Rita Ora (2013)
Interview Background
With paparazzi photographing her every move, the tabloids revealing new paramours daily and music fans on both sides of the Atlantic pawing for a piece of Rita Ora, the London singer was incredibly hot property by the time of this phone interview in February 2013. Far from the empty interactions of similarly large-scale pop stars, Ora proved she was still armed with a cheeky sense of humour and a solid awareness of life beyond the music industry’s surreal bubble. Her black bra and tight pink leggings might have ensured she was overlooked for the best dressed awards during her appearance at the ensuing Future Music Festival, but in this conversation she came across as fun and grounded, despite Hollywood, Kardashians and Beyonce calling…
The following is an edited version of an interview first published in Rip It Up, February 2013.
Rita Ora - Roc The Life
by Scott McLennan
In the space of three years, 22-year-old Londoner Rita Ora has signed with Jay-Z, toured with Coldplay and recorded with Snoop Lion, but there’s one big question Rip It Up wants answered: which of the Future Music Festival superstar’s collaborators smells the best?
“I think I will have to say Drake,” Ora laughs. “Drake smells great - he smells like fresh trees. He smells really fresh, he’s got such a nice smell. I always ask him what he’s wearing because I want to wear it myself, but he never tells me!”
Snoop Lion has the look of someone who smells like a stained old couch in a share house.
“No! He smells great! He’s just so cool – you can’t say a bad word about him. We were introduced through Diplo and he’s the coolest man on the planet. We have a track together called Torn Apart on the new Snoop Lion album and I cannot wait for you guys to see the video we’ve just shot in Thailand. It’s such a cool track and it’s an awesome video.”
As well as taking a guest spot on Snoop’s forthcoming Reincarnated album, the multi-tasking Ora will also be seen in Fast And Furious 6 when it hits cinemas in May.
“Aha! Yes, we like a little bit of Fast And Furious. Vin [Diesel, co-star] asked me to be in it – I was really excited. It’s a long story, but we met through friends at a birthday dinner and we got chatting. The next day my management got a call saying ‘Vin would love Rita to be in the movie’. It’s very rare for it to happen like that – I couldn’t actually believe it. I’m playing one of the leader girls of the gang, but there were no stunts for me unfortunately. I get to run with a few crews though - it was shot in London and with me being British it made sense.”
Ora is no stranger to impressive stunts and high-octane road races, with October’s Shine Ya Light video clip exposing her as something of a daredevil. Ora is filmed racing through the streets of Pristina in Kosovo on the back of a road bike with nought protection but thigh-high leather boots and a helmet resting precariously on her head.
“I had no seatbelt, either! It was okay – my cousin was driving. It was all my cousins and friends that were on the motorbikes and we were riding slower than it looks. I love a bit of adrenalin.”
Although her family’s English emigration meant Ora avoided the first-hand distress of the Kosovo War, her return to her country of birth made for an emotional homecoming for the Radioactive singer. The singer said the immense public response to her visit made her feel “like Princess Diana”.
“I moved to London when I was only a one-year-old, so I was fortunate enough to physically miss the war but obviously I have family members who passed away. My mum and dad luckily got out of there before it got crazy, but when I went back to shoot my video, that’s when I physically connected with what happened and what I can do to help, even though I’m just a singer. It’s a whole nation you’re trying to help, but I’m really proud of where I’m from.”
Ora’s treated like royalty in the land of her forefathers, but back in the UK she’s a target for tabloids looking for nip-slips or fashion faux pas. It must be hard knowing if you scratch your bum it will be photographed and relayed around the world?
“Yeah, but it’s about whether you take that seriously and make that the main priority of what you do or not,” Ora muses. “It’s about mental control, to tell you the truth. It only gets to you if you let it, and things like that don’t really bother me. I’m such an easy-going person that as long as my music is out and I can be in the studio, I don’t care what happens – I just try to itch my bum in a glamorous manner!”
When it comes to learning grace, poise and eloquence, Ora has one of pop’s greatest as her governess. Beyonce has been a strong supporter since her husband Jay-Z signed the teenager in 2009. Although touring commitments prevented Ora from witnessing the Superbowl reunion of her heroes Destiny’s Child, she’s in awe of her US friend.
“I watched the Superbowl and it was so nice seeing there is real talent out there that I got emotional. I am honoured to have Beyonce in my life and I was so happy for her – nobody deserves it more than her and she is the nicest person on the planet. It was beautiful to watch.”
Beyonce once said she gets “tired of being sexy”. Is it a problem for you?
“Once you’re sexy, you’re always sexy,” she chuckles. “I don’t feel sexy when I’m on a tour bus just waking up and I haven’t showered yet. When you’re on the road and unshowered, that’s definitely not a sexy time. It’s hard! You have to keep clean, but sharing a bus with 10 people can get messy despite the fun of it all.”
Adelaide has a tenuous claim on Rita Ora’s latest chart success Radioactive, with the song penned by South Australia’s Sia Furler. It caps off a year in which Sia’s also notched up hits with Flo Rida’s Wild Ones, David Guetta’s She Wolf and Rihanna’s Diamonds.
