Corie Sheppard Podcast
Corie Sheppard Podcast
Episodfe 218 | Sistaron
In this week's episode we're joined by the legendary Sistaron.
We get into her beginnings in the industry and her classic Sistaron ah Come alongside the great General Grant.
We get into the classic No Compromise album featuring, Ghettorians, Kindred, General Grant & Sistaron with production by Sheldon '$hel $shok' Benjamin that birther the Kiskidee Karavan coming out of Caribbean Sound Basin lead by Robert Amar.
We're lucky enough to take in some of her more recent releases as she discusses her hiatus from the music industry after winning the Award for being the Top Breakout Artiste in the Caribbean.
You won't want to miss Sistaron's thoughts on the new generation of artistes in the Trinibad movement!
Tune in and Enjoy!!!!
Right. So, as it's Carnival season, we have people here, right, we have people here. We have folks, we have folks. What are we doing? Are we introducing people to folks? Is that introduction or reintroduction? I don't know.
Speaker 2:It's a little bit of everything.
Speaker 1:I want to see if people can tell the voice.
Speaker 2:What I don't know, different vibes. Hey, are you reading this?
Speaker 1:You feel the make out of your voice? I doubt it. What do you think?
Speaker 2:You think the make out of your voice? I doubt it, I doubt it. What do you think you think the make out of your face.
Speaker 1:We had to tell them why it is, and all. So if people don't know the voice and the cast of your face, sister run, sister run. I come, sister run, but I'm not bad, sister run.
Speaker 3:I come, sister run. You see the sister run. I come, sister run, sister run, sister run I come. Missed it, I'm on top of the riddle. Missed it, I'm on top of them. Burn shot. Another black is your dick. Come on, give it all back, cause I am and I am around one of you. If you think I'm moving too fast, then get your ass. I'm in front of me. I'm kicking the very side of this, kicking the very side of that, ruffling up my vocals to a race holder, but it's like I got my back because I'm a sister who can sink into a song. Get down, like the funky chains around my song. It's not one you can't sleep to. So get up, stand up and rock. So you know what I can do.
Speaker 1:You'll never see she'll never hear. Welcome, Sister Ron, it's been a long time We've been waiting for you here a long time.
Speaker 2:Thanks for having me, man. I appreciate you being here.
Speaker 1:I appreciate you reaching back out to see you in Tonga.
Speaker 2:Yes, of course I was laughing at myself. We were running the you Should Be here Before I was messaging you. I don't know, I might be singing to myself. I don't know, it had to be, I wasn't know. Oh yeah, it had to be I wasn't sure, I wasn't sure, but you know, by the hook or the crook, like we say it, I'm here.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, yeah. So you enjoy the carnival, or what?
Speaker 2:Yes, I enjoy it. I enjoy it At my pace, but I enjoy it.
Speaker 1:Well, before we get into you and your history.
Speaker 2:I mean only late, late, but I already had my little tickets for Pink Nick. I had my tickets for Soca Brunch. The Feds was amazing because the music is beautiful. When the music good, it does really pull us. I ain't going to lie, the music is what I start to get the carnival fever.
Speaker 1:That's when you need money. Instead of spend right Fed ticket, plane ticket, you'd be like I had to find it, boy, that music, music song ain't too sweet.
Speaker 2:Listen, and once you do it you know what I'm saying. Like I said, once you play your mask and once you take, you know what I feel like. So you know what you're missing.
Speaker 1:So is that every year thing for you usually I?
Speaker 2:just try my best. But I have some friends my good, good, good friends of them, who live in New York.
Speaker 3:I live in Miami.
Speaker 2:But they've coming without dragging me by my way. Oh, you mean you're not going? They know my house in Casket, you don't even have to pay for someone to stay. You better come.
Speaker 1:Just reach.
Speaker 2:I say no. Every time I say after carnival I go in and block these people, because I go in the carnival, they're already planning for next carnival. I say, boy, you didn't get a chance to block all your boys, I like them, I like them, I like them.
Speaker 1:So that means I could reach out to them when you had to come here next year for your next year release right, good, I like it. How's Spirits on the Road? Did somebody play Spirits?
Speaker 2:Spirits on the Road is good. It's always good vibes and good fun, you know, even though I said like the sun has been beating us down a little bit, but you know it, good fun, good energy.
Speaker 1:It looked like one of them years where the sun comes out with a vengeance right.
Speaker 2:The sun has come out with a vengeance this year. I think it eased us up more than last year. Anybody could tell your carnival Tuesday was nice and overcast, a little breezy when the night hit, so it felt good. Yeah, boy, it kind of worked with my pace this year a little bit, so I'm going to make the excuses that you need to make right.
Speaker 1:I hear how she was pumping. She's not reaching the country. Pump all weekend. So anything with the voice dies on Carnival right, yes, please.
Speaker 2:And thank you. I think a lot of people know that A lot of people still get to open their mouth and hear their voice. Nah, for sure, for sure. So I always wanted to meet you and see you in person because I really had doubts in my mind.
Speaker 1:What doubts? As to if you could have really rapped that verse or something up to today. Because we don't know what you're saying. I can tell you from the fans. All I know is Yo, I just laugh.
Speaker 2:People make up their thing when they want to say, when it's sung, something like this Well, we know it ended, we know it started.
Speaker 1:Sit down and we know it ended With version.
Speaker 2:Yeah, sit down on top of them rhythm and sit down on top of them version.
Speaker 1:You sure?
Speaker 2:Yeah, okay, it's sung simpler when I say it, yeah it's sung.
Speaker 1:Impossible To say fast too. Sit down on top of them rhythm and sit down on top.
Speaker 2:It's impossible to say fast too. We still haven't talked about the road, but we still haven't talked about the version. We still haven't talked about the road, but we still haven't talked about the version. You have to say that. All right, so it's the way it roll. We're going to try it in the absence. We're not going to embarrass ourselves here.
Speaker 3:So I want to talk about the earliest days of getting into it.
Speaker 1:Because, as I tell you, I don't marry here from Kiss Kitty Caravan.
Speaker 2:Yes, reggie and them.
Speaker 1:Yeah, special time in our history.
Speaker 2:Yes, yes, yes.
Speaker 1:And the thoughts are coming out of that rap song, then I feel like it was unheard of, Like we'd never heard that before as a youth coming up.
Speaker 2:That was. It was risky business. That was risky business to do that, but it wasn't like rap wasn't a whole scene here here it was you know we was like we, we had our own um movement with just jace and um. You know what I mean, of course, it just is big hip-hop man.
Speaker 1:What was?
Speaker 2:it. Back then, like on track we had a. He had a little spot that you said it was just we were hip-hop, everything like real hip-hop heads. I remember even saying and I would admit it now, it wasn't with peace we was like strong and we hip-hop, so that was a movement. So even before sister runner come came out, it was run and kc, so me and kc used to do our thing.
Speaker 2:Um, we had a friend, iola, when we worked, we worked at pizza boys and we had our friend iola, and she linked us with downtown outlaws and they would give us beats to rap on. So since then we was doing, you know, we little rapping. Here we are, ron and kc teaching me all about the mrc, two sexy chicks tricking you with tricks, that kind of vibe. You know he was on some rouse, all them back back then. So I think when, when, um, the caribbean song basin came about and it was like, okay, we gotta do you know? Oh, you know a female rapper.
Speaker 2:They asked gage right, and it was like, yeah, he know who to check. Oh, you know a female rapper. They asked gage right, and it was like, yeah, he know who to check. I grew up with gage, my the gage sister, and our best friends, daniel and I, best friends since elementary school, okay, so, um, we did that and we, you know, used to be at their house on the weekends and stuff like that. And then, once they ask him, he's like I know who to go check and he came and he checked me and that was nice that is the history there so you had these things written by the time they check you.
Speaker 1:You seasoned. You're performing well.
Speaker 2:I was seasoned, I I had a performing, but when I did, I mean I don't know if the masters know or whatever, because I know I embodied this but once I went to the studio with gage and met ro Amar and them, they was like oh, gage, you could write something for Shea.
