HB EXCLUSIVE: Amerie, “I’m An Entertainer, Not A Model” (VIDEO)

HelloBeautiful recently got the chance to sit down with Amerie and we talked about everything from her beauty and style must-haves (if you don’t already know, she’s got a sick shoe collection and we’ve been tracking it HERE) to her being biracial and its effect on her success. We also discussed her upcoming album, In Love & War (it drops tomorrow!) and how she maintains relationships in the music industry. READ MORE OF THE INTERVIEW BELOW!

What are your favorite tracks on the album?
“Heard ‘Em All” is one because it’s a high performance record. I love to dance and everything and give it high energy. “Why R U” is also one of my favorite songs. There’s another song on the album called “Higher” which is kind of like a rock, but not like an alternative rock, it’s more like a bluesy soulful ’60s-’70s era rock.

Describe your experience filming and shooting in preparation for the album.
[Shooting] “Why R U” was a lot of fun. It was really just trying to figure out how we were gonna get the right visual because it’s a very emotional record, but at the same time it’s very hip-hop and it’s very strong. So I really wanted something that was very clean but something that was really graphic. Even with the album packaging, it wasn’t about just having a flat picture. I wanted it to be sort of 3-dimensional, I wanted to play around with illustrations. I didn’t want it to feel like “Here I am, here’s a bunch of pictures,” because I am an entertainer, I’m not a model. I don’t pretend to be, I’m 5’5″. I wanted the album packaging to really embody what the music is and, so I was like if there’s just one picture of me, that’s fine and the rest of it can be illustration or whatever, I just want it to be tight. I really wanted a tension between love, war, soft, hard, happiness, and pain – all of those things. READ MORE BELOW THE GALLERY!

What are your Fall season must-haves?
Well, I always said the only thing I like about cold weather is Fall fashion. That’s what I always say because I do not like the cold. My shoulders are permanently hunched up when it’s cold outside, but I love layering my looks. I love boots and I love beiges, creams, brown, gray, and winter white. And coats, I’m really into coats.

Does it come naturally to you to embody both your Korean and African-American cultures?
My mother tells me that every time her friends come over they always comment about how Korean I am because, I guess, I have a lot of Korean ways – I don’t know exactly what that is. And they always say that my sisters a little more American than I am, which is funny because actually she looks more Asian than I do, but when you grow up in a house – and culturally my mothers very Korean – you get used to speaking to people in a certain way, especially adults, you automatically step down a few levels, and you talk to them in this way (bows), and you’re constantly nodding and listening. You definitely have a certain respect for your elders.

AUDIO: Amerie & Trey Songz Remake “Pretty Brown Eyes”

WATCH THE VIDEO FOR “Why R U” BELOW!