Growing up, Candice Anitra was often described by family and friends as being too blunt or harsh. Born and raised in Philadelphia, Anitra took these traits most people consider negative as compliments. “I’m direct and I just speak my mind … I don’t see the point in mincing words,” she says.
Anitra’s straightforward approach to life is what inspired her song “We Are Love” written out of dismay for California’s passage of Proposition 8. This past Valentine’s Day, Anitra teamed up with the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) and used the single in a promotional video for the organization’s Web site.
Standing up for people to have the right to love whomever they choose is something she strongly believes in. “My husband is Jewish and before 1967 we would not have been allowed to marry, because I’m a black woman,” says Anitra.
A self-described old soul, Anitra lists Bill Withers, Ella Fitzgerald and Sam Cooke among her musical inspirations. “My number one inspiration is Bill Withers … the thing that is most striking to me is that he is a storyteller and that’s what I want to be above all. I find him so inspiring,” she expresses.
Anitra says that everyone is an artist whether they realize it or not, and she uses her music as a way to promote love and inspire others to be creative. “The reason I do what I do is because I believe people should dream big. You shouldn’t limit yourself in terms of what you can do,” she advises. –cherice e. norman
