Corie Sheppard Podcast
The Corie Sheppard Podcast
A trusted space for honest, Caribbean-rooted conversations that connect generations, challenge norms, and celebrate culture through real stories and perspectives.
Hosted by Corie Sheppard-Babb, the podcast explores the lives, journeys, and ideas of the Caribbean’s most compelling voices—artists, entrepreneurs, cultural leaders, changemakers, and everyday people with powerful stories. Each episode goes beyond headlines and hype to uncover the values, history, humour, struggle, and brilliance that shape who we are.
Whether it’s music, business, creativity, identity, advocacy, or community, this podcast holds space for the kind of dialogue that inspires reflection, empowers expression, and preserves our legacy. It’s culture in conversation—unfiltered, intergenerational, and deeply Caribbean.
Listen, subscribe, and be part of the stories that move the region forward.
Corie Sheppard Podcast
Lady Lava — From Chaguanas Hustle to International Stardom
In this inspiring and unfiltered conversation, Lady Lava shares how authenticity, hustle, and survival shaped her into one of the most influential voices in modern soca.
She talks about building from the ground up—selling slippers, coconut water, and ice cream to fund her dreams—and why every stage of the grind made her unstoppable. Lava opens up about artist independence, income discipline, and why talent without structure will keep you stuck.
She also speaks passionately about helping young artists develop—not just musically but mentally and financially. From advising newcomers on income streams to teaching discipline, punctuality, studio etiquette, and ownership, she makes it clear: music is a business, not a favor.
As a role model for young women, she stands firm in her message of self-definition, confidence, and not waiting on validation—from a man, the industry, or the public. Her hit “Ring Finger” was written from her own story, and its message of liberation connected across generations, even inspiring Vaughnette Bigford’s jazz rendition.
The episode dives into:
- Repetition and songwriting in the age of TikTok
- The zess bounce and why choruses must hit fast
- Performing with intention—cutting the beat so the crowd hears every word
- How Cardi B became a genuine supporter and showed up for her in New York
- Challenging herself through collaborations like her Chutney Soca Monarch title with Drupatee and Machel Montano
- Being confident onstage without ego—but full ownership of self
From stage presence to mentorship, Lava proves that real impact comes from living in truth and lifting others while you rise.
Click the link in my bio for the full episode.
#coriesheppardpodcast
Hi, my name is Corey. And I have with me today Keisha Harris. Are we doing this? How are we doing this? Is that Keisha thing?
SPEAKER_01:Whichever one you feel comfortable seeing, you could say.
SPEAKER_00:I could say that. Yes. Oh, you're great, you good?
SPEAKER_01:Yes, I am.
SPEAKER_00:I saw you recently in the CMAs. I was impressed. Plenty dress up. I think I was worried, you know. I tell myself I come in here under dresser. See, if she show up like that, we're gonna be looking bad.
SPEAKER_01:I'm gonna know how to represent you and that properly.
SPEAKER_00:You did, you did. How it was? How it was for you?
SPEAKER_01:Um, it was awesome, you know, seeing the Caribbean talent and even not only Caribbean, because it had other artists from America there, America-based artists was also there. But like seeing everybody come out was great. And you know, by people showing up, sometimes all they need to do is show up. By people showing up is a representation of what it is they're doing, and that you respect it to that level, and it was good. Yeah, you know, it's good that they actually showing love for the craft that people put in out. So I guess that would be a motivation for who in it already and also who's the c so that that setting that apart for younger people is something you pay attention to. Yes, very much. Because I feel like when it was my turn to do it, I made a lot of mistakes. So it probably didn't have somebody to guide me. So as much as I could give out little hints, or even tell people if they ask questions, give them questions. So my the mistakes I make, they won't have to make it. You understand? And they will understand, you know, it'd have a pattern, or you don't have to do exactly what I did, but I could probably tell it, hey, this code, that code as to what it is you're doing, so that it mightn't take as long as it might take as long as I took. But I I appreciate my time that you know I took to reach where I am.
SPEAKER_00:I'm sure, I'm sure, I'm sure. Now at the award show, this would be full standard award for Zest or Steam. He was nominated a bunch of times. Yes. How important does that award say? Something I look forward to, these awards also.
SPEAKER_01:Because for the awards, I think they did not know where to put ring finger.
SPEAKER_00:I see.
SPEAKER_01:Whether if it's all in yes, as in genre, whether it fell in soccer or dancehall. But what they know is that ring finger ring finger made on a pack in the Caribbean for the space where they were looking at it. So you know, when they called and they were inquiring, we was like, well, then it's kind of like Zest. We look at the instrumental. Zest is something that is Trinidad-based dancehole.
SPEAKER_00:So you had to tell them that when they when they reach out?
SPEAKER_01:When they yeah, when they reach out, you know, um, so that they will understand well, you know, what it is. So it's a steam as we would refilter it here. So now it's a genre on the Caribbean music awards.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, I guess even more important for you to show up then. Yes. They tell you you're winning before and I want to know these things as we're getting with this. I know JC and Beyonce will leave over.
SPEAKER_01:They don't they don't tell you that you win, but they they we know that they inquired about it, so we didn't know if it was going to be like the impact song of the Caribbean, because it had different things that I was nominated for People Choice Award. So we did not know. But you know, you have an idea when people ask you questions that hey, after they ask the question, you see um that they put these as category, and you know, we even inform them that it have a lot of artists from Trinidad that fall under Zesteam category, yeah, you know, because it mightn't be soca or reggae dancehole, but it's Trinidad version of dancehole music.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, genres are funny thing, you know. Like genre sometimes as an artist, you feel it's boxing, or you're rather not calling things a genre.
SPEAKER_01:No, well, even if it's a genre, I'm not staying any genre.
SPEAKER_00:No, but we see that, right?
SPEAKER_01:So even if they just have like a genre to identify what it is, what you know, for playlists and Spotify and distribution, as an artist, I am not putting myself to say, well, I only do this genre. No, I do music. Right or this music I do, the song I do today or the song I do tomorrow might be two different genres, but it's a product of my brand.
SPEAKER_00:Right, it's what you feel at the time. So we were getting a ringfinger, right? But just a couple more things on the CMAs I want to talk about because everybody has this story about up and coming and when they start off and where they will. But I noticed at other words that you were one of the celebrities that the celebrities were looking forward to seeing. I see Spice reaction when she sees it. Yes, is that something you're used to? Is that is how does that feel to me?
SPEAKER_01:Like, like now, because Spice and myself have a relationship. We have a song together, and uh, we kept the relationship from the first time we met, it was genuine. You know, we get along, so yeah, and I guess that's how I relate to the artists, also. You know, I give them the respect as people that there before me, right? And made made ways. Or we all right, so people as look on, and I might know what spice to has to say every single thing, but I show that she was probably in a position where she had to break through, you understand something. So we don't know what she did to reach there, but she is a female artist, female dancehall artist, and dance all is a genre that I appreciate, and you know, I fall in doing that, so I know she did work for me, like not saying I am doing this for Lady Lava, but to say that I am coming after her. So she did something for me already.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, they paved the way, right? That's very important.
SPEAKER_01:So important.
SPEAKER_00:Another random encounter see you and cattle in the airport.
SPEAKER_01:Cattle look glad to see and I was glad to see cattle, you know, just just appreciate and and digest music, eh? Because when you're doing music and you study craft, say you might know cattle as the individual, but you will know cattle product, and you will know this a good product. You understand? You like how this person has put the product together, how they use words, the metaphors, that you know different things. So you appreciate them for giving the contributions, you understand. So then when cattle meet me near Porters was like, Yeah, ring finger, like you know, he already know who it was, and you know you feel good about that. Somebody who is an icon in music actually know one of your songs and could identify you. So yeah.
SPEAKER_00:It's a good feeling. Yeah, that appreciation is something I want to talk to you about too, because you are one of the people that the whole country seems to appreciate. Young and old, all different races. You don't find so? Tell me, we could deal with that today, today.
SPEAKER_01:Nah, we must you must you must have people under that probably don't understand.
SPEAKER_00:Of course.
SPEAKER_01:You understand? I wouldn't say that they don't like you because they don't know you, they probably just don't understand, you know, all the things you say, oh, it's not a cup of tea. We we can't say everything somebody does is your cup of tea, but sure, you know, so that but that's cool.
SPEAKER_00:But I've any whole place like the glad for you, yeah.
SPEAKER_01:The glad for the glad for me, probably because a lot of people know where I come from.
SPEAKER_00:Right, okay, the story.
SPEAKER_01:You know, yeah, and a lot of people appreciate that I didn't give up on certain things. A lot of people know me. People know me from Shagunas, people know me from church, people know me from us in cadets. So a lot of people know me from cadets because you know, cadets used to have like camps, right? So people from Port of Spain, east, west, north, south, we used to come together.
SPEAKER_00:So you used to do that as you.
SPEAKER_01:Yes, I was at sergeant.
SPEAKER_00:That's crazy. Enjoy that.
SPEAKER_01:I was like, Yes, I love, I love, I was cadets.
SPEAKER_00:Well, I know I was out of my death before, but now I'm sure. Now I'm sure. No, yeah, yeah, yeah. I see a lot of people like um Little Buddh Ring Finger for a while. That song creates a level of impact. I wonder sometimes when you're writing songs like those, if you if you have a feeling like you know when you're coming up with them things. No, you don't usually know as well.
