ABOVE PHOTO: Marsha Ambrosius performing at the Wolf Creek Amphitheater in 2019. (Editorial credit: Anthony J. Davis / Shutterstock.com)
By Kharisma McIlwaine
On December 15, Marsha Ambrosius returned to Philadelphia for two performances at City Winery. Ambrosius greeted a crowd of fans who were eager to sing along from the first note. She gave the audience plenty of opportunities to participate while serenading them with some of her biggest hits including, “Late Nights & Early Mornings,” “Far Away,” “Butterflies”— which she penned for the iconic Michael Jackson — the forever hilarious “Hope She Cheats,” and finished with her recently released song entitled “The Greatest.”
After Ambrosius’s first performance, she sat down with the SUN to discuss her love for Philadelphia, her current tour, and what fans can look forward to with her upcoming album.
Ambrosius — originally from Liverpool, England — moved to Philadelphia in 2000. It was here where her career truly began to blossom. Her joy at returning to the city was palpable.
“It’s nice — it feels like home still,” Ambrosius said. “There’s this part of me that’s, like, ‘Wow I grew up here. All of my formative adult years happened here.’ I take Philly with me everywhere I go now.”
Ambrosius is currently on a multiple city tour at various City Winery locations.
“It’s my first time being at this one (City Winery Philadelphia). It wasn’t here when I left,” she said. “The tour has been amazing. We started in Chicago, then St. Louis, New York… there have been so many. It’s going to end in Atlanta and we’re doing Pittsburgh tomorrow. It’s been really nice. I just love the ambiance. You get to have a nice chill dinner, drinks, vibe — and everyone is there for that type of feel. It almost feels like there’s no pressure — it’s just easy.”
Ambrosius performs two shows a night, which she attributes to her love for performance.
“It’s grueling, but you enjoy because it’s a different setting each time — an early show, late show and it’s different vibes,” she said.
Ambrosius’s band, which is comprised of three musicians on bass, drums and the piano only, amplify her musicianship with intricate and seamless transitions that blend her songs with other R&B classics.
“Ray, (bass) I’ve been playing with for over 10 years now, Darryl on drums is almost 5 or 6 years in, and Devin was introduced to me by Darryl, and this was his first time with me,” Ambrosius said. “We’ve all got this connection. We gel and we have such fun when we’re on stage with each other.”
In addition to the incredible body of work Ambrosius has already accomplished, she continues to strive to give her fans more with her next phase of music.
Ambrosius collaborated and co-produced her entire upcoming album “Casablanco” with Dr. Dre. “Casablanco” offers fans a tangible example of the endless possibilities that often come with trying new things.
“I want them to know, you can still push for more,” she said. “I feel like anyone who has followed my work, if they’ve loved me since working with Michael Jackson, or since my Floetry days, 23 years later I get to say, ‘Well, now I’m doing something again for the first time’ and that’s doing an album with Dr. Dre that we both produced together. That’s one of one — no one has done that before. [After] 23 years in the game, to be able to say you’re doing something for the first time — it’s allowing my fans and family to grow with me. I just like getting to do something new that I’m excited about and I’m excited about “Casablanco”.”
“The Greatest,” which played a pivotal role in ESPN’s Heisman trophy promotions, gave fans their first glimpse of what’s to come musically from the new album.
“It’s part of the campaign for the Heisman trophy for ESPN, so that’s how fans got to hear a taste of something new that was coming from “Casablanco” world,” she said.
Although this is not the first time Ambrosius and Dr. Dre have worked together, they are collaborating on this project in a much different capacity, and they approach it with a freedom that is refreshingly new.
“I’ve been working with Dre since 2005 or 2006.” Ambrosius said. “I want to say The Game’s “Start from Scratch” was our first affiliation. He reached out — he’d actually come to a Floetry show and pulled my manager to the side and said, ‘Hey, I’d like to bring her to the studio and see how that goes.’ From there we collaborated on different stuff. It was The Game, Busta Rhymes, and then onto the “Straight Out of Compton” soundtrack, then it was GTA and now it’s “Casablanco” during the pandemic. We’re just building and building. So, to work with him, it’s to have someone that I respect that much still want to be front row at my show. It’s a fair exchange of admiration and respect creatively for one another to be able to do something together that’s this amazing.”
“You’d have to imagine if someone with Dr. Dre’s stature and musical knowledge had a musical playground and said, “have at it, do what you will’ with every musical tool that you can put your hands on, with every piece of musical information you can muster up and make something,” Ambrosius added. “So, it was like playdough with a billionaire and that’s what the album is… musical playdough with a billionaire.”
“Casablanco” is set to be released in 2024. In the interim, follow Marsha Ambrosius across social media platforms @marshaambrosius to stay up to date on upcoming performances and the official release date.
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