Candi Staton Interview - Love Supreme 2023
Last year we got the opportunity to interview Candi Staton.
From her legendary Muscle Shoals recordings in the early ‘70s, to disco hits such as “Young Hearts Run Free”, to global dance anthem “You’ve Got the Love”, Candi Staton is the “Queen of Southern Soul”
She played at Love Supreme back in 2015 and fans got to experience her incredible live show that has been honed over the last 50 years alongside Aretha Franklin, Mahalia Jackson, Clarence Carter and many more legends of the soul world. She will make her second appearance at the festival this year.
When I found out I would be getting the chance to speak to Candi I was thrilled. Candi was as down to earth as I had imagined she would be, giving me the nickname ‘baby’ which instantly felt endearing. It was almost 4pm on the day. I decided to take a shower, put my speaker on and started singing “Young Hearts Run Free” as I contemplated speaking to an absolute legend.
CC: What would you say your fondest music memory is?
Candi: “Oh my goodness I have so many it’s hard to pick. Boy I tell yah the fondest memory I guess was the first one I ever done which was ‘Old Man's Sweetheart’ and then the hit that just won’t go away *both giggle* is ‘Young Hearts Run Free’. It's such a message for the generations behind me, as I leave this earth they will know that it is a message song. It’s good for everyone, all the young people should listen to it. Not just the beat but it has a message: ‘What's the sense in sharing, this one and only life’. There’s a lot of domestic abuse and stuff going on now. Young people are getting married and getting involved too early, don’t know what they’re doing. They get the wrong person. I’m physically going through something right now with members of my family, you know, and it’s just hurtful. I told the little girl I said listen to ‘Young Hearts Run Free’ before you say I do *both laugh*. She didn’t do it and she’s a relative, I’m like ahhh you didn’t listen did you”.
CC: You can only try. My Mum always says to me, “Serena, I will make suggestions and will never tell you how you have to do things because you're an adult. These are my suggestions from things that I have learnt from the pain.” and I’m like okay Mumma, I’ll listen to your suggestions. But my Mumma also said “If you can’t hear you will feel.”.
Candi: “Yeah you know it’s so hard, it seems like they have a mind of their own and they feel like we’re dated. We’re trying to tell them I’ve been there, done that, I got the t-shirt. *both laughing*. See when you’ve already been down that path you know the road and so you're trying to tell them how to avoid it in their life. How to have a better life.
We was raised in the country in Alabama there was not a lot going on. These old women would sit on porches after dinner at night, they would all gather round the neighbourhood they’d love to talk, gossip and stuff. You didn’t need NBC, ABC or CBS cos you got all the news you needed right on that porch. So I would sit there as a little girl and listen to their wisdom. I always sought wisdom. I took it in. But I still went through it anyways.” *laughs*
CC: I come from a Jamaican background and my Mother says “sometimes yah just too own way, you wanna do ting”. *both laugh*.
CC: Who/what do you consider to be the biggest influence on your music?
Candi: “There are several, let’s start from the beginning. The biggest influence on me when I started was Mahalia Jackson, Sam Cooke, a lot of the gospel artists that were coming up. Clara Ward, The Davis Sisters, The Caravans, oh my goodness James Cleveland, all these people. I listened to all of them and I got a lot of the runs and things I do with my vocal. Matter of fact that’s the only music we could listen to because my Momma was so strict. She would not let us listen to certain tunes, but when she slipped away we would listen to B.B. King, Albert King *giggles* and all of them people, we’d listen to all of them anyway. It came from all of that era and it just resonated with me. That’s where I began. Soul music originated from gospel music so that’s where I got the soul from. Greatest part of my life. Later on I translated that into secular music with the same feel that I did when I was singing gospel. I’ve sung gospel for many many years, still do and it just came so natural. I remember when I first started singing for Rick Hall back in 69, I was so gospel that he had to tone me down.”
CC: To be accessible?
