Saturday, September 01, 2007
Meet Emmy Rossum– The Singer
No doubt, you know Emmy Rossum as the intelligent, beautiful and talented actress from blockbuster movies such as The Phantom of the Opera, Mystic River and Poseidon. Now it’s time to get to know Emmy as a songstress, whose already proving herself as a singing sensation with her new EP Inside Out that landed at No. 14 on iTunes’ top album chart after only one week.
FUSN: You have so many talents – acting, now singing & songwriting. Which hat do you like to wear most?
ER: Music has always actually been my first love. I think I’m more known as an actress but I started singing when I was 7 after my second grade teacher sent me over to the Metropolitan Opera in NY where I grew up and I sang there for 6 years. The only reason I actually got into acting was because I got too tall for the children’s costumes. I’ve always loved playing music and I’ve always loved playing characters but this record for me is the first time where I don’t have to say someone else’s lines and I really get to express myself and my heart in that way. The lyrics are extremely personal but I also wanted to be completely honest without being confessional or self-indulgent in any way. I think it speaks for not only me but for a lot of women in today’s society who can be strong, vulnerable and sensual, and don’t have to be objectified the way that women are a lot in top 40 radio.
FUSN: Are there any other career paths you’re looking to jump into – such as producing or directing?
ER: I’d love to be an astronaut – just kidding. No, I think music and films for me are the ultimates and whenever I can combine the two it’s the ultimate endeavor. I’d really love to tour and perform live. I think that sharing your music with people live is the most kind of intimate and direct connection you can have with them.
FUSN: Are you nervous about performing live at all?
ER: I think nervous-excitement, not nervous-dread. People work really hard to try to afford to go to a concert and I respect and appreciate that and want to give them everything they want.
FUSN: Do you have a personal favorite song on this EP?
ER: Right now I’m responding to the single Slow Me Down. I wanted to write it because I think in today’s contemporary society the world moves so fast and we’re so kind of overscheduled and overpaced and whether you’re a mom holding down three jobs to support your kids or studying, I think everyone moves so quickly. The message is slow me down just for a second so I don’t miss the things that are beautiful in life like falling in love and even things that are so much simpler than that.
FUSN: You’re so young to think about all that.
ER: (laughs) Only human.
Thursday, July 05, 2007
Lifehouse Tells Us Who They Are
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If their past work is any indication, expect to see Who We Are, the fourth album by Lifehouse, shoot straight to the top of the charts. In addition to releasing their new album, the boys are kicking off the summer by touring the country with the Goo Goo Dolls. Drummer Rick Woolstenhulme takes some time to talk to Fushion about the new album, the tour, and of course his band. |
FUSN: What’s it like touring with the Goo Goo Dolls – were you guys already fans of the band?
RW: When I was in high school, I heard of the Goo Goo Dolls and I was a fan then, so it’s kind of cool to be going on the same stage with them because now it’s like we’re peers.
FUSN: Is there any other band today you would like to work with?
RW: There’s many. Right now, I’m really hip into Amy Winehouse. Mainly because I’m into the old motown funk recording process & she’s kind of bringing that back.
FUSN: So how are you going about that one?
RW: (laughs) I don’t know, we have to spread the word like wildfire.
FUSN: Ok, I’ll be sure to help with that.
FUSN: I noticed you co-wrote The Joke on this album, how did this song come about?
RW: That too was kind of a fluke. We were pretty much complete with the album at that point and we were coming back from a concert and Jason started strumming on it and we ended up writing it right away and really fast. The next morning in the studio we laid it down for real and it had this exciting kind of sound to it that was much different from what we’ve had in the past. It was kind of nice to put on a track that was more outside of the box for us.
FUSN: Do you write a lot of songs or do you plan on doing so in the future?
RW: No, not really. I mean, Jason is pretty much the main writer in the band. If it’s not broken, don’t try to fix it. He’s just a phenomenal writer. I’m a drummer but every now and then I’ll kick some ideas out.
