TBT: Paris Hilton's Star Shines Bright

When it comes to Paris Hilton, you either love her or you hate her. Rising to fame for seemingly nothing, in the '00s, Hilton was a fixture on red carpets, club openings, and the covers of celebrity rags. However, in 2005, the heiress changed all that when she graduated from reality TV to the big screen in her first major film role in the House of Wax and began working on her first album.

Standing on her own two feet, Hilton was taking charge of her career while challenging her detractors, including Michael Musto, to come after for her work -- not for being famous.

When Musto sat down with the starlet in 2006, it was all about the music. Her first single, "Stars Are Blind," was released the same month she graced the cover of Out magazine. The breezy song became an unexpected contender for song of the summer and the album as a whole won Musto (and fans) over.

"The CD (untitled at press time) is everything it should be: light, gossipy, sexy, danceable, and just a tiny bit trashy," Musto wrote (full issue here). "It's pretty much what you'd expect from the all-media It Girl but done to the nth degree with the help of golden boy songwriter-producer Scott Storch, who's worked with Justin Timberlake, 50 Cent, and Beyonce."

Suddenly "hot" wasn't a word spouted by Hilton, it had meaning. She was heating up the charts and making everyone reevaluate their idea of whom she was.

EXCLUSIVE SLIDESHOW | Paris Hilton Defines Hot

Eight years later, Hilton is back with a new music. In May of 2013, she signed with Cash Money Records, the home of rappers Birdman and Lil Wayne, and went to work on her sophomore album. While fans wait for her second effort, Hilton gave fans a taste of her new sound. Released in July, "Come Alive" is a breezy, EDM-influenced pop record paired with a Lisa Frank-inspired music video.

Now that's hot.