Well, not literally. It's the name of the site that interviewed her.
Brandy recently sat down with barkbiteblog.com to chat about honouring the past, '2 Eleven' and her current single ft. Chris Brown, 'Put It Down'.
She also goes into detail about working with producers Bangladesh and Rico Love, as well as writers Sean Garrett, Frank Ocean and Ester Dean.
It's good to know that she's concentrating on herself solely, as an artist. I'm also glad her interviews are all different. I mean, she's covered four magazines already and she just pushed out the first single. No promo yet and no video so you'd think that all the cover stories would be the same, but they're not.
Keeping it fresh, get into the enlightening Brandy interview below... Bark + Bite: Tell us about the new single. How's the reception been for "Put It Down"?
Brandy: Oh my god, the reception has been amazing. The core fans are loving it, they can't believe how different it is for me. And I love taking risks in music and it's great to challenge yourself to be different. That's what I love about the song. I can't wait till it really hits the radio waves and we do the video for it and it really takes off.
Bark + Bite: It's interesting that you mention you mentioned specifically trying something different. The trendy thing for you to do would've been to hook up with a European DJ and try your hand at a dance-pop single, as so many other R&B and hip-hop artists are doing now. What made you want to link up with Bangladesh instead?
Brandy: I try to follow my spirit and my intuition when it comes to music because intuition never leads you down the wrong path and I haven't been following it for a very long time. Bangladesh was someone that I've always admired, someone I was always a fan of and I remember before I even signed to Chameleon or RCA, I just went to the studio and hung out with him. I just listened to what he was doing and I could hear myself singing over those knockin', hard-ass beats. And I just felt it.
It organically happened, the connection with Sean Garrett and I, because Sean Garrett is one of the few writers that can write to a Bangladesh beat. So it all was in sync, and that's how I knew it was the right thing. Because it happened naturally.
Bark + Bite: So is Bangladesh doing the bulk of the album or just a few tracks?
Brandy: He definitely set the foundation for the sound of the album, but I took a chance with this album because usually I work with one producer and kind of go out a little bit just to do the fill-ins or the ballads. But I really ventured out and worked with a lot of different people this album. Rico Love is a big part of the album, Ester Dean...just different people.
Bark + Bite: Is there any chance of a reunion with Timbaland for this album?
Brandy: We're working on that. I was supposed to record with Timbaland a couple of weeks ago, but you know sometimes when you're that much of a genius, sometimes your schedule kind of goes four or five different ways so we're trying to lock him down to stay in one place so I can actually go and work with him. But I definitely don't want to let this album go out without us at least trying to let the magic happen.
Bark + Bite: You've already worked with Frank Ocean in the past, but you're said to have completed work with him for the new album, right?
Brandy: Yeah, I love Frank Ocean. I tease him all the time that I knew before everyone else knew how special he was. It's always great to work with him, he's such a young genius just coming into his own.
He gave me a great song called "Scared of Beautiful" and I think the meaning of that record is just so huge. It could be taken in so many different ways and there are so many double entendres going on in that song. Just people who are afraid to succeed, people who are afraid to love, people who are afraid of being the best version of who they are. That's how it can relate to everyone. I really hope that it makes the album, I really hope it does.
Bark + Bite: Your VH1 Behind the Music recently aired. It was a pretty emotional special. What was it like for you to watch it?
Brandy: I actually have never seen it. I lived it and I was definitely open in talking about it, so there's no need for me to watch it. It felt like a weight was lifted and I appreciate VH1 wanting to do a Behind the Music with me because it was so needed for me just personally and emotionally.
Just being able to tell my story and be very transparent with the people that loved me for so long and also, to reach the people that were confused about the things that happened or were judgmental or whatever the case may be. I was able to confront that.
And taking responsibility always relieves you in so many ways. So it was very liberating for me, and I was so glad I did that because now I don't have to talk about any of that anymore. It can really be about going forward and what my music represents and what my life is and my purpose.
Bark + Bite: The really interesting thing was that after the special aired, Never Say Never shot up the iTunes R&B charts. It shows that there's still a connection with your fans to your story. How did it feel seeing that reception to one of your old works and did that motivate you to strengthen that connection with your new album Two Eleven?
Brandy: It definitely was scary, because it was like, "WOW! Should we have the album come out right now?! What's going on?"
I'm very pleased with how people responded to the old music and how they related the music to what I was going through in my life at the time. But definitely, I've always tried to be honest in my music. It just doesn't work for me. I can't sing songs I don't feel. I can't get a good vocal out of those songs. But yeah, I look forward to seeing what people have to say about the new album and hopefully they'll love it as much as I do.
Bark + Bite: So you mentioned you're prepping to roll out the single, the video. What's the timeline looking like for the project?
Brandy: The timeline for the single is now. We're just working out all the dates for the director, myself and Chris. You know, Chris is a superstar, so we're just trying to lock that whole thing down.
I'm making sure we have the right video because one of the things that I feel has been missing for a very long time with me is visuals. So we just wanna make sure we have the right visual and I really believe everything is in divine time.
