A playlist featuring Teedra Moses, Nas, Ahmad Jamal Trio, and others
The Awakening of Complex Simplicity – Teedra Moses
Before I get into to the wonderful connection between Ahmad Jamal , Teedra Moses, and Nas; I want to talk about my connection to the iconic Teedra Moses album called “Complex Simplicity.”
In 1988, my older sister was captivated by Anita Baker’s “Giving You the Best That I Got ” cassette tape. Although I was only 6 years old and unaware of heartbreak and love, Anita became a favorite to me. Her deeply soulful love ballads, sultry voice, and signature dance/sway mystified the Soul and R&B charts of the 80s and beyond. African American women received a gift of ballads that explored love and passion. Anita Baker dominated the soundtrack of my life until I stumbled across the instant vintage masterpiece called “Complex Simplicity”.
Complex Simplicity couldn’t have been released at a better time. During August of 2004, I relocated from a small Louisiana town to the soulful hustle and bustle of Chicago. Little did I know, Complex Simplicity became my weekend soundtrack as I navigated the rewarding but often disappointing love scene of the Windy City.
In 2004, Teedra Moses solidified herself as the “Anita Baker” for young women that were hip enough to slide her debut CD into the soundtrack of their lives. Finally, African American millennials had a sistah that gave us goosebumps as we listened to her lyrics of love, secret crushes and self love. Lets be clear, Teedra Moses has solidified herself as a strong and everlasting soulful voice in the industry. To clarify, Teedra Moses does not live in the shadow of Anita Baker but Complex Simplicity provided the same insight to my generation the same way that Anita Baker’s early albums did during her early career.
On the writing of the Songs of Complex Simiplicity
Approaching the 15th year anniversary of Complex Simplicity, the album’s timeless production and sincere songwriting deserves an encore. Reading some of Teedra’s earlier interviews speaks to her effortless natural talent of songwriting.
“I mean most of those records were written in my mirror. I had mirrors on my closet doors in my room when I lived in Pasadena at that time when I was writing that album. I would just fall so deep into myself. *Laughs* I would have a beat on, and I would just be in the mirror in my vibe, and my room was all red, and I just remember it being such a great color at the time because it surrounded me so much. And I would just be in my room, and I probably looked a hideous mess, but in my head and in my mind I was on. And I would just be in the mirror singing to myself, free styling, and that’s how that record came out. ” Teedra Moses
Connecting “Be Your Girl” to Nas and Ahmad Jamal.
We all love and adore “Be Your Girl”. We can appreciate the shy soulfulness of this track. 15 years later, Teedra Moses Fans became delighted to know the full back story on the making of “Be Your Girl”. Teedra Moses was featured on Issa Rae’s Pieces where she gave us the truth behind the sound and lyrics of the song. Teedra revealed the connection between the song, Nas and Ahmad Jamal. The song was sort of a secret crush’s love letter to rapper Nas. Nas created a track called “One on One” that sampled elements of Ahmad Jamal’s The Awakening. Since Teedra was a distant admirer of Nas, Teedra decided to take elements of Nas’s One on One to make the timeless track “Be Your Girl”.
It doesn’t get better than that right?
In the next coming months, Soultagious will touch on the greatness of Ahmad Jamal samples through hip hop. Ahmad Jamal’s contribution to soul and hip and hop deserves a post of it’s own.
LISTEN TO “THE AWAKENING PLAYLIST” ON SPOTIFY
Let Celebrate the Legacy of Teedra Moses. It is rare to find an album that sounds current whether it is played in 2004, 2014 or 2024. The lyrics and melodies will forever be relevant to anyone that has or desires to experience the crush, the relationship, or even love lost.
Take a listen to a playlist curated by Soultagious that is inspired by the connection between Teedra Moses, Ahmad Jamal, and Nas. Enjoy the sounds of Teedra as we take a listen to songs from her debut album and beyond with a little lagniappe sprinkled throughout the playlist.
Be sure to checkout the amazing tracks released by Teedra Moses after the success of Complex Simplicity. Teedra has churned out a plethora of bangers such as “I Told You”, “Love Devine”, “Whole Lotta Sex”, “R U 4Real”, “Something Real”, “Get it Right”, “So Special”. The List goes go on and on….bangers after bangers.
Let’s Celebrate the Legacy of Teedra!