SPEAKER_01:Exceeded expectation. I was I don't know. I just know that I find at the point in time my manager had say, place quiet. Yeah, mom tell you, boy. Well, you guys are my manager, yeah. That was my writing file.
SPEAKER_02:Right.
SPEAKER_01:So it's like the place quiet, we're going on with Zasanis had a call, we're going over tolly and whatever. I was like, What? I can wait it down and like the place quiet, you're going mad. So like, all right, I'm going to work. So I went upstairs, and a customer that had come to manual, and I was like, I went and write some and shake up the place.
SPEAKER_02:Right.
SPEAKER_01:Rest in peace, that man die, anyway. So I sell merge. So he'd come to buy merge and sing, and I was like, I went in the studio, I'd go, I'm going to work and whatever. And I just went in the studio and I was going through beats. And I bounced upon me beat from Iran Duncan. And I was like, the song ain't good enough. And just right there, just right there, like just studying life and things that was happening in my life at the point in time. Um, and I come up with I don't even ask me how I come up with just come up.
SPEAKER_00:I feel it was about man like me in the way you singers. Let me address this one time.
SPEAKER_01:That was a point. Nice.
SPEAKER_00:Good. Perfect time. Because I get married during COVID, right? So let me tell you how this one has me uneasy. Because I was with my wife for a very long time. I don't know what your camera girl love my wife, everything in case you watch it.
SPEAKER_01:Make up your wife one time.
SPEAKER_00:Let me be careful here. Deep waters. But as every matchin' daddy's man, it takes a little while to get married, right? For all kinds of reasons. We have good reasons, right? Not the reasons you say in your song, right? You have good reasons, you know? You know, cut that part out, right, David? That look shit. Leave that out.
SPEAKER_01:I like how I like how David for only put for this one.
SPEAKER_00:Keep the camera on this side, right? So when I hear this song, and a few things stood out to me, because I tell myself, boy, I come at good timing. Because you see, if this tune, one of the first times it strike me was a 10 years performance. Somewhere in New York, some Caribbean dating, and boy, when I see the response to that, and I see it's only man faces see me because it's you to bend everybody burning and I say, Thank God that is not me. I'm a ring on my finger. I say, I dodge your bullets. You had pushback, men was telling you like it's a man, uh, a man attacking bashing.
SPEAKER_01:You get any other some people will write things on Facebook, right? Um, but like men that I know be like, la by putting me on that pressure again. You understand? Like my friends, my friends will say, You put in me on that pressure. And I say, Okay, do the right thing. You understand? I say, You love your girl? You love your girl? You know, or you know, at least make her feel. And when I say, you know, you do have a ring, then you don't have a mister. Sometimes it don't it do have to be like the physical ring, but a safe, a safe space.
SPEAKER_00:So that's again in this camera here. So it's actually does be a musical ring. It's a safe space.
SPEAKER_01:You know, like a safe space. Because I showed it have plenty of ladies who know they're in a safe space. But they will sing the song.
SPEAKER_00:But they were singing for the past, them go bed.
SPEAKER_01:They were singing for enjoyment. It have ladies that have a ring and they still have enjoyment in the song because they understand past.
SPEAKER_02:Of course.
SPEAKER_01:They understand where they are now, they understand that this is the story of somebody else's life. They understand that hey, I just like the song because at some point in time in my life I probably felt like this. But they're not there now, but they could still enjoy it. You understand?
SPEAKER_00:Okay, yeah, take it like that.
SPEAKER_01:So it's like uh, alright, you might watch a movie and you will have emotion towards this movie. Uh, but this is not your story, but the emotion probably tied to something that happened before, or something that you could relate to because you know it was somebody else's story, so it it still triggers something in you, even though you're in a safe space, or this is not you.
SPEAKER_00:Alright, it's smart to know that that's smart though. Because the problem is an affect, right? When my wife Ben, I can't explain all we explain to people that you watching. I'm watching that we are saying I gave the ring. It's still you to Ben.
SPEAKER_01:Enjoyment. Entertainment.
SPEAKER_00:Enjoy, I take it down, I'll take it down.
SPEAKER_01:Entertainment. I think the men are more vexed about Bob.
SPEAKER_00:Oh, well, let me talk about Bob now. You bring me here. Let me talk about Bob.
SPEAKER_01:I think they're more angry about Bob the bill. They feel like la viol.
SPEAKER_00:Is it follow-up? We got the ring finger thing that we're under pressure. But them, them not we. I only safe slide. But her men under pressure. Because you know is the truth about your ring finger. And as a man, I could say this now, right? Sometimes your mother, not pressure, but your mother will be telling you some of the things you say, like, boy, you have a girl to go and lose. Your father go say, Boy, you play me fool in the loss. She's telling you that your mother-in-law, sometimes your child, you know, yes, we hearing them things, but you put it in a way that put everybody. I want to say in place about your explanation, too good for me to say that. But Bob the builder was a little more direct, right? And especially when I see and see me, you made it, right? You made it. So now it's a good time to invest in a man, no? I knew I said no, it's not a good time, it's not looking better.
SPEAKER_01:You might say invest in a building, you might say invest in land and you man say invest in man, yes, way.
SPEAKER_00:I'm a financial advisor, right? And when I tell him, I'm doing all kinds of different things, he said, boy, that song isn't risky. This song, but when I tell him I invest in myself, he said that is the best investment.
SPEAKER_01:That is the best investment that you can make.
SPEAKER_00:I am a man, and you're not gonna be able to do that. So that's the best investment you can make to invest in a man. No, no, I don't know what it is.
SPEAKER_01:As a woman, the best investment they can make is in yourself. As a man, the best investment they can make is in yourself, and that's the truth. Because when you become a whole, like a half and a half make a whole, right? But a half and a half quarter, something missing. You understand? And sometimes that little piece of missing is causing a problem. Of course. It might start good, but it will cause a problem after. I think, like even emotionally, anything emotionally, financially, mentally, all them things, sometimes you have to make sure that you know you're at a level where you could do certain things and it could take on certain things. You know, so I could just and I remember I live with me, eh? I not a woman. And I live with Lady Lava. Remember, Lady Lava say I is not Bobby Billa. And never say Felicia, Salicia, Kelly.
SPEAKER_00:All I feel is you know, all of them feel is you.
SPEAKER_01:But why why the why these why these ladies could relate to this?
SPEAKER_00:Okay, I asked any questions. Let me reverse this not David because these questions are telling me feeling warm. I don't know why these ladies can't relate.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, and I'm saying it have a reason why this is relatable. And it's relatable because it's a pattern, and the pattern happened many times before. So all I'm saying is I am not Bob the Bella, but I am also letting ladies know it have no reward in being the best girl. It has no reward in being the best wife. If I cried, must be in a X5. Other than that, I don't want to cry. I don't want to cry. You understand? That is where it really saying, like, I don't want to cry. You know, but if I cry, but I'd be in an X5, but I have my things and I crying, and I walking down the road, water wet and made the sun hot, all them things and I crying again dust on my foot. You understand? But when I say that, it's just to say invest in yourself because I made him, I I I do it already, like investing in somebody else. And when it comes to I just had off because of choices that I wanted to make. And it's not it's not bad choices, but it's just my alignment would have probably changed to the individual alignment, but I already made my investment there, and now I am saying, okay, can we agree on this? And they would say yes, but actions would have shown differently. So then now I would have to start over because I choose my career. You understand?
SPEAKER_02:I understand.
SPEAKER_01:So that's why I say it's not Bobby Bell again again. I can't do it, I cannot. So they say me, like I. But it have men now that take it to heart. You know, you might sing that song and laugh. You, you, you could say and laugh because you're confident in yourself, or you're confident in the choices that you're going to make for your family. Or you might say, My intentions with my wife is good. So you would not feel that way when you hear Bob. But it have people that know that the intentions with the person that they with at the moment is not good. Yeah, or they know that the intentions is to live, or they know that the intentions is I really use in she. I don't want to be here. When I get through, I am going to move from here, right? So they know that that is the intention. So when they hear Lady Lava say, I it's not Bobby Bella, and not belly, no man for feature. I'd hurt in here. So that's why it's bothering them because them feel I'm not senior, but you feel I seen you behind the mask. So that is why you have a problem with the song because you feeling like she watching me. That time I'm not watching it. You know, long time when I say, Where were you watching me for boy? And when when they go back and they do research on that, you wasn't really watching them, but within the self, all the imperfections, they feel they're seeing it, and that is what has happened when they sing things sometimes. People feel like I directly seen that man's imperfection. Or I see in that you go in and lead that girl when it gets you and you don't use your money, you go and leave she. So he feels I seen it, so he vexed with me, you know. Mean senior brother, I not see you. All I saying is for the young ladies to know your position. Like, I'll I I can speak from a woman's point of view because I am a woman. I know it have a lot of women that could have been further in their life, but the mother in nature in you makes you want to take care of people, solve the problem, and fix things that we see because that is in you, right? So I'm not saying not do it, but don't forget yourself while doing it, or fix yourself properly, and then if you want to, you know, help with something, you can help be lying fire with somebody. You could do, you understand, you could do whatever you want to do with the person that you love, but make sure that you fix yourself. So if the person leaves today tomorrow, you not mash up with how people mash up.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, yeah, yeah. We see it all the time.
