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Tila Tequila

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Tila Tequila

Tila Nguyen (born Thien Thanh Thi Nguyen[1] on October 24, 1981), better known by her stage name Tila Tequila, is a Singapore-born American internet celebrity, television host, author, model, entertainer, actress, and singer songwriter. She is known for her appearances in Stuff, Maxim, Time, Penthouse, her role as host of the Fuse TV show Pants-Off Dance-Off and her position as the most popular artist on MySpace (according to page views) circa April 2006.[2] She was raised in Houston, Texas but currently resides in West Hollywood, California. Her MTV reality show A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila premiered on October 9, 2007 and ended July 8, 2008, after two seasons on air.

Early life

Nguyen was born in Singapore, where her family emigrated from Vietnam after the Vietnam War.[3][4] When Tila was a year old, she and her family lived in a neighborhood in Houston until they were admitted to a gated community run by a strict Buddhist temple.[5] The family left the community when Nguyen was eight.[6]

While in middle school, Nguyen became a tomboy and was eventually sent to a boarding school for six months for her combative behavior before transferring to another school.[6] While in high school, she used her sister's identification card to enter nightclubs, where she began recreational drug use[6] and joined a gang. In an interview with Import Tuner, Nguyen said she had been searching for a sense of identity: "I was really confused then, [because] at first I thought I was black, then I thought I was Hispanic and joined a cholo gang".[7] Later, friends outside the gang briefly helped turn her life around. However her past caught up with her, and she fled to Queens, New York at the age of 16.[5]

Career

Modeling and acting

Nguyen's career began at the age of 18 when she was discovered at the Sharpstown Mall by a Playboy scout and was offered a chance to model nude for the magazine. She did a test shoot,[8] then eventually moved to Southern California and was featured as Playboy’s Cyber Girl of the week on April 22, 2002, and soon thereafter she became the first Asian Cyber Girl of the Month.[9] A few more pictorials for the magazine followed.[3]

Tila gained further popularity through the import racing scene. She has been featured on the cover of Import Tuner magazine, at car shows such as Hot Import Nights, and in the video game Street Racing Syndicate.[8][10] In 2003, she was a contestant on VH1's Surviving Nugent, a reality TV show where participants performed compromising tasks and stunts for rock star Ted Nugent.[11] She was also the most frequent host on the first season of Fuse TV's dance show, Pants-Off Dance-Off, on which a group of contestants strip to music videos.[3]

Nguyen was featured on the cover of the April 2006 issue of Stuff magazine; in the interview, she claimed that her nickname "Tila Tequila" came about when she experimented with alcohol at the age of thirteen.[12] She appeared on the August 2006 Maxim UK cover, was named #88 in their Hot 100 List,[13] and also appeared in the December 2007 issue.[14] She was ranked #100 on the Maxim Hot 100 list in 2008.[15]

Tequila made an appearance as one of the 12 strangers in the first game on the April 6, 2007 episode of NBC's game show Identity. Her identity was that she has "over one million MySpace friends,". [citation needed] On March 4, 2007 she made a cameo appearance on the show "War At Home."[16] She also appeared as a Hooters Girl in the 2007 film I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry.

Reality Television

Main articles: A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila and A Shot at Love II with Tila Tequila

On March 26, 2007, Tequila announced in her MySpace blog that she would be filming a reality show for VH1.[17] Filming started in May 2007, but the show was moved to VH1's sister network MTV that summer. On October 9, 2007, A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila aired on MTV. The program is a bisexual-themed reality dating show where sixteen straight men and sixteen lesbian women compete for Tequila's affections, the twist being that the contestants were not aware of her bisexuality[5] until the end of the first episode. The ten-episode series is produced by 495 Productions and MTV.[18]

Tequila in October 2007

The show was at the heart of a heated online debate between Tequila and conservative Christians after an article appeared on The Christian Post on September 13, 2007.[19] After seeing the article, Tequila wrote an impassioned response in her blog on September 28, 2007, criticizing churches for "bashing" the gay community while thanking God for saving her life.[20][3]

