Usher launched his music career with a self-titled debut in 1994; his 1997 sophomore disc, My Way, spawned the hit "You Make Me Wanna" and set Usher on his current quest to become a legend. His most recent recording, Live, is a concert album that showcases performances from around the world.
Video excerpts of the following conversation, which took place in Chicago on the Chicago set of Light It Up, can be viewed in Issue No. 33 of LAUNCH on CD-ROM.
LAUNCH:
What's it been like going from music to acting?
USHER:
It's been a privilege to venture out into another aspects of entertainment. One, I was really successful with My Way. It was a long time coming; hopefully we'll sell as many records with the live project. It's a great transition to come from singing to acting. In a way they're similar. I've done videos and sitcoms as Usher. I've had to take on different roles as an entertainer, like on The Bold And The Beautiful. After I got the opportunity to work on The Faculty and She's All That, I thought it would be a great thing to go to the next level. Babyface and Tracey Edmonds came up with a great script. I liked what they were talking about. I figured it would help me in the long run and I could look back and say I did a great film.
LAUNCH:
Describe your character, Lester, in Light It Up.
USHER:
A little bit about Lester: He's the type of guy who is really outgoing. He has a relationship with Ziggy. He's the star basketball player of Lincoln High School. To be put in these circumstances--to take over the school and take the security of the school hostage--is not in his character. But there is a possibility he may do this, because Lester has had personal problems with the law.
LAUNCH:
Lester seems a little crazy...
USHER:
He's pushed to the edge. Lester doesn't hurt anybody, just wanted to graduate high school. There's something that held him up. He was a great guy, had a great opportunity being an all-star player. He's active within his school, always trying to help people out.
LAUNCH:
Is it a challenge being both Usher the actor and Usher the singer?
USHER:
No doubt. We're talking about Usher, and that doesn't stop. As an actor, I have to adapt to whatever it is I have to do. I have to get used to different characters and personalities. That's the name of the game. If you want to act, that's what you have to do. As far as me in my personal life, I'm laid-back; I'm all for the kids. I try to teach everyone to be responsible for what you do.
LAUNCH:
Is that what attracted you to this movie, since Light It Up tackles serious subject matter about schools and poor kids?
USHER:
It did. I've been to several inner-city schools that I've seen that are similar to these. This one is a little exaggerated, but people do deal in these circumstances. Hopefully this will shed some light and will better the educational system for our kids, the future.
LAUNCH:
You started your show business career at a young age--did you have much chance to go to regular public school?
USHER:
Actually, I did. I had a chance to spend the first two years of high school in Atlanta, Ga. Then I began to work with a tutor because I was working on my debut album. One thing I will say about this film, dealing with the environment outside of the school, that's what the kids have to deal with. In a way, it's a reality. School is everyday problems that will better every student that has to go through it. That will only show that they stand the test of time. Everybody deserves a book in their school. To be taken care of in their school. To be taught in their school. It should be a great environment for the kids.
LAUNCH:
Do you hope to do more acting in the future?
USHER:
I love playing what I do every day. That's pretty easy. The harder it gets, the better it is for me as an actor. More experience. Hopefully I can do more films that intrigue me. Maybe I can do an action feature with Jet Li or Jackie Chan, whatever. That's what I'd really like to do. But I think it was great for me to do this, because it says a lot for me as an actor to take all of this emotion from nowhere. I'm pretty content, although at times I may have been dealt a raw deal, but I keep smiling. All of a sudden I have to change all of that, reconstruct all of that inside me, pull this emotion out.
LAUNCH:
What did you learn while making this movie?
USHER:
I definitely did have an acting coach on this film. I had a natural talent. I really worked hard on creating my own little things. There are a lot of things my coach taught me about my character and getting into a scene. Different camera shots, angles, lighting, meeting your marks. Things on the technical side. At the same time, I learned a lot from my acting coach.
LAUNCH:
Like getting into character? How do you do that?
USHER:
I got the snow on my boots [points to boots he's wearing on the set, covered with fake snow]. It's one of the later scenes in the movie when me and Jackson and the hostage are on the roof. It's a really hot scene, a really deep, deep, deep scene. It took a lot of emotion, digging inside of me, pulling out a lot of happy things, sad things, good moments, bad moments. I did my best to pull the scene out to the best of my ability. In good, there's bad. There's happy and sad. You have to take each one and work it 'til you get the right emotion. I just think about all the great times I've had, the bad times I've had, and I mix them up. That emotion is enough to get you to the point where you shed a tear, and that's what I do.
LAUNCH:
What else inspires you?
USHER:
Let me tell you this, man. [LaFace Records'] L.A. Reid inspired me. At this point in my career as an entertainer, entrepreneur, all of those things, I'm driven to not give up even though people may not believe in your discovery, your talent, your art. I'm pretty sure that soon enough I'll have my own artists. And people may not believe. On my first album, people didn't understand, didn't think I would make it. But L.A. Reid didn't change his mind. He was sold on the fact that he had an entertainer that's a diehard entertainer and works at an intense level. I'd like to pass that off to other artists. You learn from somebody like a father. I've been taught a lot about the business side, and a lot about the personal. He's like a pops to me. He's been down for me from the beginning. Even though we've had rough times, we've been down from the beginning.
LAUNCH:
Before you did your first album, you did that song "Just Call Me A Mack" on the Poetic Justice soundtrack, right?
USHER:
A lot of people think [My Way] is my first album, not knowing I've been doing this the last eight years. It takes a lot of experience to do this and keep it up. I was working with Rico from Atlanta, Ga. Organized Noise productions. You get all those records, all that experience and this is what pops out. I hate that they did forget about it, but it was a really great record. It says a lot about me as to where I come from and what I've evolved to. A lot of people don't know [about "Just Call Me A Mack"]. They don't know I had that single. It's open for them to go get it, either off the Poetic Justice soundtrack or whatever.
