Killer voice, strong lyrics, powerful performer = Ondee!!! This album is a collage of women's stories. I penned most of the tunes in a three month time period. Check out the stories behind the music... Stupid – Track 1 I was having tea with some friends in The Village in Nashvegas when a young woman walked in. She was loud without saying a word. She looked like she had been mauled by a wild animal but truth is - she had taken scissors and cut her garments in just the “right places”. She got what she wanted…our attention. I wanted to shake her and say, you’re STUPID! People aren’t looking at you because you are powerful and sexy; they are looking down on you, dismissing your worth. As I looked closer, I saw a frail woman, someone who had been scarred by life and was searching for love and affirmation. “Stupid” is an exhortation to American women. A song that provokes and will hopefully inspire change…Today’s society over-sexualizes, demeans, and mocks womanhood. It’s time for us to rise up, unite, and fight the system. If we want to receive honor, we must honor ourselves. If we want to be considered strong, we must display strength of character. This song is meant to be a slap in the face…wake up my sisters!!!!!! “Close your legs, open your mind!” © 2006. J.S. Avant Publishing. Problem With Me – Track 2 I have an anxious spirit, a mind that will not rest. I am ever planning for the morrow and sometimes forget to enjoy the moment. I am so blessed to have a man in my life that takes me by the hand and says, “Be still, give up the fight, all is well with the world and in our bed tonight”. © 2006. J.S. Avant Publishing. Second Thoughts – Track 3 There’s a young woman I know who recently discovered her husband was unfaithful. She has devoted her life to him, to their relationship. He betrayed her trust. They have a life, a child, a home. She is having second thoughts that he’s the one. She has to make a decision…to stay or leave. Either decision has huge consequences. Her life is forever changed. Welcome to My World – Track 4 (Watch the music video @ www.ondee.com) I wrote this song about a woman who is actually a little girl lost. She comes from a broken home and was sexually abused and neglected as a child. As a result, she is dysfunctional and refuses to grow up. “Little Girl” meets this great guy who wants to give her the world. He had a fairytale upbringing, nurturing parents, and is emotionally healthy. This song invites the suitor to look inside her world, to see how pain creates walls. Litte Girl wants to remind the suitor that she is stronger than he is because he didn’t have to endure hardship, he had it easy. Although she is ashamed of her “scars”, she is also proud of them. My hope is that this song will encourage abuse survivors to get help so they can work toward tearing down the walls that separate them from the ones that truly love them. Hope (A Daughter’s Song) – Track 5 A dear friend of mine’s father recently left her mother for another woman. They had been married for many years. She is devastated. Her father was her everything…her protector, her advisor, the one she looked up to…and now he’s gone. She doesn’t understand her feelings. She hates him for what he’s done and yet she wants him to return. This song is an admonition, a plea, a hopeful prayer. Even Though – Track 6 At first listen, most think this is a female perspective tale but it’s actually about a young man's struggle. He has chosen a woman that his family and friends refuse to accept. He loves her even though she’s abusive and is willing to give up everything for the relationship This song is his way of telling everyone that he has made his choice and is willing to accept whatever will follow…I think all of us have loved someone at some time in our lives that wasn’t right for us. Failed to Notice – Track 7 The protagonist in this song is always asking for advice but never listens, always looking for answers when they are obvious. What can you do when someone you love doesn’t want a better life? Write a song. HA! Happy – Track 8 My hubby was packing for a business trip and I was at the piano. I started thinking about how he makes me feel…“Happy” was born…I finished it before he left for the airport. I Belong to You – Track 9 I am logical, analytical, and a feminist yet I wrestle with the romantic inside of me that longs to take control of my heart and head. This song is a declaration, an admission, an acquiescence. Love reigns! Inability – Track 10 This dude thinks he’s got it going on, a real know it all. He makes an impression but not a positive one. Yes, he has an ivy-league education and the 6 figure income to prove it. And yes, he has the respect of his peers, and people hanging on his every word. But his flowery vocabulary and “knowledge” base can’t hide his emotionally and spiritually bankrupt soul… Tattooed Memory – Track 11 My father composed this brilliant piece of music and I had written a poem earlier that week entitled, “Tattooed Memory”. We put the music and words together and voila! This tune is about the wound that would heal…but one day the clouds part and you discover that you are no longer a slave to the past, to the pain. You will love again… Oh My Lord – Track 12 I wrote this song because I was disgusted at “the church” and then I started looking at my own life. I changed the lyrics to “forgive me” in the second stanza. BIO: ~Dream One afternoon, a blind man from Nashville heard Ondee sing, “I Have a Dream”. He listened quietly and then turned to her and said, “girl, you are alternative-soul”! This assessment best describes Ondee’s sound… ~Boxes of Songs Ondee grew up in the Bay Area, a community rich with diversity and culture. Ondee's upbringing contributed to her unique musical style (she calls it fusion cuisine), a style that embraces many genres including soul, power pop, gospel, rock, jazz, R&B, and folk. Both of Ondee's parents are musicians so she penned her first tune @ 3. Now she has "Boxes of Songs". ~Style Ondee’s gift for writing, unique style, and powerful voice set her apart from other artists. Ondee received her Bachelor of Arts Degree in English from California State University, Hayward. Her father, a music major, wanted her to be able to be heard "without a mic", the sign of a “true” singer. He encouraged her to blend registers, develop vocal texture, qualities, and color. “Singing came easy to me but my dad would constantly push me to expand my range and to deliver a song with power, control, and conviction”. “God gave me the gift and my parent’s cultivated it”. ~Art Ondee is known for her live emotional performances and resides in Nashvegas where she is constantly honing her craft, performing, painting, and pursuing her dream. Check out OndeeArt (canvas and handbags) @ www.ondee.com