Featured Artist of the Month        
Castella

Award-winning vocalist Castella made her radio debut in April 2020 with the release of her original song No Ordinary Love. Hailing from Long Beach, California, Castella has sang her entire life. She was inspired to become a songwriter by her mentor, Darryl Swann. Unknowing to Castella, this little project would turn into the fulfillment of unrealized dreams of sharing her gifts with the world. 

In the early 1980s, a second cohort of artists emerged on the iconic Philadelphia International Records. The Jones Girls came from Detroit and a career mostly in the background to become the label’s focus female group. Songwriter/producer Dexter Wansel, with a sense of both jazz fusion and nontraditional instrumentation, helped PIR progress into the 80s with a sound that was edgier and certainly hipper. Their marriage resulted in a string of memorable songs, perhaps none more iconic than the jazzy, eclectic “Nights Over Egypt.”

We’re now four decades on, and a new generation of stars is embracing the classic sounds of Detroit, Philadelphia, and Memphis from days past. And that includes SoulTracks Readers’ Choice Awards nominee Castella, fresh off her hits “I Saw You” and “Intoxicated Love.” The immediate target of her affection? “Nights Over Egypt,’ which has become an instant worldwide hit over the past few weeks.

Working with longtime producers Darryl Swann and Jeff Canady, Castella presents a fresh take on the classic that maintains its jazzy foundation but a more muscular arrangement, with an organic wall of sound and the expressive flute of Ragan Whiteside replacing the more electronic original. And Castella’s always-powerful vocals are right on point.