Citizen Cope’s alternative folk rock has been a tonic for weary souls for the past 20 years, allaying troubles with cooled down, percussion-driven ballads and even-tempered storytelling.
Singer-songwriter Clarence Greenwood, the man behind Citizen Cope’s music that traverses elements of blues and hip-hop, returns to the Holy City on May 4 to perform at the Charleston Music Hall ahead of the release of his new album, Victory March.
The seven songs on the new album unwind in a peaceful sonic landscape, guide-posted by Greenwood’s iconic voice. The new single, “Ms. Prado (Rest My Eyes on You),” is an echoing, aching ode. He sings: “I tried to keep my distance / But this passion won’t cool / I had to be your witness / They don’t recognize you / The way my fingers paint your body / Don’t they draw the truth?”
Thinking back to the beginning of his love for music, Greenwood said he was just drawn to certain songs, listening to them over and over again, never thinking he would make them himself.
“I never imagined that it was going to be something that I did for a living because there was so much mystery,” Greenwood told the Charleston City Paper. “And when I was really young in junior high school, there were some really good musicians. We would have assemblies in Washington D.C. and they would play, and I thought it was more of a prodigious, anointed thing. I still think it is an anointed thing, but everyone has their different strengths — mine was more in songwriting, and I had to live a little life to be able to do that.”
Finding his strength
He started writing poetry when he was about 18 after the loss of a close family member, before learning how to sample and structure songs on a Roland R-8 drum machine in his early 20s and develop his skills on the guitar.
“I just started writing some poetry, and the pen didn’t stop,” he said. “I was like, ‘Wow, this is really weird.’ It made sense. I hadn’t been particularly good at anything. I was a decent writer — but then when the words came for songwriting, it kind of led me to where I am now. There was a moment where the words just came that I wasn’t responsible for.”
His influences ranged from 1990s hip-hop such as A Tribe Called Quest and KRS-One to Bill Withers, Randy Newman, Stevie Wonder and Bob Marley.
“When I was a kid early on, I went through the whole classic rock stuff — Neil Young and Rolling Stones and The Doors. Hip-hop had a point of view that I connected with because you could portray a more current theme of the American situation,” he said, “and I ended up listening to — to broaden my scope — Miles Davis and John Coltrane and other jazz artists.”
Although he was born in Memphis, Tennessee, Greenwood was raised primarily in Washington D.C. He did two years at Texas Tech University before he left to pursue recording music. Before he signed with DreamWorks to release his self-titled EP Citizen Cope in 2002, he was buying and selling tickets to concerts and sporting events.
“It allowed me the time to develop my art, so I jumped into that,” he said. “I started doing open mics and realized that I had to perform, because I didn’t think I would want to perform. I just really got into it to write and produce. But I didn’t have anyone to write and produce for, so I had to write and produce for myself. Then I started doing shows, and got involved with a group that was signed and toured and got a little taste of that. I started shopping all my demos, getting turned down everywhere. Then one thing led to another.”
Over the subsequent years Greenwood collaborated with Carlos Santana, Sheryl Crow and Dido. Richie Havens released a cover of Citizen Cope’s song “Hurricane Waters” in 2008. By 2010, two self-produced albums later, he established his label Rainwater Recordings to continue to release records. Fast forward to today, and Greenwood is about to put out his eighth studio album.
“The Victory March — I like to say it’s embracing the gift of life,” Greenwood said. “The last record [The Pull of Niagara Falls] was initially called Shotguns, and it was about the fear of American culture. Victory March, it’s a bit more about the zest for life — acceptance of what is good and appreciation for the gift.”
He said music is a kind of spiritual mentor that has helped him tap into his purpose.
“Music — it’s something that accepted me, and I think it is a teacher, a life teacher,” he said. “Everybody’s music has the potential to help and heal people, to change people’s perspective and introduce them to other cultures and other beliefs, which is the start of being able to get some freedom within yourself. If people can change themselves, the world can change.”
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