Acoustic Soul

When India Arie sings, "I'm not the average girl from your video," it has got to be the understatement of the year. Charismatic, emotional, and impossible to pigeonhole, her Motown debut ACOUSTIC SOUL is more than a breath of fresh air: with it, she steps right into the artistic whirlwind of the new R&B.
In India.Arie's first single, "Video," we're discovering not only an extraordinarily gifted and affecting young singer: we're also meeting a fellow traveler. From local coffee houses like the Ying Yang Café in Atlanta to Black Lily in Philadelphia, and the stages of Lilith Fair, India.Arie, 25, has already left deep impressions, with her richly textured voice and some of the most eloquent and inspiring songs we've heard on love and life since our first encounters with Roberta Flack, Tracy Chapman and Bill Withers.
With equal parts of gorgeous melodicism and honest, rootsy blues, India.Arie's voice was made to communicate directly to the heart. Her insights are wonderfully warm and reassuring in "Strength, Courage and Wisdom," and "Video." In life stories like "Promises" and "Beautiful," India.Arie provides the kind of encouragement we treasure from our best friends. Fusing romance and the everyday pleasures of life, "Nature," "Simple" and "Part of My Life" convey both deep faith and the grace of our higher selves. And in her love songs "I See God in You," "Brown Skin," "Ready For Love" and "Always in My Head," India.Arie writes and sings with such originality and intimacy that she immediately joins singular talents like Mary Chapin Carpenter and Lucinda Williams. The album is an absolute embarrassment of riches: a balm to the soul, a mightily inspirational wake-up call for those of us seeking real substance in our pop music, and a sensual, melodic tonic for every listener. Stevie Wonder, for whom India.Arie wrote her joyful tribute "Wonderful," recently said of her: "A gentle genius lives in the mind, voice and hands of this woman."