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Interview with Willa Ford - She Still
Wants To Be Bad
Here is an artist we haven't heard
from in a long time. Willa Ford is
a pop sensation who as fast as we
could find her on MTV she was gone.
I don't know what you guys think of
her, but she's definitely herself
a character.
The new single is titled "A
Toast to Men" featuring Lady
May and the video accompanying it
is very racy indeed. This girl is
never subtle (ok so this is an understatement!)
and is unafraid of breaking down gender
barriers!
July 10th, 2001 she released her
debut album with Lava/ Atlantic Records
titled Willa Was Here which featured
I Wanna Be Bad and Did Ya Understand
That. Her upcoming album is slated
for release soon.
Interviewer: What music did you grow
up listening to? What were your major
influences?
Willa: My major influence was my ten
years older sister. So I grew up listening
to Cyndi Lauper, Madonna, all those
people. But I got really excited about
loving Duran Duran, INXS, Depeche
Mode, The Cure, Flock of Seagulls.
All the weird stuff that came out.
My sister was a little too old for
New Kids on the Block. I'm a little
sister so.. I was more inspired by
these bands. My new records starting
to sound like that stuff because that's
the stuff that brings me back to a
happy place.
Interviewer: You cite Radiohead and
Bjork as favorite artists of yours.
Do you feel they have a powerful influnce
on the new record?
Willa: Yeah on the new record there's
one song actually that you really
hear Bjork and Radiohead in. I tried
not to make a format because you know
they never really have a format for
their songs. It's very loose. I tried
not to have a format. I tried to bring
in the live orchestra like Bjork does.
I love the feeling that that music
gives me when I just listen to it.
I mean it would be awesome to do an
entire record like that. But unfortunately
that's not my style. So rather than
do a record like that I just got inspired
by it. On this record, I didn't try
to make hits. I just tried to do things
that felt good.
Interviewer: How does the new single
"A Toast to Men" represent
female empowerment to you?
Willa: How doesn't it? I mean a song
that's specifically for the girls.
It's saying you know we talk about
them night and day, we're constantly
pondering on men and what they've
done good and what they've done bad
and all these things in our lives.
And what the songs is saying is Let's
talk, talk about them. Alright now
girls, it's one of those nights. We're
gonna go out. We're gonna have a girl's
night. F**k them. It's all about us
tonight. More than anything it's an
empowerment song. You know a lot of
times you'll find girls in a club
are jaded to the other girls in the
club. There's a nasty vibe between
the chicks in the club. It's like
a pretty girl can't look at another
pretty girl and say Wow she's pretty.
They're all kind of like "Uuughh.."
you know? I think this song might
bring them together a little more
and say "Listen we're all fierce,
we're all chicks. They all want us.
Let's bring it together and sing a
song about "Screw them."
Interviewer: Sexysexobsessive. Is
that what you're naming the album?
Willa: Yeah. I mean it's all up in
the air. Until the fat lady sings
it can always be changed but it's
Sexysexobsessive as we speak.
Interviewer: Well it was a long time
in coming. Any particular reasons
for the delay?
Willa: From the last record? What's
really funny. I mean there are tons
of reasons. Well first of all. I write
my own record. I don't take other
people's materials. And I have a job
which is being Willa Ford on top of
getting back in the studio and writing
and recording. And I have to do some
TV stuff. And I have to be a real
person to some extent. And back in
the day albums used to take four to
five years and that's why they were
great. And now people are popping
albums out every year and it's just
too much. I think that music is stale
because of it. I think that we have
the same artists from day to day.
It's nice to see an artist dip out
and come back in every once in awhile.
There's a such thing as oversaturating
the market. I mean look at Britney.
I just feel like it's oversaturated.
We eat, sleep, and breathe it.....
I like being weird. I've always done
things differently than other people.
I would have loved to put records
out more often if my fans would have
liked it but I think it's more about
quality than quantity...
Interviewer: And because of the delay
are you nervous about how people will
receive it?
Willa: I believe we have all this
image stuff and blah, blah, blah but
at the end of the day it all boils
down to music don't you think? And
there are people where they push the
image enough that the music doesn't
matter and nobody cares. But I really
believe that this record is going
to have it's own wings... They put
the single out there and it's doing
it's own thing. Kind of creating it's
own buzz which is really nice. I never
think twice about if it's going to
be accepted? What's going to happen?
I'm a firm believer in destiny. If
it's gonna happen, it's gonna happen.
It's God's Will, then it's God's will.
So I can't stress over it. When he's
ready to pull me out of this business
then he'll pull me out.
