Kaya Jones, a former member of the Pussycat Dolls, will have her first solo album, Hollywood Doll. Zou Hong / China Daily

Ex-Pussycat Dolls Kaya Jones launches her first solo album, fulfilling a long-cherished dream. Chen Nan reports.

Kaya Jones, a former member of the Pussycat Dolls, is exactly in real life as she is on stage. As the bright morning sun streams into the office of her record company in Beijing, she is talking and laughing animatedly with her agents. Dressed in a pair of black, catwalk-ready high heels, leggings and jacket, the tall blonde is easily the focus of attention in the room. She flips through her phone to display the music she is listening to, while shaking her body to a Brazilian song.

The 27-year-old songstress, model and dancer was in Beijing to promote her upcoming album, Hollywood Doll, her first solo album after leaving the Pussycat Dolls seven years ago.

Jones calls herself a fan of Chinese culture and five years ago, got the Chinese words, Cheng Xin Cheng Yi, meaning earnestly and sincerely, tattooed on her upper right arm. Her mother, who is an artist, also inspired Jones to learn kungfu, Chinese painting and even some simple Putonghua.

"Although I have some knowledge about China and Asia, it's a totally different and exciting experience to be here in person," she says. "The buildings, the people and everything out here is amazing. I want to bring my mother here and show her what China is really like."

She also performed at a series of events in the city, treating her fans to hot dance numbers. "I wasn't the little girl who sang the same as others and dressed up the same as others," she says.

Inevitably, her days with the Dolls crops up. She says with a big smile, "Pussycat Dolls will forever be a part of my past and I'm proud of that. I look forward to making new fans with my solo journey and my new music."

Jones says her dream since childhood has been to become a solo artist. Even while with the Dolls, which took her straight to the top of the world's music industry, she never gave up her dream.

"It's good to have group members support you on stage, which makes you feel safe and comfortable. I could've dropped my pants on stage and the girls would have helped me out," says Jones, who was with the group from 2003 to 2004.

"I was 18 when I joined the group. But when you grow up and pass the age of 20, you need to do something to prove yourself and make some changes."

As soon as she left the Dolls in 2004, she began collaborating with Eminem with the song How Come and was also part of the back-up vocals for Mick Jagger on the Golden Globe winning song, Old Habits Die Hard, from the movie Alfie.

It was also around this time that her modeling career took off and she became the face of leading brands. She has collaborated with Regi, the top DJ in Belgium, to present the single, Take it Off, which reached No 8 on the UK Dance Charts.

She distills all these experiences for Hollywood Doll, "a fun dance album full of life" and inspired by the glitz, fame, paparazzi and glamour of Hollywood. "It's what I've seen," she says.

"And dance has always been a big inspiration. I can't wait to make the whole world dance," she says.

As a teenager, Jones, whose real name is Chrystal Neria, was signed on by American R&B singer-songwriter R. Kelly in 1999. She chose the stage name Kaya, a Jamaican word that harks back to her mother's roots.

Born in Canada and raised mostly in Los Angeles, Jones is a big fan of Bob Marley, Elvis Presley, Tina Turner and Madonna, who, she says, "are all pioneers in their genres and some helped mold eras of music". She also loves musicians of other genres such as Brazilian musician Sergio Mendes.

"My heart has always been with singing. My mom tells me that I would keep making noises at the back of the car when I was just a few months old," she giggles.

"Every step I have taken since, I have returned to this."