating a song with a whiskey reference in by drinking loads of whiskey. The next morning we recorded ‘you and i forever’ and i was so hungover i could only manage the softest vocal — with a splitting headache and a bottle of gatorade in my hand.”
∩→ It’s one of the most honest songs on the record, “about the frustration of my boyfriend not asking me to marry him. we waited such a long time, we’ve been going out forever. i wanted it to be this motorbike riding song, lots of yearning on an open highway.”
∩→ But the sessions with miguel also brought out elements of fantasy and fun, of finding joy in the songwriting process and playing up to it. “champagne kisses” is a track the indulges in the playful side of love, with kissing sounds scattered across the chorus.
∩→ Blanco was keen to get Ed Sheeran, who he’s worked with in the past, to write with jessie on the record, but their busy schedules made it tough. Then one night, “he happened to be in new york recording snl at the same time as me, so we made it happen. he came round, we went down to whole foods, bought a couple of salads, went up to benny’s apartment, he started playing something on the guitar and i swear we wrote the song in 30 minutes. It’s called ‘say you love me’ and i had to have it on the album.”
∩→ Jessie’s got a lot to be proud of on this record — but more than a musical evolution, this also marks the beginning of jessie ware — not the backing singer or the club–track vocalist or the girl done good — but the star. “I can’t keep going round going ‘oh my god, this is happening.’ i feel more confident and i think that shows on the record, even the way i deliver the vocals is more upfront. Being a singer is a fucking wicked job, but it’s definitely my job now.”
Studio albums
∩→ Devotion (2012)
∩→ Tough Love (2014)
AWARDS:
∩→ 2013 South Bank Sky Arts Awards (Pop Music) / Devotion Won
____________________________________________________________
Jessie Ware — Tough Love
∩→ Pořád je to elegantní a hedvábná záležitost, která udržuje hlubší emoce ve středobodu dění. K nominaci ji chyběl kousíček, stačilo udělat jednu nebo spíše dvě písně více intimněji. Ovšem o tom, že je to nejpůvabnější zpěvačka, s jakou jsem se letos setkal, není pochyb. © Jessie Ware © Daniel Lewis 2012, Pictured is Jessie Ware photographed at the Village Underground in Shoreditch, London.
Birth name: Jessica Lois Ware
Born: 15 October 1984 in London, England
Location: Clapham, South London, UK
Album release: October 10, 2014
Record Label: Island Records (PMR, Island, Interscope)
Duration: 58:08
Tracks:
01 Tough Love 3:27
02 You & I (Forever) 3:59
03 Cruel 3:52
04 Say You Love Me 4:18
05 Sweetest Song 3:27
06 Kind of...Sometimes...Maybe 3:34
07 Want Your Feeling 4:22
08 Pieces 3:26
09 Keep On Lying 3:29
10 Champagne Kisses 3:23
11 Desire 3:12
12 All On You 5:13
13 Share It All 4:18
14 The Way We Are 3:30
15 Midnight Caller 4:38
℗ 2014 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
Producers: BenZel, Emile Haynie 8, Ford 7 + 14, Julio Bashmore 13
Writers:
∩→ Jessie Ware 1
∩→ Ware, Miguel 2, 6
∩→ Ware, James Ford, Dave Okumu 3
∩→ Ware, Ed Sheeran 4
∩→ Ware, Okumu, Sam Dew 5
∩→ Ware, Dev Hynes 7
∩→ Ware, Jimmy Napier, William Phillips 8
∩→ Ware, Julio Bashmore, Dew 9
∩→ Ware, Dew 10, 12
∩→ Ware, Paul Jefferies, Daniel Daley 11
∩→ Ware, Romy Madley-Croft 13
∩→ Ware, Napier 14
∩→ Ware, Ford 15
Education:
∩→ Ware was educated at Alleyn's School, a co–educational independent school in Dulwich in South London, followed by the University of Sussex, where she took a degree in English Literature.
