The story of Cinderella is something that everyone can relate to: work hard while being underappreciated by those above you, get a little boost from one who sees your true value, find happiness, and live happily ever after. It’s clearly a story that resonated with Ryélle, and the R&B singer-songwriter gave her own take on it with “Cinderella,” one half of her new two-song EP, SOLO.
“At the time I wrote it, I was in a situation where the guy I was dating was taking too long to commit,” she tells HollywoodLife in an EXCLUSIVE interview. Instead of waiting around for her man to make her feel like a princess, she realized that she was already a “queen,” and hit the ball – or, in this case, the club – in the second cut from SOLO, “Playa.” Together, the two videos tell this modern Cinderella story, which is as captivating as the reality behind this new project. SOLO marks Ryélle’s coming-out-party as a solo artist. She wrote, arranged, and engineered the EP in her small Harlem apartment. She also was in charge of the short film’s production!
Ryélle took a moment out of her busy schedule of being a boss to tell HollywoodLife how it was like to shoot with Mims – the rapper/entrepreneur best known for “This Is Why I’m Hot” – on “Playa,” how it was like to work with multi-platinum producer De-Capo (who worked with the likes of T-Pain and Iggy Azalea) and what we can expect next from her.
HollywoodLife: In “Cinderella,” you transform the classic story to be a new fable about missing out on a great shot at love if time runs out. That’s a really clever reworking of the tale – how did you come up with this? Was there anything that inspired this take?
Ryélle: At the time I wrote it, I was in a situation where the guy I was dating was taking too long to commit. He took so long that I was halfway out the door. So, when I heard the beat, the first lyric I thought of was “Tick Tock goes the clock,” and from there, the song started to revolve around the idea of time and love. The song talks about ‘having a carriage waiting for me’ whether he decides to get his shit together or not. Love really wants him to get it together, but in the end, it doesn’t matter because you’re still a Queen. Hence your modern-day Cinderella story was born!
You got Mims to play your fairy godfather in “Cinderella.” During which, your character says he looks sort of like “this old rapper guy.” How did he respond to this when you first called him that?
We didn’t rehearse lines, so the first time I said it was actually in the clip. He’s super professional and has a great sense of humor, so I think he understood it was for comedic purposes.
How was it like to work on De-Capo for this track?
Working with De-Capo on Cinderella was dope, he really gets it! This is the first track we ever cut together, and the chemistry is definitely there. I worked with Pryme&Keyzz on Playa, and again the music just clicked.
The second half – “Playa” – is about moving on from love. It was initially written from the male perspective, but you flipped it into a self-empowering anthem for women to reclaim their sexuality. What was the inspiration behind that move?
He took too long to get with me in the Cinderella story. So at this point, I’m saying f-ck love, I’m still that b*tch, and I’m out here! In the video, I’m the life of the party, all eyes are on me, and the men love me, but I don’t love them back! Some guys will date with no intentions of committing and no warnings. So I thought if I was THAT guy, what would I say? I would let her know I’m a playa…so be careful if you want to get involved!
Was there anything during the filming that was left on the editor floor that you wished made it in the final cut?
Yes, we actually cut out a scene of me driving the Tesla with Mims in the passenger seat. We pulled up to the party where he let me know I had until 2am, then he snapped his fingers and disappeared. This scene didn’t make the cut, but either way, Diego Cruz did a great job bringing the vision to life. I’m happy with how we portrayed the story.
What’s the nature behind this two-song EP’s title, SOLO?
SOLO is a statement of independence and strength. It serves as a symbol of strength for all women, letting them know it’s okay to want love, but if you don’t have it, it’s also okay to be single and go through periods of your life ‘solo.’
What are your plans for the rest of 2020?
The plan is to continue putting out dope records and visuals. I just started working on an EP, so hopefully, it’ll be out in the world come 2021!