Ciara

Ciara

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EVOLUTION SONG
On Her Latest Disc, Ciara Shows Her Sexier Side
Ciara, the self-proclaimed Queen of Crunk & B, continues her reign with her platinum-selling sophomore disc, The Evolution. A recent teleconference with music journalists found the 21-year-old Atlanta vocalist discussing the more mature direction of her music.

Barnes & Noble.com: Your album is called The Evolution and you show your sexier side in the video for "Promise." Was that the direction you decided to go in for the new album?

Ciara: Well, honestly, I'm just being me. Beginning with the title of my album, I felt it was perfect because I had truly evolved as an artist and as a woman. In this case, a lot of things that you see me do are just natural changes for me. I guess you can say "Promise" [video] or even the "Get Up" video was definitely something different for me. When I was picking the first song from the album, I felt ["Promise"] was perfect because it makes a statement. And the record does have a more mature, sexier vibe.

B&N.com: How do you think your younger fans will respond to your sexier image?

Ciara: More than anything, I realize I've been blessed to make great music. That's where it starts for me, because at the end of the day, I feel that my records [are accessible to] all audiences -- from adults to kids. I hear kids singing "1, 2 Step" or singing "Goodies." I see adults singing and dancing to those songs too. I think more than anything, my fans will continue to grow with me.

B&N.com: The Evolution comes with an instructional dancing DVD?

Ciara: Yes, it does. I show some of the different routines from the videos for "Get Up" and "Promise."

B&N.com: What audience do you have in mind with that DVD?

Ciara: Everyone loves to dance. I've realize that's a part of what I do more and more every day. [When] I was younger, I wanted to dance. And now, I'm older and I still love it. My mom and my dad love to dance. I think everyone can get in there and work it out. Dancing is one way to do cardio and it's a fun way to drop a little bit of weight.

B&N.com: How do you feel about comparisons to Janet or Aaliyah?

Ciara: My ultimate inspiration is Michael [Jackson], but I definitely loved to watch Janet when I was growing up. I think she's such an amazing performer and she's contributed so many great things to music trends. Because of that I am inspired by her as an artist. Someone who works with Janet told me that people see a resemblance because of our energy. One thing I can say is we both do a tremendous amount of dancing. But because of the comparisons, I don't want to emulate any moves that she's done at all. I would love to have the same amount of success that's she's had in her career. She's truly a legend and I would love to be an icon. As far as the comparison to Aaliyah goes, I get touched more than anything when people tell me I remind them of her. All I heard was great things about her, so I take it as a big compliment.

B&N.com: Who inspired you to dance? Who helped you come up with your dance moves?

Ciara: I get inspired [by] raw street dancing and choreography. When I go in to do choreography, I do contribute to it, but there's a girl I've been working with since the beginning of my career. Her name is Jamaica. When I met her, I thought she was amazing. And we've been together for almost six years now. So we work very closely together.

B&N.com: You're one of the hottest female dancers out there. Who do you think is the best male dancer/artist?

Ciara: Usher is amazing. He's perfection to me as a performer. He gets down.

B&N.com: How do you avoid some of the pitfalls that other young celebrities and music artists have fallen into?

Ciara: My goal is to stick to what I do. [No one] is perfect. You do make mistakes. I try to take my time with everything and plan [things] out as much as possible so that nothing too crazy comes along. But you can't predict the future. Sometimes certain things are blown up to be even more than what they are, you know what I mean? I just try to stay focused on what I'm doing and not lose track.

12/05/06