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Faith Hill Reveals the Emotions Behind 'Cry'

Faith Hill’s previous album, 1999’s Breathe, has sold more than 8 million copies, but she says the past success wasn’t a factor in recording her new album, the just-released Cry.

“It didn’t affect my approach because it’s always about the song for me,” she told former CBS Early Show entertainment reporter Mark McEwen during a recent Westwood One radio special. “I realize that I do have fans in lots of places around the world. I want to make a record that I really, really can be proud of and that I really believe my fans will enjoy. At the end of the day, I honestly would not have changed a thing about how I made this record. The pressure really only comes when I’m talking about it, doing interviews, and everybody asks me the questions. I think, ‘Gosh, maybe I should be concerned.’”

The Westwood One special included questions submitted by fans at CMT.com.

If the success of Breathe failed to create any additional pressure in making the new album, Hill also says it’s unreasonable to expect any artist’s albums to consistently sell in the 8-million range. “There’s no way you can always move that kind of product,” she noted. “I don’t know anyone that does it. I just feel so grateful to have had the career that I’ve had so far. I’m still able to make music that I really love and want to make. And that’s what it’s all about.”

McEwen began the interview by asking Hill, “If you are a brand new Faith Hill fan -- and this is your first book, so to speak, into the sounds of Faith Hill -- what do you want the new fans to know about you on this album?”

“I want them to know that I’m a music lover,” she replied. “I think they will hear that in this album. I think it’s a very soulful album because of the songs I selected and the way the album is produced. But the most important thing is that I want people to know how much I love music.”

In terms of the album’s title, Hill noted, “I really wanted to name the album Cry, not because of the single, but because there’s so many places on this album that are full of so many kinds of emotions. For me, when I see the word ‘cry,’ I don’t necessarily think of it as being an emotion that is used from a sad moment from your life. I happen to shed tears for a lot of reasons -- to be happy and lots of places in my life.”

Hill acknowledged that the music video for the title track is a departure for her. “In approaching this video, I had many options, many places I could have gone,” she explained. “We spent a lot of time trying to figure out what to do. But I really wanted to send another message with my video. For this particular song, I felt that the song is so deep and emotional, that I felt that this experience of this person who’s walking through their life and looking at the choices they’ve made -- the happy times and the sad times. Hopefully, in reflecting on all those moments, they come out of it realizing that maybe they’re going to be all right. It’s a dark video. I look different than I’ve ever looked in any video, but that was important for me with this particular song.”

Emphasizing the songwriters’ role in her career, Hill said, “With this album, I really sent the message to them, ‘If you think something is too far for me, send it. If you think it’s not far enough for me, send it. I want to hear everything you possibly have.’ And they did. There’s just some songs on this record that I feel so blessed to have. I feel like this is the first album I’ve ever really been able to capture what I do live.”

Hill also hinted that she’ll be touring to support Cry. “I hope so,” she said. “Maybe within the next 18 months.”

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