“It’s gonna be a shock to a lot of people,” Jesse McCartney enthuses, pausing to turn away from the phone and take a bite of the sandwich he has just ordered. “Sonically, it will sound like a 2007 record but with that ’80s bigness to it. People won’t even realize who is singing some of these songs!”
The singer/TV actor/inspirer of teenage screaming is talking about his upcoming third album, which he promises “doesn’t sound anything like ‘Beautiful Soul,’ ” the title song from his mega-successful 2004 debut disc.
Yes, Jesse McCartney is growing up.
McCartney, who turned 20 this month enters his 10th year as a professional performer at an interesting career crossroads, one that’s as old as a 1950s pompadour and familiar as a mop-top haircut.
Still young and beautiful enough to grace a tweener’s bedroom wall on a poster — and dating Katie Cassidy, daughter of teen pop royalty David Cassidy — the former star of ABC Family’s series “Summerland” is savvy enough to be aware of the changing tastes of his contemporaries, as well as his own.
And like the Frankies, Fabians and Justins before him, Jesse McCartney has to, as he puts it, “bridge the gap” between his loyal fan base while convincing the unfamiliar and the unimpressed that there’s more to him than blond good looks and a way with a pop hook. (Indeed, his last album, most of which McCartney co-wrote, betrayed a surprising Timberlake-ish funkiness and R&B proficiency.)
“There are very few people who have done this without [making somebody mad]. It has to be done for myself,” McCartney says.
Or as an equally cute guy named Ricky wrote almost 40 years ago, you can’t please everyone, so you’ve got to please yourself.
Q How is today’s Jesse McCartney different from the “Beautiful Soul” version?
A I’ve put so much into this new record, even more so than the second record. I’ve been around the world and back, traveling a lot, meeting cool people and not-so-cool people. You get a worldly vibe [from that,] which is really cool to have. That certainly has influenced the music a little. … I’ve been in the studio a little bit writing and talking about different things.
Q Different things like what?
A At my age, I have a lot to learn, certainly, about women especially … it’s really fun to actually talk about it in songs. I’ve been in and out of a relationship for 2 1/2 years with Katie, and we’ve had our ups and downs. I live a fairly social life, and that’s sometimes hard, but it’s going really well. I can’t complain. I’m really stoked about this new album.
Q What’s the response been from fans who have heard the new material?
A The thing is, my age group is what I wanted [to attract]. I realized that after the second album, a lot of the fans from the first album had come along, although I was able to get a new group of fans, who were around the same age as me. Some of the [first album's fans] said, “Straight up, this is cool.” The ones my age are into a new sound.
Q You’re doing a lot of writing now, which is important for most artists, but maybe more so for someone like you who’s really trying to establish his credibility.
A After this record, I’ll get more of that [credibility], I really hope so. I just believe it. I think that [listeners] will hear the difference, hear the growth. It’s a whole other world from “Beautiful Soul.” I’m getting a lot of feedback from the male demographic in my age group, which never happened before. It wasn’t their thing. Getting that is really cool, when you have 20-year-old dudes saying, “That’s not bad. I’d jam to that.” That’s a pretty cool feeling.
Q Are you worried about alienating the earlier fans?
A Certainly, there’s a fine line. There’s never a time when everyone’s gonna be happy. Some people will be disappointed, and some will be stoked. I do what I love, because of this business. I gotta grow. I can’t be concerned about parents’ opinions. I’ve struggled with that. … People I work with put that bug in my ear [that there might be some concern). You can't think that hard about, you know, are you gonna offend 9-, 10-year-olds. Because, maybe you will! It depends on how conservative the parents are. All I do know is that whatever happens on the record is how I feel. I'm not Bob Dylan. It's not deep, heavy stuff. It's certainly fun music that people can relate to with fun melodies.
Q So what does it sound like?
A I'm going for Prince chord changes, Michael [Jackson] melodies and the bigness of Madonna — fun ’80s stuff. That’s the best that I can put it.
Q Again, how do you make those big changes, making it sound so different from your biggest hit, and make it sound organic?
A It’s hard. People look at me and say, “Oh, he’s not who he is.” They don’t really know that. I know better than anybody! People are used to what they already know. I know better than anybody who I am. Like I said, I’m bridging a gap. People are a lot less open-minded than you’d think.
Q Is there anyone whose career you emulate, particularly someone like you who’s trying to bridge audiences and phases in your life?
A In some ways. As far as business moves, I think I’d say Mark Wahlberg. Will Smith did a great job, and Jennifer Lopez did an amazing job. She’s a serious chick, man. She’s a businesswoman. Those are the people I look up to, because what they’ve done is cool, and still fun.
Q Are you doing any acting?
A Last year I did “Keith,” a high-budget indie by Todd Kessler. These things take forever to come out. It’s about this kid, who’s 18 years old, and there’s this bitterness about him. He’s screwing around with this girl’s head. It’s kind of depressing, but you kind of have to see it to realize the reasons why he’s such [a jerk] to her.
Q And you play that guy, I assume.
A Yes. I’m the [jerk].
Q So when is the record coming out?
A I’m working leisurely on [it]. I don’t know when it’s gonna come out, when they’re pushing for it. … In the place where I am right now, you just gotta go for it all the way. I’m 20 years old. God’s blessed me financially the last couple of years, and I have a beautiful girlfriend. All careers have their dips, and go up and down and up and down. But I gotta go for it.
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