A BALLER ALERT EXCLUSIVE: ONE ON ONE WITH MISS LADY LOVE: LETOYA LUCKETT

Gone are the days of Destiny’s Child, however with no pun intended, she is a SURVIVOR. Growing in an industry that changes rapidly like the tide, LeToya has had her shares of facing adversity. Having been in the background for years, she is finally the captain of her ship & is at the forefront of a remarkable career, as a soloist. She was named best new artist in 2006 with her self-titled debut Letoya which topped the charts with certified platinum status.

Having released her sophomore album Lady Love just days ago, LeToya has been busy on the road doing the much needed promotion to make this yet another success story. However, despite such a rigorous & hectic schedule she was able to catch up with yours truly to discuss it all.

Check out our exclusive conversation below:

BA: Hey LeToya, how are you?

LL: Hey what’s goin’ on! How are you?

BA: I’m great! On behalf of balleralert.com I graciously thank you for this interview today.

LL: Oh, you know what, its a pleasure. It is a pleasure girl.

BA: First off, congratulations on releasing your sophomore release, Lady Love, which I might add is a smash.

LL: (emphatically) Thank You!!! You like it?!?!

BA: Liking would be an understatement, I love it.

LL: Thank you so much, thank you girl! Hard work, long time coming, a long time coming. Whoo Jesus!

BA: I can believe it. Where did you draw your inspiration for this album?

LL: Different places, different experiences. Relationships I had been in. You know you would have girl talk with your homies, some of their experiences, I’d be like girl that’s a song, Jesus. You know that’s kinda where I drew inspiration from. My brother too. You know guys go through things too. I wanted to make an album that appealed to both sexes, that they both could relate to & I was blessed to have worked with some great writers & producers who were on the same track as me, you know that shared & understood my same vision.

BA: Why Lady Love, what’s the premise behind that?

LL: Lady Love was a nickname that we turned into a song. We were just having fun just acting stupid one day. The day after we recorded the song we looked on wikipedia &somebody was like like look out for LeToya’s new album “Lady Love” and we like, huhh?!?! People didn’t even know about the song & they kept talking about it and I was like one day, we’re going to go with this, so that’s why I decided to keep it as the title.
BA: Now your debut album self-titled album went platinum, how do you feel you’ve grown since then lyrically & vocally since then in regards to your sophomore release?

LL: I’ve grown a lot. I’m definitely comfortable in my skin & I’m not afraid to speak my mind & be me. Not afraid to take chances. I think that’s what I was going through before, you know playing it safe. That’s what its about, creative freedom & I just used it to my advantage with this album.

BA: I feel that. Now of the 16 tracks on the album which is your favorite & why?

LL: Hmmm, if I had to pick ones that I love, I mean absolutely love, the ones I can kinda relate to the most would be Regret, Good to Me, Lazy, I Need A U , Don’t Need You, the list goes on. Those are the ones that I’m actually going through right now.

BA: Ok, thats understood. I have to add I Need A U is perhaps my favorite off the album.

LL: Really! Heyyyyy, uh oh, we know what you…(laughs) I’m just playing.

BA: (laughs) Hey, we’re ladies here, sooo, you know. I’ve conversed with a few people that have the album & we agree its very relatable, especially for us females. I can’t say too many guys have listened, all that I get from them is that you’re beautiful.

LL: (laughs)

BA: To compare though Lazy has been the track that has been played the most among the females I’ve conversed with.

LL: Really, wow, that’s good to know. That can be a single. Its one of my favorites too, especially when you’re fresh out of a relationship, you’re like you know what, I’m DONE. I don’t even want a dude right now. I’m like let me live, let me find out what it is that I want out of life. That’s what Lazy is all about. Even when you’re on the dating scene, you don’t wanna be serious because you know I”m still healing from a broken heart. You know forgive me, its not about what you’ve done, its about what the people in my past have done & I’m just not ready to go there right now, you know.

BA: Take your time. Take your time.

LL: Mmmmhmm, you know, exactly.

BA: Now with the single Not Anymore, which was co-written with Ne-Yo, what was it like working with such a person of amazing talent?

LL: You said it all right there. He’s an amazing talent, a genius. He’s great, he’s humble. He’s very smart. A great person to work with because he makes everything comfortable. He’s fast as hell. I just don’t know how he makes such amazing records in like 2.5 seconds. We’ll have a conversation, he’ll ask what would I like to talk about, & then he’ll just go & flows. I love working with him & hope to work with him again soon.

BA: Who would you like to work with in the future that you have yet to?

LL: Umm, Kanye West. I love him. He’s special & he does him. Who else would I want to work with, let’s see. There’s a lot of people that I’d like to work with, but Kanye sticks out. He’s awesome.

BA: Did you envision success on a level such as this after Destiny’s Child? Did you feel you’d be at this moment with two projects, one already going platinum & the other that I’m claiming as such?

