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'Today’s “underground pop” network is a way for talented artists to get noticed on sites like myspace, and feeds the dreams of the undiscovered in a virtual sea of performers. Souphak “Birdie” Xaphakdi, a young R&B singer with a sultry voice, made believers out of a new Twin Cities music label, and is about to take the first steps out of the basement studio with a new CD and a string of engagements before live audiences.
Birdie’s debut CD, “Underground Pop: Xposed”, is scheduled for release on July 7, 2007, and combines her lyrics with a passion for Hip Hop, Pop, and Rhythm & Blues for a soulful blend that is familiar and with her own special touch.
Blood In The Water Records, Birdie’s label, coined her the “teenaged queen of underground pop” for her relatively phenomenal success with online listeners at (www.myspace.com/officialbirdiepage), and (www.bloodinthewaterrecords.com). Birdie’s CD is the first project from the Blood in the Water Records Group, a St. Paul label that specializes in developing new artists and original music. The CD shows Birdie’s range on songs like “Without You”, and her sense of rhythm with “Til the End of Time”, and her love of edgy styles in songs with mature themes like “Sexy”.
Souphak’s middle name “Birdie” was given by her mother, who was inspired by a bird that flew to her window when she was expecting. She was a very shy girl in a musical Lao American family with two younger sisters in the small Southwestern Minnesota town of Magnolia.
Birdie found her confidence and her voice on stage. For as long as she can remember, Birdie would be invited on stage by her father Kaemphet Xaphakdi, a musician and singer who performed at community events. She feels that her sense of melody comes from the traditional Lao and Thai music of her youth.
At home Birdie was a typical teen who was into volleyball and pop music. In her later teens she discovered rap and hip-hop and became a big fan of R&B. After singing at a basketball game, her high school principal convinced her to join the school choir for her senior year, which she found to be a valuable experience.
At home, Birdie would make her own music, and with the help of musician friends, they would arrange the beat and get through the technical process.
“I loved singing at home and started recording myself on the computer,” said Birdie. “We download the tracks onto myspace.”
Disraeli Arito, a producer with Blood In The Water Records, discovered Birdie’s site and waited until she graduated from high school and moved to Minneapolis to study at North Hennepin Community College to begin work with her on a CD.
Arito is also a musician, poet and author of “Multiphrenic Chalkings”, and a composer who was raised in the heart of Chicago’s R&B and gospel music tradition. As someone who has known countless professional musicians and singers, he “just knew” from the first listen that Birdie had a great voice and unique style that needed to be developed and recorded.
“This was the reason I started the record label,” said Arito, who describes Birdie’s gift of whispering aggressiveness as like a “soft Tina Turner.”
The two started working together and knew this was something very special.
“I have been around a long time and you ‘know when you know’,” he said. “People are anxious to see what she can do,” he added.
As with any young artist, there is constant coaching and training in everything from voice and technique, to choreography and onstage presence. Birdie is a natural born performer but there is still a need to improve.
In addition to a voice coach, Birdie works with Andréa Reynolds on stage presence and with Ricky Dunn (choreographer for Janet Jackson) to put a gloss on top to make the visual side of her performances as unforgettable as the music.
Arito is the manager. The CD cover art and promotional materials were designed by Amy Graham. Shelly Tavara handles the business end and makes sure that all paperwork is in place.
Birdie spends her day writing, recording, training and squeezing in cardio workouts and working on choreography. School was her “Plan A,” and while she is pursuing her music full time at the moment, she is still going to take online courses in business, along with her dancing and yoga classes to help round out her singing career.
“I haven’t met anyone at this age who is that focused,” said Arito, who compared this visionary sense of knowing what it takes to get to the next level to that of an 18-year-old R Kelly in his old Chicago neighborhood.
Birdie made her local debut at the University of Minnesota on April 7, and at Trocaderos in Minneapolis on April 14.
“At first everyone in the bar was talking over her,” said Arito. “Then, she got louder and everybody, even the cooks were looking. It became deafly quiet and then she got a standing ovation. Everybody loved here and it was fun to see.”
Birdie auditioned and won a spot in a competition before thousands at the CelebrAsian Asian Heritage Festival on May 12 in Des Moines, Iowa.
The R&B audiences will become more demanding at music festivals in Chicago, Detroit, New York, and California, to get the attention of the bigger music industry. The steps to the top begin with the online sales and concert appearances until they are ready to pay a distributor what it will take to push her onto the big scene.
“When she gets a standing ovation in Chicago, then that will say something.” Arito added.
All it takes to keep the dream alive is to connect with a big crowd on stage and hear them cheering. “With that, you are going to have fun, no matter how many times,” she added.
'~ http://www.aapress.com/artsnews.php?subaction=show |
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