(ATLANTA – May 6, 2023) – BMORENews.com and BlackUSA.News will present Black Wall Street ATLANTA on May 17, 2023, from 6 to 8 pm at the Absalom Jones Center for Racial Healing, located at 807 Atlanta Student Movement Blvd., Atlanta, GA 30314.
The event will feature, as always, the Joe Manns Black Wall Street Awards as well as a presentation on Black Wall Street history from a national perspective by BMORENews publisher Doni Glover.
RSVP at https://blackwallstreetatl2023.eventbrite.com.
Honorees include Paula Campbell.
Who is Paula? (Glad you asked!)
Armed with confidence, brains, and beauty, urban/R&B songstress Paula Campbell has a story to tell. Life may have dealt this strong-willed, student of the game a questionable deck of cards, nevertheless, this gorgeous and street-smart song stylist is coming up nothing short of straight aces. Growing up in Baltimore, Maryland, Paula’s home life was anything but stable, yet she continuously kept the faith and her music expresses songs from the heart and soul of a real survivor.
Nicknamed “Sparkle” by her neighborhood peers, Paula’s journey mirrors that girl with big dreams of singing while overcoming obstacles along the way. Having been moved around throughout her adolescent and teenage years Paula’s surroundings could have easily negatively impacted her but she refused to give in to her environment.
Citing Whitney Houston, Faith Evans, and voices like Ella Fitzgerald as major musical influences, young Paula used to mimic their songs and it was their music and the music she began to create within that ultimately saved her. Before her major label signing, Paula Campbell had been pounding the pavement for several years to create opportunities for herself – from studying the LP credits of the latest artists and cold-calling A&R executives to taking label meetings to get signed.
Paula was learning about the players behind the scenes. A mainstay throughout the Baltimore/Washington, D.C. region with a penchant for penning the lyrics to her songs, Paula was voted best female vocalist and ambassador to mainstream by Baltimore City Paper. After independently releasing the single How Does It Feel, Paula found support from local radio station WERQ Baltimore where the song shot to number one for eight straight weeks. The buzz she generated led to the billboard charting regional release of her independent LP, Who Got Next.” Serving as an opening act for R&B and POP heavyweights Rihanna, Ne-Yo, Ciara, and hip-hoppers Kanye West and T.I.
Those early accolades continue to be reflected in Paula’s music, revealing with a smile, “You gotta have a hip-hop feel because in Baltimore, we’re a little rough.”
When Paula was re-introduced to the executives at Columbia Records, the timing couldn’t be more perfect. She played her hometown hits and sang a cappella for the executive team. The ink couldn’t dry fast enough. She then gained the respect of Platinum Pen Ne-Yo. Where she collaborated to make the no-nonsense, man-checkin beat balladry of Ain’t Nobody Stupid and won the Glamour Magazine music contest where superstar Ciara directed Paula’s first video.
Ne-Yo adds, “The songs I did for Paula were written for her, with her vocal style and personal swagger in mind. I dug Paula’s vibe from the first time I met her. She is who she is, in that she doesn’t try to be anything else or be like anyone else.”
Paula says “There is a difference when you get with people who’ve already done it; you learn a lot if you listen.” And listening is just what she did. NeYo agrees wholeheartedly, adding, “Paula Campbell is the voice of every woman. She’s imperfect and insecure, yet confident and strong all at the same time, she is every woman. Above all, it is, she is … real.”
Paula Campbell is very clear on her purpose. “Coming from where I’m from, what I’ve seen, and experienced has helped me understand that every moment is another chance to create opportunity.” Now independent, her singles “Good Without You” and “Shelter” have gained real recognition in the mid-Atlantic and Southern regions. Paula enjoys the opportunity to give her fans her honest feelings and thoughts through music once again.
Her new release “Girlfriend Too” gives us that round-the-way girl feeling.
It’s that telling it like it is, rainy day listening, good times making, classic sound from the heart of the creative. Paula concedes “I started Independent, singing my truth and the truth of my listeners. They appreciated that I could relate and connect with them authentically. My music is real, for real people with real-life situations. It says that it’s okay to be you! It’s okay to not be okay or to be amazingly happy and satisfied. My music is timeless, it is classic, and I am someone who will always be around”.
Paula’s new book, If He Wanted To Be There He Would (6 Steps To Push Past The Breakup) is all about healing and self-love. You can order at amazon.com.
