Singer-songwriter Corinne Bailey Rae sings at Seoul Jazz Festival

"It's like the Book of Exodus, where a drastic change follows after grief and despair, and I suddenly realize where I am and thank for it."

Dong-A Ilbo reporters met Corinne Bailey Rae, a British singer-songwriter who became famous in Korea as the role model of Korean female pop singer IU, at a hotel in southern Seoul. She recently released a new album "The Heart Speaks in Whispers" in six years, and she spoke to the reporters it felt like the new song was about her tough life.

Rae made a fancy debut in 2006 as her songs "Like a Star" and "Put Your Records On" were heard throughout the world and received praises by critics. However, while preparing for her second album in 2008 her husband passed away. After a pause, her second album "The Sea" came out in 2010, four years since her debut song, which talked about the sorrow of losing her husband. In 2013, she got remarried with Steve Brown, the producer of her 2010 album.

The song "Green Aphrodisiac" is key song in this album. Rae likened her new affectionate emotion to a green garden full of flowers. Here she sang about loss and cure, time and change, and the things that were still growing when everything was waning and getting cold.

At the Seoul Jazz Festival held on May 29 evening, she appeared on the stage and said everything surrounding here resembled the song. When Rae sang "Like a Star,” it was exceptionally quiet with some 10,000 spectators listening to her music attentively.

임희윤기자 imi@donga.com