Christina Aguilera to stage RP concert in July


SUPER pop siren Christina Aguilera is rolling in with her entourage of 88 people and 20 truckloads of stage fixtures, props, costumes, and effects for the Christina Aguilera Back to Basics Tour: Live in Taguig concert. The stage is set for July 6 at The Fort Open Field in Bonifacio Global City, and is slated to be one of the biggest productions to be staged in the country in years.

Wildly inventive

One of the most accomplished performers of the last decade, Christina Aguilera has sold over 30 million albums worldwide and cultivated a fan base that crosses generational, racial and gender lines. Now, segueing from the audacious sexuality of her second studio album, Stripped, the chameleon-like performer pays tribute to the music that has inspired her with her latest album Back To Basics (now available locally under Sony BMG Music Entertainment). A modern take on vintage jazz, soul and blues from the 1920s, ’30s, ’40s and beyond, her third studio album is wildly inventive, whose throwback style creates a sound that’s gritty and raw. “This is a concept album that follows a bold vision,” explains Aguilera. This double album, utilizes an orchestra, choir, string quartet and jazz horns.

Feat repeat

Aguilera’s backstory is well-known. A native of Staten Island, the pre-teen began performing in local talent shows while growing up in Pennsylvania. In 1992, after appearing on “Star Search,” She joined the cast of the Disney Channel’s “The New Mickey Mouse Club.” In 1998 Aguilera’s song “Reflection” for Disney’s Mulan led to a record deal with RCA and the release of her self-titled debut album in Summer, 1999. The album quickly hit number one on the strength of its first dance/pop single, “Genie In A Bottle” and other chart toppers including “What A Girl Wants.” It was a feat she would repeat the following year with Mi Reflejo, the smash Spanish-language version of her debut, followed by her hit holiday release, My Kind Of Christmas.

In 2001, Aguilera joined forces with Pink, Mya and Lil’ Kim on the smash “Lady Marmalade” single and video. That eye-popping slice of ear candy kept her front and center in the international spotlight even as she began, slowly and steadily, to lay the groundwork for her second album, Stripped. Released in October 2002, it sealed her status as an international superstar while transforming her previous squeaky-clean image into a fully sexualized woman with lots on her mind.

Along with the superheated funk of the album’s provocative debut single, “Dirrty,” came such standout tracks as “Beautiful,” "Fighter",“Can’t Hold Us Down” and “Make Over.” Earning her first of four Grammy Awards in 2000 for Best New Artist, her subsequent trophies came in 2001 for “Lady Marmalade” (Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals) and in 2003 for “Beautiful” (Best Female Pop Vocal Performance). Among countless other honors, she is also the recipient of a 2001 Latin Grammy Award for Mi Reflejo (Best Female Pop Vocal Album), a 2000 Billboard Music Award for Female Artist of the Year, and two 2004 Rolling Stone Music Awards (Best Female Performer, Readers’ Pick; and Best Tour, Readers’ Pick, “Justified and Stripped”).