Keyshia on Tyra

In an interview with Tyra Banks Keyshia talks about love, loss, heartbreak and success.

One of her main struggles is making and keeping friends and being strong when it comes to male domination. Many men in the music industry and a number of professional athletes have expressed an interest in Keyshia but she is unfazed by all the attention. Her mission-watch out and keep focused because you never know what a person’s true motives are. I guess she learned from her past as the catalyst that jump started Keyshia’s ambition was being cheated on by an ex-boyfriend. Cole said “I was tired of it…I just packed up, got in my car, I felt like pretty woman drivin’ down the highway…I drove to Los Angeles.” And here she is!

As far as family relationships, Keyshia spills the dirt on her mother who was a drug addict, a prostitute, and was incarcerated for most of her life. She was constantly in and out of Keyshia’s life. “I always kept in touch with my mother but she was always in the streets.” Keyshia does not know her father, as he passed away a number of years ago, but to my surprise he was Italian. I guess Keyshia and I have more in common than I ever thought. But she does have two families. She has reconciled with her biological mother and was raised by her adoptive family from the age of two.

I am not a huge Tyra fan but I did like this interview because it showed a softer side of Cole and a witty side of Tyra. The interview had the perfect mix of emotions and taught me a thing or two about Keyshia’s life before she was famous. It seems to me that she hasn’t forgotten where she came from.

Here is a clip of the interview that aired in October of 2007.

Hot 97 Exclusive

Last month, Danity Kane, from P.Diddy’s ”Making the Band”, were interviewed by Hot 97 personality Miss Jones. The pop/hip-hop girl group had a couple of choice words for Keyshia Cole.

The group claimed that Keyshia was rude to them on five separate occasions, one time specifically when they both appeared on MTVs TRL, and publicized a weak performance of Cole’s through YouTube “…where you can go see Keyshia sound a hot mess.”  Danity Kane would not admit feelings of dislike towards Cole, but when asked who sings better the group said “We feel like we sing well…we have a different sound.”

As we know, I love Keyshia Cole. But I can see where Danity Kane is coming from. Afterall, Miss Jones said “It’s all about competition.” That is what drives the music industry. Danity Kane also stuck up for themselves by saying “The people tuned in when we messed up and you all made it a big deal. I mean she messed up, people are gonna put it on blast.”

Slumping Sales

Every single off of Keyshia Cole’s latest album, “Just Like You,” has been a huge hit. From club bangers to love ballads, Cole has co-written and produced some of the most popular hits of 2007 and 2008, but the competition is not backing down.

Artists such as Alicia Keys, Mary J. Blige , and Chris Brown are being thrown for a loop as their album sales are being beat out by alternative artists such as Jack Johnson and Cheryl Crow. In the past couple of weeks, Cole’s album has experienced a 3% decrease in sales and holds the number 11 spot on the charts, selling a total of 1,131,109 copies. The race is neck and neck, as heart-throb Chris Brown is trailing closely behind, selling 1,248,205 copies of his album entitled “Exclusive.”

Personally, I do not rely on numbers and figures to tell me what CD I should buy and which artists I should support. But at the same time, I cannot remember the last time I purchased an actual CD. According to the Wall Street Journal Online, CD sales have gone down a whopping 20% since 2006-an increase in CD sales is a long shot, as new music can be downloaded for free over the internet.

So what does this mean for some of our favorite artists, like Miss Cole? Industry insiders are predicting an increase in live performances and concerts. Since CD sales have been slumping for the past seven years, live events will be the most profitable ventures for recording artists. They will still be able to live off of their talents, however this may be the end for artists whose bread and butter are a result of album sales.

Keyshia Cole “Unplugged”

One thing I hate about the music business is how processed an artist’s voice sounds when you buy their album. When you see them live, they sound nothing like they did on the tracks. However, I think Keyshia Cole is one of the few artists out there today who has a truly amazing voice all on it’s own.

Lately I have been checking out some of her live performances, and I found one from VH1.com that may be as good as it gets. The performance was taken from an episode of VH1’s “Unplugged,” a show where artists are featured to perform their latest hits to instrumentals. I have always liked this show because it doesn’t distract you with special effects. The dim and simple set allows you to fully project your attention to the artist and their talents. There is no back-up dancers or flashing lights.

Some artists, such as Brittney Spears, need those little extras to make their show pop. But Keyshia can give you the same over-the-top experience just by using her voice. Here is one of my favorite performances of her song, I Should Have Cheated, from VH1’s Unplugged.

http://www.vh1.com/video/play.jhtml?artist=1244412&vid=182950

She Really is “Just Like You”

Keyshia’s humble attitude and future aspirations proves that the R&B sensation really is “Just Like You.” 

Cole is so thankful to have been successful as a writer and recorder of some of the biggest R&B hits and collaborations in the past year, however her long term goal is to open up an animal hospital.

As she has recently completed her high school diploma Cole admits that she hopes to take her education to the next level. “I definitely want to go further because I want to do something else besides this” (ContactMusic.com).

Who would have thought that Keyshia Cole has other passions besides her music? Her sound and style is so powerful, it is hard to believe that there is still room for her to expand. But Cole has wanted to be a veterenarian since she was a child. According to ContactMusic.com, Cole said “I had everything when I was a child – hamsters and guinea pigs, rabbits, dogs, cats… so, if it be the Lord’s will, I will have enough money to open up a veterinary hospital. Then I could just hire doctors to come in and I could go to school (to study).”

