Spirituality

RSS feed for this section

This category contains 6 posts

Classic House | Donnie Mark – “Stand Up for The Soul”

Posted by Jasmine McGee ⋅ December 22, 2011 ⋅ 8 Comments

Some house tracks have such a spiritual vibe to them. Even if it’s not gospel house, a track can still have this soulful spiritual vibe that gets you into the zone. It’s just something about the soulful vocals that have you singing high praises and shouting hallelujah!

If you’ve got a house track and add the vocals of Barbara Tucker, Kathy Brown, Jocelyn Brown, or Martha Wash, then it’s bound to have this gospel vibe to it. All those leading ladies of house have had there fair share of time being on tracks that are solemnly gospel, so it’s no surprise that that spiritual vibe carries over onto their house tracks. I can’t even begin to tell you how many times I’ve cried on Barbara Tucker’s “Most Precious Love.” Man, now that song right their is a revival! Honestly that song is perhaps one of my favorite songs (I’ll post it), along with “Inspiration” by Arnold Jarvis.

Some songs may not feature the big divas of house, but they are still classic tracks. One of those classic spiritual tracks is “Stand Up for The Soul” by Donnie Mark. The track originally came out 1993 on Simply Soul/Submerge Records. It’s one of those tracks you might not have heard unless you’re a major house music junkie and studied the history of house (unless you were alive in that era.) Sadly enough I’m only 20 and wasn’t alive during the days of the Paradise Garage, so my experience with house has been research, research, and appreciation. My constant researching is what makes me such a lover of house music, and I’m so happy when I run across classic tracks such as “Stand Up for The Soul.”

The track is so uplifting. You literally want to just “stand up for the soul.” It’s a song that you want to listen to when hanging out with your friends or dancing with strangers a club, and the soulful sounds of house serenade your body. Everybody just has to come together for the love of house, for the of the spirit, and for the love of the soul. It’s house music baby. You can’t resist it, it’s a spiritual thang. So don’t let the worries of the day stress you out. The weekend is almost here, you’re alive and well, and at the end of the day you’ve just got to stand up for the feeling, the soul, and for the love of house music. Yeah, now that’s deep…..

©Jasmine McGee.ThinkSoul25. http://thinksoul25.com

An Insanely Dope House Track: “Race of Survival” (thinksoul25.com)
Deep House: Aki Bergen ft. Carmen Sherry – “Into My Soul (Spiritchaser Remix)” (thinksoul25.com)
Monday R&B & Soul Vibes (thinksoul25.com)
The Joyful Sounds of House (thinksoul25.com)
Morning House Vibes (thinksoul25.com)
Soulful House: Stephanie Cooke & Diephuis ft. Han Litz – “Beautiful Life” (thinksoul25.com)
90s Deep House: Eddie Perez aka Mentalinstrum (thinksoul25.com)

About these ads

Life at a Slower BPM: Reef Project – “Adrift”

Posted by Jasmine McGee ⋅ December 8, 2011 ⋅ 1 Comment

Moments in life filled with uneasiness often deserve a dedicated moment of silence. Yet I find it hard sometimes to sit down in a silent room and just reflect on my thoughts. Perhaps I’ve been conditioned by noise, which diverts me from being able to completely spend a silent moment alone. Unabridged silence makes me nervous. I don’t get nervous when it comes to meeting new people, first dates (that’s never a big deal,) performing on stage, or performing a “difficult” task, but lack of sound does put me edge.

I can sit in silence for awhile, which gives me time to reflect on life, but at a certain point I’m rushing to turn on a soundtrack for the moment. Every moment in my life is accompanied by music. There is something so intoxicating about the combination of sounds and rhythms that produce the basic essence of music. It’s nice to turn off the television, log off Facebook, turn off the phone, and just chill out listening to an artist that connects their soul to the world via their music. But when it comes to relaxing and truly tuning the world out, I find that down tempo music really aides in the relaxation.

Cafe Del Mar is a name you’ve most likely heard of. It’s known throughout the world, perhaps the entire universe(including the newly discovered Kepler 22-B) as a record label and club that has the best in down-tempo, lounge, and chill music. They’ve got a lot of good down-tempo music, but I recently ran across an artist by the name of Reef Project, and he isn’t even associated with Cafe Del Mar. Reef Project is the genius work of Thee-O (Jacob Oflias) and a majority of his music is downtempo, ambient, and chill room.

Reef Project has a lot of surreal songs that truly slow down time and focus on the beauty of emotion. Life can be so fast paced, and as humans we can become so detached from ourselves, our dreams, and are emotions. But tracks like Reef Project’s “Adrift” remind us to enjoy the beauty of life. It’s okay to slow it down and not always be hyped up. As Reef Project’s motto says, there is nothing wrong with enjoying “life at a slower bpm.” Slow it down sometimes and don’t stress out over convoluted misfortunes. If you can’t relax in complete silence, then find what works for you. Some ambient music, the sounds of nature, soulful house, and gospel always work for me, so have options. But if you need something to wash away the stress of this past week, then listen to Reef Project’s beautiful track “Adrift” and fall in love with the breathtaking video featuring vocalist Erin Powers.

