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17-05-01 news EXCLUSIVE PAUL MARTIN
Lisa Stansfield Faces Up to things...

Lisa Stansfield doesn't mince her words when she explains why she quit the music business for five years. "It would have killed me if I didn't, I had to get away," says the Dublin based pop superstar without hesitation.

Stansfield , 35, was at the top of the music world, selling out the biggest arenas and making millions from album sales when she decided enough was enough. She was also one of the top sex symbols of the nineties, adorning magazine covers across the world.

The showbiz parties and fame were great while they lasted, but she knew that there were other things in life that were more important. "I just wanted to live life without having to be in the spotlight all the time. I have never been the kind of person who seeks publicity or gets off on fame so I just did something else for a while. I realised that there was life outside the music business. I had been working really hard for the best part of a decade. I have always loved music and would never turn my back on it, but you have to remind yourself that there's something else out there."

Stansfield is set to make a huge impact on the pop world once again with a new album, Face Up. She's spent a year recording it, determined to show that time has done nothing to diminish her talent. "I know the music business has changed over the years but I think, at the end of the day, good songs and a good voice are the most important things. I've been doing concerts without even having an album out so there is a fan base still there. There are a lot of new acts but I'm still writing contemporary songs which have a place in the modern day pop charts."

Ten years ago the star moved to Dublin after falling in love with the city while she was recording an album. She never looked back and says she will always regard Ireland as her true home. "I just love Dublin and to be honest I think I'll live there until the day I die," she said.

"The reason I moved there in the first place is simply because it is the greatest city in the world. There's such an amazing atmosphere and I really feel I can be myself there. I don't get harassed by the press and I can just go shopping down Grafton Street and no-one even comes near me. People in Ireland don't get obsessed with stars and they can take them or leave them to be honest. It's totally different to London where there's cameras in your face everywhere you go. There are some people who go out just to attract attention but I'm much happier just doing my own thing. I also find Ireland a very inspirational place to live because it stimulates your imagination. It has a big influence on what I write and I'd like to think fans will hear that through this album and past ones too."

Stansfield could have easily walked away from the music world with a fortune and lifestyle most would only ever dream of. "There are those who will say 'why don't you just take the money and run?' But when you have music in your blood you could never walk away from it. I've managed to get a lovely house and great lifestyle from what I have done in my career - but the biggest satisfaction comes from success, not from money. I don't need to make any more money so that is not the passion that drives me. Getting a number one single would be great but that isn't even enough motivation to want to keep going. It really comes from within - it's the same thing that got me involved in music in the first place, the love of writing and performing songs. That's why fame and fortune and everything that comes with the showbiz world are never enough to keep you in it."

After her break from the grueling commitments of life as a pop star, Stansfield says she is feeling re-charged and ready to prove she still has what it takes. "Some people are going to regard this as a comeback but I don't see it like that at all. I've still been keeping my eye on the music business and I've even done other things like acting. For the next year I'm going to concentrate on the music again and make sure as many people hear this album as possible. I feel it is my strongest work and I'm confident that there are a few hits waiting to happen. Ideally, if the album sales go well enough, I'll also be doing a major tour at the end of the year - that's what I'm aiming for."

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