“‘Where did you go Davina?’ is what they always ask me when they find out I am still out here, still working, still loving, still trying to make music that is timeless. I am here-I have just been on several of life’s adventures and now I am back to one of the adventures I love the most--namely music.” -Davina, July 2007
When you hear the name Davina these days, you get the sense that you have heard it somewhere, and that’s probably with good reason, as she has been here before. While this place feels different; it’s not much different at all really, she summarizes as her return to the music scene. Observing the landscape and armed with nothing more than a vision and an immense love for music, she decided that it was time to make another statement. Davina’s new label, Soul Line Associates just recently released “Return to Soul v1.”, but it was 10 years ago that she made her mark on music with her chart topping song “So Good” which appeared on the soundtrack to the movie Hoodlum. Long before she had a single on the radio, or was signed to LOUD Records, she was crafting records on her first indie label, Nocturnal Images. It was this experience that shaped the mentality that would ultimately lead her to become not just a better artist, but a better person, better businesswoman; a better everything.
One fact among the public that may not be known is that Davina is a talented producer, engineer, vocalist and writer, producing most of her debut album released in 1998, Best of Both Worlds. Over the span of her career, she’s collaborated with, produced or engineered for some of hip-hop and R&B’s biggest names including Raekwon, Common, Mobb Deep, Coolio, Deliquent Habits, Adriana Evans, Tyrese, LV, Immature, Marques Houston, the late Big Pun, and so many others.
It took a while for Davina to even decide to step back towards music in an artist’s capacity at all, even though she never stopped making music. Since her time in the spotlight she has taken it to task to further hone her crafts and explore other avenues within music. Producing dance records, house music, electronic, soul and other forms of music for artists far and wide built her name in Europe and other countries. It wasn’t until recently while spending time in her home in Harlem, NYC it dawned on her that the Global music scene could use a shot of reality in the form of Davina, only this time it would be on her terms. She goes on to admit that while she was gone she was simply “Producing, writing, traveling, and learning about life, about living, about love.”
Return to Soul v1. feels like the next step in the journey that can only be described as “Davina Music.” The soulful current that runs through it touches on many genres, including R&B, Soul, Jazz, Dance--as well as love, joy, pain and every emotion in between. Handling the production duties this time around again has proven to be a labor of love having recorded so much material in the years she had vanished from the music scene.
She has since been laying the groundwork for her new production company and independent record label, Soul Line Associates. Along with some of the game’s most talented vigilante executives, producers, marketers, artists and strategists, she plans on releasing unheard gems from her catalogue as well as brand new hits for the people. It’s in her blood to be creative, as she in the last few years has also expanded into visual arts, film and fashion. Davina is on a mission to bring her talents and those of others back to the world, Return to Soul v1. is only the first of many steps.
Read more...