Speaker 1:And.
Speaker 2:Gage was like okay, yeah, Gage wrote Sister on a Cum, oh nice. That wasn't a me, you know I had my stuff or whatever. But Gage wrote Sister on a Cum and, you know, worked with me and then embodied it.
Speaker 1:Ah, got you.
Speaker 3:Just embodied it. Yeah, yeah, yeah, own it after that, own it yes.
Speaker 1:So you're writing your raps up to that point. But I think Sister Anakum was such an introduction, you know.
Speaker 2:It was an introduction and you know I was, you know, real grateful for him writing this and being able to find me in that, you know, or present me in that, and yeah as. I say owning, it was pretty, pretty easy. I was already done with my quick tongue rapping and stuff like that, so they knew me for that. And then yeah, so him writing that and me doing it.
Speaker 1:It was like yeah yeah, he had to know you're skillful enough to do that, skillful enough to do it, and how general grants end up on it.
Speaker 2:No, they know, they, I think gage, and I'm the new general and I was like, okay, we could do a hook and it could be like a more reggae type vibe or whatever let's bring in General. That's when I met General in doing the song. Actually I didn't know him before that, but yeah, what a great combination. Yeah, iconic, one of the songs that will go along as a classic in Trinidad and Tobago.
Speaker 1:How much people requesting it when they see it now. They're still ways to do the fast rapping they still always want to hear that.
Speaker 2:They gotta hear that part. I think they just like you they were. I wonder if she can still do that when they're trying me. They're trying of course, yeah, nice, of course, of course, yeah, yeah, yeah, that ain't going nowhere, you know of course, of course.
Speaker 1:And what's your experience like with kiss kitty caravan? Because no, that was the biggest thing to blow up. I believe sister on a come was on.
Speaker 2:The original record was the only original, the no compromise album. Um, unfortunately, I would say, is because when, when kiss kitty caravan came out, I had already left I went to yeah, yeah, yeah, I left, I got nominated best new artist of the caribbean and I went to the states for that award at the apollo theater right I went to the states for that, but at the same time when I that, my mom was getting through with her papers. You understand.
Speaker 2:So once she gets through, I was under 18 still, so I was able to automatically get through. So that's what happened. And then I left and I went. You know, of course, there was like little intricates of things that was happening, that I wasn't happy as an artist, you know what.
Speaker 2:I'm saying here and you know what I'm saying here in. You know different senses. But, um, I got there and you know you get your papers. So you had to be there for the little minute and I had no idea because the caravan was happening. You understand, we're going to come out with a caravan artist, we want you to have a song on it and blah blah. I didn't know gotcha the caravan came out, I did not know this movement was happening. It's not like back then, when youtube was such a thing, and it was such you, so linked in instagram and all of these things.
Speaker 2:Next thing I hear I swear I must be here this, but maybe a little years later like they had a caravan and it was what. I didn't know what was going on. And then afterwards, that's when I linked to it and I was like, oh wow, gotcha.
Speaker 2:But it was also like pause raising because we started something that, yeah, boy you turn them, pick up and run with it like proud of them, boy, like what so proud of everybody who come after, of course so the time when they tore in the country and performing, you're not here. I was not here we tore on our own and did our own massiveness, with no compromise, because that's what rocked the nation, right, you know? And yeah, they followed through with what they did, as well, you know.
Speaker 1:So so there was original tour on the no compromise album before kiss kitty car of course.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we are the ones that was running it, you know, yeah, yeah, we was running it. Before, when he was here and assist our own, a common general got a shot call and all of them saying it was like, yeah, we was on our own. No compromise tour we were local local here.
Speaker 2:Local here but yeah, we was opening for artists and you know stuff like that. As we were here, the youth was loving that movement, of course which totally made way for when Kiske the caravan came out to be like okay, because they was on it, like it was not just calypso music or something.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you're hearing so many popular music of the world in our accent. You know what accent?
Speaker 2:yeah and they was able to express that, that talent that they have which is so much of it laying around in here, so much of it right here in trinidad you know, so this was a great thing, it was a great movement.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I didn't know that that came before to me, but my memory I young them times that's why I just followed it and I thinking that that album was released as a kickoff for the kiss the caravan. I didn't realize kiss the caravan came off came after.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, yeah. The first thing that happened was no, was no compromise, right? It's like okay, we have these artists and then we didn't even know how it was. Were we going to have singles, were we going to thing? And then all of a sudden, they say an EP with them four. You know what I'm saying? Them four different. You know two groups, kindred, and then Gatorians, then you had General Grant and then you have me and you have him and I together. So it was like and they put them.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so the four songs was, I think, kendra, this Trinicard Flow this Trinicard Flow. General Grant round and round round and round.
Speaker 2:General Grant was the Short Call and Me, sister Runner, come. Oh shit, yeah, the Short Call. You remember that one?
Speaker 1:yeah, all four, I mean all four did really do the big game changes at the time absolutely, absolutely so was your experience going like from the cyphers and rhyming engage on them to go in caribbean song basin, and what was that experience like, 18 years old at the time?
Speaker 2:yeah, yeah, yeah, I mean caribbean sound basin. I don't know if people knew the same way this hit the nation with a shock. It was hitting me with a shock like this happening. I rap in sensing, I in high school, I in tranquil, you know, and this was actually about to jump off. But who knows, it was going to become what it became. Who knows like, oh my gosh, because, and, and like I was thinking the other day, I was like this thing wasn't, it wasn't um, I want to say like it wasn't too controlled, it was like our executives at that time, robert amara and them, decided going to do something the youths need and they decide okay, let's do it, and we give it to the youth and you, that's when I get to realize, between then and now, when you give the music to the people and not get, keep the thing yeah, you understand, when you give the music to the people, the people speak Right.
Speaker 2:You know what I mean. Half the times, you know, like a lot of artists right now newer artists and things which sometimes I consider myself a new artist all the way over again with what I'm doing now but when it could reach to the people and the people say, oh God, yes, yeah, yeah, yeah, that played. That. That's what happened with them days with sister, and I come and think, come out with who knows a female, come all rapping, would there be a thing back then. You know what I mean. Yeah, and it became a thing, you know.
Speaker 1:So yeah for sure yeah, like I could tell it, being on the other side of the speaker it felt like as a little child hearing. I was like what is this? Yeah, you know the whole, the whole album. I mean everything that came after it's with kiss kitty, caravan exactly but them initial songs, the radio, I don't think people, people who grew up where they always had urban radio to them where you could hear even foreign dancehall and foreign rap.
Speaker 1:I remember growing up where maybe on a saturday morning you might hear a little reggae and dancehall. You ain't gonna hear much and you definitely ain't hear much from us. So as a youth, especially inside, you don't know that all this happening, you don't know Gage and Sister and Omari and people linking up like that. So, to hear it on radio and like it kicking your door. It was mainstream After that. It could not be stopped. Then they had to get a cassette, record it and try to see it.
Speaker 2:And record it and try to see that, because, yeah, but the fact that it was able to reach to you guys and it wasn't like no, we only play in soccer, we only play in this or we only play in that, and it has so much different talent here, yeah, you know, to be a little island person, you know you hear it. You don't know if you'll ever be out.
Speaker 2:get a chance to go out into the world and you out, get a chance to go out into the world, and you have little voices here that want to be heard. So what are? What are we going to do for these artists? You understand you. They're forcing them into one genre, or you could let them be exactly who they are yeah, you understand and if, if they gravitate to afro beats naturally, or they gravitate to hip-hop naturally, reggae naturally, even though they are trini you understand.
Speaker 2:Do you just keep them down and say, no, yeah, it's okay, you have to do it. So we love we, so come music, or, you don't get me wrong, we love it. You understand. But at the same time we may have a natural skill for something totally different. I was naturally a rapper, right, you know to write a soccer song. How to do it, it's tough. You would think that because I'm a trainee and I grew up tooting water.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you learn to write from that, but it ain't easy sometimes to tell somebody you know what I'm saying to pelt a rock or wave.
