The Super Bowl Halftime Show has become one of the biggest events in music. Last year, The Weeknd cited his booking at the big game as something that possibly drove The Grammys to snub him for his most successful album to date, After Hours, that’s how important it’s become. This year, the NFL has assembled an all-star crew, tapping Dr. Dre to lead Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Kendrick Lamar and Mary J. Blige. And even though all those veterans on one stage together — or rather, one football field together — is a huge deal, it’s inevitably still Kendrick that’s going to steal the spotlight.
Why? Because fans are starving for new music from the sometimes dubbed “greatest rapper alive,” who hasn’t released much of anything since his electric Damn back in 2017. That’s three years deep into a pandemic with no new bars from Kung Fu Kenny to help us get by. At this point, fans are grabbing onto any hints at all that the SUper Bowl will be a runway ramp for Kendrick’s new album release, and Billboard has got those straws, no matter how flimsy they might be.
Asking fans to vote in an R&B/hip-hop poll about anticipated music yesterday, they dropped these lines in about Kendrick: “sources tell Billboard a Lamar single may arrive on Feb 4. or Feb. 11 before he plays the Super Bowl halftime show.”
I’ll take it! Okay Kendrick, after months of teasing that the new album is done, it’s time to release it.
Last week, Megan Thee Stallion appeared in a Super Bowl ad teaser for Flamin’ Hot Cheetos. It’s the latest brand that she’s partnered with, adding to a list that already included Fashion Nova and Revlon. The full commercial with Megan and Flamin’ Hot Cheetos will debut during the Super Bowl on February 13, but in the first ad teaser, Megan arrives at a video shoot where she is greeted with questions like if she has any pet allergies to cats or dogs. The list of animals grows to include deer, foxes, bears, water buffalo, and more, which signals that this video shoot will be anything but normal.
The weird events continue for Megan in the newly-released second ad teaser for Flamin’ Hot Cheetos. It begins with the rapper walking and enjoying a bag of Flamin’ Hot Cheetos when she arrives at her video shoot trailer. When she attempts to open the door, she realizes it’s locked — which is odd since it’s her own trailer. A mysterious claw then appears to remove Megan’s name from the door before they close and lock the door, leaving Megan absolutely confused at what just happened. However, it doesn’t stop there.
In another video, Charlie Puth is revealed as Megan’s co-star for the Flamin’ Hot Cheetos ad and he has his own peculiar events to deal with while on set at the video shoot. Puth returns to his own trailer to find Cheetos-stained paw prints all over the interior of the trailer. After a brief investigation, Puth discovers an orange feather inside the trailer which serves as helpful evidence towards who the suspect might be.
You can watch Megan and Charlie’s Flamin’ Hot Cheetos teaser ads in the videos above.
Megan Thee Stallion is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
“The Call,” a near-4-minute video helmed by Straight Outta Compton director F. Gary Gray, features each artist getting an important call, prompting them all to head to SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California for the big game. Through the cinematic clip, snippets of the legends’ iconic songs set the stage for the show, as the ad features “Rap God,” “The Next Episode,” “Family Affair,” “Humble,” “Still D.R.E.,” and “California Love.”
Gray says of the video in a statement (via The New York Post), “Each time I collaborate with Dre, it seems to mark an important moment in entertainment history, from projects like Friday, Set It Off, Straight Outta Compton, to now the Pepsi Super Bowl LVI Halftime Show. As a super fan, I consider it an honor and privilege to authentically build and create this moment with five of the most legendary artists in music history.”
Todd Kaplan, VP of Marketing at Pepsi, also said in a statement, “Now that we are just weeks away from the most anticipated Pepsi Super Bowl Halftime Show performance of all time, we’re bringing fans closer to the magic of what will certainly be a colossal moment in pop culture history.”
Megan shared a short preview of the commercial, noting that the full ad will drop during the Super Bowl on February 13. The teaser shows her pulling up to a video shoot and checking in while munching on a bag of Flamin’ Hot Cheetos. The person working there asks her some questions before they get started, like if she has any pet allergies to cats or dogs. Megan answers “no,” but the list of animals gets progressively weirder. She finds out she’ll apparently be working with deer, foxes, bears, water buffalo, and even a sloth — which will surely make for an interesting video. But seeing as Megan has been able to keep a straight face while real-life snakes are wrapped around her body like in her and Cardi B’s “WAP” video, she’s not doubt up for the challenge.
