Just keep quiet about it, or Courtney Love might start singing again. (Photo by Scott Harrison | Retna)

Where were you when you heard “Don’t Cha” a couple summers ago? Yeah, pretty much everywhere. That song was as inescapable as calls about exciting offers from Visa at dinnertime, but it pretty much encapsulated everything we all needed to know about the Pussycat Dolls: Dance grooves and women cooing seductively.

The formula is simple: Put five chicks in mostly trashy costumes to get the guys’ attention, then deliver hooky pop songs that get the girls on the floor. It worked well enough to move about 7 million units worldwide and got the Dolls a branded TV show and proprietary lounge at Pure.

It hasn’t been entirely sweetness and light. No. 2 vocalist Melody Thornton was seemingly unhappy with her role in the band and head Doll Nicole Scherzinger’s solo album suffered a number of setbacks.

Still, 7 million records is 7 million records, and that — plus opening for Britney Spears on her Circus tour — ensures you get your fair share of the spotlight. The Dolls play The Pearl at the Palms Saturday at 10 p.m. Tickets are $54. We talked to Scherzinger about the future of pop, her relationship with Chris Brown and Rihanna, and how the Dolls are like KISS for girls.

Are Vegas shows a little more special to you guys with the lounge here and all?

I think it’s cool. It’s like our second home. We feel very comfortable there. I think we feel cool when we come back to Vegas because we have a little piece of our heart there.

The second album came out last year. Have you given any thought to the third yet?

Yeah. I don’t know what the third album is going to be titled. I know that I’m getting back in the studio this summer.

Any idea what you’d be looking at for a release date?

No, not at all. I’d love to have it be this year, though.

How about any of the solo work?

We’ll see. I still feel like I have a free card because I never did put out my first solo album. We’ll see. Everything is about timing. It was wonderful to be able to do Doll Domination and have it be a successful tour. A lot of my solo songs were on that album. I do know that I’m getting back in the studio. I don’t know if it’s going to be for my solo stuff, for the Dolls or both.

How was touring with Britney?

That was great, because we had not been in the U.S. for a few years since our Christina tour. It was wonderful because she’s a successful group internationally, but we always feel like we have to come home and kind of like start all over and earn our stars and stripes. It was wonderful to be given that opportunity. It’s a crazy audience every night; it was sold out. We just rocked out. We had a blast. We just got off our own Doll Domination tour, so we just scaled down our show and just decided to be ourselves and have some fun every night. It was the first time we’ve gotten to work the rounds. We loved that tour. It was a wonderful tour for us because we felt so much love from the audiences. So much love from our shows every night.

After having so much success, was it difficult to go and open for someone else?

No, not at all. I think it’s easier, especially in the U.S. There’s less pressure. All you have to do is try to do your best hits and rock out and make sure everyone else has a good time. If you’re having a good time and put everything into it, then most likely they’ll have a good time. It was a lot of fun to be able to open up for Britney. Especially since she’s been around – her track record and all of her tours. We were on the biggest tour of the year. It was awesome.

How are things going with Melody?

We’re fine.

There wasn’t any tension? Nothing like that?

Let’s just put it this way: I’ve been in this industry for a very long time. For me, I work from my heart. I let my work speak for itself. I can’t control what other people feel, fear or think. I can only support them, and I know who I am. I know who I am as a person and as an artist, so it’s pretty hard to knock me down. It’s pretty hard to get me to fall off the track. I’m pretty stable. I have my mind set on the goal that’s in front of me and how to get there. I just wish support and love for all of my bandmates. All of my bandmates I really sincerely do think they’re wonderfully talented girls. They all come from a good family. It’s natural people will have frustrations. I’ve had many frustrations in my life, but I can’t control what other people do with those frustrations. I can just control what I do. That’s my work and my heart and what I do.

This style of dance pop has been pretty popular now for several years. Where do you think pop music is headed? What’s the next phase?

