Fantasia confirms she will begin working on her fifth studio album very soon.
The “Without Me” singer chatted with Billboard on recruiting producer Harmony Samuels for her new album — who executive produced her Grammy nominated “Side Effects of You” album — and her musical direction she wants to take.
Fantasia says she wants Samuels to be a part of her new album because she enjoys their chemistry. “I feel like I should always do albums with Harmony because he gets me,” she says. “He’s like my Quincy Jones. We started ‘Side Effects of You’ from scratch with him going to the keyboard and just playing things. I’d be like, ‘I like that. Keep going.’ Whenever you can create an album like that, it’s amazing. You don’t find that anymore. Normally you go into the studio and the producer gives you a track or the song is already written. Harmony allows me to be me.”
Interview: Harmony Samuels Talks Working With Fantasia
As far as her sound, Fantasia wants to continue with her “rock soul” fusion. “This whole rock soul direction has been on my heart,” says Fantasia. “I’ll always be soulful: I started singing in the church at the age of five. So that will never go anywhere. But there’s a certain side of me that wants to tap into that whole rock world. It’s hard to come from R&B to that. But it’s something I believe in and will fight for. This will be my fifth album and 10 years in the game for me. Musically I’ve grown, and in my life I’ve grown. I want all of that reflected in my music for this album.”
Album Review: Fantasia – “Side Effects of You”
In April 2013, Fantasia released her critically acclaimed album “Side Effects of You.” The album debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 with 91,000 copies sold during its first week of sales.
(Source: Billboard)