Today, on Estudio Billboard, we have Alejandra Guzman… one of the most symbolic icons of pop and rock in Latin America. She tells us everything and sings for us… here on Estudio Billboard.
Welcome to Estudio Billboard. Today, we are with an artist that doesn’t even need an introduction… with a 20 year career… Alejandra Guzman, welcome.
I love it when there are serious programs, funny ones, that do something good.
I see that you are wearing jeans. That means you feel comfortable being here?
I always wear miniskirts, you know? …the tiniest ones... So now, I feel like I’m wearing too much because I’m wearing jeans and this sweater.
You look business-like. It fits you. This is the new…
I could never be an executive, but I’ll give it a shot anyway.
I have to ask you about this… I like your new hair color.
There are two colors, actually. I don’t like being totally blonde, so I decided on these highlights. I’m always changing, reinventing myself. I always try to find something new, and I have fun doing it. Hair grows back, and you can wear it however you like.
This is going to be the look for the new album.
Yes. It’s due to come out this month, and the first single should be on the radio soon. It’s an album that is completely different from the ones I’ve done before because I’m doing it with Graham Pleeth, someone who is English. This is the first time I’m working with English people. I’ve always worked with Americans… like Desmond Child, the producer of artists like Aerosmith, Bon Jovi, Cher… People I really admire. I’ve worked with many people that I admire. Carlos Narea is a great producer as well, but he is from Spain. I was discovered by a Spanish producer, Miguel Blasco, during an audition. He also discovered Yuri and Mijares.
How old were you?
I was 17.
And you are just like Yuri, Mijares and Tatiana…
No… I have a history, you know? …Like a heavy past. I think that’s what makes it interesting. I went to my audition. I never said that I was Guzman Pinal…
He didn’t know you. He had no idea who you were.
No. I mean… I went to this audition like anyone else and said, “Hey… Can I sing?”
I sang New York, New York, which was the only song I knew. I began…
Start spreading the news…
You know? Being all flirty and stuff… and they liked it. I recorded my first album with him, and I ended up recording six. They all were hits. I couldn’t believe this was happening to me. Like…
We’re going to take a short break now. When we return, I’d like for you to talk about when you first started… up until now. We’ll be back with more of Alejandra Guzman on Estudio Billboard.
We’re back on Estudio Billboard with Alejandra Guzman. So, at 17 you go to Miguel Blasco and sing New York, New York for him.
Yes, I went there and sang to him…
And you flirt and all that…
Start spreading the news,. I’m leaving today. I want to be a part of it…
I never said I was Guzman Pinal, but he found out later and asked me, “Which one of your Dad’s songs would you like to sing? That might be nice.” I told him that I knew them all.
Did you want to sing something by your father on your first album?
Why not? Let’s take advantage of Mr. Guzman. We did La Plagawhich is a very special song to him because he started with Rock en Español. He was the first person to record a rock song in Spanish. It was Hound Dog by Elvis Presley…Well… not exactly… He sang it, but it was by someone else.
I should know this, but I keep forgetting.
Yes… It’s much older than what we think.
I bet we are going to receive lots of emails saying like…
Yes… “How come you don’t know that?” Well, no… Yes, yes….
Well… stop now. It was nice to sing La Plaga. I also did Luz de Luna, and I also recorded quite a dramatic song called Bye Mama. I almost couldn’t do it because it was so sad. I would start crying, and I couldn’t go on.
Bye Mama was the name of the album, right?
Exactly. That was the first song that I recorded. I was in Spain. The producer said to me, “This girl can’t sing.” I told him that the song was really sad. I just couldn’t stop crying.
What was the song about?
It talks about my mother… about me seeing her on a poster. I was very lonely, so…
She was always working.
