More than an album,“Red Earth” is the singer’s connection to her roots.
Dee Dee Bridgewater worked with various musicians from Mali, a country that she claims as her ancestral home. The result is an original and captivating mixture of Jazzy and traditional music from Mali.
“I feel that I’m a whole person now, because I know where I come from” said the multiple award-winning singer.
“Every time I listened to music from Mali, it just seemed like I knew it. After I visited the country, I really felt strongly that my roots are from Mali. I look like the people. And they thought I was Malian. I think many African-Americans roots are Malian”.
She wishes more of her fellow African-American embarked on a journey to their roots.
“We like to have the African names; we like to dress in the African fabrics; and we like to celebrate Kwanza. But few of us are actually willing to go over there and try to establish any kind of contact. It’s very easy to talk it; it’s much more difficult to walk it”.
With “Red Earth”,Dee Dee definitely walks the walk!
(08.14.08)
