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The First Lady: Isn't this cool?
(applause)
Oh, my goodness!
I'm thrilled.
It's exciting to have these fabulous ladies and
this gentleman here.
But I want to welcome you guys to the White House.
(applause)
We are doing our latest installment of
something we call the White House Music Series.
And we're marking Women's History Month
by celebrating women with a whole lot of soul.
And I want to start by thanking the wonderfully
talented women on stage with me.
You guys, I don't even -- you know who they are.
We've got Janelle Monáe,
(applause)
who is now my child.
She might as -- we might as well give her
a room here because she's here so much.
(laughter)
Melissa Etheridge, who is amazing.
(applause)
We're thrilled to have her.
And my other mother, the phenomenal Patti LaBelle.
(applause)
And I also want to thank my dear friend
Bob Santelli from the GRAMMY Museum
who is always here hosting these events.
(applause)
We couldn't do these workshops without
Bob and his team so we are, once again, grateful
that he's making this
part of the Music Series possible.
And this part involves some of the most special
guests who are here -- you guys.
We have students from so many different parts
of the country, this is really a diverse group --
Hawaii, Oregon, California, Minnesota
and Ohio, Mississippi and Tennessee, Pennsylvania,
New York, Maryland, of course right here in D.C.
You guys are from everywhere.
(applause)
And just so that you know,
we are in the State Dining Room.
And this is where we host Presidents and kings and
queens and ambassadors and world leaders, and a lot
happens in this room.
And now we're hosting you, and we're so excited to
have you here because this is really my favorite part
of these Music Series.
Tonight, we have a great concert that's going
to happen with a lot of fancy people that will show up,
but today, these artists take time out of their day
to be with you guys.
And it is fitting that we have such a diverse group
of students for this event because today we're
celebrating the kind of music that makes you move
no matter who you are or where you come from; music
that taps into feelings and experiences that
we all share -- love and heartbreak,
pride and doubt, tragedy and triumph.
It is called soul music -- can we say that?
Soul music.
Students: Soul music.
The First Lady: Soul music.
Sometimes it makes your hips move.
Sometimes it makes you rock your head.
(laughter)
Sometimes it helps you just kick back
and relax and soak it in.
But no matter what form it comes in, you know this
music always comes straight from the heart.
You know you're listening to someone who's found her
own unique voice, and isn't afraid to show
it to the world.
And these women are perfect examples
of just that.
For instance, Melissa says that when she first
started writing songs, she wrote a few that helped
her get through some struggles she was facing,
songs that helped her get some things
off of her chest.
But she didn't think anyone wanted to hear
these songs, so when she was up on stage she'd
mostly play those fun, bouncy melodies that she
had heard on the radio that sounded
oh, so wonderful.
But then, after one of the shows -- or many of the
shows, folks started coming up and talking
to her about those other songs,
the ones she had written herself.
And she said this about those songs, she said,
"The songs that people responded to,
they were always the songs that were deeply personal to me."
She said, "And I thought, 'That must be the key --
if I can make my songs resonate
with emotions and truthfulness.'
" That is Melissa.
She will tell you more about her world.
Then there's Miss Patti La Belle.
Her story, just short and sweet,
before she'd won any Grammys or sold any records,
Miss Patti LaBelle was the shyest little girl around.
It is hard to believe that.
(laughter) She was afraid to even ask her teacher if
she could use the bathroom.
Ms. Labelle: That's true.
(laughter)
The First Lady: And she never dreamed
of singing in front of people unless she was part
of a full choir.
But once she mustered up enough courage to sing a
solo in church and she got a standing ovation.
And as she says now -- she says,
"I still have a little bit of shyness.
I look back and say, thank God I got through it and
took chances and sang my butt off."
(laughter)
And then there's Janelle Monáe.
When she was growing up, her mom was a janitor,
her stepfather worked for the post office, and her
father was a garbage collector.
When Janelle was first trying to make it in New
York, she worked a side job as
a maid to make ends meet.
When she moved to Atlanta, she worked
at an office supply store.
And today, even though she's a huge star,
she's never lost sight of where she came from.
Now, wherever she goes, she almost always wears
a black and white jacket and pants.
And she calls this her "uniform,"
and it's a tribute to her mother and so many other folks who
taught her the value of hard work, folks who wore
a uniform to work every single day.
And she says now, "I didn't have
to change who I was.
I didn't have to become perfect, because I've
learned through my journey that perfection is often
the enemy of greatness.
Embrace what makes you unique, even if it makes
others feel uncomfortable."
So to all of you young people here, I want you to
listen to those lessons -- not just the ones I read,
but the ones you're going to hear from these women
when they talk to you.
Embrace what makes you unique.
Take some risks.
Please, take some risks.
Find your own voice and be proud of it.
And then, sing your butt off.
(laughter)
Or work your butt off.
Or whatever you do, do it until your butt comes off.
(laughter)
Okay, that quote is going to be kind
of funny in the papers.
I already know it.
My communications people are like, what?
(laughter)
But you guys all know what I meant --
be good at what you do.
And if you pair those lessons with a good
education, if you challenge yourself
in school, get that degree or professional training --
but you've got to do more than just graduate
from high school.
