Tracy Chapman

                  This week in class, we talked about Tracy Chapman. Prior to this class, I had never heard of Tracy Chapman before. After reading the article, and discussing her in class, I learned a lot more about her. We listened to one of her hit songs, “Fast Car”, and as soon as it came on, I knew I had heard it before. It is a great song! I had always thought that it was sang by a man, but Tracy just has a very unique and calming voice. This song, “Fast Car” isn’t about a car at all though. As a matter of fact, in an interview, Chapman stated, “It’s not really about a car at all…basically it’s about a relationship that didn’t work out because it’s starting from the wrong place”. I love the meaning behind the song, because it’s one of those songs that you just listen to but then once you start singing along, you realize the meaning behind it. I think the way Chapman portrayed her message through this song was brilliant and turned out to be one of her biggest hits!

                  Another thing I like about Tracy Chapman is something from the article about her and the way she performs. Richard Stengel stated that, “Her performance style reflects her reticence. There is no chatter, no dancing, no fireworks. Yet she is capable of creating an intimacy with the audience that more gregarious performers cannot duplicate”. I found this very interesting because so many artists focus on their dances, fireworks, tricks, backup dancers, and outfits rather than just performing their music and amazing the audience with just their voice. Not many artists could probably perform very well without all the extras, so I found it to be such a great thing that Chapman’s voice and songs can have such an impact on people.  Tracy Chapman is one of those women who don’t care about being in the spotlight all the time and making herself the center of attention. After reading about her, and finding out she is the one who sings “Fast Car”, I look forward to looking into more of her music and exploring some of her other songs.