INTERVIEW: Misha B
Could she become The X Factor class of 2011's hottest output? Yes, if her new single Home Run (available to download now) is anything to go by. The former contestant talks to us about life after the show, her awesome new album & collaborating with Missy Elliott…
Rex FeaturesGLAMOUR: How has your life changed since The X Factor?
Misha B: “Crazy good. Busy, busy, busy, can’t stop, won’t stop. So, it’s work, work, work. Been in the studio, performing, recording, writing, interviews, media tour, school tour, X Factor tour, so it’s great. My dreams are now a reality. It’s almost like, you dream of things when you’re a child, and watching it take place… There’s no watching it, it’s like, you’re in the moment. And I’m in the moment right now and I’m really enjoying it.”
Rex FeaturesG: You had quite a tough time on the show, with the accusations of bullying, among other things. It probably led to you being voted out sooner than perhaps you would have otherwise been. What really happened behind the scenes?
M: “I mean, it’s a reality TV show. Things are said which are out of all of our hands as contestants. I don’t know. Still to this day I’m quite unsure about why the accusations were made. It’s all, for me, just a misunderstanding. I wasn’t asked any questions, I was just accused. And that’s it really. But I look at that experience now and give thanks for it, because without life’s lows, there would be no highs. And I’m on a high right now. I’m signed, it’s in the past, it was eight months ago, so it’s only onwards and upwards.”
Rex FeaturesG: Do you keep in touch with any of the other contestants from the show?
M: “Yeah, I was with the Little Mix girls yesterday! We share the same management. So it was at our manager’s house party. It was really cool. So many people.”
WennHave you spoken to Kelly Rowland since the show?
M: “I spoke to her two days ago. Yeah, she’s BUSY.”
WennG: Did she have any advice for you?
M: “Well, we didn’t really get to hold a conversation that long. All it is, is that we’re conversating[sic] through email. But the main advice she’s always given me is to stay true to myself and to keep my feet on the ground, because you only get out what you put in.”
WennG: If you could go through the whole experience again, is there anything you’d change?
M: “Just relaxed a bit. Just relaxed. Because, being under the pressure that we are underneath being in the public eye, there’s pressure to do well, to look well, just in general, so much pressure.”
WennG:You’ve got a new single out – Home Run. Are you happy with the reactions to it so far?
M: “Yes! Quite mind blowing. It’s like every couple of seconds I get tweets about it. Even what happened before, I’d never seen Home Run on the TV. I was just getting ready to walk in here, then I just heard it from nowhere, and I was like, ‘It’s on, it’s on!’ My mum’s been ringing me and going, ‘You’re on TV!’ My friends are texting me, like, ‘You’re on my TV!’ And all my fans are like, ‘You’re on my TV!’ I still haven’t seen me on my TV. So seeing myself on a TV out there [in the Sony HQ offices] was quite surreal.”
WennG: Are you working with any writers on this album? How much involvement in the song writing and recording process have you had?
M: “I wouldn’t say necessarily writers, more producers.”
WennG: So you’re writing a lot of your new material yourself?
M: “Yeah, it’s also co-written. It’s always a kind of marriage in terms of the process of each song. It’s ideas flowing back and forth, and everything, in a sense, is a collaboration.”
Rex FeaturesG: What gets you in the creative mindset for writing music?
M: “I’ve written ever since I can remember. I started out writing poems, and then I started rapping, so it’s always been a way of me expressing myself. Sometimes when I can’t find the words to say, I write them, so… Everything on the album is going to stem from real life experiences.”
Rex FeaturesG: Can you tell us any more details about the album? Do you have a working title for it? When can we expect it?
M: “I can tell you that it will be out at the end of the year. We’re still working on it right now, so we don’t really have a name. I kind of feel like, in terms of the name, it will come when it’s the right time. It’s kind of free.”
Rex FeaturesG: If you were to describe your sound to an alien who had never heard pop music before, what would you say?
M: “It’s alien. Yeah, I feel like we’re experimenting with things that have never really been done before, in terms of the sound. It’s a new sound. It’s fresh. And people will always find ways of comparing [it], and to be compared to people that are great is good, but yeah. It’s alien.”
Rex FeaturesG: Who do you think people are going to compare you to?
M: “No, people do compare me to various different people. Like, I get Missy Elliott a lot, which I think is just a lazy comparison. Very much a lazy comparison. She’s great, she’s one of my main inspirations, but our styles are different.”
Rex FeaturesG: There were some rumours that you’d reached out to Missy Elliott for a collaboration. Are they true?
M: “Yeah, yeah. That is still in talking, we’re both eager to make that happen, so… Yes.”
WennG: How about Kelly Rowland? Would you collaborate with her?
M: “Definitely. That would be a fun process.”
G: What kind of direction are you heading in with your sound. You say it’s experimental and different, but who would you say you’ve mostly been listening to in terms of inspiration?
M: “Freedom of expression being the main [theme], but in terms of musical inspirations, it stems from Michael Jackson all the way to Mariah Carey. From Mariah Carey all the way to Frank Sinatra. From Frank Sinatra to Coldplay. It’s a mix of everything. It’s kind of like, expect the unexpected.”
Rex FeaturesG: Who do you think are the hottest artists in the world right now?
M: “It’s the Biebs, it’s the Biebs, it’s the Justin Bieber baby. He inspires me. And Rihanna. She’s killing it. One Direction, they’re killing it right now.”
Rex FeaturesG: What do you think about Rihanna’s style? Do you think she ever over-does it? Is it possible to show too much and be too raunchy, or do you think she’s got it right?
M: “If the world wore long skirts, I’m sure they’d still be complaining. If everyone wore those long robes, what do you call them? They’d still be complaining. So it’s kind of like, she’s doing what she’s doing. I take my hat off to her. She’s being herself. It’s like with Adele. Adele’s killing it. She’s way up there as well. They’re two completely different artists, but the level of respect is there for them both. A lot of people can relate to Adele, and a lot of people can relate to Rihanna.”
G: Do you think you can ever push it too far with fashion? Rihanna was pictured the other day wearing a T-shirt with the C-word emblazoned on the front of it. Too much?
M: “Ct? No. It’s freedom of expression. If there’s anything that’s going to offend anyone, I don’t think ct is anything. I think anything racist, or anything… Something like that, is wrong. But c**t is not really anything. I mean, she is who she is. I mean, she’s got responsibilities, but that doesn’t mean she’s going to change who she is. I don’t know. She wants to wear what she wears, she wears it. It’s like me. People are always going to talk about you, whether you do good or bad, so…”
Rex FeaturesG: What’s your style mantra?
M: “It changes all the time. Fun, fresh, cool… Experimental.”
WennG: Which beauty products can’t you live without?
M: “Vaseline and make-up removal wipes.”
WennG: Artists make a lot of mistakes on their rise to fame. Are there any classic errors you’re hoping not to repeat?
M: “None. Because I feel like with all the mistakes that are going to be made, that’s how I will learn. I’m living and learning. I feel like there’s a lot of pressure put on artists to not be human. We’re just as human as everyone else. But just because we’re under the spotlight, people expect us to be like super human people.”
Rex FeaturesG: What’s next for you?
M: “I’ve got a tour and dates yet to be confirmed. I’m finishing off my album, various different performances here and there. My single comes out on 15 July and you can download it on iTunes on the 25 June 2012.”
PRE-ORDER HOME RUN ON iTUNES HERE
