PRODG Entertainment Promotions

Other Prodgz

Hertz Nazaire

Aurelie Veronique Saint_Pierre

Mr. Reo

Nathalie Guillaume

Prodgz Spotlight: Nathalie Guillaume

Name:
Nathalie Guillaume (1984)
A.K.A Nati Drèd

Born:
Port-Au-Prince; attended an all girls private school; through extracurricular activities managed to come out of my shell and mingle among new acquaintances despite all the unconventional traditions and discipline that were imposed on me. My parents thought it was very important to be well-rounded so they introduced me to music, dance and art at a very young age. A lot of my identity comes from that cultural interaction…

Profession and music:
I graduated from UM in 2005 with a BS in biochemistry and a BA in foreign literature. I also hold a minor in piano performance. So this is the connection I made... ready: life is science, science is numbers, numbers are rhythms (tempos), rhythm is music, music is language, and the art of language is literature! I know that might be a little abstract, but in my mind it makes sense… I am a PhD candidate into cosmetic research where I study a fair amount of botany and pharmacology. Throughout my studies I perfect my skills as a make up artist which prepares me immensely for the market I wish to invest in and widen. I relate these things to nature which highly inspire my art. It drives me to paint or write…sometimes I illustrate my poems and later come up with a hook to further develop it into a song. .. When I am around nature or wildlife there is no saying what I might release in the atmosphere.

Style:
How could I describe myself? Funky, afrocentric, jazzy, classic, emotional, creative… a little bit of all the influences that I had. Coming from the lineage of Guy Durosier and Raoul Guillaume, we listened to everything from Lumane Casimir to Miles Davis to Celia Cruz… I had the privilege to grow around people that would discuss politics and expose me to a hidden reality at a very young age. The tall primitive paintings and revolutionary books in the home definitely made me hungry for knowledge. When I came to the US in 2002, I dug so deep into my roots that I started to connect the dots and understand every little fragment of my personality. I started hanging around the B-Boys and B-Girls, listening to the Roots, Mos Def and Erykha Badu which gave me a whole new perspective on being black, being part of the African Diaspora, being educated, being sentimental… I guess a combination of these elements creates my jazzy/roots style of today.

Musical beginning
I will never forget my first piano lessons with my great grand ma (Guy Durosier's mother) at the age of 3… she played this famous piece that everyone who started playing the keys in Haiti HAD to play… I mean it was lesson 1 on the only book that all the teachers used in the city. "Nini et Bebe" was the title. We had a little Casio keyboard and I remembered and learned it. That was such a precious memory. From there on I took lessons at the age of 5, stopped after a little bit to indulge in some ballet and folklore at Lynn William Rouzier's which every little girl should do once a certain age… at 10 I felt a little too detached form music and went back to the lessons. My master was Serge Villedrouin and if I know anything about precision and dexterity, it is thanks to him.

I had the opportunity to travel with a couple of students to Guadeloupe for international competitions where I won a silver and gold medal (ages 14 and 15). During that summer, I was introduced to visual Art with the legendary Tiga. He was one of the crucial stepping stones in my unique conception. Playing with primary colors, clay and stone gave me a chance to express myself with no parameters. Very differently than those that Chopin or Mozart would set in the classical piano. It got me into jazz and bebop; I guess it was my maturity kicking in… my need to explore… with the help of my father Philippe, I got into Fred Hersh, Bill Evans, Eliane Ellias, Duke Ellington and started playing with more emotions. I was still a little too young at that point to dig it though.

When I came to Miami and did the college experience, I met a lot of crazy musicians at UM while roaming in the practice rooms. They took me to jazz lounges, concerts, poetry spots… I started to compose and write lyrics… spit… and I guess that's when the poet was born. One day, I had a poetry gig and tried something new with a bassist (I always perform with random instrumentals--- cello, guitar, drum, etc…) and there was a drum there… I felt the vibe so much that I got on the drum and started flipping it! Later that day I received that Jembe drum from Ethiopia as a gift… I love it! It's so real. It's like 10 instruments in one… I'm so sincere!

Being on stage: I had my first piano concert in Haiti when I was 8… I have been on stage ever since! So I have learned to master myself around strangers. However, everyone is different… sometimes the crowd can be demanding or traditional, it takes a little psychobiology (here comes the science again) to get into their expectations and deliver what they want. As an artist, you cannot be too selfish. Ok, you have your art, your identity, your mediums, but you remain an animal and just like Darwin's theory said, you must ADAPT. If I have a gig in Little Haiti or over town, I know that I gotta get dirty dirty; which means stay cool and simple, not too abstracted and use a straightforward vocabulary. But if I have to be in jazz festival around a more mature audience, I can't slang too much--- don't get me wrong, I'll still be urban, but I'll obviously have to pick some songs they can relate to, do more French pieces and kinda make them smile. Now if I am at the NewYurican café, it's on! Drums, cries, revolution and unpredictability will erupt! Simply because I know the crowd is packed with holy! When I say holy, I mean special moments, special people, those who no longer live in the flesh and have a mission in this world. I love that crowd… they definitely understand every aspect of my art.

Continue with Nathalie's Spotlight...