Rhoda Morgan: Press

Nowadays, unless your first name is Sanjaya, appearing on American Idol can attach a stigma to an artist's name. Seen as a shortcut to fame and wealth, whether you're a bonafide performer or not, the Simon Cowell-fronted show has as many detractors as fans. But, it does work – look at Carrie Underwood and Kelly Clarkson for proof, as well as "loser" Daughtry.

From the original British version of the show, Pop Idol, Rhoda Morgan is one of these souls who are having more success despite not getting very far in the show. While still a teenager, she auditioned and met with some success, albeit brief. However, that was the catalyst she needed to re-locate from her native UK and move to New York. The result is her debut album, From Brixton To Brooklyn.

With a style reminiscent of Alicia Keys and Ashanti, Morgan mixes radio friendly urban sounds with a certain carefree attitude that suggests, "If you like me, great; if not, so what?"

Lead track and first single "He Say, She Say" (featuring underground New York rapper Jersey) is all sultry vocals laid over a staccato beat, which brings to mind early Alicia Keys, with its dirty city vibe and cross-changing vocal duties.

This continues with "Rescue Me," which has a feel not too different from Jennifer Lopez, before she went all diva on us and actually still seemed to care about the music. You can almost picture this song being part of the next Will Smith film, if he was to return to the Bad Boys arena.

Much has been made of Morgan's songwriting ability, as opposed to just being a pretty face who can hold a tune. Whilst it's undoubted that she can put together a decent track, it's not quite worthy yet of the hyperbole that many media outlets are currently lavishing on her.

Despite the album being a solid enough debut, there are still too many songs that you think you've heard before, such as "Don't Stop," a dead ringer for the majority of output from the likes of Beyonce and the late Aaliyah, but without the smoothness these artists brought to the table.

However, this is a work-in-progress, as Morgan herself says. And when you think of the humble beginnings that many similar artists had, then she has two albums' grace before proper judgement should be passed. Maybe by then Morgan will have a more defined sound as opposed to the Timbaland she adores so much. In the meantime, this isn't a bad starting place.

Rhoda Morgan: Movin’ on Up
By: Monika Jazyk

The last thing the music scene today needs is another musically handicapped manufactured pop tart belting out senseless lyrics heavily synthesized to mask their obvious lack of vocal talent. Fortunately, Rhoda Morgan does not fall into this category as she bravely relocates from the UK to the US in attempt to make her mark in the music world, through good old fashioned hard work and perseverance.

Rhoda’s debut album, “From Brixton to Brooklyn”, represents both a physical and emotional journey for this up-and-coming R&B star. Priding herself on her writing and producing abilities, Rhoda Morgan distinguishes herself from other R&B and pop artists by being involved in every aspect of her music production. She wrote and produced nine of the twelve tracks on her album, formulating all of her own lyrics and even singing all background vocals.

Like many R&B artists, Rhoda mainly sings about love and the raw emotions experienced in relationships such as heartache, regret and even inspiration. The lyrics in her songs are an accurate reflection of Rhoda’s personal experiences in life and love, and a lot of her lyrics derive from her personal journal that she has been writing in since she was a teenager. ‘Rescue Me’, ‘Run Away’ and ‘He Say She Say’, were inspired from a bad relationship Rhoda was in for about two years before she moved to New York to escape what she describes an “emotional rollercoaster with loads of drama”. Writing these tracks were not only a therapeutic way for Rhoda to vent her feelings and lick her wounds, but also as a mean of communicating her feelings to her ex-boyfriend in hopes that one day he will listen to her songs and understand what she went through. On a more positive note, the songs ‘So Complete’, ‘No Cure for Love’ and ‘Crazy’ are about her current relationship; one filled with love, stability and happiness. When asked for her definition of love, Rhoda quotes, “It's like finding the missing part of a jigsaw puzzle, once you've found it everything else in your life just makes sense, but when you don't have it everything can become a crazy mess”. The essence of Rhoda’s emotions is reflected in her voice as she guides listeners through her emotional journey.

Rhoda adds diversity to her album by collaborating with other music moguls including Chicago’s hot new R&B producer Daniel ‘Burger Beatz’ Szura. Together they produced ‘Shoulda Woulda Coulda’ and ‘Me Against the World’. New York’s finest underground rappers, Seldom Seen and Jersey are featured in her tracks ‘ Don’t Stop’ and ‘You Too Late’, however Rhoda stays true to her London roots, by featuring reggae artist Loose on her track ‘Run Away’.

Rhoda’s music can be described as Timbaland style with its’ multi-layering of beats paired with catchy tunes bound to have listeners singing along in no time. Rhoda lists Mariah Carey, Alicia Keys, Christina Aguilera and Ashanti as some of her main influences, however Rhoda feels that she is completely unique from anyone else in the music industry. Although Rhoda does not see her vocal ability as her main strength, she definitely can sing .On her My Space site, Rhoda impressively sings an acapella version of ‘Rescue Me’ proving that her voice is strong without being masked by the accompaniment of synthesized vocals and computer voice alterations. Like Alicia Keys, Rhoda plays the piano as well as the guitar in nine of the tracks she has produced.

The best word to describe Rhoda Morgan is ‘industrious’ as she continues to successfully make her way through this- dog -eat dog music world. Her music tale began in the UK at 14 years of age with a demo tape recorded in her bedroom. Today, at 21, she is living in New York making TV appearances, performing live at renowned New York venues, shooting her first music video and receiving airplay on several New York radio stations. Rhoda has also recently partnered with ‘Wings Media’, making several of her tracks available aboard selected flights and her album ‘From Brixton to Brooklyn’ available to buy in over 300 retail stores working with US airports.

Already working on her next album, Rhoda plans to include more up tempo, light hearted club hopping tracks, jazz and blues and even some ska in addition to her soulful R&B tunes.

When asked what her resolutions for 2007 are, Rhoda replied “Selling 100,000 copies of my album”. With youth on her side and an impeccable work ethic, Rhoda Morgan is likely to exceed this goal and become the next big R&B superstar to take the urban music scene by storm.

Rhoda Morgan’s album ‘From Brixton to Brooklyn is available at HMV, Tower Records and Virgin Records retail stores as well as online at CD Baby, I tunes, Napster, Rhapsody, Best Ruy, Amazon, Yahoo Music and Sony Connect.

"Shoulda Woulda Coulda" is the work of a promising new writer and producer Rhoda Morgan. It's melodically durable with an appealing groove and a memorable hook, praise indeed!

Rhoda Morgan first came to attention as a contestant on the second season of Pop Idol, the British version of the program known in the States as American Idol. After the show finished in December of 2003, Morgan moved to New York City to begin working on her music career. Lots of names are dropped by her and others about influences or comparisons (e.g. Christina Aguilera, Nelly Furtado), but the key name is producer Timbaland.

She lists him as an influence and even if she didn’t, I would have still heard it. Timba has a special sound that is a part of hip-hop, but is still in a world of its own (I’ve been listening to Tim’s production of Justin Timberlake’s “My Love” quite a bit during the last few weeks). Morgan does most of the production on her debut album and it’s a bit hip-hop, a bit electronica, a bit dance pop — but all in a manner such as Timbaland might empty. It would hard to prove it, beyond the evidence of my own ears, but I don’t feel she achieves the fatness of sound that a Timba would, but points for trying.

Here are the first two tracks off From Brixton to Brooklyn, songs which I felt were most successful. “He Say She Say,” featuring rapper Jersey, has a spacey quality backed by a stuttering beat, while “Rescue Me” sounds like its samples Sting’s damn lute album, although with a start/stop quality that threatens to teeter over at any second, but never does.

Rhoda Morgan - He Say She Say (ft. Jersey) — BUY

Rhoda Morgan - Rescue Me — BUY

Tags: Rhoda Morgan, Timbaland, MP3s

The move across the ocean has been a popular one for British artists lately. The increased popularity of Lady Sovereign has opened the charts for the young ladies moving, like the title implies, from the UK to the Big Apple.
But unlike Lady, Rhoda Morgan takes her cues from the increasingly slick pool of dance-pop that is emerging onto the radios. The album is a collection of surprisingly subtle beats combined with Morgan's feathery vocals. While her voice isn’t overpoweringly good, it definitely doesn’t take away from the album. Her words are breathy and quiet, a sort of whispering that blends well into the tracks. Likewise, the lyrics are not anything other than the standard fair of brash sexuality. But, what a listener will get instead is a set of composite songs, each element leaning equally on the next, a slick, un-obtrusive set of pop tracks that fit better through headphones on a subway than in a club.
The production mirrors obviously the Timberland style, with the sleek multi- layering of beats and the stop-start bursts of drums. The tracks are left uncrowded and almost dreamlike in their softness. The opening song (and lead single) “He Say She say” epitomizes this, melding layers perfectly into each other’s underlined by a chiming bell. Coincidental, this is also the only track where the featured guest-rapper actually works well; the other three (“Don’t Stop” and “Too Late” and “Run Away”) cut in with chunky MCs that only distract the listener away from the track with uneven flows and inconsistent lyrics.
And, try as it might, this isn’t a club record: it’s not loud or sweaty or public enough. From Brooklyn to Brixton is not overtly sexy, instead grinds with a grooving slowness that underlines each song (I’m thinking here of “Rescue Me”). I personally appreciated this, not being attacked by cluttered, cartoony bass lines and instead allowed to melt into the album. While the album does this, it laced the necessary hook to keep me coming back. The problem is then that the tracks all sound vaguely similar, all glossed over with the same polish, pacing, and similar sound. The result of this is that there is no stand-out track: the songs pool together and become relatively indiscriminate.
While lacking in any real distinction from the increasingly saturated pool of peers this genre resides in, as a debut, this album smoothly transitions onto the scene with a shiney sound and tight production. If nothing else, it bodes well for her next album.

