Ciara the Conquerer

With her upcoming album set to reign the charts, this hip-hop princess tells us how she uses her basic instincts

Ciara may not know how to play any instruments, but that didn't stop her from getting a record deal in the 11th grade. She's a Texas-born army brat who, at 24 years old, has quickly become a veteran of the music industry. She has a certain poise and focus that you wouldn't expect from someone her age and has earned fame because of her infectious choruses, epic collaborations and of course, her dancing. Just watch the video for her song "Ride" and you'll see a girl who puts all the boys to shame on the dance floor. Not to mention she's part of an exclusive shoe club with Snoop Dogg and David Beckham.

Ciara is set to drop her fourth studio album this summer and well on her way to becoming the next princess of the music business. After all, Princess is her middle name. We spoke over the phone while she was in Los Angeles working on her album and she was articulate, levelheaded and in a mental space where she is finally able to appreciate the last six years of her action-packed career.

You are on the verge of doing something rare in the music industry: releasing an album only a year after your last one. Does it have a name yet?
Ciara: My album is called Basic Instinct and I guess it was, you know, I had a fun run on Fantasy Ride (2009) but we wanted to turn it around fast because there was so much more material that I wanted to get out. I also wanted to give a kind of different energy and vibe creatively and musically so, that was kind of the reason I returned to the studio and it was really a blessing to be able to do that. You know, you start out with one idea and then you go, "Ok cool, I had a fun run with that. Let's tour a little bit and do some shows on that" but now I want to turn around and I want to present something different and that's where it came from. I felt like I could have kept on touring and promoting the other record but creatively I had to do something that was a bit more extreme than my normal album. I want to take it back to the basics so, right away we all got into the studio and that was pretty much where it all came from.

So, the title has nothing to do with the movie of the same name?
No, no, it doesn't. Not at all (laughs). Two separate things.

You said bringing it back to the basics. How does that relate to the recording process of this album compared to your first three albums?
You know what it was? It actually reminded me of the beginning when I first started. I worked with one set team and even if we got records from different places, it was always the core team, the core meeting place. It made me feel like I was just getting started which is what this project is about anyways, about me going back and taking some of my ingredients that I used from the beginning. And adding some extra little spices to it and adding my growth and maturity and all that. But I guess you can say the difference for me was that it was my first time ever working with Tricky and Dream. I've always wanted to work with them over the years, and I did some songs with them on my last record. This go around was really fun because it was exactly the way I always wanted it to be.

Your single that's out right now, "Ride," features Ludacris. Do you have any other exciting collaborations you can tell us about?
All the collaborations I have right now (are between) me and Dream. I don't think I'm going to have any more but you never know, anything can happen up until the door closes for the album. Another thing that makes this record different is the (special) features. I normally have a whole lot of features. On this record, I wanted my fans to feel me and even hear me more. I guess you could say, I wanted to be more intimate so I kind of kept it light on the features.

I know you write your own songs but I'm curious, do you play any instruments?
No, I don't play any instruments. However, I do want to get into taking guitar lessons and would also like to do piano but I don't play any of it. I'd say I can hear beyond just the actual writing and melody of the lyrics and I've been expressing that even more now. Like, can you make the bass hits harder right here, can you add this right here, make the beat pause right here? You know, stuff like that is really fun.

If you do take guitar lessons, who would be your dream teacher?
Oh, I never thought about that! I honestly never thought about that. There was this group that performed on the Grammys. I forget that name of the group but this one guy who played guitar at the end and it was like, crazy. If I could remember it would be so cool because they actually won the Grammy this year. They're like a new band, I think Best New Artist or something like that. I would ask that guy to help me play guitar because he killed it.

The Best New Artist last year was The Zac Brown Band. (Yes, I actually knew the answer without Google!)
Yeah. It was the guy at the end. I remember he came out and played real fast and I don't know if you saw that but he killed it. It was like, woah, crazy.

In your videos, you've always had this kind of cool street style and I want to know how the relationship with Adidas came up and why it's something you wanted to do.
They definitely reached out to my peeps and it was cool because Adidas to me, has some things that are a reflection of my character. You know, like you say, the street element and I love, I actually love their apparel line. It's amazing and also the Y3 part of Adidas and that division of their line. I wanted to do this campaign because I felt like it would be really fun. I felt like I connected to it and I feel like Adidas is really fly. So, it was really cool timing and they did reach out to me and it was an offer that I couldn't turn down. It's a really exciting moment to be part of the campaign for the World Cup and doing the commercial with David Beckham, Snoop Dogg and all of the other talented artists that were in the campaign. That was really fun and something that I definitely couldn't turn down.

