Universal Music Group Still Pouring Money Into Nicole Scherzinger’s “Solo” Career

And no, this isn’t an April Fool: The Pussycat Dolls‘ underperforming Doll Domination (it’s shifted 314,000 units as of this writing) is being re-released later this month in (sigh) “2.0” form, which basically means that the girl group’s cash-in tracks from The City and Slumdog Millionaire will be tacked on to the album, and the whole package will be re-presented to Americans in the hopes that they might actually care. (Cough.) Of course, lead Doll Nicole Scherzinger took the opportunity presented by the album’s reissue and ran with it in an even more self-promotional way:

“I’m still working on my album, and I’m very excited. I’m a relentless perfectionist. I get one chance to put out a first (solo) album, so when the right time comes I will put it out.”

Scherzinger has been working on the album, tentatively titled “My Name is Nicole,” since 2006. She’s released several singles — “Whatever U Like,” “Baby Love,” “Puakenikeni” and “Supervillian” — while several of the other songs considered for the project turned up on the Dolls’ 2008 released “Doll Domination.” The current incarnation of the album, she says, “is just in the works and in talks and in the writing process. I haven’t started recording yet.” She hopes to hit the studio in the summer, after the Dolls finish their run opening for Britney Spears and then tour Europe again.

“I’ll be excited to get back with old friends — will.i.am., Timbaland,” says Scherzinger. She also plans to work with good pal Lady Gaga and hopes to continue a new association with Academy Award-winning Indian composer A.R. Rahman, who collaborated with Scherzinger and the Dolls on an English version of his “Slumdog Millionaire” track “Jai Ho!,” now subtitled “You Are My Destiny,” which peaked at No. 15 on the Billboard Hot 100.

I guess now that Scherzinger is a “celebrity” in Europe thanks to her dating a guy who’s pretty OK at making left turns, Universal figured that people might actually remember her name a bit better than they did two years ago?

Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger Talks Solo Album, “Doll Domination 2.0” [Billboard]