UK soul star Estelle pops through Dallas for a hot minute

by Sarah Crisman

DALLAS — I only had about a minute with Estelle, a woman who essentially served as my introduction last summer into the bumpin' London hip-hop scene. You may recognize her collaboration with Kanye West on 2008's hit single, "American Boy." She rolled through Ghostbar last night on Heineken's Red Star Soul tour, along with Big Boi (OutKast) and DJ D-Nice. It was quite the hip-hop-hob-knob.

Crisman: I am such a big fan of your music. I absolutely adore UK soul, and it began for me with your album Shine. We have a burgeoning hip-hop scene here in Dallas -- have you ever collaborated with Dallas artists?

Estelle: I have, ages ago -- they were very versatile. This was back in 2001; I came over to L.A. (back before I met Kanye). I was working with him and his partner, they were such good people. I love Dallas.

Crisman: We're so happy to have you come through. Have you traveled through Texas much?

Estelle: I've been through Dallas and Houston, as they have the two main scenes.

Crisman: I can't help but notice a very heavy, very funky jazz influence in UK hip-hop...

Estelle: It so happened that around the time that UK hip-hop finally got big, there was a lot of that style of producing that sort of roots hip-hop. I think that's where that all began.

Crisman: Ah-ha! Well, that's what I was really most curious about. Thanks so much for coming through Dallas, we hope to see you through more often.

And there you have it: My one minute and seventeen seconds with Estelle! Shortly after our conversation, she whisked away to the stage and filled the Ghostbar with her soulful, solid beats. Her music grooved in effortlessly among the urbanite crowd; it added a funky spirit that seemed to loosen up the tightly-wound Ghostbar crowd (the open Heineken bar probably didn't hurt, either). Very clever on Heineken's part to host a tour of private parties filled with avid music bloggers and fans. That's a chatty crowd, especially when we're given access to such great music (and free beer).