Well i felt i should post a Reply to this since NICOLE of the PCD is a friend of mine since 1998. First of all, I know that TORI is upset but she needs to get over herself, according to Cee-lo she didnt write anything, he has always been the writer of the track, though she says she came up with the 'Hook line". So her anger should be focused on Him or Outkast. Second of all the Pussycat Dolls are a "lounge, type of act" the idea to do an album didnt come until NICOLE was hired, since up until that point they didnt have a Girl that could front the group, I mean Carmen looks good, but do we really want another album from Carmen??. Founding member of the PCD , named Robin Antin has had this group since the early 90's so this is not some group made up overnight, the lineup that U see in the video and on the CD cover is the Group that is on the record and will tour, however in Vegas there are other "Pussycat Dolls", there is a whole venue dedicated to just them. I have heard alot of people say that there is no difference in TORI and Nicoles Vocal, well that is way off base. Nicole blows Tori away, not just on this track, but LIVE im sure Tori cant even stay on the same stage with Nicole, Nicole is one of a VERY FEW female Vocalists with good Voices that Actually can "SING" to, so many of todays Females like Beyonce, Jessica S, have good voices but dont know how to use them properly, screaming out loud constantly doesnt prove u can sing. I love how TORI has so much "bad Blood" and yet she is all over talking about this and this is the only reason that people even know her. When her single came out NO ONE CARED, I got airplay but NO ONE WANTED TO HEAR IT. Even when PCD put there version out it debuted at Number 98 and honestly i was shocked as were the rest of PCD to the response getting the song all the way to Number 2 on the HOT 100 and Number 1 on the POP 100, Number 1 in many other countries too, if these tracks are so indentical then why didnt TORI's version do this??? TORI needs to be mad at CEELO and OUTKAST and the LABEL, not talking shit about Nicole which she has been doing alot of.

Those of U who havent heard the PCD album go get it, and throw on the last track called "FEELIN GOOD" if U wanna hear a real singer "SING"!

lastdecember said:

Don't you think you're being a little biased since you are Nicole's friend? I'ved liked Nicole voice since Eden's Crush, but it sounds like you need to get over yourself

You are way off base about Tori. As a regular clubber, I can tell you for a fact that Tori's verson was a club hit. It is more raw and edgy. Everyone hit the dance floor when this tune came on. You're right it wasn't being played on the radio, but that was because it wasn't pop enough. It was an underground hit that would have taken off eventually

PCD is more exposed and known. For the past 2 years they have been in the public more due to their celebrity guest appearances, television performances and soundtrack contributions. Their version on the song has a more pop feel to it and more filler than the original, making it less raw and acdeptable for top 40 radio. It didn't take a scientist to figure theirs would be more successful

I have Tori version and prefer it over PCD's and that's most likely because I heard Tori's first over and over again in a club with a good ass sound system

lastdecember said:

Don't you think you're being a little biased since you are Nicole's friend? I'ved liked Nicole voice since Eden's Crush, but it sounds like you need to get over yourself

You are way off base about Tori. As a regular clubber, I can tell you for a fact that Tori's verson was a club hit. It is more raw and edgy. Everyone hit the dance floor when this tune came on. You're right it wasn't being played on the radio, but that was because it wasn't pop enough. It was an underground hit that would have taken off eventually

PCD is more exposed and known. For the past 2 years they have been in the public more due to their celebrity guest appearances, television performances and soundtrack contributions. Their version on the song has a more pop feel to it and more filler than the original, making it less raw and acdeptable for top 40 radio. It didn't take a scientist to figure theirs would be more successful

I have Tori version and prefer it over PCD's and that's most likely because I heard Tori's first over and over again in a club with a good ass sound system

Janfriend said:

Well i think im more concerned where her anger is towards, she is complaining about not having a Hit and its not their fault it wasnt a hit. Honestly her anger should be towards Ceelo and Outtkast, they were her producers, they didnt work the record for her if they were truly behind her version. Thats just the way it goes sometimes, I mean it happens all the time with one person doing a song and it bombs and then someone else makes it a hit. BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN "blinded by the light" released BOMBS gets no airplay, Manfred Mann records it later on and has a Number One Hit, Springsteen WHO wrote the Song even says, I just didnt put my heart into the final product thats why they had a hit with it. So I could care less about which is better, who likes what, I just think Tori should "get over it" and move on and try to have success without trying to cash in on someone elses. Im not trying to be mean to her but she really needs to just move on, everytime i hear about her she is talking about Nicole and PCD instead of just getting out there and doing something NEW, shit Nicole is already working on her Solo Recordings.