What's hot in 2007?

British born Rhoda Morgan puts an English edge on Timbaland inspired Urban R&B and Hip-Hop tracks.

Her debut album aptly entitled "From Brixton to Brooklyn" features the hit singles "Rescue Me", "Shoulda Woulda Coulda", "He Say She Say" and "Don't Stop."

Another of the tracks on the album is surely set to spark controversy entitled "Crazy: Part II." The track is a continuation of Beyonce's hit "Crazy" and pokes fun at Beyonce including her
relationship with Jay-Z and the media.

The former Pop Idol Contestant from the United Kingdom lists
Christina Aguilera, Lil' Kim and Alicia Keys amongst others as her inspiration. Her album has drawn comparison with Nelly Furtado, Mariah Carey and Ciara.
Her album From Brixton to Brooklyn can be purchased at CD baby www.cdbaby.com/rhodamorgan or on the U.S. i-tunes store. Twenty percent of all proceeds are being donated to the Catholic Agency for Overseas Development. (www.cafod.org.uk)

Published on Thu, 4 Jan 2007 11:41:43

It’s no secret that Rhoda has come a long way from recording songs in her bedroom with a plastic echo microphone and her tape recorder. The release of her debut album “From Brixton to Brooklyn” in November 2006 set a new standard in independent music, earning her worldwide respect and recognition. Rhoda has created her own genre by combining U.S. hip-hop and R&B whilst staying true to her U.K. Garage and grime roots. The result is a uniqueness that sets her a million miles apart from every other female vocal artist in the Top 40. Blessed with a superb voice and an unusual depth to her talent, Rhoda personally wrote and produced her whole album. The highlights are the piano-driven melodic masterpiece “Rescue Me”, showcasing Rhoda’s vocal passion and emotional depth as she mourns the loss of a loved one, the up-tempo “He Say She Say” featuring U.S. rapper Jersey, and the soulful Timbaland-inspired “Shoulda Woulda Coulda.”

Singer Rhoda Morgan's path to becoming the next American idol didn't start like most others, by waiting in line for a shot to impress fickle judges on a popular reality television show.
Instead, the 21-year old English songwriter relied on her own instincts and talents to make her success a reality-by independently writing, producing and performing a full-length album after originally setting off for New York City to make it in the music business. The journey has proved at times both dispiriting and inspiring for the diminutive former British schoolgirl who now resides in Ridgewood, and records a short distance away in Brooklyn. Following the release of her debut album in November, which took almost three years to complete despite a series of setbacks, Morgan now seems poised to break into the mainstream on her own terms.
"My parents always said that they didn't think I would last long here; I'd be homesick. I'd come back home" she says from her recording studio in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn.
"Being able to stay here for this amount of time and to have something to show for it- that I've done something, was a really good feeling"

Morgan's pilgrimage to the States to court the American music industry began at only 18 years old, when she loaded just herself and two suitcases on a plane bound for the city.
But before landing in New York, she had already garnered enough attention at home for her singing and songwriting skills to give her the confidence she needed to tackle the U.S. market.
After taking singing lessons at 14, Morgan produced her first demo tape in her house in Hertfordshire, outisde London, a year later and released it inauspiciously to the local record store. By then she had also begun attending classes at the prestigious Sylvia Young Theatre School, London famous for producing top-notch British acts like the Spice Girls. At 16 Morgan was enlisted to record a track with a U.K. record company and was requested to perform in London based on her songwriting ability. That afforded her an audition for the hit British reality show "Pop Idol" which would begat "American Idol" here.

