MUSIC

“Rawness improbably balanced by a mixture of danger and delicacy,” says one Rolling Stone writer, “is what gives Citizen Cope his edge. As a singer, songwriter and producer, he stands alone—an artist immune to corruption.”

While making records over the past decade, Cope has wrestled with a number of record companies. They have loved him, rejected him, readopted him, and ignored him. Listening to his uncompromised songs—to the tough integrity in his voice—it’s not surprising to learn that he hasn’t hesitated to go over the heads of the music execs. From the get-go, he has taken his case to the people. He has toured tirelessly. He has brought his stories—with a band or simply with his guitar—to whatever venue would have him. His motivation to make music directly in front of people, so matter the size of the crowd, has won his a vast audience in America and abroad. As a troubadour, he has prospered, relentlessly criss-crossing the land, his songs in his back pocket.

In fact, with The Rainwater LP, his self-reliance has been realized in the form of his own independent label. Citizen Cope is a self-realized musical/poetic/production entity. In that sense, his Americanism is profound. His approach is radical. His accountability is to his own heart, his own values and vision. Cope’s a one-man band, trying to make sense of all the nonsense that marks the 21st Century.