Laura Pausini extends art

Italian pop star is set to launch her English-language debut CD

Very few Italian pop stars have been able to crossover to wide international success. Laura Pausini is one of those, and she now stands a real chance of breaking into the coveted North American market big time.
She has the looks, the voice, and now the big record company push mandatory for such success.
As Tandem discovered during our recent interview with the songstress, Pausini also possesses charm, intelligence and a grounded personality that will be other key assets in her career. Warner Music Canada recently brought Laura to town to promote her upcoming English language debut album, From The Inside.
The strikingly attractive 28-year old is wearing torn blue jeans and a provocative T-shirt with the phrase "Flirting Is Hard Work" emblazoned across her chest. "I am very proud to be Italian and to look Italian," she declares. "I think it helps me very much. My face, my hair, my body [she slaps her rump] is very Italian." Indeed.
She scans a copy of this paper, stopping to peruse a story on Sophia Loren. "We met once in Milan because we were both wearing Armani clothes that he designed for us. She was very nice with me, I like her very much. She is so Italian in every way, and we are very proud of her. It is very difficult for an Italian person, especially a woman, to be known outside."
We mention to Laura that she's now facing a similar challenge. "I am not like her!" she says modestly. "But I am glad to be the one the people choose to represent my country in that sort of way. I don't feel any pressure about it, but I do feel some responsibility. I understand that I am a songwriter and I represent in a certain way Italian music. I'm afraid sometimes in my interviews of saying something that is not exactly the way Italians think, but in the end I choose to be very honest and to be myself. I am a person, I have my own ideas."
Laura first exploded onto the scene in 1993, as the surprise winner of the Sanremo Song Festival. Since then, she has become a global star, selling over 20 million albums internationally. The prolific Pausini has released five albums in Italian and four in Spanish, plus last year's Best Of collection.
She's sold over a million albums in the U.S. Latin market, and now here's her English language premiere. From The Inside is a highly polished pop album that reflects her vocal versatility. She worked with some of the top producers and songwriters around, including KC Porter (Santana, Ricky Martin), Guy Roche (Celine Dion, Cher), and Patrick Leonard (Jewel, Madonna). Her own writing took a back seat this time, though the album includes an Anglo version ("It's Not Goodbye") of her earlier hit In Assenza Di Te, a song she co-wrote.
Laura stresses that she collaborated with her writers by carefully explaining what she is all about. "I think it's pretty amazing to share emotions with other people. I started off with the desire of being a singer, not a songwriter. I found myself in the lyrics of other people and I want to continue that."
Pausini resisted earlier pressure to record in English, and took plenty of time (two years) on From The Inside. "Singing in English is very difficult," she explains. "Not only because of the accent and the pronunciation, but because of the culture that is very different from my own. You also need to understand that I am the first Italian singer and songwriter who is trying to sing an entire English album. That is why I had to wait until now. Before, I wasn't mature enough to be sure of myself."
The change of language induced a new vocal technique. "Italian, Spanish and Portuguese languages are very similar in that you open your voice. In English, for the first time I used my nose! I was very happy to find a new way to use my voice. I will use that in the next Italian and Spanish albums. It is really cool to find new sounds."
Laura is up for the challenge of chasing success here. "I have some friends in Europe who are famous, and they thought I was crazy for trying this album. Most of the population here does not know who Laura Pausini is. That means I have to start from the beginning again, like 10 years ago. This is the most difficult part of the job, but this is why I wanted to do it! I am 28 and I don't want to feel I have everything. I want to learn and grow as an artist and a woman. It's important to feel I have a lot to do."

From The Inside is released on Warner Music Canada next month.

Publication Date: 2002-10-13
Story Location: http://tandemnews.com/viewstory.php?storyid=1867