Macy Gray

So, it was interesting to hear Gray’s quirky-but-warm speaking voice shrug off the hype.

“I guess I didn’t realize that getting all that press was a big deal,” she said. “I was totally new to that and I figured every artist had that kind of experience with the media. It was just part of the job, talking to the press. It wasn’t a big deal because I didn’t know it was a big deal.”

The lofty comparisons and flattering adjectives associated with her name are nice but Gray remains nonplused. She knows the attention will come and go. This may be her first album but it’s not her first experience with the music business.

A few years ago, Gray cut an album for Atlantic Records that never saw the light of day. Then, a 1998 demo tape caught executive ears at enough labels for a bidding war to ensue. The singer knew what she was looking for in a label and she went with Epic Records Group President Polly Anthony.

“I think it’s critical for an artist to realize how important it is to work with the right people. That’s the key to how your stuff is going to come out,” she said. “I learned that unless you have someone on your side who’s a heavy VP or president of something somewhere – someone who has real juice – then it’s going to be easy for you to get lost. Unless the head honcho knows who you are, your record probably won’t go anywhere. Plus, you have to be in their face. So that’s the first thing I did when I went to Epic.”

The quality face time with Anthony worked out well. The label prez introduced Gray to Andy Slater, who is now her manager and record producer. Rounding out Gray’s very top-drawer team are CAA booking agents Jenna Adler and Mitch Rose. With that kind of power behind her, Gray is set to take this gig as far as she can and that’s farther than you might expect.

There’s the movie script she’s working on, the new Tommy Hilfiger lipstick bearing her name and the ad campaign for Calvin Klein (They called Epic after seeing a NYC show. The Macy Gray billboard should be along shortly). Even so, the singer said her first priority is to get out in front of an audience and let people decide for themselves if she really is all that.

Her first tour, which wrapped up last week, put her on a bill with The Roots and Everlast. That eclectic mix was exactly what she was looking for.

“There were a broad range of people coming to these shows – people who might not have heard of me – and I got to play for them. I think that’s important, especially having a new record out. You can do a lot with a record off of a live show.”

Gray didn’t wait to have an album out before performing live. She created an after-hours spot called The We Ours in a Los Angeles coffeehouse and worked out her show there.

“Me and my band used to play there on Saturday nights. It was really good to get in front of crowds like that because it was just a little coffeeshop that held about 80 people. When you have a small crowd, you notice everything. You can see how people are responding. If someone is laughing at you, you see that. If someone is really getting into what you’re doing, you see that. It’s good to rehearse like that because you find out early on what works and what doesn’t. You can work it out before you get in front of a big crowd.”

Right now, Gray is getting in front of her European fans – and judging by her Web site message board, there are a lot of them – and plans are under way for a U.S. club tour later this fall. That will be a sight worth waiting for because there are 11 people onstage with Gray and the star of the show said every night is a party.

“We have percussion, a DJ, back up singers, a rhythm section and a horn section,” she said. “I’ve known a few of these people for a long time; I’m just getting to know some of the others. But we’re already real tight with each other.

“Everybody in the band gets along and it really comes across onstage that we’re having a good time. And from the audience’s perspective, I think you can see the love coming through.”

Touring and a super cool video have raised Gray’s hipness factor and she prefers to make her move now rather than wait to see what happens at radio.

“I love playing live and that’s what I want to do right now,” she said. “A lot of times, you don’t hear of a band unless you’re in a club or you go to see somebody else and there’s an opening act. A lot of people don’t get into radio and they don’t sit at home and watch videos on TV.”

She certainly doesn’t have time to waste watching the charts and playlists. “I need to take this opportunity to promote myself,” she said.