90210’s Jessica Lowndes Talks Singing, Theft, Adrianna-Navid and Season 3

90210’s Adrianna has gone through a lot in the two-plus seasons we’ve known her: a teen pregnancy, drug addiction, rehab, an engagement, experimentation with her sexuality, a fading acting career, a burgeoning singing career and now she’s a YouTube sensation who stole a song from a dead dude.

So what’s next? Give Me My Remote recently chatted with Jessica Lowndes (Adrianna) to get the scoop on the fallout from stealing Javier’s song and how Ade will be dealing with her relationships with Navid, Teddy and Naomi…

I have to say, your singing was amazing in the last episode.
Jessica Lowndes: Oh my gosh, thank you so much. It’s definitely been really fun, because over hiatus I was recording an album and here [on 90210] I get to do both of my loves and both of my passions: I get to sing and act. It’s been great.

Will we be seeing a lot more of you singing on the show?
JL: There will be a lot more singing. We saw in the first episode, [Adrianna] make a very bad decision — I think from episode one of season 1, you saw that she has the capability of stealing, she stole her best friend’s purse — She has been under a lot of pressure from her mom to get back on top. She’s this washed-up child star and she is craving that fame and that attention and what she calls love and she almost has it at the end of season 2 and the beginning of season 3, and it’s slipping through her fingers and so in that desperation, she makes obviously a very bad decision and she knows it’s a bad decision and there is this whirlwind of things to unravel and consequences to follow. She’s living with this lie hanging over her head and it keeps getting heavier. And you have Navid saying it’s the best song she’s ever written and he didn’t like her old music and she’s a YouTube sensation and the label is laying down her first single, and now you also have Victor, Javier’s uncle/manager, who knows the truth. And he’s definitely going to be this presence in her life. And he’s definitely conniving. There might be a little bit of blackmail in that whole thing and it’s definitely going to be this fine line of her dreams and everything she wants and kind of this obsession with fame and trying to stay true to herself and integrity and I think the line gets a little blurry and she doesn’t see as clearly.

But yeah, there’s definitely going to be a lot more singing, which has been fun. I actually go to record a song for the show after this interview. It’s great. And it’s kind of crazy though, because over hiatus I’d been working with music producers everywhere — New York and London and all over L.A. — and it’s very much like the Javier-Adrianna storyline pre-earthquake, before the chaos happened, because I collaborated with this hip-hop artist named Ironik, who ended up — this is crazy — he ended up coming upstairs, I had just met him 20 minutes before and he was like, hey, do you want to do a song together? And I said yes, and now it’s the new single off his album which comes out in the UK October 25th. So it’s fun.

If she has to steal something, at least she’s stealing something new this time… at least she’s not back on drugs…
JL: Exactly! [Laughs] And it’s definitely going to be a very, very exciting season.

Do you think Adrianna will be able to overcome stealing Javier’s song? She does have talent, so maybe she can minimize the damage when this eventually blows up.
JL: I think she’s capable of doing that and I think she is somebody who at the end of the day is very responsible. She takes responsibility for her actions. You saw that in season 1 — she kicked a drug habit, she stayed in school, she announced to the whole school she was pregnant. Last year, she didn’t care what anyone thought about her relationship with Gia, she knew she was going through this and this was how she felt, this is who she is and “Look, I’m holding your hand walking down the hallway.” She’s somebody who hopefully will be doing the right thing [eventually]. But I think there’s going to be a lot of her justifying her reasons too  — it’s her voice, it doesn’t matter who wrote it, and that whole thing. You’re going to end up hearing a whole lot of that.

As an actress, would you rather she comes clean on her own or would you rather someone she cares about find out?
JL: Either way. Whatever is true to the story. See, I’m already on episode 9, so I have to be careful with what I say! People are going to find out and it’s going to be interesting to see their reactions to things, but it’s also going to be very hard because Navid and her are dating and he is in high school and he is going through really emotional changes — there is something very crazy going on in his life — [while] Adrianna is in her own little bubble, her own little world there, so she’s not really there for him. So that’s definitely going to play a role in the whole thing. And now you have this Victor character who is making her life hell. I think the hardest thing as an actress is to try and find a balance, because she’s making bad decisions, but she is really likable and I think drama is just following her everywhere she goes. She’s not a bad person, she’s just made a really bad choice, which I don’t obviously condone.

Speaking of Navid, we haven’t seen a whole lot of his relationship with Adrianna this season. Are they solid as a couple in what you’ve filmed so far?
JL: I think it’s definitely going to be hard to keep a relationship when one is in high school and one is pursuing her music career and caught up in a whole whirlwind of lies. But I don’t know. At the end of the day, I don’t think anyone can truly compete with their history. They’ve gone through so much together and they love each other. I always say they’re kind of like the Ross and Rachel of 90210. I don’t know! I kind of never know who my love interest is going to be, but I do love Navid and Adrianna together.

Very cool. There has been some tension with Adrianna and Naomi this season, in part thanks to Naomi’s erratic post-rape behavior. Since Adrianna learns the truth in tonight’s episode, what can you tease about that?
JL: The show has done a really good job of establishing the friendship between the girls. In season 1, everyone was kind of doing their own thing, but in season 2, you got a good sense of how close these people were. I know when I was in high school, [my] girlfriends [were] there for everything. So [our characters] are all going to team together and we’re all going to help her.

Will there be any apologies because of the misunderstood behavior? Or will it just be implied?
JL: Yeah, I think once it’s revealed, all the little petty things just got away because it’s such a huge thing. I think we just go into being there for her mode. That’s just our focus: how do we fix this? How do we get this guy behind bars?

Glad to hear that Adrianna will be there for Naomi. Will she also be there for Teddy as he deals with coming out?
JL: Well, she did lose her virginity to him. It’s definitely going to come out. We haven’t filmed that yet, so I can’t wait for everyone’s response to it. But I feel like Adrianna out of everyone will be very understanding. And that’s just me, not even knowing what the script is. But I feel like she’d be understanding because she’s gone there herself — last year — and she didn’t want people to judge her and she was fearful of it. I think we even saw it last week when we saw her encouraging Annie to kiss her boss. [Laughs] “Do it once, see if you like it!” Her mentality has totally changed.

Do you think that might renew the Adrianna-Teddy friendship?
JL: Yes, I think that’s something they can relate on.

Is there anything else you want to tease for fans?
JL: Oh, so much. I have to think what I’m allowed to say. I think you’re going to see her fall into this crazy lifestyle and how that plays a role in her life. And more music and more craziness which I can’t wait for people to see. I’m excited for the Victor aspect — he’s definitely going to be a big part of it.

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