SPEAKER_01:Mash up because the significant other walkout. Because they feel like I invested so much time, energy, and money in this individual, and then you see them with another woman. That becomes hate, it becomes jealousy, and it makes you get sick.
SPEAKER_00:Yes, things is unusual.
SPEAKER_01:Mentally, emotionally, and all these emotional sickness turns into physical sickness soon.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:And that's gonna be something.
SPEAKER_00:Maybe easy where you say I, you know, it reaches people. Aye. But I'll tell you this, right? As you say, I like when you put me on the good side of the fence, you save me. You put more for me, bring. But one of the things I was always talking about my wife would know, right? As a younger fellow, you know, you're going wrong, you have a child, you're living together, and all them things. If I knew then what I know now, I would have got married a long, long time. Yeah, yeah, yeah. It's a big difference. Uh, a home and a stable home and building something together also.
SPEAKER_01:And allows you to save also.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, it saves, right? Yeah, I think somebody's saving in a little while. So when you're writing Bob the Builder, you don't know either.
SPEAKER_01:You just No, yeah, I didn't. So Bob, I just I write Bob because I'd like the instrumental. I write around carnival time. And the first thing was like it's on a rewarding being the best girl. And I thought about that because I say, you know, sometimes you do everything that you can do, and it's still not good enough. So it doesn't have no rewards in that, like, you know, trying to fight up and say, hey, I just I just do the best. And sometimes you do the best, and and yet still the same thing will happen because it's not you, it's the individual have their own issues that they're dealing with, and you can't fix that for them. They had to face whatever they're going through and fix that for themselves. So it have no reward in that because that's not really for you to fix. Right? So I say, you know, it's a reward, and then I start, and it's like, you know, since I was younger, I said it's not Bob. I say, Well, it's not Bob mean Billy nobody like that. That was that was something, and I fake Facebook post even come back up with a status that I had made from years. So that was just already there, like in my brain. I just include it in the song and go on, but then when I went to the verses now, um, you know, it was different, like things I see happen, and then the last was actually give them like an example to say I'm not a perfect individual, like girls who do it, and I and I say this for it to feel away. Sure. And I say this for it to feel less than, or for me to feel like hey, I mean billy, nobody I better than all yeah. No, I learned all you know, I'm not a perfect girl. I do them things like I bill a man already, I admitting it all, yeah. But then I learned you know, he dig a hole, he put me in it, and he tells me all I can fit in the lifestyle that he had. And now these same people is calling back and say, Lava, I'm gonna go. You know, you know what I mean? So these same people might want to come back in your life, but it's like hey, you know, you're stronger now, or you know, you can move on, or you already see that situation for what it was. Don't put back yourself in the the same position that you was in from before. So it's clear way I learned, you know, possibility exists that this will happen when you build somebody like failure is in it, disappointment is in it, right? It could be good or it could be bad. And then I learned, you know, like to feel no way, you know. Because I was in the same position you in, or you was in, you understand? So is like related, but like it's not you alone, it's it's us.
SPEAKER_00:It's important those things, you know, because it tells people, and women in particular, young women, though, you know, sometimes you worry about the youths in the country, you know. And it says something to them that hey, I went through this, but I could still do that. I've changed, I I I grew up. Yeah, so that's um one of the two things about those two songs for me, along with most of the other things you do, is like I read Kaiso and Calypso, man, right? And I remember I was supposed to come to the sea in a forum with Omari Ashby and them up in UV. I couldn't make it, but Omari talks about this a lot where songs is social commentary, and them songs is rarely social commentary, and back in the day in the Calypso tense. When a song resonates with people, it's the truth. People go feel away and people go feel vindicated. And it's the truth about them two songs. You see it with people now. So I had to ask you about your name because you have a real calypso in your name, you know the lady lava, like Lady Trudad and Lady and Lady Watchman. You know, it's a plenty of people have that lady thing. What the name came about?
SPEAKER_01:Oh nah, the name came about because the lava now. Um, that was when I used to sing with some guys, and everything I seen was hot. So they said we like lava, and I was like, Alright, so I take that from there, and because I had like Lady Saw, I take the lady from Lady Saul, so it's like, you know, you know, it had Lady G and Lady in dance hall all also. So I just say the lady from there and lava.
SPEAKER_00:Right. So Lady Saw was one of the earlier influences in terms of the music, but I see her grew up in a church too so than to think what was right.
SPEAKER_01:It wasn't good with me then. I tell you, it wasn't good with me at all. I grew up in church, and when I say I know a lot of people, let's say they grew up in church, and they mean like, well, I used to go to church. No, I used to go to church Sunday, I used to go to church Wednesday, Bible study, Tuesday, prayer meeting, Friday, youth meeting, Saturday. I used to go and clean the church, and then we have church on a Sunday communion. I said, give out, I used to share communion. Now if I went in church, share communion, do the projector. So I was in choir and them things. Right. You know, I was already active, like in music itself, because we was in choir, choral speaking, you know, different things that used to have in church. So we had a strong church background at a point in time when that was the only thing I know. But we live in Trinidad, so Trinidad is still here plenty secular music, right? Um, my father, however, never grew up in the church. My mother was a church woman. My father used to go when he wants to go. But when my mother knows home, though, my father used to play the secular music. So, yeah. My father, my father used to play wherever. You know, long long the long long long all them things, yeah. And when my father played music, and you know, I just like it. And it grew a different thing for the music now. When I reached into Junior Sec, I had friends that would be singing, you know, the secular music, you're traveling in taxis and all them things. So I had a friend named Sharon who I used to sit down next to and used to be singing. I said, Oh yeah, I could sing nine. So I had to take my mother gospel cassette. It's not good at all. I said to take the gospel cassette on them now, and in the night I said, leave the music to tape. Because never had plenty talking. So I said, leave it to tape in the night. Overnight radio. Overnight radio, and then the next day I would learn the songs. So when I reach in school now, we used to be beating leaders like that, and everybody singing. So you know I started to sing, so I said sing lady so and different things. When my mother got the cassette on them, and she playing it on the yeah, and God is evil, and then maybe five. Mommy, what do you think? Cassette brick, prong. My mother said she real, she mash up cassette when CD time comes, she mash up CD. Don't study DHD then.
SPEAKER_00:I calculate bad.
SPEAKER_01:Cassette C D mashing up at our friend. Eminem. I'd love Eminem. Way because you know, Eminem was a lot of rebelling music. So, you know, you feel like Eminem could understand where you're coming from because I want to live in this world, but I am stuck in five, six days a week. Yeah, boy, pressure. You understand? I stuck in the church. So my friend had give my original Eminem CD. I'd love Eminem. What my mother press play on that MM could have cost boy.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, from all the gate.
SPEAKER_01:And she here and crack, crack, crack. Watch now, my heart breaking because she breaks that CD in half. I feel like like the world, I could have mashed up thing in the house, but that's how to go upstairs.
SPEAKER_00:And that's when like explain to youths now what mashing up a CD is, you know. They might not understand that, but you know how hard it is to get originals.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, to get original CD does like, you know, it's something so good, so close to my heart. And then it mash up, so it was like from there where my my little little thing in the household where I said hide and listen, but we grew up in the church and whatever. My father now, he said, Here we singing. Right. And he used to say, No, you had to roll your tongue, yeah, you know. Yeah, he would ask he would have, you know, thing we are born. I still say, you know, little things cause me and my neighbor who used to be on his step and thing. She's a she's a wall, licks, licks, come on, licks, licks. My mother here, me and my neighbor. Um, me and my neighbor singing. And we all said she's uh if I girl take two men in a one night. Oh my mother inside, licks. I say we hide them a clothes. I high clothes inside my bag, going to school with it. Like for talent show. No, my madam don't know I do in talent shows in school I bought them. In school, I tell you not there, I said not the same girl that I am home. So that's why plenty of times you will say, Your parents must know. I tell you not. Sometimes parents is be doing all they could do on the weekend, and they really don't know certain things. You understand? They're not going to know. Because remember, the nothing here, the nothing in the child mind.
SPEAKER_00:People saying that for them when they're more small.
SPEAKER_01:It tells us no nothing.
SPEAKER_00:Oh, you're gonna know.
SPEAKER_01:My mother going so going for living when I reach in school. I have my thing, my father hat in my bag. My father hat, and I'm going up for talent show. We singing Tai Gabo. I like that.
unknown:I mean,
SPEAKER_01:Of the school. Well, everybody like, yeah, Kisha. Why don't we go back home quiet and can't even tell them age? They went out talent. Show you can't even say we were in talent show, not near. That's going back home quiet. And you know, from there, but I never give up. I used to be chanting, you know, all of the boys, all of them boys and them chanting and thing. And that's just something. I think like now my fan base is plenty. I'm a school friends, eh? Because a lot of them know they just didn't write the comments. Hey, from beaten that's in school here. You understand? From because they actually know, hey, this is not nothing now. You know, plenty. And I'm going to say, boys, long time she might all of this know that now. Long time she's do that, like, you know, people just know now. Um, I think from school after school I developed you writing part because I used to write poems. Right.
SPEAKER_00:I hear that a pastor used to write with poetry.
