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| The Los Angeles Times called Jennifer Knapp �a rising star�; People Magazine described her as �an uncommonly literate songwriter�; and Billboard proclaimed that �Knapp proves herself to be the cream that rises to the top.� Her impressive critical praise only hints at her musical gifts, but grasping the true Jennifer Knapp experience is realized only by the empowering touch of her voice. This Kansas-born singer/songwriter has very quietly and quickly sold over 850,000 copies of her first two label releases, 1997�s Kansas and 2000�s Lay It Down. Her debut is now certified GOLD with over half a million sold. Coupled with extensive touring, Knapp proved herself as a folk-inspired rock artist whose masterful stroke paints introspective portraits of life�s bumpy road. Song after song, she empties her soul through catchy poetic lyrics that utter the precise words so many hearts have long struggled to find. This year Knapp returns with her most stirring collection of songs yet for her third label release, The Way I Am. �As a songwriter, I learned it�s best to be yourself and to be yourself and to be honest about what you are writing,� says Knapp. �Don�t be partial in trying to influence, but rather tell and preserve the story and allow the listener to share a moment with you. I feel that I accomplished this with the most purpose on my new album.� Knapp recorded The Way I Am at New York City�s The Power Station, the historic studio that birthed landmark albums by artists like Aerosmith, Bruce Springsteen, Sheryl Crow, Mariah Carey, the Ramones, the Rolling Stones, and Eric Clapton. Knapp�s perspective on songwriting and the sheer honesy of her music led to an impressive collection of contributors within the studio�s hallowed halls. Taking the production helm was Tony McAnany (Madonna, Missy Elliot, Sinead O�Connor). He and Jennifer led a host of all-star players that include strings maestro Jeremy Lubbock (Michael Jackson, Madonna, Barbra Streisand), drummer Vinnie Cauliuta (Sting, Frank Zappa), bassist Tony Levin (Tracy Chapman, Peter Gabriel, Paul Simon, Paula Cole), programming whiz David Hentschel (Elton John, Genesis), and guitarist Nick Moroch (Vanessa Williams, David Sanborn, The BeeGees). �The musicianship reached the highest level,� says Knapp. �The performers understood what I meant when I said that I wanted the music not to rest alone on a lyric but to draw out a musical landscape. It�s amazing to think that the things I hear � the depth of sound, the width of a song � can actually be translated for everyone else outside my ear.� From the London Symphony Orchestra to the profoundly intimate percussion, The Way I Am features the most realized, full-sounding backdrop for Knapp�s lyrical impression. The musical dynamics draw out the emotion and passion, especially with the compelling spiritual themes that run through her songs. In fact, the struggles and inner-conflicts addressed in her music are often expressed in the form of confessional prayers. In this way, Knapp joins artists like Macy Gray, Bono, Lauren Hill, DMX, and others, who are very articulate in composing songs directly to God. With The Way I Am, Knapp continues the spiritual dialogue by writing about the aspects of her faith that she doesn�t quite understand. Songs like �Come To Me� and �By and By� find the balance between struggling for deeper understanding yet remaining content not knowing the mysteries of life. Likewise, �Say, Won�t You Say� and �No Regrets� accepts the challenge to find rest in the confusing blur of daily grind. Without wavering, each song on The Way I Am comes across as a biographical snapshot that addresses the deeper issues of love, hope, warmth, and forgiveness in a context that grace and peace. As a teenager, the classically trained Knapp attended Pittsburgh State University on a musical scholarship. Though at first it appeared her major was Freshman Partying 101, fellow students inspired her to open her mind to spiritual matters and eventually incorporate them into her music. From there, Knapp began performing throughout the Midwest selling her two custom recordings at shows. Her second indie album, Wishing Well, attracted the attention of Nashville label Gotee Records, who signed her the following year. With her personal songwriting and gut-rock vocal style, Knapp immediately connected with a national audience who, like herself, had known difficulty in life and was looking for genuine insight. As an incredibly active performer, Knapp has already shared the stage with many greats, including several peers during dates she did on the last Lilith Fair tour. In the 120 shows she performed in 2001, Knapp impacted almost a million individuals. This makes it no surprise that Pollstar Magazine included her among its Top 50 touring acts of the Winter/Spring 2001 season. Joining only the best artists, Knapp exemplifies how hook-laden edgy pop music can still have the depth to inspire both the ear and the soul. The Way I Am is an album of substance and style, and heading into 2002, Knapp appears destined to connect her songs with a world hungry for that �something more� that her music delivers. The Way I Am �By and By� � �It makes sense to open up the record with this song because it begins the search for grace. It�s an acknowledgement that I need hope for the day. It�s kind of an up-throwing of hands saying, �Ok, there�s gotta be something else. I need a solution, need it now, I�m waiting. Here we go.� The energy of it is somewhat purposed. �Breathe on Me� � �This was the first song in the process of making the album. It was the catalyst for the whole idea of being compelled by the cross�� �The Way I Am� � I wrote this song while driving home from Nashville. I just started singing it. After I wrote the song, I played it for some of my friends. Their immediate reaction was, �Wow, you must have been having a really bad day.� �The Way I Am� is based on the fact that I don�t want to be the way that I am, but yet I am human with vices.� �Say, Won�t You Say� � �This song started as a prayer. I demo-ed this song at my house and didn�t give it much thought after that. But when I started playing new songs for the people at Gotee, they loved it! Before I knew it, we had recorded it for the album.� �In Two� � �This song begins with the idea that it�s hard to get healing from something you won�t go to the doctor for. It�s one of the most personal vignettes I�ve ever put on an album. I recorded it as a point of reference to just what I really need grace for in my life and the specific areas that need maintenance. I really debated about putting �In Two� on the record, but there are so many people I love and respect who get it.� �Come to Me� � This song �is inspired by a Biblical passage that says, �Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.�� �Charity� � �It�s surprising sometimes where you find God. Whether it�s in other people or other places, I think that sometimes we can assume we know where our peace will come from. And that assumption often limits us from actually getting it.� �Fall Down� � �Each of us deals with the pain of regret. Once I�m willing to admit it, I can move on from there. The first line in the lyric says, �Judge me not ye saints for my history may be tainted, but I�m sober enough to know blood when I see it.� I don�t know how to say it any more clearly.� �Sing Mary Sing� � �This is a semi-biographical song I wrote a couple of years ago� It was halfway inspired by a Dave Matthews song. It was a loosely translated version of the same story. The fact that he could do this made me think about how I could tell this story with the same openness and feel comfortable singing anywhere in front of any audience.� �Around Me� � �We recorded [this] live at the Power Station in New York. I wanted the production to be really loose, because that�s the way I wrote it. So we just let it hang in the air. It�s one of the few times I�ve recorded a song, singing and playing at the same time and it felt like the way we do it live. You experience it and live it!� �Light of the World� � I literally wrote this song as an actual prayer, sitting in my room one night. I�d come back to it again and again, and I never thought that it would be out in the open on a record. �No Regrets� � When I first wrote �No Regrets,� it was, to me, very melancholy, with the idea, �I should live with no regrets. Everyone else but me has freedom.� That�s the way I sang the song when it was first written. But since I wrote it, the meaning has evolved and my perspective of this song has changed into something entirely different. The whole song opens an opportunity to get into some really cool issues: With grace, there is freedom, and there is beauty in the breaking process to that freedom.� |
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