LAS VEGAS - Fergie is excited about adding the role of a prostitute to her acting portfolio.

The Grammy-winning singer has been cast as Saraghina in "Nine," a big-screen adaptation of the Tony-winning musical. She will perform the saucy song "Be Italian" with Guido, played by Daniel Day-Lewis.

"She's basically a prostitute on the beach," Fergie told The Associated Press in an interview. "She introduces him to the world of sexuality. It's a very strong song. I'm just thrilled I get to play a character. I'm singing, but I'm not singing as myself. I'm going to be singing as a character, and that's what's really exciting to me."

Fergie, 33, joins Day-Lewis, Marion+Cotillard">Marion Cotillard, Penelope Cruz, Nicole Kidman, Judi Dench and Kate Hudson in "Nine," directed by Rob Marshall ("Chicago"). Filming is set to begin in October. Fergie, whose real name is Stacy Ann Ferguson, had minor roles in the "Poseidon" and "Grindhouse" movies.

"I'm speechless," she said of the opportunity to work with the film's A-list talent. "I'm definitely going to be a sponge on set. I want to pick up on everything that all these brilliant actors are bringing to the table. I'm probably going to be the quietest that I've ever been while working just because I want to watch and learn."

She was in Las Vegas on Monday to debut her two new shoe lines at the World Shoe Association show in the Las Vegas Convention Center.

Fergie, who released her hit-packed solo album "The Duchess" in 2006, said she's now in the studio working on a new album with the Black Eyed Peas, their first new record since 2005's "Monkey Business."

"It's a new sound," she said. "We're going into the future. We're not doing the same old thing. We're not trying to copy what's out there on the radio. We're being artistic and pushing the envelope."

Source: AP