Amazon.com has posted a preview of Stephen Jerzak’s new song ‘She Said‘ which he has collaborated with Leighton, You can also buy the full song on July 13, 2010 via amazon.

• Original Release Date: July 13, 2010
• Release Date: July 13, 2010
• Label: Universal Records
• Copyright: (C) 2010 Universal Republic Records, a division of UMG Recordings, Inc.
• Duration: 3:22 minutes
• Genres: Pop/General
• ASIN: B003UPXTJG

As Blair Waldorf on TV’s ‘Gossip Girl’ — and, oh yeah, GQ’s 2009 obsession of the year, the new face of Herbal Essence, a burgeoning pop diva and the star of several upcoming movies — Leighton Meester is on the cusp of undeniable It Girl status.

But if you really want to know the girl in primetime and the magazines, she insists you have to wait for her debut album. Hot off the release of her new single, ‘Your Love’s a Drug,’ Meester spoke with PopEater about her musical passions, why she looked to Carrie Underwood for inspiration and how the real Leighton is on display in every song she writes.

So will people get more of a sense of you through this album?
Yeah, I think so. It’s a mixture of the past four or five years of my life. The songs I’ve released so far, I’m really pleased with people’s response. They definitely reflect who I am as a person and an artist. I can appreciate all different kinds of music, but I’m having a good time making essentially pop dance music. And lyrically, since I’ve written everything, people can see a window into me and how I feel about certain things.

In writing the songs for the album was there anything you discovered about yourself that maybe surprised you?
I’ve had raw acoustic songs, pop ballads, piano ballads, super-electro very Euro-sounding … I’ve done rapping, I’ve worked with other artists, so I’ve done the full gamut and been able to discover what I really love. I’ve discovered different things about how I’ve changed over the years and this is why I like to write. If you’re a writer, as you go through something, like if you’re in love or if you’re in a relationship, you have to write it, because you’re not gonna feel that way forever. Feelings change and eventually you don’t feel that way anymore. And so it’s good to write it down and make it into something because it captures that moment so perfectly and that feeling. I’ve written a couple of songs about real things in my life, real heartache. I don’t feel that way now, but when I look back I’m like, “Oh wow, I really remember that,” and that puts it in perspective so well.

So the album gives some definite insight into your views on relationships.
All of my songs do represent at least a snapshot of what was going on in my life at the time that I wrote it.

I’ve heard ‘Your Love’s A Drug,’ and it’s such a fun, catchy song — one of those tunes you can’t get out of your head all day.
Good, thank you. Recently, I’ve been working with this band who have taken a lot of my music, especially some of the really poppy stuff, and made them very bluegrass-y. When they perform they’re electric, but they do really beautiful acoustic songs and they recomposed a bunch of my music so I’ve been playing and performing with them lately. They’re called A Check in the Dark. • Read full story…

I have uploaded & added a new cover art of Leighton’s new single ‘Christmas (Baby, Please Come Home)‘.

Lyrics:
The snow’s coming down
I’m watching it fall
Lots of people around
Baby please come home
The church bells in town
All ringing in song
Full of happy sounds
Baby please come home

They’re singing “Deck The Halls”
But it’s not like Christmas at all
I remember when are you were here
And all the fun we had last year

Pretty lights on the tree
I’m watching them shine
You should be here with me
Baby please come home
Baby please come home
Baby please come home
Baby please come home
Come home come home

They’re singing “Deck The Halls”
But it’s not like Christmas at all
I remember when are you were here
And all the fun we had last year

If there was a way
I’d hold back this tear
But it’s Christmas day
Baby please come home
Baby please come home
Baby please come home
Baby please come home
Come home come home

Baby please come home
Baby please come home
Baby please come home
Come home come home

“Gossip Girl” actress Leighton Meester hasn’t yet released her Universal Republic debut. But it appears the TV star is well on her way to silencing naysayers about her fledgling singing career.

Meester released her first single — a retro dance-pop track, “Somebody to Love” — to digital retailers October 14 after premiering it on Ryan Seacrest’s KIIS-FM Los Angeles morning show. Featuring R&B singer Robin Thicke, the song is off to a solid start with 102 spins on top 40 radio and 7,000 digital tracks sold through the week ending October 18, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

“I have a crazy, strange life and I work a lot, so the song is about me not getting any,” Meester says. “I like that it’s electronic but still lyrically driven. It’s a very sexy track, and Robin really brought something different to it.”

“Somebody to Love” follows “Good Girls Go Bad,” Meester’s collaboration with Cobra Starship that reached No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 during the summer.

It isn’t yet finished, but Meester’s debut album is tentatively slated for late 2009 or early 2010. She’s spent most of the year juggling studio sessions with taping two feature films and the CW network’s “Gossip Girl.” About 25 songs have been completed, however, and collaborators include producer Mike Caren on “Somebody to Love,” Stuart Price on “I Feel Everything” and J.R. Rotem on “Lights Out.” Meester also plans to showcase her vocals on more downtempo tracks like “Your Lies Are the Truth.”

Meester remains focused on channeling her singing idols — from Madonna and Debbie Harry to Santigold and Lykke Li — and taking the time to get her solo material just right. “I never wanted to pay attention to the business side of acting, and it’s the same with music,” she says. “I love being creative. As I come up with more stuff, I keep topping myself … and this is the perfect time for me to do it.”

Source: Reuters

Leighton Meester, star of the CW Network’s teen drama “Gossip Girl,” has signed a deal with Universal Republic through Time-Act Music to release her debut album in the fall. The 23-year-old actress began recording material– described as having an “electro-pop edge”–for the project in March and has clocked studio time with producers Polow Da Don (Usher, Fergie), Harvey Mason, Jr. (Justin Timberlake, Pink) and Spencer Nezey (Jupiter Rising).

“I’m thrilled to be welcomed into the Universal Republic fold,” said Meester in a statement. “Their reputation for nurturing artists combined with a willingness to break new ground makes it the ultimate environment for me to enjoy making music and explore my own creative boundaries.” • Read full story…