SADE ADU:
DEFINING MODERN BRITISH SOUL
MICHELE J MARTIN
Born in Nigeria, Sade Adu relocated to Essex, England, along with her mother and older brother Banji shortly after her parents split up. As she grew up, dreams of becoming an artist or writer were pushed aside for pragmatism — a degree in fashion from Saint Martins in London. She was raised to have a plan, and a trade was something she could fall back on. But she didn't love fashion and what would become her life's work, music, well — that was an accident. This accident made her one of the most powerful female artists at Epic Records for many years.
Sade began her musical career as a backup singer in the early 80s for a London band called Pride. Early interviews with her suggest that it was just something to do, helping out the band until they found a longer-term option or a "real singer." On the side, she was also modeling part-time. But it was her solo performance of a song called 'Smooth Operator' that would catch everyone's attention. Quickly she had record label interest and selling out music venues. London nightclub Heaven turned away over 1,000 guests when they sold out tickets for Sade's first performance in record time.
It was always hard for critics to define Sade's style. Some critics would lazily call them smooth jazz or a new sub-genre they'd created called "sophisti-pop." This title was used to describe other UK musicians of that time who were equally difficult to classify — such as Simply Red, Basia, Everything but the Girl, and Swing Out Sister. But like the others, their sound and influence were much more complicated. Raised on American soul such as Marvin Gaye, Nina Simone, and Curtis Mayfield, Sade and her band considered themselves also influenced by early-80s Hip Hop, Electro, and Punk.
To date, Sade has sold ~50M albums internationally, despite rarely touring and a small music catalog. They've only released six albums; however, they've recently remastered their catalog at Abbey Road Studios and reissued them as a box set called "This Far". And after ten years hiatus, there is talk of a new album and a world tour after the pandemic ends.
In a 2020 article in British GQ, bandmate Andrew Hale says, ..most bands are forgotten about when there is a long hiatus between albums, but with us it seems the opposite, particularly in the last few years." John Reid, the EMEA President of Live Nation, agrees, "There's no question that scarcity increases demand for an artist's live performances, in this case Sade."
This bolsters the case for how unique and influential Sade remains to this day.Musical artists across genres cite her as an inspiration and influence to them — Beyoncé, Rakim, Kanye West, metal-core singer Greg Puciato, Drake, Taylor Swift, Herbie Hancock, Lauryn Hill, and more. As new generations discover her, this list will undoubtedly grow.
"The magic and the mystery is in the music itself. Knowing too much about someone can take away your attention from what they really do. Then people become celebrities rather than artists, and it's easy to step over that boundary and let yourself go.The magic and the mystery is in the music itself."
Elusive and mysterious, Sade has never been one to embrace fame. If anything, she has shied away from it. Sade didn't live lavishly, like a celebrity, as one would expect a woman who has sold over 50M albums worldwide. Friends would affectionately call Sade "Howie", a nod to the famously mysterious Howard Hughes.
Sade created her own rules and when she signed the band with Epic Records, the label agreed to her demands. From the rights to release music at the quantity and pace the band pleased, to offering a smaller upfront advance, with a backend share of sales profits at a rate that was almost unheard of at that time — 15%. This deal helped to make her one of the most successful British female artists in history.
Since the release of their first album nearly 20 years ago, Sade has won four Grammy Awards, including Best New Artist, and each of her six albums has gone multi-platinum. The Sunday Times in the U.K. has called her the most successful solo British female artist in history. VH1 ranked the band at 50 on their "100 greatest artists of all time" list, while ranking Sade herself at number 30 on their "100 Greatest Women In Music" list.
Sade would also receive British honors, which she said was "a great gesture to me and all black women in England. " She was made an Officer of the British Empire in 2002, and in 2017, she received the title of Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE).
Sade's vocal style is the vocal equivalent of a warm, heavy velvet blanket. Her words wrap themselves around you and pull you into the words she is saying, like stepping through the wardrobe in Narnia. Her voice transports you. Her voice has traditionally feminine and traditionally masculine characteristics, resulting in something so uniquely Sade. It is understandable why music critics had such a difficult time defining her and her musical style over the years.
Voice styles such as Sade's would be amazing in relaxation or meditation applications using digital voice. However, voices such as hers aren't currently represented in the digital voices dominating the markets. But, imagine the possibilities, if the world of digital voice matched the world of human voice. If it was as dynamic and expressive? More representative? Guess what, now it can be — learn more about AI-Voice.
Windmill voices are defined as Low, Deep, Breathy, and Nasal. Learn more about the unique characteristics that make up our voices and voice types here: VOCALiD Voice Types.
This is the sixteenth in our Iconic Black Voices series. Make sure to come back to our blog every day this month as we highlight more iconic Black voices in celebration of Black History Month.
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