Wes Felton aka W. Ellington Felton is the son of jazz pianist Hilton Felton, music is in his veins, Its tempting to describe Wes Felton with slashes: Hes a singer/ poet/ actor/emcee. Crowned “the future folk-soul hero” by Complex Magazine for his vocals on Prince Paul’s Politics of the Business album, Ellington is using every weapon in his arsenal to resuscitate soul music. Hes a real talented brother, a Renaissance cat, who paints, writes, does books. He’s one of those Sammy Davis, Jr. types, but on kind of a millennium style, Prince Paul says of W. Ellington Felton, or Dub Ell, as hes known in his native Washington, DC.
Felton knows that poems often make the best songs. His hip-hop rhapsodies paint vivid images that engage, and sometimes unnerve listeners. “The only thing I try to consciously do with music…is try to figure out ways to push the buttons.” And of course, he writes lots and lots of stories about lovefalling in it, getting over it, and making it work. Rather than the sappy, cliche-ridden variety, Ellington’s songs address the complexities of love in real life. On the track Love is Somethin More from his 2002 CD Soul Sonnets he admonishes, “Love is somethin more/Than love songs, love poems, and temporary highs.” People are taking his music to heart.” I get very specific comments in terms of the individual”, Felton says of his fans reactions, which range from you saved my marriage and you helped me get over a divorce.
Having performed on the Lollapalooza tour and at the Apollo Theater as a teenager, Wes Felton is as comfortable on stage with Mos Def, De La Soul, Omar and Meshell Ndegocello as he was in the smoky, candlelit cafs of his open mic days. He quickly gained a following on Washingtons poetry circuit with his confessional lyrics, quirky pitch, and spontaneous style, also shared the stage with his mentor UK Soul legend Omar. When he’s not making music, Felton commands the spotlight as a classically trained actor. He studied theater for four years at Carnegie Mellon University.
In 1999, he starred in the critically acclaimed hip-hop play Rhyme Deferred, performed at the Kennedy Center, the National Black Theater Festival, and the Nuyorican Poets Cafe. Ellington also graced the silver screen in Breakfast at Bens, part of Spike Lee’s 2000 and the most recent movie”multitudes of mercie’ that aired on BET worldwide Dec 1, 2005 where W.Elllington Felton starred as the lead in the movie (with guest apppearances by Raheem Devaughn and Malcolm-Jamal Warner) that brings AIDS awareness to the youth of today.
His critically acclaimed LP “Postcards From The Edge” features guest appearances and production by: Eric Roberson, Yahzarah, Raheem Devaughn, Kev Brown, Nick tha 1da, K’Alyn, and Wajeed of PPP.
You can hear Felton’s comedic writting skills and performance featured on Chris Rock’s “Never Scared” LP. Ironically, helped pen and perform a skit called, “Black Poet”, making fun of the torture of spoken word.
Wes Felton is extremely prolific. He’s recorded and released tens of mixtapes and independent CD projects over the years. His current CD “Imagine The Future” is his first fully produced studio album in 10 years.
Hear some of Wes Felton’s music here: http://wesfelton.bandcamp.com/
Talented man, great music, it promises a fine time.
Get your tickets here.
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