BobbyPen's 5 Minutes with Singer/Songwriter Crystal Nicole • TheBobbyPen.com™

TheBobbyPen.com had the amazing opportunity to catch up with ASCAP Award winning and Number One Hit single songwriter, Crystal Nicole. Her response to my final question was truly a blessing. She ministered to me and spoke to my current efforts, and I really appreciate it. I hope you get something from her story too.

Nicole, a southern “everyday woman” hailing from the Peach State, meekly stepped into the music industry in 2006 and inked a deal with Atlanta music guru, producer Jermaine Dupri in 2007. Dupri tasked Nicole to write to a beat he sent her just a week after meeting her. This challenge led to a number one single for Pop diva Mariah Carey’s “Touch My Body.” (2008) This success led to hit writing opportunities for other industry starlets like Natasha Bedingfield, Monica, Rihanna, Jennifer Lopez, Janet Jackson and Beyoncé—music royalty! After four years of quiet success, Nicole is ready to break out into the limelight for herself and is embarking on a solo effort, set for a 2013 release. Her current single, “Pinch Me,” is racking up YouTube views and she hopes to keep building momentum moving forward. Without further ado, meet singer Crystal Nicole.

TheBobbyPen.com (TBP):How did you become interested in music? Did you know from the time you were a little girl that this was what you wanted to do or were in singing in the mall one day and someone heard you? How did that go?

Crystal Nicole (Crystal): I was forced in it. My mom, my dad, my sister all sang in harmony when I was growing up. So from as far back as I can remember I was singing, and honestly, I thought everybody could sing! (Laughs) Because that’s just how we operated. I had no choice in the matter, music just kind of—I think it had its hold on me before I ever knew how to speak.

TBP: How do your Decatur, Ga. roots influence your work? Do you think that it gives you an edge at all?

Crystal: My roots kind of caused me to be a lot less high-strung than I may have been if I had different roots or a different upbringing. I’m a really “keep it simple” kind of person. Southern hospitality is something people from the South are kind of born with. I think my music has a sense of that home grown, grandma’s homemade recipe of an album. (Laughs) It’s relatable in that way– its food for the soul, so my upbringing kind of shows itself in my music in that way.

TBP: How would you describe your style as an artist?

Crystal: My style is modest. I’m just an “everyday woman.” I actually have a song called “Everyday Woman” and basically I am no different from you, or your sister, your mother, your cousin; only difference is I was blessed with an ability to sing and to like music, and—I guess, communicate musically the different things that we all go through in life. My style of music is very true to life. It’s very relatable, especially for women, but just in general for people of all races, ages, and ethnicities. Its what everyone wants to say, but they don’t get an opportunity to say it. I just say it through music.

TBP: I’m looking at your list of accolades and it’s extremely impressive. You’ve gotten to work with different producers and tons of Grammy Award winning singers, how has that? How did you get introduced to your first big break?

Crystal Nicole’s first No. 1 Hit single, Mariah Carey’s “Touch My Body”

Crystal: There have been so many breaks from me. That question always trips me up, but I guess the first one would probably be working with Jermaine Dupri. My manager took me to his studio one day. Apparently, he had heard about me around town or heard some records of mine and he wanted to meet me. For me, being from Atlanta, Jermaine Dupri is like a music President here, so that was a dream come true. I just remember being at his studio and he was playing pool, and he stopped his game and was like, “Hey, nice to meet you.,” and he shook my hand, and that was pretty much it! I was like, “Oh! Ok… So… alright.” (Laughs) I thought maybe he wasn’t interested anymore, but maybe like a week later he sent me a track to write to and I wrote to it and next thing you know, a couple of weeks later I was in the studio working with him on more stuff. So, definitely it’s been an amazing ride ever since then.

TBP: You attempted to step on stage from behind the pen before in a group effort, what did you take away from that experience that will make you a better solo artist now?

Crystal: Well first things first, I learned that if you’re not able to stand up for what you believe in—yourself, your dream, your passion and your goals—nobody else is going to for you. I learned that at a very early age. (Said through chuckles) I was so busy trying to force my dreams and my aspirations onto other people not understanding that everybody has their own course, their own path and whatever mine is, I have to be able to stand up in that and walk that even if I’m walking alone. So, that kind of helped me in a lot of different ways in life in general, but definitely helps me in my solo career to say, “Ok, this is something I feel passionate about and this is me,” and I have to be able to stand for that.

TBP: I see that you have taken on a new initiative and you’re the spokeswoman Georgia Coalition Against Domestic Violence, what made you want to get involved with that?

Crystal: Well, it kind of hits home with me. I grew up in a household with that for a while, so when I heard about the program I felt that I need to—I was compelled to be apart of it in anyway that I could. So, I spoke to some of the shelters I stayed at with my mom as a little girl so it’s definitely a personal subject for me. I didn’t just want to make music and that’s it, I kind of want to give back and bring awareness to people in any way that I can, and I’m just blessed that I can be apart of it.

TBP: You won an ASCAP Award your many writing credits; can you describe that experience for me?

Crystal: ABSOLUTELY AMAZING! (laughs) I always tell the story—one time when I was trying to get the ASCAP Awards, I wasn’t up for an award, but I had an invite to go. I had no money, I couldn’t get a flight out, and I remember sitting at home in Georgia while everybody—all my peers and everything, they were at the ASCAP Awards. I literally cried, because I just felt like I had been working so hard, and I couldn’t understand why I still couldn’t make it, and I felt like I was still in the back trying to get—not necessarily to the front, but trying to get somewhere, and that moment really hit me hard. So, when the next year rolls around and I was getting an award, and I was able to actually go and pick up an award it just meant so much more to me than just “Ahhh, I got an award.” It was a defining moment in my life. It taught me that if you actually work hard for something, in God’s timing, it’ll happen for you and you will reap the benefits of that.

Crystal Nicole for TheBobbyPen.com — Singer and Songwriter Crystal Nicole discusses career expansion.

TBP: What advice would you give to somebody who knows that they can do it and they know that they can live out their wildest dream, but they just feel a little frustrated with where they are right now? What would you tell them?

Crystal: I would tell them it’s not about where you want to be so much as its about where you need to be at the time. A lot of times, what we want is not even as great as where God is planning to take us, and if you move too soon or if you get to a certain position in your life prematurely, you won’t be prepared mentally, physically, spiritually or whatever else to be what you were meant to be. I’ve just learned from my own life that what I want and what is meant for me are two different things sometimes and sometimes my desires pail in comparison to my purpose, and when you’re dealing with purpose and when you’re supposed to be there, you get there at the exact time that you’re supposed to get there with the exact amount of experiences that helped you get there and that helps you appreciate where you are, because if you get there prematurely you’ll screw up; in a lot of cases that happens. Something great will happen to someone and they aren’t ready for it and then it’s like it’s all for nothing. So, I would just say “patience.” As long as you’re working hard and focusing, everything will fall into place. That’s my philosophy.

Her Wikipedia page details just how hard she’s been working and you can see exactly what songs she’s written for industry superstars here.

Please keep an eye on this emerging artist and follow her journey.

Twitter: @1CRYSTALNICOLE
Website: CrystalNicoleWorld.com