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From Vanity Fair Corsica pics thread

http://www.mikafanclub.com/forums/showthread.php?t=26111

 

 

Italian Vanity Fair - click to enlarge

sorry, my scanner is out of order, I took pics

 

th_MikaVanityFairagosto20111.jpg

 

th_MikaVanityFairagosto20112.jpg

 

I've made a quick translation, just the usual stuff really, but it's so that non-Italian speakers can know what's being said :wink2:

 

Page 1

 

The future of the Beirut-born singer speaks French, the language of his latest single. And he also spent his holidays on the coast of French-speaking Corsica.

 

Page 2

 

He was born in Beirut, is half Lebanese and half American and lives in London. However this year, as far as his songs and holidays go, he has gone French. Here he is in Calvi, Corsica, enjoying a trip on a speedboat with his family and a friend.

 

The singer, who became famous thanks to his hit single Grace Kelly, has spent most of the last few months in the studio recording his new album The Origin of Love which will be released in 2012; and which has already been defined by Mika himself as "strange and a bit crazy". The first single, Elle me dit, was released a few weeks ago and has proved to be very popular in France. It's in French as other songs on the album will be.

 

A return to his roots? Probably, as Mika lived in Paris until he was nine and then in London he went to a French lycée. In the meanwhile, like a good family boy (the lyrics in Elle me dit seem to refer to his mother), enjoys a bit of relaxation without neglecting young fans.

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  • 3 weeks later...

From Cala di Volpe thread:

 

MikaOGGIAgosto2011-1.jpg

 

Thanks to Mari for the scan of this article from magazine Oggi

 

http://i257.photobucket.com/albums/hh227/mari62_album/mikamagazines/MikaOGGIAgosto2011.jpg

 

I've put together a quick translation, though there isn't really anything important :wink2:

 

The Anglo-Lebanese singer bewitches Porto Cervo.

 

Even the Russians dance

 

Mika managed to make the 800 guests of the Ferragosto gala at the Cala di Volpe hotel dance. They paid 1,100 euro each to see him play (wine not included. Not easy. In 2007, for example, the coldness of the millionairs presdent annoyed Zucchero so much that he ended up insulting them ("You're rubbish!"). The Anglo-Lebanese singer enthralled the guests (many Russians) with his hits, from Grace Kelly to Relax...

Edited by mari62
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  • 1 year later...

XL interview September 2012 from XL La Repubblica thread

http://www.mikafanclub.com/forums/showthread.php?t=24642

Here you will find copy of interview!

http://www.sendspace.com/file/bf7zjd

.
Since people are having trouble, I took screenshots of the pdf files, I hope DANI56 doesn't mind . . . they're a bit big to post, so links

 

the cover

 

the article 1

 

the article 2

 

the article 3

 

Update my previous post with the last part of the interview! Thank you for reading my translation even if with some small mistakes. Many thanks to all of you! :huglove:

 

EDIT: I wrote all the interview in my blog so you could read it all at once: http://chocolateandchilipepper.blogspot.it/2012/09/mika-who-thinks-i-make-childrens-music.html

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Here's the translation :wink2:

 

 

Mika: If I continue in this way, I will go straight to hell!

 

The singer of "Grace Kelly" tells to Sorrisi the secrets of the new album. And talks about his dark side.

 

Mika is overprotective towards his new songs. We met him in Milan in a tipical hot summer day while the singer of "Grace Kelly" and "Relax"*is preparing to make listen at a small number of fans, his third album, "the origin of love", released on September 18.*The song files are kept in his laptop and they can not get out. He must have thought that*in these days, pirates lurk everywhere, and so he will be, a few hours after our interview, the only DJ of the so-called "listening party".*

<Whit this new album starts my new artistic phase.> said to us before the party.

 

In what sense new?

<My way of telling stories is changed.*The first album was populated by characters that I had known in the years of high school and college.*I have to admit that it was easy for me to write those songs, inspired by the people I was around.*When I wrote the second album, however, I was isolated and it was hard.*I had to use new characters who were not present in the environment in which I lived. So, for the third album, I have adopted a new creative process.*I've broken all my rules deciding to tell my emotions with an open heart, rather than conveying them through the characters. >

 

Are you sure that your fans will appreciate this change? * *

< Yes, because my musical and poetic impressions haven't changed, and they are recognizable even in these songs, so different from the other in the two previous albums. >

 

Why did you choose to work with so many collaborators from Pharrell Williams to the italian Benny Bernassi?** * * *

<I didn't want to be isolated.*But I would like to point out that on this album the collaborations are real.>