LAUNCH:
To what do you attribute your success?
USHER:
Patience. Patience. I knew it would happen. I knew I had to get a niche. I had a great producer, Jermaine Dupri. It's a combination: having a great manager, having a great record company president, in L.A. Reid, and having a great producer. Also, having God on your side. There wasn't a day I didn't want to make it. Every day I would say, "One day I'll do this, talk to this person. I'm not going to do what so-and-so did. I'm going to do it my way." And then, one day it happened. But it took time. It took an awful lot of time.
LAUNCH:
I read that Jermaine Dupri sort of spied on you, to write songs that really came from your life and experience.
USHER:
Jermaine Dupri would overhear my conversations. He wasn't a spy. He would overhear me. If I would meet a girl, he would listen to how I kick my game. If I was on the phone, he would sit next to me and hear what I would say. If I invited someone to the studio, he would listen to how I present myself. That had a lot to do with how he creatively came up with the music that fits me. I guess this album tells a lot about the time period in my life. What Jermaine wrote was actually what was going on in my life. As well as 'Face. It's called teamwork. Jermaine Dupri gets the ball rolling, passes it off to someone else, and so on, and you have a great project at the end of the day.
LAUNCH:
What else inspired My Way?
USHER:
If people don't know, let me clear it up. [The song] "My Way" was definitely inspired by Frank Sinatra. It inspired me to come up with the name of my album. That song is about jealousy, another guy's girl preferring me over her man. He can say whatever he wants, but she's still going to give it up. It was cool, young, energetic, all those things, and it worked.
LAUNCH:
Sinatra is a legend. Some say you're a legend in the making. Do you want to be a legend, and if so, how--by studying legends like Frank?
USHER:
First, you have to get inside of the heads of that entertainer, and know that I only study those who are legendary because I want to be a legend someday. I can take something from the path they chose for their life. Sammy Davis Jr., Frank Sinatra. They worked hard. Elvis Presley, Bobby Brown, Michael Jackson, the Jackson Five, Stevie Wonder. I take a piece. I may not pattern my situation off what they've done, but at least I learn something about the business and myself as an artist. All those people I mentioned are people I listen to and am inspired by as a vocalist and entertainer. [Donny] Hathaway, the Dazz Band. Jazz, acid jazz. For me, music is a spiritual thing. It gets inside me. It's the one thing that definitely touches something inside you. It can make you cry, make you happy. It can make you change your mind. It can make you want to go out and cheat on your wife, girlfriend, boyfriend. I take it very seriously and want to get it right.
LAUNCH:
The inspirations you've mentioned cover quite a range of musical styles. Do you aspire to be versatile, have a wide-ranging career?
USHER:
I want to do different types of music. I don't want to confuse people because they can't understand what I can do straight off. I'm very creative. I can do an opera song and people wouldn't understand. They'd write it off like I'm washed-up. I could do Spanish songs. I study. I've studied Ricky Martin, Selena, all these people, just to learn more about the business. I was working on something with Elton John, but it fell through. My schedule, also, having the time to do it, meeting their deadline. I couldn't do it. We had to pass up on it. It was actually in the works. I talked to him. He wanted me to do it. It doesn't affect our relationship. In the future, we'll do something else together. I think he's a great guy, a great artist. He's definitely a trendsetter. I try to get along on that.
LAUNCH:
Tell me about your brother, James--is he going to follow you into show business?
USHER:
You've been watching my video. James is the younger generation, the game I can't see because I'm always working, and he's picking up on it. He's real slick and real cool. It's in his genes to be a real fly guy. He's a hard worker with people who believe in him. My mother is a great person to push you. If you want to do something, she'll make you do it. She won't let you give up. That's why I'm the person I am. James will be a great person because of my mother. I know he wants to do something, and whatever it is, he'll do it.
LAUNCH:
Tell me about your live album. Why did you decide to put out a concert album at this point in your career?
USHER:
For one, I think it was great for people who didn't get a chance to see the show, the concert. I decided to put it on a VHS as well as a CD on LaFace Records. It takes place in Chattanooga, Tenn., my hometown, and my tour--when I completed a year opening for Puffy, going overseas, an independent tour with Mary J. Blige. I went out with Janet Jackson. So I said, "Hey, we sold 5 million albums. We didn't do that sitting at home, we did it by going out and showing people what we've got. Let's show the people who didn't have a chance to see the show what they missed."
LAUNCH:
What was it like touring with Janet Jackson?
USHER:
The thrill of kicking it with Janet was hot. Janet is dope, yo. She's really cool, really down-to-earth. She's a definite entertainer, works hard and sweats every night. She gives 120%. Great production. I learned a lot about how to make an artist look like a star. On the personal side, I got a chance to hug her.
LAUNCH:
With all this success, how do you keep a level head?
USHER:
I just don't let it affect me. It can come, it can go. Your true fans will be there with you. I want to make good music for my fans, do the best I can. As far as the girls, I don't let it go to my head. I've seen it destroy so many people before me. The downfall of black men in America is the sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll. I try to stay away from it. I don't want to destroy myself at an early age.
LAUNCH:
You've talked about going through a period where you had a lot of acne. What was that like?
USHER:
That's one thing that I think will really knock a person down, a teenager's self-esteem down. I had a lot of people around me who believed in me as a person, who didn't change their opinion of me when I got acne and stuff. Don't lose your mind, it will go away. There's different treatments to help it. Don't let it kill you. Don't pop it, man. You can let them go back in...I dealt with it. It'll disappear eventually.
