RASHEED OGUNLARU — SONGS FROM THE SOUL (2012)
David Greenberg, August 23, 2012
With Rasheed Ogunlaru’s debut album Songs from the Soul, we witness a pure and honest expression of an artist whose intent is so clearly to share an inspiring and hopeful message with the listener. The magic of this album lies within its lyrical meaning, which is so refreshing considering that in today’s popular music we increasingly come across records that are void of such meaning.
Songs from the Soul displays a combination of musical eclecticism that weaves in and out of R&B, Soul, Pop, Dance, and Electronic music — when listening to the album we feel as if someone extracted some of the fundamental musical ingredients from the past half century, and fused them together into one. And, the music is presented in a way that is so accessible to every individual out there, whether young, old, male, female, and regardless of ethnicity, because it speaks to something so universally human.
The album, which contains 12 songs, starts off with “Soul Mate”—a slow tempo opener that tells a story of finding your other half and how the power of such a connection can heal old wounds and lift someone up to a higher state of being. The second track, “Be Something” fades in with the sounds of the oceans and continues with a melody and rhythm reminiscent of the 1960’s soul sound of Detroit and Chicago.
One of the many highlights of the album is “Love is the Answer”, an upbeat song that is about the moment of deciding to overcome your fears, doubts and pain, moving forward and becoming alive and free. You’ll have no choice but to feel uplifted and inspired after listening to this song. It’s has the type of catchy melody that you’ll notice yourself humming to for days to come.
And, because it is such an integral element of this album, I must also mention the other aspect of Rasheed’s life; his alter ego of the day, which that he is a personal life coach. Often times we come in contact with artists that produce incredibly beautiful music, but shockingly for us fans, we learn that the musician’s personal character in real life doesn’t match the beauty in their music. In Rasheed’s case, we experience the very opposite. It is so clear, that the humble and compassionate nature of his work as a life coach is inextricably linked with his art. This link rings true with the the words of Sufi Master Inayat Kahn (1882-1927), “Music should be healing, music should uplift the soul, music should inspire; then there is no better way…of rising higher towards the spirit, of attaining spiritual perfection, only if it is rightly understood.”. Thankfully for us as listeners, Rasheed understands this fundamental aspect of music all too well because of his work as a life coach.
The power behind Rasheed’s combination as both an artist and healer comes across so bright in his message on Songs from the Soul. And just what exactly is that message? It’s a message about the journey of self discovery, and Rasheed is putting out his hand asking the listener to join him in this journey through song. I don’t know about you, but I’m in for the ride!
David Greenberg, a PhD student at Cambridge University studying music psychology, plays and studies saxophone — having most recently played and toured with the Cambridge University Jazz Orchestra. He completed undergraduate studies at Rutgers University in New Jersey studying both psychology and music, during which time he also conducted research in the philosophy of music at the University of Milan