Exclusive Interview With Billie Ray Martin!

Warning! This post is also available in portuguese).

Billie Ray Martin, queen of electro-soul, started her carrier in the 1980's with the electronic project Electribe 101, which ended up pushing up her solo carrier in Europe. In 1996 she released her first solo album, "Deadline For My Memories". With influences of american country, dance and soul, she made a competent album that is the face of 1990's, and gained space in british, american and even brazilian dancefloors with the  hit "Your Loving Arms". BRM's voice showed she was able to overcome jazz's big legends and at the same time, concquer more than most electronic music singers.

Leaving her record label, Billie released singles and EPs that won her many underground electro fans. With her own productions, she was feeling more comfortable to show what she really came for: injecting electro with vocal competence and German's cold and refined producing. And that's what she achieved with songs like "Undisco Me" and her featuring in DJ Hell's "Je Regrette Everything".

This year, BRM finally returns to the market with a new album, The Crackdown Project (and she's also releasing a new project named The Opiates). Bringing back again her electronic and independent roots, she's finally free to strike again with her great potential, and to do that, she's not a bit ashamed to release a double disc album. With partnerships with Stephen Mallinder, Maertini Broes and Lusty Zanzibar, the singer has only released Vol.1 - Sold Out To Disco. The second one, Vol.2 - Darkness Restored will be out on March 15th. Each volume contains 2 unreleased tracks and many remixes.

As a defender of digital audio exchange, Billie has on her website two remixes of new tracks and her first new video, The Crackdown. Check it out:

Nice as she is, Billie Ray Martin gave a small and exclusive interview to Frikadica.

Frikadica: Between The Opiates project and your collaborations, did you feel like it's time to put a bigger effort in your solo career? Or did the artists you know inspire you to this new fase?

BRM: "There is no specific reason why I am now releasing various solo releases in 2010. The opiates album will be released in May as it's been ready, or almost ready, for a while but there was no release-opportunity before. Now I run my own label and nothing stands in the way of a release. My solo single, which should follow in July, if not before, is long overdue so it's high time I got that one out. I'm still working on it at the moment. As far as other artists inspiring - it is more a case whatever I download in my capacity as a dj inspires me. I hardly listen to anything else these days than the tracks I find for dj'ing.I can't name any specific inspiration though."

Frikadica: What were the changes in your working style, being outside the major labels? Is it more hard work or more satisfaction?

BRM: "It's more satisfying as the feedback you get is your own and has been generated by yourself.  It is also harder because no one pays you or helps or encourages you along the way."

Frikadica: You're known as The Queen of electronic soul, and your new songs seem to be more electronic and less soul. What sort of styles can we expect in terms of sound from your new songs?

BRM: "I am starting work on my solo album. It will be influenced by electronic disco of the 70's and 80's but I want to take this into the digital age, as opposed to doing retro. The Opiates' album you can check the EP out on www.myspace.com/opiatesmusic. We've been compared to Electribe 101, The carpenters, Kraftwerk. But yes gerenerally I would like to explore, as always, electronic music. I do not think that in my case, there's less soul at the moment. On the contrary. Electronic soul is what I do , whether it's a banging electro track or something else."

Frikadica: Can you name five artists from these days that you'd like to work with?

BRM: "Don't know.. No one."

Frikadica: Do you consider coming to Brazil for some gigs? What would it take for you to come?

BRM: "I was there twice last year dj'ing and performing live. I'm planning to come more often now. In December I'm going to Buenos Aires for some months and if I don't come to Brazil some more before then, I will certainly come more often after December."

Now we just have to wait for the new releases and hope - anxiously - for the time when she'll show up at our clubs! (If you want to read the portuguese version of this post, just click here). #frikadica