kiss of life: celebrating Sade’s birthday

flowers for the “Quiet Storm” muse

i spent this weekend cataloging my analog music collection — mainly alphabetizing my CDs and cassettes. i had already been planning to share parts of my cassette collection and my beloved Walkman¹. but upon listening to the Love Deluxe tape, i was reminded of Sade’s birthday (1/16).

some of my favorite artists are stunning, ethereal oft-reclusive iconoclasts whose sounds define a generation (think Solange, Frank Ocean, D’Angelo). Sade is no exception. she’s one of few artists who are synonymous with the “quiet storm.” she’s distinguishable and identifiable by her powerhouse contralto voice that warms you up, melts you down, then glues you back together.

Sade is also one of the most prominent artists in my collection. yes, i know that Sade is a band. but most devoted fans sit at the shrine of Helen Folasade Adu, aka Sade, the woman herself.

here’s what i have collected:

• Diamond Life CD (1984)

• Promise vinyl (1985)

• Stronger than Pride CD (1988)

• Love Deluxe cassette & CD (1992)

• Sade Lovers Rock t-shirt (not original, made in 2018)

i won’t go into detail for every album at this time, but Sade has been a consistent theme for so many chapters of my life.

when i was in elementary school in Stone Mountain, my 5th grade teacher Ms. Green would play the jazz station during class, where singles like “Smooth Operator” or “Kiss of Life” would often be in rotation.

as i got a little older, you couldn’t hop, skip, or scroll too far on certain pockets of Tumblr during the late aughties and not encounter a Sade fan edit. additionally, Sade was one of the major artists that i connected with my partner over. in a past life, he was a beat maker and one of those projects was inspired by Sade.

he had posted this on Tumblr, where we followed each other, and i listened to it the summer before we officially got together. the music he made is his story to tell, but this was one of the factors that intrigued me to want to talk to him.

my sister and i also bonded over Sade during our adolescence. when she first learned to drive, we rode around listening to “Like a Tattoo” during the sunset. such a core memory.

and of course, my sister has been plotting on taking this Sade Lovers Rock tour shirt from me. i’ve never seen Sade live, but i HAD to pick this tee up when i worked in resale.

meanwhile, i’m admiring this shirt i spotted in my brother’s closet:

“There's a quiet storm and it never felt like this before
There's a quiet storm that is you
There's a quiet storm and it never felt this hot before
Giving me something that's taboo
(Sometimes I think you're just too good for me)”

one of the only criticisms that naysayers have for Sade is that the music is boring. i definitely disagree and i would push back against anyone who says you can’t turn up to Sade. obviously not every song, but whatchu mean you not getting your whole life to “Nothing Can Come Between Us?”

this music is only boring if you need everything to be the same and can’t grasp the dynamism of this groove. the passion and yearning across the discography is enough to keep me engaged. i have to remind myself that some of y’all not real lovers.

ahead of writing this, i listened to each album in chronological order: from Diamond Life to Love Deluxe. this is a loose reinterpretation of what transpired in my head during this listening session:

• “Smooth Operator” being the first song on their debut album? they didn’t come to play.

• and i must reiterate this sentiment for Promise: “IS IT A CRIME” IS THE OPENER? and the album gets better from there? they don’t make ‘em like this anymore.

• Stronger than Pride does not get enough plays and i need to change that. it has a strong starter, plus it’s full of bangers (and i know bangers).

• Love Deluxe remains my favorite, which is probably evident by me having it in two different formats. and at the risk of sounding like a broken record, i’ll just drop the opening track here.

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i still need Lover’s Rock and Soldier of Love to complete my collection. even these latter albums meet this criteria i’ve outlined above: starting off strong sets you up for a compelling listen.

i’ve been thinking of artists that folks need to know to understand my music taste and Sade is on the “top five” list. in the future, i hope to revisit these albums on their respective anniversaries. i just had to take this moment to pay homage and give flowers to one of the greatest to ever do it.

1. next time on things i collected…