Over the weekend I had the experience of attending an event in Atlanta where vocalist Ozara Ode’ paid homage to one of the greatest soul artist to grace the stage and someone she is compared to often, Dr. Nina Simone. Dr. Simone wrote and performed songs that spoke to the conciseness of America with titles like Mississippi Goddamn and my favorite “Please Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood”, in total Ms. Simone wrote over 500 songs in her career before passing away in 2003. Ode’ became familiar with Dr. Simone just in 2005 after people continuously told her she reminded them of the vocalist. After hearing Dr. Simone, Ode’ fell in love with the music and realized it was ok to just be herself. The play written by Ozara Ode’ is entitled “Nina Simone in Her Own Words”. I was blown away by the performance, but realized this wasn’t the first time her melodic tone had grabbed my ear and refused to let go.
I remember it like it was yesterday, sitting in Cafe Circa located near downtown Atlanta. It seemed as though she appeared from out of nowhere and took the stage with a presence that demanded respect. It was obvious that this was an impromptu performance as she briefly spoke with the keyboardist to explain what to play and the key that it should be played in. When he didn’t catch on immediately she began to hum a smooth melodic tone that could have been the strums of a bass that I felt in the pit of my stomach. Before I knew it she belted out a sound that was undeniable.
Growing up Ode’ was always relegated to the boys section in the choir due to her unique voice that teetered on baritone at times. No one knew what to do with her and she was to young to embrace the unique gift that she had been given. In 2002 Ode’ in all her shyness began performing at open mic events in her hometown of Milwaukee. In 2007 the Atlanta music scene was in full swing and the city had made it’s mark producing some of the worlds top selling artist like Toni Braxton, TLC and soul artist India Arie. Ms. Ode’ realized it was time to leave the dairy capital and head to Atlanta to take her chops to another level and peruse her dream.
After declaring she was leaving Milwaukee only a few believed her. But when her job failed to give her the transfer they promised, she stood by her decision and continued to load her truck, pack what fit and left the rest. Ode’ told me that in order to leave behind all which was familiar she had to dig down deep, not to allowing fear and doubt to overcome her. She felt as if it were time for her to stop talking and prove to herself that she could really do this and not let things hold her. As she shared the story I realized that was a powerful example of what separates passion from just going through the motions.
Her first performance upon arriving in Atlanta was at the Apache Cafe, a restaurant and venue for live performances with a rich history rooted in Atlanta music. A place where some of the top names in the industry have graced the stage before and after they were famous. That night Ozara rocked the mic and left the audience in awe, and her world began to open up or so she thought. Although it was passion that drove her to Atlanta, it was a lack of a plan that almost sent her back home. After a series of dead ends with people that promised a lot but delivered little, she grew frustrated, but never stopped singing. She would quickly begin to listened and learned what people in the industry did, weed through the BS and build strong relationships, relationships that would be the key to opening new doors.
Apace Cafe would be the place she would learn about the International Soul Music Summit (ISMS) that welcomes soul music artist from around the world to Atlanta for a conference that speaks to their genre. She would also meet Terry Bello, the founder about two weeks later. Her career began to blossom and she would go on to open for several talented artist including the great Gerald Albright.
“Most people don’t know what to do with me”, she explained. Due to her unique rich sound that doesn’t fit into a box and mirrors a classically trained vocalist with ranges out of this world. She has been across the board, from voice overs to jazz, she can do it all, but it wasn’t until she stopped thinking about genre and start thinking about the music and what she wants people to feel, when she began to fully embrace who she is, which is a Soul Diva on a mission to share her gift with the world.
Ozara Just returned from an amazing trip in the UK where she performed in several cafe’s around London before heading to Paris to take 1st place in the Sankofa Soul Contest. Ms. Ode’ will be headed back to Paris on April 30th for the next round of competition. Her career is looking bright and she not looking back. Hard work and a commitment to her craft continues to propel this Soul Diva to the stars and beyond.
“They call it soul music because you can feel it. You can feel the passion, the music is inside of you instead of in front of you”, Ms. Ode’ explained so eloquently in a voice so distinct that it makes you take notice and hang on every note.
