Christina Aguilera has gone through more transformations than the average pop tartlet - but she has yet to visit rehab or get caught without her panties, unlike some of her most formidable competitors in the bubble-gum era of the late’90s.
Her latest album, the two-disc “Back to Basics,” is more than what its title implies. It’s Aguilera studying her idols of the past and paying tribute to them now, in a completely cool way.
Witness the success of her latest single, “Candyman,” a throwback to the days of The Andrews Sisters, or even Bette Midler’s “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy.”
The song is an unlikely radio hit, yet it garnered more than 2,300 spins on stations nationwide this week, according to the tracking site www.allaccess.com.
It takes more than the massive pipes she possesses to attract a fickle Top 40 audience with a retro-sounding song, but Aguilera has obviously tapped into something.
The 26-year-old, who grew up in Pennsylvania, kicked off the U.S. leg of her “Back to Basics” tour in late February. She comes to the Verizon Center in Washington on April 2.
Just before hitting the road, Aguilera talked to reporters in a teleconference about what making this album meant to her and how much we really know about the real Christina.
Q. You’ve talked about [the album] really paying tribute to some of your singers - the Billie Holidays and Etta Jameses. Why was this the right time to really bring that out in your music?
A. For me, with my first album, it was the first album. I kind of had to play by the rules and go accordingly or what my label kind of wanted me to do.
I came out during the huge sort-of pop explosion, and that was kind of what I had to do to earn some credit and some respect for myself.
A few million records sold later, I was able to do what I wanted with “Stripped,” which was kind of my own interpretation of my coming-of-age record. . . .
While I was on tour with that album, I started really diving deeper into this place of inspiration . . . where blues, soul and jazz music were always an inspiration for me. And I really felt that it was time, next, to dive into that world.
What was your strategy working with Linda Perry this time? Were you surprised that coming off a ballad like “Beautiful” that you two came up with something so completely different and kind of Andrews Sisters-y with “Candyman”?
You know, it just never ceases to amaze me. We have - especially on this last record - come to realize what an amazing and natural chemistry we have working together. What’s great about Linda and me is that we never try to repeat what we’ve already done. . . .
What I did was I compiled a two-disc CD of my own before making the record. I called it my producer packet.
I sent it out to all the potential producers that I thought could possibly get this idea. . . . I put together two discs of all the old classic songs that I love, from Otis Redding to James Brown to Nina Simone. . . .
I sent it out with bullet points and a letterhead, saying to reinvent this style of music. . . . Linda was one of those people who completely went to bat and invented it with me in an organic way.
You’ve referred to a lot of the older music as fun music. And given what you’ve said about some of your past, what did you get out of this music as a kid and how have you tried to translate that into what you do now?
I do talk about it being feel-good music. Yes, there are songs that totally fit that to a T. But then, of course, there’s a lot of sadness in old music and in blues. It originates from pain, and I think that’s really beautiful.
I really don’t shy away from anything that a lot of people would consider dark music, because I find comfort in that.
I do talk openly about my past and what I’ve gone through - abuse being something that was very real in my household, and a lot of chaos growing up as a child.
I think I naturally just gravitated toward music I could really feel on a deep level, and that meant sadness.
This tour involves no fewer than 10 costume changes, 600 moving lights, et cetera, et cetera. It sounds like a lot of razzle-dazzle. So, to play devil’s advocate, does this really qualify as getting back to basics?
Well, that’s the thing. Nowadays, I don’t think it would be fair to my audience to just kind of sit onstage with a mike if I play an arena. A venue like that, I want my audience to be able to look around and enjoy a show from all aspects. . . .
I think it’s only fair to my audience to fill up the space and give them a real show. For me, whenever I go see a concert, I really enjoy being taken out of my element for a moment and being able to use my imagination and enter this whole different world.
Can you talk a little bit about your approach to the repertoire of the tour and weaving in your older material with a lot of new material from this album?
It’s great that every time I go on tour, I do come with a kind of different feel and look and vibe and different place than I was before musically.
And it’s just really fun for me to get together with my band and to reinvent some of the old material. For this one, we’re doing “What a Girl Wants,” and it’s really fun just because we sort of have an old-school reggae twist on it.
We’ve seen so many personas from you on each of the albums that you’ve put out. So how much have we seen of the real Christina?
You know what? If I didn’t change, I would be lying to you.
I would be lying about the real Christina just because I’m really showing people I do get bored easily, and not only is it important for me to challenge myself and evolve as an artist, but it’s important for me personally.
I think that life is all about changing and trying to continue your growth as a person. I’m not the same person I was on “Stripped,” and I wasn’t the same person on “Stripped” as I was when I first came out. To me, it’s just a constant evolution.
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