SUCCESS: Tamar Braxton’s newly released album, “Calling All Lovers,” has shot straight to number five on the Billboard 200.

By Geoffery Rowlands


Tamar Braxton has never had a single peak higher than number 57 on Billboard’s Hot 100. But her newly released album, “Calling All Lovers,” has shot straight to number five on the Billboard 200.
The new LP is 38-year-old Tamar’s second smash hit album. It follows 2013’s “Love and War,” which peaked at number two. Yet this success came after more than a decade of solo inactivity.
“I kept busy with various things during those years but didn’t release any solo material,” Tamar explained. “I did have a couple of record deals but nothing ever came from them.”
Part of Tamar keeping busy involved working with her sister, Toni Braxton. Tamar, Toni and their three other sisters originally entered the music business as vocal quintet The Braxtons. Their debut single, Good Life, was released as long ago as 1990.
The following year saw Toni sign with LaFace Records as a solo artist. Her sisters became Toni’s backing singers during concert performances. They did release one album, “So Many Ways,” in 1996 but disbanded after Tamar inked the first of her solo deals in 1999.
“People sometimes ask if we had problems as a family during this time. They wonder if there were any jealousies. But no, we were really happy for Toni when she got her solo deal and the other girls were happy for me when I got mine.
“Of course, we’d love to have had the same kind of success Toni enjoyed. Her debut album went straight to number one and she quickly established herself as an R&B icon. But we were absolutely thrilled for her, there was no jealousy at all.”
Tamar co-wrote songs and performed backing vocalist duties on some of Toni’s albums. She also sung backing vocals during her sister’s Las Vegas residency, “Toni Braxton: Revealed.”
But most of the popularity Tamar has gained in recent years came through her appearances on reality television shows. She joined with her mother and sisters in Braxton Family Values before appearing with her husband, Vincent Herbert, in their reality show, Tamar & Vince.
“I do realise how important the TV shows have been for my music success. Viewers had the chance to get to know me as a person. They also saw how we coped when my husband suffered a potentially life-threatening health scare and then shared the events of my pregnancy before I gave birth to our son, Logan.”
Tamar is currently increasing her fanbase by competing in ABC Television’s Dancing with the Stars.
“I’m following in Toni’s footsteps, or I should say dance steps. She took part in the show a few years ago and did pretty well. I hoped I might at least match what Toni achieved and I’m thrilled to say I’ve now been able to do so.
“In fact, my partner, Val Chmerkovskiy, and I received a perfect score of 40 for our jazz dance. Val is a wonderful teacher and choreographer so I’m very lucky to have been partnered with him. I even have hopes of maybe making it to the final.”
Tamar has also developed her own line of clothing and footwear.
“I’ve always been interested in fashion. I actually modelled for Shateria Moragne-el’s Front Row Couture label at New York Fashion Week a few years ago. Having such a close involvement with the fashion scene gave me the incentive to create my own label.”
Her priority now though is promoting the new album. While acknowledging the help of her television appearances in boosting sales, Tamar believes the songs on “Calling All Lovers” represent the best work of her career.
“I have no doubt about that. I am so proud of the album. Most of it was recorded at our house with me sitting on the edge of the bed pouring my heart out into the mic.
“I co-wrote every song and many are hugely personal. I had some bad relationships before meeting Vince and these are explored in some of the songs. After finishing one track, Circles, I actually broke down and wept. I really mean wept, not just cried. It was like I’d exorcised all the negative emotion from that relationship by writing and recording the song.
“I’m not just proud of the album, I really believe recording it was a kind of healing process. I’ve been able to rid myself of some emotional baggage and get even more enjoyment from the family life I have with Vince and Logan.”

IN BRIEF
Laurence Fox

Fans of Lewis, the British television police series, will be familiar with actor Laurence Fox. He plays Detective Sergeant, now Detective Inspector, James Hathaway, sidekick to the title character.
One episode gave Laurence the opportunity to showcase his talent as an acoustic guitarist. But he is now moving into music on a full-time basis after releasing his first single, Headlong, which will be followed in February by his debut album, “Holding Patterns.”
The video for Headlong is at www.youtube.com/watch?v=78Tt_bA5duc
It features Laurence in a studio but also encompasses a personal drama for his studio technician which sees acting dialog within the video.
A few more videos and live performances are posted on YouTube. These include a pristine audio posting of Headlong. This, along with perfect recordings of his other songs, can be heard at (no www.) soundcloud.com/laurencefoxmusic
Laurence is married to actress Billie Piper. Although now known for her roles in Doctor Who, Mansfield Park and Penny Dreadful, Billie began her career as a pop star. She hit top spot in the UK chart with her first single, Because We Want To. Aged 15, she was the youngest artist to debut at number one.
How ironic is it that while Billie progressed from music to acting, her husband hopes to move his career in the opposite direction.

October Drift

English rockers October Drift have been attracting critical acclaim over the last year or so. Currently performing a sold out UK concert tour, the Somerset quartet are about to issue their new single, Robots. The track is the latest posting at (no www.) soundcloud.com/octoberdrift
Also posted here are the band’s previous three singles, You Are, You Are, Lost and Whoever. Official promos have been made for these songs. They can be found at www.youtube.com/user/octoberdriftvideo/videos

The Stoles

The Stoles haven’t received the same kind of critical recognition as October Drift. But the Dublin-based indie rockers are well worth checking out.
Man In The Cave is probably their most popular track. This is posted at (no www.) soundcloud.com/thestoles along with five more songs. Note that one track on the webpage is by their friends and fellow Dublin artists The Static.
Videos for their songs can be accessed from www.youtube.com/user/THESTOLESBAND

Judith Hill

Judith Hill’s elimination at the Top 8 stage on season four of “The Voice” is regarded as one of the biggest surprises in television talent show history. Just over a year later, her participation in 20 Feet From Stardom, a documentary telling the story of backing singers behind some of pop music’s greatest performers, earned Judith a Grammy Award for Best Music Film.
Although previously unknown to him, Prince became aware of Judith’s ability after seeing her interviewed on television. He invited her to perform as the support act for his concerts and signed Judith to his NPG label. He also produced her newly released debut album, “Back In Time.”
The LP is available to hear in full at www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/08/05/arts/music/press-play.html?_r=1
A number of Judith’s performances can be seen on YouTube. Gain access by typing her name in the website search box.