Sharing the teaser clip of Instagram, Megan wrote, “it was only right that after all these years of eating hot chips Thee mf hot girl coach linked up with hot Cheetos.”
Watch Megan’s Flamin’ Hot Cheetos Super Bowl commercial teaser above.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Although it seems strange that 2022 is almost upon us, at least the new year is bringing some good tidings along with it. First and foremost is the stacked lineup for the Super Bowl halftime show, which includes Dr. Dre, Kendrick Lamar, Eminem, Mary J. Blige and the one and only Snoop Dogg. Since Snoop is also on the cusp of releasing his new album, Algorithm, he’s been doing a bit of press. And of course, fans and industry insiders alike want to hear whatever details might be available about the epic show these hip-hop legends have planned.
So during an appearance on SiriusXM’s “New Music & Motivation” special with Roxanne Shante, he got into some details around the Super Bowl that will definitely have some fashionable listeners interested. “What would I want to know about the 2022 halftime show,” he began. “Whatever outfit I’m wearing, I’m gonna be selling online at, at my clothing store the same night. So if ya’ll like, what I wear ya’ll can buy that sh*t the same night… See, I wear a fashion, you know, fashion statements. It’s like, even this suit I got on right now, you can’t find it nowhere. You can only find it here on me.”
Keep an eye out for that Super Bowl offering in early January then!
Janet Jackson’s Super Bowl scandal has become the subject of a new documentary coming soon to Hulu and FX, according to Deadline. After the success of the New York Times documentary Framing Britney Spears, the streamer is taking on the backlash against Jackson in Malfunction: The Dressing Down Of Janet Jackson, launching on November 19 (incidentally, both docs prominently feature Justin Timberlake for his role in both women’s respective downfalls. I don’t know what it says about JT that he was so closely involved in both but it feels a little like he’s gone through his own version of what they went through over the last few years, falling out of public favor as social media became more prevalent.).
For those who don’t remember, during the 2004 Super Bowl halftime show, Janet Jackson joined Justin Timberlake on stage during a performance of his song “Rock Your Body,” ending with Timberlake pulling part of Jackson’s costume off, baring her breast and touching off a national controversy that led to Janet essentially being blackballed by the entertainment industry. The incident coined the infamous term “wardrobe malfunction” and a content crackdown by government and network regulators.
According to Deadline, the film will “examine the racial and cultural currents that collided on the Super Bowl stage, and explores how the incident impacted one of the most successful pop musicians in history.” It will include interviews with some of the producers of the 2004 Super Bowl halftime show, as well as “music industry insiders,” cultural critics, and members of Janet’s famous family.
As the Super Bowl returns to Los Angeles in 2022, some of the city’s brightest stars (and few out-of-town friends) will join forces for a hometown blowout. Dr. Dre has been announced as the performer for the Super Bowl LVI Pepsi Halftime Show — and he’s bringing a squad of his best-known buddies along, including Eminem, Kendrick Lamar, Mary J. Blige, and Snoop Dogg. So far, there’s no word on 50 Cent, but you can probably bet that where Dre and Em are, 50 is likely to come strolling out to the propulsive beat of “In Da Club.”
Securing Dr. Dre as halftime performer is a coup for the NFL, which has caught flak in the past over its musical choices. There were even some grumbles about the 2021 selection of The Weeknd despite his near-universal popularity and the incredible show he eventually put on. Two years before, the NFL was criticized for not including iconic Atlanta performers rather than Maroon 5, so it’s nice that the NFL is acknowledging that Dr. Dre basically is LA. It’s also incredible that he’s doing the show just a year after suffering a brain aneurysm.
Pepsi apparently knew as much, as Todd Kaplan, VP of Marketing, said in the press release. “Artists like Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg were at the forefront of the West Coast hip hop revolution, so to be able to bring them back to LA, where it all began alongside Eminem, Mary J. Blige and Kendrick Lamar will prove to be an epic, unforgettable celebration of the impact hip-hop has today,” he said. “The Pepsi Super Bowl Halftime Show has become a landmark cultural moment, bringing about some of the most iconic performances over the years – from JLo and Shakira to Lady Gaga to The Weeknd – and we are thrilled to bring together such an incredible array of talented, record-breaking musicians to put on a performance for the ages.”
