INTERVIEW

Interview with Kaci on May 27, 2002 in Hampton Beach, NH



Hot Vibes: Can you tell us a little about your Pepsi Tour?
Kaci: Sure, actually I just got a call from my manager just this week and said that Pepsi and who else? Claries, Bank of America, Hot Topic, Sam Goody .. So were all getting together and they’re sponsoring a tour and were going to the biggest malls in America like New York, Las Vegas, California, Texas. And were going around and I’m performing and doing in store signings. I’m really really excited .. To have those names behind me, it’s a really big deal.


Are you the only artist performing?
Yes


That must be so exciting!
I know!


When does that start?
That starts .. July 27


So your going into the middle of the summer?
Exactly, July and August and maybe through September so it’ll be cool


How do crowds in the US differentiate from crowds overseas?
Oh gosh, well I love performing in front of any crowd. There’s a little bit of a difference depending on what country your in like Japan, their supposed to be quiet .. They’re quiet the entire time and then they clap at the end. But they just sit there whereas the crowds in America they just scream. The U.K. is really fun to perform for, I’m well known over there, I just had my first top 10 hit .. Its really fun to be able to perform and have people actually sing your song for you while you perform, its very flattering.


If you could fill anyone’s shoes for a day, who would it be and why?
Probably Celine Dion .. To feel that power .. And her voice is so amazing.


You recorded "Paradise" in Spanish , was it hard to learn that or do you speak Spanish fluently?
Oh no I don’t speak Spanish I just sing it! [laughs] no there was an interpreter there and we sat down for a couple hours and went over what I was going to sing and how I was supposed to say it and that was it. We went in, I recorded it and it was really cool because I recorded 3 and the first time I recorded it took me 2 days for one song. The 2nd time I recorded it took me one day for 2 songs so I was improving, moving a little bit faster.


Does it bother you that you can't hang out w/ your friends anytime that you have such a structured schedule?
No [laughs] I love what I do and I chose this life I’m the one who said ‘ I wanna go on the road, I wanna do this ‘ honestly I have my best friend and a couple of acquaintances but besides that its hard to keep in touch with people you know? Cause your gone all the time and a lot of people - which is really sad - are just using you or .. There is 2 different types of people out of the ones you don’t hang out with. There’s the ones that blatantly don’t like you, they’re jealous and the other one is people that tend to be your friends - actually there’s 3 - and talk behind your back and then the 3rd one are people who just use you, you know? They’re a singer and they wanna become a star or something and then use you and become friends with you and you got them’ "in" so its hard to find true friends but luckily I found some so I’m really blessed and I get to take them on the road sometimes too so its really cool.


What’s your schedule like roughly?
[laughs] um, crazy .. Like I flew in yesterday and today I had rehearsal and then interviews and sound check and then I get ready and I perform and then I go to bed and I wake up and then I get on another plane. And the next day you got through the same thing, rehearse, do interviews, get ready, do your sound check, you perform and that’s what its like to be on the road. Performing almost everyday or every other day at least 3-4 times a week and it’s really going to start getting busy when the Pepsi tour starts. Things like that .. Right now were doing just radio shows.


What were the Teen Choice Awards like for you?
Oh it was amazing! Everybody was there


Were there any of your favorite artists that you met there?
Meeting aero smith was really cool, but everyone was there. I mean you would turn around and you were next to Jennifer Lopez and you’d turn the next way and look! There’s Carson Daly! [laughs] and it was nice to have a combination of not just singers, not just actors but everybody was there and it was very laid back. You know? Cause it was the Teen Choice Awards, you didn’t get all fancy .. It was really cool.


Being younger in the music business do you find it harder for people to take you seriously?
Actually I’m really blessed because luckily my record company and the people around me you know my parents, my manager, they all respect me as a person and they don’t just see it as an age. Its really really frustrating for me when people see me as an age. They see me as a 14-year-old girl and you cant stereotype someone like that. So a lot of times you do have to work very hard to get respect but once you’ve got it you’ve got that respect forever if you just act in that manner.


What was your most memorable performance?
that’s hard .. Several actually, one of them was singing the national anthem and it was live in front of like 80-something-thousand people at the Outback Bowl, it was really fun. When I was on tour in the U.K. I did my concert and then went out to sign autographs and I got mobbed! That was my first time, I couldn’t even sign autographs. People were just getting hurt and it was amazing so .. Well not that their getting hurt! [laughs] but yeah! There was just so many people and they were all .. It was just the most amazing experience [laughs] to have so many fans like that.


