“My uncle had a huge vinyl collection full of good soul, funk, and R&B music and my grandmother also had lots of records in the house.”
“There was lots to listen to and choose from. We had Bill Cosby on vinyl, Bing Crosby, and even The Chipmunks Christmas. There was a lot going on! The record I gravitated to and will always love, must have come from my Uncle’s collection. It was Evelyn Champagne King’s record Get Loose. I repurchased this vinyl as an adult too. Boy oh boy was this a treat. “Love Come Down” of course was a smash that I loved to sing and dance to. I did not know about the other amazing funky records on the album like “Get Loose” and “I Can’t Stand It.”
I grew up with cassettes, CDs, and digital. Records like this allowed me to imagine myself being the life of the party in a time I didn’t live in. This record made me imagine myself being a bombshell in the late ’70s with my afro, bell bottoms, and a halter top. I stumbled into more black funk and disco artists because of this vinyl.
It’s actually hard for me to listen to disco or funk if it’s not on vinyl. That’s the medium I was most familiar hearing oldies, disco, and funk on. It just feels different.
The vinyl I heard and had access to at a young age is why I have a deep love and respect for soul, jazz, and funk from the ’70s and ’80s. It correlated to the hip hop and R&B artists that I listened to in the ’90s and 2000s.
I still go back to vinyl when I can. There is nothing like playing an album all the way through and taking in the full intention and warmth of a record. I am so grateful I grew up with a family who had so much music on vinyl from black artists who shaped a lot of the sounds we still hear in 2021.”
—Claire Reneé
“I’m Tired,” the new single from Claire Reneé is in stores now.
