Smoky-voiced and recently minted as "Buzzworthy," Kina may seem like the new kid on the R&B-rock block, but she's already paid her dues. Fresh out of college in the mid-'90s, she suddenly found herself singing in the already-established female trio Brownstone; when that group parted ways, Kina's passion to perform was whetted. Her next task was to be taken seriously as a songwriter, a solo performer, an artist. That wasn't quite as easy.

Kina poured those frustrations into her breakout single, "Girl From The Gutter," as well as many of the other tracks found on her funky, frisky, and lyrically forward debut, "Kina," due out from DreamWorks on July 18. Recalling the likes of Joni Mitchell and Alanis Morissette as easily as her more progressive R&B peers, Kina eschews the processed cheese that often settles for production and lets her raw rhythm section and a truckload of guitars help her do the talking.

"U don't know me or my situation," Kina insists on her LP, but MTV News' Elon Johnson got the chance to sit down with the charming Ms. Cosper and find out about her influences, her tribulations and triumphs in the business, and her feelings about everything from being lumped in with other female singers to how the world needs another Earth, Wind & Fire. Check it out.

MTV: How did you get started in the music business?

Kina: I think that the music business sort of found me. I was a closet singer, singing in the mirror. I was home from college, and a friend talked me into moving to L.A. to join a group that I was in for two days, nine years ago. That's kind of how I started.

MTV: When did you meet up with Brownstone?

Kina: Well, Nicci from Brownstone is the person who talked me into coming to California nine years ago. We were friends; we went to college together. Before I was actually in the group, we did a lot of stuff together, and when I replaced Mimi [in Brownstone], it was just a natural thing to do.

MTV: How was the experience with Brownstone?

Kina: The experience with Brownstone was a good learning experience. I learned what to do and not to do. I toured a lot, and I think it definitely helped prepare me for this one.

I left Brownstone in November of '97 and I started this project in February of '98. I was just cultivating the whole sound. I wanted energy. I didn't necessarily want to go in a rock direction, but I needed the energy, and the guitars brought the energy.

MTV: With your single "Girl From The Gutter," there's this kind of big, bold, pissed-off announcement, like Alanis Morissette made when she hit radio with "You Oughta Know." What fueled you to write that deeply personal song?

Kina: I wrote the song about some years of feeling unfulfilled as an artist. I wrote about being underestimated in this industry, and it was definitely a song that I wrote to say, "I'm gonna show you." I may go through that again in life, you know. That was just one time.

MTV: Do you really consider yourself a girl from the gutter?

Kina: Definitely. It's kind of for anybody who's been the underdog, be it a relationship, work, or in a situation I was in. I think that everyone can kind of relate to maybe not being from the gutter, but the idea of what I'm talking about.

MTV: What was it like working on the "Girl From The Gutter" video with Paul Hunter?

Kina: The making of the video was cold. The making of the video, it was great. A lot of walking. I worked with Paul before, with Brownstone. So it was great this time. He got my vision and I got his, so it was great to see the finished product.