Super Bowl LVI will take place on February 13, 2022 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood.
When the documentary series Framing Britney Spears bowed on HBO back in February, it caused an avalanche of support to come the singer’s way. Long a target of condescending press coverage — not to mention still legally under the control of her domineering father — Spears found the public finally rallying to her side, hoping to correct years of unfair coverage. Now the team behind the doc look to be trying to do for Janet Jackson what they did for Britney.
According to US Weekly, Left/Right TV, who produced the Spears doc, are at work on a movie about the infamous halftime show at Super Bowl XXXVIII, in 2004. That’s the one where a performance by Jackson and Justin Timberlake resulted in a “wardrobe malfunction,” in which the latter ripped off part of her costume, exposing one of her breasts for half a second. The incident led to a massive fallout. The FCC tried, and failed, to fine CBS for over half a billion dollars, while some accused the two of staging it, with Jackson receiving more vitriol than Timberlake.
Neither Jackson nor Timberlake are involved in the movie, though the former is working on a documentary about her own career to coincide with the forthcoming 40th anniversary of her debut album, Janet Jackson. Timberlake, meanwhile, has come under fire over the last couple years, as the public has begun viewing his treatment of both Jackson and Spears, who he once dated, with a more critical eye. Indeed, after Framing Britney Spears debuted, he issued a formal apology to both parties.
“I specifically want to apologize to Britney Spears and Janet Jackson both individually, because I care for and respect these women and I know I failed,” he wrote in an Instagram post. “Because of my ignorance, I didn’t recognize it for all that it was while it was happening in my own life but I do not want to ever benefit from others being pulled down again.”
Charm La’Donna is a woman of many talents and she’s ready to let them all unleash. She’s an all-in-one creative outfit who can write a good song and a choreographed routine to go with it. Looking for visual creative direction? Charm can handle that too.
In fact, some of the biggest names in the industry have put their faith in her abilities such as Selena Gomez, Rosalía, Madonna, and even once opened up for fellow Compton native Kendrick Lamar. The greatness only gets greater, though. More recently, Charm choreographed Dua Lipa’s electrifying Grammy performance with DaBaby and she also was the woman behind The Weeknd’s prodigious half-time performance at this year’s Super Bowl.
In between all of that, somehow she also has found time to create for herself in the midst of the pandemic. Her track “So & So” is one of the first songs she’s released and the video features cameos from some of her closest friends including Selena Gomez (of course), Meghan Trainor, and Fulani, among others, lip-syncing the words to the catchy number.
Following the release of her track “Queen” and its captivating video, Charm talks to Uproxx about her barrier-breaking music career and what it was like once being a dancer during a Super Bowl half-time show with Black Eyed Peas to choreographing The Weeknd’s for this year’s performance.
Philip Cosores
Tell me about the single and the creativity behind your video for “Queen.”
“Queen” stems from me wanting to have a song that felt empowering, that embodied strength and everything of where I’m from. The visuals as well. It’s literally being taken a journey through all of my endeavors, everything that I love. I threw it all in “Queen.” The culture, my culture, where I’m from, how I feel now, how I felt growing up, it’s all in there.
What are some things to you that maybe you included in the video that represents being a queen? What’s a queen to you?
A queen is someone who is powerful in their own right, who is strong, who is also vulnerable, who exudes greatness and follows whatever that is for themselves. One thing for me, I could even say in the video, I love gold. I’ve always loved gold and I love bamboo. So I decided to do something and play with that in the visual and the video. It’s how I rock my bamboos in a way. You see the gold on the dresses and the bamboo and how I rock them and just me being in a swap meet top type of situation. It shows where I’m from and how I grew up, to how I live now. Also, getting my hair braided is very important.
How would you say a queen moves in life and in this industry?
A queen… It’s about being yourself. Being yourself and not compromising your morale and who you are and going after everything you want. Going out to everything you want and people say wearing many hats, I just say wearing many crowns.
That’s kind of my next question because you do so many things. I know you did the Super Bowl choreography for The Weeknd. You’ve done choreography for so many people. You’ve opened up for Kendrick Lamar and all of that. I noticed this industry is dominated by men. It’s so much testosterone. How do you maintain your crown in a room full of men?