Gosh, I don’t know. I’m more of an old-school standards girl, to be honest with you. I came from more of a classical, musical, standards background. That’s why I’m fortunate to have such great friends and producers to be around, because they’re always telling me what’s the next coolest thing. Hip-hop was turned into pop, then ‘80s was into pop, and now it’s like dance. I think we’re going to go on this kind of dance pop thing for a while, futuristic sounds, and just intertwine them with hip-hop beats. If I could say the best example for where we could go in the future for what I would wish — and what I would love because of my ethnic background and how I hear music from around the world — “Jai Ho” would be the best version of that. Maybe “Jai Ho” or a dance version of “Jai Ho” because those beats are just so tribal and they go back to the beginning of music. I love that, the international rhythms and beats. I loved where M.I.A. went with her music. Maybe another scale like that, maybe with some ska or reggae thrown into that would be really cool. But I’d love to see music going where I’d love to go with music. But definitely I know we’re all riding the dance wave right now for pop music.

You’ve expressed an admiration for Lady GaGa. How do you see a landscape of GaGa and Britney and the Pussycat Dolls all shaking out together?

I don’t know where I see Britney. I just wish happiness for her and her family. That’s the most important thing. For GaGa, I feel like GaGa will have her own little GaGa planet by then. For the Pussycat Dolls I can only hope for more success. For myself as an artist, I’d like to have touched on some of the music that I just said. Just share the hybrid of music from different worlds of sounds and beats. I feel like I could be a face to represent that kind of music because of my ethnic background. Kind of similar to what M.I.A. has done and what Nelly Furtado kind of touched on that. I love where No Doubt comes from, combining music from these different worlds. I think GaGa is so hugely successful, not only because she’s so inventive and creative and out there, but she still is pop. She’s been able to infuse all these different styles of music and vocals together.

Out here, we had a Mini Lady Gaga — the same girl that did Mini Britney. Will there ever be a Mini Pussycat Dolls?

I would love that. In the towns and countries we’ve been to, they’ve already had little Mini Pussycat Dolls. I just came back from the Philippines. We just did an Asian tour and I felt like everywhere I went was mini Pussycat Dolls. I did a TV show and it was just all about this dance group. Pussycat Dolls dance groups. It just blew my mind because I’m half Filipino, so it was really cool to see all these people everywhere I go all over Asia. It’s really amazing. So yeah, that would be really cool. I’d love to have Mini Nicole Scherzingers running around too.

Was there ever a conscious idea that the Pussycat Dolls would be kind of like the KISS of girl groups, with the costumes and attitudes and all that?

That’s a genius way of thinking about it. I think so. I think we’ve had many inspirations. I know (producers) Jimmy Iovine and Ron Fair are definitely two masterminds behind it. I’ve worked very closely with Ron with the music and Jimmy with the music as well and the imaging for it. I think that he’s definitely had kind of touched on the female version of KISS. What did he say once? “It’s like KISS meets Moulin Rouge,” I think. It’s great because on this last album before I did it I really studied a lot of old Rolling Stones and a lot of old James Brown and Tina Turner. That inspired a lot as well.

You like the Stones?

Yeah. I don’t know them probably as well as you do, but definitely Mick Jagger, his stage presence.

You’re friends with Chris Brown — what was your take with the whole situation?

I’m actually friends with Chris and Rihanna. The music industry is only so big. When I had heard about everything, I was obviously devastated. I just cared so much for Rihanna. People with all the pictures, you only have that to go off of. What can I say, man? Be careful what you wish for or you just might get it, like our song says. People think they know all about this industry and the things that come with it. There is a dark side. We all have a dark side. I can’t pass judgment on anything. I have no idea what that relationship and that love story is all about. But obviously it was very passionate — maybe in a destructive way. It’s hard for me to comment. I just know that I care deeply for both of them and hope that they’re able to in time and with age work through this and work out what they need to within themselves, first and foremost. Forget the relationship, people need to focus on themselves first.

By Jason Scavone

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