No stranger to the music industry, Grammy Award winning singer, songwriter, entrepreneur, and television star, KANDI, is gracing the masses with yet another heartfelt solo project, KANDI KOATED, that is set for release on December 14th on Kandi Koated/Asylum/Warner Bros. In addition, Kandi recently shot a video for “Haven’t Loved Right” in honor of her ex-fiancé, AJ, who senselessly died in Atlanta a little over a year ago. The video premiered on Bravo’s Watch What Happens Live this past Sunday on Bravo.
Carol’s Daughter has joined forces with KANDI and Warner Bros. in support of Kandi Koated by hosting two in-store events for the songstress. The first event will be held in NYC on December 14th at their Harlem Location (24 W. 125th Street) and the 2nd on December 18th in Kandi’s hometown of Atlanta at the Lenox Mall (3393 Peachtree Rd. NE). Kandi will sign copies of her album (they will be available for purchase at the store) and Carol’s Daughter will give a gift for each album sold that day in the store.
On KANDI KOATED, KANDI has taken the reins and delivered a cohesive album that has everything you would expect from a singer who has helped create numerous songs that have served as the soundtrack to our lives. “The album is about love, relationships. It’s meeting someone. Falling for them. Falling out with them. Breaking up with them. Thinking about them. Getting back together. Moving on. It’s all there,” she says of the project, which she almost completely wrote, with the exception of the impossibly catchy “Me and You,” written and produced by Ne-Yo, and sampling the Outkast classic “Elevators.”
“I Want You” (produced by The Justice League) is Euro-smooth and ultra-feminine, while “Leroy Jones” (produced by Black Elvis) is the surefire single mothers’ anthem (“I am a package deal/You gotta love my child/Like it’s your own”). “My stepfather’s name is Leroy Jones and he’s been there for my mother and me. This song is about where I am right now as a woman. If I can find a man like that to love me and my daughter, then I am good,” says Kandi.
KANDI’s long-time friend Jazze Pha collaborated on the soulful and explosive 808-filled break up hymn “Leave You” (“You gotta keep it up/To keep me around”) and she reinforces the importance of respect with “I’m Happy” with remarkable Deniece Williams-like vocal acrobatics. Up-tempo and aggressive, “How Could You” is an incredulous look at her lover’s actions (“How could you break me down/When I life you up?”) and “Lucky” is a look at the real-life situation of cheating (“She gets to have it every night/she’s a lucky girl/I know you got a girl/but…”). In true respect to her own personality and drive, the Tim Walls-produced “Let’s Get It” is motivation at its height (“This is for my fellas on their grind/and my girls with money on their mind/I am going to get this money/while you’re dreaming”). Smooth and hype all at once, it’s the female companion to Biggie’s “Juicy.”
KANDI’s singing career took flight in the 1990s with the Atlanta-based girl group Xscape. After three consecutive platinum certified albums, the group split but Kandi’s hunger for self-expression was far from fulfilled and she dove into her love of songwriting. Within a few short years, she was the first woman to be nominated and awarded ASCAP’s Rhythm and Soul Awards for “Songwriter of the Year” in the year 2000 for her lyrical creation of the TLC hit “No Scrubs.” Most recently, however, Kandi is known as one of the most likable cast members of Real Housewives of Atlanta. Leaving the life of reality television behind for a spell, the Grammy Award winning artist joined the 22-city “Back To Me” tour with Fantasia to promote her new album. Despite her burgeoning television stardom, having a hand in the sale of 56 million albums and 14 platinum records, Kandi remains genuine in her delivery of real life situations that people of all backgrounds can relate to. KANDI KOATED is sure to resonate with anyone who’s loved … and been loved!
Kandi is currently wrapping the Fantasia tour and will begin a promo tour hitting NY, Atlanta, Chicago, Philadelphia and DC. Pick up KANDI KOATED in stores on Dec. 14th.