Morgan's momentum and confidence had built so much that she had started approaching record companies int he hope of getting noticed. "I wanted it so bad" she says of her teenage years. "I used to go to Record Companies, and I would refuse to leave until they had me sing....I would stalk them." No one wanted to listen however, and she found herself foundering instead of singing a deal. Admittedly discouraged after failing a voice test with a major record company (she claims she was too nervous) Morgan decided to eschew the British music business for the one across the pond. So she worked three jobs-during days, nights and weekends to save up enough to make the trip.

She eventually landed in New York in June 2004, alone at 18 years old and living in a "nasty" apartment in midtown Manhattan- the first of at least a half-dozen places she would stay. She soon relocated to East Williamsburg near the Bushwick border, where on one occasion armed men ran through her apartment followed by police: and then to Onderdonk Avenue in Ridgewood, where she would be burglarized of $1500 worth of music equipment, including all of her recordings up until that point. "It was really devastating...I was about ot give up." she says "That was my lowest point." But the bubbly blond soldiered on, all the while soaking up the city and its infinite offerings. Even though she had to run home from her job as a waitress late at night through the echo of gunfire, Morgan continued to conceptualize and work on her music from the ground up.

"It gives me things to write about for my songs, because that the whole thing" she says. "When I was living in England, I was just doing the same thing with the same people, and I wasn't getting enough inspiration to write songs. When I came here doing everything by myself and meeting different people, it gave me a lot more inspiration to write from."
She began recording at a studio in Brooklyn, splicing her production work with song lyrics to create the twelve-track debut, 'From Brixton to Brooklyn' (The London neighborhood of Brixton being a hotbed for music in the city)

"She's incredible," says Morgan's producer and Explode Studio owner G.Fontana, recalling a day they spent 17 hours together in the studio. "I mean she works hard."
Throughout her time in New York City, Morgan says she has honed a sound that reflects the urban influence of both her current producer and neighborhood. With hip-hop beats overlapping her softer vocals, the album also includes cameos by local rappers and a reggae artist.
The songstress has already collaborated with established producers from across the country and hopes to use her own production and songwriting to propel her career even further. "Music is so important to me and I just really want to be in a job where I can use it...it's not even like working. If I could be doing music all day, every day, I would be so happy...If I had enough money to eat and rent then I'd be content"

Morgan plans to stay in the area even if the possible riches of a music career afford her penthouse status. "I love it-it's really vibrant" she says of the neighborhood. "I like the mix of people"
So far, she's been featured on an MTV program and played a 9/11 memorial concert, and plans to begin shooting her first music video at the end of the month. "New York has its ups and downs, but the ups just outweigh the downs."

Just two short years ago, Rhoda Morgan, now a 21-year-old accounting major at Baruch, was singing back-up vocals and daydreaming about living out her aspirations as a singer in the United States.

Morgan's interest in music was always apparent. By the age of 14 she had been through her share of vocal lessons, background gigs and competitions. Her life in Britain, she says, was "so influenced by American culture," that she never even considered pursuing her musical interests in the UK.

"I never really had any respect for artists in Britain - Most of my musical inspirations were here," she says. So, at just 18 years old, Rhoda packed her bags, leaving her family and home country behind for the tough journey she would soon face in New York City.

Indeed, the past two years have brought about deeper obstacles than the not-so-simple New York lifestyle adjustment for Morgan. In between taking classes at Baruch and working a full-time job in order to pay the rent, Rhoda spends most of her free time working on music. "Last semester was a nightmare," she says, "I had no time to study, I'm trying to get the balance right with school and my music. When I was recording my album I would get out of class at 10 and go straight to the studio then get up and go to work. Any free time I have is spent on music."

Morgan's self-released debut album, From Brixton to Brooklyn (available for purchase on iTunes and Rhapsody, among others) is the culmination of extreme determination as well as her due share of sweat and tears. After juggling several temporary jobs at once in order to save up enough money for a home recording studio.

"I was a hostess at a restaurant, a waitress, handed out flyers, did the Baruch telefund - that was the worst - everyone used to hang up on me because they couldn't understand my accent," she says, laughing.

Morgan began to play around with what would soon become the tracks on From Brixton ... before it all disappeared before her eyes. "Someone broke into my apartment and stole everything. I had nothing. I couldn't afford to buy all the equipment all over again."

