When Freda Payne was just 12, her piano teacher hinted that she might have decent voice. Within 6 years she was performing with Quincy Jones after he selected her as one of his first protégés. She is best known for her smash hit 'Band of Gold' which exploded in 1970 and has been revived numerous times since but she is also a woman of many talents. Not just a gifted singer, Freda Payne has found success acting in film, theatre and musicals. At one stage in her career she was a talk show host and continually does impersonations of the musicians who inspired her. Times Square talks with with Freda Payne before her upcoming performances at New York's Iridium in February.

Times Square (TS): Tell us about how you've juggled so many different performance modes throughout your career?

Freda Payne (FP): Back in the 70s I started doing a medley of impersonations in my act. It started with Eartha Kitt, then Lena Horn and Ella Fitzgerald. I also acted which I found a lot harder as it’s not my comfort zone. Everybody has a different arena, a different area where they exceed or excel and my comfort zone is singing. I like to act though because the two can go hand in hand as you can act and sing, sing and act, and do it all! A lot more artists are doing that now.

TS: How did you find being a talk show host?

FP: I wasn’t very excited about it when I was doing it in the early 80’s but now, at this point in my life, I think I would enjoy doing a talk show again. As a matter of fact, with all these reality shows springing up all over the place, I wouldn’t mind doing something like that as it seems like a lot of fun!

TS: In 2009 you sang ‘Band of Gold’ on American Idol. Having been talent spotted yourself at an early age, what do you think about shows like this?

FP: I think they are one of the best platforms to get a young artist out there, to get them seen and heard on an international stage. That's the good part about them, that we’ve seen both the winners and the runners up get to the top. Look at Jennifer Hudson for example. However, I do often refer to that group of shows as ‘talent contests on steroids’...Believe me when I say that if I was coming along today I would wind up being on one of those shows, I know I would. I was on a show called Ted Mack in the 50’s. I auditioned in Detroit, where I was from, and when I was chosen my mother and I flew to New York to be on the show. I came in second- I was up against a tenor who was going up for his third win and had really gathered momentum.

TS: How was the experience for you at such a young age?

FP: Of course I was nervous, you are always nervous, but it just went along with the territory. I was more nervous back then than I am now when I perform. I still have anxiety but I don’t have the nerves I had back then.

TS: So how have you continually managed to exude such confidence when in the public eye?

FP: It is nice that I appear that way! I am quite a nervous person but at the same time I calm myself. You have to keep yourself together so you don’t appear to be a nervous wreck. The audience really don’t want to see that. They want you to be self-confident and they want you to be in control. Before a show I vocalise and I do yoga to relax. I’ve been practising yoga as my form of exercise since 1973. That was way before it became the very popular it is now. It is so unbelievably popular now, I can’t believe it!

TS: So with a career spanning over 40 years, is yoga your secret to looking so youthful?

FP: What can I say to that? I guess so! I’m not a vegan or a vegetarian or anything like that. I eat well and what I want but everything in moderation. Right now I am in the process of trying to wean myself off caffeine. Caffeine has a tendency to really wear down the adrenal gland which causes stress and really tires you out. It’s very hard, especially when you’re a person who has drunk coffee every day since their teens!

TS: What is it like singing ‘Band of Gold’ now and has it ever felt like a burden?

FP: There was a time when I thought ‘I’m tired of singing this’ but now a new energy comes to me because I know that this is my signature song and it is what brought me a lot of popularity and fame all over the world. It’s a funny thing because now I know how much joy and pleasure it brings to the audiences, I have more of an incentive to enjoy singing it more. When I go into it, you know (starts singing opening notes) and the music starts, I can visibly see people just light up. I see their happy smiles and that’s my reward.

FP: Which modern artists do you admire?

FP: I’m really into Adele and I also admire Beyoncé a lot. She is an all round performer, she sings so well and she’s got such a great body! Believe it or not, I really admire Lady Gaga too, especially when she does jazz tunes and you can really hear her voice. She is one of those rare people who come along truly unlike anyone else; I have never seen anything like her in my entire career as a singer. She is a one woman show all unto herself.

TS: So what does it mean for you to be performing again in New York City and what can we expect from your show?

FP: It always means something to me. New York is a place where I have always had a lot of great expectations, excitement and high energy. And I have some good fans and friends here. This will be my, gee I’m trying to count how many times I’ve been to the Iridium, I guess my fourth or fifth return engagement. I think the first couple of times I came, the show was strictly a tribute to Ella Fitzgerald. My show is going to be packed full of variety this time. I’m still going to do some jazz type songs of Ella’s and of Lena Horne - who is such a great icon and someone I admired almost as much as Ella from a very young age. I’m going to mix it up a bit with more of a variety, so that everybody gets a taste of something.

TS: Thank you very much for talking to us Freyda Payne and we wish you best of luck with your performances at the Iridium on February 14^th, 15^th and 16^th. 

For more articles like A Chat With Fabulous Freda Payne, please visit the Music Interviews Section of TimesSquare.com