We're looking at the end of summer for the album and we just wanna make sure everything is right. This is the shot to get it right. Everybody is falling back in love with what they're seeing and we just don't wanna eff it up!
So we're patient, but we don't wanna be too laid back with it where we don't give the fans what they want, when they want it. But greatness takes time and we wanna make sure this project is as great as it can be. And we appreciate everybody being patient, especially the core fans.
Bark + Bite: There was talk of you possibly hitting the road with Monica for a joint tour. Is that still in the works?
Brandy: Um, honestly, we haven't really talked about it since we stopped promoting "It All Belongs to Me." I just honestly think Monica and I are in different places in our music. And my vibe is a little bit different this time around so I don't know. I kind of wanna do my own thing. I definitely feel like the fans would want a tour from us, but I don't know, I just feel like I'm being pulled in a different direction. I'm definitely still open to it, but right now I'm looking in a different way right now for me.
{Sidenote: Brandy announced, on the red carpet at the 2012 Billboard Awards, that '2Eleven' has been pushed back 'til August. The date is either the 7th or 17th but expect her out on promo for put it down sooner rather than later.}
Proving that looking snatched isn't a passing faze, Ms. Brandy turns heads in this Hervé Léger Spring 2012 RTW Bare Iza Dress paired with Christian Louboutin Metal Nodo Slingbacks.
Gold accessories and a embellished clutch, matching the mirror panels on the dress. A beat face and a glossy nude lip with her ultra chic curls complete the look.
Even tho' Kelly Rowland has rocked it prior and Ms. Solange putting her stank in it, making it her trademark in the 2012, Brandy and Keri Hilson have recently tried out the curly look also.
Now who do you think rocks it better? VOTE for your fave below!
"We know that females are catty. We get jealous of each other very fast," Brandy said during her In House visit with The BoomBox. She's speaking on her most recent duet with Monica, "It All Belongs to Me." The song's theme is reminiscent of the original Brandy-Monica collaboration, 1998's "The Boy Is Mine." Of course, while we're on the subject of catty women, we have to bring up the fact that Brandy is starring in the new Tyler Perry movie, "The Marriage Counselor," with her ex-friend Kim Kardashian. The relationship turned sour around the time the entertainer's brother Ray J started dating the reality TV star but today, Brandy has nothing but positive words to say about her.
The film isn't the only project the 33-year-old singer-actress has in the works. Brandy's sixth studio album, Two Eleven, featuring collaborations with Frank Ocean, Ester Dean, Rico Love and Bangladesh, drops later this year. And if you like her current single, the Chris Brown-assisted "Put It Down," stay tuned for another C-Breezy collaboration. She even reveals the song's title.
Brandy dished on the new album and movie and opened up about raising a daughter, settling down with her man and how losing her idol and friend Whitney Houston has given her life a renewed sense of purpose. Read the Q&A below!
Before you and Monica joined forces and released "The Boy Is Mine" in 1998, the media had created this fictional rivalry between you two. Why do you think that is?
Well I think this whole entire business has been about competition for a long time. It still goes on today, and being two females around the same age -- that was [the media's] way of making us competitive. On top of that we were doing a song that was about a catfight about a boy. People see things and buy into it and it becomes this thing. It was crazy because people had already started to put us against each other and we hadn't even met yet.
Why do you think that happens so often with women in the industry, as oppose to men?
We know that females are catty. We get jealous of each other very fast. We're competitive. That's just how women are, but I try to not get into that. I just try to stay in my own lane, in my own zone, and just feel inspired by other women who are doing their thing. It's kind of insecure to be jealous of someone else. I'm competitive with myself, and as long as I stay true to me, then I don't have to worry about anyone else. No one else can be me, and I can't be anyone else.
Why did you and Monica decide to get back together 14 years later and record another duet, "It All Belongs to Me"?
I think our fans have really been pressuring us to get back in the studio. I've seen so many tweets about us getting back in the studio and Monica had this song that she was going to do on her own and she called me up and said, "Hey, do you want to do the duet now?" And I said, "Of course." It was a great song, Rico Love produced it and we went to Miami to record it.
It's funny how both of your duets together have this possession theme and are about marking your territory.
[Laughs] My dad said the same thing! He said, "First it was the boy is mine, now the stuff is mine!"
There have been reports that you and Monica are planning a co-headlining tour together.
We're talking, but there's nothing definite yet. Honestly, I'm so focused on Two Eleven and really coming out with a project that I feel like my fans have been waiting for for a long time. I just want to make sure they get what they deserve. So that's where my focus is, and if it leads to working with Monica again in the future, fine, if not, my music is what I'm here for. It's my purpose.
How do you feel about the shift in R&B, as more and more of the genre's artists put out pop, house and dance-leaning music?
I think art is art. Music is music. We put things into categories, but if it makes you feel good, then you should support it. I think it's great to be a versatile artist. I love that. Two Eleven is true to me. There's something for everybody on this album. Music is free, there are no rules.
Can you confirm any of the rumors about the big-name collaborations on the album?
There's a rumor about Chris Brown and he did write a great song for the album, he and his artist Seven. My brother Ray J heard it last night and he called me and said, "B, you are back with this song!" and he just went on and on. Chris Brown wrote such a beautiful song and it was so me that it was as if I had wrote it myself. It's called "Slower."