Candi: “Yeah, now the runs that you hear them making, the newer younger ones, they are making all these *Candi starts imitating over the top runs, which ends with us in fits of laughter* aerobics, I call them “gospel aerobics”. But he toned me down, he was like we don’t need all that. Sing the song, put the feel in it. Let the people feel what you feel. It’s not about letting them be distracted with them, so I learned how to sing a song just straight and put the feeling in it rather than concentrating on doing all those gospel runs”.
CC: I think when you come from that background, it’s what you know and what you’ve always known. So I can understand that it feels natural to do that.
Candi: “It does, it feels natural, you know, I just learned it from them. But when you get into secular music it was a little different and I did it when it was necessary. A horn player doesn’t solo all the way through when you give him his moment, you know a tone in here and a tone in there just to enhance what you’re doing. So that’s how we learned how to sing the way I sing”.
CC: What’s the proudest moment to date for you as an artist?
Candi: “Well I guess the proudest moment is when I began to be nominated for Grammys, American Music Awards and Life Achievement inducted in the Hall Of Fame. I really didn’t think I was that good. I always looked down on me when I was little. I didn't think I could sing very well, I didn’t think I would get to where I am today. I didn’t think I was legendary status. I didn’t think people would like me. I never had that much encouragement from where I came from. There's a lot of jealousy and a lot of put downs. Oh who do you think you are? You can’t sing, you know all that kind of stuff. I had to swim my way, fight my way through that and tell myself ‘I don’t care if I don’t sound good to you. I sound good.’ I had to build myself up like David said in the Bible just build yourself up, build yourself up tell yourself the good things you can do. With that I got through it somehow and got with the right people. God is always there to lead you into the right place. Have you at the right place at the right time with the right people. He’s a good connector. He will connect you up you don’t even know he’s connecting you. He’s connecting you, you looking at somebody you don’t even know they are gonna be your next level up. So you're just there, and when I met Rick Hall through Clarence Carter that was a connection there. He introduced me to Rick and the rest is history. We did work before he passed away and after that I got with Capitol Records, United Artist Records, Warner Brothers Records. I was with Fame Records and they signed me the first time we met and we were in the studio and did three songs so that was just the beginning of a wonderful career that I’ve enjoyed. I love working in Europe. Europe has opened their arms to me and I just fell in there. I am so excited when I go to Europe. I love the people there, I love how they sing along with me and that stuff you know. Sometimes I’m doing a show and I’m like look if I forget my lyrics I’ll read lips *both giggle* y’all know it. I said I’ll just read lips, y’all know every word, it’s so exciting I’m like wow I never knew that this is where I would end up”.
CC: Something that not every artist has is longevity. Do you have any advice for our readers who are wanting to have a career in music?
Candi: “Oh yeah, yeah always stay humble, always stay teachable. You got artists with one hit records, I call ‘em one hit wonders. They make one hit record and you can’t tell them nothing. They walk past you, they don’t speak, they don’t act like they acknowledge you, they don’t respect you. I’m like, that’s not gone get you anywhere cos the same manner that took you up you gon come back down that ladder you gon meet the same people. They aren’t gon be nice to you because what goes up must come down and that is the way it works in life. So always stay humble, always stay teachable, always be open for advice because there is always somebody that knows more than you. They can lead you around a lot of obstacles if you listen.
Like, I go to work, when I come home I mop the floor, I clean my house, I cook my dinner, I love my neighbours. I do whatever I can for them, I don’t look at myself as a superstar artist somebody that can maybe draw 60,000. I don’t look at it, that’s my job that’s not me I am different from my job. When I stand on the stage I’m a different person than I am when I’m out there mowing my yard *both laugh*. I’m just a down to earth person, just solid down to earth and I love people whoever I can help, I help them you know”.
CC: I think that’s brilliant advice, because I have met some people who do have an air about them.
