As news spreads like wildfire through the social networks that Ciara has only sold a little under 40,000 copies of her latest record in her first week, an unfortunate aftermath as occurred. People are writing Ciara off as a flop and we don’t think that is right. Ciara has more than enough talent in her to succeed in this industry, but some changes and actions need to be taken. Here is our career revival plan for Ciara.

1. Switch Labels + Team!

Clearlye doesn’t love you anymore. Not only has the promotion for this latest album been dismal, but your previous album, Fantasy Ride, wasn’t exactly a runaway success either. You need people with a fresh perspective around you, that includes new agents, new managers and new publicists. People move around a lot in the music industry and you’ll find that those who were once the biggest champions for your work, don’t even work at your label anymore. Our pick for your new label? Island Def Jam. Currently being run by L.A Reid, the same exec who signed Ciara to her current record deal, perhaps he could reignite the spark in her career since he was one of the people who believed enough in her to sign her. Other options include Interscope & J Records.

2. Join Janet Jackson’s Number Ones Tour as Opening Act.

While you may think you’re already at headliner status, those album sales indicate otherwise. Why not team up with the legend whose career path you most admire? You guys share fans with similar musical tastes and it’ll be a good way to at least attempt to salvage promotion for this album. Also, you’ll begin to build a stronger international fan base. Every journalist and blogger will be talking about this team up if it happens! Furthermore, both you and Janet are known for putting on a great show. Folks are sure to get their money’s worth. DO IT! Oh and while you’re at it…

3. Do a Duet with Janet Jackson

å la Britney Spears & Madonna’s “Me Against The Music”, bridge the generational gap and give the people what they want! Surely we aren’t the only ones who think a Ciara and Janet Combo would be dope!

4. Create a Crossover Album That Respects Your Core Audience.

The Ciara we were all introduced to was an athletic Atlanta native who mixed Crunk, Hip-Hop & R&B into a hyper active genre that kept us all moving. A lot of the promo for Basic Instinct revolved around the premise that we were going to be getting back to that sound but it’s not that simple. The job of a pop star is to do what’s current & relevant while pushing the boundaries as well as creating sonic nods to your original/signature sound. I think your case is unique because your supposed signature sound is far too rooted in a genre that has seen better days: Crunk. Thus, you need to create a new signature sound. Also, you need not make The-Dream & Tryour main collaborators, no matter how good your personal chemistry is together. This attempt at a “Janet + Jam + Lewis” esque production crew didn’t quite manifest the results it was supposed to.

Let’s get some , Max Martin,, Red One, Bagg and Arnthor, and Rodney Jerkins into the mix for the next record. If you want to get even more adventurous, start traveling the world and figuring out what types of music is popping off overseas and what producers are hot over there. That’s how we all got on this new Dance Pop wave which is currently on its way out. Some industry taste-makers say the next sound of the moment will be a more rock influenced sound and after that I believe R&B will have a renaissance of sorts.

Also, s. Some of them are lazy and will only seek out the same two producers who they have a good relationship with as opposed to seeking out fresh and talented producers who have great material. Don’t be afraid to use younger unknown producers. Many of them aren’t quite corrupted by the industry system yet and they are focused on being creative and they are not simply adhering to the mold that has been created for you.

5. Stop Doing THIS^

Cause we get it, you’re flexible. But this is not some neo-cultural dance phenomenon to rival Michael’s Moon Walk. Cut. It. Out. Furthermore, your visual presentation as a whole needs refreshing. Converses glued onto stripper heels? C’MON SON.

6. Get On Your Competition’s Level.

See those two girls up there? That’s your competition. At this point in your career, you should/need to be in the same places they are, getting the same amount of promo they do and racking up the same chart success. Yet at this point in your career, if the music industry was a neighborhood and those two were neighbors in luxurious mansions, you rent condo down the street. No Bueno! In 2005, if you were to ask someone whether they thought Rihanna would have more #1 singles than Ciara, they probably would’ve laughed.

