Interview w/ Grammy Nominiated, R&B Singer Emily King

By J9 of J9's MusicLife

July 22, 2011 - The Park at Fourteenth - Washington, DC


In 2007, singer/songwriter Emily King debuted her soulful inspired album East Side Story.  If her name doesn't ring a bell, maybe her song Walk in My Shoes might bring back a musical memory to your ear.  Her album is definitely one of those hidden gems that slipped under the radar to most mainstream listeners but was still recognized in the music industry and was received a Grammy nominee for Best Contemporary R&B Album.

After being gone for 3 years, Emily is back with a new album to introduce the world.  She recently performed as part of The Park Unplugged happy hour event hosted by Beny Blaq Entertainment, LLC.  I was able to sit down with Emily before her performance to find out what she's been doing since releasing her debut album, being dropped by J Records and becoming independent, and the new EP Seven.

J9 talks it up with EK

MusicLife:  In 2008 I saw you perform at the Black Cat when you were promoting East Side Story.  So what have you been doing since then?

Emily King:  I've been writing a lot.  I parted ways with my label and I just took a lot of time to find and create the kind of music I enjoy.  And you know, just living, ups and downs.


MusicLife:  So you said you parted ways with J Records?  What happened and what made you decide to go the independent route?

EK:  They [J Records] dropped me.  But it wasn't really working out with us anyway for some creative reasons.  A lot of people were losing their jobs at the time and it's hard to have a common goal when everybody's just trying to survive.  So it worked out for the better and since then I've kinda learned to do everything they used to do and I'm still learning but it's a good skill.


MusicLife:  How is it being independent?  Is this going to be a permanent thing for you like do this for a while and then go back on the market for another label?

EK:  It's interesting because most people I talk to are just like labels are dead and then I do have a couple of friends who are still on labels.  People like Adele they have label support.  But there's something to doing it yourself and having the experience.  And I think that makes sense for me right now.  I don't know what's going to happen.  If the right deal comes along . .


MusicLife:  Seven dropped last week.  It is such a great album.  It's definitely a different sound from East Side Story.  Explain the creative process in developing the album and how is it different from East Side Story?

EK:  East Side Story was recorded over a long period of time as well, 3 years but the difference is the people. I was with the incredible Chucky Thompson.  This time I collaborated with Jeremy Most.  We didn't have the fancy studios, we didn't have the engineers.  I mean we had to learn a lot of things against our own will, which now I'm so thankful for.  Most of it was recorded from our homes.  So that was completely a new experience for me. 



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