That's not good enough anymore,
so you've got to go beyond.
Then, you can become a great artist or an
entrepreneur or a scientist or anything else
that you want to be in this world.
But your education is key.
That's the story of anyone who has ever been
successful -- whether it's Barack or me,
or your parents and teachers, or these three women
up here today.
At one time or another, we all had to find our own
voices and show the world what we have inside.
And I really want you all to take that to heart,
because part of giving you these experiences
is so that you understand how special you are.
And there are millions of young people like you all.
And because we get to highlight you here, we get
to show the world and remind the world that our
future lies with you all.
But we need you to be ready.
We need you to be focused.
We need you to take your education seriously.
And we need you to not be afraid to work hard.
You will fail.
We have all failed at something, and it's been
big, embarrassing failures.
But we all rise above it, and we expect
that for you all.
So this is the first in many wonderful experiences
I know you all will have, so take advantage of it.
We're going to get rid of the press
so that you feel comfortable.
Shake it off.
Make sure you ask questions.
Don't be afraid.
This is your home.
This is your house, so treat it that way.
Take some risks now, stand up and use your voice
and ask a question.
Don't be shy.
And learn something.
Be open to take in whatever you can, and then
use it to be the best that you can be.
We are so excited to have you here.
I know you're going to have a great time with
these women.
They are excited.
As Patti LaBelle just said, she said, I am
honored to be here with these students.
And that's how we all feel.
We are honored to be in your presence.
Just keep doing what you do.
Be good.
Be great, all right?
So I'm going to leave you.
I'm going to go do some more work.
And well, look, look.
(laughter)
Okay, you're in good hands, all right?
Thanks for coming to the White House.
You guys have fun.
(applause)
(Applause)
Bob Santelli: How about another round for the
First Lady, huh?
Applause
Bob Santelli: Okay.
That was pretty amazing, wasn't it?
Pretty amazing.
And the words of wisdom are not just for you, but
for all of America, all of young America.
And some of those same themes, and some of those
same topics, we can see in the history of American
music, especially in soul music, like I'm about to
talk to you in just a minute.
But before I do, let me introduce myself for those
of you who don't know who I am, and for those out in
the rest of America, because this is being
streamed to high schools all over America.
My name is Bob Santelli, and I'm the executive
director of the Grammy Museum
in downtown Los Angeles.
And for the past three or four years, we have been
coming here to the White House, brining students
like you from all over the country to not just
experience the excitement and just really amazing
feeling you get when you walk in to this house, but
also, and even more importantly, to learn
about how this great American music forum that
we celebrate and love and enjoy and bring into our
hearts every day is so important
to us as Americans.
I always like to say that when we talk about
American music, it's pretty hard not to define
ourselves as Americans without
talking about music.
It's such an important part of who we are.
And it really doesn't matter what kind of music
is your favorite, or your parent's
favorite or your grandparent's.
The fact is that Americans are so connected
to a great, great tradition of music in this country.
And it really goes way back.
It goes way beyond the time of now.
It goes back to the earliest days,
before we were even a country, actually, when we started
to take the music of Africa, and take the music
of Europe and put them together into a particular
mesh, so that what comes out
what was uniquely and distinctly American.
One of the great music forms, without question,
that came out of that mix, is something
called soul music.
Soul music is interesting.
In my view, it may be the most powerful music form,
vocal music form that we've ever created.
I can say gospel.
What about gospel?
And of course, gospel.
But soul music comes out of gospel.
The word soul is an interesting word.
Why did we call it soul music?
What does it mean if someone says to you boy,
you have soul, or that singer has soul?
What does that mean?
Anybody?
What does that mean?
Yes, sir.
Male Speaker: [unintelligible].
Bob Santelli: Say it.
Male Speaker: It just means [unintelligible].
Bob Santelli: That's right,
it speaks to others.
It speaks to others in a very powerful,
emotional way.
Soul music, when you sing soul, yeah,
you have something to say.
Male Speaker: [unintelligible].
Bob Santelli: That's right, that's right.
This is a reflection.
When you sing soul music, it is a reflection,
a deep, intense reflection of who you are inside.
Not anyone can sing soul music.
You have to have the talent, and you also have
to have the confidence to be able to let those inner
emotions come out, and sing absolutely
truthfully from the heart.
Now, where does it come from?
So, how do we get soul music and when does
it first come on to the American scene?
Since World War II, we have been awash with great
American music.
Actually, if you go back even farther than that, go
back to the turn of the century, the last century.
We had jazz, we had blues, we had gospel, we had
rhythm and blues, we had country music, we had rock
and roll.
We had all kinds of jazz, by the way.
We had swing and Dixieland and big band and bop and
hard bop and cool.
We had all kinds of rock and roll.
You can imagine what this tree, if this were a tree,
an American music tree, what it would look like.
It would be a giant oak tree filled with many
branches, because that is the wealth and the
diversity of the American music form.
Well, after World War II,
especially in African-American churches, gospel becomes a very,
very important part, not just of the religious
service, but it also becomes
a part of self-identity.
