Even in the final episode of the series, creator Robin Antin had one big surprise left for the contestants of Pussycat Dolls Present: Girlicious. Throughout the season the girls were under the impression that only three of them would make the group, but Robin was so impressed with the talent on display that she decided to turn Girlicious into a foursome. Chrystina, Natalie, Tiffanie, and Nichole were ultimately deemed the winners, and since the show wrapped they’ve filmed two music videos and recorded over 20 songs for the upcoming Girlicious album. It was a life-changing event for every single one of them.
We recently had the chance to sit down with all four winners of Pussycat Dolls Present: Girlicious to discuss their reactions to winning, their future plans, and the possibility of a Girlicious movie. Read on for the mp3 and complete transcript of the interview.
Hi, this is Don from BuddyTV. Today I’m talking to Nichole, Chrystina, Tiffanie, and Natalie — the four members of Girlicious. Things must be pretty crazy since you won the contest. How has life changed for you since you became a member of Girlicious?
Nichole: Life has changed so much. Since winning the competition I’ve actually moved from Texas out here to L.A., and that’s been a huge change in itself. We’re all so young. I’m 19-years-old and moving away from home, but I couldn’t think of a better way to get out of the house than signing a record deal and moving to Hollywood, and just being in the studio with all these amazing producers. We’ve been working really hard. We recorded over 20 songs for the album, and we’ve been rehearsing every day since the show stopped filming, which was like July. It’s been a hectic schedule, but life has changed so much, and for the better. It’s been so much fun.
I’m sure you’ve talked to a lot of the press today. Did that public image challenge actually help with this, or is it different than you expected?
Natalie: We had media training actually as well not too long ago, which really helped. We’ve all just learned to gel as a group so fast, and the show helped us all together because we had to do so many interviews all the time. We’ve learned what to say, and how we’ve become as a group has really helped us, because now we know how to answer questions properly. We know how to represent ourselves now.
Tiffanie: I noticed that, being part of a reality show has basically taught us, in interviews, the crazy thing you say is what they’re gonna print. I think that’s what we learned: don’t say anything you don’t want everybody to know.
Chrystina, I thought you did an amazing job singing that Heart song on the show last night. How did you manage to pick up the song so quickly since you hadn’t heard it before?
Chrystina: I’m not gonna lie, Natalie helped me a lot. Natalie’s mom actually, that was her favorite song or something like that. Right, Nat?
Natalie: Yeah, it was a song I grew up on.
Chrystina: Nat grew up on that song. I was super, super pissed that I got that song, because in the competition I always got songs that I didn’t know. It doesn’t make sense, because I’ve been singing for so long that I know a lot of songs, but most of the songs I got I didn’t know. So when I got this song by Heart, I was like oh, I don’t know this one either, and it’s my finale performance and we were all so stressed. Natalie, to tell you the truth, really calmed me down about it and let me realize how great this song is and kind of how to sing it. It just took off from there.
Natalie: Every time she sang it, I cried. It’s such a great song.
Chrystina: It’s a really great song. I talked to Natalie’s mom about it too, I sang a little bit for her, and she was just like, “Oh my God.” Even though we weren’t supposed to do it, we talked to her mom and let her know what song I was singing, and she helped me through the song. It was Natalie and her mom who helped me through the song.
Natalie, what was your reaction when you were standing up on stage with Chrystina and Robin told you that both of you would make it into the group?
Natalie: It’s funny, because I could tell something wasn’t gonna be the same, because the way Robin was talking, she was speaking so slowly. I anticipated every word that she said, because I felt like she kept circling what she was trying to say without saying it. I feel like when you do that, and you don’t get to the direct point, there’s something behind it. Because right away she was like, “The first member is, the second member is,” and then she kept going on and on about, “Well. . .we’ve made it this far. . .and, well, you know. . .” I just had a feeling in my heart that she was going to have both of us, and you can tell from watching the episode that I was on the tips of my toes waiting for her to finish and say it.
Chrystina: Literally, it was like two different expressions. You could see on my face that I’m like, “Oh God!” I thought I was done for. I had no idea, I wasn’t anticipating anything. All of her words came in slow motion, so it would like repeat in my head three seconds after she said it. I was totally not anticipating it, and Natalie was anticipating it, so it was two different expressions on our faces. Natalie was like, “Oh my God, oh my God, I think it’s about to happen,” and I was kind of like, “Oh, this is it, I’m done.”
