NEW YORK (CNN) -- When singer-pianist Peter Cincotti showed up to speak to CNN in 2004, he was fresh-faced and impeccably dressed in a suit and shiny shoes.

Peter Cincotti rose to fame as a jazz pianist. His new album features pop songs.

Seated at a piano, and under the watchful eye of his very sweet mother Cynthia, Cincotti performed the standard "How High the Moon," showing off piano skills you'd expect from someone far beyond his 21 years.

His debut album had just topped the Billboard traditional jazz chart -- the youngest artist to claim such a feat.

Now 25, Cincotti is still fresh-faced, but he sings to a very different tune. Looking trendy in a fitted sweater, his hair a little looser, his personality more playful -- mom didn't come to this interview -- Peter has gone pop.

"He's this great jazz pianist," says producer David Foster, who worked on Cincotti's new album. "And he just turned the whole thing 180 and wrote these incredible pop songs."

To Cincotti, whose pop debut "East of Angel Town" was released last week on Warner Bros. Records, the switch isn't that big a deal.

"I'm a musician," he says. "I was just playing what I love then, and I'm playing what I love now."  Watch Cincotti do what he loves »

Enlisting Foster to help navigate the transition was crafty: Foster is a 15-time Grammy winner with an undeniable knack for generating pop hits. He also has a reputation for getting his way in the studio. But Cincotti, a native New Yorker, didn't make things easy.

"He's a control freak, too, so we butted heads a lot," says Foster. "And he actually made me come to New York to make the record. And I don't like New York because I'm claustrophobic and I don't dig elevators. But he made me come here for three months. That's how much I loved his music."

Cincotti smiles when he recalls the expletive-ridden voicemail message Foster left him expressing his displeasure over having to vacate his Los Angeles base to work on the project.

"I saved that message," Cincotti says. "It's great."

Cincotti talked to CNN about new beginnings, old influences and playing piano in the fast lane. The following is an edited version of the interview.

CNN: What do you love about pop?

Peter Cincotti: To be honest I don't even categorize (my music) as that. It's just what I'm doing now. This is my first record that I've written everything. It's my first record of original material so the style changed and that's basically what I'm doing right now.

CNN: When a 25-year-old is writing songs, what experiences are you drawing on?

Cincotti: Well, this record is ... kind of like a debut, and I wanted to write about things that I never sang about before in songs. Things that either happened to me, personal experiences. And I didn't want to write a record of "I love you and you love me."

So a lot of the subject matter I think is a bit atypical of what's out there right now ... at least to me.

CNN: You've been playing the piano since you were how old?

Cincotti: I started when I was 3. My grandma bought me this ten-key toy piano, and she taught me how to play "Happy Birthday." It was my third birthday, and I sat down and I never stopped.

CNN: Which pianists have inspired you over the years?

Cincotti: There are so many. I'm still going through phases. I'll just listen to a certain musician. The first guy I remember ... I got my first cassette ... it was a Jerry Lee Lewis tape. I remember I was 5 years old and I went with my uncle to the record
Whom did Native New Yorker insist come to N.Y. to produce? Who is Peter Cincotti? What did Cincotti start doing when he was 3 and who was his influence? Who influenced Cincotti? What kind of music does Cincotti play?
David Foster, singer-pianist Jerry Lee Lewis Jerry Lee Lewis jazz
question: Whom did Native New Yorker insist come to N.Y. to produce?, answer: David Foster, | question: Who is Peter Cincotti?, answer: singer-pianist | question: What did Cincotti start doing when he was 3 and who was his influence?, answer: Jerry Lee Lewis | question: Who influenced Cincotti?, answer: Jerry Lee Lewis | question: What kind of music does Cincotti play?, answer: jazz