Shea Couleé releases debut solo record, to perform at Riviera
Music was a natural evolution for Shea Couleé.
Couleé, the celebrated drag performer, model and actor, has received international acclaim for her singular and evocative performance style. Most notably, she won the fifth season of “RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars” after previously placing in the top four on Season 9 of “RuPaul’s Drag Race.” But Couleé (born Jaren Kyei Merrell) had some initial hesitations about pursuing music.
Couleé grew up in the church (her mother was a reverend), and performing in the gospel choir was an easy fit. Later, she began acting in musicals throughout high school and college. However, despite her affinity for singing, she also drew some detractors.
“One of the constant things that I was being told by directors and instructors and teachers was that my voice was just too different. Like, it just was too different. You know, me not realizing that having something different is actually a positive because it sets you apart,” Couleé recalled about that time. “But it made me feel bad about my voice, so I didn’t really have the confidence to fully go out there on my own and sing by myself.”
It wasn’t until her initial season of “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” when she recorded a “funny joke” song named “Cocky,” that music became more of a possibility. Hanging out in the living room one day, Couleé recorded the song. Later, her boyfriend began
playing it for her friends behind her back. After receiving numerous inquiries about its release, Couleé finally released the track to positive reception.
“People were just like, ‘I’ve never heard a Ru Girl put out a song that slaps this hard. That’s not just like drag being the punchline.’ They’re just like, ‘It’s just a good song.’ So then after that, I was just like, OK, I really, really do want to start practicing and getting into things like songwriting and things like that,” she recalled.
Between that early release and now, Couleé released her first EP, titled “Couleé-D.” However, “8,” her debut solo record, is a tremendous step forward in her
musical evolution. As a songwriter, part of that involved using her music as a platform to share her experiences about being a queer Black artist, especially one within the underground drag culture. Before reaching superstardom, Couleé was a student at Columbia College Chicago and a regular performer and fixture in the city’s nightlife scene. Her music on “8” is both an expression and celebration of those roots, their universality and their ability to offer hope and redemption for its generations of community members.
“I wrote this album for the dance floor, obviously. But I also wrote it from the perspective of someone who has really big dreams and aspirations and how the dance floor feels like, for them, the closest connection to the divine that they can find,” Couleé explained. “I feel like that happens for a lot of queer people. You know, it’s like we go underground, just downstairs into dark dance clubs with fog and disco balls and get lost within our own fantasies. And there’s just something so magical about that.”
Couleé collaborated with a variety of performers and artists including Sam Sparro, GESS, Mario Winans and Mica Gordon. The result is an eclectic record that spans a variety of genres, from drag-pop and house to R&B and hip-hop.
Most surprisingly, “8” also has elements of the same gospel music she grew up listening to and performing as a child. For Couleé, despite the seemingly vast disconnect between gospel music and pop, the former genre’s influence continues to permeate her musical artistry to this day. Gospel performance is one of the strongest training grounds for a musical artist. Couleé recognizes that experience through her trained ear and keen ability to hear melodies and precise harmonies.
The result is a short (“8” clocks in at only 25 minutes) but beautiful collection of pop music. It is a crisp debut and an assured entry into the music world. Currently on tour with Australian musician Betty Who, Couleé is set to embark on her first headlining tour as a solo musician. More than five years after her music aspirations were first sparked, Couleé can bask in the fruits of her labor with her ever-growing number of fans.
“I want people to listen to my music and feel good about themselves. That’s one thing that I love about Lizzo. She talks about how her mission is to constantly just make music that makes people feel good and uplift them because life is tough. And it’s hard,” she said. “One of the reasons why I got into drag was because I needed that fantasy. The music does the same thing. We’re all beautiful. We all have our own light to shine out into the world. So anyway I can encourage people to do that, I will.”