Tulisa Contostavlos has claimed she has turned down working with top US producers because she wants to stay true to her UK urban roots.
The former N-Dubz star did a lot of work for her debut solo album The Female Boss in the US only to see it flop. She told the Daily Star she has had a rethink about what direction she wants to go in with her music.
Tulisa said: "I've been offered the opportunity to go back to the US and work with massive producers, but I said no as I want to be more urban. I've been saying to ground-level UK writers: 'Send me beats.'
"And I won't guest on anyone else's records for the foreseeable future. I want to conjure up my own hits first."
She added: "I'm going to make a few singles soon, and I want to take my sound back to basics. I want to just make songs that I really love from now on.
"My first single Young got to No 1, and that's because it was a very UK-sounding track - and I realise now that's what the fans want."
And the 24-year-old admitted she missed working with her N-Dubz bandmates, cousin Dappy and ex-boyfriend Fazer.
She said: "I do miss them on tour, and doing my own album made me appreciate them more. I'm very aware on stage that they're not turning up to save me, so it's down to me to rock it up on my own.
"N-Dubz is my comfort zone, but we need this couple of years apart to get our solo albums out of our system."
