Thalia reigns supreme as a Latinmusic queen
Thalia gives new meaning to the phrase “work from home.”
The Mexican superstar, known for her pop anthems and ’90s telenovelas, has been keeping a pandemic pace that would tire out mere mortals. In the past few months, she’s put out a flurry of singles, including duets with Brazilian drag star Pabllo Vittar and Brazilian rapper Myke Towers. She released her second children’s album. She’s become a must-follow on TikTok, thanks to her clever and charming videos.
Thalia’s latest project is “Latin Music Queens,” a six-episode Facebook Watch series that documents her challenges and successes as a pop-culture force. It features young singers Farina and Sofia Reyes, who collaborate with Thalia on the new single “Tick Tock.” The series follows the process of creating the song and video.
Between projects, Thalia talked about balancing it all while being a mom.
Q: You’re doing it all yourself these days because of COVID-19. Is it challenging?
A: I’m used to it because since I was very young, I’m used to doing my hair, I’m used to doing my makeup, my styling, everything. Now the newest part of that puzzle for me are all the technical issues about the lighting, the Zoom connection and all of that. But in general, I’m happy. I love to do my things myself. I don’t wanna depend on people. Somehow, they’re unreliable. You delegate responsibilities, and then, “Oh, I didn’t read the email. When was that?”
Q: “Tick Tock” is emblematic of empowerment and collaboration, qualities you’ve championed throughout your career.
A: It’s three different artists, three different fandoms and generational aspects. It’s the culmination of a project called “Latin Music Queens” that I had in mind two years ago. It was important for people to be part of the process behind a song, the process behind a video, how this works. Facebook Watch was launching, so it was a perfect marriage. Now, we are celebrating all these views and all these millions and millions of people watching the episodes. We are so happy, and we are very thankful for our audience.
Q: You’ve maintained a loyal fan base from the start of your career. What do you attribute that to?
A: A few artists have that connection with fans, and it’s a very deep connection, a very intense root that exists between my fans and me. It’s of dreams and stars in the eyes. We live in a rainbowcolored world. We are unicorns. That’s how we are. We go from a deep ballad to a crazy dance club, “A Quien le Importa” song to “Arrasando” rap to “Tick Tock” or
“Desde Esta Noche” with Maluma. I think regarding my point of view and my essence, I’m a Latin pop singer. I have a very unique structure when I write my songs and the language that I use and the way that I sing, and I carry that through my whole music career. But I love to experiment with different styles.
Q: You’ve worked with Maluma, Becky G, Michael Bublé. Who’s left on your wish list?
A: I like to learn, to grow from my colleagues. I like to create magic together. My dream would be Sade. Amo profundamente, punto. She is a queen.
Q: There’samoment in “Latin Music Queens” when you admit you can’t listen to your first two albums because it reminds you of the challenges you faced, including being blacklisted from radio because of sexual themes.
A: It’s really tough for me to think about that teenager going through so many emotional changes and going through her teens publicly, exploring her emotions through music and writing songs and singing and creating looks and styles with stars in my eyes. Then, boom, the reality of the industry. I cannot listen to those two albums. The first note that I hear from any of those songs, I start crying or I just walk away. I just can’t. I know that I have to dig in and work on that.
Q: You mention that you play “Among Us,” a wildly popular online game, to connect with your kids. Are you addicted yet?
A: I love “Among Us.” It’s so funny. I open “Among Us,” and I tell the fans, “I’m here. Please come in right now.” They come in, and we’re all playing “Among Us.” That’s, like, the best. I need to activate my Discord so that the fans and I can hear each other.
Q: You released an Englishlanguage album in 2003. Would you ever do it again?
A: I’d love to do more stuff in English. I don’t know if I’d record a whole album, but I love just to collab sometimes. For instance, with Michael Bublé, Tony Bennett or Fat Joe. I like the little cherries on top of the cake. I don’t wanna feel the pressure. Once you feel the pressure, then you don’t enjoy it, and then people don’t feel it. As long as it’s something organic and fun, then we’ll do it.