Disco Dance 11, 1989 From Miss Diva to Queen of House by Corné Klein

From Miss Diva to Queen of House
ADEVA
by Corné Klijn

About eleven years ago, the then fifteen-year-old Patricia Daniels began her musical career. After a brief stint as a singer in her father’s gospel choir, she did a number of performances in various nightclubs following a talent show. Gay friends began calling her a “Diva,” which led Patricia to consider presenting herself as “Miss Diva” should she ever break through internationally.

However, when it became clear that this breakthrough wasn’t happening as quickly as she hoped, she decided to change course and reinvented herself under the name “Adeva.”

Up until then, Adeva had been performing with long hair, high heels, and dresses. But this wasn’t the Adeva she felt like inside. She completely transformed her image and took a much more aggressive direction. Leather clothing, tight pants, and a short cropped hairstyle with her name shaved into it were to become her new trademarks.

The entire rebranding worked—and slowly began to pay off. Adeva came into contact with “Smack” productions, where she was given the chance to audition for the U.S. club hit “In and Out of My Life.” The success of that 12-inch gave Adeva—and especially her production company “Smack”—so much confidence that they decided to keep moving forward in that direction.

This recently resulted in Adeva’s debut LP on the Chrysalis label and the hits “Respect,” “Musical Freedom,” and “Warning.” With the phenomenal Paul Simpson remix of Adeva’s new single “Thank You,” the floodgates seem to have burst open, and it’s safe to say she rightfully carries the title: “Queen of House.”

The extravagant side of Adeva is perhaps exactly what made her so popular in such a short time. At first, it didn’t look like she would become the current “Queen of House.” Twenty-six years ago, she was born in a suburb of New York. She grew up in Englewood, New Jersey, among four brothers who did pretty much everything God forbade. Adeva was kind enough to copy her brothers—or make them do things they didn’t dare—so little sister ended up knowing exactly how things worked.

Adeva’s father was a minister at the local church, so it was only natural that Adeva (then still going by her real name, Patricia Daniels) would sing in the church choir. After her first “performance,” she was hooked and decided music would be her future. Meanwhile, she was studying to become a teacher and later taught for five years at a school for troubled children. She worked with kids of drug addicts, neglected children, and youth who simply refused to learn. But that wasn’t her dream. Adeva saw herself as a future star.

Friends connected Adeva with Mike Cameron and Roderick Goode of “Smack” productions. The two men gave her the chance to audition for “In and Out of My Life,” a track that later became a massive hit in the American club circuit under the New York-based Easy Street label. For the second track, they decided to record the classic “Respect.”

Record Deal

A demo tape of that track landed in the hands of Tony Humphries, who started spinning it at his club, “Club Zanzibar.” It also aired weekly in his Friday night mix show on Kiss FM. Demand for a 12-inch version grew rapidly, but when the Easy Street label refused to fund a 24-track remix of “Respect,” Adeva and her producers went in search of a new record deal. This eventually led to a deal with Chrysalis. “Respect” was remixed and climbed from the clubs into the commercial charts.

Her club tour, which showcased a full-on Adeva experience, played a major role in boosting her popularity. Just like her debut LP/CD, these shows were built around punchy, bass-heavy dance tracks. Her aggressive look only added to the excitement. In the U.S., her appearance also brought some unpleasant experiences. Her Grace Jones-style haircut and leather outfits sparked rumors that she was a lesbian. At various gay clubs in America, people would try to hit on her before and after her performances. She politely brushes off these advances by saying she’s in a great relationship and very proud of her six-year-old son, Paris—her biggest fan, next to her parents.

As her success grows, she has to spend more time away from her son. Recently, she was on a three-month tour and will soon begin her second European tour with her U.S. band, backing singers, and dancers (The Bugle Boys). During that time, Paris stays with Adeva’s parents so he doesn’t miss school.

Cheating

Sex played a major role during her tour. Her performances are not just powerful, extravagant, and aggressive—they’re also very sexy. “I love sex,” she says in various interviews. According to Adeva, her ideal man weighs about 125 kilos and swears eternal loyalty. She’s not into men who would cheat on her while she’s on tour—but then again, who is? If it does happen, she makes it clear she’s not the sweet little angel some might think. “I’m no angel.”

Her album is packed with musical highlights. Alongside her first hit “In and Out of My Life” and the hits “Respect,” “Musical Freedom” (with Paul Simpson), and “Warning,” the LP features six other tracks. Two of them are ballads: “So Right” and “Beautiful Love.” The latter was written by Adeva herself after coming up with the melody in the shower. She rushed to record a demo, which eventually turned into this beautiful ballad. In England, “Beautiful Love” is set to be released as a Christmas single.

“So Right” (98 BPM) shows that Adeva is capable of much more than just singing basic disco tracks. The saxophone solo by Russ Kip Moore is definitely worth hearing. One of the real “hardcore” house tracks is the second song on Side A, titled “Treat Me Right.” It features a Tyree-like drum sound overlaid with garage-style synths. The keyboard and drum programming were done by Troy Patterson.

Track three on Side A is Adeva’s new single/12”/CD single: “I Thank You.” The Paul Simpson “Philadelphia Mix” is expected to surpass everything she’s done before. The outlook is great—the track is an absolute banger.

Queen of House

Side B also includes “I Don’t Need You.” Along with “Treat Me Right,” it’s one of the heavy house tracks. The intro is “borrowed” from Prince’s “Black Album.” Before the beat kicks in, a vocoder voice speaks over a nervous string sample. Troy Patterson again handled the instrumentation, and Brenda Mickens provided backing vocals. The final track is “Promises.”

Adeva at her best—as the “Queen of House.” This title is a natural extension of her earlier “Queen of Garage” image. With a new tour and new single, the future looks bright for Adeva. She definitely doesn’t plan to stop at one LP/CD. She hopes to broaden her horizons by incorporating more R&B, gospel, and jazz into her music. Fifteen years from now, she still hopes to be on the scene—and she’ll still be a “Miss Diva.”