Can you give us any inside scoop on a possible Ciara/Adidas line in the future?
Well, never say never. I can definitely say that I have plans to do my own clothing line but it's mostly about right timing because timing is everything. I want to make sure I do something and get it right, and I don't rush it, and most importantly, that it's affordable. That's important to me. So, when the timing is right, I will do it. I'm just not sure who it will be with.

So, kind of an inside scoop.
Yeah. (laughs)

I know you moved around a lot growing up in a military family so, I imagine that sitting still and not being busy is really uncomfortable for you.
You know, it is. I'm an only child too so I'm always fidgety, always running around and doing different things trying to entertain myself. That's how I was when I was younger so it's in my blood. People tell me I'm always calling them with something, all the time. Always thinking of some new idea. I never stop thinking and so that's kind of in my blood. I feel crazy when I'm not.

So, you're about to release your fourth album and you've collaborated with Justin Timberlake, toured with Britney Spears, performed with Jay-Z, been nominated for Grammys and won one with Missy Elliot (Best Short Form Music Video, 1996) and you have all this other stuff going on in the fashion world (she recently appeared in German Vogue). After achieving so much at only 24 years old, how do you continue to set goals for yourself?
I've always had a vision since I decided I wanted to do music, and I've never taken my eyes off that vision. A lot of things that have happened to me, I thank God so much for them but they all are things that were part of my vision. So, you know what it is? When I accomplish something, I just set more goals. I feel like within our world it's so hard to be content. It's actually impossible because once you get one thing accomplished you feel like you got to get something else. That's kind of the way I like to look at it. My approach has always been, "the sky is the limit" so I'm always reaching for the top, you know what I mean? In my mind, there's just so many opportunities out there and my ultimate goal is to achieve all the opportunities that I can and again, when I do accomplish something, I always feel like there's something more to do.

Do you take the time to enjoy what you've accomplished to this point?
It's funny because at this point in my career, it's the most I've ever done that. Like, when I first began, I ran around and travelled so much that I didn't get a chance to enjoy what was happening to me. I was blessed with all the success of "Goodies" and "1, 2 Step" and "Oh" and all those records but I never took the time to just sit down and maybe go shopping a little bit more, and maybe just sit down, period. So, this is the most I've ever done that and I have to say that it's been real fun.

And it's healthy to get some perspective.
Absolutely. It's a very healthy thing to do.

I read that one of your new tracks was leaked on the Internet and I wanted to ask you to share some thoughts on the Internet and how it has changed the industry.
There are definitely moments where you feel like the access people have nowadays is a bit aggressive and a bit too much. And at the same time it's really cool. It allows you to reach out to your fans in a stronger way than ever before. I just feel like you have to figure out how to make it work for you. I'm honestly enjoying it. It's funny for me because I'm very private. Pretty much anyone now can be a paparazzi. You can be in a store and be talking about something private and look over and see somebody with a digital camera and you know, filming your conversation.

And then five minutes later, it's on the Internet.
That can be overwhelming to think about but at the same time, I'm able to go on my computer and do a live uStream chat and talk to my fans and they get to hear my voice clear from that perspective and that's what I love. (There isn't) any confusion when you see me verbally saying something right then and there. You can't twist it up, you can play it back if you want to. I like stuff like that. I like being able to have that freedom, to be honest with you. To be like, I want to talk to my fans right now and I don't have to wait until I have to go do another interview for them to see me again. I can do this now and I can share with them whatever I want. That's kind of exciting to me. So, I've kind of learned to embrace it as opposed to run away from it because for me it's not going to change. Technology is going to keep advancing and continue to grow. It's going to continue to become important. So in my world, I look at it like, let me make this world make sense for me. A lot of people misconstrue things you say and they stretch it and just paint their own picture so, it's kind of cool being able to say exactly what I feel and I'm able to do just that.

They say you grow up fast in the music business and that doesn't ring more true than with Ciara. In an era where many famous girls in their early 20's are known for their tabloid exploits just as much as their art, Ciara has managed to maintain a low public profile while keeping her eyes on the prize.

She also told me that the promotion for Basic Instinct will begin with a series of shows in smaller, more intimate venues and eventually she'll end up doing what she calls a "more high-powered, bigger production type tour." My instinct tells me, Ciara will do whatever she sets her mind to and there's no doubt that this music princess is just getting started.

_{BY: JONAH GUDOFSKY / PUBLISHED: ENTERTAINMENT SPECIAL EDITION/JULY 2010}