Well i felt i should post a Reply to this since NICOLE of the PCD is a friend of mine since 1998. First of all, I know that TORI is upset but she needs to get over herself, according to Cee-lo she didnt write anything, he has always been the writer of the track, though she says she came up with the 'Hook line". So her anger should be focused on Him or Outkast. Second of all the Pussycat Dolls are a "lounge, type of act" the idea to do an album didnt come until NICOLE was hired, since up until that point they didnt have a Girl that could front the group, I mean Carmen looks good, but do we really want another album from Carmen??. Founding member of the PCD , named Robin Antin has had this group since the early 90's so this is not some group made up overnight, the lineup that U see in the video and on the CD cover is the Group that is on the record and will tour, however in Vegas there are other "Pussycat Dolls", there is a whole venue dedicated to just them. I have heard alot of people say that there is no difference in TORI and Nicoles Vocal, well that is way off base. Nicole blows Tori away, not just on this track, but LIVE im sure Tori cant even stay on the same stage with Nicole, Nicole is one of a VERY FEW female Vocalists with good Voices that Actually can "SING" to, so many of todays Females like Beyonce, Jessica S, have good voices but dont know how to use them properly, screaming out loud constantly doesnt prove u can sing. I love how TORI has so much "bad Blood" and yet she is all over talking about this and this is the only reason that people even know her. When her single came out NO ONE CARED, I got airplay but NO ONE WANTED TO HEAR IT. Even when PCD put there version out it debuted at Number 98 and honestly i was shocked as were the rest of PCD to the response getting the song all the way to Number 2 on the HOT 100 and Number 1 on the POP 100, Number 1 in many other countries too, if these tracks are so indentical then why didnt TORI's version do this??? TORI needs to be mad at CEELO and OUTKAST and the LABEL, not talking shit about Nicole which she has been doing alot of.

Those of U who havent heard the PCD album go get it, and throw on the last track called "FEELIN GOOD" if U wanna hear a real singer "SING"!

lastdecember said:

oh god, we're going to be exposed to MORE of this bland face and bland voice in the near future? damn. i was hoping it was a one-off thing.

In an industry where styles are copied and images are duplicated on a daily basis, it’s hard to find the originator of anything. In the last few months, Atlanta-based singer Tori Alamaze (pronounced al-lah-MAH-zay) has witnessed fellow newcomers the Pussycat Dolls pilfer her song “Don’t Cha”, a sassy adaptation of Sir Mix-A-Lot's “Swass”.

Tori initially recorded the song with multi-talented artist/producer Cee-Lo, and released it through Universal Records in preparation for a complete album project. The Detroit native says the label never shot a video for her single, nor did she receive proper marketing. According to industry chatter, Tori’s version of “Don’t Cha” was intended as the label’s next big thing, but then Universal decided the single wasn’t the right move. Tori was subsequently dropped from the label just as her song was beginning to get some positive attention.

Not surprisingly, Tori is less than delighted with the Dolls’ version. The multicultural female posse imitates Tori’s vocal inflections and adlibs to a tee, while adding Busta Rhymes to the mix and keeping Cee-Lo on production. Tori now tells her side of this intriguing tale to AllHipHop.com Alternatives, and keeps her dream moving.

AllHipHop.com Alternatives: Before we get into your story, can you give some background on your history in the music industry?

Tori Alamaze: I used to be a makeup artist for about 10 years. I’ve worked with everyone from Faith to Erykah [Badu], TLC, Xscape, Monica, Outkast, Busta [Rhymes]. Most recently, I made the transition from makeup into singing when I started going on tour with Outkast on “Hey Ya” in 2003-2004.

AHHA: So basically your music career just started around two years?

Tori: I would say I’ve been kind of behind the scenes quietly creating and dreaming and wanting to do music. However, I was still involved in the industry. [With] traveling and the clients, of course, comes A&R and labels and all that type of stuff. So I was still in it, but I wasn’t necessarily considered a recording artist. In the last three years, I’ve been more vocal, and it’s been more out there.

AHHA: Right. So what do you want people to know about the situation with this song, “Don’t Cha”?

Tori: It’s just interesting at the moment because I am in transition, and of course this was all unexpected. This wasn’t included in what we initially started, so of course we have to shift everything that we have been doing and just come up with a whole ‘nother plan. Basically, I’ve been seeing on the Internet and just hearing what people say, but they have no idea. Consumers just come up with their own conclusion, which is the only thing that kind of prompted me to get it out. I don’t want to focus on it because I’m so focused on moving forward, but I just gotta speak because I hear all kinds of stuff—that the Pussycat Dolls are cuter, that’s why the label did it, or just all kinds of assumptions out there, but it’s dead wrong.