∩→ After her studies, she briefly worked as a journalist at The Jewish Chronicle, did sports journalism at The Daily Mirror and worked behind the scenes at TV company Love Productions. There she was a colleague of Erika Leonard, otherwise known as E. L. James, the author of Fifty Shades of Grey. © Handout
REVIEW
By Helen Brown | 11:42 AM BST | 07 Oct 2014 | Score: ****
Jessie Ware, Tough Love, review: 'a sleek, satiny affair'
Jessie Ware's new album is a superior slice of small hours electro–pop, says Helen Brown
∩→ With her business–like ponytail and understated vocals, Jessie Ware's appeal is a restraint that's seen her described as a 21st century Sade. The former Jewish Chronicle reporter says she didn't really want to disrupt the smooth surface of her 2012 twilight soul debut, Devotion, with an "identity".
∩→ News that she was getting "upbeat" and "personal" on her second record suggested she risked abandoning her USP in a bid for more mainstream pop success. ∩→ But fans can relax. While Tough Love is a more playful record, it's still a sleek, satiny affair that keeps its deeper emotions contained.
∩→ Producers Benny Blanco (Katy Perry, Rihanna) and Two Inch Punch (Justin Timberlake) have pushed Ware to experiment successfully with her voice, shunting her mature alto up an octave on the title song.
∩→ Everybody's using Eighties effects at the moment, but Ware has subtle and tactile fun with them — you can almost feel the soft, hexagonal drum pads on tracks like Cruel. Ironically, when she presses hardest for a big, personal connection (as on the boy band–style verse of the Ed Sheeran song Say You Love Me) she sounds least distinctive. But those are minor niggles about a genuinely superior slice of small hours electro–pop. :: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/ © Jessie Ware w Warszawie — 25 września 2014 r. — Zobacz zdjęcia z ...
REVIEW
By Andy Baber | posted on 7 Oct 2014 | Score: ****
∩→ From singing backing vocals for Jack Penate at live shows to releasing her critically–acclaimed and Mercury Prize–nominated debut album, Jessie Ware’s rise over the past few years has been impressive to say the least. In fact, the plaudits for 2012’s Devotion were such that the 29–year–old ended up with nominations in the British Breakthrough and British Female categories at the 2013 BRIT Awards.
∩→ The record — produced by The Invisible’s Dave Okumu — was a breath of fresh air compared to the generic pop being produced at the time, with Ware’s soulful and sophisticated sound far more interesting than fellow BRIT Award nominees Emeli Sandé and Rita Ora. As a direct result of Devotion’s subtle brilliance, Ware quickly found herself playing to an ever–expanding fanbase across the world in a punishing tour schedule.
∩→ However, the madness of the post–Devotion period contributed significantly to the creation of her highly anticipated follow–up, Tough Love. The album’s title track, which also has the duty of leading off the record, was written by Ware “after a really gruelling period of shows, to the point where I had just completely run out of energy”. It is telling as well, with the beautifully understated track displaying the same world–weariness that made her debut so engrossing.
∩→ “It’s already that time that you hope my mind is true/ and I’ve been thinking of what to say or not to do/ So you wanna be a man about it, do you?” she sings, with her delicate, seductive vocal, over a flickering riff and sparse, atmospheric beats. The song lays down the foundation for a record that continues to draw on the expansive palette of synths heard on Devotion, while also adding new layers to take her to the next level.
∩→ One of the most obvious changes in direction on Tough Love is demonstrated on second single Say You Love Me, which was recorded with hit machine Ed Sheeran — who had previously worked with one of the record’s producers, Benny Blanco. It is Ware’s clearest attempt at trying to break into the mainstream, with the sultry soul ditched in favour of a big pop ballad that sounds very much like one of Sheeran’s own, barring the female vocal.
∩→ Considering that her best charting track from Devotion, the infectious Wildest Moments, only reached Number 46 in the UK Singles Chart, it was perhaps understandable that she decided to enlist Sheeran. Yet, while the song does feel like a departure — the chorus breaks into a full blown choir towards the end — Ware manages to pull it off and still retain all the qualities that made her such an engaging artist in the first place.
∩→ There is also a confidence in the song that reverberates throughout the rest of the LP, which results in Tough Love being far less downbeat than its predecessor. ∩→ Champagne Kisses is more playful than Ware has ever been before, with its scattered beat building towards a chorus that captures her incredible vocal range, while Sweetest Song and Cruel revolve around irresistible R&B hooks and spacious synths.