7. Get The Ball Rolling!

CD sales are down and even acts who should be selling way more aren’t selling as much as they used to. You need to create a movement of sorts and get the people and the general public interested in your work! Contrary to popular belief, it isn’t the die hard fans who contribute the most to your success, it’s the folks who heard your song a few times and fell in love with it.

For most folks it takes at least 2-3 really dope singles for them to consider buying your album, which means next go around you need at least 2 top 10 singles before your album even drops. Your career is truly at a turning point and it can go either way. Switch the style up and do what you have to do because at the end of a day, what you’re doing now ain’t cutting it!

[Edited 1/10/11 18:19pm]

So,how many copies did her CD ultimately sell?

I like CiCi but the jig is up. Her "flava of the month" moment has ran stale.

Take whatever you got from that career and finish your education. She'll be fine

Harlepolis said:

I like CiCi but the jig is up. Her "flava of the month" moment has ran stale.

Take whatever you got from that career and finish your education. She'll be fine

her musical career is over.Might be time to try something else.

SoulAlive said:

Harlepolis said:

I like CiCi but the jig is up. Her "flava of the month" moment has ran stale.

Take whatever you got from that career and finish your education. She'll be fine

her musical career is over.Might be time to try something else.

u guys are vicious

[Edited 1/11/11 5:48am]

CiCi come home to daddy. Let me be your manager. I will get the ball rolling baby.

I believe in you CiCi. I believe in you.

SoulAlive said:

So,how many copies did her CD ultimately sell?

About 44k in two weeks.

phunkdaddy said:

CiCi come home to daddy. Let me be your manager. I will get the ball rolling baby.

I believe in you CiCi. I believe in you.

No pun intended . . .

She can dance, but the song choices have been wrong ... she needs to play the " I can sing card" that's if she can sing and get a good love song out .... stop all the pop/soul/dance stuff ..... she needs airplay...

BklynBabe said:

Playboy!

Move over, Toni!

I don't mean to be mean, but there is something about Ciara that doesn't scream crossover success. I can't see her appealing to a mass audience the way Rihanna does.

didn;t play in that movie mama i wanna sing with lynn whitfield i remember seeing the trailer on yotutube

phunkdaddy said:

CiCi come home to daddy. Let me be your manager. I will get the ball rolling baby.

I believe in you CiCi. I believe in you.

Ciara Readies New Single

First of all this is pathetic that a so called lame-ass magazine, blog whatever it is, sits down and writes this, the writers of this magazine are clearly not educated at all, and if they are, they are pathetic that this is what they do for a living.

Second i never saw so many threads on someone that HAD ONE BIG HIT, people do the math, first album 2.5 million second album sold half that (only because of curiousity from first record) thirda album sold under 140,000 and now this one will end doing about half. So where was this some big mega-superstar? she was being pushed as the next aaliyah, so who bought that HYPE, apparently the asses that write these lame articles.

Now if i were Ciara i would say screw america and go overseas, you can sell 30,000 of a record there and make 10times what you do here and keep most of it, IF she is intelligent she wont fall into the traps of articles like this, which basically say "sell out sell out sell out" NOW thats all fine if you have respect for what you do, and IF she follows that then she is nothing more than a puppet and by no means an artist. To me do your albums and if they dont sell "like that" ask yourself, "did you like what you did?" stand behind your work. Take Duran Duran, now there last album sold poorly and it had the almighty Timbalame at the helm, so did they jump off a roof? did they worry, did they back off what they did? NO they stood behind the work and said "look we made a good album that the fans didnt want", People are way to concerned with what they think people want from them, worry about yourself first, if you start making what other want and you dont, you might as well stand on the corner and sell yourself

Either she needs to dive into acting or call up Amerie and do a duet.

Playboy? That could work.