Speaker 2:you know what I mean, and I'm like Especially if it's not natural.
Speaker 2:Right, if it's not coming natural, then what do you do? What do you do about that, right? So I remember, even after leaving and coming back a few years later, maybe in 2005, 2006 I keep trying to remember what year that was but I came back with Rocky and Galen and Jabami and them. They know him as Jabami, but he was back with rocky and galen and jabami and them. Um, they know him as jabami, no, but he was juicy then and rocky reached out to me and rocky said boy, sister, and I would like to make a. So that was another me revamping again right so here I come with them.
Speaker 2:You know so grateful he pulled me in on this project and we come up with like always. Remember, ja, but I remember when I came back, everybody who knew me and saw me, radio stations and stuff, yes, I said you're doing soca now, you're doing soca now. I was like, but Oli, I don't know me to be no soca artist, you understand so to be being continuously drilled into. You're doing soca now, you're doing soca now. Man, I remember I went with Jah Bami and them on here, we went with Chasu and Chasu had a fast rhythm thing going on and I say, oh, and I remember.
Speaker 2:This is when I remember that I was right, hold on a-called track. Then we jump up and get on. Bad, they won't pack up my clothes and jump on a plane and come out the train at that. Then when we're back on top the stage, they want to see me misbehave. Then we tell them to put up a flag in the air and put up a hand and wave. Can I do that? Yes, ron, can I do that? Can I make a woman might in a man and roll up. She bought some and I end up coming up with that and I was like, oh, look at me writing. What does I feel in an expression. So I came up with that and it was like, maybe again another thing that's better spitting and yeah here, because that even have a flow.
Speaker 1:You know, I mean it had a flow and it was like yeah, yeah, yeah, it's a hip-hop flow and I was like man, you're the hip-hop again, look at naturally coming in me easier.
Speaker 2:You know you're growing, you're maturing.
Speaker 1:You, yeah, experiencing, yeah, you know I'm saying your ears opening, your eyes opening, and you never know what the journey and where it's going to take you, you know for sure yeah, even funny that I should mention them three people because rocky, gala and jabami on his own too they've, even though rocky and galen and them was doing soka the time they came out, it was very edgy, it was it wanted to be incorporated into a much more genre, so it makes sense why they reach out to you.
Speaker 1:And Jibami's still touring all over the place doing Rocky still touring all over the place.
Speaker 2:It's a passion.
Speaker 2:I'm not gonna say this it's a passion for you to still satisfy where we're from. You still want to satisfy this audience here so badly. We want to cater for this audience here so badly. Trinidad and Tobago excuse me, is our heart right. So you want to do something that Trinidad say. When Trinidad say and everybody could say after that, you know, and I know Jabba and me go through that passion as well. You know what I'm saying.
Speaker 2:He will do his soca, what he will do his reggae, which is which is mainly what he's known for, and stuff like that, and then you want to touch his soca. You want to do this thing that your people here could come and hug you up and be like you know what I mean. But it's such a fight sometimes, like I say, when something else come more natural to you than the soca is, it's, it's hard. It's hard trying to navigate that avenue. And we were talking earlier about authenticity. You know it has to come authentic to you. And if I hear a rhythm and like I hear a soca rhythm and I could say, and I could come up with that, so I'm doing it. So if that's what I'm feeling in that song, I would do it, but it had to be an authentic if it's not coming naturally right.
Speaker 2:I can't I don't want to sound like I trying to do soca you know what I'm saying, but if is what I want to say in a soca form, I will say if it's what I want to say in a hip-hop, r b, reggae, whatever form I would, I would do it as an artist. That's how. That's the type of artist I want to be, you know, let me be able to express what I want to express.
Speaker 1:If it's in this genre, that genre, I'm gonna do it, you know so, but you think looking for that local recognition and that love from home you think you could guess it's in genres outside of soccer yes, because, and again, again, like I say, if you get to reach the people, the people will say yes. Well, yeah, because the first, I mean the introduction to Trinidad and Tobago, is not so good and I think it loved and revered when the name Sister Ron said today Right, yeah.
Speaker 2:You influence artists. I'll go put my boy Bungie on a little. But Bungie introduced me one time to Busta Rhymes. Day right, yeah, you influence artists. I go put my boy bungee on a little. Blah blah, bungee introduced me one time to buster rhymes and it's I don't know, hearing it through his voice and him saying you have to stand up for a minute. But you can't just, I can't just tell your day sister, and you gotta give me five minutes. And he told me man, I can't just tell you, this is who, this?
Speaker 3:is.
Speaker 2:Let me explain, and Bungee's explaining. I wouldn't be in this right now if it wasn't for what this woman, unapologetically, did, you understand, and Faye Ann wouldn't be and other artists wouldn't be. You understand, because it stems from the fact that she come doing what she doing and he tell, he said, but wait, no, that means what I doing, I could do it. And he say, well then, I could do it over soca music and, and for the longest I say, it mixed our hip-hop with our soca and it's been difficult for me trying to get producers to understand or hear what it is I'm saying, you know, makes it. When I heard bungee, I was like, but eyes were talking about yeah, that's what I'm talking about. That's what I'm talking about. So I just tell him yo biggest fan. And he just be like no, I ask your biggest fan, but how?
Speaker 2:My little one, but not for respect, not for you know. So it's respect and all that. But when I hear him talk like that, you know I come from such like maybe humble beginnings and maybe a little too modest for my good. Sometimes I'll be like yeah okay. I tell Omari who was sitting here. Omari used to look at me like I don't think you know really what you're doing. I see Gil from Cascade. Yeah right.
Speaker 1:But when a track come on, because I mean, even with Sister Honor, come the aggression. You hit that first. Yes, yeah, yeah, yeah. It ain't no more than seeing that. Yeah, it was, it hit it hard. You had to listen you embodied it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I owned it 100% and it was like, and it felt great. It felt like because when you're working with people and that's why, to me, a team is so important If you have a songwriter that could write something for you and be like, you know, think the next song and the next song and the next song. After that we might have worked on together until I started branch out at 18 years old. I was a shy little something. I used to write my songs or whatever Somebody posted on my or send me a dm, I think on facebook, maybe about three years ago, or something like that and say, wow, this woman that we see, that I see before me now, is so much more outgoing than who we knew back then. They could recognize it, sure you know, because I'm more.
Speaker 2:They were there back then right, I'm more bold now, like these utah and my c and out here. They are so bold and so forward. It's so admirable yeah, I love it yeah, it is so admirable I mean sometimes the content yeah, just be like a little, but at the same time they bold enough to do it I think you had to let them do it.
Speaker 2:You had to let them do it because they're doing it's expression they're doing what we did a hundred percent out and we come out and we so for the first time in a long time, with zess and trini bad and thing like that I see in another movement again coming out to here. You know what I mean. So it's like that's impressive to me because I know what we did back then and we was like, yeah, we come out, we come out bold with what we was coming out with yeah, for sure.
Speaker 1:I want to take away some of that modesty, you know, because that hip-hop era with what we know as chromatic spot rushers, that wasn't happening if all you didn't do all you do.
Speaker 3:Yeah and take the chance that you take.
Speaker 1:Yes, the reggae all-stars movement that jabami was a big part of that was not happening right, you know in that, that initial
Speaker 1:movement and I'm glad you make the connection between his s movement. No, I see it as the same. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I can't imagine what it is for a youth man home. I'm with you Sometimes. The content at 40-something years old. I can't listen to that for too long, right for too long, no, no, no, sometimes, from the time it comes on, I'm like cringe, but when you do listen to it, the lyrical ability of some of these youths, their writing ability, some things they're coming up with, the producers they're working with.
Speaker 2:You talk about like, oh my God, like a lady lover. You know what it is about her for me, the comfortability, she's just comfortable and it's such a vibe, it's impressive, right, yeah, it's such a this little comfortable space that she's in and I go pick up the mic. It even sound like a song she writes. Just listen to something to say, yeah, who I go call for our partner. You understand it just sound like she just talking to you and it's uh, it's the comfortability. I remember when I now saw nyla blackman and I see in the gill and I see in the video, and you know people has critiqued so much and whatever and whatever, but I, watching this young woman who went and bring something so new and so fresh and so nice and so um, youthful and so modern, and it was so much to admire about it, and watching her grow as she's, doing it even more and owning it even more, is I'm impressed, impressed. I'm impressed with the youth.
