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PHOTOS: CL for Complex Magazine + Video Interview


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Meet CL, the Korean Rapper and Singer Who's About to Take Over the U.S.

In Asia, this pop star needs no introduction. With help from the man who gave the world Justin Bieber, soon she won’t need one in the States either.
 
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http://youtu.be/yWlqITJi0oc

 

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You will soon be bombarded by articles about CL, the 23-year-old singer/rapper who is coming to America after conquering Asia with her group 2NE1. These stories will inevitably mention K-pop (because she’s from Korea), and PSY (because they’re labelmates at YG Entertainment), and Scooter Braun (because she is S.B.’s first Korean signee post-“Gangnam Styleâ€). All of these contextual detailsâ€â€which are, predictably, also in this storyâ€â€might suggest that CL is a novelty aided by famous associations.

But reducing CL to these connections would be a disservice to her electric talent, which deserves the attention on its own. (Witness Diplo’s unsolicited co-sign.) The bold, unique solo records she has already released in Korea (“The Baddest Female†and “MTBDâ€) are what she calls “risky†for K-pop butâ€â€minus the Korean rappingâ€â€would make perfect sense here. Musical ability aside, her fluency in English and unmistakably cool style are more significant than her affiliations. So CL is from Korea, like Rihanna is from Barbados, or Lady Gaga is from Long Island. The origin story is important, but don’t let it get in the way of the music.


When “Gangnam Style†arrived in the U.S., I interviewed Scooter and PSY, and they both told me that it was important that PSY didn’t change who he was to cater to the U.S. market. Did you have a similar conversation when you signed with Scooter?
Yeah, he definitely respects me already as an artist, and he loves what I’ve been doing. He just wants to bring that out here and balance it out. It’s not like I am going to sing a whole song in Korean like PSY, but I think it’s a good balance. I want to represent Asian women in the right way. He wants to support that.

Some K-pop fans think that to make it here you’ll have to s-x up your image.
Well, you know my image when I was in 2NE1. And I’m not going to change that. I’m not against being beautiful or s-xy or anything, but it’s just I have thisâ€â€I don’t know how to say itâ€â€but I have this “cool†image that I want to keep.

Everybody is speculating that your U.S. debut means that 2NE1 will break up.
That’s not true! We just finished our tour and everybody gets to take a break now. It’s just I don’t get a break. [Laughs.]

What are your expectations for your solo album?
I feel like it’s all about good music at the end of the day. It’s not like I’m a rookieâ€â€I have been doing this for a long time in Asia. It’s just a new market. I have to have good music, so I’m just focusing on that.


Full Interview:
http://www.complex.com/music/2015/02/cl-crush-on-you-feb-march-2015

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xoxo cupcakke

Well she probably has to conquer Europe, mainly England, Germany and France, before she might conquer the USA. The States aren't really a place for latching on to trends and musicians so quickly. It's what sometimes makes it reductive :reductive:

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TraeumereiLPB

I wish her all the best, maybe she can break through in the US and pave the way for other Asian acts.

It's hard to light a candle, easy to curse the dark instead.
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RAMROD

Queen CL, I am anticipating!!! :woot:

(ノ◕ヮ◕)ノ✧*:・゚ 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚝𝚛𝚎𝚗𝚐𝚝𝚑 𝚝𝚘 𝚜𝚝𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚊𝚕𝚘𝚗𝚎 (*´艸`*) ♡♡♡
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Well she probably has to conquer Europe, mainly England, Germany and France, before she might conquer the USA. The States aren't really a place for latching on to trends and musicians so quickly. It's what sometimes makes it reductive :reductive:

 

Her last album with her band 2NE1 has already charted on the Billboard200, reductive are the people who speak without knowing facts.

 

Crush was named the sixth best pop album of 2014 by Rolling Stone and one of the best 40 pop albums of 2014 by Fuse. The album also ranked at number 11 on Billboard's year-end World Album's list, marking the first time a k-pop band has placed on the chart since its inception.

 

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xoxo cupcakke

 

Her last album with her band 2NE1 has already charted on the Billboard200, reductive are the people who speak without knowing facts.

 

Crush was named the sixth best pop album of 2014 by Rolling Stone and one of the best 40 pop albums of 2014 by Fuse. The album also ranked at number 11 on Billboard's year-end World Album's list, marking the first time a k-pop band has placed on the chart since its inception.

 

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But I wasn't calling her reductive :awkney:

 

I was calling the US reductive because this country usually is the last one to play certain artists. Gaga was first successful in Europe before the US and Lorde was popular everywhere else but the States until Royals started getting radioplay. Same goes for Hozier and Lana

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I hope she makes it here in the US.

It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences. - Audre Lorde
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But I wasn't calling her reductive :awkney:

 

I was calling the US reductive because this country usually is the last one to play certain artists. Gaga was first successful in Europe before the US and Lorde was popular everywhere else but the States until Royals started getting radioplay. Same goes for Hozier and Lana

 

It doesn't work always like that, most of the time is the contrary, most of the musical trends are coming from the States first and by the way it depends from the country because Lady Gaga, Lana and Lorde were successful in my country in the same period of USA, not before.

In this case it's absurd launch an artist like that in Europe first that is totally unknown since in USA she already has a small fanbase and she is well knew in the business, she's already worked also for the Black Eyed Peas new album, they didn't choose her casually. 

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