Confessions From… Alyssa Reid

Three years ago, Alyssa Reid graced our ears with her hit song “Alone Again” a catchy hit that showed off her powerful vocals. The track went on to sell over a million copies, get certified double platinum in Canada, not to mention reaching well over 13 million hits on YouTube! Now the 20-year-0ld singer is back with a lineup of more hits with the release of her sophomore album Time Bomb.

I had the opportunity to speak to Alyssa for Faze Magazine and while the full article and interview will be in the Spring issue of Faze and online at faze.ca, here’s a snippet of what we talked about.

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What have you been up to during the past 3 years?
After we released The Game here in Canada I had a lot of success in Europe so I spent some time there doing press and doing shows. I did a tour with One Direction which was really awesome. Then I finally got to come back and get in the studio which was great. Then a tour with neverest. For the most part

(Obviously I had to ask): A lot of girls would do anything for the opportunity to open for 1D, what was that like?
It was great, they were all so nice! And I went from playing small venues to performing in front of like 75, 000 people so that was a crazy experience.

Where did your new album name, Timebomb, come from?
That song is the most personal to me out of all songs on the album, so it seemed fitting to make the album called that. It’s the most “Alyssa”.

Are there any specific bands or people you look to for inspiration?
I get inspired by everybody that I work with. I got to write in LA with Billy Steinberg who wrote some of the biggest songs in the 80s who really taught me how important the lyrics are.

And your album is coming out on February 11, which is fairly close to Valentine’s Day, does that mean love will be a big theme?
Love is always a big theme in any album because it’s such a big emotion. It’s so universal so it’s kind of hard not to write about love whether it’s about your relationships or friendships or with your family. It’s easy to write about stuff you’re going through or emotions you’re feeling.

Speaking of Valentine’s Day that’s when you start your tour with Hedley, what are you most looking forward to on this tour?
I turn 21 on this tour so I’m really excited that the show is sold out on my birthday and I’m really excited to tour Canada. I’m really excited to tour Canada in arenas, I never got that opportunity in Canada before so it should be really fun.

Do you have any advice for other young aspiring singers?
What happened with me is that I felt like The Next Star was my final opportunity and after that I was just gonna kind of give up and focus on school and I’m really glad I didn’t do that because I wouldn’t be where I am today. You never know when something’s gonna happen; if something’s gonna happen it’s gonna happen so my advice would be to not give up and always keep your eyes open and keep trying.

Back-to-back days with Olly Murs

This post is much delayed, but it is timely with the release of Olly Murs’ music video for Dear Darlin!

On May 1, 2013, my sister and I went to the Olly Murs concert at the Phoenix Concert Theatre in Toronto. It was a great show, but not the last time we’d be seeing Olly during his visit to Canada!
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On May 2 the British singer spent the morning after his sold-out and wild (picture bras being thrown and “take it off” being chanted over and over again by the audience) concert in Toronto, at a Faze Magazine cover shoot! That’s right, Faze’s next cover boy is Olly Murs! I was fortunate to be on set to capture the behind-the-scenes photography, so here are my shots from the shoot:
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Olly looked great! It was so funny, he loved all the clothes the stylist bought, but being the fashionisto he is, when looking through the wardrobe he’s like, “I actually have some pants that would go great with this top! I’ll be right back” and with that he ran back to his room (the cover shoot was held in his hotel) and came back with a handful of his own clothes. We’ve certainly never had a cover star do that before :p It was quite hilarious.
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Another hilarious and unique Olly move? He made the shoot a sing-along! Faze Cover Shoot Musical: The Olly Murs Edition. His album “Right Place Right Time” was the soundtrack playing throughout the entire day, so of course Olly knew all the words. And so of course he sang along! Whether it was while he was getting ready, getting wardrobe touches or even while posing for the camera; nothing stopped Olly from breaking out his dance moves either. Hey, none of us minded at all. His voice is heavenly. I figured that as an artist, you’d be sick of hearing your own songs, but for Olly that is definitely not the case.

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@Naomi_ML

Alli Simpson Cover Shoot PLUS Giveaway

On Tuesday, March 26 Alli Simpson flew up to Toronto for a day full of press. But it’s undeniable that one of the most fun things on her to-do list for the day was her very first cover shoot for Faze Magazine!

The day started bright and early in the morning, and like any Faze shoot, we had awesome cupcakes!

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Alli’s a brand ambassador for Broadway Nails, so of course we had to have them on set with us and their awesome designs!

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It easy to see that Alli’s a natural on camera, can you believe she’s only 14?!

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Overall the shoot was a great success. After getting her makeup and hair done, trying on many outfits, snacking on delicious food and of course posing for the camera, our Faze shoot came to a wrap. Alli definitely had an enjoyable time, can’t wait to see the final cover!

In the meantime I have a giveaway for all of your Simpson fans all around the world! I have five prize packs for you win that include a set of ImPRESS nails, and two copies of Faze Magazine one with Cody and one with Alli on the cover. During Alli’s interview she mentioned that her mom has Cody’s magazine cover framed in their house and is excited to put hers next to it. So cute!

 

contest

 

 

TO ENTER all you have to do is: 

1. Leave a comment on this post telling me what your favourite thing about either Alli or Cody is.

AND

2. Tweet to @TwentiesGirl92 “Alli and Cody Simpson have my heart! #MagazineGiveaway”

And if one chance to win a prize pack doesn’t satisfy you, for bonus entries just:

1. Follow this blog (just scroll to the bottom and click)

2. Follow @fazemagazine on twitter!

3. Follow @twentiesgirl92 (for blog updates and more awesome contests)

4. Hec, why not follow me on twitter! (@Naomi_ML)

5. Follow @e_moments on twitter!

One entry per person (Maximum of 6 if you complete all of the bonus entries). Will ship worldwide.