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| Mica Millar- A Little Bit of Me - Golden Hour Music |
I am not often smitten, but the British soul/jazz/R & B vocalist Mica (pronounced Meekah) Millar has grabbed me with her latest A Little Bit of Me. The album is self-produced on her label Golden Hour Music and will be on June 5, 2026. Once you get your hands on this music, I predict you will find yourself repeatedly playing this one because you can't get this captivatingly compelling voice out of your head.
Born in Withington, a southern suburb of Manchester, England,
this thirty-two-year-old chanteuse absorbed some of the best of soul, R &
B, jazz, Motown, gospel and blues that was happening when she was as a young
girl. She has taken all those influences-inspired by identifying with artists
like Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, Etta James, Tracy Chapman and Prince- added
her own Manchester grit, and out comes something that’s rooted in the
tradition but is all Millar’s own. Her father was a drummer, and her mom was
involved in the public relations side of music. She clearly had the music in
her DNA from an early age. This woman stands all of five feet five inches tall, but has a voice that projects elements of soul, emotional R & B, gospel and bluesy grit with aplomb and power. She once reflected
“I wasn’t really a
very good singer when I was a kid. That’s the truth of the matter. But I had passion.
I had a very loud voice. I could project for a very small person.” (*)
That humble self-assessment doesn’t do justice to Millar’s talent.
Her emotionally charged voice and the visceral connection she establishes with listeners is what makes this vocalist different.
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| Mica Millar at the Jazz FM Awards where she won "Soul Act of the Year 2022" Award. |
In her early twenties, Millar was on her way to becoming a premier soul and R & B singer on Great Britain. By 2017, she was playing mostly local gigs around her hometown Manchester surrounding area including a short stint with the group Red Sky Noise. Initially she sang her own compositions solo and released some on social media where she started to be noticed. She released the sparse, piano accompanied single “My Lover” and “Not the First” with some backup vocals in 2017. The Portishead-like single, “The Defender,” was well received in 2018. Mica Millar was an artist that clearly was a force to be reckoned with.
Then in January of January 2020, her health and career were
seriously challenged by a terrible accident. While working on developing trampoline
skills, she tragically took a terrible fall and broke her back. It was a serious,
terrifying injury that required her back to be surgically pinned permanently with
metal fasteners. As with many spinal injuries,
there is always the possibility of partial or full paralysis that loomed over
the young singer. Millar always sang with strength and conviction as her voice
projected from her diaphragm. A serious back injury could have ended the
vocalist’s career just when her talent was being more widely recognized.
Although paralysis was thankfully not part of her path, any physical impairment
would require months of rest and dedicated rehabilitation.
“My fracture from the accident was dangerously close to
my spinal cord-I’m incredibly lucky not to be paralyzed.” “One of my vertebrae was entirely crushed
and I had metalwork put in. Not that long after the op’, while it is incredible
pain I can’t describe, you are up to walk after a week or so, and they don’t
want you to be laying down for long as your muscles deteriorate…” (*)
Her voice would be another X factor until she had a chance to rebuild her strength. Her career was temporarily at a standstill. Millar was forced to regroup, rebuild, and recover.
After battling the restrictions of Covid and her own arduous
rehabilitation, Millar got a chance to work on her recovery album, Heaven Knows.
The album was released in June of 2022, a statement that represented what she
was feeling at that time. Thankful, hopeful and I’m back! It was a hit! Millar was able to record it at
Abbey Road Studios in London with the legendary Goeff Pesche and she assembled
a great group of backing musicians. The album featured a strong Millar who composed
and sang fourteen songs that proved this woman was back and in fine form. “Preacher
Man,” a single from the album which showcased her gospel inspired talents, kept
her music in front of her ever-building fan base as the album gained greater exposure and accolades.
Fast forward as the world anxiously awaits the release of
Millar’s latest A Little Bit of Me which is scheduled to be
released on June 5, 2026, on her Golden House Music label. I have had this
record for about a week, and I can’t tell you how much I have spun this one over,
and over, and over again. I am mostly a jazz reviewer and for me to be captured by
this soul/jazz/Motown/gospel/blues inspired record both delights and surprises
me. Millar’s voice is hypnotizing. She
projects with strength and conviction a little like Sarah Vaughan did with jazz,
a little gritty like Etta James did with blues or like Aretha did with Soul and
R & B , the listener gets grabbed
and trapped into the web Millar spins with genuine joy and steadfast faith. If you are looking for a success story to cheer for, Mica Millar's return to full strength certainly meets that criteria.
There is something here for almost anyone who just wants to
lay back with their headphones and soak it all in. The opening album title cut “A Little Bit of
Me” has a soulful groove that has Millar and her excellent back up singers, Amber
Kuti-Smith and Ellie Hulme, make this an easy listening. Millar voice is strong
and soulful. The backing duo fit her voice like a custom made glove. “Times Like These” have some elements of neo-country, with Millar finding some country in her voice and with a twangy
slide guitar line, probably by Adam Smith, that warms your heart, cozy up to a fire and grab your Tony Lama boots.
One of my favorite is slow burning “Under My Skin” which features
Millar’s expressive, soulful voice, backed by some stellar backing voices like Kuti-Smith
and Hulme, and some excellent section horn work by Kenyon Harold (trumpet/arrangement),
Tiivon Pennicott (saxes), and Hamilton Hardin (assorted horns) that complete
the feel. This one smolders like a glowing ember. Sizzling, look but don’t touch!
The album continues to the funky “Warning Sign,” the rousing
“It’s You” and the strutting, barrelhouse “The Broadway” with its horn section
work and its “maybe later we can get undressed” line, all satisfying offerings.
Have a listen to Millar’s “A Little More Time for Love” with
featuring some of Danielle Weatherspoon’s B3 organ lines and some of Pennicott’s
baritone sax accents. The production and musicianship on this album is fantastic.
If you love well harmonized voices in the Motown tradition
you can’t miss “If You Stay.” Millar’s
voice is stage front and beautifully present as the two backup voices plus
Simon Dale, weave the harmony to perfection. Guitarist Smith adds tasty lines,
as Jay White’s bass and Marcus Finnie’s trap work and holds the pace with
precision.
· There is plenty more to enjoy, from “My Joy,” to
“See You On the Other Side” and “Hard Times” or like the gospel driven “Oh
Freedom,” but you need to find your favorites and get the music to get into
your blood and percolate. The album finishes with the sauntering soulful “Hand on
My Soul” and poignant torch song “When You’re Gone.” It’s great to hear that Mica
Millar is growing better and stronger and she delivers in spades with her latest
A
Little Bit of Me.
(((*) The quotes were taken from Steve Best's article "From Horror to Heaven-Meet Stunning Soul Diva Ms. Mica Millar" in Music Republic Magazine which you can read here.)