One of 2008's most anticipated new album releases, I Am... Sasha Fierce is Beyonce's first new studio collection since her Grammy-winning multi-platinum-selling B'Day debuted at #1 on charts around the world shortly after its international release on Beyonce's 25th birthday.
Each of the discs on Beyonce's new double album reveals a distinctly different side of her personality, character and sensibility, a forum for the yin-and-yang of her developing artistry.
One of the discs, titled I Am., provides Beyonce with a musical showcase for a group of intimate heartfelt ballads while the Sasha Fierce disc gives voice to Beyonce's up-tempo dance-oriented other side.
"Sasha Fierce is my alter ego," says Beyonce, "I Am., is about who I am underneath all the makeup, underneath the lights, and underneath all the exciting star drama. And Sasha Fierce is the fun, more sensual, more aggressive, more outspoken side and more glamorous side that comes out when I'm working and when I'm on the stage."
With I Am., Beyonce reveals a variety of musical aspects and interests that may take her fans by surprise. Citing a range of influences including "folk songs and alternative songs and acoustic guitar stuff that's different from what I sing," Beyonce has produced, written, recorded and performed a finely crafted selection of contemporary ballads that combine the best elements of pop and soul music while expanding the possibilities of both genres.
The lead-in track on the Sasha Fierce disc is Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It), Beyonce's scorching anthem of personal empowerment. "That song is all about: 'I've been with you all this time, you're taking too long and now I'm looking hot and you see it and you gotta suffer because you shoulda put a ring on it,'" Beyonce explains. "In my life, when I put on the stilettos, it's all about being confident, sometimes overly confident, and hearing all the things that women need to hear to boost themselves and go out and to move on."
"Sasha Fierce is fun. I try to make up-tempo records that feel good but underneath they're still saying something. Sasha Fierce is a collection of the kinds of songs that I'm usually known for and I love just as much as the more intimate side of me."
Each of the discs on Beyonce's new double album reveals a distinctly different side of her personality, character and sensibility, a forum for the yin-and-yang of her developing artistry.
One of the discs, titled I Am., provides Beyonce with a musical showcase for a group of intimate heartfelt ballads while the Sasha Fierce disc gives voice to Beyonce's up-tempo dance-oriented other side.
"Sasha Fierce is my alter ego," says Beyonce, "I Am., is about who I am underneath all the makeup, underneath the lights, and underneath all the exciting star drama. And Sasha Fierce is the fun, more sensual, more aggressive, more outspoken side and more glamorous side that comes out when I'm working and when I'm on the stage."
With I Am., Beyonce reveals a variety of musical aspects and interests that may take her fans by surprise. Citing a range of influences including "folk songs and alternative songs and acoustic guitar stuff that's different from what I sing," Beyonce has produced, written, recorded and performed a finely crafted selection of contemporary ballads that combine the best elements of pop and soul music while expanding the possibilities of both genres.
The lead-in track on the Sasha Fierce disc is Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It), Beyonce's scorching anthem of personal empowerment. "That song is all about: 'I've been with you all this time, you're taking too long and now I'm looking hot and you see it and you gotta suffer because you shoulda put a ring on it,'" Beyonce explains. "In my life, when I put on the stilettos, it's all about being confident, sometimes overly confident, and hearing all the things that women need to hear to boost themselves and go out and to move on."
"Sasha Fierce is fun. I try to make up-tempo records that feel good but underneath they're still saying something. Sasha Fierce is a collection of the kinds of songs that I'm usually known for and I love just as much as the more intimate side of me."