Myself, knowing where I come from, knowing who I am as a woman and not compromising that and believing that I can do anything that anyone else can do.
Do you ever feel intimidated or were there ever times where you did feel intimidated and had to make yourself come out of that or evolve out of that?
I don’t think I’ve ever felt intimidated. I felt more-so nervous. When you embark on something new or you try something that people are not known, they don’t know you for trying. You get a sense of maybe nervousness. There was never any form of intimidation though because I come through. I feel like I’m a strong woman and I’m raised by a bunch of women. I don’t think I’ve ever felt intimidated.
How involved are you with your visuals and the creative?
I’m heavily involved in my business. I do my creative. I do my choreography. I’m hands-on with styling. I’m hands-on.
How do you find time? How do you balance it all?
Oh, with a great team. Very great. To be honest, as I am now putting out music I’m still choreographing, I’m still creative directing for different artists as well as myself. It’s just balance; it’s just balance and structure in the best way, but my team has been amazing in helping me do that.
Now, how many more singles do you have coming before you drop a full-length project?
I think I have one more single coming and then I’m going to drop a project.
Philip Cosores
During this journey of you creating your project, creating the visuals for it, and also in between doing choreography for other people, how has that been while making it a priority because I’m pretty sure you have had to do some readjusting, right?
It organically happened for me in the past year. Due to staying at home and with COVID, I kind of took a pause with the world as well. Then when I took that fall, I had my music. It was a time for me to continue being creative and put my stuff out. To not be nervous, not be afraid, even in a time of the unsure, put my stuff out. That was the beginning of the push. As of right now, I have a great balance. I’m able to help others when I can, and there hasn’t been any controversy or any stipulations with it. It’s been cool.
What artists did you grow up listening to that inspire you?
My inspiration of course are a lot of the artists I work with and I’ve been able to collaborate with. I also find inspiration like my mom and my family, friends. I’m inspired… It sounds super cliche to say but I’m inspired by literally just… I intake a lot of energy from different places. I’m inspired by multiple things.
You said that you were raised by mostly women. Who were those women?
My mom, my god-mom my aunt, my grandma, women, all my past teachers, my mentor Fatima Robinson. All these women have played a role in my life.
What could you say is something that… In what way do they support you? Maybe when you need encouragement or if you need somebody to talk to. In what way and how do they support you?
My mom has encouraged me always to follow and follow my dreams. Hard work, push yourself and you’ll be able to conquer whatever it is that you want. Each woman, I think, played a different role. I’ve learned in the industry from Fatima Robinson. My aunt has always been there to encourage me to continue on because I’ve missed growing up, so many family things.
They never made me feel as if though one thing was more important than the other. They were always supportive of me and my dreams and what I wanted. I think that’s important because my grandma is just always been my rock, always been my rock. Even hearing stories of how she grew up and my grandmother’s 95. Those stories have also inspired me and pushed me to be the best I can be.
Is anybody in your family into music, that you looked up to as well?
My brother, he was a writer and a rapper back in the day. That’s where I kind of got my music. That’s where I got the itch to start rapping and getting in the studio with him when I was younger.
What was that like? Were you like little sister following big brother around or just watching him?
Yeah, it really was. Exactly. He would pick me up from school because my mom was working and I would go to the studio with him before dance class or after dance class until it was time for me to go home. It started off just me doing my homework in the studio and then me getting in the booth and rapping. Now here we are.
I did kind of want to talk about just Super Bowl a little bit, because that’s huge. You choreographed The Weeknd’s half-time performance.
Well, that, from that experience, if you want me to be honest, what I don’t think people know is that we did this literally in the middle of the pandemic. I don’t think people know that. So I say this to say, it’s like the journey, and what it took for us to get this was beyond. I was having Zoom rehearsals because safety is always a priority. I’m trying to keep people away for as long as possible, but the overall experience, I wouldn’t change for anything. I got to choreograph the Super Bowl with amazing people.
It’s crazy, because for me, I danced at a Super Bowl. Fatima choreographed it and I was a dancer, so then you fast forward now I’m choreographing.
Wow, that’s huge. Which Super Bowl was that?
I danced with the Black Eyed Peas at their Super Bowl. I danced at that Super Bowl and then I choreographed this one. It was just a surreal situation. Even with everything going on, all the preparation we had to do. It still is an amazing accomplishment, I think for everybody. I think we delivered a great show in the time and the space that we were allowed to.
