Page 2
August 30, 2000_______ ________________
Music
Focus
A
S U P P L E M E N T
OP
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W-------------- *----------- 'T ill'
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Mikaila s voice comes on strong
CO N TRIBU TED STORY
fo r
FOCUS
T he P ortland O bsekver
Entrenched as we are in the Pop
Teen Era, it’s not unusual to hear
about a young girl with a voice.
Mikaila, however, is anything but
the typical teen chanteuse. The fact
that she’s brunette is just the tip o f
the iceberg.
• J jJ a r tia n i»
E ditor in Chief,
Publisher
Charles H. W ashington
Editor
L arry J . Jackson, Sr.
Copy Editor
Jo y Ramos
“I’m not that...sw eet?” M ikaila
says, pointing out one personality
trait that sets her apart - and helps
make her pop music so refreshing.
“I love R&B and I love rap, so I
want my songs to be a little edgy -
to be real, to be cool.”
And so they are. Big rumbly drums
and quirky-twinkly keyboards set
the tone for the first single, “So In
Love W ith Two” - a delicious take
on indecision served up true diva
style. “ Straight to My Face” and
“Perfect W orld” drip attitude and
demand respect. Mikaila calls upon
flu id p h ra sin g and em o tio n al
expression for “The Art o f Letting
Go,” while “Playground” is pop at
its m ost provocative. Even the
classic teenage crush song “Talk
About Me,” and ballads like “My
Heaven” and “My Heart C an’t Let
You Go,” which Mikaila co-wrote,
have a depth that belies the Dallas-
based singer’s youth.
M ikaila’s life has always involved
music. “ I could sing before I could
talk,” she says. “At 3 years old, I’d
stand in front o f the mirror, singing
into a candlestick, and tell my
mother I want to be a star.” Back
then, inspiration came from the
ruling radio divas - Mariah, Celine
and Whitney Houston - as well as
c o n te m p o ra ry g o sp e l m usic.
Mikaila would sing her heart out in
her bedroom and in church, where
her mom played piano.
When Mikaila was 9, her family left
h er in E dm ond, O k lah o m a,
hometown for Dallas, where she
began showing off her velvety voice
( Please see ‘M ikaila’ page 3)
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