SPEAKER_01:So my mice are being church. So it had a reverend by the name of Reverend Janet Smith. She's a um poetry publisher, she published books, poem books, and so my name and them books and what as the individual, I used to read it. I used to read it before it came out in the public. So I said, sit down home my hair and read it on her scrap and say, Yeah, I like this one. This one nice, this one, and she was a pastor. So she said, write about different things. So from there, I think I fell in love with writing poetry. And I saw write anyway. I write a whole story here. My mother mash up my CD today and thing, and them don't know. Yeah, diary, I don't diary. So anything, anything, I can't really talk it. Because I'll get my mother's boss. So I just writing about anybody who gets my vex. I write, yeah, I'm a mother thing, and I write right about my mother and I mean.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, I have it.
SPEAKER_01:No, she never said so. Then I said to write poems. Um poems about you know your little boyfriends or something, and love and all them things. I said to write poems. But it's only when I finished school I I leave off the poetry and started to do like write songs with a little group that I submoved with.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:So I write songs with them. Um and from there I guess I just develop. Develop because you know, my writing skill would have grown from where it was at that point in time. To now it used to be conscious music, you know. I used to be these queen freaking hotness all the time.
SPEAKER_02:Right, yeah.
SPEAKER_01:So with them boys, them did more like you know, Rastafari. You know, thing. I said still be singing all kind of thing, but you know, I still calm with it because I move with them. The second team, I said, I some move with our girls, two rasta girls. But them and all I'm saying, conscious. Right? Singing, you know, goodness, real good things about the country. How about the country and beaten drama and things? We still go quite point four and record and these things. But you know, from them things you're different different groups. Because with music, everybody still had a life to live. Everybody still had bills, you're getting older, you know, you're doing you're doing certain things. So you might be with a group now, and one person goes on the next person, you know, every life, life, life in.
SPEAKER_00:But by then, you know you want a career in music, you know this is what you want to do.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, but then I run in on music still. I said, we're running on music, but uh and but in Trinidad now at that time I didn't had all the studios that have now.
SPEAKER_00:Right, I guess here's a different thing.
SPEAKER_01:No, have plenty of studios. Um so you know, drop your CD, drop your thing, drop your flash drive by the radio station. Um I was with a group. I thought that was it. I thought at that time, I quickly make it. I'm naked, we and I'm manager and everything. And he invested money in we and you know, first time I I end up in the radio station, I went by radio station, and you know, he said, Well, you know, you go deal with them, you get them to play with music, and you know, he think he's gonna little money and think of your money. And I say, Boy, Kisha. We're going down the road, and they said they'll go play the music come and my little set pass.
SPEAKER_02:I like that.
SPEAKER_01:So I hear the music on the radio. Yeah, but yes, this is it. That's so that the play the day they just passed them. I played no other day.
SPEAKER_00:That was it, it's our one play.
SPEAKER_01:They played the day that's passed. So we manager and up call back now and say, Well, I played, you know, we need it on it. Yeah, we played you pay to play to play.
SPEAKER_00:But they say that too. I like that energy. I like that energy.
SPEAKER_01:You pay the plate, play. You understand? So, you know, it was like, Wait, boy, but we are still going on manager there spending money kind of in the studio, but it had a middleman now. Because remember, this manager does have the money, but he doesn't really know much about the music industry, producer, and things. So he said, Give somebody who knew about it, and then we like we young, we need we need background. And the middleman now, let me say if it's 8,000 to do four, because it's four of us, right? 8,000 to do the four songs, the man charge and we manager 8,000 for one song. So and we manager, find out now. He called me a meeting and say good.
SPEAKER_00:But you come out, yeah.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, I can't take it no more. I can't take it no more. I try with all the early go ahead and you know, go with somebody else, and let somebody else manage all here, but you know, he's spending money and it has no returns and thing. So we like, wait, boy, we dream get crushed again.
SPEAKER_00:Make it again.
SPEAKER_01:We just sit on, like, where we go and do everybody, same thing, life life in, and everybody go out of business. We're going again, trying with other people, and it was just that process of trying, trying, investing, investing, starting, stopping, starting, stopping. Until like I just went on my own and started to do music on my own and 2017. That was the year when I sang FAB to keep it a secret. Right. And Taylor.
SPEAKER_00:Oh, that both of them was the same year. Okay, good.
SPEAKER_01:So when I when I sang FAB to keep it a secret, um, Chinese from Red, he was like, Who's this girl? Tang ting ting, he didn't know who I was. I didn't know nobody in the radio, I don't know nobody like that. And he was like, Who is this? And he kinda like doing persecutions and find out who I was and calling my for uh interview. At that point in time, I was done performing, huh?
SPEAKER_00:Okay, okay. So you basically before that you you sung Belin?
SPEAKER_01:Different songs.
SPEAKER_00:Right, okay.
SPEAKER_01:I was done going and performed. Nobody ain't really knowing.
SPEAKER_00:Right, babe, wait.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. I buy me this again, Mike, and I said, go and do my little thing.
SPEAKER_00:So waiters, just by waiters, bars is little zess and little parties with waiters.
SPEAKER_01:It used to be like little shows that are keeping in the area and thing. I used to go and perform.
SPEAKER_00:So by the time you're known for performing.
SPEAKER_01:I know and show going on.
SPEAKER_00:Right, right.
SPEAKER_01:I known for performing and show on us. But when he called for the interview and I did the interview, while I was leaving the interview, I'd met some guys from Showtime Empire. And each America and fella was like a bad man. We have a redeem. And I heard a Sunday taillight. But you had a record by Sunday because it's going out. It's like record by Sunday, boy. Go on. Same thing, taillight. Just write it from my head while I was on work. Write it and then record, and then taillight actually.
SPEAKER_00:Write it from your head while you were in work. Yeah, I was on work.
SPEAKER_01:When you're working at this point, um in Shagona, selling and shagonas.
SPEAKER_00:Oh, you're doing your own thing. Oh, okay. So you do it by within the week, get recorded and you're done. So we're fine to record and then take them time.
SPEAKER_01:I went showtime and record it. Oh, you went by them. By them and record it, yeah. Um well before that used to be by like penko. We go in different different people's studio and pay pay any record or whatever.
SPEAKER_00:Penko.
SPEAKER_01:You know penko?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, yeah, you forget the wrong age group. It's my age, you know, Penko.
SPEAKER_01:Penko. Well, yeah, Penko and them did if you beat it, keep it a secret. Penko recorder.
SPEAKER_00:Okay, nice. Nice, nice, nice.
SPEAKER_01:But no scruples and all them rhythms and things. Yeah, I was on them rhythm, you know, with squeezy ranking and maca, but just nobody really.
SPEAKER_00:So when you mention working on things, that's something that I want to read a list I have here for you, right? I tell you before we start. That's a watch real interview, you know. And I see some a little thing that you used to sell over the years. It's the longest little thing I see, and I feel I would catch a few.
SPEAKER_01:To say a good interviewer, I don't do researcher. Let me see you.
SPEAKER_00:Me and do no research. So I gotta. I just saying why here water ice cream, cigarette slipper, clothes you used to do here at a pilo, and lava water. What else we miss it?
SPEAKER_01:We miss nothing.
SPEAKER_00:I miss nothing with research. Like David do that. David goes sending that we stop before you so how it comes about, how you start end up started?
SPEAKER_01:I said, Work from me. When I now started to work, I said we put a spin. Um running uh that's my first job. My first job was with my JK Entertainment. That's when I was 16. Leave that and I went on working. What kind of work you did? Um a DVD, a DVD um club. Yeah. And then I left and I went on and was running a hair store for Campbell, a guy. And I started working in tongue, print street, on and off. So that's you know, work. Them them people end up like my family. So anytime I feel like yeah, I had a girl, that's what print street. I still go in tongue and work in a close door. Right? Um, I guess from there probably I get the hustle from in Porter Spain working. Because I used to do classes, hairdressing classes and work. Right? Um after that, I work in a laundry. I was the youngest. I like them older ladies, you know, put a little something in me from working in the laundry with them, and uh I work super farm. I work super farm for like three years.
SPEAKER_00:Oh, you were there for a while. Three years in Super Farm.
SPEAKER_01:Um I left Super Farm and started to do here at home. I opened my saloon home and started to do here. However, from making money from doing here now, um, I started send money for my mother to send clothes to sell. And I realized that I had to stand up whole day to get$300. Cause at that point in time here wasn't making money like how he making money now.
SPEAKER_00:Oh, you're not the front time here. You know about castle, so like long time it's on good money.
SPEAKER_01:So doing yeah,$300, and then I sell one top and$300.
SPEAKER_00:I gotcha. So that's a mommy abroad. She should be abroad. Gotcha.
SPEAKER_01:I say this matts and matts. So I saddle say I want to sell clothes. So I saddle sell clothes and I went into Shogunas to sell clothes. Now when you reach Shogunas, it's a different ball game. So when they saddle clothes now, it's like okay, clothes selling morning weekend. I wanted money every day. So I said to sell cigarettes, water, snacks.
SPEAKER_00:That's coming in anytime.
