Need Ideas for a Photoshoot

[stval]

I'm a photography student, studying to be a studio portrait photographer. I've got a photoshoot with a friend who is a singer who is needing photos for their album, and just for general publicity. I'm familiar with working in the studio, and lighting techniques, so I'm just looking for concept ideas for a unique shoot.

She is an R&B/hip hop singer, she describes her style as similair to Rihanna, so I've been looking at photos of her. This is her first album, and she says it's a story of her journey through her life so far, so that's a theme she's wants to work into the shoot. That's the bit I've been struggling to think of ideas for.

In terms of equipment, I am a little limited. I have a decent 3 light strobe kit, with soft boxes, umbrellas, reflectors, filters, barn doors etc. I only have a white background, and it is kinda narrow which can be irritating. It's not an actual background, but a large sheet of laminated sign printing paper.

Here's some of her music Mariloe's sounds on SoundCloud - Create, record and share your sounds for free

Here's some of my studio work, so you can see my style of photography Ian Erasmus Photography | Facebook

And these are a couple of the Rihanna photos I was looking at. I like the style, but they are a bit over-sexualised for what I am doing.

http://www.ultimate-rihanna.com/gallery/thumbnails.php?album=257
http://www.ultimate-rihanna.com/gallery/thumbnails.php?album=1202
http://www.ultimate-rihanna.com/gallery/thumbnails.php?album=2391

Thanks in advance for any ideas. I'm aiming to get into this sort of photography as a career, so this could be an important stepping stone for me.
Cheers
Ian

TPF doesn't let us post the same exact thing in multiple forum sections. - http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/faq.php

 

[tirediron]

My first thought, based on her gendre and the indicated style is, GET THE **** out of the studio. This is outdoor stuff, back alleys, abandoned buildings, small houses with over-grown front lawns, that sort of thing. You're never going to show someone's journey through life in a studio environment.