“It’s like an out-of-body experience,” she says. “I’m so overwhelmed and oversaturated with thinking about what needs to be done differently, what lights should go where in what parts – I’m so caught up in the details that sometimes I can’t even tell if people are responding well to the music, especially to the new stuff. I mean, I know people like it – I’ve had interactions with people over it that have been so enthusiastic – but it’s all over in such a flash that you can’t really take it all in. I go on stage, I’m Emily, and then it’s all over.”
Spalding teamed up with a cast of estimable musicians, including drummer Karriem Riggins and guitarist Matthew Stevens, to record Emily’s D+Evolution at North Hollywood’s NRG Studios, which has previously housed projects by artists as diverse as No Doubt, Fear Factory and The Monkees. Behind the boards was long-time David Bowie collaborator Tony Visconti. This was Visconti’s first credited production following the January release of Bowie’s final album, Blackstar, and there are actually some parallels to the duality and creative spirit that characterised much of Bowie’s output. Most notably, the album is presented from the point of view of Spalding’s alter ego Emily, who ostensibly serves as her very own Ziggy Stardust.
“The truth is that there were very few premeditations about this project,” she says. “I was chilling – literally, just taking time off from writing and touring and all that – when inspiration hit very unexpectedly. It was so strong and so vibrant that I knew right then and there that it was what I was going to do next. I suppose it was in the execution process that things became a bit more intentional. I knew I was going to play the character of Emily, and I knew that it was going to be her voice being channelled through this music. It’s her philosophy. This album is the energy that she personifies. I also knew that this project had to be one that was interdisciplinary – it was always going to be more than just standing there and singing the songs.”
Given the considerable creative expansion Spalding undertook for this record – which incorporates more funk and rock elements than her four previous LPs – the question looms as to whether she ever fears predictability or becoming a victim of complacency.
“This is my fifth record, and each of them has been a really different experience every time,” Spalding says. “I don’t think I’ve ever developed a pattern in my music. There’s no formula. I can’t say things like ‘I tend to’ or ‘I go for’. That’s just not the kind of songwriter I am. Each project has essentially started with me simply having an idea, being inspired by it and taking it as far as I can. I’m curating a vibe, and that’s definitely a big part of this record.”
Since her elevation to a wider audience in the early 2010s – fuelled by her unexpected Grammy win for Best New Artist, a performance on Austin City Limits and a Prince tribute at the 2010 BET Awards – Spalding has been one of the most celebrated acts of the new generation of jazz. She’s also a gateway artist of sorts, leading younger listeners into the world of jazz music and its various subgenres. While she appreciates that platform to a certain extent, she also acknowledges an element of luck.
“I’m definitely aware that I’m not always making the kind of music that people necessarily are exposed to on an everyday basis,” she says. “The fact that a lot of people hear what I do is amazing, unquestionably, but we live in a society that favours and pays attention to pretty women. As a pretty woman, I’m not going to try and pretend that it somehow isn’t a factor in people being exposed to my music. I also, however, happen to be a badarse musician. So when people come to my music, for whatever reason, I know that the quality of the musicianship is still getting through. Maybe it will make people’s ears open up a little to make them want to hear more of that kind of sound.”
Although countless musicians have introduced an alter ego or split personality during their career – from Mariah Carey to Garth Brooks, Ghostface Killah to Beyoncé – if one clear parallel can be drawn between Spalding and Emily, it’s that of Janelle Monae and her future-located alter ego, Cindi Mayweather. Monae featured Spalding on her 2013 album, The Electric Lady, and the two artists share a close bond.
“I think Janelle is one of the most seminal humans of our time,” says Spalding. “Even for all of her popularity, I still don’t think that people truly understand or appreciate her the way that they should. She’s a freak. She’s a genius. She is one in a gazillion. I’m definitely inspired by her and her whole team. I don’t think I was directly inspired by her for this project, but she’s definitely someone that I admire and that I look up to. I’ve only met Cindi a couple of times, but I bet her and Emily would have an understanding of one another. They’d get on just fine.”
So, what’s next for Spalding? Well, Emily is here for the time being – she’ll be out on the road for the rest of the year, including a maiden voyage to Australia that includes appearances at the Melbourne International Jazz Festival. “I’ve never been out there, but I’ve wanted to for a very long time now. I just know it’s going to be something special.”
But beyond this tour, Emily’s future is less than secure. “I don’t think she’ll stick around. I think this all came to be to serve a function in my own life. It’s the equivalent of a volcano erupting, or kicking in a door. Once it’s done, it’s out there. You can’t go back from there. The energy has to move on. It doesn’t have to stay in one place. The force is there, and it’s there for you to access. In a way, she isthat force.”
BY DAVID JAMES YOUNG
