Nathalie Natiembe
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Nathalie Natiembe

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Nathalie Natiembe is not your run-of-the-mill musician

Nathalie Natiembe is not your run-of-the-mill musician – The African singer/songwriter creates a blend of rock, funk, and traditional music from her home country, La Reunion (a French island located in the Indian Ocean, with a large African population), that defies genre and language boundaries to wow her audiences.

 

Arriving on our shores for the Womadelaide festival this week, Nathalie has been busy preparing for the trip. When I speak to her, she is organizing her luggage for the journey. "I’m in La Reunion, packing and getting ready," she tells me. "I’m flying out on Thursday [in a week], and I’m still finishing my costumes for the stage!"

Nathalie’s performances are full of colour and vibrancy, influenced heavily by her culture and the traditional music of her people. A large part of that is the language she uses – most of Nathalie’s songs are sung in Creole, the language used most frequently in La Reunion, as well as some French.

Nathalie doesn’t feel that singing in a different language affects her performances overseas, though. "When I play in France and sing in Creole, people don’t understand the language either, so being in a different country doesn’t make much difference," she explains. "Enjoying my music isn’t just about understanding it, it’s about the sound of the music, my voice and how they get mixed together."

However, she has managed to find a way around the language barrier. "Before I start a song, I give a summary of the story of the lyrics, so people know what it’s about."

This is what makes Nathalie’s shows part-gig and part-theatre, as the audience is invited into her stories and inspirations and are then able to see them come to life through music.

With the vast array of musical genres that Nathalie dabbles in, it would be expected that she would have a favorite. In fact though, Nathalie loves all music equally.

"There’s no specific style of music that I enjoy more than the other, I just play depending on what inspires me. Right now, I’m really into soul and blues music from the 1930’s, and that’s what my next album will be focusing on," Nathalie says.

Her fourth album will hopefully be released later this year and has a distinctly different vibe to her previous three.

"The reason why my music is changing is that I recently lost a parent, and it’s making me think about things differently," she explains. "But, of course, I will still play some funk and rock music."

With her complex style, her vibrant live sets, and, let’s face it, her stunning personality, it’s hard not to get excited about Nathalie’s visit. Luckily, she feels the same way. "I’m really looking forward to coming back to Australia. I have a bit of a flutter in my tummy I’m that excited!"

Nathalie Natiembe will be performing her Womadelaide sideshow at the Toff In Town this Thursday March 17. Tickets are available through Moshtix and for more information see thetoffintown.com.

BY ZOYA PATEL