Six months ago, pop star Jessica Simpson asked her husband, singer Nick Lachey, for a divorce after only three years of marriage. He worked through the breakup by writing songs for his second solo album. VOA's Mary Morningstar has this report on Nick Lachey's musical comeback, What's Left Of Me.
"I Can't Hate You Anymore" is one of several tracks on Nick Lachey's new album that deal with his recent separation from wife Jessica Simpson. Nick co-wrote eight of the 12 songs, which, he says, helped him work through his emotional pain.
"I think it's important when you go through something like this, or any kind of struggle in your life, to talk through those things in your own head, and get those feelings and emotions out and expressed," Lachey said. "And, for me, writing these songs and doing this album was very much a therapeutic experience."
Not all of the songs on What's Left Of Me deal with despair. He also recorded a few tracks that reveal his readiness to move on with his life and career. In addition to the commercial success of the album, several sources report that Nick is back in the dating game with MTV's Vanessa Minnillo. He sings about hope for a happy future in a track, called "Outside Looking In."
"I've always been one to kind of rise to the challenge I think, and, for me, this album, this opportunity to kind of invest myself in my work was a real blessing for me," Lachey says. "So, that's where I'm at. Just working away and working hard."
What's Left Of Me made an impressive debut on the Billboard 200 Albums chart at Number 2, and was recently certified gold for selling 500,000 copies in the U.S. Nick's 2004 solo album, SoulO, received little attention despite his popularity as a former member of the pop boy band 98 Degrees. Although he's currently busy promoting his new solo record, Nick isn't ruling out a 98 Degrees reunion.