SPEAKER_01:Cigarette selling every day, water selling every day, yeah, ice cream selling every day. You understand? So the clothes now, it was there for the you know, we can here get more money. Right. But I want money every day. So I sat up in front and buy my boot. I went by the drugs, I had a boot by the drugs, and I went there and sat up on the fence. I said, Paul my clothes, cigarette this that. Then I realized I had some friends come from Port of Spain. And it's seasonal time now, you could go and sell other things. Valentine's chocolate. And all I'm I said, okay. What? I'm cool. I said my box of chocolate. Cases of chocolate for Valentine and stand up and sell. I say, Mommy, send some only be slippers someone, because I realize only be slippers selling fast. Once people know you have it, you sell. So I said, sell price to be boy 75 for one or 741, 2500. And I push any price. As one of them who saw price matrollies. Who sell what? Price matrollies.
SPEAKER_00:Oh, okay.
SPEAKER_01:Price matter sorry.
SPEAKER_00:Endorsement.
SPEAKER_01:I push in my price matrony, and I have my I have all my things and it's selling. Now once you understand your end goal and what you're doing, I need this money, and I need it now. Because I was in Susu. Right. When you're on the road, it's a plenty of Susu. So you could go in daily Susu.
SPEAKER_00:So yeah, you say daily Susu. It's a susu pain. I never hear about that.
SPEAKER_01:That's right. Listen, they take not the people as we on the side of the road. People as watch and say, oh god, and uh, you know, kind of discriminate. Like them them that sell on the side of the round and sit in a bad way. Trust me, baby, we good.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, that's entrepreneurship to me. We could. Most people can't do that.
SPEAKER_01:We are good. So daily susu is 200 a day. Every day you had to pay 200. And you know, I like money bad, so I take two hands. So I get 400 when you come to pay this woman. And susu woman has a very bad woman. Meaning, if you do have your money, she throw you out. And you wait to collect back your money when you susu done. You understand?
SPEAKER_00:So when you're paying on daily susu, when you get in your hand? Every week.
SPEAKER_01:Every 35 days.
SPEAKER_00:35 days, okay. Got it.
SPEAKER_01:Every 35 days is a rollover. Gotcha. So you could get between the month, you could get whenever. What between the 35 days? But they do cross 35 days. So every 35 days they get like 7,000 some. So it was. So you know I want a money part. You understand? And then I take all our money and I put it in music.
SPEAKER_00:Oh, yeah, right. Because you want to play recorded and water, I sell in water.
SPEAKER_01:So sometimes when I see my water, I sell eight two for five. And I had an a lot. I want people here because listen, I have this money to make by the end of the day. And she needs to get this money by the end of the day. Right? So it's like no and I'm playing. I kiss that someone I said, someone for ten dollars. Come fit. And he did know. I remember fan and one. She said, and she see, man, she's like, I said super farmer them. So no super farmers are more reserved. Yeah, of course. You know, I said, go to work, looking nice and meeting. You know, I'm looking pretty, very dandy. And then it, you know, this she seems one. She like, she said, Kisha, what happened?
SPEAKER_00:Sorry for you. Yeah!
SPEAKER_01:She thought I was going through something.
SPEAKER_00:Oh, yeah, hit the rough button, we can't sell it.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, and she said, and I was like, she, why are you doing that? She knows you have seven thousand to collect when you're gonna be like, Yeah, I I look in for this money. You know, I looking for this money. I had to sell this money, you know, I'd sell whatever I had to do. I have to do it to get what I need to get to invest in music. Because that was the end goal. I have to get the money to, you know, go on the rhythms and try to push myself.
SPEAKER_00:But I want to ask you because you talk about the end goal, which is important, right? But most people I talk to, like I do entrepreneurship lectures, right? And you see what you're talking about here, I find it's one of the hardest things. I I don't think you could teach it to people. In other words, buy something for a dollar and sell it for 150. You say it right. People is feel shame. People is feel a way to say they sell slippers or they sell water. So you ain't you ain't feeling no way going out there and starting it for the first time. Where'd that come from, you think?
SPEAKER_01:I don't know. I probably had it in me. I just know my mother, she liked to work, but she'd never do no hustle like them kind of things. But it probably had me. From some somebody, my grandfather is to sell in the market a long time. So I don't know, it probably, you know. But I had no, I think that was me. If I understand what it is I want to do and I understand what I have to do to accomplish this, then okay, this is the roops. And I had a guy done. I I felt like when I was working, I was working for the same place as I was working for. And I was working hard there also. But the increase of the salary, and then when I wanted to add stop to do, not stop, but I asked for part-time to do um health and safety. Because I was doing my course, I was doing some course. So I went on and do a health and safety course. So I had to get like Wednesday off and another day off. But I would make up for it. Like I would work double Monday, double Tuesday, double Saturday, double Sunday to make up all my hours. And when the year passed, because I was doing that course, I couldn't get no salary increase. And like to me, I just find like something else. Down, that's not right. You understand? But you couldn't get no salary increase because you had to write part-time on your pay slip. And if you were part-time, then they do increase the money or some kind of. I just find it maths wasn't maths. Right, gotcha. So from that point in time, I said, Hey, I think you could do this work that you're working so hard here for for yourself. Yeah, and from there, I never work for nobody else when I leave that.
SPEAKER_00:So, yes, from since then. Yeah. I think it's a mentality thing sometimes, no, because even simple as you say, it's almost like you telling yourself, if I invest in myself here, right? The HSC thing, then it you must pay off. Because you say it in the beginning, no, the self-investment. Yeah. So if you put somewhere that's not gonna pay off, you're out.
SPEAKER_01:I I was out, and at that point in time, I was going good. Um when I was when I was started in sugar and selling and thing, buy one car by be 14, and then we're not going good and feeling good. I put my 14 on the road and I buy an old car to call it back to the future. Right? And they say, this is meet my brother and say, why is this that? And you sister have a good car. Why is she driving that car now back to the future? If I see that car, you can get tetanus. The car is all is an old match, one of them crusader Ford, one of them long-time Ford. Right? And I drive in that car. And the window coming down screwdriver any window. What year are you from? I just but I understand why I was doing it. Honestly. Because I wanted to put my good car on the road. And I wanted to drive my old car because it couldn't be packed up whole days. So I buy a car. I pay$5,000 for that car. Fuzzy car was old. But that I got an engine in it, it's that I'll be 14 engine. Okay. So they said the engine got a naked, I take the car for the engine. I said, the car moving? Yeah, I said I go drive it. So I drive in the car and full in up all my drinks and my cigarettes.
SPEAKER_00:No sell your friends, sorry for you. See what happened? She must sell good, boy.
SPEAKER_01:I filling it up in the car.
SPEAKER_00:Uh-huh.
SPEAKER_01:But I understand here now. You do that, full it up in the can. I'm back. But now my people see me. Let's see, she's driving a small car. And I see something I said, people. A lot of people will see and they will say things, but you alone know the vision that you have. Or you alone know your end goal. You know why you're doing something. So you can't really study one other person going and comment or see. Sure.
SPEAKER_00:People know you for performing on the text too, is what you're saying?
SPEAKER_01:No, I wasn't, I wasn't performing. Just know me, like, yeah, she's sing and thing, but not not like plenty in the clubs yet. Um, so yeah, going through going through that and doing that at some point in time, all that kinda slow down in our relationship and going on going on be a nice skill. Yeah, it invested and yeah, so it had a point in time where all of that was like X and start over because I invested somewhere else. I invested somewhere else, and I had the car, buy an ex car with some with the individual I was with, built an ex shop, all them things. I used to see about his mom and thing. So I used to be home by them. And then when his mom passed, now I'm ready to that's why I was there to help him with his mom. Um when his mom passed, I was ready to go back in the work for us. But now I I don't give him wrong. He accustomed with me being home and being the home person making you know breakfast, lunch, dinner. But I was just doing it because of like to help him with his mind. I still have my thing now that I wanted to come back to do. But comfort, he already finds comfort in me being there. So that was a whole transition where I had to leave. You understand? So that is when I leave. I leave my shop, I leave my house, we already built a house.
SPEAKER_02:Just leave it now.
SPEAKER_01:I had to leave it to start over for music. So that's when I come home here now. And put it on your road, and crash it on your road. Of course. Different things. You know, life does be life. I say I went and do a shed, start to do my shed, side of sell. At this point in time now, I started singing.
SPEAKER_02:Right, okay.
SPEAKER_01:People know me. But I come in out and sell. I come in and sell. I come in and sell, and then I went and sing. People sad to say, but we paint to see she need night and she needs the selling. Right? But remember now the money not really making any night. It's exposure. I just trying to brand um uh you know, make my name for people to know my own thing. So people won't really understand that hey, any night she making the money, she comes out like an artist. Yes, and she thing and she sings. You may be paid to see me, or you pay to go in the club, but the club didn't really give me no money that would it for me, so I don't make my money any day. Is that possible?
SPEAKER_00:We talk about as a woman, how that's different to a man. Because for me, getting exposure. As I roll out my bed, I pawn something and I go. For you gain exposure is a different exposure.