Interviewer: Where did the title
of the new album originate?
Willa: It's a song on the record,
SEXYSEXOBSESSIVE. It's all one word
and it's just a really strong word
to kind of describe what I felt like
Willa and the world had between them
which is the infatuation of me being
sexy and not necessarily my music.
Which is kind of funny to me. Because
I started off this whole thing as
a musician and suddenly the whole
world became SEXYSEXOBSESSIVE over
the video and the image and all the
little paraphanellia that came out.
It kind of lent itself to be called
sexysexobsessive. I guess that's kind
of where I'm at in my life right now.
22 and just kind of experimenting
and finding new things. It's my little
thing that I bring to the world right
now I guess..
Interviewer: What's the overall feel
of the new album? How would you describe
it?
Willa: It's a mood record. Like one
night you're going to be down in the
dumps depressed because you're thinking
about your ex-boyfriend and the next
moment you're gonna be like screw
him you know? And the next one you're
saying to yourself "God I'm in
love." It's not one of those
records you would just put on at a
party and listen to. It's one of those
records that you would be in the car
and just live with. It's Depeche Mode
and Linkin Park meets Willa Ford.
Like really funky, really industrial.
I worked so hard at finding the sound
and finding the mix and that's one
of the reasons that it took so long
to be quite honest with you. Finding
a fresh sound that somebody hasn't
found yet is reall hard. There's a
million new people in the studio every
day creating new stuff so I really
had to be on my toes with this one
so I could get it out before somebody
else could.
Interviewer: What do you think inspires
you most for your music?
Willa: Um, Living (laugh)If I live
it, I write it. End of story....
Interviewer: What kind of drove you
to be different and to break the rules?
Willa: My upbringing, my parents were
real open with me, whatever I wanted..
I think you're just born with it.
I was just born an outcast. (laugh)
It just feels right to me.
Interviewer: You talk about how you
really went back to the basics with
the making of your new album, working
with only two key collaborators in
a small studio. Do you feel you really
reinvented your sound to fit your
personality or how much you've grown?
Willa: Yeah. I have. I narrowed it
down to two producers. I mean that's
my entire life right there. I re-evaluted
everybody in my life. I narrowed it
down to the people that really cared
about me. And did away with everybody
else. Just kind of distanced myself.
Same thing with the producers. I wanted
some producers that understood me
and didn't want to push me in their
direction but wanted to help bring
out what my direction was. There's
not a lyric on this record that I
didn't write. There's not a melody
on this record that I didn't write.
These producers would literally sit
there in the studio and say "Yay
Nay" but at the same time they
didn't force anything down me. They
really let me just let me open up
to myself. It was like my own therapy
session. I would just start rolling.
And once I started going they would
enforce it and say "That's great!
Now keep it going." And the things
that would come out of me were impressive
to myself as far as how honest I became
with myself. It's really an experience.
It's really enlightening to strip
it down and to really go "Alright
I'm not going to spend $100,000 on
a track with the Neptunes." Which
by the way are very talented and amazing.
But at the same time is that hard?
Is that challenging? No. They're hit
writers. They're gonna write me a
hit whether I wanted it or not you
know? I could have put out a single
a year ago with the Neptunes and maybe
been writing now on top but that was
not the path that I chose. I believe
honesty comes across in music because
for people that music isn't just something
to dance to. For people for whom music
is something that they feel, they
understand what I'm talking about.
Interviewer: You're not ashamed of
your sexuality which I personally
think is great. But regardless, do
you think that some people majorly
misconstrue your actions and mindlessly
namecall?
Willa: The thing that I like about
being me is that everybody gets a
different feeling from me. Like I
like that some people think "Go
girl!" and some people think
that she's a skank, and some people
think "Wow her music's great!",
and some people think she's beautiful,
or some people say I hate her or whatever.
I like the idea that people have formed
their own opinions. And of course
once people meet me or talk to me
their opinion totally changes because
I'm much more that girl that you hang
out with than you think. It bothers
you to a certain extent when you let
it get to you but I've embraced it.
I love how colorful I am in the general
public. One person loves you. One
person hates you. It's fun! I think
that's what it's about to be in America
and to have an opinion. I try not
to focus on the negative...
Interviewer: And finally what do
you do in your downtime to relax?
Willa: I do house things. I paint.
I do portraits. I also paint my house.
Changing colors all the time. I love
to go home shopping. I'm getting into
gardening. I like to drive my car
and just listen to music. That's really
calming to me. I love to see family
and friends.
Source: Ivana, Senior Editor - Kiwibox
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