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It takes a lot of time to conquer the hearts of the whole world-just ask Mexican singer Paulina Rubio. Over the course of the past two decades, she's seen success as part of the biggest teen act in her homeland, enjoyed popularity as an actress on the big and small screens, and become the reigning golden girl of Spanish pop.
"I think music is like love," sighs the south-of-the-border phenomenon, when asked about her first foray beyond the Latin market. "You kiss someone to give and receive an energy, a connection. I'm trying to connect with people worldwide, to send out my musical kiss around the whole planet." With gold or platinum success in eight different nations, and an infectious English-language debut, Border Girl, set to drop, there's only one thing to say: pucker up, world.
Born to one of Mexico's most celebrated film stars, Susana Dosamantes, and raised in Mexico, Los Angeles, and Spain, Paulina's exposure to her mother's trade made a huge impact on the budding artist at a tender age. "My mom was shooting a lot of films in Europe when I was young, so we were traveling with her around the world, with a lot of artists around: writers, architects, singers, filmmakers," exclaims Rubio. "It made me very independent, and that is when I started making some of my own decisions, at around 7 or 8.
"The first personal decision that set her on the road to fame was to begin training in singing and dancing, which led to her enrollment at a prestigious performing arts school at the age of eight. Within two years, Paulina's talents were so evident that she was chosen to be part of the popular children's recording group Timbiriche. Though she still balanced her schoolwork with her newfound popularity (good grades were a mandate for staying in the group), she says "the real lessons were recording and performing" for rabid audiences throughout South America.
After spending nearly a decade as part of the successful group, Paulina decided that the time was right to leave Timbiriche, and few were surprised when her much-anticipated solo debut, La Chica Dorada, spawned three number-one singles and scored platinum sales. In the interim, she's duplicated that triumph with four more smash hit CDs and taken on another challenge, following in her mother's footsteps as a film and television star. "Acting was like a hobby for me," Rubio notes modestly of her hit soap opera roles and her film work, "but music is my priority. I love to perform, and to spread my music and my messages." With her English-language debut, she's primed to spread them beyond the language barrier and the borders that have kept her relatively unknown to American audiences.
With tracks that bridge the gaps between rock, pop, dance, and traditional Mexican rhythms, Border Girl fuses the diverse influences Paulina has absorbed throughout her lifetime. The romantic title ballad was penned by Richard Marx, fresh from chart-topping songwriting credits with *NSYNC and SheDaisy, but Paulina's newest fans will be introduced to her via the TRL-ready lead single, "Don't Say Goodbye," an infectious, hook-laden tune which will benefit from the one-two punch of also being released in the Spanish world as "Si Tu Te Vas."
"Stereo" features breathy vocals and a minimalist production value that brings to mind the sultrier collaborations between Janet Jackson and long-time producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. One of Paulina's favorites, the R&B styled tune also features a rap cameo from rising hip hop star Pretty Willie. "To me, 'Stereo' is about the rhythm on the streets; the feeling of having friends around, of going to parties and dancing to a good DJ."
And dancing is something that this caliente beauty is all too familiar with. The syncopated simplicity of tracks like "Sexual Lover," "Fire - Sexy Dance," and "Libre" conjure images of packed European discos and feature soaring vocals that prove her mettle as a dance diva-though she's quick to point out that her audience is not limited to the clubs. "My music is in nightclubs, but also in kindergartens and at weddings, and all kinds of places," she says of her broad appeal. "In music, there are no rules. Like painting, you can mix colors and textures. I feel very free to perform dance, rock, and whatever else I want.
"The most surprising-and arguably the most fun-track the record is its cover of the KISS classic "I Was Made For Lovin' You," an old favorite of Paulina's which she re-imagines as a dance-floor hookup anthem. "I remember hearing that song with all my aunts when they were in their 20s and I was 10 or 11," she recalls, "and I also went to see KISS with my father when I was young. Years later, I was actually at an aerobics class and had the idea to do it my way, and I was really glad that Universal Records and [Universal CEO] Doug Morris were behind it." The songstress was also delighted when she recently heard news that someone else is supportive of the track: KISS singer Paul Stanley!
Of course, Paulina's Mexican roots are featured prominently on numerous tracks, with flamenco guitars accenting "The One You Love," brass flourishes heating up "Casanova," and plenty of both featured on "The Last Goodbye." One of four Spanish hits translated and re-recorded for Border Girl, it is a mixed palate of the rhythms of the Tijuana streets Paulina knows so well with the hip hop and pop influences culled from years of performances for her diverse global audience.
"I grew up doing concerts and I'm going to die doing concerts all over the world," affirms the Mexican firebrand. "That's what I'm here for and what I believe in." And no, after spending most of her life entertaining fans throughout the globe, it's time to unleash Paulina Rubio's unique appeal on American audiences and prove once and for all that this girl's popularity has no borders.