And gospel music, then, leaves the church,
gradually leaves the church because many of the
great singers, and you'll hear about this in just
a minute, but many of the great singers learned
to sign, first and foremost, in the church.
African-American music tradition was extremely
powerful, important, and still is in the
African-American church.
So to get that training, and to understand how to
sing powerfully and emotionally about your
lord and savior, whoever that might be, and be able
to project that, that's pretty important.
So that makes you want to sing
and sing hard and powerfully.
That, over time, starts to take them out of the
church and go into pop music.
So in the 1950s and early 1960s, there are some
really tremendous singers.
Maybe some of you have heard
of the late Sam Cook, the late, great Sam Cook.
Man, he could sing gospel, and he sure could sing pop
music as well.
One of the very, very, first soul singers.
Unfortunately, he leaves us in the early 1960s,
but what a sound he gives us.
And then there are people like James Brown.
There are people like Ray Charles,
many, many others.
A woman who is going to be with us tonight,
across the building, Aretha Franklin,
learns how to sing in the church.
So if you were African-American, and you
learned how to sing in the church, you had a leg up
because there was so much of that great singing
going on.
But now it starts to come into pop music around the
late 1950s and early 1960s.
I like to say that no music form is ever born.
It's not like something just kind of pops up one
day, and all of a sudden we have rock and roll or
jazz.
It never works like that.
It's an evolution.
It gradually comes out of the church, and gradually
goes into the streets and the schools, in the living
rooms and bedrooms and where kids practice
in front of mirrors and learn to sing.
And the lyrics start to change.
Not the style, necessarily.
The style is still pretty gospel.
But the lyrics start to change.
Instead of talking just about the love of Jesus
and salvation, now we start to sing about love,
a different kind of love, a love between two people.
And so, or things that are going on in the world.
So, the idea of singing very powerfully and
emotionally gets taken from the church.
It comes into the pop charts, and wow.
You talk about great music.
It's hard to beat what happens in the 1960s,
which is the great decade for soul music.
I can go, make lists for you of great soul sings,
because basically, anyone who recorded for Motown,
you all know Motown out of Detroit,
great soul singers.
There were others, like Stacks
and Volt out of Memphis, Tennessee.
Great soul singers coming out of there.
And from New York, and from Los Angeles,
literally from every major city, soul singers were
coming up through the church, and then coming
into the pop realm, and making a big difference
in how America sounded, and how America
felt about itself.
The interesting thing is, there were
men and there were women.
This is women's history month, and today,
and tonight, we're celebrating
the women of soul music.
Why that is important is because of this:
most of the 20th Century, when rock and roll and pop and
funk and everything was coming up,
most of the artists were male.
That's just the way it was.
Women only got the chance to vote in the early part
of the century.
So when it came to the business of the music,
it was really difficult, sometimes,
for women to make it.
But in soul music, quite honestly,
they couldn't be denied.
They were that good.
Their singing was that powerful.
And the public, not just church going people now,
but people buying records, White, Latino, Black,
it didn't matter.
All of America began to embrace
this thing called soul music.
You couldn't resist it,
you just couldn't resist it.
And it wasn't just in America either, because
what happens is this music starts to go to Europe.
It starts to go to South America.
It goes to the Caribbean.
It becomes, not just America's music anymore.
It becomes world music.
So much of American music.
Now, you can go to Chile today and hear a great
soul singer who's never even been to America.
You can go to Spain.
You can go to any place in Asia, and there are people
who sing soul music, and they sing it emotionally
and they copy the greats.
But what they're doing is they're expressing
themselves musically, in their hearts,
through their voice.
And that's the very, very powerful thing.
And today, that tradition goes on.
We have great soul singers.
We have people now who have taken the golden age
of soul in the 1960s and taken it in a completely
different direction today.
People like Janelle Monae, Beyoncé, and others, who
are really singing things that perhaps that wouldn't
have sang, wouldn't have sung back in the 1960s,
but now they're keeping the music forward.
One of the most important things for music to grow
and to remain vital to us is that young people like
yourselves, from this group, hopefully leader
of soul singers, who will come up, and you'll give
your version of soul music as you reach
maturity as an artist.
And you'll give us yet a new version of soul music,
with a new sensibility.
The women of soul music gave
us a female sensibility.
You could hear Sam Cook saying, and his point
of view was male.
He was telling you how he felt, and how he felt
about the world, or how the world was treating
him, through a male point of view.
But now, with the rise of the female soul singer,
we get a female point of view.
And that was very, very important in the 1960s,
because it's really in the 1960s when women start
to assert their right, women's right.
And look, we want to be equal to men.
And of course, how could you not forget the
importance of soul music, and gospel,
but soul music too, in the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s.
I think it's safe to say that if you took music
away from the Civil Rights Movement, I don't know
whether it would've succeeded, because what
that soul music and gospel music gave to those young
people, even older people on the lines when you're
facing barking German Shepherds or firemen with
very heavy-duty hoses ready to hose you down,
or police with billy clubs, and you need to keep your
courage, that music, soul and gospel, first cousins,
they gave those young people the courage to find
for rights, a powerful, powerful thing that
happened in America back then.
