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 Entertainment | September 2006 
Mexico's Fey Finds Career Life After Teen Stardom
 Leila Cobo - Billboard
| | Fey, who after a four-year hiatus from recording and touring has reappeared as an adult artist with a defined appeal that doesn't rely on the flavor of the month. |
In the mid-1990s, a newcomer called Fey took the Mexican market by storm with a self-titled album geared toward the teen market. Like so many teen acts, Fey had her moment of fame, sold millions of copies, then went on hiatus.
Now a second successful album as an adult act highlights the possibility of life after teen stardom in the Latin realm - a feat that's not as easy as it sounds.
The Latin musical landscape is awash with former kid singers who have gone on to adult careers. Their ranks most famously include Ricky Martin, Luis Miguel, Christian Castro, Lucero and Pedro Fernandez, all of whom can be found in decades-old videos as pintsize performers.
But performers who bypassed the kiddie circuit to launch careers in their teens seem a whole other story. Without the childhood fan base, they go through a much tougher transition to adult careers.
In Mexico, land of youth-aimed groups like RBD, created with TV in mind, the biggest names to graduate from the teen-pop scene are Benny Ibarra, Paulina Rubio and Thalia, who were all members of Timbiriche. But that band's original lineup, including Rubio and Ibarra, started when they were preteens. Beyond them, no former teeny-bopper artist of late has managed to attain more than fleeting adult stardom. Belinda doesn't count; she's still very much a teenager.
Among the few teen-turned-adult acts that come to mind in the past few years are Pilar Montenegro and Patty Manterola, former members of '80s teen-pop group Garibladi. Both went on to careers marked by as many downs as ups. For example, Montenegro released a reggaeton album last year, which many saw as an opportunistic move. Most recently, Kalimba, an alumnus of OV7 who's now in his 20s, launched his Sony BMG solo career with a very successful debut album in Mexico, and a follow-up is on the way.
And the rebellious and controversial Gloria Trevi, now a mature mother, is back onstage and still acting like a teenager in performance.
EURO SOUND
But witness instead Fey (real name Maria Fernanda Blazquez Gil), who after a four-year hiatus from recording and touring has reappeared as an adult artist with a defined appeal that doesn't rely on the flavor of the month. Her recently released album, "Faltan Lunas" (EMI Televisa), is a European-sounding blend of electronica, dance and pop. It's a mix that already served Fey well in her 2005 comeback, "La Fuerza del Destino."
"It was like a renovation, like closing a door," says Fey. "It's a new story for me, and it gives you a new push."
And with that new story comes a new attitude. "Your ego is what's hit hardest, because we always want to be the biggest," Fey says about her switch from center-of-the-universe teen act to adult act fighting for record sales. "On the other hand, it's far more healthy and real to appeal to an audience for your musical work and not just your image. That's when you realize this is actually better."
Fey's first career stage yielded four albums and close to 2 million copies sold worldwide, according to published reports. At her height, she set the record for number of consecutive shows (10) for a female artist at Mexico City's prime venue, Auditorio Nacional. (That record would be broken by Belinda in 2004.)
Returning after such a track record was a risky move. But in looking for new material, Fey stumbled upon the possibility of recording an album of covers by Mecano, the '80s Spanish trio often regarded as the most successful Latin pop group in the past two decades. "La Fuerza del Destino" was an unexpected hit, selling well in Mexico, Spain and the United States, and effectively restarting a career.
Fey suddenly became a credible adult act with a new story to tell. "Faltan Lunas," a collection of all-new tracks, solidifies her re-entry into the market.
"When you're the center of attention, that's when (the media) attack you the most," says Fey, who in her heyday was hammered by the tabloids. "It's a weird aggression. But since the last album, it's the other way round. People are talking about my career, which is something they would have never done before." |
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