[3/11/2012
Steppers Song Of The Day] Change It All by Goapele #stepperssongoftheday Born
Goapele Mohlabane in Oakland, CA, this singer grew up in a
socially conscious and politically active family.
Her mother married South African political exile Douglas
Mohlabane while studying in Nairobi, Kenya. At an early age, Goapele
attended the Berkeley Arts Magnet School where she led a pre-teen peer
support group.
She also became involved in various groups and
organizations that combated racism and sexism. It would be these
extroverted activities that assisted her singing career as she would
also sing at community functions.
In high school, Goapele sang in the Oakland Youth
Choir and became part of a semi-professional music group called Vocal
Motion. Upon high school graduation, she attended the Berklee School of
Music in Boston, where she studied music theory.
She also began developing her songwriting skills during
her post-secondary education. In the summer of 2001, Goapele was signed
to Skyblaze Recordings and completed her debut album. After finishing
the record, she toured North America with Spearhead. She returned
to the studio in 2002 to begin work on her second record.
Her second album, Change it All, featuring the single "First
Love" and the song "Love Me Right," was released December
2005. The album featured production work from Jeff Bhasker, Mike Tiger,
Amp Live, Sa-Ra Creative Partners, and Linda Perry.
In 2006 the album peaked at #32 on the Billboard Top
R&B/Hip Hop Album Charts and #2 on the Top Heatseekers while the single
"First Love" reached #18 on the Hot Adult R&B Airplay. Goapele
appeared on Soul Train to promote the album in May 2006, in what
turned out to be the show's final new episode.
She also appeared on The Orlando Jones Show, Jimmy
Kimmel Live, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, ABC View from The Bay
and FOX Good Day Atlanta. Her first three releases have garnered
praise from the likes of magazines such as Rolling Stone, Nylon,
Interview, Marie Claire, Billboard, Essence, and Vibe.
More Below
She has appeared on the covers of local Bay Area publications San
Francisco Magazine, Diablo Magazine, East Bay Express, SF Bay Guardian,
Mugshot Magazine, and City Flight, She was named the number-5
artist to watch in the July 2003 issue of Rolling Stone magazine,
made the countdown on MTV’s Top 10 Artists to Watch, and
collaborated with ALDO Shoes’ advertisement campaign in its fight
against HIV/AIDS, which featured artists such as Avril Lavigne,
Ludacris, Dave Navarro, Charlize Theron, Pink, Eve, Rosario Dawson, Eva
Mendes, Bow Wow, Ziggy Marley, and Kelly Rowland.
On July 10, 2009, Skyblaze Recordings leaked the single "Milk & Honey"
(produced by Bedrock), the first single from her third studio album of
the same title. However, in August 2011, she announced that the album
would be titled Break of Dawn.
The album is being recorded at the Zoo, home of Goapele’s Oakland-based
Skylight Studios and will feature production from Drumma Boy,
Bedrock, Kanye West, Dan Electric, Mike Tiger, Bobby Ozuna (Raphael
Saadiq, John Mayer, Erykah Badu), Malay (John Legend, Mary J. Blige),
Jeff Bhasker (The Game, Kanye West, Ludacris, T.I), and other guest
musicians. After many delays, the album was finally released on October
25, 2011.
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