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Recently on 4 CHI CITY RADIO, inspirational singer Christal Luster came through with her latest single “Believe Again”. Here’s a recap of her interview.
Name your top five favorite artists?
India.Arie, because she makes music for the soul. I know that’s the obvious choice for me since I play guitar lol, but long before I picked up guitar, I truly enjoyed her range and freedom in her craft. She doesn’t make music to please people. It’s obvious she makes music because it’s what she loves.
Stevie Wonder, because he’s such a classic and timeless artist. That, in my opinion, is a major success story for an artist, especially because the market is so oversaturated with new music everyday.
Kim Walker, because of her total freedom in her approach to worship. She inspires me so much as a worship leader and I think listening to her music helped me develop my own style in worship. I used to be really timid when I would lead, but now there’s almost no place I’d rather be than on the platform leading worship. There’s so much freedom there, lyrically and vocally.
Common, because he reaches my heart with his music. I believe Common stayed true to hip hop, with his approach and way of story-telling.
There are soooooo many indie artists that I love and who inspire me, but I gotta point out Super Sohje. There was a sisterhood born instantly between us, and Lord knows that good friends are really hard to find. I’m a huge fan of her music and her approach to singing. She’s so bold and fearless, and she always pushes me to be better–as a person and as a performer. I’ll always be grateful for that.
What inspired you to become a singer/songwriter?
I always had a knack for writing. I wrote my first song when I was 10 years old. It wasn’t really great lol but I was proud of it. I actually got made fun of a lot, but for some reason I kept going. By the time I got to high school, I had gotten so much better and I had joined the choir. It was around this time I started watching a Canadian show called Instant Star. The main character Jude Harrison (played by Alexz Johnson) was a singer songwriter in high school who won a singing contest (like our American Idol) and got a record deal. The show chronicles her journey in becoming this artist while staying true to herself. Music was her escape, whether she had the record deal or not. Broken hearts, happy moments, frustration, inspiration….all of it brought her back to pen, pad and guitar. And that helped me decide to pick up guitar. I identified with her. I am an emotional person by nature. And most times, the only way I can process it is to write and sing. Some of my hardest moments have yielded my best art. The cherry on top is when people tell me that my music helped them in some way. I’ll always make music for myself and for the people.
IG @christalluster twitter @christalluster
Tell us your most memorable moment as an artist?
I think one of my best moments as an artist was performing at Hard Rock Cafe, downtown Chicago, January 2013. I wasn’t as vocally mature or skilled back then, but I saw my name out on the marquee and it lit a fire on the inside. I was so honored and humbled to have that opportunity. It was motivation for me, a reminder that greatness exists within me.
What do you hate & what do you love about Chicago?
I hate the traffic lol. Traffic sucks in general… some of the best parts of the city have the worst traffic and no parking. Lol it’s so frustrating.
But I love my city. I think we have the most beautiful skyline, some of the best talent and food in the world and there’s a lot of love in this city. People get blinded by the media.. But don’t get it twisted! Chicago is not all bad. There IS LOVE HERE!! There IS HOPE HERE!! There is a good future in store for Chicago.
Thanks for ROCKIN wit me!!!
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