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Tracy Chapman

TRACY CHAPMAN
 
 
Tracy Chapman  (born March 30, 1964) is an American singer-songwriter, known for her hits “Fast Car” and “Give Me One Reason”, along with other singles “Talkin’ ’bout a Revolution”, “Baby Can I Hold You”, “Crossroads”, “New Beginning”, and “Telling Stories”.  She is a multi-platinum and four-time Grammy Award-winning artist.  In 1988, she released her critically acclaimed debut album Tracy Chapman, which became a multi-platinum worldwide hit.  The album garnered Chapman six Grammy Award nominations, including Album of the Year, three of which she won, including Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for her single “Fast Car”, and Best New Artist.  Chapman released her second album Crossroads the following year, which garnered her an additional Grammy nomination.  (More from Wikipedia)
 
 
What I remember most fondly about the 1990's is the bumper crop of fine female singer-songwriters and rockers:  Joan Osborne, Fiona Apple, Lisa Loeb, Shawn Colvin, Tracy Chapman, Jewel, Paula Cole, and just too many more to name.  There was even a series of three music festivals beginning in 1997 that were spearheaded by Sarah McLachlan, called Lilith Fair.  But the growing feeling that rock music was beginning to get scarce was only enhanced when I picked up the nearly rock-less two-disc CD, Lilith Fair: A Celebration of Women in Music in 1998. 
 
(January 2013)
 

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One example of how hip hop vocals differ from conventional vocals can be found in the hit song “Fast Car” by Tracy Chapman, from 1988.  The chorus has a fast tempo with the vocals closely matching the beat of the music.  While the tempo of the song during the verses is noticeably slower (and absolutely lovely), Tracy sings the verses faster if anything, yet the musical timbre is still preserved.  This hit song is recent enough to have been influenced by hip hop cadences; nowadays, singing faster than the music is commonplace, even in country music.
 
(September 2016)