One on One With Tamia

In the music industry where artists seem to come and go, fans still “can’t get enough” of veteran singer Tamia. She has defined her own musical style while taking her career into her own hands.

The singer, born Tamia Washington in Windsor, Ontario, independently released her fourth album “Between Friends” on her own record label Plus 1 Music Group, after building her career as an artist representing several major labels.

“I wanted to do an album of songs that spoke to me. I had no agenda or deadline,” Tamia said in an interview with The Hilltop. “During that time off, I went to South Africa and did some of the new material there and had a great response. It was a liberating process. I definitely grew and grew enough to trust my own guts and step out on faith to be more in control.”

Tamia, who has shuffled from Warner Brothers/Quest, Electra and Atlantic records, has finally found security in her own business.

“I wanted to be more stable in my career and in the home of where I put my records,” she said of the company she launched at the end of 2005. “The best way was to start my own label [and] to take charge of my own life.”

Tamia entered the music scene in 1994 with “You Put A Move on My Heart” followed by a duet with Babyface titled “Slow Jams,” both featured on Quincy Jones’ produced album. Tamia soon earned two Grammy nominations before she had even released her own album. She also worked with Brandy, Gladys Knight and Chaka Khan on “Missing You” for the soundtrack to the 1996 film “Set It Off.”

Two years later, she released her self-titled debut album with the lead single “Imagination,” produced by Jermaine Dupri. Tamia also garnered success the same year with her Grammy-nominated duet with Eric Benét, “Spend My Life with You.”

“I’ve been fortunate to work with a lot of people,” Tamia said. “Hopefully I learned a thing or two. It’s something I cherish,” she said.

Tamia later established herself as a lasting artist with her second album in 2000 titled “A Nu Day.” The certified gold album featured top singles “Can’t Go For That” and “Stranger In My House.”

After being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, Tamia returned in 2003 with “More,” including “Questions,” a single produced by R. Kelly. The album also featured a collaboration with rapper Fabolous titled “Into You.”

Since the release of her current album “Between Friends” last November, Tamia has taken her promotional tour across the country, making some stops in Detroit, Atlanta, Orlando, Charlotte, Baltimore and Washington, D.C.

“It’s been so much fun,” she said as she talked about the live set with a full band. “We call it the ‘Between Friends Session’ and it’s been at intimate clubs.”

Tamia said the smaller venues often give a personal atmosphere to engage with fans.

“It’s been fun. That’s what I do. I love to see places like that, where you can touch people and have that interaction,” she said.

She added that her performance at H2O nightclub in the District last month was well received by a packed house.

“It was amazing,” she said. “Everyone was singing the music. That’s a performer’s dream, to have everyone singing your song.”

Tamia said she is also able to connect with her fans through her online account at Myspace.com/therealtamia and the redesigned site www.tamiaworld.com 

“It’s definitely time consuming, but I definitely check it and respond,” she said about her MySpace page. “I have very loyal fans. I wanted to give them the album that they told me to give.”

And appropriately so, her fans were able to vote online to select her next singles, which will be the storytelling ballad “Me” and “Too Grown for That” produced by Rodney Jerkins and featuring Jim Jones. Tamia said both women and men can identify with the up-tempo single by Jerkins.

“It’s about going out and not necessarily going to find someone, but to have a good time, not to be hampered by someone,” she said.

While sustaining her music career, Tamia has also handled the pressures of being a mother while performing on the road.
“It’s a part of the job. The goal is to keep balance and sometimes I feel like I’m in a circus,” said Tamia, who announced at her Washington,  D.C., show that she is four months pregnant with her second child. Tamia and her husband, NBA player Grant Hill, have a 5-year-old daughter named Myla Grace.

“I’d rather lean on the side of family, but everyone who works with me knows where I stand. That’s why I own the things that I do. That’s important, the way of multimedia. You can own what you do.”

Tamia will most likely never have to choose, since she attracts faithful fans such as freshman political science major Lauren Belcher.

“She might not have as much publicity as other artists, but her albums are consistent,” Belcher said. “I really like the sound of her voice. It’s pure. I like her consistency.”