Janelle Monáe covers the Summer 2009 issue of Paper Magazine.
Excerpt:
“I try not to get too caught up in who I am,” says Janelle Monáe, her signature hairdo a wedge of nappy-chic, small legs crossed primly, hands clasped at the knee as if she were sitting at a tea party for the queen. “I try to find that balance of taking care of self and being selfless. [But] I do find comfort in embracing things that might make others feel a little uncomfortable.” Yeah, that comes across. Since the 2007 release of her debut EP, Metropolis Suite I of IV: The Chase, Atlanta-based singer and performance artist Janelle Monáe has been producing wildly unleashed conceptual music, if not especially of the sing-along-in-the-car variety, and serving up live shows that seldom fail to arouse genuine astonishment and admiration from fans and critics alike. She is a psycho-inferno of talent with Tasmanian Devil energy, ferocious charisma and big ideas. Trust me, you’re gonna want this one on your team come the apocalypse.
Read more at papermag.com
