"It's not a 'sit down and analyze the lyrics'-type of record. And it's not a Mariah Carey, 'this is the touchstone of a generation'-type of record. And it's not intended to be -- any more than a chick-lit book intends to win a Pulitzer Prize."
Neither of Hilton's pop music confreres in the tabloid media universe, Lindsay Lohan and Ashlee Simpson, are releasing albums that will directly compete with Hilton's this summer. But their respective paths from the pages of Us Weekly onto the pop charts could auger well for her: Lohan and Simpson parlayed their celeb notoriety into platinum album sales.
For her part, Hilton could teach a master class in playing celebrity for all it's worth. Trish Todd, vice president and editor in chief of Touchstone Fireside books, which published "Confessions of an Heiress," was blown away by Hilton's Terminator-like promotional tenacity.
"She had a publicity lineup that even the most sophisticated, road-hardened author would have been intimidated by," Todd recalls. "She hit the mark exactly on time, beautifully dressed, beautifully coiffed, starting at 6 in the morning at the 'Today' show, all the way through to the late-night events, parties and book signings. She's amazing."
In a download-happy era of ripping music al gratis from the Internet, Storch insists fans will want to own a piece of the Hilton \o7je ne sais quoi \f7in addition to grooving on her tunes.
"The music is good, and she has a brand name. Most of her fans support the products she released whether it be a beauty product, anything," he says. "I have all the faith in the world this album is going to be well received. And purchased. People are not only going to want to hear the music, they're going to want the packaging and to look at the pictures and see all the merchandising and everything that has to do with it."
In the meantime, the record label isn't tempting fate and risking overexposure of their much-exposed artist; they are limiting her promo duties to select appearances until closer to the album's release. Nonetheless, she talked to Star magazine about her music in February. Hilton's verdict: "It's hot."
Even with her deadline looming, she remains avid about seeking out new collaborators. And despite a busy schedule filming the fourth season of "The Simple Life," she visited Memphis hip-hop collective Three 6 Mafia in a Los Angeles studio two weeks ago to listen to a track they put together for her.
Fittingly, the group sees a potential Hilton collaboration as an opportunity to rebrand themselves as pop music producers.
"I was shocked," remembers Mafia member Jordan "Juicy J" Houston, "that she would want to listen to one of my tracks. As far as my writing and producing abilities, winning the Oscar was No. 1. No. 2 is, wow, Paris Hilton is interested in using some of my music!"
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Times staff writer Susan Carpenter contributed reporting for this article. Contact Chris Lee at calendar.letters@latimes.com.