LL: You know what, I didn’t see this. I had no idea, the furthest thing that I’d be doing in two years. Having come out of that situation. Readjusting. Now that that is done. What do I do next. I never would expect to be on my sophomore album, with the first one doing so well, & living out my dreams. I didn’t even know this was my dream, I knew I wanted to sing, but to be a soloist??! I didn’t see this, you couldn’t have told me this.

BA: Well, I will say this, I enjoyed Destiny’s Child as a group, however, whenever you’re in town, you’ll have my support.

LL: Thank You!

BA: You were to perform during this year’s BET Awards, rumors had been circulating that Matthew Knowles had something to do with that situation. Do you wish to clear that up?

LL: I actually performed during the pre-show. At this moment I can’t clarify whether they’re true. I don’t think they are, I would hope not, but I did perform during the pre show. I had the opportunity to perform with Chaka Khan, who is an icon. That made my day. That was amazing. There was a lot of negativity surrounding that, I don’t know where it came from. But it turned out to be a great night.

BA: Well that’s good. Outside of music you’re successful in other areas especially when it comes down to Lady L boutique. You’re currently dibbling & dabbling with acting. You’re filming alongside Ashton Kutcher & Katherine Heigel in Five Killers, whats it like working with him?

LL: Yes, Five Killers will be out in 2010. Acting is a different world for me. Like music, its very time consuming & you have to give it your all. Everyone I worked with thus far have truly been amazing. I’m learning & growing in this craft. I’m still a baby. Just like with music when I had my first voice lesson. I’m learning. I hope that in the future I can get more movies where I can work with more people like the Ashton Kutcher’s, the Katherine Heigels, Essence Atkins & Tank. It’s a blessing.

BA: Good luck with that. Now, I know you’re on twitter, which is the new phenomenon. How do you keep up with your 30,000+ followers & do you ever have time to reply to them all?

LL: You know what I’ve found with twitter, I get a high volume of responses. So its hard to get back to everybody, but I like Say Now, its where my fans call in & as long as you make it through, I get to speak with each individual to answer whatever questions. I definitely want to know whats up with my fans, what they’re thinking. Things like Say Now make it a lot easier to connect with the fans, & get to know them. Because twitter can be hard, a lot of times you want to retwit things, then you have an issue where its too many characters. Twitter is a lot of fun & yes its a great with promotion. The fans get to know you & learn your personality. You want to get to everybody, but you just can’t. I was going to try & do a thing where I follow ten people a week, then after that week is up, I follow another ten. Its hard, its like I can never win. But I do try to respond to as many of them as I can. So please tell those people that might have said something that didn’t get a response, I said hello. I can be reached at my SAY NOW # 713-491-6013.

BA: We know you’ve had a public relationship with Slim Thugg who made the album on Swagger, what type of relationship do you guys have now?

LL: Umm, we’re cordial when we see each other, but there’s no relationship.

BA: I understand sometimes you have to keep it strictly business. Now on tracks like Regret & Love Roller Coaster was he behind the inspiration in those tracks?

LL YEP! Umm, they weren’t directed towards him. I just sing from experience. I sing from my heart, that’s all I can do. Nothing was directed at him or anyone else.

BA: Understandable, speaking of which, are you currently dating anyone? Would you prefer dating guys that are industry involved or no?

LL: No I’m not seeing anyone, the type of guys, hmm, that’s a hard question. I would prefer if he weren’t in this industry, but then it would be taking a chance of them not knowing what we do in this industry, you know with the crazy hours, the traveling all the time & not being able to see one another it can be difficult. You just have to find someone with patience & understanding.

BA: You’ve been in this industry for a while, how do you differentiate a fan from a groupie? If you have any, what has been the craziest thing they’ve done to be in your presence?

LL: Ahhh man, they’re crazy! From receiving crazy letters, to stalking my store in Houston, I’m like, ummm that’s not cute, that’s dangerous. I think that’s the craziest experience I’ve had. Otherwise, a fan is someone who just loves & appreciates your music, someone who can’t wait for you to drop something else & know all your songs, collects photos. But the crazy stalker type, that can be dangerous. They just crossed the line.

BA: Now I know you’re currently on your promo tour, when can we expect a headliner from you?

LL: Correct, We’re talking about that right now, but I don’t want to speak too prematurely, but that’s coming up soon.

BA: Well I will be checking for you.

LL: Thank You!

BA: For you to be from Houston, you don’t have an accent at all.

LL: Really? (laughs) Well, it only really comes out when I’m either emotional, mad or have been home for a while. Usually when I’m on the line with a family member or something like that. But I’ve had a lot of people to tell me I don’t have an accent. But it comes out sometimes.

BA: Well LeToya, its been a pleasure. I You’re headed in the right direction. Again on behalf of BA, we thank you for the opportunity.

LL: Thank You so much. I definitely thank you for picking up the album as well.

BA: Continue striving for success & as long you put your heart in it, you’ll continue to be successful. Lady Love will stay in rotation.

LL: Amen!

BA: Take Care, & have a good one.

LL: Alright honey, you too