Yes. Now, I’m thankful for that, and I understand it because I’m a mother now, too. I think it was good that she did that because it was an example for me. We are like a matriarchy… At home, women rule. There’s my brother and all the rest are women. It’s amazing that among so many women, he turned out to be so macho. I’m glad that…How can I say this?…Among all of that fantasy, theaters, cabarets and stuff…I used to have fun. I would set up a theater at home. I would create the stories, and I would use Luis Enrique, my brother, my niece Stefany…I would set up everything and… once I fell into the Christmas tree because I was dancing ballet. I ruined Christmas. Understand? My family was always up for a good show.
When your mother came home, did she watch the show?
Yes. I used to charge 5 cents…
Really?
Yes, sure. The show must go on.
What was the first show she saw and said, “She’s not that bad after all”?
I was with my mom at the theater… at the first play that I participated in. It was called Main. I was 17, and my part was really short… Gloria Hobson. I was in the entire dancing scene that took place during the first act. I’m a professional dancer. I did ballet, tango, and all of those dances. That was a great start for me to get used to the stage. It’s different when you go on stage and you’re not really ready for it… when you have no technique.
That was the first time you were on stage, in front of a group of people that paid to get in?
I kept forgetting my lines. I mean… When I saw my mom I would…[babbling] I was so nervous. That’s why I decided not to be an actress. However, my older sister, Silvia, is a great actress… the best in Mexico, I think. My mother is a great actress as well. So… I said, “I better go for rock and roll.”
You went to record the album called Bye Mama.
It was a hit. Six months later, I had to make an album of cover songs with songs by the Kings, the Animals and The Rolling Stones. I did that so I could be on stage longer… a show for an hour and a half or two.
Can you sing something from that first album?
That would be nice. Whatever you want.
Ahí viene la plaga, me gusta bailar. Ahí viene la plaga, me gusta bailar. Y cuando estoy rocarnrroleando, es la reina del lugar.
I ended up loving that album. I forgot about the microphone. It’s okay. It’s a show, right? We are live.
This is your house.
There’s this song called No Seas Cruel …
No seas cruel…
Then it was Eternamente Bella which was my breakthrough album. It had Ey, Güera, Mala Hierba, Mírala, Míralo, Eternamente Bella… only hits. That was the biggest album of my career.
And which…
Hacer el Amor con Otro.
Sing a bit of Hacer el Amor con Otro for us.
That’s the one.
I like it.
Amanecer con él a mi costado no es igual que estar contigo. No es que esté mal, ni hablar, pero le falta madurar, es casi un niño. Sin tus uñas arañándome la espalda, sin tus manos que me estrujan todo cambia, sin tu lengua envenenando mi garganta, sin tus dientes que torturan y endulzan, yo no siento nada. Hacer el amor con otro, no, no, no, no es la misma cosa, no hay estrellas de color rosa, no destilan los poros del cuerpo ambrosía salpicada de te quieros.
Just a little bit…
I’m sweating already!
Where did that song come from?
That song… just like my other songs…When I started, I used to tell the story of my life. Hacer el Amor con Otro was about the father of my daughter cheating on me once. I saw him. I was speechless. That story is real. When you’re singing about something that happened to you, it weakens you somehow. That’s why I can feel it, and I can make others feel the same…How can I…
The essence of the song, perhaps?
That feeling… There are people with great voices, but I like it when someone sings sweetly to me… like a secret… next to my ear. It’s like when you want to hook up with someone… like your voice sounds different. If you think about it, it’s easier to sing than it is to tell a story. Now that I write my songs… I wrote one called Volverte a Amar… That’s the song that I like the most. I thought it was going to be a hit. I made it with Mario Doom, someone I admire and who is my friend.
He was here a few days ago.
I love him. I think he’s a genius. That’s the word to describe him. I was with him…The first time I met him, we made a song in two hours called Necesito Amarme. I took that from a poem…I write a lot, and I draw and stuff like that. When I think of something, I just write it down. That poem said… “I need to love myself.” I’ve always been into searching my inner self. He loved it, and we made a song out of it. It’s beautiful. It says…
Necesito amarme, son muchas heridas las que tengo que cerrar, son muchas canciones las que tengo que cantar. Necesito detenerme y pensar, es inevitable, soy una persona que aunque pierda vuelve a amar. Grito que soy fuerte cuando todo está tan mal. Necesito reinventarme una vez más. Necesito detenerme
y mi alma rescatar, necesito convencerme, perdonar,
necesito amarme para amar a los demás.
