Colors of the Wind - Ashanti featuring Lil' Sis Shi Shi

Say happy birthday to JUDY KUHN who was born fifty years ago on this day! Judy Kuhn, as many of you know, provided the singing voice for Pocahontas in Pocahontas and its sequel, Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World. To celebrate her birthday, I am posting a cover of one of Judy's songs, Colors of the Wind, this time performed by R&B/pop singer ASHANTI and her little sister Shi Shi.

Ashanti was one of those kids who was born to sing. Before she hit high school she had recorded a demo and set it to all the major record labels. But after a failed attempt to launch a career with P. Diddy's Bad Boy Records and Jive Records she decided to focus on high school. A smart move, returning to a normal life and taking some time to grow up before being thrown into the world of entertainment because very soon her whole life was going to change.

In 2001 Ashanti started singing background vocals for many big name stars. It wasn't long before her talent was noticed and she was featured on Fat Joe's What's Luv? and Ja Rule's Always on Time, two songs that hit #1 and #2 respectively in 2002, making Ashanti the first female to occupy the top two positions on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart!

So naturally, this was noticed by record execs and later that year she was in the studio recording her first album. The self-titled album, Ashanti, was released in April 2002, debut at number 1 on the R&B charts where it stayed for a few weeks, and sold over 504,000 thousand in its first week, making it the most successful first week debut sales for any female R&B artist! The album went on to win a Grammy for Best Contemporary R&B Album and has since gone triple platinum.

It comes as no surprise that everyone wanted a piece of the pie, including Disney who asked Ashanti to record Colors of the Wind for DISNEYMANIA. As far as covers go, this one is pretty dull. It doesn't at all give any clue to the amount of talent in Ashanti's voice. And her little sister Shi Shi is not that great of a singer. If you are hearing Ashanti for the first time with this song, please don't judge her. Check out some of her other work.

Ashanti's career has stayed strong since her debut and now she is getting into the acting career (one of her first roles was Dorothy Gale in Disney's The Muppets' Wizard of Oz). She has her fourth album coming out in a few weeks.

Don't forget that DISNEYMANIA 6 hits the stores today! I'll post a track from it as soon as I get a copy of my own.

Colors of the Wind Ashanti feat. Lil' Sis Shi Shi 2002

Labels: ashanti, colors of the wind, disneymania, pocahontas, pop

  ¶ 7:16 AM