∩→ That said, there are still moments of melancholy in the elegant You & I (Forever), which sees Ware’s effortless vocal rest on a luscious bed of swarming synths, and the dramatic pop ballad Pieces. But it is the fun side of Tough Love that really makes a mark, with tracks such as the magnificent Want Your Feeling — a collaboration with Dev Hynes (Blood Orange) — and the electrifying Keep On Lying confirming what a special talent Ware is.
∩→ By the record’s conclusion, it really feels as though Jessie Ware has taken a significant stride forward. Tough Love may not be perfect — Kind of… Sometimes…Maybe lacks the direction that is evident elsewhere — but for the most part, it is an assured collection of songs that exudes the confidence of an artist at the peak of her powers. If Ware did feel any pressure to replicate the success of her debut, it certainly doesn’t show here.
∩→ That said, there are still moments of melancholy in the elegant You & I (Forever), which sees Ware’s effortless vocal rest on a luscious bed of swarming synths, and the dramatic pop ballad Pieces. But it is the fun side of Tough Love that really makes a mark, with tracks such as the magnificent Want Your Feeling — a collaboration with Dev Hynes (Blood Orange) — and the electrifying Keep On Lying confirming what a special talent Ware is.
∩→ By the record’s conclusion, it really feels as though Jessie Ware has taken a significant stride forward. Tough Love may not be perfect — Kind of… Sometimes…Maybe lacks the direction that is evident elsewhere — but for the most part, it is an assured collection of songs that exudes the confidence of an artist at the peak of her powers. If Ware did feel any pressure to replicate the success of her debut, it certainly doesn’t show here. :: //www.musicomh.com/
Website: http://jessieware.com/10th/
Biography
∩→ A diverse handful of guest appearances and solo singles across 2010 and 2011 situated Jessie Ware in a line of remarkable soul–inspired U.K. vocalists that includes Tracey Thorn, Sade, Lisa Stansfield, and Caron Wheeler. Ware, a native of South London, England, arrived with background vocals for Man Like Me and Jack Peñate and took the lead on RackNRuin's "Soundclash," where she revealed a voice powerful enough to be heard and felt over a frantic breakbeat–driven production. By the end of 2010, she issued "Nervous," a collaboration with SBTRKT. The following year was even more productive. Her first 2011 release was "Valentine," a sighing/swooning duet with vocalist/producer Sampha. It was followed by two appearances on SBTRKT's self-titled album, one of which — the garage/broken beat hybrid "Sanctuary" — also featured Sampha. "The Vision," the title track on dubstep producer Joker's 4AD debut, was the most impressive showcase for Ware yet, and she closed out the year with another solo single, "Strangest Feeling," a somewhat emotionally wrenching track produced by the Invisible's Dave Okumu. Okumu and Julio Bashmore collaborated with Ware for the singer's first release of 2012, the plush sophisti–pop single "Running." An album, Devotion, followed on Island that August. It debuted at number five in the U.K. and was shortlisted for the 2012 Mercury Prize.
∩→ It’s a sizzling day in suburban south london and jessie ware is still in holiday mode. she strolls in her back garden, grass between her toes, occasionally ferrying loose tea, fresh fruit and a range of Brixton–bought baked goods from the kitchen. she offers a slice of something full of cheese and courgettes. “this is what a slow–burning debut album can get you,” she giggles, “proper quiche.”
right now, jessie’s life is in a rare moment of calm — but that’s all about to change. in a few hours, “tough love”, her first new single in two years will debut on radio 1 as zane lowe’s hottest record in the world. it will turn the ignition on a hectic schedule leading up to the release of her second album this autumn. on top of all the promo, shows and finishing touches the next few weeks entails, jessie is also getting married.
∩→ Most of us want to curl up on the day before we go back to work. does she get those pangs of back–to–reality angst?
∩→ “Nahh,” she cackles, with the same gleeful enthusiasm she had when discussing her first single. “i’m very aware that i haven’t had an album out for a couple of years. i wanted to get this record done and get it out. actually, this whole time i’ve been waiting for people to hear these songs. i can’t wait.”