I think…If you can’t love yourself, you’re not able to love anybody else. You know?
When we return, we’ll talk about how you make your songs and what they mean to you. Don’t move from Estudio Billboard.
We’re back on Estudio Billboard with Alejandra Guzman. You were saying that you sing songs that mean something to you… That you thought like, “Hey… This happened to me.” You wrote about it. What happens when that song isn’t relevant to you anymore? When it becomes something that happened five or ten years ago, or a month ago?
I think that songs, great hits, are forever. I think that when I sing, for instance Hacer el Amor con Otro, I go back to that moment. The best that an artist can do is to sing the song… and if there is a feeling about it, it will come out. It’s like a catharsis every time I’m on stage. Not all of the shows are the same because I don’t feel the same in each one of them. But, whenever I’m sensitive, that’s when I give the best gigs.
Currently, I’m putting together a show that is going to begin today, September 15, at the Zocalo. It’s free for everybody, and we are going to scream, “Viva Mexico!” from downtown. I’m going to present my new show there. We’ve been rehearsing. I’ve talked with the people in charge of the production about the ideas. At one point, I’m going to be wearing a red dress to sing Rosas Rojas. There is also going to be a moment where something like a war happens… when I sing Guerra Fría.
Are you in charge of designing the new tour, the production, costumes?
Not just me… I share this craziness with a lot of people.
Like a group…
Don Tito and Max are always on stage with me. We’ve been working together for a while, and we have fun. I try to include funny things in the show so that I can have fun. It’s so nice to go out there and have instruments…I’m going to be singing on a chair with the two back up singers, Rene and Reina. I’ll use a cane with some hula hoops that we are going to give away at the end. We used to give away balloons, but people would pop them. I ended up hating them. So, I decided to give away hula hoops instead… so that the fans feel like a part of the show… to create an interaction. It’s amazing to be 41 and still be able to have fun like a 4 year old. I mean… I am still ...
To come up with whatever is in your mind…
Yes. I’m still a little girl. I still get nervous, really nervous…I start to warm up, and then I’m like…If you lose that, you lose the charm of it.
When you were a kid… having such famous parents…Was it difficult to create your own artistic identity? I mean… like… not being an imitation of your parents but being you?
Well, my mom is really serious. She has always been so disciplined, and she taught me that. My father is a mess. Understand? I mean… He opens his mouth to speak, and he sounds really loud. I’m a combination of them, but I’m always sure of what I want to say and what I want to do. I was always the rebellious one with a husky voice, the tiniest one…Ever since I was a kid, I knew who I was, what I wanted to be and what I was going to achieve. People would say to me at school, “I don’t know if your value is greater than your creativity in order for you to be able to wear what you do.”
They wouldn’t send you back home? Like… “That skirt is way too short. Go home.”
No, no. Not at all. I was a fundamental part of Olinca. Miss Tere Carrera, the principal, was my tutor…I learned to respect that position…I don’t know. All that I’ve learned has been useful… except for chemistry and biology and stuff…
Why?
Well… You don’t really know where things really lie. You know?
Okay. Nice.
Or whatever…
Did you have a lot of boyfriends back then?
I still do. I haven’t found Mr. Right.
Yeah, but…
I don’t know when, but he’ll come.
He’ll show up.
I’ve been searching for him. I know that I don’t have to. I know he’ll come when the time is right…Believe me… I haven’t been the luckiest one when it comes to love, but it has given me plenty of material for writing songs. I was going to tell you about a song that I wrote, Soy Solo un Secreto. I won the ASCAP award in 2008 with that one. I had to say that because as a composer it is quite different.
For those who don’t know, ASCAP is an association that keeps track of what is being played on the radio. If she won, it is because that was the most played song on American radio stations that year.
