Bethesda, MD--
It’s good to be India Arie. Why? There are many reasons.
First, she’s a multi-Grammy Award-winning neoclassic soulster, even capturing an album of the year honor for 2002’s “Voyage to India,” the much ballyhooed follow-up to her smash debut, “Acoustic Soul.”
And she hasn’t been cursed by her early Grammy success if anything; it has made her a more dynamic artist.
Her most recent work, “Testimony Vol. 1, Life & Relationship,” debuted at No. 1. A first for her, this is a sure sign that she has joined the prestigious likes of such modern soul queens as Mary J. Blige and Erykah Badu with Lauryn Hill missing in action, India Arie is near the top of this stellar list. But musical comparisons are quite unnecessary here.
India Arie is utterly unique, a still-young singer with sharp intelligence and a sense of modesty. You just have to get past the period-in-the-name thing, which, admittedly, ain’t easy.
Importantly, she also knows how to pack ’em in, as demonstrated by a hoppin’ crowd at The Strathmore Music Hall in Rockville, Maryland for a benefit for Bowie State University.
Yes, in an age of bad girls gone completely out of control never mind wild, India Arie is that rarity a good girl, and proud of it. Don’t expect any Britney esque, lip-synch freak-outs or Foxy Brown style sojourns in the slammer.
India Arie’s four-man band and three backing vocalists came on stage to the sounds of Stevie Wonder’s “You Are the Sunshine of My Life,” and waved cell phones in the air in unison for a wonderfully comical moment.
This light tone was kept up through the first song, and India Arie’s first chart hit, “Video.” “I’m not the average girl from your video. My worth is not determined by the price of my clothes,” she sang, dressed in a shock-orange dress.
Happily, India Arie doesn’t seem to have changed, and that’s why the bond between she and her audience is so strong. This was clear from the audience’s rapturous response.
The set list zigged and zagged; hits were interspersed with less obvious tunes such as her second song, a new piano driven beauty that showcased her musical and vocal range.
