The fabulous Grace Valerie stopped by TWIST's offices to dish about her upcoming album, her latest single, and her love for the guys of One Direction. Find out what she had to say below, watch our exclusive video, and be sure to check out her single "Don't Wanna Be Waiting!"
XOXO,
TWIST
TWIST: Who are your musical influences?
Grace Valerie: My idol is Beyoncé. I love her so much, I grew up listening to Destiny's Child and I was so happy when she started her solo career. When I decided that I wanted to be a singer, I was listening to Mariah Carey and Christina Aguilera. I sang in my room and imagined that one day I'd be on a big stage singing my songs to people. Those beautiful, gorgeous ladies definitely influenced me.
TWIST: What can we expect from your album? Do you have a release date yet?
GV: We just released my second single last month and I'm doing pop/dance music. It's great for having fun, for parties, hanging out with your friends, listening in the car and I want to keep it that way. I'm sure when my album is finished I will have a lot of great, great songs. Plus, I really love to sing slow ballads. I have a really beautiful song called "Eclipse," and it's a love story, it's about breaking up, so it's different.
TWIST: How did you get discovered?
GV: When I was in Russia I was making music. I was singing back home in Moscow and doing shows. I got an offer to come to Los Angeles and try my luck, and take vocal and dance lessons. When I moved to LA, the people I worked with introduced me to Randy Jackson, and he liked me, so he decided to record my first single "When The Lights Go Down." He suggested we record a few songs in the studio and see how it would go, and he signed me to his label after that.
TWIST: Who would be your dream collaboration?
GV: Beyoncé! She's the best, and I really hope that one day, I'll be able to have a song, maybe even a few, with her. I would be so happy. I love music--I love a lot of artists, and I would be happy to do songs with almost everybody. Even One Direction, I love what they do. I think they're cute boys and I see why girls love them. They're really, really cute and they have great voices. I would also love to do something with Usher, I think that would be a great collaboration.
TWIST: What inspires your songs?
GV: Different things--Experience, relationships I had, friendships I had. We all have stories that we want to tell. Everything in the world inspires me.
TWIST: What's been your favorite song of yours, so far?
GV: My favorite is "Don't Wanna Be Waiting," my second single. It's a great song, and it has a really good meaning.
TWIST: You're getting ready to release the video for "Don't Wanna Be Waiting." What can we expect?
GV: The music video is really beautiful. It was directed by Taj, who has done a lot of great videos, like Jennifer Lopez's "On the Floor". You will see a lot of glamorous stuff in the video: great dresses, great jewelry, amazing makeup, hair, and a love story.
TWIST: What's up next for you?
GV: We're going to release my music video soon, and I'm also signed to a label in Europe called Spinning Records. They're starting to do promotion for my single in Europe this month, so it's going to be really busy. I'm going to do a lot of shows, a lot of press, and stay busy. I'm really, really excited about that.
TWIST: Do you think it's especially exciting in Europe because you're from there?
GV: For sure! My fans from Russia, who knew me from my Russian music, always follow me and look at all the pictures that I post on Instagram and on my website. They're really, really supportive, and they're very excited to see the second music video!
TWIST: Thanks for stopping by Grace!
GV: Thank you!