Cher Lloyd interview: 'LA Reid loves scrambled eggs'
Not only has she put out a mightily impressive debut album, but she's also managed to turn around a fair few of the "haterz" that wrote her off before she'd even got going.
With her new single 'Want U Back' out this week and plans afoot for the US, we met up with a very sleepy Cher to find out what the next 12 months hold for her.
You seem like you're very busy today.
"Unbelievably. It will be worth it though - I'll make sure of it. I'm not doing all this hard work for nothing! At the end of the day it's for my career, it's not for anyone else."
Your new single 'Want U Back' has a great music video; is it from a real life situation?
"Not from me personally. It's basically a track from lots of different girls' stories out there. A lot of people are telling me they can relate to the track and they've been in that situation, but it's also got an element of fun in it."
What's with the helicopter bit at the end?
"I was in the studio, and to get my mind off working all the time I'd talk to myself. I was being stupid! I was played the final edit and it was on there and I couldn't believe it. It's cool though - I'm glad they kept it in."
The track features Astro from X Factor USA - have you met him?
"We met up recently - he's alright. I think he's still getting his bearings and figuring out what it's all about. I think everyone deserves a bit of a chance."
Will there be any more singles from the album?
"I'm n! ot sure yet. I'm too busy thinking about all this America stuff! I'm heading out there this afternoon - hopefully I can sleep on the plane journey. There's lots of things that I can't talk about yet but I can't wait to say. It's really frustrating - I want to tell everyone! Regardless, people will be able to hear all the songs if they come on tour with me."
We were hoping for 'Superhero' or 'Playa Boi'.
"I've performed those tracks so many times live that I'm not sure I could handle them as a single too, but we'll see. It was great to do 'Dub on the Track' as a buzz single because fans must get so bored waiting around for the next thing to come out. Even though I'm drained right now, I'd do anything to get as many videos out there as possible. It feels like there's not enough of me out there yet - I want there to be more and more and more. I want to be stuck in people's heads so they can't get rid of me."
Does that mean album two is under way?
"I had a trip to LA not long ago and recorded some new songs. They're very much of the parental guidance sort though! I'm not sure whether they'll be used anywhere, but I'm 18 now, so I can swear in my songs if I want to. I'm growing and I want to be that artist that I want. I don't care about the charts, I just want to make great music that I enjoy performing on stage and I'm proud of. The next album is going to be on another level!"
You look very excited when talking about your new material...
"I am, definitely! It's just me now - no-one is going to walk me through it all again. People don't want to see me going through the puppet machine again, they want to see me as an artist."
You've been talking a lot about online bullying recently. One artist who seems to also be having a tough time at the moment is Lana Del Rey - what advice would you give to her?
"When you sing live, you cannot expect any artist, except for the amazing Beyonce or GaGa, to get it right every time. If someone asked me to do a gig right now it'd be awful because I'm tired and my voice feels weak. There are all sorts of reasons why people don't have a good performance. It's a bit harsh to criticise someone who has worked so hard over one performance. I like her - I think she's great."
What can you tell us about your plans for America this year?
"There have been a lot of meetings - and I'm very involved in them! I don't sit back and let decisions be made for me. This is something that I want to be able to enjoy - it's not a competition to see who can crack America first. I'm still in the phase where I'm putting my stamp on the UK. I want more people to be a Cher fan here before I head over there."
What's LA Reid like?
"He's been great - absolutely brilliant actually. He treats me like a star and he's really, really nice. He also eats a lot of scrambled egg!"
Cher Lloyd's new single 'Want U Back' ft. Astro is out February 19. Watch the official music video below:
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