The show premiered for a second season in April 2008 and became a popular gossip subject in Asian media, such as AsianWeek.[21] The season finale premiered July 8, 2008, the winner being Kristy Morgan who declined her "shot at love". It has been revealed that there will be a new season of the series. However, a different bisexual woman will be its bachelorette.[22] Tequila had previously confirmed on her official website that she would not be a part of the show's third season, but will instead be featured in a show focusing on her daily life. Tila announced[23] in a blog via her official website that the show would premiere online, and be streamed live. The show will carry the title "Real Life with Tila". Tila announced in a video blog that she would have a crew following her, as well as revealing plans for a contest to fly five fans out to her home in West Hollywood, California for the premiere of the show. However, plans for the contest and show have been put on hold while Tila attempts to find a new home, after a stalker broke into and vandalized her current home. [24]

Online business ventures

In July 2001 Nguyen started up her website entitled "Tila's Hot Spot".[25] Originally it was a website featuring her information, quotes, blog, and pictorials[26] including content that required adult verification and a monthly payment fee to view.[27] Later the site format was revamped by TAJ Designs Inc. to feature all-ages content and information to promote her current career, business ventures, personal information, and a premium membership section including videos, non-nude picture galleries, blogs, and chat sessions.[28] In 2008, Buzznet partnered with Tequila to transfer the site and transform it into a social network.[29]

During 2005 Nguyen launched Tilafashion.com,[30] a site featuring her custom line of clothing for men and women originally using the slogan "So hot you'll just want to take it all off!"[30] In 2006 Tila created a website entitled "Tila Zone,"[31] which features content to use on Myspace and other social networking websites including layouts, widgets, and clipart.[32]

Music career

Tila used modeling as a stepping stone for other ventures. At age 20, she acted on her interest in rock music and started looking for bands willing to have her join. She eventually assembled a band called Beyond Betty Jean, for which she was singer and songwriter. Following the breakup of Beyond Betty Jean, Tila started working in recording studios to sharpen her vocal skills and wrote music.[9] Tila Tequila became the lead singer of a band called Jealousy, which released a few songs online before breaking up.

A major turn in Tequila's music career occurred during the April 24, 2006 taping of MTV's Total Request Live. In an interview with the TRL VJs, will.i.am announced that Tequila was signed to the Will.I.Am music group, a record label under A&M Records. Despite her major-label signing, Tequila independently released her first single "I Love U" through iTunes on February 27, 2007, justifying the independent release through her desire to become famous by herself.[4] She shot a music video for the song, which is available for free after the song is downloaded. A preview for the video debuted on February 14, 2007 on her MySpace page. The video was also released via mobile phones.[citation needed]

In March 2007, Washington-based record label The Saturday Team released an EP called Sex, by Tila Tequila.[4] On July 27, 2007, Italian website MusicBlob reported that The Saturday Team and distributor Icon Music Entertainment Services sued Nguyen over breaching her contract related to the album.[33] However, Tila claimed in a MySpace bulletin[33] that the EP was not authorized for release by her, and was removed from most retailers. Tila and The Saturday Team went into a legal battle over the release of the EP, and eventually, The Saturday Team won the case, making the Sex EP once again avaliable to purchase digitally. Tila later expressed her disgust for the EP and the label itself saying the label was "money-hungry" for releasing "old songs [she] wrote and recorded years ago" at the height of her popularity against her wishes via her Twitter page[34].

On October 9, 2007, the same day her reality show A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila premiered, Tila released her second official single, "Stripper Friends".[35] In mid-November Tila shot the video for her third single "Paralyze".

She shot the music video for "Stripper Friends" in early December 2007 at a Los Angeles strip club. The video premiered via Yahoo! Music on February 26, 2008 and was released to iTunes on March 4, 2008. The single failed to chart. On April 2, 2008 the music video for "Paralyze" was released, again via Yahoo! Music and the single was released to iTunes on April 8, 2008.[36]

In July 2008 the song "Hideaway" was released through Tila's MySpace and received good response from fans. The song was taken down later that same day, although Tila did announce[37] that she would be releasing her first full-length debut album in the winter. She also stated that because of the fan response, the new song "Hideaway" would appear on the album.

On March 6, 2009 Tila announced that the original album "I Have Tourettes" was being scrapped and she would be starting over, taking her music in a different direction. [38] She announced via her official YouTube channel, that she would instead be releasing an EP rather than a full length album in Summer 2009 tenativly titled "Welcome To The Darkside". She later announced on her official Twitter page[39] that she would be releasing two EPs in the summer of 2009 due to fan requests. She also announced the tracklisting for the "I Have Tourettes" EP as well as clarifying that the "Welcome to The Darkside" EP would be "dark, moody" music while the "I Have Tourettes" EP would be filled with "upbeat club bangers".

On April 7, 2009 the "I Love U Remixes" EP was released to digital music retailers.

File:Hooking Up with Tila Tequila - book cover.jpg
Book cover

Hooking Up with Tila Tequila

On December 2, 2008, Tila released a self-help book, Hooking Up with Tila Tequila: A Guide to Love, Fame, Happiness, Success, and Being the Life of the Party (ISBN 9781439101537). She herself has said of the book, "After all these years, there are so many fan questions, and I always have given little spurts of advice, but I always sensed that everyone wanted more. I can't just write a blog on it, because it would be the size of a book... So I decided, 'Why don't I put it all together?' That way they can keep it as memorabilia and go back to it whenever they need help and hopefully inspire them."[40][41]

Discography

EPs

Singles

Filmography

Films

Television

Books

  • Tila Tequila with Sarah Tomlinson, Hooking Up With Tila Tequila: A Guide to Love, Fame, Happiness, Success, and Being the Life of the Party, Simon & Schuster Adult Publishing Group, December 2008 (ISBN 9781439101537)

Awards and nominations

Year Award Result
2007 The Soup Awards for Entertainer of the Year[42] Won
2008 Spike Annual Guy's Awards for So Hot They're Famous[43] Won
Bravo's A-List Awards for A-List Drama Queen[44] Won

