Everyday Creation
This show has to do with different kinds of creation: human, divine, and a third kind that connects the two. Our human creativity is easy to talk about because clearly we're prolific creators. We make music, we write, we cook; we establish businesses, we design gardens, we invent things. The list goes on and on. Another kind of creation is divine. We feel its presence when, for example, we contemplate birth, death, our life purpose, or have a quiet realization that there's something bigger than us. The third kind is perhaps the most difficult to grasp and yet with a little practice, it's easy to put into action. This is the personal power each of us has to direct our thoughts, words and actions toward what we want in our lives, rather than what we don't want. Do we want a better life, a kinder world? Let's begin with what we think, say and do. That doesn't seem like much, but it is.
Thank you for following Everyday Creation, a podcast featuring interviews with creative individuals; short, illuminating tributes to creatives who have passed away; and essays about personal power.
I'm Kate Jones, host and creator of Everyday Creation. Feel free to reach me at k.jones.everydaycreation@gmail.com.
Everyday Creation
Songwriter Tyka Nelson Performed Her Own Work and Didn't Ask Her Famous Sibling for Any Help
Tyka Nelson, Prince's younger sister, began writing songs at age 10. She and her brother wrote together when they were young, but later on, Nelson chose to establish her own identity.
She released four solo albums with moderate success on the R&B charts but was primarily a songwriter. She enjoyed singing, she said, but did not consider herself a singer.
Her most successful single was "Marc Anthony's Tune" from her "Royal Blue" album, released in 1988. The song reached #33 on Billboard's R&B chart. To listen to it, you can go here. In the comments, one person wrote, "R.I.P. Tyka! Thank you for such a perfect song!"
"L.O.V.E.," also from "Royal Blue," charted at #52.
Her other albums were "Yellow Moon, Red Sky" (1993); "A Brand New Me" (a gospel album, 2008) and "Hustler" (2011).
After Prince's death, she and her half-siblings maintained his legacy, helping to manage his estate and transforming Paisley Park into a museum.
The image in this episode's thumbnail is the cover art for her song "End of the Road," available on Apple and Amazon Music. You can hear a preview by going to the Apple Music website.
To learn more about Nelson, go to her official site.
This tribute is one of 41 stories that Sheldon Zoldan, a longtime journalist, has written and recorded in honor of the music notables who passed away in 2024. He's written tributes for other years as well. You can listen to the ones from 2023 on Everyday Creation. We'll have the 2022 tributes available later this year.
Sheldon also is the creator of Song of the Day, a story that he sends by email to a list of subscribers. To get on his subscriber list, email shzoldan@comcast.net with the subject line ADD ME TO SOTD.
This is Kate Jones. Thank you for listening to Everyday Creation, available on YouTube and in podcast directories including Apple, Audible, iHeart and Spotify.
Sheldon:
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There's a good chance that Tyka Nelson wouldn't
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be a Song of the Day tribute if
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she wasn't the only sibling of Prince.
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Nelson released four albums as a solo artist,
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but they only had mid-level success
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on the rhythm and blues charts.
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Nelson died November 4 at a hospital in
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Robbinsdale, Minnesota.
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No cause was given. She was 64.
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Nelson was Prince's younger sister
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by two years.
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They grew up in a musical family. Their
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dad was a jazz pianist and their mom
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a jazz singer.
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Nelson told the city paper in Minneapolis
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that she started writing songs when she was
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10,
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and she didn't collaborate with her brother since
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they were young.
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She wanted to be known for her work
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and didn't want help from him.
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She released her first album, "Royal Blue," in
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1988.
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She recorded "Yellow Moon, Red Sky" in 1993,
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"A Brand New Me," a gospel album, in
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2008,
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and "Hustler" in 2011.
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None of the albums shook up the recording
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world.
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Nelson didn't consider herself a singer.
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"I'm a writer. I just happen to be
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able to sing. I enjoy singing," she said
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in a Minneapolis Star Tribune interview last year.
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She spent most of her time after her
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brother's death taking care of his legacy.
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She and her five half-siblings gained control
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of Prince's estate.
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She helped turn his home, Paisley Park, into
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a museum.
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Nelson was scheduled to hold a retirement
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concert in June,
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but she canceled it because of health issues.
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"Marc Anthony's
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Tune" was from her first album, "Royal Blue."
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It was her most successful single,
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reaching number 33
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on Billboard's
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R&B chart.
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"L.O.V.E." from the same album
"
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was her only other record to chart.
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It reached number 52.
Kate:
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That was Song of the Day creator Sheldon
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Zoldan,
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and I'm Kate Jones, host of Everyday Creation.
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Thank you for joining us today.