 

Do you mean that all the others are fake?* * * *

<In many cases there is behind - almost always - an economic negotiations that prevails on artistic exchange.*I have never paid for a song. And all the famous musical*producers that I wanted on this record have had to adapt to me.*From them I wanted, more than anything else, the right atmosphere to realize what I had in mind, not necessarily their sound, which, however, I have upset just to get the album I wanted.>

 

Is it true that you've created "The Origin Of Love" at your own expenses?** * * *

<I have done everything on my own following the saying "never ask permission but then pray for forgiveness." It was the only way to move independently.*I have traveled for months using the free miles accumulated flying for the last tour.*I stayed in normal hotel rooms.*I've recorded a few songs in expensive studies, others in my old kitchen or in small rooms in the country.*I was traveling with two suitcases, one for clothes, one for the hard drive where I saved all the songs. >

 

Which one of the new songs represent the new Mika?* * * *

<The Origin Of LOve, which is the title-track of the album.*I wrote it after a year and a half of creative block. It's incredibly honest, a manifesto in which I proclaim: "this is me, this is the music in which I believe." >

 

The text is a bit anti-clerical...* * * *

<Yeah,*it is in songs like these that my side anarchist, almost dark, gets out.*it is my trademark, and I think I'll go straight to hell for this.*Meanwhile, however, no one notices it : think that in China my albums are never censored. You have no idea how many of my texts hide it. >

 

For example?* * * *

<The text of "Toy Boy". *A few people have realized that it is about a gay boy whose parents don't accept his homosexuality and they try to change him with physical and psychological violence. Instead of telling the story from the point of view of the boy, I decided to tell it from the point of a toy boy. So *everyone thinks that it is a happy song.>

 

But the text of his "Gang Bang", produced by Madonna,*it's clearly aggressive and violent...* * * *

< No, no. In my version it was just a collection of phrases that my grandfather, a Syrian immigrant in New York, was fond of saying.*Madonna changed it by focusing on the stronger phrases. >

 

Who are your idols?* * * *

<Jean Costeau, Fellini, Anna Nicole Smith and Maurice Stendak who*I had luck to meet a few months before he died.>

 

For real, Anna Nicole Smith, the ex*Playboy Bunny who died at age 39? * * * **<I am obsessed with the history of this single mother from Texas who search the fame, and when she finds it, she ends up to be a victim of it.Her tragedy is a warning against the excesses and dangers of a media system that uses at its will the private lives of celebrities.>

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For example?* * * *

<The text of "Toy Boy". *A few people have realized that it is about a gay boy whose parents don't accept his homosexuality and they try to change him with physical and psychological violence. Instead of telling the story from the point of view of the boy, I decided to tell it from the point of a toy boy. So *everyone thinks that it is a happy song.>

 

He doesn't really believe that does he? I mean how many people who actually listen to it and can understand English don't realize what it's about? I was there when he first sang it in public and the audience reacted immediately. Everyone understood without even having the chance to reflect back on or analyze the lyrics.

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He doesn't really believe that does he? I mean how many people who actually listen to it and can understand English don't realize what it's about? I was there when he first sang it in public and the audience reacted immediately. Everyone understood without even having the chance to reflect back on or analyze the lyrics.

 

unless he talks about non native speakers :blink:

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He doesn't really believe that does he? I mean how many people who actually listen to it and can understand English don't realize what it's about? I was there when he first sang it in public and the audience reacted immediately. Everyone understood without even having the chance to reflect back on or analyze the lyrics.

 

unless he talks about non native speakers :blink:

 

It's weird... Even if i'm not a native speaker I immediately understood it! Perhaps he thinks that most people do not pay attention to the text, but only to the music.

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Great! I'm not a native speaker and it was always what I thought about Toy Boy MASTERPIECE :wub2:

 

Always felt fantastic the way, the way he tells this story.

 

For example?* * * *

<The text of "Toy Boy". *A few people have realized that it is about a gay boy whose parents don't accept his homosexuality and they try to change him with physical and psychological violence. Instead of telling the story from the point of view of the boy, I decided to tell it from the point of a toy boy. So *everyone thinks that it is a happy song.>

 

Thank you girls ... Mari and Lucrezia :huglove:

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He doesn't really believe that does he? I mean how many people who actually listen to it and can understand English don't realize what it's about? I was there when he first sang it in public and the audience reacted immediately. Everyone understood without even having the chance to reflect back on or analyze the lyrics.

 

unless he talks about non native speakers :blink:

 

I think not even the music would suggest that it is a 'happy' song. You can call it sweet, sounding like a lullaby but not a happy song.