∩→ This hunger to be heard is a relatively new trait for jessie. when she first started singing she side–stepped the glare of the spotlight, initially performing as a featured artist on club tracks by sbtrkt and joker, preferring alliance over eminence.
∩→ But that all changed in 2012 with the release of her debut album devotion. recorded with little fanfare in low–key sessions with dave okumu of the invisible, it became one of the most critically acclaimed albums of the year, lauded by everyone from pitchfork to Heat magazine and nominated for the Mercury Prize. Plaudits were followed by an ever–expanding fanbase, meaning ware was constantly on tour as she gained millions of new devotees from across the world. those new fans included the biggest stars in the world, with everyone from Katy Perry to Taylor Swift piling on the praise.
∩→ In fact it was the mania of Jessie’s schedule that led to “tough love”’s creation. It was written last may, “after a really gruelling period of shows, to the point where i had just completely run out of energy.” Ware took a breather for a few weeks in new york and began working on this understated, sore love song, where attraction and heartbreak are ambiguous.
∩→ “It’s been an interesting year,” she says. “i got engaged, i’ve had all these new experiences. and there’s some of that on the record, but i still wanted to return to that theme from the first record of unrequited love. i was drawing on a lot of past experiences, cleansing myself of those demons. even songs i thought i’d imagined on the day, i now totally realise that they’re about a certain boy or a certain time. i’m trying to get this all out before i’m going to be a happily married woman.”
∩→ The record’s executive producers are Benzell (a new production duo made up of pmr labelmate two inch punch and Katy Perry and Ke$ha super–producer benny blanco). As is always the way with Jessie, those that were let inside the process quickly became family — “Benny’s just become an annoying older brother. i spent passover with them in long island, it was comforting to see how similar his family were to mine.”
∩→ You can hear the leaps in production and songwriting that come with experience and an expanded team. while the record still draws on the suave, svelte palette of synths and bass heard on devotion, they’re combined with more confident choruses and lush arrangements. jessie’s stunning vocal is brought to the fore — it often feels she’s whispering right in your ear.
∩→ Devotion collaborators dave okumu and james ford worked with Jessie again, but there are also a few household names on the record this time round. Miguel, who had previously worked with Jessie on her remix of his track “adorn”, wrote with her on a string of sessions in the us. A long cry from her Makeshift Studio in Okumu’s lewisham front room, he would bring R&B royalty in to hear their work — J.Cole could be seen poking his head round the door.
∩→ “Oh god and there was one night with miguel, where we were celebrating a song with a whiskey reference in by drinking loads of whiskey. The next morning we recorded ‘you and i forever’ and i was so hungover i could only manage the softest vocal — with a splitting headache and a bottle of gatorade in my hand.”
∩→ It’s one of the most honest songs on the record, “about the frustration of my boyfriend not asking me to marry him. we waited such a long time, we’ve been going out forever. i wanted it to be this motorbike riding song, lots of yearning on an open highway.”
∩→ But the sessions with miguel also brought out elements of fantasy and fun, of finding joy in the songwriting process and playing up to it. “champagne kisses” is a track the indulges in the playful side of love, with kissing sounds scattered across the chorus.
∩→ Blanco was keen to get Ed Sheeran, who he’s worked with in the past, to write with jessie on the record, but their busy schedules made it tough. Then one night, “he happened to be in new york recording snl at the same time as me, so we made it happen. he came round, we went down to whole foods, bought a couple of salads, went up to benny’s apartment, he started playing something on the guitar and i swear we wrote the song in 30 minutes. It’s called ‘say you love me’ and i had to have it on the album.”
∩→ Jessie’s got a lot to be proud of on this record — but more than a musical evolution, this also marks the beginning of jessie ware — not the backing singer or the club–track vocalist or the girl done good — but the star. “I can’t keep going round going ‘oh my god, this is happening.’ i feel more confident and i think that shows on the record, even the way i deliver the vocals is more upfront. Being a singer is a fucking wicked job, but it’s definitely my job now.”
Studio albums
∩→ Devotion (2012)
∩→ Tough Love (2014)
AWARDS:
∩→ 2013 South Bank Sky Arts Awards (Pop Music) / Devotion Won
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