Ursula Rucker ‎– Supa Sista (2001)

Style: Breaks, Downtempo, Experimental, Conscious
Format: CD, Vinyl
Label: Studio !K7

Tracklist:
01.   In Her Elizabeth
02.   Womansong
03.   7
04.   Letter To A Sister Friend
05.   What???
06.   Digichant
07.   Philadelphia Child
08.   Supa Sista
09.   Brown Boy
10.   Spring
11.   1 Million Ways To Burn
12.   Song For Billy

Long term, prime exponent of the New York Slam poetry scene, Ursula Rucker has spent the last seven years working with some of the finest downtempo outfits including Silent Poets and The Roots. Whilst her talents have embellished their work from 1994 onwards, it is former musical partners 4Hero, Alexkid and King Britt who have returned the gesture and collaborated with her on this beautiful fusion of hip hop, nu-jazz and soul. 

Inspired by the social commentary of black female writers Zora Neale Hurston and Sonia Sanchez, Ursula Rucker has made it her mission to elevate the mind of hip hop and purify the art form. Like her previous work Supa Sista fixes Ursula's attentions firmly on the issues of sexuality, technology, women's rights, politics, education, evolution and spirituality. 

Unlike so many working in the business she is an engaged woman who knows the true power of words. Levelling criticism at some of her male contemporaries for the effects that the violence and machismo in their lyrics has on the young, she purrs, "... formidable minds pay the price for your microphone mistakes. Change or be changed. Break the chains, don't be slaves". 

Lazy beats with sweet soul soaked in Rhodes piano and double bass punctuation provide a wonderful, musical contrast to the often gritty subject matter. "Philadelphia Child" combines the city's trademark strings with tabla percussion whilst "What???" extends the variety to subtle drum and bass rhythms all of which compliment Ursula's vocals. 

Charged with 'she-lectricity', hers is a silken delivery that, like Michael Franti's, demonstrates that a quiet word in the ear can speak volumes above the microphone rant. Ursula is one that would like to see hip hop become more responsible and more original. This is a woman who is both a poet and performer with important things to say and with her smoky, seductive lyricism it is all too easy to listen and absorb.

Andy Puleston / BBC Review

Ursula Rucker ‎– Silver Or Lead (2003)

Style: Downtempo, Future Jazz, Trip Hop, Spoken Word
Format: CD, Vinyl
Label: Studio !K7, Hostess Entertainment Unlimited

Tracklist:
01.   Damned If I Do
02.   Soon
03.   What A Woman Must Do
04.   Untitled Flow
05.   Lonely Can Be Sweet
06.   Time
07.   Q & A
08.   Release
09.   This
10.   I/We
11.   Return To Innocence Lost

Ursula Rucker's 2001 debut album Supa Sista wasn't all it could have been. Yes, the verbals kicked and sure, some of the beats rocked, but the sparse, metallic atmospheres and raw, uncompromising nature of the poetics left many feeling cold and even a little alienated. 

Given Rucker's status as the urban wordsmith of choice for super-melodic acts like Japan's Silent Poets, Germany's Jazzanova, UK's 4 Hero and local Phillie heroes King Britt and The Roots, this austerity came as something of a surprise. 

Thankfully, Silver Or Lead addresses these issues head on. Instead of hiring a new set of beatmakers, Rucker has commendably re-recruited the same coterie of friends and associates that graced her first outing, commissioning tunes that better compliment her sassy attitude, melody and streetwise head-funk. 

A showcase of new and unreleased tracks as well as a retrospective of some of her finest moments (most of which have only been previously released on other peoples fulllengths), Silver Or Lead is a more mature and less inhibited record. 

Cuts like "Time", her philosophical team up with 4 Hero grooves, and the highly personal "Return To Innocence Lost" (which deals with the violent death of her brother) are included here, alongside a continuous flow of swirling soul and melodious thunk supplied by the likes of Rob Yancey, Jazzanova, King Britt, Mysterium and Lil Louie Vega. 

Within these streams and rivers of sound which take us through Afro-latino, hypnotic hip hop and deep drum & bass, verbal blow after verbal blow is rained upon us as Rucker invests the English language with a rhythm and power all of her own. 

There's a Septemeber 11 critique on "Release", self-reflection on "Lonely Can Be Sweet", poetic brutality on "What a Woman Must Do" and slavery tales on "Soon". Throughout, Rucker's velvety voice manages to both mollify and add a sinister dimension to the harshness of her subject matter. 

With her follow up, she has thus created a finely balanced document which is melodic enough to make the hips swing and thought-provoking enough to demand repeated listening.

Jack Smith / BBC Review