SPEAKER_01:It's a course. Hair course, makeup course, clothes course. A man might put on one jeans and ten jersey. Sometimes we had to change every suit, like a whole suit, every single time. When you change your suit, sometimes that shoes ain't matching with your suit. You might have to get uh shoes, transportation to reach. You understand? So, and even now I just I just tell people I might do you a favor that cost me. Because they will say they I do them a favor, and they think I just reach. And that is the next reason why they say my time is very expensive, because it's not a matter of time that spend with you, you know. But the things that I do before I reach here. Of course, before I reach out to make sure my son in order to make sure I'm a face in order to make sure my clothes in order, and everything is a cost. So as much as it's a favor to you, where you might think it doesn't cost anything, it causes me to do something for you.
SPEAKER_02:You understand?
SPEAKER_01:And once people understand that, then they will appreciate certain things. But sometimes people, yeah, she comes and she gets exposure.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_01:But the exposure is at a cost of me. So I am paying, I am paying for the exposure that you giving me. So it's not really a favor, I hand in hand. It's hand in hand. You understand? If we're breaking it down, it's hand in hand. I paying for the exposure because you gain something and I gain something. I paying.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, of course, of course.
SPEAKER_01:You understand?
SPEAKER_00:So before we dive up to the music career too, that lava water is something I want to ask you about because here you talk about not just selling coconut water, but getting it, getting label, branding it and stuff.
SPEAKER_01:Of course, that was during COVID. So COVID, I went right down.
SPEAKER_00:Okay.
SPEAKER_01:From pregnant, from my pregnancy, when I got pregnant, I performed till I was like seven or eight months. And then they say I can perform again because when I perform, my pressure was going up and it oxygen. So medical, doctor.
SPEAKER_02:Okay.
SPEAKER_01:My baby was getting less oxygen when my pressure goes up. So I stopped performing. So, you know, life that was 2018 when I get pregnant. So I mean my son in 2019.
SPEAKER_00:And you have it.
SPEAKER_01:At that point in time, I had tailight secret and flick after flick. And I said, Well, yeah, now I gave my three months. And I back on the scene, I do a boot try, my boot tried was successful.
SPEAKER_00:Okay, good.
SPEAKER_01:Right? And the NA 2019 was COVID.
SPEAKER_00:Alright. That's it.
SPEAKER_01:So it's like my I done living on my savings, eh? From since 2018. I live in on my savings coming down, and not too long before I get pregnant, I'd have done sat over where I come back home. So it's like, hey boy, my money's sadder. No, my money gets shaky. My money gets real shaky. So I say, Boy, yeah, I come up with something, you know. And that's why I start to do the coconut water. But I put lava on it. Lava brands. I ran it with my logo. So I would call people, no, I have my son. I would call in shogunas and say, or send a message, poor um broadcast water in 10 minutes, water in 15 minutes, water in half an hour. Who are water? And load it up in a cooler, and they'll have people say, Yeah, I want too big one too. So I'm now driving sugar and chop all the coconut water for them and scrape. But that started to get a little frustrated because now my son is a baby. He cast it. I drive and I'll be 15. The AC in AC in small man, sweat. Small man, my son's sweating and you know when trying young, they started this cranky, this get cranky when they're feeling warm. So when we by the time we reach Shagoners, he's cranky way. He don't want to stay by one of them women. Next to the boot twice, I say, hey, stay with auntie. Yeah. They want to stay with nobody because he's already cranky. So after some months and thing, I just stop crying it into sugar. And I just leave it home. So I sell water home, coconut water, ice cream, I carry my ice cream cart home. Because now school for they're taking chance. Yeah. They're taking chance to sell. They really coasting for shop and things. So I open like a pala. So I said, sell the coconut water, brand it, and sell the ice cream shop. So yeah. From there, it's hard to go little girl. I'd bring them my mannequins and thing with my clothes. So my little clothes and things I said trying to do everything but at home. Right. Right. A piper, a man who smokes drugs. You say help me. Carry up pack in my clothes, packet out and thing. He thief all the clothes.
SPEAKER_02:Help yourself.
SPEAKER_01:Help yourself, he goes to all the clothes. I said, so I lost the clothesy. I done away with the clothes. Only coconut water, ice cream, and my snacks now are selling. I said nice, I going on. But the coconut water now, I don't go for coconut. I said, go it must be fifteen. Be fifteen, we load any back and be fifteen with coconut. The second you mash up the shocks in that car. Your car be doing that. It's about a Spanish guy and a next guy from up by me. I said, carry them boys on them. So I carrying them. Climbing a tree and I loading it up. And our friend who have van, he said, yeah, what?
SPEAKER_00:Ego guys.
SPEAKER_01:Oh, when he cut it, just lady graps wherever. And he was swinging the area and he will pick up the coconuts on me. I say, back.
SPEAKER_00:Where are we going to do this?
SPEAKER_01:So I go in Coover.
SPEAKER_00:Okay, okay.
SPEAKER_01:I go in down on that side and fill the city Charlieville, all them places. Trust chriven around and watching people coconut tree. Right. So I say, right, lava water thing, selling. I have a rotation here. No, the city shocks in the cargo mushroom because I lean when you're coming home when they're coconut in the kind lean. The man now with the van, he can't do that all the time for me. So I say nice. Oh bavan. Because coconut is a thing now where you sort of make money, but the expenses had to get plenty. Because I had to pay somebody to cut it. I paying for labels and bottles. You have to pay to dispose coconut because you cannot leave coconuts. You can't leave coconut. And then now you had to buy the coconut itself. So I say, you know what? I make any money for any coconut. I save my money, I'll buy five. Toot my coconut. I'll buy one of them little pickups.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:Pickup van and think 15,000 for them little pickup. I'll buy a pickup and I'll get to load it. So I'll eliminate the cost of me having to call somebody to go for coconuts and all everything. Same time now A class and married him. With your own best friend, I should I do it. With a big money, man, with a big money plan and the wall and all that tune bad lava. I say thing, yeah. COVID, eh?
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_01:COVID now, we now coming out, still in COVID day. COVID going on. Yeah, then you want to do make a music video for that song. You know money, I'm a van money.
SPEAKER_00:Oh that bothered the video.
SPEAKER_01:So it's a decision to make now to buy the van for the coconut water or pay for the music video. I pay for the music video. So I know van eh. I know van my coconut money go on in music video. To the music video, we went down somewhere down toco side and and with rent a place. I have pasta fake wedding, everything, concept nice a week after the video shoot. The video man, nobody ain't calling me. A class call and say lava, I say, yeah, we want to talk to you. So happen. Somebody encrypt the file on the computer. It's no music video.
SPEAKER_00:You lost the whole thing.
SPEAKER_01:I have no video and I have no van.
SPEAKER_00:Oh man.
SPEAKER_01:I have no video and I have no van. And I like, you know, you're stuck in a place where you feel like we boy. You understand? Everything for this music like it's not to do that. Like, you know, you feel so sometimes like it does because it now, mama, mama take it before. Because I feel like I go and get through the music. You know, with this video. Start over again now in lava water. I know. I said, Why are you never with that? I never started. I used to still do the coconut water. Not strong like I said before. You know, after a while, the expenses and the expenses. So I just had my shop, my ice cream shop, and that my son coming out. We doing work, we doing work, we doing work, we doing work. And then I get the opportunity to go to Guyana. So one of my friends say, Come and go Guyana. And he'll perform because he was investing in a party, like a tour in Guyana. And he's going in different places in Ghana. Now I never went in Ghana before, so I don't know exactly how it was. So he tell him, so I say, well, give me my down payment. Because remember I pay for my son to stay somewhere.
SPEAKER_02:Oh yeah.
SPEAKER_01:Right? Give me my down payment and I will pay somebody to see about my son. Because we're going for 18 days. Remember that all?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, it's a while.
SPEAKER_01:So we go on. Pay for them to see about my son thing, pack my suitcase, a girl going to Guyana. Reach Guyana. When we reach Guyana, you promote I pick we up. When you promote, I come for we I say I tell my friend, I say sure about this. You know, when you see when you see old people like it's and not judging thing, and I there's a city person and the behavior. And I say, you sure? And he this thing, sure. Like we far we went over the bridge, we went to shin decide. The place we bring me to stay is not a hotel, it's a motel. So I like call my boy in the room again. I say, show about this man. Because my madam times I go in to make certain place to do events, and like you know, yeah, nah, think thing thing thing good. Good that man doc we went to this. Everybody looking for this man, Jamaican artists in the country.
SPEAKER_00:Just dump these shows, he's he left with it all.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, so he done take my brethren money already, you know. And my brethren done got shot. The Jamaican artists they eyed while we just in Guyana. When we reach, no, when I reach out to feel good early, become a name right up in the office. My name and all the artists and next artists from Trinidad did end up coming after because he was only two or two. But two other artists from Trinidad. One of them didn't come because the manager finds certain things was shaky. Them was more experienced, right? Them time me now manager, and then the other artists end up come late. When you reach any boat any room, your name Lady Lava and all the different places you go in. Next artist and thing, I say, nah boy, that'll give me back a little fate.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, you make it again.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, say yeah. Eh, we get duck, we get leave, we get leave. It's some next guy from south, who was the and he's a Trinidadian, he end up saying come where he's staying. Okay, he was staying, he was living in Ghana. So he said, come where he's staying. So where he saying I was a place where it could pay 85 US a day to study. Okay, okay. So no more bench and paying for we to study, right? To change we ticket is money and all to come back out. Because we ticket is quite the 18th. Right? And we don't know this. We not us like that. We started with a studio, final studio. The studio man, I went one day and he tell them brings you back. Going back the next day. No, we don't know me. He just like my vibe. Going back, and and that's why I write who knows in the studio, right? I do that because I'd sing it for one and it's like nah. And from there, that song just started trending from there, and then um come back Trinidad and started perform. I mean, even though if I want to say I did get some managers from foreign, that was our next story by itself. That that's that's our next story. I want to say nothing for the send lawyers. Yeah, like I had booking agents before, but them was like man, like contract.
