She absorbed musical skill early in life, encouraged by both parents: her mother, Joyce, herself a former singer, and now India Arie's stylist; and her father, former ABA and NBA basketball player Ralph Simpson (not former NBA star player Ralph Sampson, as has been mistakenly reported in some media). She had taken up a succession of musical instruments throughout her schooling in Denver, Colorado, but her interest in the guitar while attending the Savannah College of Art and Design led to a personal revelation about songwriting and performing. "When I started tapping into my own sensitivity, I started to understand people better. It was a direct result of writing songs," she said at the press release of her debut album, Acoustic Soul.
Co-founding the Atlanta-based independent music collective GroovmentEarthseed (Groovement was the collective artists' name and Earthshare was their independent label name), her one-song turn on a locally released compilation led to a second-stage gig at the Lilith Fair. Their Universal Records/Motown music scout spotted her and made an introduction to Motown CEO Kedar Massenburg. Sidestepping all the devices of flavor-of-the-month record-making, Acoustic Soul acquainted listeners with a brave and eloquent new voice, drawing an uncommonly broad swath of listeners from hip-hop, the so called neo-soul, blues, folk, and classic troubadour-style singer/songwriting, all at once. The album, released in 2001, debuted at number ten on the U.S. Billboard 200 albums chart and number three on the R&B album chart. Within months, without the concentrated radio play that typically powers pop and rap albums, Acoustic Soul was certified double-platinum.
India.Arie also features on Stevie Wonder's album A Time To Love which was released on October 18, 2005. India.Arie and Stevie Wonder duet on the title track "A Time To Love" that India wrote, which was nominated in the 2006 forty-eighth Grammy Awards, for Best Pop Vocal Collaboration with Vocals.
On the September 2005 premiere of The Tyra Banks Show, Arie performed "Just 4 2day". She wrote this song especially for Tyra's show. Arie also wrote "What About the Child", a song that did not air but was made available as a $1 internet download to support child victims of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
Voyage to India
India.Arie followed the success of her debut in 2002 with the release of Voyage to India. Debuting at number six on the Billboard 200 and number one on the R&B chart, the album eventually earned a 2003 Grammy for Best R&B Album. The single "Little Things" also won a 2003 Grammy for Best Urban/Alternative Performance. Soon after its release, Voyage to India was certified gold; and it was certified platinum on Friday 4 August 2006.
Testimony: Vol. 1, Life & Relationship
India.Arie's third studio album, Testimony: Vol. 1, Life & Relationship, was released on June 27, 2006. Testimony: Vol. 1, Life & Relationship gave India.Arie her first number-one on the Billboard 200 and was her second chart-topper on the U.S. R&B album chart. This album was also the first #1 album for the Motown record label in 33 years since Diana Ross's #1 Lady Sings the Blues Its first week sales of 161,000 copies is Arie's best sales week to date and was certified gold on Friday, August 4, 2006.
Testimony: Vol. 2, Love & Politics was released on Tuesday, February 10, 2009.
Songversation (2013)
Christmas with Friends (2015)
Worthy (2019)
Beautiful
India.Arie Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm gonna pack my bags
And take that journey down the road
'Cause over the mountain I see the bright sun shining
But I want to live inside the glow, yeah yeah
I want to go to a place where I am nothing and everything
That exists between here and nowhere
The sky opens to my prayers
I want to go to beautiful, beautiful, beautiful
I want to go to beautiful, beautiful, beautiful
I want to go to beautiful, beautiful, beautiful
I want to go to beautiful, beautiful, mmm
Please understand that it's not that I don't care
But right know these walls are closing in on me
I love you more than I love life itself
But I need to find a place where I can breathe
I can breathe
I want to go to a place where I can hold the intangible
And let go of the pain with all my might
I wanna to go to a place where I'm suspended in ecstasy
Somewhere between dark and light
Where wrong becomes right
I want to go to beautiful, beautiful, beautiful
I want to go to beautiful, beautiful, beautiful
I want to go to beautiful, beautiful, beautiful
I want to go to beautiful, beautiful, beautiful, ah
Beautiful
India.Arie's song "Beautiful" is about the desire to escape the struggles of everyday life and find a place of peace and happiness. The singer expresses her need to pack her bags and journey down a road to where she can live inside the glow of a bright sun shining over the mountain. She wants to find a place where she is nothing and everything, where time has no consequence and where the sky opens up to her prayers. She longs to go to a beautiful place where the intangible can be held and the pain can be let go of with all might.
The second verse of the song reveals that the singer still cares about the people in her life even though she feels like the walls are closing in on her. She loves them more than she loves herself, but still needs to find a place where she can breathe. She seeks a place suspended in ecstasy, somewhere between dark and light, where wrong becomes right. This place is described as beautiful in the song's chorus which is repeated several times throughout the track.
Line by Line Meaning
The time is right
It is the ideal moment to embark on a journey.
I'm gonna pack my bags
I will prepare myself to leave and start fresh.
And take that journey down the road
I will go down the path that leads to new beginnings.
'Cause over the mountain I see the bright sun shining
There's hope and positivity in the future.
But I want to live inside the glow, yeah yeah
I want to immerse myself in the positive energy.
I want to go to a place where I am nothing and everything
I want to find a place of self-discovery and self-realization.
That exists between here and nowhere
It's somewhere undefined and beyond the physical reality.
I want to got to a place where time has no consequence and oh yeah
I want to escape the limitations of time and space.
The sky opens to my prayers
I want to find a place where I can connect with the divine.
Please understand that it's not that I don't care
I care deeply, but I also need to take care of myself.
But right now these walls are closing in on me
I feel trapped and suffocated by my current situation.
I love you more than I love life itself
My love is profound, but I still need to prioritize my wellbeing.
But I need to find a place where I can breathe
I need to find a place where I can relax and find inner peace.
I want to go to a place where I can hold the intangible
I want to find a place where I can embrace the mystical and transcendental.
And let go of the pain with all my might
I want to release the burdens of past hurt and trauma.
I wanna to go to a place where I'm suspended in ecstasy
I want to experience a state of pure bliss and joy.
Somewhere between dark and light
In a space that is both mysterious and enlightening.
Where wrong becomes right
In a place where there is no judgment or negativity.
I want to go to beautiful, beautiful, beautiful
I want to find a place of beauty and wonder.
I want to go to beautiful, beautiful, beautiful
I want to immerse myself in the positive energy of this place.
I want to go to beautiful, beautiful, beautiful
I want to find peace and happiness in this beautiful place.
I want to go to beautiful, beautiful, mmm
I want to find myself in this beautiful, transcendent space.
Beautiful
Beauty with all its wonder, free from the confines of reality.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Songtrust Ave, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: BLUE MILLER, INDIA ARIE, INDIA ARIE SIMPSON, KERISHA HICKS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind