TORONTO -- Deborah Cox is a woman on the run.
It's not that Canada's one-and-only R&B diva is in trouble -- far from it. But Cox's second album, One Wish, has just hit stores and with it has come a punishing schedule of promotion and perfomances, hurdles Cox has to jump to get the word out about her new disc.
"It is a little intense," Cox said recently, minutes after arriving for a whirlwind publicity tour in her home town.
That's putting it mildly.
The 25-year-old singer's day begins at 5 a.m. in New York, leaving just enough time to make it to a flight that will land her in Toronto four hours later.
A long black stretch limo waits for Cox outside the terminal and though it might be a symbol of wealth and luxury, today it's nothing more than a portable office where Cox and representatives from her record label can plan and execute the day's business.
And business is good. The first single from One Wish, Nobody's Supposed to be Here, has just reached No. 2 on Billboard magazine's prestigious U.S. top 100 singles chart.
It makes the brutal schedule worthwhile says Cox, looking surprisingly fresh despite the early hour. But as happy as she is with success, Cox says she's acutely aware what it means to be the first Canadian R&B singer with star stature.
"You've got to pave the way and you're the one who has to go through all the struggles to free everybody else who's coming up behind you," says Cox.
"Being the only black Canadian female to have this kind of success I think has really made a lot of black Canadian women feel very very proud. I understand the position that I'm in now, I am a role model and people are watching everything I do and I don't mind taking on that responsibility."
After the first interview of the day -- conducted by cell phone from the car -- the limo's a great place for a quick nap.
She needs it, because after performing at a New York club until the wee hours the night before, Cox hasn't had a lot of sleep and won't get another chance for a long time.
In a few minutes, the limo will pull up to a radio station where Cox will be interviewed. By the time she's done, it's 11 a.m. and time to move on, because there are two more to do across town before she's scheduled to arrive at a Roots clothing store to pick out some clothing for a live outdoor appearance on MuchMusic's Electric Circus dance party. Along the way, lunch is a burger in the car.
Cox, who now lives in Los Angeles, hopes her accomplishments will encourage other Canadian urban music artists to reach for success. She knows it's not easy -- the urban music scene here is small and underdeveloped.
"It's a lot better now than when I was growing up," she says between bites of burger.
"But I don't feel like it's growing fast enough. So I feel anxious, I want things to change and I want to see more results. I didn't have anybody Canadian to look to. For R&B music you still have to go to the United States.
"It's sad and it can be very very discouraging because you work so hard and you want to be embraced by your own. Sometimes you've got to get love from somewhere else to get love at home."
By the time the sun has set, Cox is standing on an outdoor stage in the freezing cold, doing a sound check for the MuchMuch music taping.
It's 6:30 p.m. and the evening will be just as busy: the MuchMusic cameras roll at 9 p.m. and she isn't scheduled to go on stage at the nightclub until midnight.
Confident and professional, Cox remains poised and smiling throughout the daylong ordeal. Every hour she spends raising her own profile she imagines another door opening for Canadian artists.
"I've never ever lost sight of where I'm going and who I am. I'm a very simple person and simple things make me happy," says Cox.
"The cool thing about what's happening is that it's raising awareness: people are starting to open their minds and really listen to Canadian urban talent -- whether rap, hip hop or R&B -- and starting to really understand what I've been talking about for the past few years.
"There's no reason why this country can't have an established urban presence like there is in the U.S."
Some facts about R&B singer Deborah Cox:
Born: Toronto, 1974
Albums: Deborah Cox (Arista) 1996, One Wish (Arista) 1998
Producers on One Wish: DJ Quik, Steven (Stevie J) Jordan from Bad Boy Entertainment, Kay Gee from Naughty By Nature, David Foster, Anthony (Shep) Crawford.
Quote:"Being the only black Canadian female to have this kind of success I think has really made a lot of black Canadian women feel very very proud. I understand the position that I'm in now, I am a role model and people are watching everything I do and I don't mind taking on that responsibility."
