Tamia's New Homes

November 9, 2000 -- With its songs about broken romances and cheating mates, Tamia's second album, simply titled Tamia, does not paint many pictures of domestic bliss. And that's something the R&B singer says hasn't escaped her husband, NBA star Grant Hill.

"He was just like, 'Baby, can you put some more love songs on the album? People are going to think I beat you!'" Tamia says with a laugh. "People always think what you sing about is your life; they think every heartbreak song Whitney [Houston] sings is about Bobby [Brown]. It's not, necessarily. You have a little bit of acting when you come to music, portray a certain character."

In real life, Tamia adds, things are going very well for the couple; the two recently moved from Detroit to Orlando, Fla., after Hill signed a free agent contract with the Orlando Magic. "It was nice and about 83 degrees [in Orlando] the other day, and, like, 50 back in Detroit," says the Windsor, Ontario, native. "I'm speaking from a wife's standpoint, of course, but [Hill's] very happy to be down there, and that's all that matters."

Tamia, meanwhile, is happy with her other new home — Elektra Records, to which she switched after spending the last half of the '90s at Quincy Jones' QWest label. She recorded her 1998 debut there, and tracks for Q's Jook Joint, winning three Grammy Awards in the process. But QWest, she says, had her on the slow track, and she craved a company that would allow her to be more prolific.

"I did one album in, like, five years [at QWest]," says Tamia, who worked with Missy Elliott and Shep Crawford on Tamia and co-wrote one of the songs herself. "I just wanted to do more albums in less time. I did this album for Elektra in three months; that's more my speed. I have one life to live, you know? I don't get nine chances; I'm not a cat. I wanted to get out and do something."