Speaker 1:That's good, though. That's good that you feel that way. You inspire a lot of these youth. You talk to enough of them. They will tell you.
Speaker 2:Right, right, I had the opportunity to be. Well, we did a quick studio Nelly Katoa I don't know if you know the name, nelly Katoa. So Nelly would be every time she'd go on an interview or whatever they were saying you know who you remind me of Because of how she spits Gotcha and they keep calling my name. But she young, so she didn't know Mommy, but who is that? So she talked to her mom. The mom would say what Girl, if you want me to, know.
Speaker 1:Yeah, if you was old, say that.
Speaker 2:And it's the mom who actually linked Nice, you linked me and she said she would love for us to be in the studio together, and and we went I think spine had a rhythm or something like that and we went to the studio and uh, it's still on, on, I think. We go to the studio but then we, realizing the little creative difference right, because you're and you know that content is very raw nelly was like oh god, I so shame my mouth.
Speaker 1:She can't say that. No, she could say whatever she. I want her.
Speaker 2:no, so shame my mom. She can't say that. No, she could say whatever I want her.
Speaker 1:No, she must be feeling like she can't say it. Yeah, but she feeling shame, Of course. Of course she started feeling shame.
Speaker 2:I said don't feel shame, because you had to be authentically you.
Speaker 2:You had to be 100% who you are. We just had to find an even ground, because I wouldn't say I might not say it the way you're saying it. You understand, I ain't like to say shy like that, no more, but I probably still wouldn't say it how. But we could find an even ground Because we're women, we're humans in this world. We must find an even ground where our topic could be a one for us and we could probably still make it work. You know, but be you 100% and them know how to master TikTok and thing like that yeah, they bad.
Speaker 2:She going mad on TikTok right now. Big up yourself, denelly, big up yourself.
Speaker 1:Like I don't know if you ever saw her on live with DJ Khaled.
Speaker 2:Yes, yes, yes. I saw when Khaled had called yeah, I said look at that, yeah.
Speaker 1:But look, listen to her flow then.
Speaker 2:Yeah, did back then. Right, and you will see why so much people, why people make the comparison. We definitely have the flow alike and and look at that again social media. You know the reach could be so much further yeah I go in. Sometimes I'm on tiktok and I just see in random people from everywhere doing a little boop song and I said look at this, because they're able to come out when you say when you asked me earlier about when we tour, no, we tour right here.
Speaker 2:You understand I don't know how further. When I got nominated Best Noirist in the Caribbean for Sister Runner Come, I was like well, wall, you hear this. You know what I mean Because I never left here.
Speaker 1:It was a long process then to get anything international.
Speaker 2:I never left and performed that outside of Trinidad anywhere. You know what I mean. So it was like look at how their reach is possible because of tiktok, instagram and these platforms.
Speaker 1:It's amazing but when you talk about gatekeepers and that reach is a funny thing because the music of our hero, I feel, has an equal chance of reaching that kind of traction on tiktok, no, like if you watch any other genre of music. Well, I hear my son singing that paul anchor song the other day wow, because tiktok bring it back to life. Yeah, yeah, yeah paul anchor would have been old music when I was listening to music but it takes that right because, look, that happened with saucy yeah, denise right all of a sudden put your back in it, yeah, a little remix on her song.
Speaker 2:She said she would wake up the next morning and it was like oh it worked, so it happens Janet Jackson songs coming back.
Speaker 1:They just come back. Yeah, they just come back, so don't doubt that.
Speaker 2:Nobody untouches that and I call me ass. Well, now that you explained the lyrics you know, what I mean.
Speaker 1:That is a great song for a tiktok challenge right to hear what people come up with.
Speaker 2:Yeah, grab the, grab a part of it and then all of a sudden, it has become something.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, if you find the right social media, yeah get people to get their own version of sister yeah I saw it with one of sean paul's songs where people I think it was give me the light. Yeah, you can understand what they were saying and the challenge went wild. It's something.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, yeah so yeah, no, that that's. That's a. That's a good point. But when I when I spoke about like gatekeepers earlier, it was like you know, you did come from a time where you have a song and a dj used to be like oh you hear, this new one, I'm gonna drop a new song you don't find that happen much no uh, no, it will happen if they see you with a bunch of numbers on TikTok.
Speaker 2:So it will be the other way around. Sometimes you got to work your own song and then be like, okay, let me see if I can get people to dance on TikTok to this and that. So when they hear your song they probably say, okay, let me see what she TikTok looking like. Otherwise, why am I playing this?
Speaker 3:You know that kind of way.
Speaker 2:Yeah, but it can come up to them as well. Right playing this in a party. You know that kind of way, yeah, but you can come up to them at all, right. So if they don't see you with the numbers, you know they're not busing artists like they used to is what I feel like.
Speaker 1:Yeah almost everybody who sit on in this seat say that same thing, because we see the difference you know, we see the difference from then to now.
Speaker 2:Back then a dj used to boss artists and they used to be happy to. As long as they grab it and they like it. It's like, okay, that is it. Yeah, now sometimes I do a song and I'll be like, oh, a dj in canada put it on his mix. I'm like, oh, wow, you know big up to that like thing. But you know there's a lot of djs. Sometimes you're seeing them on a day, on a regular basis, when your song they them yeah so that's that's when I talk about gay keep, I talk about stuff like that.
Speaker 2:But if it just get thrown into a mix you made, you know I'm saying your song may just be the it thing, because now we're getting to reach the people, yeah, yeah, the one of the best ways for it to reach the people is to me, not just tiktok is in our party well, in our part I mean, I was talking, I was thinking radio when you're talking about this, but in our party I I feel it worse. You think it worse? Yeah.
Speaker 1:Boy listen, because I mean, I guess you have so much alternatives to radio now that I don't listen to the radio a whole lot.
Speaker 2:That's what I'm saying. I don't take radio yeah, Especially urban radio.
Speaker 1:It is like punishment.
Speaker 3:You just hear the same set of songs over and over.
Speaker 1:And it could make you not like a real good song yeah like midway through the car. Well, I couldn't listen to young brother again.
Speaker 1:It was just too much of it playing another thing is not a great song, yeah but boy, in fact it was because when you go off fat now and you hear them songs in rotation or I don't know, what was your experience on your road like if you're hearing a wide area of music it wasn't all right wide array of music because, um, I feel as though, like, like, they make us part of the competition.
Speaker 2:Right, we fetters? We're here, we come, we spend money, we're here. We're here because remember we was here in real tunes. Yeah, yeah, this song good, that song nice.
Speaker 1:That song, so I come out.
Speaker 2:I want to hear tune after tune, you know. And then when you reach here, you become a part of the road match competition. Oh, as a masquerader, even as a spectator as well, as they're putting it on us now. Yeah, it's on us. No, I spoke to a couple who just randomly came here well, let's go to carnival. And they say, lord, they get killed with two song on the road because now we're part of the competition and we're not getting to enjoy this music on the road, this wide range of music.
Speaker 2:When I went to soca brunch this sunday, oh god, them dj. I can't call the dj name now I vex, but I'm dj and then play tune. Yeah I, this man was going back forward middle take and I was like that's what I'm talking about, because it have real tunes and your tuning supposed to just go to no soaker graveyard after a while if you have a DJ who could, well that means I'm sending DJ doing his job.
Speaker 2:Of course that means he home saying or discus ting or wait. Now this person say forward in 19, whatever, and this was never song, song name forward, I could merge them two songs.
Speaker 1:That's a DJ doing his job or these two song code structures the same, these two song exactly and somehow I could mix that in them.
Speaker 2:As DJs to me they're doing their job. Or you have a song and it's like it could go in this mix, and when I talk about a DJ in a party, I mean if you're hearing this song and you're like, hmm, this could go in this mix, they could put it in a mix. It could be like six seconds.
