The mother of neo-soul, constantly reinventing itself since 1993's Plantation Lullabies, Meshell Ndegeocello remains a rare bird in the American musical landscape, inspiring the likes of Bilal and Solange with her shadowy phrasing. A bassist, singer and woman of sensual, minimal and cathartic funk, playing with all the nuances of Great Black Music, Meshell Ndegeocello's chiaroscuro voice delivers a concentrated groove against a backdrop of distortion and haunting motifs.