After listening to "A Womans Voice" on ymib Radio you may have been captivated by a voice that speaks of a reality filled life blending in a sweet innocence into the stew of her flavor. Her name: Erica Hawthorne, better known as RhapsodE.
If you need to know what it would sound like if pure inspiration fell in love with hot beats and had an affair with lyrical clarity and had several mistress of rhythm, poetry, and words on the side, then just take a listen to RhapsodE's latest release "Spoke Inward". Sounding like life spoken outwardly from an inner being that obviously observes her surroundings, she speaks fully of her experiences of being a woman, in love, a daughter, and a child of the Most High just trying to become whole. She has warmed up the stage for artists alike such as Mos-Def, Fertile Ground, Quiet Rage, Tangible Truth, and many more.
The tracks on her album will keep you hyped up just waiting to hear whats next. Tracks 7, and 11, entitled "Damn" Parts 1 & 2, will be pressed for replay several times on your player before your through, and even the interlude is hot! Pick up this lady's album, because your soul needs to feel it, your mind needs to hear it and your body needs to move to it!
RhapsodE incorporates her poetry within her community as well. She sponsored a fundraising event to raise awareness and funds for local shelter Women Against Abuse, Inc. held at the African American Museum in Philadelphia. She has also taught performance poetry to students in the Swarthmore College Upward Bound and to young women from upstate New York for a read-in program.RhapsodE shares with us the inspiration behind her words and some words of wisdom for all of us to carry with us.
RhapsodE: The opportunity to create, teach, write, sing, express, share, give….all of these things are part of my potential, and most of all through doing this I am learning to commit to my potential. I think of all the great lyrics and music that inspire me and I feel that if I continue to create, teach and give, others will be inspired and pass on whatever is in their potential. I know it sounds idealistic, but I really believe words have that kind of power. So it’s important for me to continue in this process, because I’m learning and growing from it and am excited about being able to be part of the process of encouraging others to doing the same.
RhapsodE: Oh there are so many! I, like my mother, am a collector of quotes and it’s so hard to pick. But I think the one that I love most is from the book “Letter to Zenzele” by J. Nozipo Maraire that says, "Thus I have come to believe that there are a chosen few...who are blessed with the gift of the third eye--the vision that empowers, that makes you bold to laugh in the face of fate's stern, set, furious glare, to ignore the path that she has pointed out for you and to opt for some other, grassier path to tread. It is for you to sway the course of destiny…there is tremendous responsibility that comes with this vision that the rest of us are blissfully ignorant of. Once you see the alternatives and are convinced of their merit, you will be obliged like some new religious zeal to spread it, to convert others, and never tire of the mission." I read that quote daily to remind myself of my potential and to “never tire of the mission.”
RhapsodE: To write words that move people I have found that I must be willing to be moved myself. The journey to walking in my responsibility as a spoken word artist has been what has helped me grow as a person. I know it may sound cliché, but I am learning more of who I am and about humanness through spoken word. It is actually the journey of being a person, with real challenges and real lessons to be learned that has helped pen the poems and songs people hear. That process has been healing for me. It’s also healing to have people come back after hearing the music or CD to say that it affected them in some positive way. Then I begin to understand the bigger picture in all of this.
ymib: If your closest friends had to use 3 words to describe you, what do you think thy would be?
RhapsodE: Funny I tried to text them to ask! lol I guess that’s cheating. But I’d guess and say: determined, dedicated and compassionate.
RhapsodE: Overall I’m really open to whatever comes my way since being at this point has been a pleasant surprise! God is a wonderful designer! I don’t even want to limit him with my small dreams! lol. But given the opportunity I will travel around the world, support a cause that encourages women to be their best selves, express more of whatever is in me…and support a healthy family.
ymib: Greatest lesson that you have learned about being a Nubian woman?
RhapsodE: The greatest lesson I’ve learned is that I don’t have to maintain the stereotype of being a “superwomen”. Just being myself and giving myself permission to be all of the wonderful, multidimensional things that God made me is sufficient...and pretty super! Sometimes we allow society to set parameters for us. But how do you set boundaries for something that is limitless? So I have to remind myself that everything I need, I already have, and despite any stereotype I can just ‘be’ and fulfill all the space of my potential.
RhapsodE: The name was originally spelled with a 'y' and was given to me by my sorority sisters. At the time they knew me to be one who was good with words, creative, inspirational...little did they know (or me) how true to definition it would become. By definition it just fits...it's “an intense poem or piece of prose”, “Exalted or excessively enthusiastic expression of feeling in speech or writing,” and “an instrumental composition that often incorporates improvisation.” All of those things are RhapsodE. I later changed the ‘y’ to ‘E’ to set the name apart from a lot of other entities spelled the same way.
RhapsodE: Maybe it’s because it’s the most recent moment, but my CD Release Party was a very memorable moment. From the musicians I was blessed to work with, to the coming together of all the parts and plans, the folks that came to support and the opportunity for me to really just be in the moment. But I still feel like there is so much more that I can do, so part of the excitement comes from feeling as though I am just getting started and there is more to come. Although, I think having an autographed copy of ‘The Learning Tree’ runs a close second for most memorable moment! lol
ymib: Other than music, in what other ways do you like to express your creativity?
RhapsodE: I know one is that I love to decorate! I have little to no willpower when it come to Ikea, Pier 1 and the great stuff I find in independently owned shops and from artisans. But I’ve slowed down until I have a house to start all over again! And it may sound weird but I love organizing and creating systems for doing things. There are so many ways to get something done and I enjoy the process of creating ideas to achieve a certain goal. That was part of my motivation to start my own creative consulting business; to find creative solutions for various projects or plans in areas of education and the arts. Although it may seem as if much of my creativity is being expressed as an artist, my ultimate motivation is to do even more to help others discover their potential.
