Williams rose to noteriety when she joined Destiny's Child, one of the most successful female groups of all time with whom she earned a Grammy Award for "Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals" for single "Survivor".
Raised in a Christian family, Williams learned to sing in her church's choir. She later sang in a musical quartet called United Harmony alongside sister Cameron. After attending Auburn High School and being a part of the C.A.P.A (Creative And Performing Arts) program there, she pursued a degree in criminal justice at Illinois State University before leaving to pursue a career in music. Whilst touring as a backing vocalist for R&B star Monica, the opportunity arose for Williams to join Destiny's Child in 2000.
After the release and promotion of the grammy-nominated Destiny's Child album Survivor, Williams became the first member to release a solo studio album in 2002. Her debut, Heart To Yours , shot up to #1 on the Billboard Gospel Chart, where it spent a total of 46 weeks and also peaked within the top 20 of the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Albums before being listed at #6 on the year-end Gospel Albums chart. Also a critical success, the album won Williams an award for "Best Gospel Act" at the 2003 MOBO Awards. Billboard ranked Williams as the #5 Top Gospel Artist of 2002. Williams then made her acting debut in the Broadway hit, Aida, replacing R&B singer Toni Braxton; making her the first and only member of Destiny's Child to appear on Broadway.
Following the success of her debut, Michelle released her sophomore album, entitled Do You Know, in 2004 which peaked at #3 on the Billboard Christian Albums chart, #2 on the Billboard Gospel Chart and was well received by critics who lent particular praise to her songwriting ability.
In 2006, she made her television debut in the UPN comedy Half & Half, where she played the role of Naomi. In 2007, Williams returned to theatre, starring in the first US national tour of The Colour Purple alongside LaToya London and Stephanie St. James, which earned her a nomination for "Best Lead Female Actress" at the 18th Annual NAACP Theatre Awards.
Williams released her third (and first commercial pop) album, Unexpected in 2008. The highly-anticipated and critically-acclaimed pop debut features singles; "We Break The Dawn" which peaked at #47 in the UK, #38 in Hungary and #4 on the US Dance chart; "The Greatest", which topped the US Billboard Dance chart; and "Hello Heartbreak". In 2009, "The Greatest" was listed at #39 on the decade-end, 2000-2009 Billboard Dance chart, one place behind "Lose My Breath" which Williams released as a member of Destiny's Child.
In 2009 she starred in the hit West-End production of Chicago, making her the first African-American to be cast in the lead role. The following year she replaced Ashlee Simpson in the Broadway production of the legendary musical before beginning an engagement at the Pantages Theatre in Los Angeles. She further pursued acting in 2011, originating the lead role of Lena Summer in David E. Talbert's What My Husband Doesn't Know, which was released on DVD the same year.
In 2011, Williams released a collaboration with dance artist Ultra Naté titled "Waiting on You" which became her third top 20 entry on the US Billboard Dance chart where it peaked at #11.
In 2012, it was announced Williams had signed with Light Records/eOne. In 2013, Williams joined the US national tour of three-time Tony Award-winning musical Fela! and reunited with Destiny's Child at the Super Bowl XLVII halftime show.
In 2013, it was announced that Williams will star in her own reality show titled My Sister's Keeper, produced by eOne, to coincide with the release of her fourth solo album.
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2 The actress Michelle Ingrid Williams (Marilyn Monroe ) features on the soundtrack of the film My Week with Marilyn singing It's a Wrap, I found a Dream, That Old Black Magic and a medley of 'When love goes wrong, Nothin' Goes Right' & 'Heat Wave'.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Week_with_Marilyn#Music
The Incident
Michelle Williams Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Lovely summer day, humbled you come 'round this way
And I know what the people say, and I don't mind
I know it's straight insane, like Superman and Louis Lane,
No, Parker and Cole Train on a twelve bar ride
Still, you offer me this day and tearfully I hesitate
Knowing I can't repay with a thousand lives
Trying hard to explain no words I find
Still, I wanna say I love ya
I wanna tell ya; I'll tell ya, but I can't explain it (oh)
I can't explain it 'cause I don't even know why (I wanna say I need you)
I guess you notice, I guess you know everything about
Lonely for the incident at the well
Well, it's been a few years now
And, still, sometimes when I'm in a crowd
I hear some folk whisperin' loud as they pass me by
"Remember that girl Michelle?
You know, that girl from the well?"
As I picked up my pail, I can't help by smile
'Cause they don't know the half of it (hey)
They don't know how deep it is (hey)
They don't know what you did
How you took my broken heart and put it back together again
I wanna say I love ya
I wanna tell ya; I'll tell ya, but I can't explain it (oh)
I can't explain it 'cause I don't even know why (don't even know why I want to say I needed you)
I guess you notice, I guess you know everything about (oh)
Lonely for the incident at the well (at the well)
(Wanna say I love ya)
I wanna tell ya; I'll tell ya, but I can't explain it (can't explain it, no)
I can't explain it 'cause I don't even know why (I wanna say how much I needed you)
I guess you notice, I guess you know everything about (I guess you knew)
Lonely for the incident at the well
[Bridge:]
Wanna say I love you (love you)
Wanna say I needed you (needed you)
I really wanna be with you (be with you)
And if they only knew I give all breaks to you
For the things you brought me through
And just before my simple song is through (through)
Please, let me say...