You weren't around, but your grandparents remember
that.
And if you've seen the movie The Butler, okay,
you know what that was all about.
Very powerful experience, and music played a very,
very important part of that.
So today, as we continue the ideas for soul now,
for those of us who have enjoyed soul and been
involved in soul music, really what happens,
it gets passed to you, to your generation.
Now it's your time to put your stamp on this great
American music form.
And in this month, especially, the women
in here, to think about how music affects
you and why it affects you.
To understand music that you listen to, so you
become more sophisticated listeners, and you are
able to bring that music deeper in.
And if you are singers, and I know many of you are
singers and musicians here, you get a chance
to let it come back out for all of us to share
and to learn from, and to benefit from.
That is what makes soul music so great.
Now I could go on and on and on, because we have
three very distinguished guests here.
And what I'd like to do at this particular point is,
I'm going to ask each of them a question about
their early days, and we'll kind of warm
up a little bit.
And then I'm going to allow you to ask some
of the questions as well, okay?
So when you get a chance, please make sure that you
stand up, speak loudly so we can all hear you up
here, give us your name, your school and your
state, so that we can know where you're from, okay?
So I'd just like to start, Melissa, I'd like to start
with you because I kept talking about growing up
in African-American churches
and how important this was.
And of course, I don't think you grew
up in an African-American church, but you are considered
to be a great soul singer, and you are the exact
reason why you're here, is to tell us how music
really, how soul music and all forms of music,
actually, transcend color and race,
the perfect example.
Melissa Ethridge: Absolutely.
I grew up in the state of Kansas, which is right
in the middle of our wonderful country.
And it was in the 1960s, just like he was saying,
when this amazing boom came out.
I was born in 1961.
So as a child, we had one radio station,
WHB, it was one a.m. radio station.
And that station played everything.
I could hear a Tammy Wynette song, then I could
hear Led Zeppelin, then I could hear Marvin Gaye
all on one station.
I didn't have those, they weren't,
you know, blocked off.
I was able to listen to Aretha Franklin
at a young age, and was incredibly moved.
I also, my first music wasn't in the church.
It was the Methodist church.
We were much more straight - yeah, reserved,
let's say that, they were much more reserved.
Yet music played a great part,
the spiritual part of music.
So I could relate when my parents bought
an Aretha Franklin album.
And I heard her say Bridge Over Troubled Waters,
and it brought me to my knees.
I understood that emotion, so as I became a writer,
as I became a musician, I wanted to bring that in.
I never thought, oh, I'm white, I can't do that.
I thought, I'm a human being, and I feel this.
I want to express this.
And like the First Lady said, oh my gosh,
like she said, I would get responses to that.
People would say, that song, that moves me,
and I realize that that universal experience goes
past skin, goes past age, goes past everything.
Soul is called soul music because it has
to do with each of our souls.
Bob Santelli: That's right.
Patty, obviously you grew up in the African-American
community and in church.
And you are, when it comes to legends,
you are one of them.
You help define the kind of music that you listen
to and I listen to and many
of us still listen to.
Talk about your early roots and how
you get started in singing.
Patti LaBelle: Oh gosh, sorry.
I was born in 1944.
I'm 69, I'll be 70 May 24.
So, I'm like an original gangster.
Way back in the day, I was very shy.
So I sang in front of my mirror with
a broom as a microphone.
And I sang and sang and sang and my mother one day
said, what did she call me, I don't remember,
she called me baby.
Baby, you should start signing in the church.
And so I said, okay.
And so I went to my church and my musical director,
choir director, Ms. Chapman, Ms. Harriet
Chapman, heard me singing with a group
of about 30 people.
And she could hear my voice, and she said, ooh,
Ms. Patty, you need to sing out front.
You need to do solos.
And I said nolo, I will do no solo.
Then she said, well, what about my son?
Her son, I'm going to make it quick, too.
My son, what was her son's name, he's gone on,
he's Nathan, he sang a duo with me, a duet.
And it was a song called God's Special Mizes.
And he'll do anything in the power, he will do.
In the song, I got standing ovation
with her son.
And so I said hallelujah.
So this is time for me to realize that I have
something that touches people.
And it doesn't matter who you are, what race, what
religion, what gender, straight, gay, whatever,
whoever, I sing and I've been singing
all the time to touch people.
And as you said, young man, it not only touches
you, it touches me, hey.
It touches us.
It gives me the power to continue.
Last night, I did something, then I said, I
said to [inaudible], I could sing for three more
hours, because God has blessed me with this.
It don't cause me nothing to sing,
and that's what I do because I can.
Whoa.
(laughter)
Bob Santelli: So Janelle,
what about you, your roots.
Janelle Monáe: I grew up in Kansas, too.
Bob Santelli: Oh my goodness.
Janelle Monáe: Yes, Kansas City, Kansas,
Wyandotte County.
Yep.
Yeah, I'm just finding this out.
Yeah, so I grew up in church as well, Baptist.
The training that I had was living room training,
I like to call it, when you get in your living
room and your mom or daddy with a holiday,
it could just be a Saturday or a Monday or, no,
we're at school right?
But, we would all get
in the living room and just sing.
And I was singing, and my parents would
be sitting on the couch.
Sometimes they would be like girl,
go in your room.
We're trying to watch TV.
And I shared a room with my sister for pretty much
all of my childhood.
And she would, you know, constantly
be annoyed with me singing.
And, you know, like Stevie Wonder says,
music is a world within itself with the language,
people we all understand.
That's what I believe, and I've always, you know,
loved communicating through song.
And I remember, I gave, I sang something at church.
And someone said you gave me goose bumps.
And I didn't know, I was like eight, nine,
I didn't know what that meant.
But I just, my goal was to keep giving people goose
bumps, and that's what I would
keep trying to do, right?
And so, through that language, you know, that
was the only way they, I couldn't talk to them.
I mean maybe a story, but I found that, you know,
music has really just been a part of my DNA,
and singing, you know, just who I am,
and both sides of my family.
I grew up Baptist on one side, and another side was
Seventh Day Adventist.
So it was a little bit more, I don't want to say
professional worshipping, but it was, if you will.
And we did a lot of classical,
you know, hymns.
And then my other side was real raw,
more kind of James Brown, screaming, hollering.
So I would get both of those sides, and I started
to incorporate that when I wanted to be a songwriter,
I wanted to incorporate those styles
in my music, you know.
Go from something like a Judy Garland to something
like a Patty or a Tina Turner, you know,
just something that was raw but then sweet.
So yeah, I just, I, you know, to this day,
I thank the Creator, who was the consummate artist,
in my opinion.
And, you know, he helps us creatives stay flowing,
our juices flowing and allowing
us to write these songs.
And all I think, you know, we all want to do is just
keep giving back, keep reciprocating, you know.
Bob Santelli: You know, the First Lady talked
about having a dream, you know,
especially for you guys, to have dreams
and to go after your dreams.
I presume all three of you had a dream at some point,
where you realize you did have a God-given talent.
How does that dream materialize into an actual
goal where you actually say, you know what,
I'm going to make my life entertainment.
I'm going to be a singer, and I'm going
to pursue that.
Do you know when that was?
Melissa, how did that happen?
Melissa Ethridge: Yes.
Very young, I think when you were extremely young,
eight, nine, 10, you have dreams and you don't have
the weight of, oh, you can't do it, you know.
Although, when I was eight, and I would say,
oh, I want to be a singer, people would go really?
Yet, and then as you get a little older, people are
like, well, it's only one in a million, you know.
They kind of start to, you know, soften you for the
blow or something.
Yet, it's that desire, even when someone says
well, you might not make it,
are you prepared for that?
When inside, that dream says, oh, no this is the
only thing I want to do.
And it's what gets you up in the morning.
It's what keeps you alive.
That dream is what we're all here to do.
You've got to have a dream,
you've got to create.
You don't have to be a huge star, but you've got
to create something in this life, every day.
That's what moves you forward.
Bob Santelli: Yeah.
Patty, how about you?
Patti Labelle: I am a believer.
I have never been told not to.
And have been told not to, I'm still going to do it,
I'm still going to do it because I know I can.
I met five or seven or eight little girls in the
hotel last night in the lobby.
Bob Santelli: That's right, yeah.
Patti Labelle: And they're, I didn't know you
were here today.
Bob Santelli: Yeah.
Patti Labelle: And so these little girls said,
Ms. LaBelle, god, we're so happy to meet you.
I said, oh, I'm happy to meet you too, boo.
And so they said, we sing.
I said, oh really?
And so I said, sing.
Right on the spot.
That have to sing.
(laughter)
Patti Labelle: They sang the National Anthem right,
and what did I say after you finished?
Was Ms. Thing, one of them, you with the
beautiful, strong voice, realize that it was too
high for her to go to near the end, nah-nah-nah-nah,
go ahead, and then baby girl, right there, you,
what did you do?
Female Speaker: I sang [unintelligible].
Patti Labelle: But you believed that you could
and you finished it.
So I believe that nobody can tell you nothing about
what you can or cannot do.
Sing in the got durn hotel lobby.
Sing in the airport.
Wherever you feel that god has blessed you and
touched by an angel and you are.
And I will kick you in your throat
if you don't sing.
(laughter)
(applause)
Bob Santelli: I was in the lobby
when that happened.
And for those of you who weren't there, you guys
started singing, and then the whole place kind of
stood, you know, just they're like something
very official was happening.
The front desk stopped and everyone just -
Patti Labelle: Because god has blessed these ladies,
and most of you in here are blessed.
Don't ever stop your dream.
Kick face, okay?
Look at her crying now.
Cry baby, good, cry those tears.
Keep crying.
I'm sorry.
(laughter)
Bob Santelli: I know you have -
Janelle Monae: This was moving -
Bob Santelli: You had a dream as well.
Janelle Monae: Yeah, absolutely.
I had a dream in Kansas City, Kansas.
I kind of grew up
in one of the poorest counties in Kansas City.
So my parents were working day and night,
turning nothing into something.
And music was therapy at a young age.
And it kept me, you know, sane, it kept me thinking
about a future where I could make my parents
proud, and do things because I love doing them,
not because we had to do them.
And so, I just sat my parents down, and I told
them at like a young age, I need
to be in talent show cases.
I need to do this, you know, please, support me.
And they never, ever told me, you know,
that I should be doing something else.
I just, of course I had to keep my grades right.
I had to make sure I was getting all my A's,
and I was, I was very active in school.
And so, you know, throughout doing the
talent show cases, I got to audition
for a school in New York,
the American Musical and Dramatics Academy.
And I had great teachers who encouraged me, and
they saw something in me.
And I ended up getting the scholarship, and you know,
it kind of helped me along my way.
But it was through mentoring community service.
It's so important because if I didn't have those,
you know, older teachers saying, yeah, we're going
to write you a recommendation,
or work on this or just do this a little better,
I don't think that I would've had the confidence to go all
the way to New York and audition for a school.
So I think what we're doing today, and I mean I
hope that you guys understand how much we
want to be here, because somebody
did that in our lives.
And we understand that we're nothing without
community and help and prayers and encouragement.
Male Speaker: Now it's your turn
to ask some questions.
Who would like to ask a question?
Yes, ma'am.
Mariah Hunt: Hello, my name is Mariah Hunt.
I'm with East Villages and -- oh, thank you.
Hello, my name is Mariah Hunt.
I am with Youth Villages.
I attend North Carolina A&T State University
in Greensboro, North Carolina.
And my question is: When you realized that you were
becoming a superstar, what was the biggest internal
conflict that you had, and how did you overcome that?
Male Speaker: Good question.
Nice question.
(laughter)
Female Speaker: Who you talking to?
(laughter)
Bob Santelli: Are you addressing
this to --
Female Speaker: Go ahead.
Mariah Hunt: This is to all three of you.
Female Speaker: Okay.
Bob Santelli: All right.
Pick one.
Pattie, you want to take it?
Female Speaker: No, I'll do it.
Bob Santelli: All right, Melissa.
Female Speaker: Go ahead.
Male Speaker: Go ahead.
Melissa Etheridge: It's funny, the -- when you
realize you're a superstar is usually long after
you become one, because it is such a -- it's something
that happens in the public
and not necessarily to you.
You -- we -- we're doing what we love.
We're doing it every day.
We're playing in bars.
We're playing in clubs.
We're playing -- and pretty soon,
you notice, hey, the audiences are getting larger.
And my experience actually took --
it wasn't until my fourth album that I was considered, you know,
a big star in the '90s.
And it's funny, because I always thought when I was
younger, "Oh, I'm going to be a star.
I'm going to be rich and famous.
And all my problems are going
to be taken care of, right?"
That's not how it works at all.
You are -- I am still me.
And I have always been me.
And the same -- the same things that make me happy
still make me happy.
The same things that make me sad -- the same things
that I worry about.
The biggest obstacle -- mine was my sexuality.
I came out in the '90s, when not many people
were doing that.
And that was probably the scariest part of --
I didn't want this fame without being exactly who
I was 100 percent So, doing that,
and then I went from selling a million albums
to selling 6 million albums after I came out.
So, that was -- that showed me that being
myself -- absolutely myself,
all the way to the core -- means not only do I get to share that,
but everything that comes back, it gets to go all
the way in.
And I get to -- I get to appreciate it all the way
down to my toes and go, "Yes, I did that.
And that's what the world is seeing."
And it -- and it's still ongoing.
We're still -- we don't -- we're up here.
And, I mean, I speak for myself.
And I imagine it's like this everywhere.
We don't get up and go,
"I'm a superstar," you know?
No.
We get up and we're -- and we're mothers.
And we're sisters and daughters.
And we have lives.
And we have loved ones.
And we want that life.
And that's very important to us.
And probably the hardest thing
now is just balance with that.
Bob Santelli: Yes.
Sadie Little: My name's Sadie Little, and I'm here
representing Eddyville Charter School
on the Oregon coast.
And my question is: What are the key components
of composing soul music?
Bob Santelli: Good question.
Female Speaker: What did you say, Boo?
Bob Santelli: The key --
(laughter)
Sadie Little: What are the key components
of composing soul music?
Female Speaker: Well, I believe that you have
to, first of all, have soul.
Okay?
You could be white, black,
it doesn't matter -- straight, gay.
You can compose from your soul.
And if it's your soul like Adele --
she's a beautiful big old white woman, okay?
(laughter)
Now, does she have that soul and she composes,
and she does it all.
And I do believe that you have to believe that you
are not stunted.
A lot of people feel as though they are stunted:
their growth, their belief in themselves.
Because if somebody tells you,
"You ain't go soul," then you going to feel that.
Do you sing?
Sadie Little: I like to.
But it's only like singing in the showers --
(laughter)
Female Speaker: Okay.
But I believe that it comes from within.
And it doesn't matter who you are, you know?
My mailman has soul, and he's a big old white man.
(laughter)
Okay?
And he sings when he brings my mail.
I said, "Boy, you better rope that trick."
(laughter)
So, that's my answer.
Bob Santelli: Yeah, that's good.