What is the significance of the album title?
"Two eleven" [Feb. 11] is the day I was born, and I was working with a lot of titles in the beginning like rebirth, reinvention, resurrection -- all of these things to try and describe me as an evolved artist. Two Eleven represents that and it's also a dedication to me losing my idol, but gaining her as an angel on that day. With Whitney [Houston] passing on that day, it just really made me feel that from here on I have to live my life with purpose, and it just brought so much significance to Feb. 11.
You were very close with Whitney. How do you feel about the talks about a biopic about her life and the rumors about who might portray her if the film were to come into fruition?
Honestly, I think it's a little bit too soon to do a biopic of her life. Everybody needs to chill out right now. It's way too soon to really tell the true story, but I was very close to Whitney, and it was always my dream to play her. While she was alive in the physical, I talked to her about it all the time. "Nobody else can play you but me! I gotta do it! Can you just sign off?" I would tell her that all the time and she would just laugh and say, "Girl, I'm too young to have a movie about me yet!" So that was our little joke, but if it's meant to be, it will happen. If not, when it does happen I feel like it's going to be great and people are going to be inspired, and I'm going to be first in line to buy a ticket and go see it.
You're in Tyler Perry's new movie "The Marriage Counselor," as is your former friend Kim Kardashian. Your friendship kind of deteriorated after she started dating your brother Ray J, so what was it like making a movie with her now?
We were friends, yes, but I didn't work with her! It was a bummer because I was hoping to see her and rekindle our friendship, but we didn't have any scenes together. But that wasn't on purpose! I read the script before I was hired for the movie and I could see her character and my character didn't have any scenes together. But I'm sure she did great, and I'll see her at the premiere and say hi.
Tell us about your character in the film.
Well, it's my first movie since I was 17, so it was time. My character is Melinda, and she's running from a very troubled past. This girl is traumatized and you'll find out why. And she starts to confront different things that have happened in her life. It's a great movie about being married to the right person and how people go through different things in relationships from domestic violence to people not communicating.
Speaking of "The Marriage Counselor," is marriage on the horizon for you?
Yes! It's on the radar for me and I told him [my boyfriend, an A&R named Ryan], "Babe, I want to get married but I think it's hot in my interviews if I say you're my boyfriend still!" I like the way that sounds! I want a ring and everything, but it just sounds younger to call him my boyfriend. He didn't like that [laughs], but I'm totally ready. I want to get married. I know I'm 33, but I like the feeling of forever young. My daughter keeps me young, she keeps me current.
How has raising a daughter changed your approach to men and relationships?
Being a mother changes your entire perspective in life, because you have to lead by example. I just want to be the type of woman that I want my daughter to grow up to be like. When you start dating someone and you start to get serious about them, you have to look at the person that they are not only for you, but for the example that they're going to set for your child. And my boyfriend is so great with her. She's so cute with him.
Find out which cast member of 90s sitcom Moesha, needs your help! Click below... via Carlton Jordan
Please donate to the Yvette Wilson ‘CANCER SUCKS’ Fund. Funds will be used for Yvette’s medical costs and related expenses not covered by insurance.
Yvette Wilson is best known for her role as Andell Wilkerson on the UPN sitcom Moesha and its spinoff The Parkers. She has appeared on many comedy films such as House Party 2, House Party 3, Friday, and on Russell Simmons’ Def Comedy Jam. Yvette has experienced kidney failure, kidney transplants and cervical cancer, among other things. Her cancer has come back after an extended retreat, and doctors are saying it’s very aggressive this time out.
To get her the required treatment at the best doctors, and to to help cover travel and medical costs, we’re asking that you please donate to her medical fund – she’s brought so much laughter to so many people – it’s time we step up and support Yvette and let her feel some of that love she’s so used to giving, come back to her ten-fold!
Queen B attended the NARM Music Biz 2012 Awards Dinner Party at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza in Century City. She looked absolutely BEAT TO THE GAWDS wearing a structured black satin, laser cut leather cap sleeve "Nairoby" cocktail dress from London based luxury brand Izmaylova “Edge of Darkness” capsule collection.
She accessorised the look with ombré fringe earrings and gold bracelets, Versace SS12 Studded Suede and Mesh platform Sandals with transparent Lucite heel mixed with dégradé black and a black nappa Valentino SS11 Rockstud VaVa-Voom Shoulder Flap Bag.
Last week we previewed the Ebony cover and now, you can check out the whole spread.
I have to say these two R&B veterans are just like wine, getting finer with time. Black don't crack honey! YASS GAWD! Get into their fierceness below... Hair SNATCHED! Face BEAT! Body BANGIN'! Brandy and Monica both share next month's Ebony cover flawless as ever. Make sure that the same time you're gettin' ya life that you pick up a copy, on news-stands right NOW!
Monica's album 'New Life' is in stores now and Brandy's RCA debut is blazing up the charts, "Put It Down" ft. Chris Brown is available at all digital outlets as of May 8th! Go out and support real music from real, talented artists. Help bring back real R&B!
