You don’t usually think dance music when you think of Heart, but apparently one record exec in the ’80s hoped to change that.
Heart’s Ann Wilson chats with pop star Chappell Roan and indie artist Lucy Dacus on the latest episode of her After Dinner Thinks with Ann Wilson podcast, revealing that the exec in question took a surprising step to get her and sister Nancy Wilson moving onstage.
Looking back at her career, Ann says that when it comes to performing she’s “always kinda struggled against the idea that it be a rehearsed act,” noting that in the ’80s “that was at an all-time high.”
She then offered up an example, sharing, “You know, one time we were getting ready to go out on tour and somebody at the record company had this big bright idea to send Paula Abdul in to teach us dance moves.” She said the goal was for them to dance in synchronicity “like Prince and the Revolution.”
“It obviously didn’t work,” Ann quipped. “But that was the pinnacle of what I’ve always felt was wrong.” She noted that adding choreography to a show “would make me disinterested right off the bat. I’m done.”
Heart, without those dance moves, did pretty well and is still touring to this day. They kick off a new tour, An Evening With Heart, on May 31 in Atlantic City, New Jersey. A complete list of dates can be found at Heart-Music.com.
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