When talent requires almost no cultivation to be complete it commands attention. Just as a seed sown on good soil germinates into a sturdy tree, so does such dexterity as demonstrated by Trebeka, a burgeoning London-based jazz singer.
Born in France to a Cameroonian father and French mother, Trebeka’s multicultural heritage seems to translate into her music as her professional background reflects various musical genres: world, African, jazz and soul.
“It’s easy for me because I am very comfortable with my mix,” she passionately explains with a thick French accent in a phone interview from France.
“It’s the best gift ever,” she adds. “I would love to be only as I am, I wouldn’t change anything. My uncle is from Cambodia, my cousins are half Cambodian and half French. It’s fantastic, I’m very proud of that.”
Without a doubt this echoes in Trebeka’s music, which is best classified as jazz, although she admits the genre was not her forte until quite recently. Some of her past associations, of mostly African artists, include: Sally Nyolo (Zap mama), Manu Dibango, Djoloff, Khaled, William Baldé, Ragga Sonic, Coco M’Bassi and Toure Kunda.
Her debut CD Willow Weep For Me, produced by Lonnie Plaxico, epitomizes her eclectic style to a great extent although its lack of original songs lessens the impact. Influences of Latin and Asian musical elements are evident, an attribute to her times spent in China and Latin America. Fluent in French, English, Spanish and Chinese, this artistic soloist plays around with all languages in her songs.
Unlike most musical singers, Trebeka, a stage name that means “brown stone” in a Cameroonian language, has had no professional training except for music classes and piano lessons received in school. The majority of her musical skills, she asserts, were adopted from people she worked with and from listening to a lot of music. It was not until the age of 15 that Trebeka formed her first band, of which she was a lead vocalist. She admits to initially being drawn to fine art, which later developed into other interests.
But to be good at any profession, giving much of one’s self is required to activate any driving force of inspiration. For Trebeka it is her interaction with her audience: “What is the most important for me is to share with people. This is what gives me a lot of joy… to have an exchange with them.”
Her interesting choice of influences – Erykah Badu, Sarah Vaughn, Manu Dibango, Angelique Kidjo, Miriam Makeba, D’Angelo and Maxwell – reveals much about her jazzy, groovy, soulful style.
And one of her inspirations, Angelique Kidjo, evokes laughter in her as she talks about the powerful voice and impact of the Grammy Award-winner’s career.
“She opened the door for a lot of vocalists and African women. We know that African singers can be famous in Africa but they can’t as well have the popularity outside of Africa. Not only in Africa can we be popular, [we can be] appreciated around the world and I think that’s what Angelique showed, with her popularity and what she’s doing and what she did and what she will be doing next.”
Sounding like a happy woman – often pausing to chuckle as she answers questions – Trebeka is a breath of fresh air in the music scene. Her sophomore album, created with original songs, is currently in the works as she promotes her debut.
She expresses: “My dream would be to be able to tour everywhere with my band and my music and to be able to perform in a maximum of places around the world, that’s what I would really love to do.”