- Title: USA: SONGWRITER/SINGER ERIC BENET SET TO RELEASE HIS SECOND ALBUM
- Date: 9th April 1999
- Summary: REUTERS (SOUNDBITE) (English) BENET SAYING: BENET SAYING: "Yeah, I'm a many faceted personality type; I can be tender, I can be direct, and uhhmm, I don't know if I want to go all the way there, (laughs) but yeah, I've got all the four food groups represented on my plate, I'll put it that way."
- Embargoed: 24th April 1999 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES
- Country: USA
- Topics: Entertainment
- Reuters ID: LVA68OHZVQH9AB1ZG2NDZR3MRXE3
- Story Text: Warner Brothers recording vocalist/songwriter Eric Benet is set to release his second album entitled
"A Day In The Life", which not only showcases his silky smooth vocals, but additionally features pairings with vibes master Roy Ayers, Jr., revolutionary bassist MeShell N'Degeocello, and R AND B divas Faith Evans and Tamia.
In the wake performing worldwide in support of his 1996 Warner Brothers debut "True To Myself", singer/songwriter Eric Benet returned to his home base of Milwaukee, Wisconsin to write more songs while setting up collaborations with other writers and producers.
A year of touring and a year of introspection lend several personal aspects to this album's contents, but Benet is not as interested in exposing his personal life as he is in stirringthe creative juices.
"Well, I think part of my whole experience is to grow creatively and to be able to express myself more completely which "True To Myself" definitely was a personal,autobiographical type record but there were other elements of my persona that I just touched upon.But on "A Day In The Life" I think I yeah, maybe I underscore the sexuality a little bit more and you know on the next album I'm sure there's going to be another dimension to my personality that may be reflected stronger that it was in the previous album.So I hope that each record peels away another layer of me."
Benet's process of maturation and growth as a writer and performer comes through in the themes and production team hechose for "A Day In The Life".
Eric co-wrote and co-produced the album with some of the best in the business, including Wyclef Jean, Ali Shaheed Muhammad (A Tribe Called Quest), Somethin' For The People, James Poyser and Vikter DuPlaix (Erykah Badu, Lauryn Hill), as well as longtime collaborators Demonte'Posey and George Nash, Jr.
Though the album centers around matters of the heart, "A Day In The Life" adds a little spice to the romantic reverie embarked upon after repeated listens.The opener, "That's Just My Way", is an intimate confession of sexual and spiritual love, while the duet "Spend My Life" (featuring guest vocals by Tamia) is an unabashed declaration of eternal devotion.The debut single, "Georgy Porgy", which features guest vocals by Faith Evans, is a revamped R&B version of the hit by seventies group Toto.
That track, along with the album's other cover, a very funky version of Kansas' "Dust In The Wind" reveals Benet's affinity for classic rock, pop, and R&B.
While his first effort ending up being "cut off at the knees" by the powers that were at EMI, Eric feels he's lucky to get the chance to develop and experiment as a Warner Brothers artist.
"That's like a blessing.I'm lucky to be at Warner Brothers, I mean not every label will take a sophmore album with so much enthusiasm when the first album did just okay,"
says Benet.
"Warner Brothers have been so optimistic and they've really, really gotten behind this project.I feel a synergy in the company that was not there a couple of years ago.I feel genuine enthusiasm for the music and for the project which was sparse just a couple of years ago, so it feels good.It feels like a completely new company and in a lot of ways it is."
"A Day In The Life" has already been released in some European territories and will debut in North America on April 27th.Benet will be doing promotional performance across Europe for the better part of the month, returning to North America after dates in Paris, Amsterdam, Stockholm, London, Manchester, and Birhigham. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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