“You’re in Adeloyyyyde?” Ora kids in a passable accent. “It’s obviously very hard for me not to be reminded of Australia every time Sia spoke – her accent is awesome! She’s an amazing songwriter. Even before [Rihanna’s] Diamonds came out, she’s such a great artist in her own right. She’s like me – she’s down to earth and she definitely speaks her mind! She’s so funny and she doesn’t take herself too seriously. I think that’s what makes her so great and her mind so creative.”
With her 2012 debut album Ora’s collaborators including Will.I.Am, Kanye West and Chase & Status, Ora already has some of the world’s biggest music names in her corner. The blonde vocalist now has her sights on another dream collaboration.
“Right now I’m obsessed with Mumford & Sons,” Ora admits. “I would love to work with them – I think Mumford & Sons are an incredible group of gentlemen that make an amazing sound with their voices. If I even had a minute I would love to experiment with them and see what we can come up with, since I love the fact they are British and do country music. It’s awesome.”
Ora (Sony)
Unpublished Interview Material
Taylor Swift this week became the promo girl for Diet Coke. What food or drink you’d happily sign up to promote?
"If I had to be the face of anything I think it would be Tabasco. I love Tabasco – I would love my face on the bottle, smiling from ear to ear. I have it on everything – I think I’ve burnt my tastebuds from having it on all my food, since I can’t taste anything anymore unless I have Tabasco on it."
The lyrics to the Ora track Been Lying suggest your multiple tattoos are a way for you to show your pain. Has the pain been diminished by success?
"(laughs) The pain is diminished! There is no more pain! I look at things differently now. I wrote that when I was 18, so I was looking at things differently at that point."
So no new tattoos now either?
"Oh, there’ll probably be a few more tattoos at some point. I have 14 of them now and I was 16 years of age – no, 18 – when I got my first one with my best friend. There are some random things but now I have tattoos I really love. I love tattoos – I think they are beautiful. You have some great tattoo artists in Australia – some really great artists, I hear."
It seems you are a bit of a daredevil from the Shine Ya Light video where you’re riding around on the back of a superbike. What’s the most dangerous situation you’ve found yourself in?
"Skydiving in Dubai felt pretty dangerous. It was New Year’s and I did a show for the Atlantis Sundance, which they have every year. I performed for them and then had a few days off, so I literally jumped out of a plane. There was someone on my back jumping with me and apparently they do it so many times they always land in the same place every time. It’s all very organised."
With paparazzi photographing her every move, the tabloids revealing new paramours daily and music fans on both sides of the Atlantic pawing for a piece of Rita Ora, the London singer was incredibly hot property by the time of this phone interview in February 2013. Far from the empty interactions of similarly large-scale pop stars, Ora proved she was still armed with a cheeky sense of humour and a solid awareness of life beyond the music industry’s surreal bubble. Her black bra and tight pink leggings might have ensured she was overlooked for the best dressed awards during her appearance at the ensuing Future Music Festival, but in this conversation she came across as fun and grounded, despite Hollywood, Kardashians and Beyonce calling…
The following is an edited version of an interview first published in Rip It Up, February 2013.
Rita Ora - Roc The Life
by Scott McLennan
In the space of three years, 22-year-old Londoner Rita Ora has signed with Jay-Z, toured with Coldplay and recorded with Snoop Lion, but there’s one big question Rip It Up wants answered: which of the Future Music Festival superstar’s collaborators smells the best?
“I think I will have to say Drake,” Ora laughs. “Drake smells great - he smells like fresh trees. He smells really fresh, he’s got such a nice smell. I always ask him what he’s wearing because I want to wear it myself, but he never tells me!”
Snoop Lion has the look of someone who smells like a stained old couch in a share house.
“No! He smells great! He’s just so cool – you can’t say a bad word about him. We were introduced through Diplo and he’s the coolest man on the planet. We have a track together called Torn Apart on the new Snoop Lion album and I cannot wait for you guys to see the video we’ve just shot in Thailand. It’s such a cool track and it’s an awesome video.”
As well as taking a guest spot on Snoop’s forthcoming Reincarnated album, the multi-tasking Ora will also be seen in Fast And Furious 6 when it hits cinemas in May.
“Aha! Yes, we like a little bit of Fast And Furious. Vin [Diesel, co-star] asked me to be in it – I was really excited. It’s a long story, but we met through friends at a birthday dinner and we got chatting. The next day my management got a call saying ‘Vin would love Rita to be in the movie’. It’s very rare for it to happen like that – I couldn’t actually believe it. I’m playing one of the leader girls of the gang, but there were no stunts for me unfortunately. I get to run with a few crews though - it was shot in London and with me being British it made sense.”
Ora is no stranger to impressive stunts and high-octane road races, with October’s Shine Ya Light video clip exposing her as something of a daredevil. Ora is filmed racing through the streets of Pristina in Kosovo on the back of a road bike with nought protection but thigh-high leather boots and a helmet resting precariously on her head.