Out of all the countries you’ve been to, which one is your favorite?
Spain. Spain is beautiful, I mean just every corner you turn there’s something gorgeous, gorgeous buildings that date way back to medieval times. Its amazing .. Just all the history there. You come to the U.S. and your like ‘ wow, were so .. New! ‘ [laughs]


When you were younger you were in a girl group, do you prefer being in a group or being solo?
Oh solo.


Why?
A lot of times groups don’t really work you know cause you have different people, different opinions and I dunno. I enjoy it and I have my guy dancers and their really fun to travel with so I like it this way.


Have you had the same dancers for a long time?
I have had them for almost a year now I guess


Heather: I remember seeing you on a charity show .. I don’t remember what its called. You were with Rachael Lampa and Gimme5.
Ohh the Jerry Lewis telethon!


Yeah that was it!
It was fun, it was nice to be able to perform for an event like that. People just don’t realize what goes on behind the scenes, it was soo stressful. There were 2 days, and they were like the worst 2 days of my life. It was so exhausting I mean before I went on people were still tying me up, putting pins here and there and I was trying to warm up my voice and it just wasn’t coming through and I didn’t have time to rehearse and it was just so chaotic. And we missed our plane flights and we almost didn’t make it and I got no sleep and the dancers luggage was lost and we had to go shopping and then the next day .. No right afterwards I run off stage, we get changed, got on another plane, went to another venue and my top falls off during my performance!


Oh my god!
It was the worst 2 days! It was really funny though actually, you know I was onstage and my top just starts falling off. Luckily one of my dancers reached over and went like this [clutches shirt] and I was like .. ‘ What do you think your doing?! ‘ and I looked down and my top was falling off so I had my other dancer hold my mic. So I was still singing and the dancers were trying to distract the crowd as they all .. Laugh at me. [laughs]


Is it hard to maintain your "A" average?
Yeah [laughs] school is very, very, very important to me, VERY. I mean I get test anxieties really bad, just because I wanna do well.


Do you have a favorite subject?
I like science and history a lot, it changes depending on what I’m doing and how I feel at the time.


And what’s interesting
Exactly! Or what teachers you have


What’s you favorite part about being in the music business?
Every part. Everything.


What was your reaction when you found out "Paradise" went platinum?
Oh, how would you feel?! [laughs] it was wonderful! I think I went into a state of shock for awhile and I was like ‘ what?! ‘ [laughs] cause it was my first single and a very special song to me so it was an honor.


Is there any reason why there was such a delay on your album? We know it was supposed to come out last year.
It was supposed to .. Yes. But everything gets postponed


Did you change any songs?
oh of course we recorded over like 20 songs and that’s a lot so narrowing it down is very hard and I’m so glad its finally coming out. I can finally say ‘ my debut album is gonna be in stores July 16th ‘


Just in time for the Pepsi tour!
I know! It works out perfectly .. I’m glad it was postponed though, this is the perfect time for it.


Do you ever require any odd things in your dressing room?
Not really, I’m not that picky actually. I just ask for water .. And lemons if they have them and things like halls and potato chips are good for your voice


Do you have a message for your fans?
Thank you for supporting me and being with me from the beginning. I love my fans, when I get on the internet I talk to my fans a lot. It’s amazing .. You’ll ask them ‘ what country are you from? ‘ ‘oh I’m from Australia’ it’s such a wide variety, you’ve got someone who lives 2 hours away and someone who lives on the other side of the world. Its very cool and also for anyone who is in the business, there are a lot of people who want to make it. First of all they gotta realize it’s a lot of hard work, its not all that people say it is. It’s a lot of hard work and you have got to be willing to sacrifice a lot of things but if your willing to do it and really wanna do it and you love singing or acting or you love doing whatever then just keep dreaming no matter what anybody says. My motto is: if you can see it, you can be it. If you believe that you are that then you are. People will see that in you, they can tell the difference between a Britney wannabe and a real artist. You have to believe it yourself before anyone else can so keep dreaming and you’ll make it.


Thanks so much! That’s all our questions!
Thank you!


[ Thanks so much to Jason and Donna for all your help! And to Chloe for submitting her question. Check Kaci out at www.kaci.tv ]