Photo courtesy Calvin Richardson
He’s only 45, but R&B singer Calvin Richardson has lived several lifetimes in modern music. The North Carolina native started out on the gospel circuit and later joined a R&B group called Undacova in the 1990s, during the New Jack Swing era. After that, he became a solo artist, with stints at Universal and Hollywood Records, and he’s also worked as a producer with neo-soul artist Raphael Saadiq and written songs including “There Goes My Baby” with R&B icon Babyface. For the last decade, he’s been on the Southern soul scene, an R&B subgenre with a down-home sound that’s short on sophistication but long on grit and the blues. Clearly, Richardson isn’t afraid to change it up, which is something he writes about in his 2019 book, “Do You Without Them,” a memoir about his determination to stay in the music industry. While on a business trip in Arkansas, the journeyman known as the “Prince of Soul” talked to us by phone about what motivates him, his next moves and musical gentrification.
Richmond magazine: It seems that when things change for you or in the industry, you keep right on moving. What motivates you?
Calvin Richardson: I just make it about the music, man. For me, it’s always what’s next, you know? I’ve seen a lot of situations that come to an end and expire, so to speak. So I would say doors closed, but [there are] always other doors that be ready to open when it’s time, so I've been able to benefit from that, you know, and having a long career.
RM: You talked about always looking at what’s next. What’s next for you? Is there another album in the works?
Richardson: There is another album on the way. I just bought me a studio. … I got my own label … CRE Enterprises. I have artists that I got that I’ll be working on right now.
RM: Do you think that Southern soul is a genre that could be gentrified? Could we be looking at Justin Timberlake attempting this?
Richardson: No, not at all. It’s a sound, man, it’s just gotta fit, and Justin Timberlake … that would never work on the Southern soul side, you know?
RM: Tell us a little about your book.
Richardson: It chronicles my journey in the music business, how I found success over the years, devoid of having a lot of things that was necessary [that] a lot of people had to have in order to find success. I found that … without proper label support, without platinum record status, you know, moving from company to company … it's just like ... you can apply a lot of the things that I did to life, you know what I mean? And just, you know, find success in life without being dependent on anything or anybody but yourself, realizing that nothing stops until we stop.
Calvin Richardson performs with Tucka, Sir Charles Jones, Nellie Tiger Travis, Pokey Bear and Ronnie Bell at the All White Southern Soul Music Festival at 7 p.m. on July 16 at the Altria Theater. Tickets are $83.50 to $121.