Then also I want to talk about the “So & So” video. I thought it was so cute. I know you had some of your friends in there. Tell me how you put that video together.
I dropped something, actually on my birthday last year and at the beginning of a pandemic. They’re trying to figure out what was going on. What I did was I’m calling all my friends asking can you guys sing some of the lyrics to my song, I want to put it in a video. I thought about doing it with my friends because of the songs, a lot of them… actually everybody in the video had already heard it and they loved it anyway.
It was such a girl-empowering kind of a song. It just made sense. Everyone was still everywhere and was trying to adjust to what’s happening in the world. I was very grateful that they, still came through and did it for me because it just was such a difficult time for everyone.
What is it that you love the most about being a music artist?
I think what I love the most is the different form of expression. Me being able to tell my story with words. Me being able to create visuals to go along with my story. Me being… I basically perform this music. I think that’s what means the most to me.
When we first met Jazmine Sullivan, she was just a young woman figuring life out. Now years later, she arrives with a fresh perspective on her first project in over five years, Heaux Tales.
The thing that was missing back then from now, as Jazmine simply puts it, is grace. Grace is such a wonderful thing because it allows one to stop, breathe, think, and experience emotions that otherwise could never be bothered to be dealt with. Thoughts and feelings that are “swept under the rug” so to speak, because who has time for…feelings? (LOL) Heaux Tales unapologetically unveils what every woman goes through when that pause is taken and an honest conversation is had with the self about sex and the reality of relationships — and there’s power in that.
The stories Jazmine sings are inspired by close friends and family within her circle. She beautifully narrates the kind of freedom to be had on the other side of self-love and self-care, such as “Lost One” or everything Ari Lennox discloses on “Ari’s Tale.”
In a conversation with Uproxx, Jazmine further divulges on the meaning of Heaux Tales, shares the women in her life who inspire her the most, and also tells us what it was like performing at the Super Bowl with H.E.R.
Jazmine, we missed you and you dropped Heaux Tales during a pandemic after years of silence. Was there any hesitation about releasing this project considering everything?
We wanted to be sensitive obviously with everything that was going on so we did have talks about when to put the project out when was the best time to release music. We decided on the beginning of this year and I’m happy. I’m happy with the time that we came out. I feel like it was a good time. I feel like people were home and they kind of want it. They were able to listen in a way, because of the pandemic that maybe if we were all out and about, people may not have had the attention span to do so. I felt like it was good for that reason.
Considering Heaux Tales and everything that you learned from the relationship you went through during the second album at 24, what would you tell your 24-year-old self now?
I would tell my 24-year-old self to love yourself enough to let go of any situation that’s not making you better. And also, not to take it so hard on yourself that you don’t know everything. I think when you’re younger, you kind of beat yourself up. You think that you’re supposed to know things and honestly, you don’t really know until you grow and go through it. Now that I’m older, I definitely have a lot more grace for myself. The things that I don’t know where I mess up at, I have grace.
Do you remember the first time you gave yourself grace and allowed yourself to breathe for a second.
It’s really been during the process of Heaux Tales because it’s hard not to beat yourself up. Especially as a woman, because we feel like we have to do everything perfectly and just be perfect. We have the world on our shoulders normally anyway so we feel like we have to live up to a certain standard and, as a woman growing up, I always felt that way. This process and making the project helped me to do that by listening to the tales of other women, my girlfriends, and older women. And, just knowing that we’re human and we don’t have to be perfect and just allow ourselves to figure things out.
Do you think that men and women can be more honest about their relationships and what they want nowadays?
I think men have been honest and could be honest about everything in their lives because society doesn’t judge men the way that they do women. But I do feel like now there’s a movement with women where we are not being ashamed of our experiences and in fact, proud of them. Because now we’re realizing that without those experiences, we wouldn’t be who we are today. I feel like women are kind of taking up space and being bold about who they are and what they’ve done and what they’ve learned and come through. I just wanted to add to that movement by adding these stories.
Who are some of the women that inspire you?