(I wanna say I love ya)
I wanna tell ya; I'll tell ya, but I can't explain it (can't explain it 'cause...)
I can't explain it 'cause I don't even know why
('Cause they don't know the half of it, hey; they don't know how deep it is)
I guess you notice, I guess you know everything about (they don't know)
Lonely for the incident at the well
(What you did, and how you took my heart and put it back again, yeah!)
(Wanna say I love ya)
I wanna tell ya; I'll tell ya, but I can't explain it (can't explain it, no)
I can't explain it 'cause I don't even know why (I wanna say how much I needed you)
I guess you notice, I guess you know everything about (I guess you knew)
Lonely for the incident at the well
I wanna tell ya; I'll tell ya, but I can't explain it (but I can't explain it)
I can't explain it 'cause I don't even know why (I don't even know; I guess you knew)
I guess you noticed, I guess you know everything about (oh)
Lonely for the incident at the well
Michelle Williams's song, The Incident, is a poignant piece about an encounter that changed her life. The lyrics describe a lovely summer day when she encountered someone who offered her a day, but she hesitated to accept, understanding that she could never repay such a gift. Though she took the day, she struggled to find the words to express her gratitude, knowing that everything had changed because of this encounter. Years later, when her name is mentioned in a crowd, she reflects on how much people don't understand what happened and how deep the incident was in her life. She wants to say that she loves this person and is grateful for the way they healed her broken heart, but she can't explain it. She doesn't even know why.
On a musical level, the song is carried by its slow, mournful melody and Williams's soulful voice. The use of musical motifs, such as the repeated "I wanna tell ya…I can't explain it," adds to the song's emotional tension. The incorporation of allusions to Superman, Louis Lane, and Parker and Cole Train adds to the song's poetic quality, giving it a sense of timelessness.
Line by Line Meaning
Lovely summer day, humbled you come 'round this way
On a beautiful day, you came to me humbly
And I know what the people say, and I don't mind
I am aware of what others think and I do not care
I know it's straight insane, like Superman and Louis Lane,
I acknowledge that it is crazy, like the love story of Superman and Lois Lane
No, Parker and Cole Train on a twelve bar ride
I compare our love story to the musical style of twelve-bar blues played by Parker and Cole Train
Still, you offer me this day and tearfully I hesitate
You offer me your love, but I am hesitant to accept it
Knowing I can't repay with a thousand lives
I understand that I cannot pay you back even if I had a thousand lives
But humbly I take your name, knowing everything is changed
But I accept your love humbly, knowing that it has changed everything
Trying hard to explain no words I find
I am struggling to find the words to explain my feelings
Still, I wanna say I love ya
Despite my difficulty expressing myself, I want to say that I love you
I wanna tell ya; I'll tell ya, but I can't explain it (oh)
I want to express my love, but I cannot put it into words
I can't explain it 'cause I don't even know why (I wanna say I need you)
I am unable to explain because I do not understand my own emotions (I want to say that I need you)
I guess you notice, I guess you know everything about
I think that you have noticed and understand everything about me
Lonely for the incident at the well
I feel alone and yearn for the moment when we first met at the well
Well, it's been a few years now
It has been a few years since we first met
And, still, sometimes when I'm in a crowd
Sometimes, when I am in a group of people
I hear some folk whisperin' loud as they pass me by
I overhear people talking loudly as they pass me by
"Remember that girl Michelle?
"Do you remember Michelle?
You know, that girl from the well?"
The girl who we met at the well?
As I picked up my pail, I can't help by smile
As I remember our meeting at the well, I cannot help but smile
'Cause they don't know the half of it (hey)
They do not know the full story
They don't know how deep it is (hey)
They do not understand the depth of our love
They don't know what you did
They are not aware of what you have done for me
How you took my broken heart and put it back together again
How you repaired my broken heart and made me whole again
Wanna say I love you (love you)
I want to express my love for you
Wanna say I needed you (needed you)
I want to express how much I needed you
I really wanna be with you (be with you)
I truly want to be with you
And if they only knew I give all breaks to you
If others only knew, they would see that I would do anything for you
For the things you brought me through
For everything that you have done for me
And just before my simple song is through (through)
Just before this simple song ends
Please, let me say...
Please allow me to say...
I wanna tell ya; I'll tell ya, but I can't explain it (can't explain it, no)
I want to express how I feel, but I cannot find the right words
I guess you noticed, I guess you know everything about (oh)
I think that you have noticed and understand everything about me
What you did, and how you took my heart and put it back again, yeah!
I cannot forget what you have done and how you have fixed my heart
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: TOMMY L. SIMS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind