A & E

Citizen Cope apparently has confused more than a few radio programmers -- not to mention music fans -- who struggle to pin down his music stylistically.

The only thing that's difficult for Cope himself to understand, though, is why people find his music so tough to define and embrace.

"I guess it's been a blessing and a curse," Cope says of his sound, which blends urban music and pop influences. "It has probably kept me away from a certain radio format. Also, it's been a thing that's kind of distinguished me. I think it's kind of kept me away from mainstream popular music. But to me, I've got a verse, a chorus and melodies, and it's essentially pop music.

"I don't understand why people think it's different. Maybe it's just because it doesn't follow certain trends."

Don't look for Cope (real name Clarence Greenwood) to rein in his stylistic tendencies or dumb down his music to try to reach a bigger audience. He'll perform at a 21-and-older show at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Mr. Small's Theatre in Millvale.

"For me, I kind of get a little more pleasure out of testing people," Cope says, noting that the topical slant of some of his songs might have scared off radio.

"It's like 'Bullet and a Target': That song in itself, it asks a lot of questions," Cope says, pointing to a failed single from his second CD, the 2004 release "The Clarence Greenwood Recordings." "I think it touches on issues of self-destruction, of confusion or rebellion. That kind of stuff might fly in New York. But everybody wants a John Mayer record in Middle America, so that's what they're going to get. They're going to get the innocuous pop stuff that doesn't really challenge anything."

Cope, a Memphis native who started his career as turntable player in the hip-hop/rock group Basehead, is taking another crack at expanding his audience -- and maybe, just maybe, finding more support at radio stations -- with his latest CD, "Every Waking Moment."

Like his two earlier records, "Every Waking Moment" melds diverse influences, including blues, hip-hop, rock, reggae and folk. But the music isn't hard to digest.

Songs like "More Than It Seems" with its booming rhythm track, "Every Waking Moment" with its quiet, brushed percussion or "Brother Lee," a skittering ska tune, might be all over the map in tempo and intensity, but they aren't schizophrenic. Like all tracks on "Every Waking Moment," they share Cope's obvious affection for warm pop melodies and straightforward arrangements that don't require directions to follow -- and, perhaps most importantly, Cope's distinctive laid-back and soulful vocals.

The simplicity and inviting feel of Cope's music, coupled with lyrics that take more of a personal slant, would seem to give "Every Waking Moment" a chance to connect at radio stations and reach a larger audience, after enduring years of false starts and disappointments.

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