Biz With D: Interview w/ Fantasia + Angela Yee + Dice Raw

At first listen, Side Effects of You might sound like an album about heartbreak and the process of piecing oneself back together.  That’s true, in part, but if you have her tell it, there’s much more there.  While the Grammy-winning singer has certainly enjoyed chart-topping, triple-platinum and multi-platform success since winning season three of American Idol, she, like everybody, has made some mistakes, too.  Though she has never shied away from being transparent in her music, she wasn’t necessarily thinking about putting her words into song when she picked up a pen and her blank notebook two years ago. 

Crafting this, her fourth album, was like a dream come true for Fantasia as she made it her mission to tap into the music that has inspired her over the years.  “When I was growing up, we listened to so many different types of music in my house,” she remembers.  “It started with gospel and then the blues because my grandfather loved B.B. King.  Of course I loved listening to my girls Monica, Brandy, TLC and SWV, but I also played Billie Holiday, Josephine Baker, Elton John, Ella Fitzgerald, Luther Vandross, Anita Baker, Bonnie Raitt and Queen.  You can listen to any of those artists today because their music still stands and that’s what I wanted to do with this project.  I want my music to be timeless.”