New fans were clamoring to get a copy of "Anticipatin'", but there was no CD version of the song to put in people's hands.Īlthough the growing attention and radio airplay obviously fueled Jones' rapidly growing reputation, it wasn't the only factor at work. There was one small problem with Jones' fresh hit single, however: it did not appear on the SuperSoulSista disc, as it was finished and released after the full length CD. As fate would have it, the song that CoCo wrote for Fantasia would actually be the song to kick-start her own solo career. In short order, Oklahoma City's KVSP (Power 103.5 FM) picked up Jones' single and added it to their rotation as well. Out of the submitted material, "Anticipatin'" was chosen for airplay and it rose to the top of the K-JAMZ top ten playlist for a roughly 5 weeks. When the song wasn't picked up for Fantasia's new CD, CoCo submitted her own recording of the tune to Tulsa's K-JAMZ (KJMM, 105.3 FM), along with four other songs, for consideration to be added to the station's rotation. One song on her plate was actually created with J-Records recording artist Fantasia Barrino in mind. While Jones was working on her own record, she also continued writing in hopes of scoring some sort of publishing deal. The product of that vision is SuperSoulSista, an album that serves up a healthy dose of classic Motown and Memphis soul and also flaunts Jones' rapping abilities, which are flavored with dashes of Missy Elliot, Queen Latifah and Salt & Pepa. Unlike the RXN material, however, Jones wanted to step outside of the Christian marketplace and make a mainstream record that would infuse her love of old school soul and R&B with modern hip hop influences. RXN released an album in 2004 that's when Jones started considering doing her own record. CoCo's gift wouldn't be denied, though, and she got pulled back in, albeit in a different capacity, as a member of outreach group RXN (Reaction), a Christian rap and hip hop act. After living in Hawaii and Colorado at different points in time, CoCo graduated from high school in Virginia and relocated to Tulsa in 1999 to attend ORU.Įven though she had been involved in music as a choir director during her high school years, Jones had no plans to pursue music when she attended college. Originally from Florida, CoCo's mother was in the military, which had the family moving every few years. Blige, and Jill Scott have had on Jones' own material and development as both a singer and writer. And although it almost seems trite to quote them as influences or inspirations, you can easily hear the impact that artists like Aretha Franklin, Gladys Knight and Shirley Brown, as well as Lauren Hill, Mary J. With the re-release of SuperSoulSista, however, CoCo Jones is making a move step out of the shadows and draw the spotlight not only to herself, but also to Tulsa's hip hop and R&B community as a whole.Īs is so often the case with the best soul artists, CoCo's roots are firmly planted in Gospel music, but spread out into classic Motown as well as hip-hop and modern R&B. Tulsa's R&B and hip-hop artists, unfortunately, often find themselves overlooked and playing to a small, but loyal audience. To that extent, Jones' CD has been restructured for re-release, in hopes it can make an even bigger splash and reach even further than it did initially. The effect of that release, however, was much like that of throwing a rock out into a glass-calm lake: it may not make a huge splash, but the ripple effect stirs the water and reaches far and wide.īut what's the fun of throwing only one rock out into the lake? Once you see the effect, the instinct is to find an even bigger rock and repeat the exercise, is it not? ![]() ![]() When CoCo Jones' debut CD, SuperSoulSista, was originally released in January, it didn't initially draw a lot of attention. As is so often the case with the best soul artists, CoCo's roots are firmly planted in Gospel music, but spread out into classic Motown as well as hip-hop and modern R&B. CoCo Jones' debut SuperSoulSista augmented, re-released
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