d a v i d  b e e b e | p r i n t  p o r t f o l i o | k r i s t i n e   w.

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The self-described "glamourpuss" made an indelible impression on dance music lovers with her 1996 album, Land Of The Living, which was called "one of the most important dance albums of the decade," by critics, and even managed to achieve moderate mainstream success. Four years have come and gone, and the glitter-loving diva is back, stronger than ever, and she’s bound to get the attention that she most righteously deserves.

Venice: Stronger is finally here. How do you feel?

Kristine W: It’s really exciting and different, because with Land Of Living everything happened so fast. Since then I’ve learned a lot and I’m ready to get this album out there and hear what people have to say.

You’ve faced some scary times in your career, including not knowing if RCA records was going to keep you.

Yeah, I think my record company was pretty amazing for keeping me. They had an easy out, with all the cutbacks that are going on now. I can remember going to the RCA offices about six or seven months ago and not knowing if this record was going to be made. They could have just dumped me, but they didn’t. It was a miracle.

Why do you think they chose to keep you?

My [fan] base, perseverance, and my willingness to play in all the clubs and just give it everything I have. I never stopped working the album, even though I didn’t know if it would ever come out.

That must have been a very stressful time for you.

Oh yeah, I cried myself to sleep many times. I sacrificed relationships and time with my family and friends because I was working so hard. People would say to me all the time, "What are you going to do, if this doesn’t work Kristine?" But I just took a step back and remembered the main reason I did this—for the love of the music. I just kept going, and finally persevered through the rough times.

You’re obviously the strong survivor type. Where do you think that drive comes from?

Oh, definitely from my mother and grandparents, they are the ones who made me so grounded. My father died when I was three years old, so that left my mother to raise me, my sister, and my two brothers in our little farmhouse in Pasco, Washington. She was a nightclub singer and only made like $250 a week in a tip jar at the clubs. There wasn’t always enough for all of us to go around, so we found ways to make it happen. She was a very positive mother, who always told us we could do anything we wanted to. The same with my grandparents, they were always telling us that if you believe in something, then you could pull it off.

Your career sort of started in Washington, didn’t it?

Yeah, I was recruited to be in these beauty pageants when I was in high school. And that’s when it all started to take off for me. One after another, it was like, boom, boom, boom, and it was so fast. I entered into Miss Washington and won a scholarship to college. I was so driven and so focused. The whole experience really taught me a lot.

Were you interested in a music career before the beauty pageants came along?

Oh yeah. I grew up in a very ethnic community. I sang in the gospel choir and there was music all around me growing up. We used to listen to all kinds of stuff at home, but Barbra Streisand and Diana Ross were my main idols. I really wanted to talk to them so I could find out how to become a famous singer. I remember calling the operator and asking for their phone numbers in New York, and I was told that there were no listings for them. I was like, "Girl, they don’t live in New York, because their number isn’t listed" and I couldn’t understand why! I ran up a four hundred dollar phone bill once trying to find out their numbers. My mom chased me around with a shoe for that one.

So with scholarship in hand, you decided to go out on your own, and head towards the bright lights in Las Vegas.

That’s what I did. Whew, what an experience. I enrolled at the University of Nevada in Las Vegas and worked through college on the Las Vegas Strip as a singer and dancer while earning my degree in Television Production. Eventually, I got my own Vegas show production, "The Nightclub Lounge," which ran for over five years at the Las Vegas Hilton. During that time, I got the recording deal and recorded Land Of Living, while still performing there and at nightclubs all over the world; it was very fast paced.

And then you quit the Las Vegas gig in 1998 to focus on Stronger.

It was a very long learning process for me. I wanted to make Stronger a hit, so I had to find the right ingredients for Middle America. With this album, I thought, I’m going to have to take all these songs, create them, take them to the clubs, perform them, see what I get—make the cake, pull this frosting off of here, stick some more over there—it was really something else. With your second album, if you want to break into the industry, you have to be really careful. I thought this is the hardest thing I’m ever going to do—all the songs are like blood—so that’s why this album has taken such a long time.

Why did you choose to use Kristine W. and not your entire last name?

Well, way back when, my music was very popular in London, and the music industry moves really fast there, much faster than in the U.S., so you only get a few minutes on the charts before you’re off. Everyone would always mispronounce my last name, which is Weitz. So finally, I was like look, "I’ve only got 10 minutes of fame here, so just the W. honey, and it’s been that way ever since."

What do you do in your the spare time?

I spend my time at my dance studio and ranch in Las Vegas. I love to ride my horses, I have four of them and a pony. Plus, I spend time with my two children, Elizabeth who is 16 months old, and J.R., Jack Ryan, who is now three. They travel everywhere with me.

What else would you like to do in your life besides make music?

Well, I’d love to make a movie about my mother’s struggle and how she raised four kids against all odds. I don’t know what I could call it, maybe "Donna Lee," her stage name. It would be such a great film, very inspiring for all the single mothers out there, just so they know they can do it, and that they should never give up. Perseverance is the key to success. I could see it now, it would be so great. I really only want to do things that are inspiring to people.