Since 2004, Ciara has amassed 11 top ten singles on Billboard's R&B charts: "Goodies," "1, 2 Step," "Oh," "Like You," "Lose Control," "So What," "Promise," "Get Up," "Like a Boy," "Can't Leave 'Em Alone" and "Never Ever." Such plentiful successes tend to overshadow the fact that Ciara has accomplished a great deal in less than five years. At the age of 23, one thing is for certain: her career is just beginning.
An all-around entertainer, Ciara's talents are famously known for extending beyond the studio and spilling onto the dance floor. Although the "First Lady of Crunk & B" is oft-compared to Janet Jackson, her musical icon, Ciara's music videos are memorable for their high-energy performances, which tend to showcase elaborate displays of her strength and flexibility. With Ciara's creativity, music lovers will always be entertained.
In the midst of preparation for Fantasy Ride's promotional tour, Ciara managed to squeeze some time out of her busy schedule and settle down for an interview with Clayton Perry—reflecting on Missy Elliot, Japan's embracement of "Go Girl," and the origins of her "Super C" persona.
Over the past two years, Fantasy Ride experienced a few setbacks and false starts. What do you consider to be the biggest professional lesson you learned along the way, as you were preparing for the album's final release?
No matter what anybody says, it's all about staying positive. It's all about staying focused. When I sent out my first record, it really was more like an exercise or a warm-up or a little tester because my whole album wasn't complete at that moment. More than anything, it's all about patience. We had a date set for the release of Fantasy Ride, but realistically, the date wasn't real because the whole album wasn't completed. That's why the album was pushed back. It was only moved one time but a lot of dates were going out loosely. I didn't confirm any dates until I knew for a fact. With this album, I really learned how to take my time. Of course, it can become difficult at times, because it is so easy to become anxious. Even though I want to share my work with my fans, at the same time, I had to take my time and really get everything the way I wanted it to be.
Originally, Fantasy Ride was supposed to be divided amongst three discs, but the final product was whittled down to one disc. What artistic challenges did you face, when consolidating the tracks onto a single disc?
Article comments
1 - Gregory
By reading this article, I feel like I have been afforded the opportunity to learn more about Ciara's creative process while making an album. I loved her response to the last question that Mr. Perry asked- it goes to show where her roots are buried (in the Bible).