“I had no seatbelt, either! It was okay – my cousin was driving. It was all my cousins and friends that were on the motorbikes and we were riding slower than it looks. I love a bit of adrenalin.”
Although her family’s English emigration meant Ora avoided the first-hand distress of the Kosovo War, her return to her country of birth made for an emotional homecoming for the Radioactive singer. The singer said the immense public response to her visit made her feel “like Princess Diana”.
“I moved to London when I was only a one-year-old, so I was fortunate enough to physically miss the war but obviously I have family members who passed away. My mum and dad luckily got out of there before it got crazy, but when I went back to shoot my video, that’s when I physically connected with what happened and what I can do to help, even though I’m just a singer. It’s a whole nation you’re trying to help, but I’m really proud of where I’m from.”
Ora’s treated like royalty in the land of her forefathers, but back in the UK she’s a target for tabloids looking for nip-slips or fashion faux pas. It must be hard knowing if you scratch your bum it will be photographed and relayed around the world?
“Yeah, but it’s about whether you take that seriously and make that the main priority of what you do or not,” Ora muses. “It’s about mental control, to tell you the truth. It only gets to you if you let it, and things like that don’t really bother me. I’m such an easy-going person that as long as my music is out and I can be in the studio, I don’t care what happens – I just try to itch my bum in a glamorous manner!”
When it comes to learning grace, poise and eloquence, Ora has one of pop’s greatest as her governess. Beyonce has been a strong supporter since her husband Jay-Z signed the teenager in 2009. Although touring commitments prevented Ora from witnessing the Superbowl reunion of her heroes Destiny’s Child, she’s in awe of her US friend.
“I watched the Superbowl and it was so nice seeing there is real talent out there that I got emotional. I am honoured to have Beyonce in my life and I was so happy for her – nobody deserves it more than her and she is the nicest person on the planet. It was beautiful to watch.”
Beyonce once said she gets “tired of being sexy”. Is it a problem for you?
“Once you’re sexy, you’re always sexy,” she chuckles. “I don’t feel sexy when I’m on a tour bus just waking up and I haven’t showered yet. When you’re on the road and unshowered, that’s definitely not a sexy time. It’s hard! You have to keep clean, but sharing a bus with 10 people can get messy despite the fun of it all.”
Adelaide has a tenuous claim on Rita Ora’s latest chart success Radioactive, with the song penned by South Australia’s Sia Furler. It caps off a year in which Sia’s also notched up hits with Flo Rida’s Wild Ones, David Guetta’s She Wolf and Rihanna’s Diamonds.
“You’re in Adeloyyyyde?” Ora kids in a passable accent. “It’s obviously very hard for me not to be reminded of Australia every time Sia spoke – her accent is awesome! She’s an amazing songwriter. Even before [Rihanna’s] Diamonds came out, she’s such a great artist in her own right. She’s like me – she’s down to earth and she definitely speaks her mind! She’s so funny and she doesn’t take herself too seriously. I think that’s what makes her so great and her mind so creative.”
With her 2012 debut album Ora’s collaborators including Will.I.Am, Kanye West and Chase & Status, Ora already has some of the world’s biggest music names in her corner. The blonde vocalist now has her sights on another dream collaboration.
“Right now I’m obsessed with Mumford & Sons,” Ora admits. “I would love to work with them – I think Mumford & Sons are an incredible group of gentlemen that make an amazing sound with their voices. If I even had a minute I would love to experiment with them and see what we can come up with, since I love the fact they are British and do country music. It’s awesome.”
Ora (Sony)
Unpublished Interview Material
Taylor Swift this week became the promo girl for Diet Coke. What food or drink you’d happily sign up to promote?
"If I had to be the face of anything I think it would be Tabasco. I love Tabasco – I would love my face on the bottle, smiling from ear to ear. I have it on everything – I think I’ve burnt my tastebuds from having it on all my food, since I can’t taste anything anymore unless I have Tabasco on it."
The lyrics to the Ora track Been Lying suggest your multiple tattoos are a way for you to show your pain. Has the pain been diminished by success?
"(laughs) The pain is diminished! There is no more pain! I look at things differently now. I wrote that when I was 18, so I was looking at things differently at that point."
So no new tattoos now either?
"Oh, there’ll probably be a few more tattoos at some point. I have 14 of them now and I was 16 years of age – no, 18 – when I got my first one with my best friend. There are some random things but now I have tattoos I really love. I love tattoos – I think they are beautiful. You have some great tattoo artists in Australia – some really great artists, I hear."
It seems you are a bit of a daredevil from the Shine Ya Light video where you’re riding around on the back of a superbike. What’s the most dangerous situation you’ve found yourself in?
"Skydiving in Dubai felt pretty dangerous. It was New Year’s and I did a show for the Atlantis Sundance, which they have every year. I performed for them and then had a few days off, so I literally jumped out of a plane. There was someone on my back jumping with me and apparently they do it so many times they always land in the same place every time. It’s all very organised."
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