Feature

Chante Moore: Moore than Words

�Each album reflects where I am in my life. Since my last solo album (2000�s �Exposed�), I�ve grown spiritually and emotionally.

Being a more mature woman, having children, having been married before has taught me lessons and made me a better person and taken me to where I am right now. I�m not done growing�there�s still more work to be done��

With those words, Chanté Moore could sound like she�s had a thirty-year career when in reality, she�s been making records for something like half that time! Ever since she began recording as the first artist signed to the late Louil Silas Jr.�s label (Silas Records), the Bay Area native and L.A. resident has been known for the quality of her music. No cookie-cutter riffs or near-the-mark videos but rather, music that has a certain timelessness about it. I can still hear Chanté�s first couple of albums � in particular her debut 'Precious' � and be thrilled at the beauty in her voice, the range and the soulfulness of tunes like my all-time favorite 'As If We Never Met' along with 'Love�s Taken Over' and 'It�s Alright.' Personally, her biggest hit 'Chanté�s Got A Man' didn�t do too much for me but I did understand that after a few near-misses chartwise, it was the record that brought her the kind of mainstream attention MCA Records wanted her to achieve.

Now, eight years and two albums with husband Kenny Lattimore later, Chanté�s back with 'Love The Woman,' notable in particular for the work she did with George Duke (who produced tracks on 'Precious') and soul music-minded folks like Raphael Saadiq and Warryn Campbell. �We began the process of working on this record about a year ago,� she reveals. �I�d been wanting to work with George again for a while, particularly because of his sensitivity, production-wise. He lets you be yourself and guides you. He takes what was in me and bring it out and he lets me be. I usually like to sing a song over and over again so I can feel it. George will say, �Let�s try this� after I feel like I�ve sung all the ways I want to. Then he�ll say �let�s focus on some areas�and I really like that.�

Among the Duke-produced standouts on the CD (on Peak Records) are Chanté�s versions of a couple of classics � Nancy Wilson�s 'Guess Who I Saw Today' and Minnie Riperton�s 'Give Me Time.' Chanté explains, �I didn�t hear the Nancy Wilson song till I was about twenty! I wasn�t allowed to listen to any secular music in my household and when I did hear it, I thought it had a great story. I loved the journey in the song because it takes you somewhere. I started singing it live about six years ago. 'Give It Time' is the song I walked down the sand to,� she adds, referring to her wedding ceremony six years ago. �It�s so apropos. I�m learning about love everyday. It really takes work to take love to the next level. It�s definitely beautiful but it�s also work� and as she says in her record company bio, �It takes time to really show somebody what they really mean to you � time and incidents and downfalls and hurt and pain and joy and no money and a lot of money��

Although Chanté contributed the least number of songs as a songwriter to this project than in the past � collaborating on three tracks including the title song which she describes as �very sensual and inspired by thinking about all the minded folks like Raphael Saadiq and Warryn Campbell. �We began the process of working on this record about a year ago,� she reveals. �I�d been wanting to work with George again for a while, particularly because of his sensitivity, production-wise. He lets you be yourself and guides you. He takes what was in me and bring it out and he lets me be. I usually like to sing a song over and over again so I can feel it. George will say, �Let�s try this� after I feel like I�ve sung all the ways I want to. Then he�ll say �let�s focus on some areas�and I really like that.�

Keenly aware of how the music industry has changed since she started out, Chanté says, �It�s a whole new era. It�s so different � I feel a little like a fish out of water. Record companies don�t nurture artists � Louil (Silas) was one of the ones who would do that. Honestly, if I didn�t love the music so much, I wouldn�t be doing this!� She adds that her absence from making a new record doesn�t mean she�s been idle since 2000: �I�ve been working with (husband) Kenny � we�ve had two duet albums together and we�re very much alike musically. The second one (2006�s 'Covered/Uncovered') is my favorite. Having an R&B side and a gospel counterpart to the album was a dream for both of us. I don�t have the �gospel� voice so it was about figuring how to do gospel! It�s way more challenging than doing R&B � you have to balance performance with authenticity��

On a personal level, Chanté says, �It�s been a good time, a time of learning together. We�ve bonded as a couple and it�s been a blessing to be able to be on the road together. It�s a good thing we get along! We�ve been able to fortify ourselves, we�ve learned how to deal with one another and we�ve stood together.� With Kenny currently finishing off his first album for Verve, there are no immediate plans for the couple to tour together right now especially since Chanté is busy promoting 'Love The Woman.' On a tour with guitarist Norman Brown, she concludes, �I�m excited to be out there again and more than anything, I�m grateful that my music has been able to stand the test of time. I�ve been able to sustain a living in music and that�s a huge blessing.�
Words DAVID NATHAN