Queen Latifah [click to read] is seen by many as a pioneer in the rap world and her fame has taken her through various routes. It doesn’t seem to matter if she is singing, acting or rapping because she has succeeded in all of the above. Fans of her musical talents can give a sigh of relief now because Queen L is releasing a new album and she spoke to The Los Angeles Times about this and much more [click here].
“It doesn’t have a specific theme — each [song] was so different from the next, me being the common denominator. And I realized my different characters were coming through on these [songs]. My acting, singing and rapping identities all came together under one roof as well as my taste in different kinds of music. I’d say it’s half rap and half singing. If I had to categorize it, it would be more like hip hop urban alternative.”
She also added more about her musical influences-noting a connection between Jazz and her early Rap projects.
“I always loved all kinds of music. I would watch musicals a lot as a kid, on TV, watch the Fred Astaire movies. I’d watch ‘The Wizard of Oz.’ I was a big Jerry Lewis fan, and they’d have these big bands and someone singing — some siren, or some guy singing some gorgeous song. I was always enamored of that style of music. When I got older and started to buy music, I guess my dad, who played jazz constantly, that influence kicked in. Quincy Jones, big band stuff, Sarah Vaughan, Dinah Washington, Della Reese. I love the way artists would use their voice as an instrument. Plus jazz music has had a big influence on hip hop. If you listen to A Tribe Called Quest, or my biggest hit, “U.N.I.T.Y.,” the loop is from a Jazz Crusaders record — the horns, the jazz horns, the soul horns and stuff? That’s been very influential in hip hop.”
In a recent article, published in Essence magazine, the singer opens up about her childhood and the abuse she had to endure.
“There’s a [song] on my album, called ‘The World,’ where I referred to certain things that happened to me as a kid. I don’t think it’s anything to be ashamed of, nothing I have to hide, nothing I feel guilty about. If someone reading that article can take something from that, it’s a blessing. I’ve found throughout my career, that sometimes when you share things like that, that you’ve gone through, it can be very inspirational to other people. And there’s times when people inspire me. When there’s disillusion about the business, or certain things. Someone says because of you, my daughter loves her body now, and she’s a big girl and she looks at you and she says she can do it because you do it. And those stories make me feel good about myself. It makes me not afraid to share certain things.”
Like many, she also shed light on her view of Michael Jackson.
“At the end of the day I’m happy, he’s free to be, free to fly, free to be welcomed by God’s arms. He’s had an amazing and incredible life, and it’s not been without his sacrifices and trade-offs. Just to lose your anonymity, to be followed, where you go, and not be able to run around and play like a little kid? Grow up fast, and hang out with adults all the time. You don’t want to have the responsibility of a life dissected like that. I look at some of those videos they’re playing, you see the mischievousness, the kid in him that comes out in these things. One of my favorites was ‘Scream,’ with him and Janet. I always wanted that video to be a movie starring Michael and Janet. It’d be huge.”
Fans of Latifah can currently hear her as the voice of an animated character in Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs. Her new album Persona will be released later in the summer.