However, if you talk about Lollipop, for example, non-natives could think that it is a song for kids. More importantly though, even native speakers could have this idea about Mika being a kids' entertainer by purely judging him based on his (previous) image. You may have ideas about artists without ever having heard any of their songs. That's why it is important for him to align his image with his music .

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Is it true that you've created "The Origin Of Love" at your own expenses?** * * *

<I have done everything on my own following the saying "never ask permission but then pray for forgiveness." It was the only way to move independently.*I have traveled for months using the free miles accumulated flying for the last tour.*I stayed in normal hotel rooms.*I've recorded a few songs in expensive studies, others in my old kitchen or in small rooms in the country.*I was traveling with two suitcases, one for clothes, one for the hard drive where I saved all the songs. >

 

 

I really admire this attitude. This answer makes me appreciate this album even more!

 

Thanks Marina and Lucrezia:thumb_yello:

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When I said "understand English" I meant just understanding the language at all. It doesn't require you to be a native speaker, just a simple understanding of the words. I mean only a child would think Toy Boy is literally about a doll. Why would a grown man write a song about an actual doll and put it on a modern pop album? It would be very bizarre. Even too bizarre for Mika. :naughty:

 

I got it from the first listen of it too (and loved it) :blink: Maybe some people don't pay attention too much to lyrics? I wish I could experience it live some day.

 

Weren't you going to gigs in 2009? When he performed it for the first time he specifically told the audience to hush because the lyrics were very important.

 

More importantly though, even native speakers could have this idea about Mika being a kids' entertainer by purely judging him based on his (previous) image. You may have ideas about artists without ever having heard any of their songs. That's why it is important for him to align his image with his music .

 

Yes I don't understand his impatience with people's perceptions because he went to so much trouble to cultivate the image that he did. It's not surprising that people think he's a kid's entertainer when he turned up at an interview at Glastonbury with a bunch of people dressed in lollipop girl and rabbit costumes. You really had to be into Mika to see the other side of it. Like my first gig I was handed a lollipop by a drag queen and Mika was swearing like a trooper and winding up the audience about a longstanding rivalry with Montreal. But there were only 600 people there. The only thing the rest of Canada knew about Mika is what they saw on TV.

 

And you couple that kid's entertainer thing with a refusal to discuss your sexuality...and you've pretty much got Michael Jackson. So it's no surprise people thought he was asexual. In the early days even MFCers questioned whether he had any kind of love life. It wasn't until 2009 that he really started being open about dating people and experimenting when he was a teenager.

 

I see some people making comments around the internet how Mika has changed (for the worse) and he's "just like everyone else" but I think this is the "real" Mika and it always was.

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Weren't you going to gigs in 2009? When he performed it for the first time he specifically told the audience to hush because the lyrics were very important.

 

No, I missed pretty much all of his gigs during the TBWKTM era :tears: I guess there wasn't enough of promo in Sweden about him. I didn't even know he had a second album out until 2010 or so :aah: Oh well, I'm catching up now :wink2:

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  • 4 weeks later...

I've made outing!

Now the challenge is to learn to swim!

 

After having publicly declared to be homosexual, the singer speaks to "SW" of his new album and sport: "I hate water and, to avoid the pools, I invite the instructor to drink...."

 

Young, tall, beautiful, famous, Michael Penniman alias Mika would have every reason to give himself airs, many of his colleagues do it for much less. But when we meet in Milan we understand that it's not the type: the twenty-nine Anglo-Lebanese, reached to international success in 2007 with the single "Grace Kelly", is calm, quiet, gentle. And he smiles, he smiles all the time. Maybe it's love, 'cause he declared that he is in love several times lately. Surely he's excited about his new work called "The Origin Of Love", realized with artists different from each other like the american Pharrell Williams and our Benny Benassi. << An album full of joy >> Mika said.

 

The main theme is Love...

<< Yeah, and it's weird because I'm not romantic. But I find that writing love songs can be fun, you don't have to compose honeyed things like "Celine Dion", you can kid yourself. And I did it. >>

 

This summer, during an interview for the american magazine Instinct, you've said for the first time your homosexuality. How did you feel after?

<< A little bit nervous. The beautiful thing is that I was not afraid. In my private life I have never pretended to be other than what I am, but be yourself in public is another matter. And it's important. Of course, you have to do without feeling forced, then it's ok! It means to admit your complexity: I'm gay, yes, but does it matter? It's just a part of me. >>

 

what else is there in Mika?