SPEAKER_00:Right.
SPEAKER_01:My contract done, anyways. You understand? But you know, just be careful when all this, you know, signing contracts and thing and do research on people. You know what I mean? Because at that point in time, I get who not sexing. So they made more them can't even say what they do for me. But they were getting percentage from my money every time I perform. You understand? Whatever they do for me, they keep it.
SPEAKER_02:Like the video perform.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, the video for who not sex and vexing, that video do, and them keep it. You know what I mean? I don't feel fair to come out of my money because we must get money from. Of course. This is my thing. But anyway, God is the boss. So come out of that situation with them and had consequences after that. I'm suffering the consequences of having a good jam, and by this time I was traveling to Guyana probably every two weeks.
SPEAKER_00:Right. So the songs pickup space in the world.
SPEAKER_01:Pickups in Ghana, pickup in Ghana, like like when I say pickup, like unbelievable. Like I was now in Ghana and with no performances to being in Ghana every two weeks, then it came down to every week. And Ghana tells us you live in Ghana. The immigration officers in Ghana, I say, Justin again, you understand? Where are you going my Trinidad for? You understand, bringing it back every week, stay in Ghana and done. And from there, I guess my career, you know, started to go. So it was between shows. Once I go in Ghana, I show half club shows in Trinidad. Or by bars two and three shows a night, and it started to increase like that. So, you know, from there was still not where you wanted to be. Because now when you say started make money, you have bills where it's come, where you don't even know where them bills come from. Where you remember, hey, I had to fix back this problem from this problem, right? And you know, I uh my son still and different things. And one thing I remembered was my manager, who is my manager now. He came and he wanted me to help with soaker songs, like to write. Because we could we we do stuff for Uncle Ellis before, but you know why it's behind the scenes mean really too.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, I wonder like how much people know these things sometimes.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, two things. So they came and they wanted us to do that project, which is the trailer jam. And they had the artists set who they wanted to do that.
SPEAKER_02:But they had the artists already.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, we had like well, well, it was me and him.
SPEAKER_02:Okay, okay.
SPEAKER_01:So explicit, mevone, he had instrumentals that was in the recycled bin.
SPEAKER_00:Right, right.
SPEAKER_01:So these instruments is instruments, we went and delete from his computer because he sent it to artists over the years, and the artists and them say, no boy, it they ain't catch nothing no, they ain't got no vibe. So this is the deleted beats. We say, right, give me the deleted bits. Seriously? Yeah, don't give you a fresh beats because mama, we want to try a project here now. Right. Where we want to try to put his zest people on soccer. Right? So we say, alright, cool. We was going to put one artist, like two artists who is not zest. That was no one we was going to put lyrical. Okay. And then he put dev. Right? We was going to put Lero. So happen, you know, we just be with music or anything in Leroy then had the time was in any country. And that's on, and I go to young brother.
SPEAKER_00:I see. That was for lyrical in the original.
SPEAKER_01:And then we did the I come to open Pandora box. I come to make them for temper and for Trinidad Kelly. Where are we going? Right on. Right. So I'm a kitchen. I writing in my kitchen. Anybody who comes, then know they're coming in, love a kitchen, and she has a speaker and the light and they listen to music. Right, they'll play the rhythm, the rhythm playing shooter, and I'm a kitchen, I washing ways. I do know I come in, mama. I'm a child to see how to sweat it. Come on and I write and follow, but I'm a work through. You understand? So we come there, we write them, we're sweating, we think. And from that rhythm, I tell we do an ad for Amco. So you're doing jingles and them kind of thing too. For chip. We do a jingle for them. And the jingle now we get pay. And I tell my manager, I say, You see this money here? I go in and up now studio. I go and start. Because there's it isn't plenty, but I say I go and start. And next time I come, I won't be in my kitchen again. We go we go write music next year in my studio. And like for that whole year, when I was traveling to Guyana and thing, I built a studio. So like for that.
SPEAKER_00:I just see if someone you could rub off on me, you know, because you just say these things like that. You say, I know it's a fascinating talk more. You say these things like the easiest of mentality.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, sacrifice and you know them things.
SPEAKER_00:So okay. Alright, before you go ahead, I want to ask you about writing that rhythm, right? Writing in general. That time you're known as a writer, like people know you, and them kind of you just try the project.
SPEAKER_01:No, I could write. For me, I might help other people, but yeah, the industry doesn't be as a writer.
SPEAKER_00:So let me talk about the temper song. Because that became a signature of her catalogue. She ever hits on everything, right? But that T E M P is So where you just come up with ideas like when you're writing and them kind of thing, which come to you.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah. Serious.
SPEAKER_01:That one that they had say they wanted it for temper. And I just would watch our style and like yeah, she could probably, you know, and the I come to that's in my kitchen. Kitchen, kitchen, I remember. I say, I come to open Pandora box, I come to make them bend down and touch it. I behind your baby, don't watch, don't watch, don't watch. Like, you know, and I'd send it to them. But when we was in the studio now, and everybody still lay, because Mama and you come in the studio now, you're with the artists, you know, if the artists like what you have, right? And I was like, yeah. So me and she then I was like, hey, I come to and I sing it for she and she's like, that bad. I say you like it? And she yeah. And it's like, well, alright, well, we were singing for them when they come back in and you know, from there. And then she actually embraced. So as a writer, you give more respect to the artist because you could write something, but the artists have to carry what you write. The artists have to bring out the song so believable, like if they write the song, you know. So now is like they have to embody everything we're going on and and really carry it to the next destination. Because you just put it on pen and paper, they now have to actually carry the song to where it have to go. So, yeah.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah. And the Trinidad Killer was the same thing, kind of.
SPEAKER_01:The Trinidad Killer is like we had already told Killer, killer again, some the saying, don't worry, okay. So can't say and thing and thing. And he was in England. And that's when we really went right on. Cause I had to go to the go and perform. My flight was like six in the morning, and I didn't sleep from the night before. Writing the song for for um Trinidad Killer, the and I myself we was just there and like you know, told the line, don't rush the fit. Ain't tired yet. I was just saying, like things that killer would say, but things that killer would be happy to tell some, you know, like embrace it like that.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah. Yeah, make it easy for people to embody the songs.
SPEAKER_01:Embody the song, like, yeah.
SPEAKER_00:So if you like you get getting mission done, we're trying to get these artists on the soccer together.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, it was it was it was the biggest, yeah. That song. That that was the biggest rhythm that yeah.
SPEAKER_00:I saw Temper in um I just went to La Penka night randomly, and she came and performed. And the response to that song, I mean, again, she has something, but the response to that song is something else. I think it's one of the things that get people who might know this on the steam world and they're like, oh, my mother and them know something else.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, she went breakout artists at the end for um Caribbean Music Awards last year with that song.
SPEAKER_00:Oh, nice, nice, nice. Congrats, congrats. I want to talk to you more about writing. Because see, somewhere they say you used to write a royal post-it note and stick it all about the house.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:What was that about?
SPEAKER_01:Self-motivation. Motivated myself. Um, just me. So I would listen motivation videos and things, and things are stick out. I'll just write it as um reminders every day to remind yourself because sometimes you have to build back up yourself from plenty situations that you went through, and you know, just for it to be there. So I'll leave post-its on my mirror, because I would like to watch my mirror. So I'll leave post-its on my mirror, I'll leave it on my wardrobe door. I like to go in my wardrobe, I like to dress um on my fridge on the frame, the door frames on them. Some of the door frames do have doors, so I'll stick it coming down. Like I want a new car. Your music is worldwide. Yeah, I want to build a studio. Um, you're going to do this, you know, all them things. Yeah, do eat flower, it's healthy. Still eat flower. I don't know why.
SPEAKER_00:You should write a book.
SPEAKER_01:I write it. I write it. I write it.
SPEAKER_00:You know, so when you pick up that, there's just something you decide from the special time.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, but when you when you listen to a lot of the people who are successful and people who do motivation and thing, it always could have things in your visuals because then it was stuck in a subconscious mind. I think I had to read a book about the power of the subconscious mind.
SPEAKER_00:Okay, okay.
SPEAKER_01:So I know that things that in your subconscious mind eventually, yeah.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, I read a lot about that too. There was one thing I'd seen the other day with Jim Carrey talking about some of the same things you're talking about, like struggling, he's coming through as an artist, he's trying this, he's trying that, and I remember he said he takes out his checkbook and he writes a check for 20 million and he kept it in his wallet till the day when he could have he could have cashed the check, and it wasn't long after, you know. So it's it's amazing. Let me talk more about writing now. Because I like music, right? You know, Trendadin's is expert at everything, right? So I say expert when it comes to songwriting. I never write a damn song in my life, right? But if you bring a song to me, and if some saying, put on your tail light, we reverse it, back, back, back, back, back. Some of the English teachers in this country will tell you, nah, give. Nah, nah, okay. You can't say that.