Speaker 1:As a musician, you're probably hearing this all the time, this is what I'm saying.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so like, a six seconds in your mix ain't going to destroy no party. It's not going to destroy your DJ set by you trying to introduce a new artist. You know, let me challenge all you know introduce a new artist into all your mix every time will you do a mix? Good, because everyone, all you're doing the same mix. So if I say let me not listen to dj, so once I go listen to dj is the same mix, starting with the same song, it is the same set of mix yeah no, we need the djs to say at least.
Speaker 2:Djs to say at least find one of the new artists. That's all you could say yeah, this is bad and slip it into the mix. You ain't got to do nothing special, slip it into the mix.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and let people decide.
Speaker 2:And let people decide.
Speaker 1:I know I was at a media, a little media get-together. Salute, nigel, tell us what.
Speaker 2:You know Overtime TT Nigel, I know this name. Yeah, I know him you know him.
Speaker 1:He around media for a long time he was part of spot russia's two. Back in the day he went uh, did he go tranquil? I went tranquil right for a little while yeah but I know him from fatima right, but um so he had a little media mixer ash wednesday night and this same discussion.
Speaker 1:I wish you were there yeah the exact same discussion yeah but I have a theory, because I don't think youths know the people. Who's 80? No right, I'm not sure I'm having this discussion. They want to hear carrie tan party over and over. I played juve morning.
Speaker 2:Oh, they love it yeah and they had a time.
Speaker 1:The road match was something I would have never heard of juve and I was playing juve, but now they play the road match the whole time and I realized then that juve for them youths yeah is a mass replacement. It's not. It's not a start to carnival or warm up to carnival right, right right it's a cheap way for them to play mass, because when I was young, I could have storm a band, I could have stayed inside the band or or pay eight, nine hundred for a costume.
Speaker 1:No, if they might have spent five thousand on a costume, or spend six hundred on a juve band they want to do that and they just want to hear carriots and tempo and pace all day. People want to drag it all the way down the road so yeah, yeah they have a different thing.
Speaker 1:And then material djs is that. I don't feel like djs today. Listen a lot. You mentioned just jace. I grew up in st james. I always remember the first time I see just jace. Because then it's like you say, without social media you you can't place your stars, especially radio stars, you don't know what they look like and I see Josh Jays in real life by Crosby's, are they?
Speaker 1:I was like there's Josh Jays this time. I hear in the background that Josh Jays on radio and I said but how you hear on your new radio, he's like nah, you just have a thing DJ mixing. He comes to buy records, but while he buying's buying records he's listening yeah, put on a record, listen. He's saying no, you don't want this, and I feel like that the way DJs just operate. Long time you had a limited budget to buy albums or records.
Speaker 1:Right, right, so you have to listen, have to find something you like. That's good. Because, you'd have everything. Yeah, they just come out and have all these songs for cannibal. Yeah, and it's so strange that they have unlimited, like crate to carry.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, but it's still just play yeah, whoever's, whoever's most popular.
Speaker 1:You know the same yeah you know what the solution is here?
Speaker 2:I just think everybody take the risk. Artist is taking a risk all the time. I say none of them release. You know they write in the recording they're releasing. So then where's the next step after that? You know, I mean, I hear somebody listed one time where artists need to be a videographer, photographer thing.
Speaker 3:We need to be a producer social media specialist.
Speaker 2:We had to be a psychologist. You know, I'm saying we need all of that, we had to be everything. So it's like yo, so if I do this, this, this and this, right then where's the next step? You know, I remember when a dj used to do this, like so much respect, like it used to have special I don't know if they still have any. How much radio do we listen to? You know, new, new release session, yeah, oh, let's tell me what you think. Blah, blah, blah you. And, like I said, everybody, social media takeover so bad. It's like they're referring to social media first.
Speaker 1:That's for sure. That's for sure, yeah.
Speaker 2:And then knowing what it is, you know.
Speaker 1:but but you find this process more difficult that you live in abroad as well getting your music here?
Speaker 2:um, yeah, it could be possible.
Speaker 2:I hear a lot of people say sometimes, like your nephew was here, you know to to work it and to you know, but I do think, I do think it's a thing, especially when the carnival season step in. Yeah, if you, when you're abroad, right, you're trying to figure out, man, when is that good time to release that soccer song, that could probably get a proper buzz. And I remember saying, well, november, doing november, let me release then. So that thing. But if you release in november, the bigger I had to send them the bigger artist, oh god you're gonna try you get this sitting down on top of you.
Speaker 2:So because them not releasing I? I would tell myself. I remember when they used to release a groovy and uh, yeah, it's a piece.
Speaker 2:No, they release an album lego ten song so if they're releasing albums, and I have a little one, two song that I try to get, I get instead of on top of. So you see, even when you release, like, and you put it on platforms like Julian's promo or something, it gets play, play, play, play, play. And then all of a sudden you understand still, because everything else come and sit on one side for you. So trying to navigate and figure out when is the best time to release, and this and that, as a foreign, you know, being living out in foreign could make it a little challenging and a little difficult. That's, you know, it's a fact. You have.
Speaker 1:I was observing.
Speaker 2:I said wait, if you have 10 producers that are doing rhythms and them same 10 producers handing them rhythms to the same 15 artists, a little one, two others might get through here and there, but it's way more than one, two new artists, but the 10 producers are literally saying I want this big artist on my rhythm, so they're sending it to the one, two, three, four big artists. That's why the big artists and them have albums. Yeah, 10 writers too. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, 10 writers, 10 producers 10 artists same.
Speaker 2:Nobody is finding. Are you finding talent that have some people who are doing it and it's a you know majority that aren't doing it. They're just going with whatever is the biggest brand out there right now.
Speaker 1:Let me send my thing to the biggest brand yeah, we're gonna suck everybody trying to get paid in the end you know, yeah, yeah, best ROI, yeah, yeah, yeah yeah, yeah so but another question about living abroad how difficult you find it to feel the vibe of carnival and the essence of it when you're writing a song now for the season.
Speaker 2:I'm not really high because there's carnivals over there. I love Miami, so Miami Carnival is almost like that's the baby to Trinidad Carnival.
Speaker 1:That's so close, so you have that little toolbook, yeah that's so close.
Speaker 2:And not only that, because of YouTube and stuff like that, I stay so plugged in, you know, to the vibe, like you get to see the radio stations do their thing here and you know you get to be live radio you could listen to, and stuff like that you know to stay plugged in. But you know also, because you know I come up play my mask, I like you know you're in it and connected.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so I could feel it and you know I did born and grow here, you know so, even though I'm out and far and I'm still mostly yeah, mostly soccer anything, mostly carnival anything. So you know, we, we in it, we're very much in it okay, yeah, and your your goal.
Speaker 1:Where soca is concerned, like typically when it was your process, you're looking for rhythms to jump on with the big artists, so you're looking for your own individual tracks.
Speaker 2:When you're listening, you have a preference what I've been doing is my own individual tracks, because if I hear it and I feel it, I write, I pen in back yeah, if I hear it and I feel it, I'm penning.
Speaker 2:If, if there's a rhythm that come my way, there's a rhythm that I was on the Sule Levy rhythm and again you hear it, I was like, oh, I know what to do with that One time the song. So if I hear it and I feel it, I'm down, I'm doing it. If the bigger rhythms start coming, I keep on doing my thing.
Speaker 2:Keep on doing my thing If the bigger rhythms start coming, I keep on doing my thing, right, keep on doing my thing. If the buzz start coming, I'll be like well, you know, sister, I'm really doing my thing, because I feel like people always be like this. They're not not hearing, they're hearing, you understand. I don't know what they're waiting for, but you know what I mean. I try not to worry myself about it because I'm having fun doing what I'm doing, right, so I will keep on doing it. And then one day they might just say well, we have a rhythm. I want to start on this one, you know, and the idea for that too.
