It's always cool to be able to get into the mind of music makers and see what influences them. Part of Inside the Circle's goal (ok, my goal) in 2011 is to interview more artists (both indie and mainstream) so that you can meet the people behind the tracks that get your head nodding. To that extent, here's the first interview with recording artist, TINA.

By the way, before we get into this, Inside the Circle is offering TINA's track, "So Good" that features guest vocals from Fat Joe. Head on over there to download it and add it to your collection.

TINA - Born in Mumbai, raised in New Jersey - music has always been an integral part of pop sensation TINA’s life. Singing and performing since 5 years old, she had an early start with a very musical family who toured as a professional group on weekends.

Like many breaking artists who are likened to their successors, TINA often gets compared to Nicole Scherzinger of the Pussycat Dolls, as well as mega talents Prince and Shakira because of her multi talent ability to sing, dance and play multiple instruments. She plays several instruments with guitar and tabla (an Indian drum) being her main focus.

Who are your main musical influences? 

My family was my biggest influence, as they were the reason I started performing professionally at five years old!  While most kids were off with their friends on the weekends, I was off on a musical adventure with my family every weekend. The four of us would sing in seven different South Asian languages and play instruments-and my dad would MC with his hysterical comedy and mimicry.  We would perform everything from ghazals to Bhangra to Garba to Sindhi Ladaas to Bollywood soundtrack songs and much, much more. Although, during the week with my friends at school, I would listen to everything from soft rock, pop, heavy metal, and urban music.  (So my musical influences besides my family are way too many to name!) Basically, if you stood in the center of my house, you would hear absolute musical chaos since all four of us would always be singing four totally different songs all day! So I would have to say, being trained organically by hearing the voices of my family was my strongest influence.

Do you support any specific charities and/or how do you give back as an artist?

One of my main career goals is to gain a massive fan base in order to start my own biannual cancer charity.  I am involved with several charities currently, and always have an upcoming charitable event. I just performed at a toy drive, and I have an upcoming show to help fight cancer with the girls of “Jerseylicious”, (which is The Style Network’s Hit show that I was recently featured on!) The more my successs grows, the more I can give back-and that’s really what it’s all about for me.[Soft Break][Soft Break]

What advice would you give aspiring singers?

I would advise balance. Get out there and work your tail off and do it all! I got an honors degree in Biology and a record deal at the same time by just implementing a great amount of focus, discipline, and drive, and I feel that balance is a beautiful thing to have in order to accomplish it all. I would also advise living the way my mom lived every single day of her life, which is to “see the good-and ONLY the good in everything and everyone” since there are a ton of heartbreaks in this industry no matter who you are or how talented you are. What’s the point of dwelling on the negative anyway? Life’s too short for that-and negativity is completely futile anyway! 

Musically, who are you listening to nowadays?

Oh my god, if I could just merely listen to music for fun, that would be amazing! My life for the past year creatively has been all about vocal rehearsal, playing instruments, writing, and analyzing songs-and then the business side is appearances, media, performances, business-related strategy calls with everyone on my team, social networking, etc. Ironically, I’m in the “music” business, but I really miss listening to music! 

What do you do in your spare time (away from the tours/recording)?

I am more driven this year then I’ve ever been. It’s exciting but it also means working 24/7, just non-stop, and cutting my sleep in half.  So “spare time” is not a concept that I encounter very often, but I will say an occasional “jack on the rocks” and watching sports makes me happy!

If you could collaborate with one artist (past/present) who would it be? Why?

Right now I would say  Ludacris, (but that might be because I just opened for him in Atlanta-and his incredibly fun performance is still lingering in my head!) Actually, there are way to many artists to name! I grew up playing rock music on my guitar, and dancing to urban music, and then playing tabla and singing all genres and languages of Indian music so I have a myriad of ideas for collabs. 

Social media has been a great tool for artists to connect with fans? How have you been able to take advantage of sites like Twitter, Facebook and Myspace?

It’s so great to able to keep in touch with the people that support you! There are so many incredible people out there that genuinely just want to show you love, and it’s so great that I can show them love right back. I try to write back to as many people as I can on my Twitter,  Facebook, and Youtube, and I am incredibly grateful for all the support. It’s simply amazing.

What was it like working with Fat Joe in the studio?

It was incredbile! Fat Joe is just a loveable, super-friendly, laid-back, sweet guy, and I personally thought he did absolutely killer job on “So Good”! We had a lot of fun together shooting the video for it too! 

What are your musical goals for 2011?

I have so many goals, and suddenly I have so many different avenues to get there-which I am incredibly grateful for! I would say in general, I just want to continue to gather that massive fan base so I can continue to give back to the world in bigger and bigger ways. (I know that’s a very “Miss America” answer, but it’s the truth!)