To sell out Roxy on a Sunday night? That requires
someone special—and Selah Sue (1989) more than fits the bill.
This hot & young artist from Belgium (her real
name is Sanne Putseys) rocked the world upon the release of her debut album
Selah Sue (2011) with smashing hits such as “Raggamuffin,” “Crazy Vibes,” and
“This World.” Her idiosyncratic voice suffused with Soul was influenced, by her
own admission, by Lauryn Hill, a singer whose songs drip with soulful
smoothness, along with M.I.A., Erykah Badu, or Bob Marley. She has devoured her
influences to furnish a flavour very much her own, a soul/funk/reggae fusion
distinctly Selah Sue. Her voice is raspy as if she’s just gone through a shouting
marathon, yet rich and endowed with excellent singing technique. In “Ragga
Medley” (to be found on YT), we can observe a confident mastery of the reggae cadence. Crowned with giant bird’s nest hair, this
petite 25-year-old has an awe-inspiring stage presence; she conducts the band
with voluptuous authority and radiates a deeply sensuous female grace. While
she’s at it, Selah manifests that to be genuinely attractive, one does not
necessitate a swollen booty of a raw-meat-in-a-Tesco-plastic-bag aspect which
other female ‘stars’ are trying to push down our throats.
Sue is able to sing out a spectacular range of
emotion; as the night of the concert progressed, as more had been shared, she
articulated her inner world unto the club – made you feel like she’s confiding
in you solely, twin intimate souls late in a bar. A Diva in the best sense
possible, Selah Sue offers solace and reassurance that there’s still class in
the music industry; that the rare breed of the Lady hasn’t died out.
Jaromír Lelek