Speaker 2:But if the big rhythms don't come, I know a lot of people get emotional about that If the big writers and the rhythms don't come their way, they get depressed, they done. They think that's not happening here, oh good, done. They think that I'm not, not. That not happening here, oh good, I'm going on. You understand. But trust me, again, there's you being your own mentor at the same time, I have to talk myself I'm not giving up.
Speaker 2:I'm not doing it because it's a no race I run in. It's a no thing. It's like. This is what I do. I want all you to hear this. Whoever hear it, I want to present this to you guys, you know. So that's what I'm doing, you know so makes sense, it makes sense when it, when it, when it reached me to the bigger platforms or the whatever.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I dare for it too, and the thing is, your name is already there, right, you know what I mean. So once people start listening and I, as you say, I always feel it listening, you know yeah yeah, yeah, people be listening, People be listening, they be seeing.
Speaker 2:you know, you know how social media go. They might not everybody go, double tap and everybody go, but they seeing.
Speaker 3:Of course.
Speaker 2:They thinking you know it's all good. So I just want to make sure that when I present myself, you know I'm presenting you know's what I'm here for that so, as we're on producers and rhythms, let me take you back now.
Speaker 1:How important was shell shock when you just came?
Speaker 2:on shell shock was was everything. Because producers that I well, I work with a whole bunch, bunch of producers, but let me tell you working with shell shock was is a lesson he teaching you, you understand. So he taught me a lot. You could boom, bop on a table all day long and write a song and thing. You know them, same as you working with shell shock. And he's teaching you how to hear your tone, how to think, you know. So it was a learning process and you know he was there for that. That was my friend, so sweet, you know.
Speaker 1:And yeah, he was, he was a mvp yeah, yeah, yeah in in my whole beginnings yeah, and that that would have been your first producer that you work with, given the first producer that I work with.
Speaker 2:Yeah, before that, like I said, we just ride on like little beats and stuff, maybe from downtown. All those of our first producer that I work with you know gage writing and then now I'm in a full-blown recording session there's a hell of a place to start a career boy with gage and shell chuck but but two, that was also, you know, like close enough to their beginnings as well. So we honest on starting things together yeah, they had their. You know, I think he, I know he had his team and everything.
Speaker 2:And gage, I know gage, like I said, we're growing up. So me and gage used to be rapping at the house and saying, you know, like on them levels. But now we come, now, and because the caribbean zombies and here we all come together on this professional level, you feel me. So it's like, oh yeah, that was that was nice, that was nice, that was like. But you know every moment of the way you you're like whoa, it's like a shock packed up to me the whole time, but yeah man, I can imagine.
Speaker 2:Yeah, as I went abroad and I even come back and just to hear how much shock grew. Yeah.
Speaker 3:You understand Giant yeah.
Speaker 2:But you know, I remember just feeling so much, like you know, I came out here. There was unsatisfactory situations here for me as well.
Speaker 1:I was like oh, In turn not here man.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you know working with you know things going on and you feeling like you're not being. You know I think other people was being like you again, kind of pushed aside. Now let's deal with this one, because this might be the most important person you know to work with Under the same management in Caribbean, so to speak. Under the same executives. In caribbean, some reason under the same executives okay okay, it's like it.
Speaker 2:It was. It was almost coming off. You know like you have three, four children, but it's like you choose a favorite in front of all of we and we're like wait a minute something you're right right it's like and then you know, you see it and happen.
Speaker 2:But oh, sister ron got nominated best new orders of the caribbean, oh right. So it's like hold. And then you know, you see it and happen. But ooh, sister Ron got nominated Best Noir. This is the Caribbean, oh right. So it's like hold on a second, you know, because you didn't recognize. But let me give them this. I feel as though, like everybody would say, sister Ron O'Connor was ahead of the times, type of thing, and I feel as though a lot of people did not know what do we do with the skill next, boy? That is something. What just happened? We didn't, what just happened. And what do we do next with this? Because the spinoff into the calypso and the rap, so when the thing was, it was stronger than the hip-hop spinoff. So even me felt, even I felt I'm a rapper I was a rapper at the time.
Speaker 2:So even me felt this little lostness because I kind of feel like I heard that there was some politics going on where it was like well, we are playing that, no more, we only playing soca and blah, blah, blah. So when you fall into that category, what you as a rapper, doing now and trying to find the producer after that, you know, because Meshach rest in peace, he passed and he gone after, trying to find the proper blend, of course, for me after that was like I need a producer who could bring that to life for me, and that was the that was the difficult part, and there's also a part in me that I had to find as well how to mix this and how to cross this over.
Speaker 2:And you know, there's the accent. But you remember your training, yeah. So I go to the studio and I say, and yeah, that bad, that that's what I remember was saying I'm in the studio with fire and he's like you're saying that's bad, it's bad yeah, you know what I'm saying bad, I'm saying this.
Speaker 2:I can't remember. That is one word I had to say over and over to try to say it more tranny I like it, I say yeah, I grew up talking what I had over here meetings- yeah, somebody trying to make you more tranny I didn't understand listen, I couldn't understand it about myself and that wasn't something I was doing on purpose. Still, like, sometimes we'll talk today and it is like a little switch in between here and I don't know. That's just. That was just always naturally who I. Where did I get that from?
Speaker 1:I have no idea yeah, I could see why it would be difficult for you to, because you talk a lot about authenticity.
Speaker 2:So yeah for saying that box in terms of how to say in a word yes, yeah, yeah, but I naturally coming out of my mouth that way, right. But again, I've worked with people who have taught me Peter Wildfire, noel has taught me because I work with him now on a lot of things that I've released now and learning, especially when the singing aspect comes in and stuff like that. Then there's more learning there and he taught me even more this tone deaf and thing. I've talked to my cousin.
Speaker 3:I don't know if you know j wave but he there's jesse who owns wing it okay, one of the owners of wing it but he sings as well play the keyboard he's singing.
Speaker 2:I remember when I was now, he sent me a rhythm as well and I was doing. He said, but I'm hearing a lot more. You know you could do a lot of different melodies. And I said, yeah, let me go back to the drawing board. But you know, some people could say the simplest things for me and it teaches me. What is he hearing Now I had to go back and hear it. Oh, I think I hear what he's about being like I'm the third instrument or I'm the additional instrument on top of this track, and I learned so much more. The next time he hear me do a song he was like wait, well, where is this? I taught you as a rapper.
Speaker 3:Hold on.
Speaker 2:So I went to hear him say that it was like, girl, you, you grew, you learned something and you grew there you know. So, yeah, it's something.
Speaker 1:Yeah, when I hear the difference in two songs we play to start and we have a few more to play. That should be here. Like you know, here's a story You're expecting to hear. So when you come singing yeah, you know what I mean. Was that something you was doing a lot back then? I wasn't.
Speaker 2:I wasn't At first. Yeah, I wasn't. And you know, like, when this producer Big Up, frano Frano is in Solution I've never met this producer and I've had quite a few songs with him it's Wildfire that linked us and when this guy, he could send a rhythm right, and whatever he sent I could hear. Now I could hear all the in-betweens and the goes, and sometimes when we send it back to Frano, he's in shock, cause I don't think he heard that I was gonna do. You know what?
Speaker 3:I mean.
Speaker 2:Like this, when I was doing Head Up, which is one I know we're gonna play. But when I was doing Head Up, I just want to know we're gonna play. But when I was doing head up, um, I went to wildfire. I said boy, fire, I have a t, you know. I say it kind of starts off, you know a little rap style. They can't call me what this. They can't call me broke. They don't know. As a boss I'd shake with his skills. I go make them choke. I tell this is eating with fire. So I will tell him that it was good for nothing. It'll be no joke. I said what do you know about me? And I could jump into the soaker. He said, hmm, I think I know the man to link.
Speaker 2:And he now going and he linked the Frano and then Frano now create the beat and send it back to him. Now he come to me with it and he's like, okay, all right, now the tune could finish, now I could finish, write it right, and the build up of that song and the energy that's on the vibe. But that song was just such, it was so satisfying to me you know that I was like, oh god, this, this feel good, yeah gotcha yeah head up, feel good.
