There comes a moment in every great artist's career where they have to reinvent themselves to keep up with the times or be forgotten.
For Jason Derulo and Becky Hill, that moment came when they split from their labels and became independent artists.
The pair had to step outside of their comfort zones and for Jason that meant using platforms like TikTok to showcase his versatility as an artist, singing, dancing and even dabbling in opera.
It didn’t come naturally, despite what his 57.6 million followers would have you think: “I wasn't always great with social media, but when I was just being myself and having fun with it - that's when things really opened up for me.”
For Becky, becoming an independent artist forced her to learn the business side of the music industry: “When I got dropped from my first record deal, I had to put all of my money into my own record label.”
Now the pair have joined forces, alongside Jason’s manager Frank Harris, to impart the art of reinvention on 10 aspiring UK artists in BBC Three’s Project Icon: The UK's Next Music Star.
The six part series will see the artists through a series of industry tests inspired by the judge’s own experiences - there’s even a TikTok challenge - all with the aim of helping the them to establish themselves as more than just great singers.
Frank Harris: “Fortunately, Jason has been able to reinvent and adapt.”
Reinvention is something that has guided Jason Derulo’s career, just ask his manager Frank Harris, who had so much belief in the superstar that his own profession took a new direction.
In 2002, Jason was hanging out on the basketball court with his then coach Frank, when he revealed his singing aspirations. Frank, who was studying to become a music lawyer, used his industry connections to set up a few meetings and ended up becoming Jason’s manager.
From then, the pair worked hard to establish Jason as an artist, he started writing songs for singers like Sean Kingston, Lil Wayne and Cassie before being signed to Warner Records in 2009 as a recording artist. Under the label, Jason would reach number one on the Official UK Singles Chart with hits like Watcha Say, In My Head and Want to Want Me.
Together, Jason and Frank had reinvented themselves from basketball player and coach, to a world-class recording artist and manager.
In 2020 he split from Warner: “At the beginning of the pandemic, I had thoughts in my mind like: ‘I've done enough in my life, I should enjoy the fruits of my labour and just coast.’
“But then, as time progressed, I thought: ‘What the hell are you thinking? You're so much closer to being one of the greatest of all time than you were starting from zero.’ So why not keep pushing harder and keep going?”
Jason did just that, this time using social media to reinvent himself as more than just a great singer. He collaborated with producers like Jawsh 685 on his viral song and dance craze, Savage Love and reached new heights, becoming the 14th most followed person on TikTok with 57.6 million followers.
Now he’s gearing up for his biggest year yet and has confirmed that he’ll be dropping an album: “I'm going to be releasing a new song every month. I'm excited about that because it's just gonna be a ton of content because it's been so long. But yes, there is an album at the end of that, and there is gonna be like an audio experience connected to the album, living in its own space - it's unique.”
Jason says that reinventing himself as an artist was “very important” to his career and it’s something he’s keen to pass down to a new generation of artists on BBC Three's Project Icon: “I wanted to create something that was more true to what the music industry actually is and it's way more than just singing.”
Project Icon will see Jason, Frank and Becky Hill impart their knowledge of the industry on 10 artists. Hosted by Radio 1’s Jordan North, the artists will be set a new challenge each episode, and the bottom two artists must sing to save themselves. The judges will deliberate on who to save and one artist will win a record deal, a collaboration song with Jason, and the chance to perform at Radio 1’s Big Weekend.
Becky Hill: “Anybody can leave you at any time”
Becky Hill had a similar experience to Jason and at a young age she reached incredible success. In 2012, she was runner up of The Voice and reinvented herself from a talent show contestant to successful recording artist, reaching number one in the Official UK Singles Chart for her song Gecko, with Oliver Heldens in 2014.
Just as her career was taking off, Becky was let go from her label Parlophone. It was a sobering experience, she explains: “Anybody can leave you at any time and I learned that when I got dropped from my first record deal.”
Like Jason, Becky reached a crossroads, but decided to back herself and adapt to the changing industry. She reinvented herself as more than a singer, taking on the business side of the music industry: “I was a real independent artist, I spent thousands on my own artistry because I believed in myself. I used the money that I got from my first record deal to pump into releasing an EP, shooting music videos, deciding the artwork, getting it released through an independent label service and learning where the money's going. So, by the time I actually re-signed, I knew what the process was.”
It’s something the double Brit Award winner is excited to explore in Project Icon, explain that her favourite part of the show was getting to show contestants the business side of music: “When I was a kid, I used to love going into rooms full of men, and convince them that I was a profitable act."
As Becky adds: “Essentially, Project Icon is a Popstar's bootcamp - it's the kind of training that I wish I had.”