<< Music: writing songs, sings, plays, everything that makes me happy, I don't do it only for those who listen to me, I do it for myself too.>>

 

Do you have other hobby or interests?

<< Conceptual art, painting, design, especially the one somewhat bizarre. You know, I've a brother architect and a sister fashion designer... And then I've a Range Rover, it is only one year old but it seems already old because I use it often out of town, on dirt roads, to go climbing and do trekking with my dog​​. I love the mountains, up there if you don't want to fall you can not think about work, you are in another dimension. And you feel so small...>>

 

Do you make sport in the life of every day?

<< I run three or four times a week. Plus now I'm taking a course in swimming, I'm a landslide, I don't like water, I always try to convince my teacher to go for a coffee or a beer instead of being in the pool!>>

 

Back to "The Origin Of Love": a track, Heroes, talks about the war veterans.

<<That song was inspired by a taxi driver that I knew, with a past in the Blue Helmets. This man told me that when he came back at home - among other things he had been in Beirut, where I was born -, he lost everything. The war had destroyed his mind, but no one around him had been able to understand him because his stress, his pain were not visible wounds, they were all internal. In the U.S. you come across a lot of stories like that, war veterans become homeless, heroes that, being survived, aren't considered because it is easier to make someone a hero after it is dead. Is it not disgusting?>>

 

The album is produced by "Nick Littlemore" of "Empire of the Sun": how was working with him?

<< Nick found a way to give me a perfect atmosphere to work on, leaving me, however, absolute freedom. We danced in the studio. Unfortunately we are very bad dancers.>>

 

You have done coming out, you said to be in love: Would you like to marry?

<< I'm not interested about the religious value of marriage, but I'm sure that it should be a right for everyone, it is a matter of equality.>>

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Do you make sport in the life of every day?

<< I run three or four times a week. Plus now I'm taking a course in swimming, I'm a landslide, I don't like water, I always try to convince my teacher to go for a coffee or a beer instead of being in the pool!>>

 

>>

 

If your aim is no one follows you when you are on vacations, swimming in the open Mediterranean Sea in Italy, it´s ok. :mf_rosetinted:

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Sorry Sorry Sorry for my delay but it was a hard week at university! :aah:

 

Here's the translation:

 

And I'm also in love

 

He did outing (<< For journalists it was very important, to those who love my music does not give a damn >>), he has just released his new album (<< When I write songs I transform myself, it's a beautiful moment >>). And think that it all started many years ago, one day he fell asleep in front of the Dalai Lama and he has angered Annie Lennox. But she gave him a very valuable advice.

 

By Luca Bianchini

 

At the end he said it. But nobody has surprised much. Mika has finally declared to be gay, and many of his songs tell stories between men. He did it, not surprisingly, with the American magazine "Instinct". The lukewarm success overseas of "Elton John", "Freddie Mercury" and "Scissor Sisters" had perhaps kept him from making a revelation that, for a singer, is less risky compared to an actor.

The "Guardian" had criticized this reticence, coining in his honor the term "gaybe", a cross between "gay" and "maybe". After years of questions always equal, he was tired of dodging the answers to shots of foil, and he decided to speak.

I met him in Milan, relaxed and happy, his face just tired from the promotional tour of The Origin Of Love, his new, danceable album.

He has little time, but he didn't show any hurry. And he's very sure of himself, or at least he appears in this way. I think it's typical of tall people: they always think to have more right than you! Therefore, it's difficult to urge him or stop him, while he speaks, even though he smiles.

 

From one to ten how much are you tired of giving interviews these days?

<< A little, especially if they are on the album. For me it's like a psychologist sessions for free. Often it is only through the interviews that I really understand what I did. Because many times they ask me "What does this mean?". And I discover it only when they ask me. When you're not honest with yourself and with your music, the interview is a dreadful moment, because you have to lie. For some people it's like going to the doctor. For me not. >>

 

Now that you have given explanations about your sexuality it will be even easier.

<< Of course. >>

 

Why, in your opinion, the journalists were so obsessed with your sexuality?

<< Because I refused to fill out the form. I am sure that, to the people who like my music, didn't care if I had a relationship with a man. For journalists, however, was much more important. they had to fill the box and look for the news. Now they have it. The truth is that no one should care about it. >>

 

At this point, at least tell me if you're in love.

<< Yes >>

 

From what do you recognize if you are in love?

<< I'm never tired. I do not know what is the fatigue.And most importantly, everything becomes secondary. Only when we are in love we realize how much we waste time doing things we do not care. Only in those moments I feel truly alive. >>

 

How were the years in disguise?