Speaker 2:I did a video for it. The video run on the TV here a lot. It was running like every half an hour.
Speaker 1:Nice.
Speaker 2:Everybody just watched TV to see it.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah Is this it run.
Speaker 2:This Head Up was just last year.
Speaker 1:Oh, nice, nice, Well, let me find it. Yeah, we here, so that blending of the, the rapping or the flow, with the singing comfortable for you that was.
Speaker 2:That's comfortable. It seems like I fall into it so easy when I did forward and all of that is always comfortable. Especially the second verse could always come back and you know, and I was like yeah, I feel like I find I find something there. Let me see, let me see yes, bigger wildfire in the backgrounds there. They can't say I'm so good for nothing.
Speaker 3:That would be a joke. I got the skills that pay the bills. A boss called them. Can't read, don't I stand with the noble me? Can't tell you not one thing. Just hear from my energy and the good vibes that I bring. But what about when I'm running low and I need some fueling? They gonna leave me standing there feeling unfulfilled Watch.
Speaker 1:Now, try them, I try them. I fail, no bad mind them. Can't prevail, can't take my vibe like it's up in no jail Same time I come out and post my bail. Wanna be like me, but I can't sustain, Can't fill my shoes till I feel my pain. I don't know about them, I don't know about me and in this life I won't complain when I hit my head up. They can't make it inspirational message and all that bad. But like when you're hearing them, things when you're painting that you see in that connection between you and the artist today, like I hear it a lot when you're yeah, yeah, yeah, I see it.
Speaker 2:And let me tell you something I have. I have my sons, who would never let me go all day singing yeah, you understand.
Speaker 2:So it's like you. You know, I want to keep it modern, I want to keep it fresh, I want to keep it like yo. This is my new sound. You know what I mean and you know and, and there's still like variations, there's still like that, and I might still come out, you know what I'm saying, like spitting something. I remember I do a little freestyle, you know, just thinking to myself, addressing the youth and them you know and stuff.
Speaker 2:So I would still like spit, you know? Look at you, what do you mean? You don't know about me. Them folks never tell you nothing that I was the one who set up the scene and paved the way for the whole of them, something. So somebody, really man, killing them in a different version, still giving them still looking good like a bad bitch. So it's a lot. You're causing problems, what?
Speaker 2:So I still like having fun, yeah, when he's fitting, because it's like you know, it's what I like to do, you know. So if I feel that and I want to put out a track with that, I want to do that if I get you know. But I get to learn the difference between just rattling off lyrics, right, because Chuck and him used to tell me this is the learning process that I had to go through in my development and Chuck used to be like you're rattling off, you're rattling off, but okay, we need a hook, we need a pre-hook, we need a thing. So in order to find the proper formula in writing a song, this is something I had to learn, because there's a difference between just dropping a freestyle and actually creating a song.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, you see it with a lot of rappers.
Speaker 1:There are a lot of rappers who might be the best lyricists in New York. But making a song is a challenge. Making a song is a different challenge.
Speaker 2:So it's like okay, you got to figure out. You know, like, what are you doing? Figure out, you know like, what, what are you doing, you know? So that was a, like I said I'm on, a life is a journey, it's not a destination, right? So this is the journey, and on on this way. This is what I'm learning about myself. You know, I'm a grown woman now and it's like what am I, what am I presenting in my music? And also, you know how am I presenting it?
Speaker 2:you know, and what do you want to leave?
Speaker 1:in the world right, so it's like yeah yep, so you're back into so-called back into recording from a world when, because we miss it, you know it's at a point in time.
Speaker 2:We wasn't here, right so, um so, 2019 is when I came, when I started recording again, I said I really connected with, with fire, with wildfire then, but more so, um marker from studio three also linked me and I was like, oh, let me go to trinidad as well. And I went. I came down here, marca and braxton may he rest in peace, is that was at this, you know studio three who I linked with and in that linkage it was like this song that I created called um waiting for you.
Speaker 2:I remember putting that up and man on Facebook people was like what boy, sister, and we've been waiting for you.
Speaker 2:I was taking a flight one day from no, I've never wrote a song before. So I'm flying from Miami to New York, I think, and just on this plane I was like hmm, and this thing just started to come in my head, you know, and I was like long time I've been ready, baby, long time I've been waiting for you and that started Took you such a long time I stopped believing. Are you writing a song? What's going on here? Because it wouldn't have been that, of course. Of course. Are you writing a song? What's going on here?
Speaker 1:Because it wouldn't be that, Of course of course you know now I'm slowing it down.
Speaker 2:There's breaks in between and I said but wait, naguil, you're writing a song. I did it and I came here to the studio where I work with Braxton and it was over another beat at one time. And then I came and I worked with Braxton and he created this whole track for it and stuff like that man putting that song out, song video, everything. It felt amazing.
Speaker 2:It felt fantastic and it's, you know, like I said, more and more learning. But that felt like I think you'll find a little song here you know a little yeah, your voice, yes, yeah.
Speaker 1:So kill me. Finance your way was for the whole time what you was doing when I was up.
Speaker 2:Well, I wasn't. You know, like I said, I was in the states, I left. When I left here, I like I got my green card and everything, so I had my permanent residency in the states. So I was there, and then life start life, and so I was there, and then life started life and now I went there with connections.
Speaker 2:I'm not going to say too much, but I went there with connections and the connections just wasn't from a female, young female artist point of view. It wasn't. You know, I come from no compromise, so I wasn't about to compromise myself for anything and it was like yo, I never had to go through this, I get nominated Best in Waters of the Caribbean and I never had to do anything compromising. You know what I'm saying to myself.
Speaker 2:So, facing that challenge out there, and I thought it wasn't, I thought what is going on here? No, and it made me fall back from the music industry. If it meant that that's the direction where you need me to go and I'm not doing that, you understand. So I fell back a little bit and then I had my children and stuff like that. And then after that, the next pop-up was when I came back and vibed with Rocky and Jabami and them would always remember Ja and all of this stuff. So abami and them would always remember ja and all of this stuff. So we connected there again. Um, the challenge, like I say, of finding the producer or the team that you can really work with to you know, to create.
Speaker 2:I think it was supposed to be a flow after coming and doing. Always remember john, stuff like that, right, but michelle, shock, rest in peace. Shock, who was working when you know he passed away. Even when I came back and I started with Braxton again, braxton passed away.
Speaker 3:I was like what is going on?
Speaker 2:yeah you know. But you know, now I'm here I work with, with Peter Wildfire, noel Soma, so it's like, okay, now it doesn't want to start fire. It's like run you, always every time it's a tuna, tuna, tuna. So much I have more tune than budget. Let me tell you that's alright. I tell them the other day.
Speaker 2:I say my ambitions and my budget need to catch up because the way that I want to do it, the way that you know, in my head it would be like, tune after tune after tune. There would be like, tune after tune after tune. There would be no stopping, because I remember the times of the stopping and as an artist, there's a heartbreak of course.
Speaker 1:Of course, you know when I hear.
Speaker 2:This is the only time with younger artists when I hear them, so this one need to sit on, and now I need to sell you all now and oh my god. So sit down and do what? Go and make garden an artist as an artist, as an artist.
Speaker 2:Forever, forever forever you understand and, as an individual, your accomplishments are your accomplishments. You're setting goals for yourself and if your legacy you could leave saying you did this, this, this and this? You know like yesterday in an interview I was asked about a legacy and I was like they make me go to bed last night thinking what if your legacy let me put it in a proper form what if the legacy that you had to leave behind you accomplished very early in life? You understand. So when you talk about legacy, sister run, I come coming out, doing what it is I did that's already a legacy.
Speaker 2:You understand that I have it's done. I'm the first female rapper to come out recorded wise in trinidad and I'll say recorded rappers because there was other female rappers as well.
Speaker 2:You understand, but the first female recorded hip-hop artist out of Trinidad was me. I did that your set of pace. You know you open gates and stuff like that for people. So there is a legacy there. You know we just spend the rest of our life of, of course, searching our purpose. What else do we want to do? Thing we're gonna keep climbing that ladder so you can't tell people does it all get you some space you understand, like you know, we can't tell people.