Instead of losing ground, Morgan continued to press on, recording the album in a studio in Bed-Stuy and producing the background music on her keyboard at home. Morgan refuses to put a label on her music but confers that "people mostly classify me as R&B, but I can't put myself into one place. I'm inspired by so many different kinds of music - Spanish music, oldies like The Rolling Stone and the Beatles, I like rock like Limp Bizkit and Linkin Park, also the whole 1920s and 30s thing when I was growing up I listened to singers like Judy Garland and Barbara Streisand"

No matter what you call her music, one thing's for sure: Morgan has the drive and backing talent to make something of herself. "My goal is to get a record deal with a major label. It doesn't matter if I'm getting millions of dollars. Just to be able to do it, it's not like working, it's just like having fun," she says.

For more information on Rhoda and to see listings of her upcoming shows, visit her Myspace at myspace.com/rhodamorgansmusic.

RHODA'S BID FOR U.S. POP SUCCESS

Former English schoolgirl and Pop Idol Contestant is hoping that her debut album will be a big hit in America.

Rhoda Morgan who grew up in Gladstone Road Hoddesdon was a pupil at the former Haselwood JM School and had a spell working as a waitress in the Sun pub.

She later attended London's famous Sylvia Young Theatre School, performed several times in the Hertford Music Festival and was a contestant on the Pop Idol series.

After moving to New York three years ago, the songstress has party self-produced and recorded her first record- From Brixton to Brooklyn in the United States.

Profits from the album, which is a mixture of pop, r&b and hip-hop will help the Catholic Agency for Overseas Development charity.

Rhoda's first single "He say She say" is currently being played on radio stations across the States.

There are no plans to release the album in this country but it is available to download on the internet

Twenty-One year old Rhoda Morgan released her debut album entitled "From Brixton to Brooklyn" with a party at The Underscore. She performed a thirty minute set and signed copies after the show. Rhoda Morgan is set to be one of the fastest selling independent artists of all times. Combining urban beats with smooth vocal hooks she brings a fresh British edge to American R&B.


View Rhoda Morgan's EPK

Twenty-One year old Rhoda Morgan has released her debut album. The album release party was held at the Underscore at 89th Street and 1st Avenue where she performed songs and autographed copies for her fans. The eagerly awaited release entitled "From Brixton to Brooklyn" is a unique combination of pop, R&B, and hip-hop and is being sold to profit the Catholic agency for overseas Development. Rhoda enlisted the help of Chicago's hottest new R&B producer Daniel 'Burger Beatz' Szura on the tracks 'Me against the world' and 'Shoulda Woulda Coulda' The remaining tracks which she produced herself feature some of New York's most talented rappers and reggae artists. The talented singer, songwriter and producer grew up in London, United Kingdom attending the Sylvia Young Theatre School alongside other British celebrities such as the Spice Girls. At sixteen years old she was featured on "Pop Idol" hosted by Simon Cowell which was later launched in the U.S. as "American Idol." Once the show finished, she was invited to audition before music executives from Universal Island Records and later Sony Records but she wanted more than what the U.K. music scene could offer her. Aged eighteen she packed her bags and moved to New York to pursue her musical career. After numerous production and writing credits, she emerged as a well respected songwriter and producer and in 2006 began working on her first album. Her album is out now, available to purchase at Best Buy, Virgin Records, Cd Baby.com, iTunes and Napster. If you are interested in more information please visit www.myspace.com/rhodamorgansmusic or www.rhoda-morgan.com

Bruce Kazra interviewed Singer Rhoda Morgan for "New York Minute"

AGE? 21
BIRTHPLACE? London U.K.
NICKNAMES? minidiva, R&B, rhodita... it goes on (laughing)
FIRST RECORD YOU BOUGHT?
probably Salt n Pepa...I was a big fan of them, growing up.
FIRST LIVE CONCERT? Britney at Wembley, she rocked...I miss the old Britney
FIRST JOB? Cashier
CELEB GOSSIP? Errrmm when I was auditioning for Bad Boy Records last year Redman was recording his album in the next studio and he burst in midway through my song asking if anyone had weed and wanted to get high with him before he started recording (laughing) it was pretty funny as you can imagine.
SCARIEST MOMENT? Straining my vocal chords actually quite badly- I couldn't sing for like three weeks!
BEST MOMENT? Definitely the completion of my album- that was an awesome feeling after so much hard work.
SOMETHING WEIRD BUT TRUE?
I have a weird addiction for cheese and the smellier the better
FAVE NEW YORK RESTAURANT?
Simply Pasta, the do the best ever Italian dishes oh my god.
FAVE NEW YORK BAR?
I'm more of a Pub person being that I'm British, so I guess the Red Lion is my favorite.
....
"From Brixton to Brooklyn" the debut album from Rhoda Morgan is in stores now