Ben Jelen Gets Real
Ben Jelen returns to the music scene after a three year absence with his new album Ex-Sensitive. Don’t expect to see traces of his debut album on this record, Ex-Sensitive marks the rebirth of Ben Jelen on a musical and spiritual level.
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FUSN: It’s been three years since the release of your last album, were you working on Ex-Sensitive all that time? BJ: It’s been a crazy three years for me – it’s been a while, but I’m so excited about this album. We decided that I would do a new album and I started writing and then went through a breakup with Maverick and met Linda Perry and started recording with her and my sister suddenly died. It put a rift in the whole thing, I went home for a while and it sort of took a year all together for everything to come back after that. I’m so excited because it was so much work and it means so much to me now that this goes well, but I’m getting a really good response to it. |
FUSN: The album is really different from what’s out there today – it actually seems to have some kind of a Celtic influence to it?
BJ: Yeah, I like Celtic music. I was born in Scotland, not that I was really influenced back when I was born, and I play violin.
FUSN: Okay, so you answered one of my other questions, you don’t just do vocals, you do play musical instruments.
BJ: Oh yeah, on the album, I played the piano, the violin, and I played the guitar too.
FUSN: You were born in Scotland, but you don’t have a Scottish accent or any trace of it.
BJ: Yeah, I was raised in England, moved to Texas when I was 11, and then we moved to New Jersey when I was about 16.
FUSN: Then shouldn’t you have an English accent since that’s where you spent your first years?
BJ: That’s the Texas part, they beat it out of you really quick.
Friday, May 04, 2007
MACY GRAY MAKES A BIG SPLASH
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Macy Gray didn’t mean to be a big star, it just kind of happened. And it couldn’t have happened to a more talented and deserving person. Appropriately titled, her fourth album in almost four years, BIG marks Gray’s triumphant return with a diverse mix of songs that resonates with audiences, regardless of their musical preferences. |
FUSN: Congratulations on your new album – it’s a big hit!
MG: Thank you, I had a lot fun making it.
FUSN: I have my own ideas as to why you named this album BIG, which is appropriately titled, but what’s your reason behind the name?
MG: You know, it’s named after my big butt and big heart (laughs).
FUSN: Well, definitely your big heart.
FUSN: How is BIG different from your other albums? Do you think your music has changed or evolved?
MG: It’s definitely evolved. It’s different ideas and a different time. I think it’s definitely a progression and it’s my favorite album.
FUSN: You have a lot of great songs on this cd, actually there’s not one song I didn’t want to listen to over and over again – do you have a particular favorite?
MG: I mean I love the whole album, but I listen to Ghetto Love a lot, I listen to Okay, I love Everybody – the whole album’s my favorite.
Tim Gunn and Kate Moloney: Fashion Therapists
| Who better to write a book on fashion and style than Tim Gunn and Kate Moloney. As the much loved style consultant and mentor to aspiring designers on the hit reality show Project Runway, Gunn and his former colleague and current best friend Moloney, the Assistant Chair of fashion design at Parsons, The New School for Design share their fashion wisdom in Tim Gunn: A Guide to Quality, Taste, and Style. |
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I sat down with the fashion therapists to discuss what’s hot, what’s not, and of course to dish about Project Runway.
FUSN: The fashion industry can be brutal – of all the contestants on Project Runway, who has what it takes to make it in this biz?
TG: I have a long list of people – there’s Jay McCarroll, Kevin Johnn, and Alexandra Vidal from season 1, and then there’s Santino Rice and Andrae Gonzalo from season 2.
FUSN: Do you keep in touch with any of the contestants?
TG: I do keep in touch, it’s not constant, but we do check in with each other.
FUSN: Do you have any favorites or who really stands out to you?
TG: For our winners, that’s the case – Jay McCarroll, Chloe Dao, Jeffrey Sebelia. And the final 3 in the first two seasons and the final 4 in the third season. I would keep an eye on all of them.
FUSN: Skinny jeans – in or out?
TG: Ughhhh – some people can wear them and they can wear them at any time, but most people should avoid them.
KM: Ehhh – right now they’re here. But in about 9 months we’ll see the denim trend go back to the wide leg.