Christina Aguilera: Max Motivates Me To Play & Have Fun

Christina Aguilera, known for her soaring vocals, is set to release a new album entitled Bionic in March. The 29-year-old mother of Max - who will celebrate his second birthday next Tuesday - covers the February issue of Marie Claire and says her fourth studio album "is about the future" and credits her adorable tot for the uplifting and playful lyrics.

On how motherhood has inspired her music: “I had a really hard time being light before. I’d get a little weird about it being too cliché. My first record was very clichéd pop - what everyone else wanted. [My second album Stripped] inspired by a lot of pain. [My third, Back to Basics,] /still had some sort of relation to my past. [My new album] is just about the future - my son in my life, motivating me to want to play and have fun.”

On maturing in the entertainment industry: “In this crazy business, it’s so easy to build up a lot of walls and a lot of bitterness. And it’s just no way to be… “[I can now use softer tones] that maybe I’ve been afraid to do in the past, to allow myself to go to a place of ‘less singing.’ I’m more vulnerable and more strong at the same time.”

Christina will make her big-screen debut in the movie musical Burlesque which hits theaters in November.