That’s right. I got to meet this guy, Jose Luis Pagan. I did two other songs that are included on the new album called ¿Por Qué No Estás Aquí? …Full of drama. The other one is Ella, which is really nice.
Ella se desvela siempre…
What’s that about? Man…
Todo lo maneja, es buena actriz.
I’m talking about my daughter, about her character… and that sometimes she’s a grown up, but she really isn’t. She’s 17 now, and that’s a way of describing her. It was an easy song to write. What I was going to say was that, when I was writing Soy Solo un Secreto, I came up with the idea because it happened to me. You know? I was in a relationship where I was someone’s secret.
Oh.
I would always say to him that it upset me to be a secret. It upsets me that men always come and go… like lightning. It began to rain, and we wrote… Te nublas en mi pensamiento…
Do you want me to sing it?
Yes, please.
No me…
Come on!
We compared the rain with that person.
No me llamas más y te nublas en mi pensamiento.
Ya no queda nada más que un baúl tan lleno de recuerdos.
Esta soledad que se ha vuelto una rutina en mi vida, qué le voy a hacer yo con mi guitarra y tú en cadacantina. Soy sólo un secreto que tú llevas dentro a cada momento te nombro... ay, te nombro en silencio.
Me... singing like this.... is weird. I’m sorry. It’s just that…
It’s okay. We’ll be back with more of Alejandra Guzman.
We’re back with Alejandra Guzman. So… You were the secret. This guy got to hear the song, and he knew it was…
He always knew, always. But, I’ll remain a secret forever.
You give them a piece of your mind through the songs… like “You horrible bastard”…
There’s a new song that I did by Clarkson. Kelly, right? Kelly Clarkson… That song was a happy one, and I thought… like, “I’m not going out there to scream about how happy I am.” I changed the story. What I do is scream at the guy that he’s a bastard because I saw him kissing someone else. That’s pretty much the story of Mírala, Míralo… but using different words. The thing is that I’ve also learned to talk about situations people like to hear about… like drama, or girls begging nonstop… Llama Por Favor, call me, please. People ask me to sing that song all the time… “Llama Por Favor!, Volverte a Amar!” That song is such a drama, too. It says, like… there’s nothing left after having loved you.
Did you write Volverte a Amar on your own?
With Mario…
Oh, right. Sorry.
The thing is that I can’t play an instrument. I mean… I can barely play, but he can play the piano. He comes up with the melody, and I’m pretty good with the lyrics and the ideas. So I…
How do you write then? A song like Hasta el Final, for instance… How do you write a song like that?
Look… Hasta el Final was a song that helped me overcome my fears about being sick… of not knowing what was going to happen with my life. I went to Mario, crying, and I told him that I was cancer free, and that I was so lucky. I was a survivor…I had the need to transmit the pain and the fear that I felt through this song. It says…
It starts talking about me.
Puedo ver cómo el miedo se penetra por mi piel. Puede ser que en un momento veas la vida de papel. Veo tus ojos casi sin aliento y tu alma baila contra viento. Quiero verte sonreír de nuevo pero ya verás que este es el principio y no el final. No voy a dejarme ir ni voy a mirar atrás, no quiero dejar mi espacio ni mi esencia un día más, no voy a dejar de amar ni voy a dejar de respirar, me quiero quedar contigo hasta el final.
That song helped me a lot. It also helped many other people that have said to me, like, “You know? You helped me overcome depression,” or “Life is worth fighting for.” I’ve had some problems. I was lucky with the cancer because it hadn’t spread. But the additional things… drugs, alcoholism…There are many things in this business that make you sick… that take away from you what’s pure. Understand? Whenever I see artists who think that they are the best, I feel for them because I’ve been there before. Life just slaps you real hard, and you get back on track. You go back to being humble, more natural. I like the natural artists… the ones that make me feel…The ones that never sweat and are always so pretty are like…I like them more natural… but that’s me. My biggest idols are Elvis Presley or Michael Jackson. To me, he was the best. He was the first one to have big shows like the ones you see today… or they try to do them like that anyway. I think…Janice Joplin… Everybody would get wasted… or The Who. So, I said, “I can do that, too.”
