*“Empire” actress Serayah has dropped a track for the series called “Aces High,” that will air on the show and be included on the soundtrack. During a recent teleconference, she described the song as a “crossover” that can be “played pretty much anywhere—a club, a rave, anything like that.”
Serayah, who plays singer Tiana on the show, is also working on her debut album, which she says is “coming along great.”
“I’m actually still working on it, it’s a work in progress. I’m really excited about it and everyone that I get to work with and in the future that I’m going to work with,” she said, noting that she’s aiming to drop the project “by the top of the year.”
In 2015, Serayah appeared in singer Taylor Swift’s video for the song “Bad Blood” as the character Dilemma. She recently wrapped the lead role in the feature film “Burning Sands,” which is scheduled for release in 2017. Viewers of Monday night’s VH1 Divas: Unsilent Night witnessed Serayah flex her vocals alongside Jojo and Bebe Rexha during a performance of the holiday classic, “All Alone on Christmas.”
READ RELATED STORY: ‘Empire’ Star Serayah: ‘I Want Fans To Get To Know Me Musically Now’ [EUR Exclusive]
There are only two episodes of “Empire” remaining this year, and on Wednesday night’s (Dec. 7) episode, Andre sabotages Tiana’s big appearance at a fashion event in an attempt to get Nessa into the spotlight. Serayah says fans are going to be surprised by what’s to come between her character and Nessa.
“They’re definitely going to be surprised because I don’t think they’ve seen Tiana be so outraged at someone and I don’t think that they would be expecting Nessa to do what she did, so I’m really excited for everyone to see that battle between the two.”
The talented young star says she’s been working with a producers Donut and Ester “and a few others and hopefully more” for her new album.
“I’d definitely love to keep the team of just a couple people and have a sound that’s consistent, so I’m not too much focused on having everyone on the project, I just want it to be great,” she says.
Her debut album will feature all originals that are completely separate from the show. We asked the Cali native if she and her “Empire” co-stars have/or plan on going on tour to perform some of the hits from the series LIVE for fans.
“That’s actually a really good idea, I know first season that they did, Hakeem and Jamal did like a spot tour and a couple of dates around in malls and stuff like that, but I haven’t heard any word about us all being on tour. We’ll see, but I’m not sure,” she says.
For her album, Serayah says fans can expect the sound to be similar to Tiana’s.
“I feel like the overall sound is going to be the same—not sound but as far as the regular listener listening to the song, my voice is going to sound familiar because obviously I’m singing and adding some of me on the tracks for Empire. But the vibe will be different, a little bit more sultry as well as the pop and the fun stuff but more sultry, soul, R&B stuff as well.”
Serayah credits her “mom, Sade and Beyonce or Janet Jackson,” for influencing her music.
“I say that because obviously my mom supports everything I do and makes sure that I’m doing the best that I can all the time, even when I don’t want to or when I don’t feel like going anymore. I’d say Janet because she’s an amazing performer, and she just goes in on stage. I’d say Beyonce because she has an amazing career, and she’s such a big businesswoman in the midst of being a celebrity. So those three are my top.”
In addition to her forthcoming album, the triple threat is looking forward to the release of “Burning Sands.”
“I just got word that’s going to Sundance and I’m really excited about that. I also have another film that I can’t talk about, but I’m really excited to do as well.”
Catch Serayah on “Empire” Wednesdays at 9:00/10:00 PM ET/PT on FOX.
Listen to “Aces High” via the player below:
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