Ex-NIGHTWISH Singer Says She Will Keep Some Elements Of Heavy Metal In Solo Career

A 90-minute video of former NIGHTWISH frontwoman Tarja Turunen's press conference — held in Helsinki, Finland earlier today (November 11) — to discuss her split from the group and her future plans, has been posted online at this location (NOTE: The press conference was conducted in Finnish).

A NIGHTWISH fan by the name of "Niko" (from the group's official forum) has posted the following summary of the things Turunen said during the press conference:

* Tarja doesn't think that business is "necessary evil." Instead she thinks that getting money is a good thing. She reminds that the band shares all the money equally and no band member has funded his part to charity. She also says that if she had preferred money over music she would have accepted to [make guest appearances with] all those heavy bands who have asked her to do so.

* Tarja says about the things she said in an airplane (that she could leave NIGHTWISH at any time, giving them only one day’s warning in advance) that she was angry and didn't really mean that she would do so. She said that any band member could leave the band at any time. But she gave the band two and half year's warning in advance (meaning she had already told them to leave the band after the next album and tour).

* Tarja says that the reason she never came to rehearsals before recording was that the band had worked that way since the beginning and no one had asked her to come practice. Instead she had practised the songs at home with the demo tape. About flying, she says she preferred flying because she couldn't sleep well in the bus.

* Tarja says she never underestimated fans. About the Oslo gig, she says, she was informed about the concert after it was already sold out and she had already made other plans. She said she has to rest enough or she loses her voice. She [points out] that the gig was not cancelled and Norwegian fans are as important to her as any other fans.

* Tarja doesn't understand why the band blames [her husband] Marcelo. She says that all band members had an own technician helping with the instruments. Her "technician" was Marcelo who, for example, often arranged her private room where she could change her clothes during the concert.

* Tarja is still very sad about the way she was fired. She starts to cry when she is talking about that.

* In the future Tarja is going to start her solo career and she is going to keep some elements of heavy metal in her music. She also said she will be interested about the next NIGHTWISH album and she may even go to watch some of their gigs.

Turunen is scheduled to meet with the English-speaking press on Monday, November 14 in Berlin, Germany to discuss her split with the group and her future plans.