(laughter)
(applause)
Bob Santelli: Yes, sir, in the back.
Jawon Dexter: My name's Jawon Dexter.
I go to (inaudible) high school in Philadelphia.
(inaudible) I just wanted to tell you that I've
grown up in a house with a single mother.
Your music motivated us to push
us forward through our (inaudible).
Female Speaker: Thank you so much.
Thank you.
Bob Santelli: Very much.
Female Speaker: Thank you.
(applause)
Bob Santelli: In the back.
Yes.
Dara Hall: Hi, my name is Dara Hall.
I'm representing Youth Villages.
I'm from Memphis, Tennessee.
And I got to the University of Memphis.
And this question is for Ms. Janelle Monae.
The title of your last album
was "The Electric Lady."
And I just want to know, how did you come
up with that term?
Janelle Monae: "The Electric Lady" was
inspired by the change that I wanted
to see around the world.
And my paintings actually inspired her.
I paint and sing sometimes when I perform.
And so, I started to paint this image of this female.
And I did this every night.
And so, I did not understand why I was
painting this image.
And I was encouraged by friends and family to put
together all the paintings I painted over the course
of my three-month tour and do like
a gallery showing or something.
And I was trying to come up with a name.
And I was like, "What am I going to call her?"
And I had a hard time.
So, I knew that whoever this being was --
this woman was -- that she didn't want
to be marginalized.
She didn't want me to categorize her.
And what spoke out to me -- I guess, what I felt
had this visceral reaction -- the words
"The Electric Lady" came out.
And so, I said, you know, "This is a woman who is --
she's redefining what it means, you know,
to be a 21st-century woman.
She's bold.
She's audacious.
And she is the change that she wants to see."
It doesn't matter what her skin color is,
her hair texture.
She is the change that she wants to see
in her community.
And she uses her superpowers for good.
And so, that really inspired the title.
(applause)
Bob Santelli: Jake, one more question.
Yes, sir.
Tyler Golson: My name is Tyler Golson.
I'm from the Sherwood High School in Maryland here.
And my question is specifically for
Ms. Monae, but can apply to all three of you.
You had a performance on television recently where
your band was all female.
What's the importance to you of females not only
singing but also playing this music as well?
Male Speaker: Good question.
Janelle Monae: Oh, it's important that, as an
artist, and especially as a female artist,
that we remain in control of our bodies, of our image,
of our song-writing, and how we envision music.
I think that, being a woman,
we have a very unique position in this world.
We have the ability to be leaders and be strong,
but also the ability to embrace our compassion
inside, which I think we can sometimes lack as
human beings.
But I think women have that very unique position.
They, you know, they can go from sassy and all
these different things.
But they -- it's something that
we have the motherly thing.
Like, whenever I'm with my Auntie Pattie, my mama,
she's just -- when I'm in her presence,
she just makes me feel like everything's
going to be okay.
And I think if we had more women in these position,
and more female A&Rs, even,
I think that you would see the world get a lot better.
And so, I just want to create the change
that I want to see.
So, when you see visuals from me,
this is what I want to see.
You know, I don't want to complain about it.
Just do it.
(applause)
Bob Santelli: So, we've talked a lot about music.
How about we hear some?
All right?
(applause)
Melissa.
Melissa Etheridge: All right.
Is my mic even working?
Hello.
There it is.
I've never played the piano in the White House.
This is amazing.
Okay.
(laughter)
When I -- when I knew that I was going
to be performing for you guys, I thought --
I mean, you know, I went through the 100 million
soul songs, right?
And I went through my own history, sort of like our
fellow here did.
And I realized, of course, that soul music came from
gospel, which came from blues, which came from
that, you know, turn of the century,
the slave music.
And then, the blues -- the rich blues
that came out from that.
And so, I went back to about 1930s, when the
blues songs were starting to become
actually popular music.
These great singers -- Ethel Waters
was one of the first.
Yes, absolutely.
Yeah.
These great singers who, then, bridged this raw,
bluesy music into the popular music
of that time.
And here's a song born of the blues tradition --
sort of that lost love -- that oh,
what am I going to do?
But it was sung by Billie Holiday, Etta James.
My favorite rendition is Lena Horne.
Now, there's somebody who could really sing some
gorgeous soul music.
This is "Stormy Weather," all right?
(singing)
Don't know why there's
no sun up in the sky.
Stormy weather.
(laughs)
Since my man and I ain't together, Lord it
keeps raining all the time.
Life is bad, oh, life is bad.
Gloom and misery everywhere.
Stormy weather.
Since my baby and I ain't together.
Oh, it keeps raining, it keeps raining
all the time.
Since he went away, the blues,
they're out to get me.
If he stays away, old rocking chair
is going to get me.
And every day I pray the Lord above -- the Lord
above will let me get out and walk
in the sun once again.
I can't go on, no.
(applause)
(singing)
Everything I have is gone.
Stormy weather.
My baby -- my baby and I.
We ain't together.
No, no, no, it keeps raining.
It keeps raining all the time.
(applause)
(laughs)
This is sweet.
Thank you.
(laughs)
(applause)
Male Speaker: I think we have one more.