Definitely my mother, she’s amazing. She is perfect… darn near at everything. She’s so creative and she’s the reason that I sing. I watched her battle cancer and go through chemo so gracefully. She’s just amazing to see. Also, my girlfriends, watching them grow from when we was 14 and 15 to now in our early thirties has been a pleasure and an honor, and they’ve taught me so much as far as being a woman. Mothers and partners and stuff like that. So I definitely just look up to them as well.
I’ve noticed you and Drake don’t have any songs together, but I feel like…
You noticed that.
Yes! And I was just thinking, back when you came out, I feel like you and Drake were out around the same time. I remember I was in college and I think it was just a really big moment in music.
I’ve never met Drake. I love Drake. I love his music and I definitely would do something if he wanted to. I actually haven’t even thought about a particular song, but I think that would be dope.
I feel like “Lost One,” just lives in the same energy as…
Him or maybe Frank Ocean. Either one.
Speaking of Frank, you were on his Endless project. Tell me about your relationship with Frank.
Oh, I love him. I’m such a super fan. When he calls me, I’m always down to go work with him. I really just want to go and listen to his music before it comes out. I will literally be like, okay, what you going to play me to hear? But he’s amazing and he’s a freaking genius. We enjoy working together. I would love to actually do a full collaboration one day because most of the time I’m just singing background vocals and stuff like that. I would love to do an actual song with him.
The streets need it! I also want to talk about your relationship with Issa Rae, because you sang “Insecure” with Bryson Tiller for the Insecure soundtrack. I also saw that tweet where you said you wanted to work with her on something for Heaux Tales. Is there an update on that?
We have been in communication through texts. I believe she’s working on some things now. She’s definitely busy doing so many projects. I think it’s just about schedules and trying to see if we can actually get together to come up with the body of what we want to do. We both love each other and respect each other and what each other does. Hopefully, we get the time to actually create it.
We’re still thinking about that. I definitely would love it to be visual. I want to bring the characters to life. I think that people actually seeing these women talk about their tales and talk about their lives would just enhance Heaux Tales and what it means to women to see themselves. So maybe a short film, maybe episodes of the women.
Let’s talk about Super Bowl because I thought that that was so dope. I’ve been waiting for people to just recognize you. I feel like Super Bowl was that moment like, yes, that’s Jazmine Sullivan. Tell us about you getting that call to go do Super Bowl and the feelings that you were feeling when you were performing.
I was super shocked. First, to get the call, I had never even thought that my career would take me to the Super Bowl. I thought it was cool to blend the two sounds with Eric Church, being a country singer, and me being a soul R&B artist. I had never heard him before we actually did the song, but I definitely thought, he was a good country artist and I thought it’ll be nice to blend our sounds together. I actually wasn’t nervous until I started singing. I didn’t realize how huge the impact was until I opened my mouth to sing. Then I was like, “Oh my God, it’s millions of people watching me right now.” It hit me right at that moment and then I got super nervous. So, it was amazing. It was a once-in-a-lifetime accomplishment. I was just so happy that my parents were there to see me do that. They put so much energy and effort into me being a singer and the fact that we all got to share that moment meant everything.
What did your mom and dad say when you told them, “I’m about to perform at the Super Bowl.”
Oh, everybody screamed. My dad doesn’t scream, but he screamed on the inside. Everybody was super excited because I just put my project out maybe two weeks before I got that call. I wasn’t thinking about that at all. I just wanted people to enjoy my work. Then I got such an overwhelming, great response for the project and then that opportunity came. It was blessing after blessing. We were all just super grateful.
H.E.R. was also there performing at the Super Bowl too and y’all collab a lot. Tell me about your relationship with H.E.R. and how it felt to do Super Bowl with her.
We’re, first of all, are just fans of each other first and foremost. When I was on my hiatus, I was just watching H.E.R. dominate and was just amazed, like everybody else, at just how gifted she was. All the instruments she plays and how well she sings. When I was making my songs, she was the first person that kind of came to my head to do the collaboration. I called her. She loved the song and finished it so quickly. Our relationship just grew from there. We’re always just trying to text each other and just encourage her and let her know, just how amazing she is.
It was definitely a moment to do that with her because we’re two Black women. She’s in her early twenties and I’m in my early thirties. We just out here representing for women in general and Brown women and doing our thing and try to bring, real talent, vocals, with her instruments. You’re trying to bring that to the forefront. I love so much that she did “America The Beautiful” first and then I did the “Star-Spangled Banner.” It was a moment for us.
