As of lately, the transatlantic duo of Nicole Wray and Terri Walker, better know as Lady, have been generating quite a bit of buzz for their brand of unfiltered, honest, and uplifting soul music. The song, Get Ready, taken from their self-titled LP, is one of the best examples of their truly unique sound. It's driving rhythm, which falls somewhere in-between William DeVaughn's "Be Thankful For What You've Got" and that N.W.A song that samples William Devaughn "Be Thankful For What You've Got", is the perfect backdrop for Nicole and Terri's raw vocal stylings and positive message. The B-side is a masterful remix by NYC reggae super dude, Victor Axelrod, a.k.a Ticklah. All that remains of the original are the vocals, the rest is replayed and reprogrammed. The result is a song that sounds like a classic reggae tune that could of been cut on the same day and in the same studio as Johnny Osbourne's "We Need Love". This is not a remix in today's sense of the word, this is a version. This 45 is special….do yourself a favor and buy it…you'll be glad you did.
Nicole Monique Wray (born May 2, 1981), also known as simply Nicole, is an American R&B and hip hopsinger. Her 1998 debut single "Make It Hot" was certified gold.
Wray was born in Salinas, California on May 2, 1981, and raised in Portsmouth, Virginia. After being introduced to Missy Elliott, Wray was featured on Missy's platinum certified debut Supa Dupa Fly. When Elliott started her own label, The Goldmind, the then 17-year-old Wray was the first artist signed.[2]
In 1998, her debut album Make It Hot was released. Heavily criticized for Elliott's heavy-handed involvement (she produced, wrote, and performed on much of the album)[2] the first single, "Make It Hot", peaked at number five on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and was certified gold.[3] Her second single, "I Can't See", reached number 36 on the Rhythmic Top 40 chart.[4]Make It Hot peaked at number nineteen on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart (number 42 on The Billboard 200) and dropped off by the end of the year.[5][6] The third single, "Eyes Better Not Wander", peaked at number 71 on the BillboardHot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.[7] Later that year, Wray would sing the hook to "All n My Grill" on Missy Elliott's platinum certified second album, Da Real World.
In July 2001, Nicole released "I'm Lookin'", the first single from her planned second album Elektric Blue.[8] "I'm Lookin'" peaked at number 66 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart,[9] but the album would never see the light of day.
After amicably parting with The Goldmind, Wray was sought after to feature vocals on various albums and soundtracks. She would go on to sign a new album deal and under the guidance of Damon Dash was featured on Cam'ron's gold certified 2004 release, Purple Haze. Later that year she released the single, "If I Was Your Girlfriend" from her scheduled Roc-A-Fella Records debut and sophomore studio setLoveChild.[10] Though garnering some buzz, there ultimately was not enough push to release the album. After the temporary halt of Roc-A-Fella, LoveChild would suffer the same fate as its predecessor.
Wray moved through the Dame Dash Music Group, and also Channel 7 Records, with nothing to show but several guest vocal appearances.
Still maintaining her work relationship with Damon Dash, Wray joined The Black Keys rock/hip-hop collective Blakroc, and was a major vocal contributor to the group's self-titled November 2009 debut. Wray was then enlisted to add her background vocals on The Black Keys' seventh studio LP, Brothers, which was released in May 2010.
In 2012, Nicole teamed up with fellow soulstress Terri Walker to form retro-soul duo Lady. They were signed to Truth and Soul Records and their self-titled debut album was released on March 5, 2013.
Walker, born in the Wimbledon district of London, England, to Jamaican parents, but moved to Regensburg, Bavaria, Germany, when she was four. She speaks fluent German. In a 2007 interview with Soul Culture, Walker stated that "I love Deutschland, it's moulded me into what I am. I love here [London] too and I came back to go to boarding-school in London when I was 11. The thing is I still lived in Germany and didn't actually come back proper till I was 17″. At the age of seventeen, Walker moved back to the UK permanently to study at the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts in London, which is a performing arts centre of excellence. Here, she began to study and sing opera. Walker stated that "I started to study opera when I was about 15 and I started to sing it professionally from about 18. It was always a life-long ambition of mine. I think classical training is the best kinda training you can get."[2]
Walker began working on music independently providing vocals for garage artists such as 187 Lockdown and TNT. Walker also provided vocals on the Shanks & Bigfoot album Swings and Roundabouts, most notably on the UK top 20 hit "Sing-A-Long".
During this time she was introduced to producers James Yarde, Sammy Jay and Amber Rene of Xosa entertainment. Walker traveled to LA to record some demo tracks and after returned to the UK, continuing her attempts at landing a deal. Receiving her demos from L.A, months later, Walker's UK management sent the recordings to labels in the U.S., who requested to see her. However, due to 9/11, this was delayed. Def Jam were one of the labels to which they had sent Walker's demos and her management contacted their UK offices who signed her to Def Soul UK.
