Adrienne Frantz

Out of the ashes, Amber Moore survived - and who can claim to be surprised? When the Clear Springs parking structure collapsed - with many Genoa City residents in it, including Amber - can anyone say that they feared for this young Phoenix's life?

"Amber has been in near-death situations so many times," Adrienne Frantz says. "I've never been nervous about what (the writers) are going to do with her. I was so excited about being trapped in a car."

In fact, Adrienne's excitement about the disaster storyline translated well to her doomed character. "When Amber was trapped in the car, between takes I was trying out different things, trying to figure out what I'm gonna do. So, I started making myself cough, almost like she's having an asthma or panic attack. Everyone is setting stuff up and getting ready for the next scene and they hear me and are like: 'Are you OK? Are you OK?' They were all getting so nervous. Then I tried crying, and again, they all thought it was Adrienne crying and not Amber, and they're like, 'Are you sure you're OK?'"

conducive to humour

It wasn't all coughing and crying. Adrienne likes to keep things light and fun when she is filming, and has found that the set of The Young and the Restless is very conducive to humour. "Right before the structure collapses, Amber remembers she has sketches in the car, so she goes out to the garage. Just then, debris and stuff are falling all over her, and it is hard to remember your lines when stuff is flying at you. So I am ad-libbing all over the place, because I can't remember what I am really supposed to say. With Y&R, they are really open to letting me do some comedy - and I have a lot of fun with it."

Another thing Adrienne has been having a lot of fun with lately is her first love, singing. Earlier this month, her debut album, Anomaly, hit the stores, and Adrienne couldn't be more excited - if not a little scared. "This has been a long time coming. I put my heart and soul into this. It's amazing how long the actual process takes. In my mind, I thought you write it, record it, and they release it. But in actuality, it's a huge process. That's why it's so exciting to me that it is actually here."

eclectic

So, what can listeners expect if they pick up a copy of Anomaly? Adrienne tells me: "I really hope people enjoy it. It's not bubble-gum pop - it's a different type of music, unlike anything out there right now."

Fans who are familiar with Adrienne's acting work wouldn't expect anything less than eclectic when they listen to her album. With influences ranging from The Beatles to The Doors, Coldplay and David Bowie, one can expect it to be interesting.

As Adrienne tells me, listeners are in for a surprise. "People aren't expecting it to be good. They are shocked when they listen to it and they actually like it. It's not a contrived, poppy performance. It has depth and soul."

Some of this album's depth comes from Adrienne's experiences and past relationships, most notably her long-term relationship with The Goo-Goo Dolls' frontman Johnny Rzeznik. "Definitely some songs in the album are about him. We were together for seven years, so he has definitely made an impact on my life. I know some of his songs are about me. Sometimes that's exciting, and sometimes you get put off a bit. But we still talk all the time and are still friends."

- Cindy Elavsky