Candi: “Ego. It's coming from ego. It needs to go. We’re all human baby, we all make mistakes you know and we have to look at each other as being human. It’s not white, black, yellow, green whatever colour you are, we are just God’s flower garden that’s how we should look at ourselves. Treat thy neighbour as you treat yourself. Love them as you love yourself, this racism stupid crazy stuff going on now its just beyond me, I don’t get it. It’s the most stupid thing I’ve heard in a long time, it’s stupid! I said duh he really did a trick on us didn’t he, he really did a trick on us *both laugh*. He took the most stupid thing that he could, like nobody can help what colour we are, what we were born with. I love all kinds of music. I love country music, boy I listen to country station sometimes more than I do other stations. It’s how I was born, born in country music you know so we could listen to that on the radio. Anyway I’m just me with me you get what you see”. *both giggle*.
CC: Mental health and music is something that is still taboo. Being a solo artist myself I have found different ways to cope through self-care, wellness and mindfulness. Do you have any top tips for anyone that might be struggling with this?
Candi: “Everybody goes through their ups and downs, you don’t let it get you down. Take me for instance I’ve been divorced several times, I’ve had very abusive husbands, boyfriends or whatever. People try to take advantage of you, they can’t get there themselves so they hang on to your coattail. They pull themselves up by your coattail and they wanna be a part of who you are. They want your identity and that hurts but I don’t let it get me down. I just move on, I just divorce and move on. I’m not going to jail for you. I see a lot of women they get so angry. They go and find a gun, and I’m like, that is so stupid. Just leave, okay, leave. Find somewhere to go, get your divorce and get out. It don't have to let it drag you down, get you to a point where you lose it. I’m not letting anyone make me lose it, you gone. Everything goes with you. I’m not gone stress and wonder ‘Lord have mercy, what happen to me, Lord this is just a mess’. I just don’t do that, I do the next thing: I get me another record, write me some more songs, write me a book. I got a book coming out right now that I just signed with Trilogy. It's called ‘Beyond The Shadow Of Doubt’. It’s Gospel stuff, miracle short stories, things that actually happened to me. I’m a very spiritual person. From the get go my Momma taught me that when I was little, she took me to church every Sunday. I cannot leave that, it is a staple. it’s a stabilising factor in my life”.
CC: When you are putting together a song what’s normally your go to method?
Candi: “Well, sometimes I’m cooking. One time I wrote a song and I was mopping the floor and the song just started coming to me and I just started writing in my mind first. I turned the vacuum cleaner off and got me a piece of paper and finished it. I come up with a subject, I take that subject and then I write lyrics behind it. I’ve written over 100 songs. I’ve written more gospel than I have secular so songs just come to me. I can’t even think of a lot of the songs I’ve done. ‘He Cares For You’, ‘Close To You’... I did that song on the album with my band in Europe. They sent me the tracks and I put the lyrics to it and it’s a beautiful song. We even put it up on YouTube, look out for it. I love it. I love that song.
So many songs I write because words and lyrics come to me and I just write them down. Then I go to the piano and I pick those tunes that’s in my head, put it on my phone cos I got a recorder on my phone, I prop my phone up and I start singing in it. Then I take it to the studio and then I get me a bunch of musicians and we put it down and we demo it and that’s how I do, that’s how I write my songs. They just came. It's just a gift. I knew Nick and Valerie who wrote ‘Ain’t No Mountain High Enough’. I got with him a lot and I used to be in their sessions, listening to them and the overwhelming desire to write songs kind of got on me. I said do you know what? If they can do it, I can do it, and I started writing songs by knowing that.”
CC: Who are you excited to see perform at Love Supreme?
Candi: Well I’m excited about being on the show with Erykah Badu, TLC, Sister Sledge. I know Sister Sledge, I know all the artists out there. We draw them [fans] from 9 to 90. They all love it, especially the women my age. They love to come out and listen to the songs, and the young people. I am so excited that the young people are into it, it’s amazing. I am just delighted to know that they are listening to our music”.