Crystal Clear
Breaking
Barriers: Meet Virgin Records' first Latina artist!
by qvStaff Roldán
 Crystal
Sierra is one of the hottest rising
Latina music stars in the business today. Her debut CD, "Morena,"
is a mezcla of Latin grooves and hip-hop beats that was recently
released from Virgin Records, and it's sure to make her a star!
qvMagazine spoke with the singer about her music and her road
to success.
So you're the first
Latina to be signed to Virgin Records? How did you get signed?
As crazy as it seems, it was being
at the right place at the right time. I was at a dinner with
my girlfriend, and we were eating with an A&R person from
Virgin Records. My friend told him all about me and said it would
be a great idea to present me to Virgin. He did and I got signed!
Prior to being signed, were you performing? I gigged. I went to a performing arts school so
I studied the history of music-jazz, salsa, theater training.
A lot of study to prepare myself for show business.
What does singing mean to you? It's a release-a way for me to shut my mind off
from everything that's happening around me. If I didn't have
my voice, I would die. (Laughs) I'd be the walking dead! Singing
is breathing to me.
You have a variety of different musical
backgrounds in your work? Yes,
and in my family, too. I'm half Colombiana and my mother is American.
I grew up with rhythm and blues as well as salsa, merengue and
cumbias.
How do those sounds play into your album? It plays a big part! My music is una mezcla de
ritmo salsa and pop-and a little bit of a harder edge like hip
hop. It has a very solid direction. You're going to hear a lot
of hip-hop/pop oriented music. But underlying it, you're going
to hear rhythm of Latin music. All of the songs are ritmo, very
up. The whole album is...party! party! party!
So would you describe yourself as an
energetic kind of person? Very
energetic. It's like, Crystal, you've got to take a break! I
run my parents crazy.
Were you the kind of girl who was always
jumping and dancing around the house? Yup.
The living room was my playground! I'd be singing. and my parents
would be, "C'mon. It's one o'clock in the morning!"
Did you write any of the songs on the
album? I co-wrote every song, except
one. It took more work than I expected. I thought they [record
executives] were going to lay out all these songs, and I'd pick
the ones I thought were the hottest. But nobody's ever done salsa
and hip-hop -or salsa and pop. So I couldn't go into the record
store and say, "This is what I want to do." We had
to create it from scratch.
What would you say to someone who's
just starting their journey in the music business? Be in a city where record companies are. Come
to the place where it's happening. Put yourself in that environment.
Write down a lot of short term and long term goals. Do something
at least once a day that moves you forward towards your dream-even
if it's just a phone call. That's what I did.
What was the hardest thing to discipline
yourself about? Waking up and doing
my voice lessons every morning-and exercising. I take kick boxing,
circuit training, and running. I do a lot of abs. I train the
way boxers do when they're ready to get into the ring.
So you're ready to kick some butt? (Laughs). Yeah. You have to have that stamina in
order to salsa dance, be energetic, and sing on the stage.
What are your ultimate goals? Longevity in the music business. If there ever
had to be a point where it was over, and I was still young, I
don't know what else I'd do because I've worked so hard for this
to be my life.
What would you say to your future Latino fans? I would say that I
love you just for who you are. It's okay to be who you are and
to express yourself-and not to be afraid of what other people
think.
A Book For You?
Izote Vos: A Collection of
Salvadoran American Writing and Visual Art
 Looking
to Expand your horizons? Want to know more about the Salvadoran
experience in America? Then check out the book "Izote Vos."
It's a wonderful 112-page book that features the writings of
14 young men and women-ages 15 to 29, many of whom were born
in El Salvador and brought to the United States at a very young
age.
Among the works in "Izote Vos"
are the following: a 15-year-old girl's reflection of her quinceañera,
a young man's writings about living in the absence of his father,
and a young gangbanger's writings about the events leading up
to his incarceration. There is also a collection of writings
by Marlon Morales, a young QV man who shares his story of growing
up as a Salvadoran in Los Angeles.
"Izote Vos" is not only a book
filled with gorgeous photography, beautifully written poetry,
and personal short stories, but one that will expand your mind
and take you into the lives of some truly intriguing people.
|
Website of the
Month!
Cyber QV Boricuas and their friends can
visit a cool place at the Boricua QV Pride website. This site
contains tons of useful stuff including QV news, a chat room,
message boards, and surveys. It also has many non-QV Boricua
resources, too. Be sure to visit this site and see what your
Boricua Brothers are up to!
|
<<Previous
Article<< | >>Next
Article>>
qv16
Table of Contents | Main Menu
|