Tiffanie, which challenge on the show did you find the most difficult, and which did you think was the most fun?
Tiffanie: The most difficult challenge for me was when we had to sing in front of those kids. Those sweet little kids. We had a challenge where we had to sing and dance in front of these kids, and it was so crazy because we were dancing with them and talking to them, and they were all so sweet. Then we went backstage to listen to their opinions of our performance, and I was expecting them to be like, “Oh, they’re so good!” But these were like special breeded kids. They slipped them something in their drinks before they let them judge us. [laughs] They were really, really mean to us. They were nice to Chrystina and Natalie, but they were mean to me.
Chrystina: They didn’t show it though. The way that they edited it, because they showed Natalie winning, and Ilisa kind of got some of the credit for Natalie winning or whatever. They didn’t even show that the kids actually really liked me, but they showed somebody saying one bad comment about me. I was like oh, whatever.
Tiffanie: That was the hardest. None of the challenges were physically hard or mentally hard, but it was just hard to hear those things that those kids had to say about us. Then the best challenge for me, because it was the one I won, was vocal expression week, when we had to go into the studio with Ron Fair and record. The crazy thing is, I’m very critical of myself. Very, very critical. So when somebody will be like, “Oh, you did amazing,” I’ll be like, “Uh, thanks.” So we were in the studio, I recorded my parts, and I was just like okay, I didn’t think it was all that. Ron was just like, “God, you sound like a rocker,” and I ended up winning the challenge.
Nichole, I know you’ve had some experience recording solo work before. What’s it like to adjust to being in a group?
Nichole: At first, when we were all picked, I was really nervous because I didn’t know how we were all gonna mesh. I have been a solo artist for a long time, recording in the studio since I was about 14-years-old, but honestly, I could not be happier with how everything turned out. I feel like I’ve learned so much from each of these girls. They are individually so talented, and I feel like I learn from each of these girls. It comes out so good, and it’s just so amazing to go into the studio and be working with the best of the best. We all go in there and give a little bit of our flavor, and when it’s done, when the record is done, it’s just amazing. It blows me away. I know we’ve all gotten emotional on records that we hear when it’s done. I couldn’t be happier with the way things worked, and I couldn’t be happier with the group.
A question for each of you: Is there anything that was edited out of the show that you wish had been in there?
Tiffanie: Okay, you know the episode where they had that laid back stripper lady come in? She taught us how to strip, and we were all like, “Hmm, weird.” Anyway, when she came, I knew I was on TV and I thought they were gonna air it. I was like, “Oh my God, my parents are gonna kill me if I’m over here dancing on this pole.” So I was like, “Alright, I’ve gotta turn this into a joke.” So I got on there and I was pretending like I was a crackhead stripper. It was so funny, and they didn’t show it! I can’t believe they didn’t show it.
Nichole: They edited a lot of fun moments out just to add drama, and we understand that, but I seem so serious on the show. I really have so much fun, and I’m so serious on the show. I never have fun, I’m just always worried about practicing on every episode. I have so much fun, and they edited out all the fun stuff.
Chrystina: I totally agree with Nichole. I think I’m pretty funny, and I have a lot of jokes, but on the show I just seem super-duper serious.
I know you already have a couple of music videos circulating around the Internet, but what’s next for you guys? Is there going to be an album or a tour?
Nichole: There’s going to be an album. It’s dropping July 1.
Natalie: We’re gonna be on TRL on May 1.
Tiffanie: We’re gonna be on Fuse on the 29th.
Nichole: I think the most important thing for us right now is just to prove that we are a legitimate group. Even though we came off of a TV show, we are real artists, and we are all real singers and dancers. There’s not one lead singer in this group, and we are legit. We want everybody to know that. We’re ready to work and prove to anybody.
Chrystina: I don’t know if I can say this or not, but we might — we might, I don’t know — but we might have a movie in the works with all four of us.
– Interview conducted by Don Williams
(Image courtesy of the CW)
Staff Writer, BuddyTV