Please welcome Janelle Monae.
(applause)
Janelle Monae: This is Terrence Brown,
my accompaniment.
What are we going to do?
Oh yeah.
So, when I wrote this song,
I imagined it being sung in church.
And it's a personal testimony for me, because,
you know, in the process of trying to figure out
what you want to say next on maybe an album,
or what you feel like is missing -- what can --
how can I contribute to, you know, society and to music?
You go through doubt.
And I went through doubt in this song.
And the message in this song,
if y'all can be my church for a little bit.
The message -- the sermon would be to be victorious,
you must find glory in the little things.
(applause)
So, we're going to go a little slow.
Yeah, slower.
We going to slow it down.
Yeah.
(singing)
Yes.
Today I feel so troubled deep inside.
I wish the tears would roll back in my eyes.
Will I rise?
Oh, I'll keep singing songs until the pain goes.
If loving you means fighting till the end then
I'll fight harder baby just to win.
And if tomorrow shall come to me, I'll count your
every kiss as a victory.
Because to be victorious, you must find glory
in the little things.
To be victorious, you must find glory
in the little things.
Surrounded by the schemes and senseless lives and
blaming others, feeling victimized, oh tomorrow,
one day they'll know.
To win you have to lose all the things you know.
That's Lord.
I tried to light the fire deep inside.
Father, take all the fears and sorrow from my life.
Because when the rain falls, my seed will grow.
And I'll be further to my dreams tomorrow.
Because to be victorious, you must find glory
in the little things.
(spoken)
Do y'all hear what I'm saying?
(singing)
To be victorious, you must find
glory in the little things.
(spoken)
One more time, Terrence.
(singing)
Because to be victorious, oh Lord,
you must find glory in the little things,
the little things.
To be victorious, you must find glory
in the little things.
Because there's a greater, greater, greater love,
there's a greater love in the little things.
There's a greater love in the little things.
Because to be victorious, you must find glory in the
little, the little things.
(applause)
Thank you.
Thank you.
Bob Santelli: Thank you so much.
Thank you so much.
Thank you so much.
Wow, that was amazing.
That was amazing.
Okay.
All right.
Patti Labelle: Can I sing?
Bob Santelli: So, what do we think?
(applause)
Can you sing?
It's all yours.
Yeah, yeah, please, sing.
Yeah.
Patti Labelle: I wasn't asked to sing.
But --
Bob Santelli: Go.
Patti Labelle: No, because -- no.
They were so kind in asking me
to be on the panel.
And when he said my baby girl was going to sing and
my baby girlfriend was going to sing --
(laughter)
-- I said, "But nobody asked Ms. Peaty."
So, I'm going to sing.
I don't play piano, nor do I want a piano.
I'm going to sing.
Bob Santelli: All right.
Patti Labelle: Our father who art in heaven,
hallowed with thee thine name, thy kingdom come,
thine will be done, on earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our
debts as we forgive our debtors.
(spoken)
And then, somebody says, (singing)
"As we forgive our debtors."
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver
us from, deliver all of us from evil.
(applause)
(singing)
For thine is the kingdom
and the power and the glory.
(spoken)
We're in bad times in this world when
we have to say, (singing) "Forever."
(spoken)
Everybody say, (singing) "Amen."
(applause)
Bob Santelli: Thank you so much.
That was amazing.
That was amazing.
Thank you so much.
You got to go over -- the pony for rehearsal.
Right here.
All right.
(applause)
All right.
All right.
Hold on.
Does someone have a question?
Hold on, hold on.
Patty, just hold on one second here.
Female Speaker: Okay.
Male Speaker: We've got one question here.
Female Speaker: Okay.
Male Speaker: Yes, what's your question?
Melissa Howard: Hello, everyone.
My name is Melissa Howard.
I am from Memphis, Tennessee.
I am here with Youth Villages.
And I attend the University of Memphis.
And I just wanted to know from you all,
(singing) do you like good music?
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing) Do you like good music?
Female Speaker: (laughs) Sing.
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing)
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing)
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing) I give on the dance floor.
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Female Speaker: What?
Melissa Howard: (singing) We going to the (inaudible).
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing) Oh, I'm dancing to the music.
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing) Oh yeah, oh yeah.
(inaudible)
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Female Speaker: What?
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Female Speaker: What?
Melissa Howard: (singing) We love
to (inaudible) sing.
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing)
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing)
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing)
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing) I sing for the (inaudible)
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing)
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing)
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing)
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing)
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing)
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing)
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing)
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing)
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing)
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing)
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing)
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing)
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing)
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing)
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing)
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
Melissa Howard: (singing)
Audience: Yeah, yeah.
(applause)
Male Speaker: All right.
Good job.
Great job.
Good job, guys.
Good job.
(applause)
All right.
Thank you.
Thank you.
All right.
Thank you guys.
Great audience.
Jenelle Monae.
Patty LaBelle.
(applause)
All right.
(applause) Great job, everyone.
Thank you all for coming.
Soul music lives, right?
You guys did it.
Thank you.
We'll see you again next time.