In the midst of all the Winter Music Conference debauchery, many forget what this week was primarily built for: music. Throngs of ambitious musicians and DJs touch down in synch with the guidos and Euro trash of the world to take advantage of the countless pool side bashes, all-night throw downs and the full-blown media circus. Even P. Diddy took over Cameo's mid-week events to take advantage of WMC publicity. That being said, Clubplanet had a chance to sit down with a couple of up and comers in the world of electronica and beyond, including Miami native and electro-pop sensation, Jamie Jo and R&B singer Christian George.
See below for our quick chat with Jamie Jo about recording with Barry Gibb and her soon to be released full-length CD, In Violet.
CP: How would you describe your music to someone who has never heard it before?
Jamie Jo: I think my music has a sultry, sexy sound to it and it's electro-pop.
CP: When did you decide that singing was the path you were going to take?
Jamie Jo: When I was 17 I decided that I wanted to be a singer and I just took it from there.
CP: You got into NYU Tisch, right? How do you feel your time in New York developed you as an artist?
Jamie Jo: It definitely developed me as an artist. I got to listen to so many different musicians, go to CBGB's, experience the whole New York music scene. It helped me to learn about music and it definitely changed the way I looked at things.
CP: What was it like for you to work with Barry Gibb?
Jamie Jo: It's an amazing experience to work with such a master as himself. He's completely talented and probably one of the best songwriters in the world.
CP: What do you hope to do after the release of your single, what's the next step?
Jamie Jo: I hope my album is received well, I hope everybody loves it and that I'll be able to go on tour and make more lbums.
CP: What kind of audience do you think would best connect with your kind of music?
Jamie Jo: I think all ages and I think everybody can connect with my kind of music because it's about passion and it's about love and sex. It's pretty universal, I don't know who doesn't relate to that.
CP: Who is the next producer or musician you'd like to work with?
Jamie Jo: Possibly, Lenny Kravitz. I haven't really picked out anyone, obviously I would love to work with someone like Herbie Hancock but I don't know, we'll just have to see where my road takes me.
CP: What songs or musicians do you consider a point of reference in your own musical development?
Jamie Jo: Madonna, the Bee Gees, Sade—all music I grew up with.
CP: How would you describe your singing style or vocal style?
Jamie Jo: I think somewhere between Sade and Madonna. I know they both have completely different styles but that’s what I was aiming for. And a little bit of Astrid Gilberto.
CP: So, when can we pick up your CD?
Jamie Jo: Well my single is coming out in June and it's featuring Barry Gibb and my album In Violet is coming out in the fall. My plans for touring are still in the works.
Interview with Christian George
It's good to be Christian George. Wise guys hang thick by your side, the ladies fall at your feet and stardom has always been around the corner. Hailing from the Steel City, George is poised for a break out as an R&B artist and mainstream heartthrob. A former dancer, choreographer and stylist, he's the veritable pop culture package: a looker with killer style, a great voice and sharp moves. His new single "Strangers" has been remixed and released by the best in electronic music and CP took the chance to peg him down during WMC for a quick once over.
Clubplanet: How did you get your start in the entertainment industry?
Christian George: Well when I was 18 I won a model search back East. I'm from Pittsburgh originally. They talked my parents into taking me out of school and two weeks later I was in LA, I'd never done a stitch of modeling but I ended up dancing. I danced for the next several years to support my music and have had an opportunity to dance with everybody: Britney Spears, Michael Jackson, P. Diddy, Will SmithSince I've worked with such top talent, I've been able to take what I thought was really great and apply that to my music and to be very cautious to avoid doing what I thought was wrong.
CP: Were you working as a choreographer at one point?
Christian George: I choreographed a lot of different things. The majority of my work was as a dancer. I choreographed a handful of movies. I did a movie coming up in a couple of months, from Miramax called Fanboys, there are a handful of national commercials that I choreographed but it really wasn't my thing. I primarily worked as a dancer in the dance world.
CP: What prompted you to decide that it was time to be front and center rather than supporting other artists?
Christian George: Well, as soon as the deal started to come my way was kind of when I hung up my dancing shoes and my styling cap and just concentrated on myself. I signed a seven-record deal back in July with a new independent label called Chauncey Digital and they've been unbelievable with the support that they've given me thus far. They are super excited about my album.
CP: How would you portray your sound to someone that’s never heard you before?
Christian George: It's a nice blend of ‘80s pop and R&B. I was heavily influenced by people like Elvis Presley and George Michael as artists because they're White guys doing black music. Well, I guess I'm kind of khaki. But, they were doing pop, urban, Black music—being White acts for their particular generation.
CP: How would you describe your personal style?
Christian George: It's very European, pop, a little retro. I've always lived my life in a very progressive way, a little bit ahead of the cusp. My friends like to say if I'm doing it it's either dead on in or it's about to be.
CP: Do you consider yourself the whole package?
Christian George: Very humbly speaking I'd like to think of myself in that way. I've worked very hard to get to that point and I think that my track record and my resume speaks for itself.
CP: What is your creative process like in the studio?
Christian George: Creatively my record is very autobiographical and indicative of what's been going on in my life. I feel like as an artist, people that will listen to you appreciate honesty and appreciate when you're vulnerable. I'm very much that. I'm an open book when it comes to what I write about and it's very black and white with the record. It's either my heart is being broken or I wanna go home with somebody, probably just for one night and that's it. I'm either making you scream or you're making me cry. So creatively, in the studio it's pretty much what happens that week in my life.
CP: Interesting.
Christian George: My mother calls me six times a day. She’s an East-Coast mother so she always needs to know what's going on. I'm always telling her 'I've got nothing, everything's cool,’ and she's gotten to the point where she says 'I'm not even gonna ask you anymore because all I have to do is listen to whatever song you did that week and I know what happened to you.’ People appreciate that. They don't want any BS. I want people to really feel who I am.
CP: How would you describe your image?
Christian George: I'm really trying to appeal to everybody, ideally. But I still have to be myself. We had to find that happy medium of being cool and sexy, but not cheesy. I feel like you can go super guido and just have the chest open and all that, but to me, that’s it's a little too forced. I try to just let whatever sex appeal come across as an energy or a vibe without having to force it down somebody's throat.
CP: How do feel Miami's scene compares to other cities like LA or your home town, Pittsburgh?
Christian George: Miami is definitely in it's own category. A friend of mine says that he had to move out of Miami because he was either going to die of skin cancer, liver failure or an STD because all you do is drink, lie in the sun and find somebody to go home with. So, I don't drink, I like the sun and I like the third thing so you know, I think I'd have a better chance of survival if I lived here.