Notes

  1. ^ "New Filing – Tila Tequila". Entertainment Law Digest. 12 (5). 2007. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  2. ^ Weiner, Jonah. "Tila Tequila, the first star of MySpace.", Slate. April 11, 2006. Retrieved January 14, 2009.
  3. ^ a b c d Bozell, L. Brent III (2007-11-30). "Tila Tequila, MTV's Latest Poison". Media Research Center. Retrieved 2008-01-05.
  4. ^ a b c Brown, Marisa. "Biography". Tila Tequila. Allmusic. Retrieved 2008-07-17.
  5. ^ a b c "Full Biography". A Shot At Love 2 With Tila Tequila. MTV.com. Retrieved 2008-07-17.
  6. ^ a b c Nguyen, Tila (2005-11-10). "The Truth About Tila". Tila's Hotspot. Retrieved 2008-07-17, using the Wayback Machine. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  7. ^ "Up Close & Personal: Tila Nguyen". Import Tuner. Interlink Media, LLC. 2006. Retrieved 2008-07-17.
  8. ^ a b Rodriguez, Tyrone (2003-03-13). "SRS Babe of the Week: Tila Nguyen". IGN.com. IGN Entertainment, Inc. Retrieved 2008-07-17.
  9. ^ a b Nguyen, Tila (2006). "Quick Bio". The Official Tila Nguyen Website. Retrieved 2008-07-17. (Retrieved through the Wayback Machine
  10. ^ "FUNKYZEALOT" (2004-07-13). "Hands-On: SRS: Street Racing Syndicate". GamePro.com. IDG Entertainment. Retrieved 2008-07-17.
  11. ^ "Surviving Nugent: Interviews: Tila - Contestant". VH1.com. MTV Networks. Retrieved 2008-07-17.
  12. ^ Glibert, Laura (April 2006). "Enter The Dragon". Stuff. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  13. ^ "Tila Tequila of 2006 Hot 100". Maxim.com. 2006. Retrieved 2008-07-17.
  14. ^ "Her Space". Maxim.com. December 2007. Retrieved 2008-07-17.
  15. ^ "2008 Hot 100", Maxim. Retrieved January 22, 2009.
  16. ^ Staff (2007-03-15). "Tila Tequila Comes Home". IGN.com. IGN Entertainment, Inc. Retrieved 2008-07-17.
  17. ^ Tila Tequila's MySpace Blog
  18. ^ Lafayette, Jon (2007-09-07). "MTV Greenlights Tila Tequila Dating Show, Debuts Oct. 9". TVWeek. Crain Communications Inc. Retrieved 2008-07-17.
  19. ^ Black, Nathan (2007-09-13). "MTV to Air Bisexual Dating Reality Series". The Christian Post. Retrieved 2008-07-17.
  20. ^ Black, Nathan (2007-10-02). "MySpace 'Queen' Tila Tequila: I Made Amends with God". The Christian Post. Retrieved 2008-07-17.
  21. ^ Shin, Elise (2008-07-03). "Tila: Happily-Never-After III". AsianWeek.com. AsianWeek. Retrieved 2008-07-17.
  22. ^ Shot at Love 3 Casting
  23. ^ Tila's Hot Spot News
  24. ^ Tila Tequila - Robbed, Hacked, Stalked, and Scared
  25. ^ Nguyen, Tila (2001-07-16). "Tila's Hot Spot". Retrieved 2008-07-17. (Retrieved through the Wayback Machine)
  26. ^ Nguyen, Tila (2004-06-10). "The Official Tila Tequila Website". Retrieved 2008-07-17. (Retrieved from the Wayback Machine.)
  27. ^ Nguyen, Tila. "The Official Tila Tequila Website". Retrieved 2008-07-17.
  28. ^ Nguyen, Tila (2007-01-03). "Tila's Hot Spot Membership". Retrieved 2008-07-17. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link)
  29. ^ Chowdhry, Amit (2008-04-05). "Pop Culture Media Community, Buzznet Acquires Stereogum Music Blog". Pulse 2.0. Retrieved 2008-07-17.
  30. ^ a b Nguyen, Tila. "Wayback Machine historical cache of The Tila Fashion Website". Retrieved from the Wayback Machine on September 6, 2007. Cite error: The named reference "TilasFashionhistory" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  31. ^ Nguyen, Tila. "Wayback Machine historical cache of The TilaZone Website". Retrieved from the Wayback Machine on September 6, 2007.
  32. ^ Nguyen, Tila. "The Official TilaZone Website". Retrieved on September 6, 2007.
  33. ^ a b MusicBlob (July 27, 2007). "What happened to Tila Tequila?". MusicBlob. Retrieved July 27, 2007.
  34. ^ Tila's Official Twitter Page (Private)
  35. ^ "Tila Tequila Gets a Little Help From Her 'Stripper Friends'", Popeater. Retrieved November 14, 2008.
  36. ^ Tila's Hot Spot News
  37. ^ Tila's Hot Spot News
  38. ^ "TILA'S MUSIC UPDATE!!!!!"
  39. ^ Tila's Official Twitter Page (Priavte)
  40. ^ "Scribner Signs Internet Celeb Tila Tequila", Publishers Weekly. Retrieved December 3, 2008.
  41. ^ "Talking to Tila Tequila About 'Hooking Up'", MSN TV. Retrieved December 3, 2008.
  42. ^ Tila Tequila. The Soup Awards: Entertainer of The Year Award (YouTube). The Soup Awards. Event occurs at 0:54. Retrieved 2008-11-14. The Soup's Entertainer of The Year! Tila Tequila! {{cite AV media}}: Unknown parameter |date2= ignored (help)
  43. ^ Barnes, Marcus (2008-06-01). "It's Miller time at Spike awards". The Sun. Retrieved 2008-11-06.
  44. ^ Tila Tequila. Hulu - 2008 A-List Awards: Tila Tequila. Hulu. Event occurs at 1:11. Retrieved 2008-12-21. I won the Drama Queen Awards! You know, there's actually, uh, a lot of good contenders up there, so the fact that I won is awesome! I didn't realize I was that dramatic. {{cite AV media}}: Unknown parameter |date2= ignored (help)
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