Yes.
I also used to drink whiskey and go, like, “Viva el Rock!” Suddenly, you can’t get back on track. People don’t hire you anymore, and people isolate you. I’ve learned to be more disciplined and to beat my evil side. However, every day I have to wake up and say, “Today, I’m going to the gym. I’m going to do this.” Idle hands are the devil’s workshop, and I think that when you are famous everyone wants to be on good terms with you. They bring you presents and stuff. In the end, some of those things can hurt you, and some of those you probably can’t control. You reach this point where you can’t handle it, and you have to ask for help… “Hey, I think I can’t do this anymore.”
I hit bottom, and I need some help…
You need to go down. Some people need to worse than others. My bottom is way down… but that’s a part of me. When I see that I can’t do it anymore, I ask for help. That’s totally fine because sometimes you can’t do it alone.
No, you can’t. When you were diagnosed with cancer, I supposed you thought about the possibility of dying. What did you think about… “I have to change. I need to do what I haven’t done so far. I’ve got a second chance now.” What did you do?
I have to say what I think at the time. I don’t have to keep what I feel inside of me. The cancer comes from resentment and hatred that you store within you. I had the chance to forgive that person after 5 years. That was pretty tough… to see this person that had hurt me so much. I said, “Okay… I forgive you. But, I am doing this for me because it’s a burden that I don’t want anymore.” I think that’s what I’ve learned from this… not to keep what I feel inside of me… to say what I think and what I think… to forgive…Sometimes, I acted like a victim. You know? Like… “My mom didn’t care about me, and I was so alone. My dad had to work as well.” But, I’m thankful. That shows you the people that really love you… and to move on. I enjoy life more now, I prefer quality over quantity. Whenever I have the chance to give a show, I do it with all my heart. Then, I go home in peace. And, I get paid. It’s a blessing. I do have fun doing this.
Wonderful.
Don’t go away. We’ll be back with more of Alejandra Guzman and Billboard’s 20 Questions… here on Estudio Billboard.
We’re back with Alejandra Guzman on Estudio Billboard. Alejandra… It’s time for our 20 questions. I always present them like this… as if they were so important. I just love them.
Bring it on…
Are you ready? You must answer them all.
Come on… Do it.
The perfect night?
In good company.
Do you sleep with or without pajamas?
With… quite covered. I even wear socks.
Grandma style?
Not like that… but nice pants…And my dog sleeps here.
What breed is it?
It’s a Chihuahua. It’s so sneaky.
George Clooney or Benicio del Toro?
George Clooney.
What makes you cry?
Lies make me cry… people that are not sincere. When people try to trick me, that makes me cry.
Have you been lied to a lot? Not anymore… from this moment on.
I can tell now. I know when people lie to me.
What do you spend too much money on?
I used to spend a lot of money on clothes… now on my shows.
What would you change about yourself if you could?
My stubbornness… I’m so naughty. That might be a virtue after all.
Your worst concert?
Once, in Peru, I was drunk. I couldn’t even finish. The next day in the newspaper… “Alejandra so drunk.” I was like…But, that’s how I was taught. I was 19. I’ve done some bad stuff.
Your best virtue?
My voice. Right? My virtue is to be honest, I think. To be honest…
An object you always carry with you?
An object I always carry with me…I always have pictures of my daughter… my earrings… I never take these off… and this bracelet… I always wear it. It’s like… personal stuff.
What’s your ritual before going on stage?
I always pray to God to be with me… to help us all. I warm up… drink a Red Bull, and I’m ready.
Do you really need a Red Bull? I think you’re more than ready if you drink one.
Yes, I do have one.
What can’t you stand in a person?
Arrogance.
What is the silliest thing someone has done to win your heart?
It was the silliest thing, but it left me speechless. Someone sent me a boat as a present.
Do you still have it?
Of course… I’m the captain of my ship, darling! I go fishing, and I catch big fish.