It is nice to see that someone who has already achieved so much is still willing to devote time and money to a greater cause. There should be a little bit of Keyshia in all of us!

Ask and You Shall Receive

Keyshia Cole has been nominated “Singer of the Week” by AskMen.com based on her beauty and endless talents.

It turns out that Keyshia’s ability to write her very own infamous club bangers and love ballads, while topping them off with her soulful and seductive voice, is a huge turn on for men accross the globe. But what do they love most? That would have to be her down to earth attitude and edgy sense of personal style.

Keyshia’s ability to relate to her fans through her music shows them that she never forgot where she came from-she may be famous but this R&B queen is no diva. Fans, especially men, think that because of this, Cole truly appreciates all of the support and encouragement she has received since day one and inspires them to hold her down.

Cole isn’t too bad to look at either. According to the men polled on AskMen.com, Cole is a perfectly balanced package-natural glowing skin, bright brown eyes, and a million dollar smile, paired with tattoos, and hoop earrings have men falling at her patent leather boots. One blogger, who calls himself PiecePiece admits “I think that you looked so cute in your video ‘Sholda Let You Go’. You are so talented and true to yourself. Keep up the good work. I wish you the best in life.”

So keep doing what you’re doing Keyshia…they’re eating it up! 

Cole’s Quick-Change

Keyshia Cole is currently signed to A&M Records however, rumors are speculating that Cole is leaving her current deal behind to become a part of the G-Unit family, a record label owned and operated by rap artist 50 Cent.

Cole has denied her current involvement with the G-Unit label but admits that she would consider switching labels if she was offered more money than her current deal with A&M is allotting her. The switch may happen sooner than later, as a label representative informed VIBE.com that Keyshia is now signed to G-Unit. If the rumors turn out to be true, Cole will be working alongside rap artists such as Lloyd Banks, Tony Yayo, and Young Buck.

This is good news for Cole, but bad news for G-Unit’s current leading lady, Olivia, who will lose her title as “The First lady of G-Unit” if Cole is really on board. Label insiders say that Olivia will still be a part of the G-Unit family but Cole’s career will take precedent as she has a wider range of talent.

So how will Cole mesh with G-Unit’s edgy, male dominated label? According to The Voice On-line, Cole is not timid when it comes to expressing herself alongside males in the industry.

“You do get that element of guys not really feeling a woman with a strong personality. But there’s nothing they can do about that. They can’t budge me or faze me. It is quite a male-dominated business and men often tend to think that they’re in charge and that they have the answer to everything. But it’s cool. You just gotta let them them think that.”

So now we know that no matter what label Keyshia Cole is affiliated with, she will never fail to deliver!

Above is the video to one of my favorite songs, “Karma”, by Lloyd Banks of the G-Unit label.

 

Grammy Coverage

For all of you who watched the Grammy Awards, I’m sure you are heartbroken to know that Keyshia Cole went home empty-handed. Her song “Let It Go” was up for best rap/sung collaboration and her album, Just Like You, was up for best contemporary R&B album. The competition was tough as Keyshia was beat out by Ne-Yo’s album Because Of You, and Rihanna’s hit song “Umbrella” featuring Jay-Z. Other big winners included new artist Amy Winehouse, who picked up five of the six awards she was nominated for, including song of the year, and best new artist.

Despite the fierce competition, Keyshia glowed in a black, A-line gown, curly bob and light make-up. Her fresh, natural look downplayed the tough-girl image which she most often portrays. I hope to see more of this new look, as it may help to put less attention on her appearance and more emphasis on the reason we all love her-her music.

Drama

Keyshia Cole has been making headlines during the past few months due to controversy surrounding her love life and career choices. With the release of the December issue of Vibe Magazine, Keyshia is featured on the cover wearing nothing but a pretty face and seductive expression. Many were shocked that the R&B sensation decided to expose it all as the cover was leaked on the Internet before the magazine hit shelves.

The cover is strikingly similar to Janet Jackson’s barely there wardrobe from the cover of Rolling Stone Magazine’s September of ‘93 issue. This months issue of Vibe Magazine features Mary J. Blige on the cover, who holds a striking resemblance to Cole. Cole has said before that Mary J. Blige is one of her biggest inspirations while ironically, Blige seems to be emulating Cole with a blond bob hair cut and thick aviator frames. It seems to be one big “whose who?” of the music biz today. I guess we will just have to tune into the Grammy Awards to see who really comes out on top!

Rumors have also been flying regarding Keyshia and her relationship with rapper Young Jeezy. The two were seen in the Bahamas together with what seemed to be an engagement ring on Keyshia’s finger, however she is denying the fact that they were once engaged. Even still, Cole had refused to kiss singer Tyrese on the shoot of her video “Love” claiming that Jeezy would be upset and referred to Jeezy as her Fiancee when they were seen in the Bahamas. Some are claiming that they alleged relationship between Jeezy and Cole was nothing more than a publicity stunt but we thought the same thing about Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, and where are they now? Happily married with a little bundle of joy. Hopefully Keyshia will come clean about the relationship once and for all. Come on Keyshia, your fans need the dirt!

How She Move

Keyshia Cole makes her first movie debut in “How She Move,” an inspirational drama directed by Ian Iqbal Rashid and written by Annmarie Morais which is now in theatres.

Keyshia has a small role and plays herself in the film which is about Tre Armstrong, a high-school student who has been forced out of her private school only to re-enter her crime infested neighborhood, helping her to rekindle her passion for step dancing and competition after the tragic death of her sister.

The film has been nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance film festival. Check out the trailor!