MUMBAI: Leading Bollywood actress Priyanka Chopra has signed a deal to record her first music album and will be managed by the man behind US star Lady Gaga, music labels said on Friday.
Universal Music Group and Desi Hits! Said in a statement that they had brokered a worldwide recording agreement with the 29-year-old and she was already writing and recording the English-language pop album.
Her foray into the global music scene - a first for a Hindi-language film star and a sign of an increasingly outward-looking trend in the industry - will be overseen by Troy Carter, chief executive of LA-based Atom Factory.
Carter also manages Lady Gaga, the pop culture icon, with hits like “Telephone”, “Poker Face” and “Born This Way” who is known for her outlandish dress sense.
“It has been a long-cherished dream which is finally coming true. I am truly excited to have an opportunity to present my musical dimension on a world platform,” Chopra said.
“This is a fascinating new experience for me and I am thoroughly enjoying the journey.”
The actress also announced the deal on the micro-blogging site Twitter, where she said she was “goin nuts” with excitement.
“I've already started working on the album. It's scary but so very exciting & I'm counting on UR support as I begin this exciting new journey,” she added.
Desi Hits!, set up in 2007 and with offices in New York, London and Mumbai, is a media and entertainment company that specialises in “east-west fusion” and is currently working on bringing Lady Gaga to India.
The company will release Chopra's album in North America through Interscope Geffen A and M Records, part of the Universal Music Group, and in international markets through Island Records UK, the companies said.
No indication was given of the size of the deal.
A number of Indian musicians and composers, from legendary sitar player Ravi Shankar to Bollywood singing star Asha Bhosle, have developed a profile on the world stage.
Shankar collaborated with the virtuoso violinist Yehudi Menuhin and The Beatles' George Harrison, while Bhosle has sung with Boy George and REM's Michael Stipe and been sampled by the likes of Nelly Furtado and Black Eyed Peas.
The prolific film composer A.R. Rahman, who won two Oscars for the hit movie “Slumdog Millionaire”, is currently the best known modern Indian music artist and much sought-after by film-makers for his eclectic, innovative works.
Chopra is a former model and Miss World who switched to acting in 2002 and has established herself as one of Bollywood's leading ladies through hit films like “Kaminey” (Bad, 2009), “Fashion” (2008) and “Andaaz” (Method, 2003).
She has a cameo role in the upcoming Shah Rukh Khan sci-fi action adventure “RA. One”.
Chopra has sung in a number of Bollywood films, endorses a number of beauty products and is a UNICEF goodwill ambassador.
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