AHHA: Okay, what is your explanation?

Tori: I personally feel like I was caught up in the middle of favors and egos, and it had nothing to do with me. It’s not personal against Tori. But at some point, the guy who signed me decided not to do anything with the project, and that includes not letting go of any of my music. So [Universal President] Doug Morris [and the label] weren’t gonna release me, they weren’t gonna let go of any of the music. I would have just been in a standstill and not [been able to] move forward to another situation or do anything for that matter. So Doug Morris spoke to Cee-Lo personally, who wrote the song. And I’m also, by the way, signed to his production company.

AHHA: Okay, I was going to ask if you were signed to Universal.

Tori: I was signed to Cee-Lo’s production company [Radiculture Records] on Universal. Basically he and I were and are still a team. People assume that there’s animosity between us, that he sold the song for more profit. None of that is true. Basically, we were put between a rock and a hard place, in that [Universal] wasn’t gonna get rid of me or get rid of my music. So they basically were like, “Okay, we can continue this legal battle or we can give the song to someone else.”

AHHA: So you knew they were giving it away, it didn’t come as a surprise?

Tori: No, it was a surprise because it was [already] done. They didn’t need my consent. [Laughs] It was done. I found out in April. It definitely took the light out from me. It’s just like, you’re ready to fly and somebody attempts to clip your wings. But at the same time, I’ve endured so much. This isn’t the first situation and definitely won’t be the last, so it’s nothing to me. I mean, my faith is grounded, I gotta keep going. I have more than one hit. They can have it.

AHHA: And what was your contribution to the song. Did you just sing it or…?

Tori: Cee-Lo produced the song. I was working on a demo before I met him. We met in January 2004 I believe and just started creating. And then once he and I got together, he was the only person that seemed to get it—the “it” that was probably missing before. We’ve known each other for about ten years - he’s known me as a dancer, and he got my demo. It got into his hands a couple of years ago. And from there we just started creating. He’s an amazing writer and producer, and he seems to get who I am—who Tori Alamaze is and what I wanna say and how I wanna say it.

AHHA: So is your main concern basically not being credited for the original song?

Tori: I think what really gets up under my skin is the fact that—before I get into that, I have to say that it’s still possible that I may be able to do a video for “Don’t Cha.” So we’re kind of entertaining that at the moment. So with that said, I think it just bothers me that I’m a [solo] artist, I’m an African-American artist, but my music just so happens to transcend race, time, age, gender, whatever. It transcends that - and it just bothers me that you have these six girls, not really artists, just some Burlesque cabaret group. It just seems like, from what Cee-Lo told me, they attempted to study my voice with such reverence, they looked at me with such reverence, like, “Oh, Miss Tori.” They attempted to study my voice, copy every breath, every sigh, every ad lib that I did, and it still lacks the original soul.

AHHA: What you think gets lost in their version?

Tori: What’s missing is me. To me, the record companies tend to think consumers are ignorant. You throw some formula out there, which is this pop group, and expect them to just ride along like nothing happened. Some people do that and some people are like, Wait a minute; that doesn’t sound like the same version I heard. And there is more than one example of beauty.

AHHA: You mentioned that the girls emulated your voice and everything. So they knew about the whole thing.

Tori: Of course, of course. And I don’t wish them any ill will. But I just have a feeling that at some point—yeah, it may look grand right now, but I think at some point it will backfire. ‘Cause seriously this song has been out almost a year. I got at 3100 spins, with very little marketing and promotion. I got this song on “Beauty Shop” twice. I have a feature in VIBE Magazine’s April Hollywood issue. It’s not like I’m some chick who just crawled from under some rug from some little town in Georgia. My name is Tori Alamaze. I have a lot of respect; I respect a lot of people. I have a lot of love and I have a lot of people who have my back.

AHHA: What type of public reaction have you seen? Are people generally surprised, outraged?

Tori: I think people have a lot of questions from what I’ve observed. People are just like, “What’s going on?” I’ve even read an email that said “Don’t buy it.” All kinds of stuff. People are saying, “Tori Alamaze had more emotion, more feeling”. To [the Pussycat Dolls] it’s a song. To me it’s something Cee-Lo and I created in the basement.

AHHA: So it’s really like your baby?

Tori: Exactly. Because it’s an introduction to the album, and the album is a Tori Alamaze movement, particularly for women. It’s a movement. It’s not just a song so that the labels can make money off fake Spice Girls. It’s not like that. But because it’s just a song to them, that’s exactly what it sounds like.

