Latest news with #KeriHilson
Yahoo
19-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Keri Hilson reveals battle with 'depression' at the height of her career: 'Fame was a beast for me!'
Keri Hilson was "depressed" at the height of her fame. The 42-year-old singer burst onto the music scene in the late 2000s with hits like 'Knock You Down', but her second album 'No Boys Allowed' in 2010 turned out to be her last record for 15 years as she tried to deal with the "beast" of being well-known. She told People: "I didn't even know [it would be my last for so long]. "I was also depressed at the new height of my career with the success of 'Pretty Girl Rock.' I was just not okay. I was not well, I needed a break. I hadn't taken a break since I was 14 years old in my first girl group. When we disbanded, I went headfirst into songwriting at 17, got my first big check by 18. I joined another group and was also writing while in college. So I never had a break from 14 to, say, mid-20s. "It was already a decade of just pure dedication, and I needed a break. Fame was a beast for me, and I fell into a really dark place. I needed to step away for a moment. I thought it'd be just a one-year moment, not a 14-year moment, but it turns out it was necessary. I really can't regret it. I, as a human, needed that time." The 'Turn My Swag On' hitmaker - who has just released her new album 'We Need To Talk' - found "new rock bottoms" in her time away from the spotlight, and actually considered quitting her career altogether before deciding to embrace her struggles to produce her latest record. She said: "I found new rock bottoms throughout the process. I hit many rock bottoms, honestly, of many different kinds. " I just wasn't sure of it anymore. The industry was changing. I love making the art, I love doing music, I love making music, I love performing music — but I didn't love everything that came with it. "I didn't love the heavy criticism. It's just not like the old industry now, and that, to me, felt like a threat. It felt like you have to be so careful and so cautious in how you speak, what you say, where you go, what you do, how you're perceived, things you say or [post online]. It felt like I was playing a game of, 'How many ways can I be misunderstood?' "You're crucified for making an honest mistake, and that just became a lot to bear. You have to let rock bottom occur to rebuild. So that's what I did."
Forbes
19-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
Keri Hilson Returns To Music With New Album ‘We Need To Talk'
Keri Hilson Getty Images R&B singer Keri Hilson has largely been absent from the music world since the turn of the last decade, instead focusing on film and TV roles rather than a follow-up to her 2010 sophomore album No Boys Allowed. Now, 15 years after the release of her second full-length project, Hilson is back with her long-awaited third studio album, We Need to Talk: Love. Hilson confirmed the album's impending release last month with the single 'Bae' sampling Hurricane Chris's 2007 hit 'A Bay Bay." Taking a step back from the music world was necessary for Hilson following the success of 'Pretty Girl Rock,' her last single to make a splash on the Billboard Hot 100 more than a decade ago. She confessed to People she was 'depressed' as her career reached new heights with 'Pretty Girl Rock''s success. "I was just not okay. I was not well; I needed a break,' she said. 'Fame was a beast for me, and I fell into a really dark place. I needed to step away for a moment. I thought it'd be just a one-year moment, not a 14-year moment, but it turns out it was necessary. I really can't regret it. I, as a human, needed that time.' It got to a point where Hilson considered leaving music altogether. 'I just wasn't sure of it anymore. The industry was changing. I love making the art, I love doing music, I love making music, I love performing music, but I didn't love everything that came with it. I didn't love the heavy criticism. It's just not like the old industry now, and that, to me, felt like a threat.,' she admitted. 'You have to let rock bottom occur to rebuild. So that's what I did.' Now, Hilson has regained her confidence as an artist and isn't afraid about putting herself out there after all this time. She alludes to this inner struggle in her new video series WNTT to accompany the album. 'I just don't want to put me, my life or my art into the hands of people who don't give a f**k about about me,' Hilson said honestly. 'And the thing is, I don't fear being human. I love being human in my own hands. I fear being human in their hands. And it's like, I want to be in the game. I want to be at the top. But I still want to feel like I belong to myself.' The new LP is just the opener for a trilogy of albums Hilson has planned. We Need to Talk deals with love while the forthcoming projects center around drama and redemption. Giving her fans lots of new music was her way of making up for lost time. 'I've been gone for so long. I wanted to give enough to satiate my fans,' she told People. 'Once I became clear on how I wanted to present this album, the story I wanted to tell became love, drama, redemption. It's also a parallel to my career — loving music, encountering drama and feeling redeemed, finally.' Hilson is set to perform alongside share the stage with other R&B and hip-hop stars at Girls Night Out in Bridgeport, Connecticut on April 26 and in Providence, Rhode Island on May 9.
Yahoo
10-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Keri Hilson Revisits 'Beyoncé Diss Track' That Derailed Her Career: 'It's A Regret'
Back in 2009, Keri Hilson found herself at the center of controversy following the release of her 'Turnin' Me On (Remix),' which stirred much speculation. Many listeners believed the lyrics took jabs at Beyoncé—an interpretation that would slow down Hilson's career for years to come. In a recent appearance on The Breakfast Club, Hilson got candid about that time in her life. The award-winning artist explained how the truth behind the song is far more complicated, and is a regret she still carries to this day. 'It's a regret. But not in the way people think,' she admitted. 'That's a song I actually didn't write. Those are not my words.' According to Hilson, the remix was orchestrated by super-producer Polow Da Don, who was eager to capitalize on the momentum of her hit single while she was still on tour with Lil Wayne. 'He wanted me to do a remix to 'Turnin' Me On,'' she explained. 'He produced the record. Because I was on tour with Lil Wayne, I wasn't able to lay anything down. He had been on me for a couple of weeks, [saying] we need to do a remix.' The lyrical substance of the remix came as a surprise when she finally returned to record it. 'He had another writer in our camp at the time … he had her write this,' she recalled. 'He played it for me— meanwhile I'm thinking I was coming in to write a remix to 'Turnin' Me On.' Automatically, I was like, 'I'm not saying that.' That was my position. I'm an athlete. I am competitive. But I'm not nasty, I'm a finesse player. I don't look at things like that.' What actually made her release the track—knowing its malicious nature—was the 'pressure' she claimed to have received from producers. 'My album wasn't out yet, I was told it's not coming out if you don't do this,' she revealed. 'I was super young. I felt I had no choice. I'm still protecting everyone involved. I've been eating that for years.' Despite the toll the moment took on her career and public image, the 42-year-old said she's reached a place of forgiveness—for herself, at least. 'I've forgiven myself,' she said. 'But I'll never forget what that moment cost me.' Take a look at Keri Hilson speaking on the detrimental 'Turnin' Me On (Remix)' below and revisit the song above. More from Keri Hilson On New Music: 'I'm Not Done; I'm Not Finished' Beyoncé Hosts All-White CÉCRED Celebration For Ulta Beauty Launch New Diddy Accuser Claims Beyoncé, JAY-Z, LeBron James Witnessed Victim Post-Assault