Speaker 2:You know, I just feel like it should just have room. You know what I'm saying for everybody. I feel as though, yeah, maybe competition wise, as this is my personal opinion maybe do we need to compete? You know, I don't think so. You know, especially when you set such a a ground for yourself or whatever right, maybe you don't need to let the competition be for the very deal, you know, let the youth and them do that because that's their way of getting recognition and getting out.
Speaker 2:They're so big up to that they need that for this money, somebody?
Speaker 1:somebody complains about the youth with that. Is that the, the if you're not booked everywhere as a young artist. The competition is a way for you to pick up a little bit.
Speaker 2:It's a way for you to pick up, exactly, exactly. It's a good form of recognition and a good form of of revenue. So you know, I say allow them, but you can't tell a singer not to sing, of course that's what they just do.
Speaker 1:The nice thing about youth is they'll be where we are, yeah, and they'll have the same challenge then.
Speaker 2:Of course.
Speaker 1:Sometimes you don't realize when a new crop of youth is coming out and saying the same thing about them.
Speaker 2:Exactly, I think you're right the outlet on the art is the art, and then they're going to feel it music all your life. You know them saying no little you'd care.
Speaker 1:Come now and tell you oh god, actors does act until they, they all, and you know, especially you two might not be able to do what they do it unless you have take the chance you can take on. You know, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah but that fusion, that that comes seems to be naturally to you you were telling my whole year is this song that have afrobeat vibe holy, I have the afrobeat vibe we're gonna play it to know, because I feel as though sometimes, as you say, unless you're doing soaker and sometimes power, so okay, must be doing I.
Speaker 1:I was listening to choke. That's even talking about calypso recently, unless you're doing a rampadampadampam yeah, yeah, yeah and I feel like there's so much more space in the genre itself by any culture for different types of music and different fields of music?
Speaker 2:Yes, absolutely.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and if it comes in naturally to you, is there something I want to take a slice of?
Speaker 2:Yeah, of course.
Speaker 3:My sister-in Wait, is this the run singing? Not like it's a vibe. It's a vibe tonight and it's streaming for your company. Baby, when I hold you tonight, jam is alright. When you wake up, still on your mind. When I hold you tonight, jam is alright. When you wake up, still on your mind, still on your mind.
Speaker 1:Still on your mind, someone that I want, someone that I want. I'm about to ask you who you're singing about, doing a song very personal.
Speaker 2:But I want to see you know what I mean A song that I really. You plan for somebody, you see when you get. You see when you get that effect from your song. That's when you know You're penned it proper, because you know Somebody's going to come out of your way now.
Speaker 1:What Somebody you're planning to hold.
Speaker 2:I like it I think I have a hell of an imagination too, that's what it is. Yeah, I have a hell of an imagination as well.
Speaker 1:You can take your word for it. You can take your word for it.
Speaker 2:That song was billing. It was billing for a while so it went down the avenues and then I linked a little Cool Blaze who did this rhythm for me. I said I have something.
Speaker 1:He does rhythm very, very bad, yeah, so he did this rhythm as well.
Speaker 2:So I say this song and sometimes you have your song you can't really give up on it I say it still has some climbing to do it, so it still has airs it needs to reach to you know. So that's what I really really hope big time for all, but especially this song, I think it could just, you know it, don't have no time and it's not a soca to be just soca time.
Speaker 2:It's a timeless music and that's the type of music I enjoy doing now, even when I do soca, soca, like doing, you know, songs that outside of Carnival is still, you know it's still a vibe and Holy definitely had a feeling that even again you.
Speaker 3:If again. You come out spitting again and then a sweet voice comes in.
Speaker 1:I want some of that, and he says it's not about nobody's imagination.
Speaker 3:Okay, all right, all right.
Speaker 2:You see, everybody had to walk away, feeling like it's about them. You know, All right, I understand when you do that. You know your address Nice beautiful.
Speaker 1:So where we headed from here? Where we headed. Where's the story on going from here beyond?
Speaker 2:Listen it's still more and more and I want to say, I'm not sure like what it is. I'm waiting to probably come and snatch me, you know, but I know what I'm giving out, right, right. So the energy that I'm going to give out is this. You know the different aspects of me. However I see it, however I feel it, I guess I'm going to continue putting out music, as much as we want to hold our head and ball sometimes.
Speaker 1:I would imagine.
Speaker 2:I'm not stopping, because these songs ain't stopping coming and as long as they come in, I'm going to keep on heading to the studio recording and presenting. You know whether I'm going to do an EP eventually or whatnot, but you're going to always hear the different flavors of me. You're going to get the flavors as I start on it coming, so you're open to it. Yeah, I'm open to it.
Speaker 1:I'm glad I think the audience here for it and the youth too, especially with the younger artists. I know before the interview you said sometimes you feel like you know the reaching out and them things. Yes, I'll tell you something like like just from being here, salute affordable imports, but just being here and meeting some of the younger artists as you're coming and going, they're well connected to what happened before them.
Speaker 1:yes, and sometimes it's them who shy about reaching out, because they might not have the greatest experience sometimes when they reach out to people who came right, right, right, you know so sometimes they're not.
Speaker 2:They go feel good if they see a sister on in their box yeah, yeah, yeah, no, no, no, I have like there's a um de Deidre the rap scallion, I'm going to call her name. I think she works with chromatics a lot as well, and you know, we connect on just Instagram. And if I post something, she reposts it. If I see her post something, I repost it too, you know what I mean.
Speaker 1:That Nelly Katoi link is nice too Nelly, Nelly. She's a person. I never met her. She's a person, boy I never met her, but she seemed like such a nice person. She's a whole person. She's given her whole self. Yeah, yeah, yeah On social media.
Speaker 2:I got to say, yeah, I got to reach out even while I'm here, even though I'm leaving tomorrow, but I could always jump back in. I told her but, nelly, yeah, it's all order to link the two in some way, and I've been working on what it is we can, and I think I might have something.
Speaker 1:I feel so I reach in it. So you're open to it. You're coming home and performing everything when that time comes to you.
Speaker 2:Of course, because we miss you.
Speaker 1:We see Kitski in the caravan and we ain't see you If they had told me I could have run in with them earlier.
Speaker 2:Tickets was cheaper than carnival, of course, if they had. But you see, this is what I sometimes. I get frustrated too, because I think another time they did a uh, kiss kitty. I said only, I write on instagram, you know yeah it's hard to find me and his sister. On one word I write there just link me and say run, we doing something you could come, sure what? Because yes, I will come, you can I write there in, Just link me and say run.
Speaker 2:We doing something. You could come Sure what You're coming. Yes, I will come? Are you kidding? Yeah, yeah, yeah, I write there in Miami. Okay, good so it's easy, I could come.
Speaker 1:Well, ozzy coming here soon.
Speaker 2:I'm going to talk to him about that because when General Grant came and did his catalog, it was nice.
Speaker 1:The fans. We need to see you.
Speaker 2:Yeah, of course, of course. When I came last Carnival after Carnival, Tranquil had something, oh nice, and I did, yeah, I was out there. I felt so good too.
Speaker 1:Oh, beautiful, beautiful. Well, listen, we're glad to have you back, conrad, and them coming to run me out of here just now. I know the time was short.
Speaker 2:I appreciate you running through at short notice.
Speaker 1:Yes, no, it's amazing that I could be here and come out and get you know stuff like this done meet up with you guys, get to chat a little bit. I like it, I like it a lot. We will do it more. Yes, next time plan to come to canada earlier I will.
Speaker 2:I have to do all the time we have bills and ting, but next year I'll be here, probably in the January part of it oh beautiful. Yeah, yeah, yeah, november, january, I'll go on Better planning, better planning.
Speaker 1:Good, good, good. Better planning on my part too, because we come in Miami often I never know you're there. So next time.
Speaker 2:I'm there, there you go. You have a studio there, so we'll link you. Yeah, we'll definitely go. It's so nice. Outro Music.