AHHA: Have you spoken to any of the girls about it or what would you tell them if you could speak with them?

Tori: I would be extremely graceful and wish them well ‘cause I don’t blame them personally. But it is a little foolish to just—I think they expect me to just disappear or [they] wish that I would just disappear or that version would disappear. Because I’m sure that any radio station they go to, any interview, that somebody’s gonna bring it up. But they’re like, “Oh, we just did a remix, and we’re cool and there’s no problem”. Because the less controversy on their side, the [better].

AHHA: This type of situation seems like it would happen a lot in the music industry, but artists don’t usually talk about it.

Tori: I know a lot of bullcrap happens in the industry—but from what I hear from people who’ve been in the industry longer, this particular situation is rare because this isn’t a song that was out five years ago, ten years ago. This song is currently and still in rotation - still on the Billboard [charts]—my version. So it’s like, it’s an obvious corporate jack move. I didn’t even get a chance. They didn’t even give me a chance.

AHHA: It seems like, to the label, maybe the Pussycat Dolls are more marketable.

Tori: I don’t think it had anything to do with marketing at all. I don’t think it has nothing to do with marketing because there’s absolutely nothing wrong with me. I mean nothing. I’m not overweight. I mean, I could understand—I remember when I was younger I heard about the whole Martha Wash thing, the Weather Girls, and that whole thing about whether she was really singing. And then they gave [the song] to this group [because] she was overweight, that was their issue. I’m not even any of that. I’m very marketable.

AHHA: Some people might look at it like you’re envious of the group’s success with your song.

Tori: They’re riding off of my success. That’s what it is. They’re riding off of what I got started. [Laughs] People were already going bananas over that song, like last August, September when it started in Los Angeles.

AHHA: Alright, I understand. Can you talk about your album?

Tori: The album is done and it’s fantastic. As I said before, we’re in the middle of a transition so I’m looking at a late July [release]. I actually have a follow-up song called “Miss Everythang,” letting people know I’ve been through enough. Even going through this situation currently, I’m staying faithful and keeping my head up and keeping moving. My grandmother has passed away, my aunt has passed away, and my mother just had surgery for cancer, so I’m dealing with a host of things at the same time.

There’s nothing—they can’t take anything away from me. Absolutely nothing. I mean, singing, performing, recording, writing has always been a dream of mine. And I’ve come this far. I’m not gonna come this far and just fall into oblivion. That’s not how I’m made up. I’m a Black woman.

Tessa said:

Yeah sorry, Beyonce cant have all the time and her dad cant buy everyone out to play her shit forever.

Why would anyone want to fight over this track!
lastdecember if I knew you were their friend I would have taken your review of PCD album with a grain of salt! now I want a refund that album sucked!
but still look forward to your adance reviews, u heard the new Toni yet? anygood

Here's Tori's version for anybody that wants it. Hurry up and get it though.

http://s59.yousendit.com/...3S5949VCNL

do your homework, Nicole started back in the Mid 90's singing with and Lead for THE DAYS OF THE NEW, D.

I was waiting for Tori to play the "race" card. First of all she doesnt want to say it straight out, Cee-lo sold her out. Also I love how Tori is so quick to say that she is "an artist" this word is so easily thrown around, kind of Like "diva", I heard the other day someone referred to Lindsay Lohan as a "Diva", jesus, I mean i just finally decided after all these years that it was OK to call Mariah a DIVA. But Tori my dear you are not an artist, sorry to break the news to you, Im not saying the dolls are either, but you are not an artist. Bruce Springsteen is an artist, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, Earth Wind, etc.. You are not even close, that Word should be outlawed, someone called Ryan Cabrera an artist, maybe if shit was an art. Look this whole debate was started over which version is better, who cares to be honest, I always thought the Lyrics were dumb anyway, my problem was with Tori and her mouth and her anger being misdirected, but hey, thats how it goes. But the main point is NICOLE can sing, sorry if U dont like her but she can sing, and sorry Tori its not all about DONT CHA, nicole has been around alot LONGER then U, I can care less about U being featured in Vibe, do your homework, Nicole started back in the Mid 90's singing with and Lead for THE DAYS OF THE NEW, soundtrack work here and there, obviously Edens Crush, also worked with her EX-fiance in 311, and she is currently on 2 tracks on the New Shaggy, and also 1 track on the New Will Smith, and a few more guest appearances this year with other artists. So Tori do your homework, Im sure U just didnt come out of nowhere, but Neither did Nicole, or the idea of PCD.