I love that for you guys. The song “Girl Like Me” you two have, I feel like a lot of women feel that way. Is that something that you guys have sat down and talked about with each other?
I had started writing a song, some time ago. I wrote maybe the verse and the hook and the bridge, and I was like, it needs something. I just thought about it real quick and H.E.R. just kind of popped up in my head. I was nervous to actually send it to her because I knew I had been away from the industry for a minute. I just didn’t know if anybody would even care to work with me. When she responded so quickly, I was so happy that she did. She added her part and it just elevated the song so much.
It basically highlights her relationship with the media and fans. As a kid, I didn’t realize how awful the media treated her and just women period. For you, when you started and you entered the business what can you say about the pressure of being in the industry back thing? I feel like today, there seems to be a little bit more empathy and an emphasis on mental health. It was just very, very misogynistic. I didn’t realize it back then.
I have to look at the documentary. I would say that I was sheltered from a lot that was going on in the industry because my mom was so protective of me and my energy and everything that happened around me. She protected me from really knowing exactly what was going on, but definitely, there’s a different pressure with women than there has been with men historically. I can definitely imagine that for a pop artist, especially as big as she was, that there was so much pressure for her to be and act and look a certain way. It takes a toll on you as a person. I just pray for her. I know that the pressure, especially at her level was, it was too much. That’s why I’m an advocate for taking breaks. My breaks are a bit excessive.
But I’m an advocate for taking a break when you need it for your mental health because the world and the industry could be so cruel to people and they just don’t care. If you giving them something, they feel like they can make money off of it or exploit you in any way and they will and not care about you as a person. And so sometimes you have to take a second away from whatever it is that’s doing that to you. It could be a relationship. It could be your job. It could be social media sometimes. You need to take a break when you need to.
Absolutely. It’s hard. Especially if you’re a workaholic. It’s hard. Sometimes I feel guilty for taking breaks.
It’s a catch 22. It’s hard. It’s hard being a woman, man. You just feel like you got to work extra hard to be seen, but then at the same time, you have to, sometimes you know you need to take a break for yourself, but then you don’t feel like you can. So you’re just stuck in the middle of that cycle. So it’s hard.
Megan Thee Stallion sampled your song for her song “Circles” and she’s around the same age you were when you came out. She’s kind of going through her own thing that we’re all witnessing.
I know that it’s hard for her to do what she’s doing, but she’s doing amazing. Just stay focused, don’t let anybody come to take you off of the path that you’re on. Definitely keep God first.
Missy Elliott gave you a shout-out recently and told us a story about Whitney Houston that whenever you were 15, she was like, she didn’t believe that that was you singing.
I have never heard that story, first of all. So Missy probably got a thousand stories of people that we don’t even know about.
She has to write a memoir at some point.
Yes.
I read that you actually — I don’t know if it was a text message or was it a phone call — that you actually got a chance to speak with Whitney?
I was at dinner with Kim Burrell and somehow Whitney came up. She was like, have you ever talked to her? I was like, no. She’s just like, Oh, let me call her. I’ll get her on the phone. I was like, huh? So she got on the phone and we spoke for literally a second, but it just made my night to hear from her. Everybody knows what Whitney means to music and it was amazing to be able to hear from her and actually speak to her.
Do you remember what you guys talked about for that brief moment?
I don’t. I think she may have said that she heard me sing or something like that. My mouth probably dropped and I probably stopped listening. I probably was in shock, to be honest.
I would probably react the same exact way. What song can’t you wait to perform live with an audience when we open up?
I think “Bodies” will be cool to perform live and see people sing the lyrics to. Probably “On It” because I’m seeing so many people who love “On It.” It definitely would be different for me because I don’t really do a lot of sexy songs. I think it’ll be fun to do that live.
Let’s talk about that song. You said you don’t do a lot of sexy songs, but what made you switch it up for this with Ari Lennox? I think we’ve all been waiting for that one to drop!
The project was about women being free, especially around their sexuality and not feeling the shame. That was definitely a song where there was no shame attached to it. Ari is a fellow Aries sister, she might be a little spicier than me, but it naturally fit in with her tale and what she was talking about with her tale. I just thought I needed that moment of being super sensual and sexual and doing it confidently.
