{"id":12027,"date":"2015-04-17T00:16:33","date_gmt":"2015-04-17T07:16:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/?p=12027"},"modified":"2015-04-16T19:03:11","modified_gmt":"2015-04-17T02:03:11","slug":"rada-brings-israeli-soul-here","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/2015\/04\/17\/rada-brings-israeli-soul-here\/","title":{"rendered":"Rada brings Israeli soul here"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ester Rada is at the Imperial on May 2 and McPherson Playhouse on June 19. (photo from Ester Rada)<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Ester Rada\u2019s most recent recording, I Wish<\/em>, was released in March. The EP features Rada\u2019s interpretation of four of her \u201cfavorite songs of the great Nina Simone\u201d: \u201cI Wish (I Knew How It Would Feel to be Free),\u201d \u201cSinnerman,\u201d \u201cFour Women\u201d and \u201cFeeling Good.\u201d Rada takes these classic songs made famous by an iconic singer\/songwriter and makes them her own. Chutzpah, in the best sense of the word \u2013 which makes it fitting that Rada is being presented in Vancouver by Chutzpah!Plus. She plays the Imperial on May 2.<\/p>\n

Rada was born in Kiryat Arba, just outside of Hebron, a year after her parents and older brother immigrated to Israel from Ethiopia as part of Operation Moses in 1984.<\/p>\n

\u201cChildhood is an amazing period of time because, as a kid, you see only the good in life, and there is a lot of good growing up in a small town, so life was great,\u201d Rada told the Independent<\/em> about her younger years. \u201cOnly when I look back I realize how strange and unnatural it is to grow up between fences and soldiers and fear from your neighbor.\u201d<\/p>\n

Raised in a religious household, Rada was exposed mainly to religious music, as well as Ethiopian, of course. Her mother\u2019s decision to move the family to Netanya when Rada was 10 (her parents had divorced many years earlier) turned out to be pivotal.<\/p>\n

\u201cNetanya is a bigger, non-religious city near the sea, no fences and borders,\u201d said Rada. \u201cDrawn to this freedom, I allowed myself to enter the secular world. At the age of 12, MTV and VH1 were the platforms I could get music from, and there I was exposed to Stevie Wonder and Babyface, Boyz II Men, Lauryn Hill, Erykah Badu, D\u2019Angelo; their souls entered mine.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rada composes, sings and plays multiple instruments. When asked to highlight some of her musical training and\/or performing background, she said, \u201cAt the age of 10, I was part of Sheba Choir. At the age of 15, my brother bought me my first guitar and I taught myself how to play. At 18, I was recruited to the army as a singer for two years.\u201d<\/p>\n

She has lived in Tel Aviv since the age of 21. \u201cIt is the best place in Israel,\u201d she said. \u201cThe culture and art, music and beauty, freedom and love are the things that took me there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joining Habima Theatre, Rada\u2019s acting career took off before her singing career. She has performed on stage, on television and in film. While she still works in both arts, she admitted, \u201cIt\u2019s getting harder combining the two. Last year, I was still acting in the theatre, but when I started touring I had to quit. I still get offers, but I\u2019m not going to do theatre soon \u2013 but I\u2019m shooting a movie this summer.\u201d<\/p>\n

While she speaks more than one language, Rada sings mainly in English. Her full-length record, Ester Rada<\/em> \u2013 which includes the four songs on her debut solo recording, the EP Life Happens<\/em> \u2013 features all English songs, with the exception of \u201cNanu Ney.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe music I listen to is mainly in English, the first song I wrote at the age of 13 was in English \u2013 also, I want to share my love with the whole world and I feel English is an international language,\u201d she explained.<\/p>\n

Her music has been described as a fusion, \u201cgracefully combining Ethio-jazz, urban funk, neo-soul and R&B\u201d; \u201cher own blend of ska, reggae, world music, dance beats and jazz.\u201d But Rada told the Independent<\/em>, \u201cI don\u2019t like to describe it, as there is no one definition. I\u2019m a mix of a lot of things and so is my music. Also, I\u2019m changing all the time, so I believe that the \u2018Ester Rada sound\u2019 will change as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her look certainly has changed over the years, and one can\u2019t help but remark on her unique, keen sense of fashion.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve always loved beauty,\u201d she said of her style. \u201cI remember myself as a kid wearing my mom\u2019s shoes, clothes and makeup. I love that by wearing different clothes I can become something else.\u201d<\/p>\n

And much of her music celebrates such freedom, encouraging listeners to have the courage to explore, to not be afraid, to experience life and to enjoy it. Rada\u2019s musical adventures tell us that she definitely practises what she preaches.<\/p>\n

Ester Rada\u2019s 19+ show at the Imperial, 319 Main St., on May 2 starts at 8 p.m. Tickets are $36 (students $25), plus GST and service charge, from chutzpahfestival.com<\/a> or 604-257-5145. She also is scheduled to perform in Victoria at the McPherson Playhouse (rmts.bc.ca<\/a> or 1-888-717-6121) on June 19, 7:30 p.m.; tickets are $45\/$53.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ester Rada is at the Imperial on May 2 and McPherson Playhouse on June 19. (photo from Ester Rada) Ester Rada\u2019s most recent recording, I Wish, was released in March. The EP features Rada\u2019s interpretation of four of her \u201cfavorite songs of the great Nina Simone\u201d: \u201cI Wish (I Knew How It Would Feel to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":11952,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[788],"tags":[3403,3609,4330],"class_list":["post-12027","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-music","tag-chutzpahplus","tag-ester-rada","tag-israel"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12027","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12027"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12027\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11952"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12027"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12027"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12027"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}