The Saturdays star Vanessa White is enjoying exploring a "different direction" with her solo songs.
Vanessa White for FAULT magazine. Photography: Pepo Fernandez
The 26-year-old pop star enjoyed huge success in the girl group with a string of chart hits - including 'Higher', 'Do What You Want With Me' and 'What About Us' - but insists fans will notice a distinct change in her musical sound now she is working without her bandmates, Frankie Bridge, Una Healy, Rochelle Humes and Mollie King.
Speaking about how her new tracks are shaping up, she said: "I've taken a very different direction with my solo music. Anything around the music, I always had an opinion on, but of course that opinion was split with the other girls. I've always been into the music that I'm doing now, but once again, when you're in a group, you're aware that you're not necessarily going to record and perform the type of music you listen to every day.
"I don't think it was stifled. The difference now is I just have a lot more free reign so I'm able to explore my creativity a lot more now I'm doing this thing on my own."
The 'Lipstick Kisses' hitmaker is gearing up to release her debut solo LP and has worked with Craig David's collaborator Tre Jean-Marie as well as electronic duo Snakehips.
And whilst she's heavily influenced by her childhood heroes and music stars of today, Vanessa - who is half Filipino - revealed Asian culture has inspired parts of the record, after a recent trip she took to her mother's homeland.
Speaking to the new issue of FAULT magazine - on which she graces the cover - she said: "Growing up I was listening to stuff like Destiny's Child, Aaliyah, Mariah (Carey), Janet Jackson, all of that kind of thing. I still listen to a lot of that music but I'm also listening to a lot of Kehlani, Anderson Paak, Tinashe, Bryson Tiller and Ty Dollar Sign ... experiences and even places that have had a big impact on me. Over Christmas I went to the Philippines, where my mum is from, for nearly a month and did a lot of island hopping while I was there. I was inspired by so much while I was out there as it has such an amazing and vibrant culture. Everything from the colours you see, the food, the music and the lifestyle too. When I came back home from that trip I just became even more interested in the whole wider Asian vibe."
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