HAPPYPERSON said:

5. Stop Doing THIS^

Cause we get it, you’re flexible. But this is not some neo-cultural dance phenomenon to rival Michael’s Moon Walk. Cut. It. Out. Furthermore, your visual presentation as a whole needs refreshing. Converses glued onto stripper heels? C’MON SON.

looks like she wants a kick on the vaggie bone.

SPYZFAN1 said:

Either she needs to dive into acting or call up Amerie and do a duet.

Playboy? That could work.

maybe she should do what other has-been artists do: a reality show She could team up with fellow has-been Ashanti.

HAPPYPERSON said:

Ciara Readies New Single

‘Basic Instinct’ may have been a chart disaster, however that isn’t stopping a certain Ciara from pressing on. For, according to a reliable source, the R&B star and her label Jive are set to release another single from the project next month.

Find out which it’ll be after the jump…

Turn It Up (ft. Usher)!

The uptempo banger, which is already in heavy rotation on UK radio, is reportedly set to have its accompanying video shot later this month, with dance rehearsals having already commenced before Christmas.

Granted things can and often do change, ‘Turn It Up’ is -as at writing- ‘Basic Instinct’s’ next single offering. A fact Ciara has been alluding to for the better part of this week on Twitter. See for yourself.

———————————-

Given the LP’s sales, the fact another single is being lifted from it is as sure a sign as any that there is more than meets the eye regarding this whole ‘Basic Instinct’ episode. Scratch that, we know there’s more to the story – yet aren’t at liberty to elaborate. If only…

Still, this has to be the smartest move yet when it comes to the handling of the project. For, beyond being the album’s best song next to ‘Ride’, and featuring the unstoppable Usher , ‘Turn It Up’ is a solid indicator of the type of music Ciara should be making at this point – Pop with R&B sensibilities. Whether it was her or the label pushing this ‘back to my roots’ slant, it’s hella ironic that an outright Pop cut is not only the track most are feeling, yet also her biggest hope of scoring that oh-so-needed-hit. Here’s hoping all pans out well for the immensely talented, yet badly handled Ms. Harris.

I think its all BS, being drummed up, the Usher will go nowhere, probably have another risque video that everyone is doing etc....The fact that the song is doing well in the UK is a hint or should be to Ciara to stop the american promotion at once, and go there, do the legwork there in other countries that will be your bread and butter, im tired of hearing"poorly handled" and "in need of a hit" from people who dont even make music or know it at all. Sometimes your shit dont sell, its that simple, you know, not everything and everyone is gonna sell, doesnt mean one is talented over another. I mean we all say on this forum "oh the shittiest stuff sells" well, why 97 threads about how Ciara needs to sell? She is getting threads like she he has had sold 100 million albums, she has sold 8 million worldwide folks, and almost 7 of that was the first album, so relax already.

Lol. Why would Janet want to duet with Ciara? She hardly even acknowledges her.

SPYZFAN1 said:

Either she needs to dive into acting or call up Amerie and do a duet.

Playboy? That could work.

She has already tried this.

[img:$uid]http://i51.tinypic.com/4lt7ih.jpg[/img:$uid]

Still no release date, though

To be honest, I don't see a Amerie duet doing anything.

trueiopian said:

Lol. Why would Janet want to duet with Ciara? She hardly even acknowledges her.

SPYZFAN1 said:

Either she needs to dive into acting or call up Amerie and do a duet.

Playboy? That could work.

She has already tried this.

[img:$uid]http://i51.tinypic.com/4lt7ih.jpg[/img:$uid]

Still no release date, though

To be honest, I don't see a Amerie duet doing anything.

Why would Ameriie even lower herself to that? She writes/produces and arranges while Ciara is handed the music by whomever is doing the project? Ameriie is an artist, and Ciara has a decision to make, does she make her own mind up or get really desperate to try and sell a few extra copies? That Genre is fucking dead, no one is selling anything outside of Rihanna. Best bet for Ciara do like Teedra and Amerie did and do mixtapes, circulate that stuff and whatever you do GET AWAY from the RB sound!