BSTC – Music For A Saturday Evening Written on October 25, 2008.
Music for A Saturday Evening is the debut album by the BSTC, short for Blackstone Theatre Collective. An album of soul, jazz, & disco orchestrated by Andy C, whose production credits include Janet Jackson, Mary J Blige, Raekwon, & The Temptations. Andy has taken the Quincy Jones approach in recording an album meshing various genres for a more complete listening experience. Music for A Saturday Evening is the perfect album to prepare you for the weekend, whether your hitting the dance floor with songs like “Jazz in Outer Space” and “Love It”, or spending a relaxing night at home with songs like “Agua De Beber” and “Mr. AC”. Others who complete the BSTC are Keanna Johnson whose background includes working with Justin Timberlake, Notorious B.I.G., Common, Keith Sweat, & Britney Spears, and the nine instrument master Tunji who co- produces a number of tunes on the album. Already garnishing worldwide accolades including URB’s Next 100 (2007), the BSTC is prepare to take you back to day when an album was played from beginning to end and musicianship was a must.
BONUS TRACK “Sexyness” ft. YAW – Free Download:
http://wdl7.streamhoster.com/elemental/bstc-sexyness.mp3
THE MUSIC
BSTC is soul. BSTC is disco. BSTC is hip-hop. BSTC is jazz. BSTC is…you decide. BSTC is all of this and so much more because, like music, BSTC is living and growing. Short for BlackStone Theatre Collective, the name pays homage to Chicago’s historic performing art theatre.
Showcasing a wide musical range the BSTC pull from a variety of influences including: Quincy Jones, Tom Creed, Marvin Gaye, Jay Dilla, Phil Cohran, Norman Connors, Roy Ayers, Anita Baker, Gladys Knight, and Lauryn Hill to name a few.
BSTC breathes. From the first horn stabs on “40 Days” until the final piano keys on self titled track “B.S.T.C.” BSTC is perpetual movement, effortlessly traversing the musical terrain from disco to soul to jazz…never standing still, the music takes you on an international flight from the south side of Chicago across the Atlantic to the dimly lit clubs of Lagos and due west to the thriving Sáo Paulo scene. Never an unwelcomed guest or an out of place intruder, BSTC builds a home in each musical milieu and allows listeners to drop by for visit.
BSTC is freedom. Free of the would-be constraints of definitions and music genres, BSTC does what feels right and what sounds right. This free flow of music was not conceived in a corporate boardroom as part of some dollar-driven marketing plan. BSTC’s music is authentic and true to the deep roots of the genres it envelopes, but it is never confined or caged in to a particular era, feel or aspect of this truly universal language. BSTC’s movement through musical worlds is as natural as the movement of people…always growing, but never forgetting from where we came.
BSTC lives. If music is meant to touch us, to take us places and to teach us, then BSTC fulfills its promise. Songs such as “Jazz In Outer Space” and BSTC’s standard “Agua De Beber” use sound to paint picturesque landscapes, leaving us enriched and better for the experience.
On November 4th the BSTC will move you, soothe you…and most of all, groove you with their debut album Music For A Saturday Evening.
THE COLLECTIVE
BSTC is the love-child of Chicago’s acclaimed producer, Andy C. Having produced for a who’s who of music artists, including Janet Jackson (“Thinkin bout My Ex”), Mary J. Blige (“Willing and Waiting” and “When We”), Raekwon (“Clientelle Kidds”) and The Temptations (“Hurt So Bad”), Andy C. is now taking the reins on a full album and showing the world his full spectrum of his musical interests and abilities. Raised in the south suburbs of Chicago during the hey day of house music, Andy was influenced by diverse musical interests including soul, hip-hop disco and house. In addition to the above production credits, Andy has worked with artists such as Patrice Rushen, Vince Lawrence, Ramsey Lewis and Babyface.
With the BSTC he moves from the background to centerstage, and pulls with him some of Chicago’s most accomplished, yet little known talents including Keanna Johnson, Tunji, Yaw, and Zzaje.
With a voice like heaven, Keanna H. Johnson aka Kee Kee Rose has sang back-up for music’s hottest stars including R. Kelly, Janet Jackson, Justin Timberlake, Notorious B.I.G., Ma$e, Carl Thomas, Common, Dead Prez, Monica and Keith Sweat, but now the Chicago native is stepping into her very own spotlight on with the BSTC. Keanna’s first solos were delivered to enthralled Black Church congregations on the South Side of Chicago when she was still a child.. Meanwhile, at home Keanna was surrounded with soulful R&B music from the likes of Anita Baker. That nurturing and musically rich environment shaped Keanna’s deep desire to take her God-given gifts to the international stage.
After graduating cum laude from Florida A&M University’s prestigious School of Business and Industry (SBI), Keanna moved to New York to pursue her dream of music. A mild-mannered corporate assistant by day, and a stand-out vocalist at NY’s open mics and nightclubs by night, Keanna’s dedication paid off when R&B songstress Kelly Price, former background singer for Sean “Puffy” Combs, offered Keanna her first major singing opportunity. Price, who was looking for someone to replace her as she planned to begin her solo career, handpicked Keanna to travel with the Puff Daddy and The Family World Tour. This experience opened the door for Keanna to tour with other major artists, including pop sensation Britney Spears.
Coming a long way from the grind of corporate America, Keanna has graced the stages of countless award shows as a background vocalist including The Grammy Awards, The American Music Awards and The Soul Train Music Awards, and her picture perfect face has appeared in the pages of Ebony and Jet magazines as a print model for Fashion Fair Cosmetics.
Keanna is the total package of looks, brains, talent and work ethic, all perfectly balanced on a strong foundation. The BSTC finally thrusts her and her undeniable gifts into the spotlight.
Multi-instrumentalist, producer and composer, Tunji, began his formal study of music on the guitar at the age of 10. By the age of 13 he added saxophone, flute and piccolo to his studies, later teaching himself how to play bassoon. During high school, beyond his formal studies of classical and jazz music, he was devoted disciple of soul music, 80’s rock and house music. After earning a Bachelor of Art in classical guitar performance, Tunji returned to his roots and produced soul-inspired tracks for Chicago hip-hop and alternative artists. His artistry and skill ultimately opened doors for him to deliver performances as lead guitarist for the United Kingdom’s undeniable god-father of neo-soul, Omar, as well as for the vibrant vocalist/songwriter, Julie Dexter. Never far from his Chicago roots, Tunji continues to collaborate with the city’s premier DJ’s on remixes and original music releases, frequently engineering while playing much of the instrumentation.
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Tags: all natural, bstc, disco, funk, house, jazz, music for a saturday evening, soul
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