So… You finished with the guy and kept the boat…
Yes. I’m not giving it back now, am I?
No.
What you give, you do with love… and what’s done is done.
If you could choose another talent besides music, what would it be?
There are several, but I can’t say those on television. I would like to be more clever when it comes to business. I’m not that dumb, but…I would like to be able to be tolerant and patient. I don’t have those things in me.
What’s the word you use the most.
Bad words… It’s related to that.
What are you afraid of?
Well… The opposite of success is…
Failure.
To fail… Not to be able to reach my goals.
The most important quality in a man?
To be able to love, to be able to share, to be able to make a woman feel like one…
Any lucky charm?
I think all those things belong to a superior power. I leave everything in His hands, and it’s all fine.
Your worst fault?
I’m always scolding people. My personality is strong.
You’re both like…
But, we get along just fine!
Come on, stand up for me.
It’s so lovely.
That’s not true. What a kiss up!
Just kidding. He is…
Once something really difficult happened to me. I was at the Arena Monterrey about to go on stage. I was hanging like this… to be like a fallen angel… wearing this huge harness. There was this huge screen. The screen was a bit lower than usual, and when I came out… I don’t know what happened. I just hit the screen, and I broke a tooth.
We laugh, but…
It was a miracle I didn’t injure my head. When I was hanging up there, I said “Damn, I broke my tooth… But, the show isn’t going to stop now!” And everyone was clapping and cheering. Me… with my broken tooth… singing… Dicen que soy… At the end, Miguel, from my crew, had some glue. We solved everything. The people far away had no idea what was going on. It’s amazing. I learned from my mother that the show must go on. She broke one hand, and she finished using the other one. That’s the way she is.
And, that was it...
Yes. You learn from those things.
Two albums you would take to a deserted island with you?
Oh, wow. Sticks… That’s an album you could open like this. It was my first album. I like Sade very much… a softie one like that… or one by Erykah Badu. I love Erykah Badu.
No more… You have two already.
Okay.
Your favorite vice?
Mmm… Where do I begin?
One.
I think smoking is my favorite vice. It’s also the worst one. As a singer you shouldn’t…
But, that gives you the husky voice. To wrap up… What are you singing?
Volverte a Amar. Thank you so much for this interview, and I hope you have me again.
Thank you. It was a pleasure to have you here.
It’s been a pleasure. Thank you, everybody.
We are anxiously awaiting the new album, the new music.
It’s called Centro.
Centro.
Centro… because whenever I’m in the center, I feel this energy, the stares, and that’s where I always think. Understand? I can focus, and I sing and I do all that I want to do. That’s why that’s the name of the new album.
How nice.
Voy deprisa, siempre en contra del reloj. Todo lo que viví nunca fue para mí y aunque duele aceptarlo es así. Tonterías nos separan a los dos, una historia sin fin se vuelve a repetir y es que sé que soy parte de ti porque después de tu amor ya no hay nada y reconozco el miedo en tu mirada. Porque siempre caigo rendida cuando tú me llamas, porque siempre a cada minuto te vuelvo a extrañar. Eres para mí, desde que te vi no te dejo de pensar, es que tengo tanto miedo de volverte a amar.
§§
Volvería a apostar por este amor, a perder la razón, eres tú la ilusión que atrapa mi corazón. Porque después de tu amor ya no hay nada y reconozco el miedo en tu mirada. Ah, ah. Porque siempre caigo rendida cuando tú me llamas, porque siempre a cada minuto te vuelvo a extrañar. Eres para mí, desde que te vi no te dejo de pensar, es que tengo tanto miedo de volverte a amar. Ah, ah. Porque siempre caigo rendida cuando tú me llamas, ah, ah, siempre a cada minuto te vuelvo a extrañar. Eres para mí, desde que te vi no te dejo de pensar, es que tengo tanto miedo, tengo tanto, tanto miedo de volverte a amar. Ah, ah, ah, ah. Ah, ah, ah.
Ay.
Thank you.
Thank you. Thank you so much.
