Image courtesy of the Millie Jackson's Weird Wreckuds site
Soul sensation Millie Jackson recently celebrated her 68th
birthday on July 15th. Over
the last 12 years, she’s become one of my favorite singers. I knew
about Millie Jackson at an early age. I remember a lot of female
rappers (and
singers) who’d always given Jackson credit for changing the game
musically and
showing that women could be talented, intelligent, and sexually
liberated. When looking through people's record
collections as a child, I also remember that they’d keep their Millie
Jackson
records towards the back of their record collection. I always wondered
why. After hearing an interview she did with NPR in 2006, while I was away at college, I began to understand. The interview led to me rediscovering her
music. I fell in love with her soulful
delivery, the production of her music, and the down-to-earth, brash, realness
of her lyrics. I said, “Hmph, I now know
why she created such a firestorm and why some may have been a little
uncomfortable with the subject matter of her music.”
For those that couldn’t get into Jackson’s music or were too
prudish to get down, I thought it was their loss. There was no one in the industry at that time
that talked about love, relationships, sexuality, and everyday real shit like
Millie Jackson. That immediately set her
apart from her peers. With just a few
listens of her music, it’s also easy to see why she’s also referred to as the
Queen of Hip-Hop.
With albums like It
Hurts So Good, Caught Up, Still Caught Up, Feelin’ Bitchy, Get It Out’cha
System, and Live & Uncensored,
she showcased her effortless storytelling ability and passionate vocal
delivery. If you listen to her
interpretive skills on songs like “If You’re Not Back In Love By Monday,” “If
Loving You Is Wrong (I Don’t Want To Be Right),” and “Letter Full Of Tears,”
you can’t help but to say she’s easily one the greatest soul singers ever. The song that turned me out was her remake of
Latimore’s “All The Way Lover.” If you
want to hear a song she flipped on its ear and made it all her own, “All The
Way Lover” is the song. It’s a 10-plus
minute gem of Millie Jackson sangin’ her face off and telling-it-like-it-is.
No one, past or present, can bring the soul and the realness
like Millie Jackson. In terms of style,
persona, and presentation, Jackson is a true original. She’s a spirited, no holds barred,
charismatic performer who’s inspired generations of artists. She doesn’t always get the credit she’s due,
but that doesn’t stop Jackson from doing what she does best. Fortunately, Millie Jackson was recently
featured in a commendable episode of TVOne’s "Unsung" series. Go check it out. I highly recommend it.
Millie Jackson, thank you for your many contributions. Hope you had a beautiful birthday!
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