Mya is back, and she’s doing things her own way with the release of ‘Retrospect’ – her first LP in nearly a decade.
Full story below.
The 46-year-old singer dropped her ninth studio album, Retrospect, on May 15 – a project that draws sonic inspiration from classic ’80s funk and R&B with nods to Prince and the Gap Band.
“I wanted to turn it up a notch,” she told Variety. “I’m a party girl, but people wouldn’t know it because I’m so laid back. I’m still the same girl from ‘Case of the Ex.’ I’m just in my grown era.”
Foregoing the slower pace of her 2018 album ‘T.K.O. (The Knock Out),’ the new record features upbeat tracks with glittery synths, pummeling 808s, and plucky bass notes. Snoop Dogg appears on the standout track “No Pressure.”
Mya co-executive produced the album alongside Lamar “MyGuyMars” Edwards and released it independently through her own label, Planet 9.
“When I didn’t have creative freedom, I tended to be very dissatisfied,” she explained. “Being independent empowers me to say, alright, we’re good here.”
Prince once offered her advice on navigating her career as an indie artist.
“He was a huge advocate for independence,” she recalled. “Living below your means, not going after materialism but truly building a space.”
And though she’s hit the promo trail hard in the LP’s support, part of its original rollout plan was to be showcased on the live circuit as a special guest on the Pussycat Dolls‘ reunion jaunt.
Coined the ‘PCD Forever Tour,’ the North American leg of the jaunt – which was also set to feature Rap Queen Lil Kim – was axed just two months after its announcement.
“[It’s a] “bummer” [that the tour was called off],” Mya revealed to ‘Variety’ before explaining she wasn’t aware of the specifics around the cancelation. “I’m kind of in the dark with everything right now…I haven’t gotten into the nuts and bolts.”
The interview took place shortly after the cancelation news hit the Web. Read the full ‘Variety’ chat here.
The tour would have been a hit with all girls involved plus 2 new girlies to add some spice of old but new to the show but humility in this industry runs low and they shot their own self in the foot. The line up of PCD, Kim and Mya wasnt bad though. They just needed more time, better organization and more acts involved. I could see Normani and Chloe opening for this tour or even that new industry plant Zara Larsson. Oop! 😂
Zara is not new or a plant—fact check that! Everything else was solid tho!
You missed the point. Zara may have been around for awhile but it’s no secret that she is a plant. It’s also not a hidden fact that the new girls suck to be new industry plants and also the contracts they are getting now are even more horrible than before, so they are recycling and nominating old girls from the early 2010s with current contracts back to the front, of whom werent even honorable mentions, let alone real talent to begin with when they first came out. Cleansing at its best. How do you think we got Sabrina Carpenter again after all these years? But thanks for seeing my other point. This could have been a successful tour if they had more hands involved creatively. PCD as a trio sucks. They don’t even have the core members that people even liked (aka, Melody and Carmit). I’m not surprised they canceled it.
Canceled tour wouldn’t have made your album any better (received), Mỳa. I tried to like it, but it was a snoozefest. But I’ll always applaud you for refusing, CATEGORICALLY, to spread ’em for hits when you were signed to a label, even if it got you the highest compliment of being called, by disgruntled industry predators, a b-itch!
NICOLE IS PCD. The rest, as talented dancers as they are, were glorified backup singers. Your eyes go to Nicole on stage/TV and your ears vibe along with her voice in song. FLO would have been a great tour addition to PCD3. Their harmonies may have made PCD material more explosive live. My 2 cents.