After Elton Interview - "Beautiful," Bullied and "Burlesque" – Our Interview with X
Christina Aguilera has been a longtime advocate for gay rights and now the LGBT community has another reason to adore her: the pop songstress will make the transition to outright movie star when she shares the screen with gay icon Cher in the musical "Burlesque." Aguilera, in her first big-screen role, stars as Ali, a small-town girl with a big voice who comes to L.A. in search of stardom. And as if starring in her first-ever acting role wasn't enough, the singer served as executive music producer and wrote three original songs for the film, including the title track. Aguilera, accompanied by her Papillon, Stinky, discussed working with Cher, why she's been an advocate for the gay community and all things "Burlesque" during the film's recent press junket.
AfterElton: "Beautiful" came out eight years ago and was so inclusive of the gay community. Now we're seeing other artists — like Pink, Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, follow suit. You were so ahead of the curve. And you've always been so supportive of the LGBT community. Could you speak on that? Christina Aguilera: I have my own issues with feeling alienated for my own reasons. As a kid and feeling a little bullied and like an oddball at times. When people aren't being heard or seen or aren't being treated fairly or equally because of their own individual choices or who they are, I really stick up for that. It means a lot to me to put it out there, in my video for "Beautiful," for example. I'm very supportive of the gay community.
AE: What happened that you were bullied? CA: I grew up in a very chaotic home, first of all, so I came from a little bit of a troubled past because there was a lot of domestic violence in the home and then at school, doing what I did and maybe being a little smaller, I was definitely picked on and I definitely was bullied for the attention that I got. It was definitely unwanted attention and there was a lot of unfairness about it. I'm sensitive to that.
AE: Burlesque is your first feature, are you ready to give up after this? CA: I'm looking forward to seeing what's next for me. It could be a small independent (film) — at first, that was my goal to start out small and not star in a leading position whatsoever; just be part of a great film and have a couple lines and get my feet wet. Boy, that didn't happen! (Laughs.)
AE: Why did you wait so long to segue into the movie business? CA: I know my comfort zone and I know what my strong points are and my first love was always music. I'm a huge cinema fan. I was taking my time; I got offered a lot of scripts and things along the way but until Burlesque showed up at my doorstep, it really spoke to me. I have a collection of burlesque books at home that I've had for years. I've always been intrigued and fascinated with the topic, the beauty and the art of it and the comedic value of it. I think it's just a beautiful, empowering thing for women.
AE: What did you relate to in your character, Ali? Was it her drive or her journey to L.A. trying to make it in the business? CA: That was definitely a part of it. I liked her background story; it came from a place of maybe being inspired by pain — she definitely had her fair share of struggle: her mother dying when she's very young, growing up in a lot of foster care homes and having to grow up quickly taking care of a grandmother. She's in this small town being taken advantage of by her boss and finally — a lot of people talk about their situations and complain but they never do anything about it — and the thing about Ali that I loved is that she makes the decision to leave and get out of there and go on her own. That's really hard. The inspiration of it all really spoke to me.
Burlesque is tracking "really, really, really well..."
A piece from the LA Times.com
The Thanksgiving wild card is "Burlesque," starring Christina Aguilera and Cher. The movie is generating strong early interest from women, with younger women preferring it over "Love & Other Drugs" and "Tangled."
"We have some really strong competition," says Steve Antin, the film's director and writer. "There's an audience out there that wants to see this movie and it's tracking really, really, really well with women of all ages. I think for people looking for a fun night out, it's unarguably a fun night out. I never set out to make 'Chinatown.' I set out to make a big, fun movie. And I did it."
We went with my son, Troy Garity and Simone. I really enjoyed the movie. I was revved up because I was so looking forward to seeing Cher again on the big screen and she didn’t disappoint. It could have been done very differently, an older, former beauty and dancer who’s desperately trying to keep from losing her club to a developer. That wouldn’t have worked with Cher cause she’s still glam and can carry it off. Her voice is still really good and strong, and, as I said in the twitters I sent that evening, the two opening numbers, hers and Christina’s, were knockout!
Then there is Christina. I have not followed her closely before but, wow, she was spectacular: the way she looked, the way she sang, the way she danced and the way she acted. She came across, to me anyway, as likeable. You root for her. I found her poignant. I got all teary several times. I thought there was real chemistry between her and her (really sexy, handsome) love interest.
I had a chance to hug Cher and chat a moment with Christina. But forgot to take any more photos. My bad!
Who knows what the critics will say. It would be easy to pick the movie apart for being too like an extended music video. But when you have Aguilera and Cher and all that dancing and songs, why not. It made for a good evening. A good date flick.
During the evening I sat and spoke with PR maven, Ronni Chasen. She did the PR for “On Golden Pond.” You can imagine the shock and heartbreak when we learned the next morning that she had been shot 5 times in the chest and killed while driving down an exclusive street in Beverly Hills coming home from the premiere. No one knows who or why—yet.
IT give us pause, yes? How fragile life is. We never know, so we need to make it matter while we can.
The Thanksgiving wild card is "Burlesque," starring Christina Aguilera and Cher. The movie is generating strong early interest from women, with younger women preferring it over "Love & Other Drugs" and "Tangled."
"We have some really strong competition," says Steve Antin, the film's director and writer. "There's an audience out there that wants to see this movie and it's tracking really, really, really well with women of all ages. I think for people looking for a fun night out, it's unarguably a fun night out. I never set out to make 'Chinatown.' I set out to make a big, fun movie. And I did it."
-LA TIMES