<< I had the privilege of living in a society almost always tolerant, though it was not always easy. For my ideas on sexual freedom, even before coming out, I had a lot of difficulty, and I had even violent reactions, especially verbally. Luckily I have always managed to fight this intolerance through music. >>

 

In what way?

<< My songs are worlds where there is a room for everyone. Being able to create oases of tolerance has been my way of fighting prejudice.>>

 

What was the happiest day of his life?

<< It has not arrived yet. As soon as it arrives, I'm sure I'll be able to die soon because I'll have already achieved my goal.>>

 

But there are days where you are "almost" happy.

<< When I write songs and I am transformed. All of a sudden comes back, and it seems that there has always been. It's a beautiful moment. I still remember when "The Origin Of Love" was born : you are there, in jeans and T-shirt, like many other days, but you do not know that you're doing something really nice for you. You're a bit like a superhero with superpowers. But for those who are watching you, at that moment you're just a guy in jeans and a t-shirt that is fiddling with something. >>

 

This album is full of excellent collaborations from Benny Benassi to Pharrell Williams. Did you feel the need to prove something?

<< I have not recorded this album for make me see. I liked the idea of having a team around me united by the taste of making music.And it was great to watch them interact in the studio, and everyone make their own contribution, maybe even on songs that did not belong to them. I worked on songs of Empire Of The Sun, there were people who were working on songs by Madonna. But all we had a great desire to play, even with a bit of confusion. >>

 

What did it help you during these years in times of difficulty?

<< My freedom. I still have it, because I could lose it. And then the ability of not to take myself too seriously. Very often we censor that part of us that makes us ridiculous in the eyes of others, however I still do not do it. The public understands it, they identify and they have fun. >>

 

Also his mother had an important role in his life.

<< She was very important, especially during growth.I was an almost hopeless case. She once told me: "Or you'll end up in jail, or you will do something great. You have to decide" >>

 

And you?

<< I always wanted to be the bad guy. At school, however, they picked me on ****s, never when I was doing something really big. Even with my songs is like this: I can say terrible truth that go unnoticed, just because I sing them that way. Celebrate, for example, is not a happy song. >>

 

You are also very generous: once you've spent 25,000 pounds for offer a drink to your fans.

<< Yeah, it was beautiful. I was with some friends at the pub and I thought I would like to bring my fans here. So I invited them on Twitter, with two days in advance. My manager didn't agree, but I didn't care. They came in many, from all over the world, even from Italy. There were people sitting outside, everywhere, but no hysterical scene. >>

 

Did you get drunk?

<< It seems to me the least.>>

 

It 's true that for your career the most valuable advice gave it to you Annie Lennox?

<< Ever since i was a kid, I was obsessed with Annie Lennox. I had also chosen the same voice teacher, and I took lessons after her: each time, I could hear her wonderful exercises, but she barely greeted me. A few months later a friend of my mother, a great supporter of the Dalai Lama, invited me to hear him. But no time I fell asleep in the chair, embarrassing everyone! The Dalai Lama pointed me in front of the whole audience, and the friend of my mother had to wake me up with an nudge. In front of us in the front row, there was Annie Lennox, that she was glaring at me. At the end of the ceremony, however, I went to her, and asked her: "How can I become a singer?" And she: "If you really have that fire inside of you, let it burn. There will be no door that will resist you">>

 

So you do not have memorized any of the words of the Dalai Lama.

<< Zero. (laughs) But the words of Annie Lennox were fundamental: everything depended from the fire inside me. >>

 

Did you see her again?

<< Sure, and I thanked her. she laughed, but she was afraid of being too harsh.>>

 

In recent years did you have more dinner invitations from men or women?

<< Both. Although men think more to have fun. They don't always have a second end. >>

 

Who would you like to go out to dinner tonight with?

<< With 2 people. Christina Ricci, who is a little devil, and more years pass and more she improves: I'm sure the best of her career is still to come. And then James Franco, to see if he is really the case or if he is just an actor with a big ego. He always says something intellectual, and he is always a bit ambiguous, even sexually. Not only in films but also in the things he says. >>

 

Who would you like to duet with?

<< No one. I do not care >>

 

And with who would you like to go shopping?

<< Today I would go out with Bjork, but it would probably be a day a bit boring. She would not find anything interesting because she just loves things a little ridiculous. Instead I would like to go shopping with someone who enters the shop most unlucky and exalts himself/herself as if he/she had never bought anything in his life. >>

 

And do not you think of anyone?

<< Oh yeah. Whoopi Goldberg would be perfect. >>

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