There are a million and one artists waiting to grab their 15 minutes on MTV, they're ready to hang the platinum plaques over the fireplace, jotting down the names of everybody they come in contact with for the inevitable Grammy acceptance speeches...(notice that's a plural.)
So what can an aspiring artist do to make it to that level?
Well besides the obvious...talent.. you need an image, something that will make you stand out.
If you don't have green hair or a barbell through your nose, then you'll have to rely on your sound, create a new style....just sound different.
Blu Cantrell's unique sound is what got the 25 year old singer a deal with Arista Records.
"Within the first 30 seconds of hearing her sing, I knew Blu possessed a distinctive and exceptionally heartfelt voice, I knew she had the capacity to be a huge success."
- Antonio "L.A." Reid, president and chief executive of Arista Records
A native of Providence, Rhode Island, Blu developed her interest in music at an early age - her mother was a jazz singer. Her mother couldn't afford a babysitter, so she would take Blu and her siblings on the road with her. They would sit in the dressing room but somehow Blu would always find her way to the side of the stage so she could watch her mother sing.
By the time she was 20 years old, she was singing as well. Music was an integral part of her life, a place that she could escape from the heartache of broken relationships.
"My music comes from hurt, from being in relationships where I felt I was being taken advantadge of... I was in love, but the relationships didn't work out"
But success in the entertainment business isn't only about talent and loving your craft.. you need some connections.
She made one of those, oh, so important "connections," during a visit to Atlanta, Georgia. While there she met two music executives from Redzone Entertainment, they listened to her demo and a creative relationship developed. The roots quickly sprouted as she began singing background vocals for Faith Evans, Sean "Diddy" Combs, Gerald Levert and Aaron Hall.
Word began to spread throughout the music industry about this exciting new singer, and then came the rush.... labels started tripping over themselves to offer her a recording contract; she eventually signed with Arista Records.
The album So Blu produced by Dallas "Awesome" Austin, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, Tricky (not the jungle guy,) and a host of others, reflects the experiences and innermost thoughts of Blu Cantrell as she tries, like many, to succeed at love.
Explaining the first single "Hit Em' Up Style (Oops!)," Blu says
"This is a song about a woman who has found out that her man is cheating. She knows that the only way she can really hurt him is in his pockets so she goes out and spends all his money with her friends."
Oh... you didn't know. Her style might conjure up memories of jazz singers like Shirley Bassey or dig into the sound of one of her idols - Billie Holiday, but she can talk Prada and Louis Viutton right along with Kim and Co.
"I like the store Jeffrey and I'm very, very fond of Gucci - I have so much Gucci it's ridiculous. I like Chloe and Christian Dior; I like buying simple things from litle vintage shops: old jeans, funky little tops. Oh Prada - I love Prada. I like a little bit of everything."
That guys wallet is gonna be in bad shape.
And is her real name Blu?
I don't know the answer to that, but it is her favorite color.
Her mother used to make her birthday cakes blue - frosting and all. She wrapped her presents in blue paper, and as she says "Candy always tasted better if it was blue - I had a really big thing for blue."
Simple enough.
