N'dambi
Encyclopedia
Biography
N'dambi is the ninth of eleven children born to a Baptist minister and missionary. Her father was a minister and singer in a quartet group. She got her professional start singing with Gaye Arbuckle, a local gospel singer, touring with Arbuckle for two years (from the ages of 18 to 20). Shortly thereafter she sang as background singer and collaborator with Erykah BaduErykah Badu
Erica Abi Wright , better known by her stage name Erykah Badu , is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. Her work includes elements from R&B, hip hop and jazz. She is best known for her role in the rise of the neo soul sub-genre, and for her eccentric, cerebral musical...
.
She released three independent albums: "Little Lost Girls Blues", "Tunin' Up & CoSignin" and "A Weird Kinda Wonderful". As a result of her success as an independent artist. she was signed to the re-activated Stax Records
Stax Records
Stax Records is an American record label, originally based in Memphis, Tennessee.Founded in 1957 as Satellite Records, the name Stax Records was adopted in 1961. The label was a major factor in the creation of the Southern soul and Memphis soul music styles, also releasing gospel, funk, jazz, and...
(Concord Music Group) in 2006 and released her 2011 Grammy-nominated album, Pink Elephant
Pink Elephant (N'dambi album)
Pink Elephant is the fourth album by the Dallas, Texas native N'dambi. Released in 2009 and produced by the legendary Leon Sylvers III, it marks her debut release for the rejuvenated Stax label.-Track listing:...
in 2009.
The name N'dambi was taken from a Central African language. It means "Most beautiful", N'dambi told RNation.com. NDambi is not uncommon as a name in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Angola
Angola
Angola, officially the Republic of Angola , is a country in south-central Africa bordered by Namibia on the south, the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the north, and Zambia on the east; its west coast is on the Atlantic Ocean with Luanda as its capital city...
. As a model, N'dambi has posed for fashion photographer Marc Baptiste
Albums
N'dambi delivered her debut solo CD Little Lost Girl Blues in 1999. Since then she has released the two-disc set Tunin' Up & Cosignin, which focused more on a live and jazzy sound and contains new versions of several songs from her debut. After this, in 2005, she released A Weird Kind Of Wonderful, which contained funkier and more rock-influenced tracks. It was released in JapanJapan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
only, which made it a very sought-after collector's item on eBay
EBay
eBay Inc. is an American internet consumer-to-consumer corporation that manages eBay.com, an online auction and shopping website in which people and businesses buy and sell a broad variety of goods and services worldwide...
. These projects were released independently by N'dambi. Around 2005, she has collaborated with R&B singer Keite Young. Her debut album for the Stax label is called Pink Elephant and was released in 2009.
Little Lost Girls Blues
N'dambi debut soul album Little Lost Girls Blues was recorded in 1996 in Oak Cliff, which is a community in Dallas. It was independently released in 1999 and went on the receive critical acclaim throughout the world. It sound scanned over 20,000 units and sold over 70,000 units worldwide. The album was primarily marketed via word of mouth lifestyle marketingMarketing
Marketing is the process used to determine what products or services may be of interest to customers, and the strategy to use in sales, communications and business development. It generates the strategy that underlies sales techniques, business communication, and business developments...
, press and college radio.
Tunin' Up & Co-Siginin
This two disc set contains live recordings from Little Lost Girls Blues and new recordings. The album was recorded in Dallas with a group of local musicians."A Weird Kinda Wonderful"
This album was released in Japan only. It was recorded with a live band in Los Angeles, California. It has a more funk, rock, soul vibe with more influences of Mother's Finest and Tina Turner.Pink Elephant
Pink ElephantPink Elephant (N'dambi album)
Pink Elephant is the fourth album by the Dallas, Texas native N'dambi. Released in 2009 and produced by the legendary Leon Sylvers III, it marks her debut release for the rejuvenated Stax label.-Track listing:...
was recorded in Santa Monica
Santa Mônica
Santa Mônica is a town and municipality in the state of Paraná in the Southern Region of Brazil.-References:...
, California with producer Leon Sylvers III
Leon Sylvers III
Leon Frank Sylvers III is an American singer, songwriter, record producer and multi-instrumentalist. He was a member of the family group The Sylvers and became one of the most successful producers in black music in the late 1970s to the mid 1980s through his association with Dick Griffey's SOLAR...
. N'dambi insisted the record have a modern sheen yet adhere to the sturdy influence of classic R&B and soul artists like Slave, Heatwave
Heatwave (band)
Heatwave was an international funk/disco musical band featuring Americans Johnnie Wilder, Jr. and Keith Wilder of Dayton, Ohio, Englishman Rod Temperton , Swiss Mario Mantese , Czechoslovak Ernest "Bilbo" Berger , Jamaican Eric Johns and Briton Roy Carter .They were known for their successful...
, Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
, Betty Davis
Betty Davis
Betty Davis is an American funk, rock and soul singer. She was also Miles Davis's second wife.- Background :She worked as a model, appearing in photo spreads in Seventeen, Ebony and Glamour...
, Isaac Hayes
Isaac Hayes
Isaac Lee Hayes, Jr. was an American songwriter, musician, singer and actor. Hayes was one of the creative influences behind the southern soul music label Stax Records, where he served both as an in-house songwriter and as a record producer, teaming with his partner David Porter during the...
, Smokey Robinson
Smokey Robinson
William "Smokey" Robinson, Jr. is an American R&B singer-songwriter, record producer, and former record executive. Robinson is one of the primary figures associated with Motown, second only to the company's founder, Berry Gordy...
, and The Sylvers
The Sylvers
The Sylvers were a popular R&B/soul and disco family group during the 1970s. Originally from Memphis, Tennessee, the family would later relocate to Watts, California.- Beginnings :...
. On December 2, 2010, Pink Elephant was nominated for a 2011 Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
for Best Engineered Album.
Discography
| Albums: |
Little Lost Girl Blues
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| Tunin' Up & Cosignin' Tunin' Up & Cosignin' Tunin' Up & Cosignin' is a two disc set by N'dambi. It is her second effort. It focuses on a more jazzy sound with live instrumentation. The album contains many songs from her debut, re-worked to fit the environment of the album. Tunin' Up & Cosignin has a few skits with her and her band. It...
|
A Weird Kind Of Wonderful
|
| Pink Elephant Pink Elephant (N'dambi album) Pink Elephant is the fourth album by the Dallas, Texas native N'dambi. Released in 2009 and produced by the legendary Leon Sylvers III, it marks her debut release for the rejuvenated Stax label.-Track listing:...
|
| Remixes/Singles: |
| Call Me (Yam Who reworks)
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Can't Change Me (Ron Trent Remix)
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If We Were Alone with Keite Young (AaronCarl Mix)
|
External links
- Ndambi page on MySpace
- Ndambi page on Concord
- N'dambi interview by Pete Lewis, 'Blues & Soul' August 2011
- Dallas Observer, 1999: Lady sings the Blues, Chonita "N'Dambi" Gilbert is a back-up singer no more, N'dambi's early life
- Justsoul.com: N'Dambi
- List of life style magazines featuring N'Dambi
- discogs.com N'Dambi Discography