Brand names are just that—enduring. The blessing of a lifelong following is tempered by the curse of past accomplishments perpetually in tow. Many struggle when forced to step out from behind the name that’s propelled them to tip-of-the-tongue currency. Only the rarest make those fledgling first steps count. LeToya Luckett is one such triumph. Part of the global groundswell known as Destiny’s Child, LeToya counts two Grammy Awards and co-writing credits to the group’s smashes “Bills, Bills, Bills” and “Say My Name” as milestones in her rearview mirror. But her solo efforts have been no less emblematic. Riding smash single “Torn,” which topped BET’s 106 & Park countdown for 25 straight days, her self-titled debut astonishingly debuted at #1 on the Billboard Top 200 chart. From there, the album cruised to platinum status. LeToya had arrived; a tour with R&B demigoddess Mary J. Blige would follow. The child of destiny had blossomed into a self-starting female star.
By all appearances, LeToya’s transitions have been both smooth and satisfying. But growth is never without struggle. "Having endured a lot of separations and divorces —and I don't mean just marital— from people that you love takes its toll,” she reveals, herself a veteran of the music business though still in her twenties. "These experiences left me stronger.
Now in 2009, on the verge of her second solo release Lady Love, LeToya is wiser and worldlier. Her subject matter, no longer restricted to the “safe” stuff of her first album, tackles real issues: love, fidelity, defiance, and ultimately, hope. A self-proclaimed "hopeless romantic," Luckett knows that sincerity is not limited to relationships, but music as well: “If I don't connect to a record, if I can't feel it and if I can't sell it, I won't do it." In some favorable ways, LeToya Luckett is very much the modern-day Millie Jackson: relatable, authentic, audacious and adept in capturing the everywoman hiding behind closed shutters and curtains. Her first single, “Not Anymore,” speaks to breaking free. Penned by songwriting savant Ne-Yo, “Not Anymore” tells the tale of a tenacious young lady determined to leave her disloyal boyfriend. The song’s mantra of “not settling for less” echoes LeToya’s drive and determination away from the microphone.
The second single, much more deliberately an impact record, is the brash “She Ain't Got Sh!t On Me.” Featuring a staccato synth intro and imprudent, irrepressible drums, “She Ain't Got Sh!t On Me” is destined to end up on dance floors and video countdowns everywhere, as the song delivers one of those rare moments LeToya terms “walking on water.” Moreover, it’s a leaps-and-bounds progression over her debut record, complete with cheeky, chiding vocals and delivery. “In the song, I'm not saying I'm perfect, but my man shouldn't bring another girl home,” she chafes. “The song's not really about whether this girl he's cheating on with me has a fat ass or anything! It's more about the quality that I bring; how much I care for him. It's really a song for every middle-class woman. It's speaking for them.” Other songs of note: “Don’t Need You,” a female anthem that’s wholly LeToya’s, in both demeanor and writing credits; the brilliantly poetic yet radio-friendly “Lazy;” “Good to Me,” which details the quest for the perfect man, one who doesn’t merely appease women by offering materialistic gifts known as “pacifiers.” LeToya has a head on her shoulders for sure. And that head is certainly on straight.
Elsewhere, LeToya Luckett has still other ways of speaking to fans. Look for her on in the upcoming Warner Premiere’s first theatrical movie Preacher’s Kid, due in theaters this fall. Her casting was fortuitous in more ways than one; on set she filmed with singer/songwriter Tank, with whom she collaborated for “Regret” and “Good to Me,” both found on Lady Love. But her big screen bonanza is just beginning. She’s currently filming the Lionsgate feature Five Killers alongside über-stars Ashton Kutcher and Katherine Heigl. Expect a mid-2010 release date. Additionally, LeToya keeps busy minding a pair of Houston clothing and accessory boutiques called Lady Elle. Luckett aims to stock the shelves with her own brand of clothing as well. And given her track record, there’s no reason to doubt her resolve or her results. "If she can do it, I can do it,” Luckett says as the rhetorical fan. "If she can go from being in one situation that a lot of people thought was a devastation, and then grow as a solo artist, I can make my dreams happen—there is hope."
