Rachel McDonald - The Return Of Soul

Rachel McDonald is back with her new hit, "The Return Of Soul" on Redefined Music

What a pleasure it is to announce, Rachel McDonald has a new album out, The Return Of Soul. Her first release from this album is, "The Return Of Soul". 

Here's her Bio

Rachel McDonald is not only an extremely talented singer and songwriter; she's a woman on a mission: bringing soul back to urban music. As her musical influences are Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston, Chaka Kahn, Yolanda Adams, and Fergie, she certainly seems to be on course.

The R&B artist and her producer Biblical Jones have conceptualized and completed her debut project "The Return of Soul," a CD/film compilation. She released the first track, "Clenching My Pillow," August 2009, and there is now a video to accompany it. The full EP was released in November, 2009.

McDonald and Jones believe that the music industry has bled the emotion and artistry out of music with corporate interference and marketing practices. Educated at the Maryland Hall School for the Performing Arts, and steeped in the place where many R&B singers obtain their first experience – the church choir, she has already accumulated a laundry list of musical and theatrical experiences. At 18 years old, she has acted in nearly a dozen plays and almost as many vocal showcases and dance performances. McDonald has a staggeringly powerful voice and a wide vocal range (soprano, alto and tenor), both of which she aptly displays on "The Return of Soul."  Her vocal style can be compared to Alicia Keys and Corinne Bailey Ray, and like them, she very ably conveys with conviction the messages in her music.

McDonald has several performances under her belt including NFL 60, the Maryland Education Association's MLK Breakfast, the Maryland House of Delegates African American Patriots Day, and the House of Blues in Los Angeles. She received the National Society of Arts Award for excellent in the arts in April, 2009.

McDonald's musical message is quite clear: we need to get back to basics and put the emotion, the soul back into music. She is a messenger for this cause and wants her debut record to exemplify it. She brings a passion and intensity to R&B music that is long, long overdue and her album echoes that theme. She is nicknamed The Quick Hotness, a Kung Fu term used to describe one who moves so fast, they blaze a path. Rachel McDonald is blazing a path of intensely emotional, soulful music, a path other artists might be wise to follow.

Clenching My Pillow video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TGPEDABJ3k

Baltimore video   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TGPEDABJ3k

websites www.redefinedmusic.viviti.com

            www.reverbnation/rachelmcdonald

            www.myspace.com/rachelmcdonaldsoul

            www.facebook.com/rachelmcdonaldthequickness

Rachel McDonald, "The Return of Soul" Review

by Jon Peritz

Rachel McDonald's debut LP, "The Return of Soul" is, at its heart, a dance album. Each song has a driving beat and strong bass line that, coupled with catchy, funky melodies, all but make you dance. Under its upbeat, dancy beats, however, this album is also chock full of love songs. McDonald sings about finding love in "What Is Love," losing love in "I'm Leaving You," an every step in-between on her 11 track record. The best part of this record is Rachel McDonald's stellar voice. Beyond her rich, open tone and vast range, the emotional quality of her voice is staggering. When she sings about love you can feel it in your heart, and when she sings about sex you can feel it in your loins. No matter what she sings about, the music goes beyond the listener's ears and into his or her body and soul.When McDonald set out to create this album with R&B producer Biblical Jones on Redefined Records, she sought to bring the soul back to music. She and Jones decry the over-commercialized music world and lament the loss of true music in the mix of business and politics. While "The Return of Soul" does not sound like the tradition soul music of previous decades, the spirit of soul music is omnipresent. If McDonald's vision is to bring soul back to music, then this record is the first step. "The Return of Soul" is available now for download from the iTunes store.