Sean Kingston talks about touring, third album
At only 20 years old, pop star Sean Kingston’s music has already come full circle.
“To be honest with you, this is going to be my best album,” Kingston said, calling while on his way to a Los Angeles studio. “It’s going to take you back to the original Sean Kingston.”
Before he can put the finishing touches on the still-untitled project, though, he’s hitting the road. In between dates of a 40-city tour opening for teen pop sensation Justin Bieber, Kingston will headline a few shows of his own, including one Friday, Aug. 6, at the House of Blues in Myrtle Beach, S.C.
As a teen recording his self-titled debut in 2007, Kingston, born Kisean Anderson, came into his own as a reggae fusion singer, a style that was a far cry from his days rapping on the streets of Jamaica.
Kingston’s sophomore effort, 2009’s “Tomorrow,” put an electronic edge on his traditional island beats. The dance-pop hit “Fire Burning” became a club staple for the summer of 2009, and earlier this year a collaboration with Bieber made the song “Eenie Meenie” a smash hit with tween girls.
But Kingston’s latest single, “Letting Go (Dutty Love),” featuring in-your-face spitter Nicki Minaj from Lil’ Wayne’s Young Money label, hits harder than the carefree island hooks that made him famous and takes Kingston back to the Jamaican dancehall culture from which he got his stage name.
Adjusting to life on the road hasn’t been difficult for Kingston, who’s taken on an older-brother role with tour mate Bieber.
“He looks up to me for advice,” Kingston said. “I let him know stuff about girls and stuff like that.”
But 16-year-old Bieber might want to be careful before taking much advice from Kingston. In July, a woman accused Kingston of assaulting her at the Crown Plaza Hotel in Seattle. Charges were never filed, but it’s not the first time Kingston has run into trouble with the law. At 11 years old, he spent 21 days in jail for breaking and entering.
Prior to making Kingston available for an interview for this article, a representative from his label, Epic Records, threatened to terminate the interview if Kingston was asked any personal questions that weren’t about his music or his tour.
Even so, many of Kingston’s lyrics do the talking for him. “Dry Your Eyes” from his debut, for example, is an ode to his mother, who spent time in jail for identity theft while Kingston lived out of their car. Kingston plans to reclaim some of that emotion in his new record.
“When I dropped my first album, it was a lot of passion, it was a lot of pain, a lot of stuff I was going through,” he said. “You’ve got to recapture that. Just because you get success, you can’t lose that.”
Though Kingston is returning to many of the elements from his first album, he’ll also be experimenting with more international beats as well as attempting to stray from his trademark sampling. His first hit, 2007’s “Beautiful Girls,” borrowed its bass line from Ben E. King’s “Stand By Me.” His second, “Me Love,” sampled the hook from Led Zeppelin’s “D’yer Mak’r.”
“Everybody can always sample, but it’s about trying different stuff and staying on top of the game,” Kingston said. “You want to keep yourself relevant, but you don’t want to sound like the next person.”
Kingston said he stays ahead of the curve by connecting with his fans online. He has more than 550,000 followers on Twitter and said he’s always on his laptop or iPhone connecting with them.
“I’m kind of big on the Internet, so I know what the fans want,” he said. “Twitter was the best creation for us as an artist, because (the fans) feel like they’re a part of us on the journey.”
And if you ask Kingston, the journey is only beginning.
“At the end of the day music is music, and people want to feel that energy and feel that vibe,” he said. “I’m just being myself and keeping it up.”
Amanda Lucci: 343-2327
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Who: Sean Kingston, with Jeremy Greene When: 7:30 p.m. doors, 8:30 p.m. show, Friday, Aug. 6 Where: House of Blues, 4640 U.S. 17, North Myrtle Beach, S.C. Tickets: $18-$41 Details: (843) 272-3000 or www.HouseOfBlues.com