©Jasmine McGee.ThinkSoul25. http://thinksoul25.com

Sexy & Soulful Visuals for Jill Scott ft. Paul Wall “So Gone (What My Mind Says)”

Posted by Jasmine McGee ⋅ October 30, 2011 ⋅ 3 Comments

Without a question of a doubt, Jill Scott is looking so soulful and sexy in her new music video for “So Gone(What My Mind Says.)” The video was released earlier this weekend, and Miss Scott playful teases us with tantalizing poetry that sends ripples throughout our bodies. She has such an amazing way of elegantly putting words together and creating soulful music that is classy, yet filled with such a sensual vibe of sexuality.

The track features some surprisingly smooth vocals from rapper Paul Wall. I haven’t seen or heard him on the scene in a while, but it’s not like I really pay attention to him or his music. However, in this case, I will say that he drops a solid flow that fits just right with the soulful seductiveness of Jill Scott’s voice.

If you happen to be a huge fan of Jill Scott, then peep the visuals below. She looks great, and losing weight has definitely given her a nice thick figure that shows off the curves of a real woman; you go girl!

©Jasmine McGee.ThinkSoul25. http://thinksoul25.com

Monday R&B & Soul Vibes (thinksoul25.com)

The Joyful Sounds of House

Posted by Jasmine McGee ⋅ October 26, 2011 ⋅ 13 Comments

Everyday I wake up and ask myself, “Why am I so in love with house music?” I may get off into electro and other genres, but I always get this overwhelming joy when I listen house. I’ve been jamming to the beautiful sounds of soulful house for over 10 years now, and everyday I find myself falling deeper in love with the music. It’s sort of like the way some people fall deeper in love everyday with their significant other, except in this equation my significant other would be the vibrant tunes of house.

House and gospel music are the only two genres of music that have the power to bring me to tears. The feeling is so enchanting, euphoric, and out of this world. When I’m listening to house I feel like nothing in the world can bring me down; I feel as though I’m this beautiful creature on a journey of ultimate freedom. The joy I get when listening to house reminds of me of gazing at my favorite flower, colorful daisies, and eating my favorite candy bar, Almond Joy.

It still amazes me how certain things can have a powerful effect on our emotional state and outlook. The sounds of house has this magical way of uplifting my spirit and speaking to me in a language that not many understand. The language of house is something that is has the possibility to be understood by many, but it’s up to the listener to chose whether they will open their soul or ignore the power. I know to seem it seems weird to be so madly passionate about house, but it’s embedded in my heart, soul, and personality. Like Eddie Amador’s classic house song says, “Not everyone understands House music; it’s a spiritual thing.”

I’ve met a lot of people over the years that either 1.) love house 2.) aren’t quite sure if they have heard house music 3.) or hate it. Usually the ones that aren’t sure if they have heard it can’t be held uncountable if they haven’t had a true exposure to house; which is why I love stepping in and giving them a starter kit of some delightful house tracks. If the person is an expert in music, then I will break it down from a musical theory and composition standpoint. But if they happen to be limited in their music knowledge, then I basically say that house music is essentially uplifting and joyful music that sends you into a surreal state. Sort of like drugs, but without the nasty repercussions.

Within house there are so many different styles, sounds, and overall moods, but a majority of soulful tracks have a joyous overtone. That sound can be created by a variety of techniques, but the best ingredients for that perfect combination of love, soul, and joy are: moody keys (playful piano chords), vocals, a moderate but not too heavy bass, and other magical sounds effect that make it dreamlike. I have a decent collection of house tracks that are alluring, but I’m always on the search for more. You can never have enough house music to feed your soul, it’s just impossible. Falling in love with the sounds of joyful and soulful house is the start of craving that seems to never fade. But it’s not a bad thing, because house music is good for the mind, body, and soul.

Every morning I wake up and I thank the Lord for my family, my life, and for the beautiful sounds of house. It’s more than a genre of music, it’s a lifestyle. I’m not the DJ, I’m not the producer, and I’m not the record label, but I am a product of the music called house that has been enticing souls worldwide since the 80s…

Here is an amazing track I heard a few days ago while working out and listening to the latest episode of Deep House Cat podcast. This track features some amazing vocals by Alec Sun Drae, and it’s one of those tracks that a true soulful house lover can’t help but to play on repeat. It’s filled with such life. Tracks that usually have moody keys such as this track, always remind me of a beautiful day where I feel like anything is possible, even finding a unicorn! House is a music of dreams, anything is possible.