From the church stomping R&B of Ray Charles to the deep down Delta blues of B.B. King, Leela James has performed with some of the best in music. Now with a new album on Shanachie Entertainment entitled “Loving You More…In the Spirit of Etta James” Leela will be giving tribute to a legend who’s known not just for classic songs like “At Last”, “Something’s Got a Hold of Me” and “Sunday Kind of Love” but for her raw “heart and soul” vocals in rock, soul, jazz and R&B. In our GFM interview with Leela we talked about the inspiration behind the album, the song she would choose for an Etta duet and her thoughts to the current state of R&B.

Be sure to get the album July 31^st and follow Leela James on Twitter

GFM Spotlight Interview Leela James by GrownFolksMusic

Channeling her shero from the upcoming tribute album, Loving You More…In The Spirit of Etta James due to be released July 31^st on Shanachie Entertainment, here is the “blues baby” herself, Leela James.  Also stay tuned to GFM for our upcoming interview with Leela as she speaks about the concept behind this video, keeping Etta’s legacy alive and her feelings on the current state of R&B.

You can also follow Leela on Twitter at @LeelaJames

“Something’s Got a Hold On Me” is one of those songs that is immediately familiar to you, even if you have never heard the full track. The song has been utilized in various media outlets, including episodes of television shows such as ABC’s “Private Practice”. The church influence in “Something’s Got a Hold On Me” is evident, especially within the song’s intro, which plays out like one side of the call and response type of spiritual singing. Even though the style is religious, I don’t quite think the “something” is always religious. ☺ Something’s Got a Hold on Me” is available on “Her Best: The Chess 50th Anniversary Collection“.