SPEAKER_01:Let me vote it say, like, oh, you're reversing back, back, but then I'll be like, okay. I say, put on your tail light, we're reversing, back, and then now I give you back, back, back, because we do it. Right? Because you will say, yeah, put it, put it on reverse.
SPEAKER_00:Oh, I thought you mean I reverse it. You're right.
SPEAKER_01:All right, put it kind reverse, then what's the next thing you'll tell you person?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, come back.
SPEAKER_01:All right.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah. I don't care about either. I find people's talk too much here because I find it's either a song will work or it didn't work. And then you see till it worked.
SPEAKER_01:It worked. It worked too. It was the first song I to get like five million views on Facebook. And that time it had no TikTok, it had no this big challenge, but we had done something where we was giving people money, and people started people in America was doing it, and them though what a titty when it was just doing it because one of the girls had two a particular and everybody repeated. So it went viral. When vi before viral was even a thing. Um, tail it was viral. Yeah, so remember when I get pregnant, now it had that break. So it has people who log on to lava before in finger from since tail light is so now it's like it would look like it's a whoo a big response. But those are people that was there already. Yes. But I got pregnant, COVID come. Right. So they had a splice where hey, we miss a lava boy, and then no lava come back.
SPEAKER_00:It's just like you understand, it's like wait, oh lava, yeah, yeah, she she's back.
SPEAKER_01:You understand? Because from people was that that was that was the first song of the world.
SPEAKER_00:I wouldn't ghost looking for that. That means I gotta find me at my age. So when I hear something at first, I didn't know it was a trend. I didn't sing it at all.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, plenty of people.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, but it's that my energy, it's a vibe, more um, more, more writing things. When I again you're going and write a song, oh, even before I get to that, when it's bringing back up COVID, I heard you say in an interview as well that COVID allows you to get time to spend your son, your son was very, very young, and you get to build that bond with his.
SPEAKER_01:Yes, because when I got pregnant, when I had um tea light, and everybody was like, Oh, she come and get pregnant, and he picked her shaker, blah blah blah, la la la la la la la la la la You know, whatever people will say. But here what I will say about that God is the best of planners, and all you like to say, people like to say things that you know they don't know about timing, but only time, only time alone could really tell you. Time is the best storyteller to say, yeah, the sun because only time could tell you, because as they would say, hey, that was the peak of my career, I would say that's the best time for me to get pregnant. Because I got pregnant and then COVID came. And when COVID came, I get to have a solid foundation with my son.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, and you're done working on your own too. I'm not sure if you're not.
SPEAKER_01:So it comes as though I get a bill lab one with my son, one, and then how much did I really miss? Because it had COVID. Yeah, so nobody wasn't outside, it didn't have no parties, it didn't really have that. What it had though was the TikTok era, the going live and all them things where I wasn't really big on it at that point in time. After I had a catch up, right? But this is where a lot of artists break out, um, get big during COVID during the TikTok timing. A lot of art, new artists pop up because people was home and they needed entertainment, they needed these people who was live, they needed they needed that because it had no outside. So they were creating this space, an outside space, but inside, yeah, so they get that acknowledgement. You understand what I get to spend time with my son and it didn't have no outside. So when COVID finished now, I was ready.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, gone.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, I ready.
SPEAKER_00:With getting that bond and spending all that time together, how much is affected now having to travel, get traveling?
SPEAKER_01:Plenty of sad sometimes, but you know, I understand I invested for this and he going and benefit in the long run.
SPEAKER_00:You understand?
SPEAKER_01:I don't know how much he he will he will say things, but I don't know like how much he understands now. If you come and get up, people say, eh, I can get a pity and he walking with me, you move. He will go on his side and come for you to take the pity. So I know he understands people would want pictures and things like mommy. If a child comes, he wouldn't move. Oh he would not move when a child comes. That is the only thing. He will say, Mommy, you're taking long.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, yeah, let's let's go. Like, you know, that's my mommy. Yeah, of course. Um, you know, children have that territory when it comes to kids, but yeah, adults, he won't. Um someday say, like, I had to go, I came home, and then I had to like leave to go. Yeah, you went to work again? I say, yeah. They really like to hear you sing then. You know, like them little smart things. You're like, yeah, them really like to hear you sing them like you, you go on again. Like that. But now we understand that work and you don't like it all the time.
SPEAKER_00:Well, yeah, it's mommy, though.
SPEAKER_01:He likes it all the time.
SPEAKER_00:But okay. So back to writing again. If you bring on paper for man, I see you write down a man and my man and my man and my man and my man and my man fill up a whole page and say, Nagel, yeah, nah. Let's say you're short and some of them, man. And then when I tell everybody page, I'll see you to bend you to bend you to bend you to bend you to bend you to like a writing light in school. I say, Nagel, mm-mm. I said, cut off about half of them you to bend. How are you so sure when you go in going to things like that?
SPEAKER_01:Because Zeus, that that's what Zeus is. That's what Steam is is about, is about repetition, plenty repetition, and it you realize I will say one thing plenty times, because is is not really uh it's a bunks. So if you understand the bungs, now Afrobeat is a bunks. And if you if you sing something in the Afrobeat Bunks, you will get you will get you. If you sing something in the S Bonks, you will get you. So it's now the chorus have to be catchy. I think now because we in TikTok will know plenty repetition is good because the brain ain't really holding all lack concentration, you know they can't concentrate for so long. TikTok when you when you scroll on TikTok, every ten seconds is something new your brain going on and then click already. So if you come with something on it like uh I hold a long explanation and yeah. Yeah, you understand. So if you're doing the entertainment part, I'm not talking about the part where you're educating, but the entertainment part, you had to come quick with her.
SPEAKER_02:Gotcha.
SPEAKER_01:You know, so you to bend, you to be, you to bend, mom and my man and my man and my man and my man gil. You don't catch a many first three man, the next three man to go and sing it.
SPEAKER_00:Well, I guess that's the truth true too. I suppose the first time you perform in that people, people with you already. David, we had a write all this. Alright, we're gonna work on that as soon as she can. One of the things I saw with this song is like I see again, my mother and them know that's all. So I was looking at Vonnet Bigfoot doing a jazz version of it and things just pay attention to like reaching.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:Things they enjoy seeing.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, I love, I love, I love that. I love that she takes the song and do what she does with it so that they know that it's not just for the young people. Um she takes it and she embraces and brings it across because now she understands feminine, or she understands woman, she understands what it does to people. Because it have a lot of older people who be like, it have women that live the life I never get a ring, who probably feel like, hey, I was so good to this individual that I deserve a ring, or it have women now that was say, if I do have a ring, then I do have a mister. That is like why do we know this? Why why I put myself in so much limitations for somebody that you don't know what tomorrow and that was me. I was singing that song for myself because that that was that's I used to say, if my man come, I'll go to tell it. If my man, if my man ain't come, I'll go. If my man come, I'll pattern down. That is woman, you understand? That's what I used to say. You know, he do your own thing, whoever he wanted to do. You understand? So any and I did I I can't be vexity.
SPEAKER_00:Of course, I understand.
SPEAKER_01:I can't I understand within myself that I have to take accountability for my actions because that was a choice that I made, but I cannot be angry with him because he did what he wanted. I should have done what I wanted, and if what you wanted to do was go out, then go out.
SPEAKER_00:I don't know why we come back here. Sorry.
SPEAKER_01:I don't have nothing, no, my finger. You understand? Because I a man can tell it that like if he does something, like boy, why you do that? Like, is that big man? You understand what I'm saying? Like, I don't have that obligation to you. And he don't if you don't, if I'm not married, then it's if you're not married, it's boyfriend and girlfriend, you know that?
SPEAKER_00:Okay, let's move on.
SPEAKER_01:If you're not married, it's boyfriend and girlfriend.
SPEAKER_00:Common law.
SPEAKER_01:You understand? Come on, mom and more. If you're not married, he's boyfriend and girlfriend. Yes, it has the common law if you're living together for a particular amount of years. Remember? Remember a particular amount of years. You understand? So it's not if you're living with a man I'm living with him for two years, and I did buy this, and I did help him, I did buy the pain, darling. Darling, if you have to move out, you have to get out from the bulletin, please. You understand? So that is what I come back to say, if you don't have a ring, you don't have a Mr. Any sense, hey. No, or no way, no way is no if it's a safe space, or if you know you're getting your little intuitions and you're feeling like, hey, he do me something. I like how I feel you know. Once, twice, three times, organize yourself. You understand? No way you're doing, just just remember, make sure you're in a safe space. But I still do that. So then when I realize, hey, this individual do whatever was pleasant to him, which I again cannot be upset with him for.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, you're the friend who's pleasant to you.
SPEAKER_01:That was pleasant to him. He's a big man. You understand? And I have no ring on my finger, we never get married. I might feel like it's betrayal because of words that we spoke to each other. That hey, I feel you, you feel me? We being loyal, we being trustworthy. But then I had to go in the mirror and say, Well, my man and my man and my man and my man girl, stop that. I was talking to myself. I was really talking to myself at that point.
SPEAKER_00:You say so, you say so. We could we go take that. So people like Vonett, pick it up, it's universal with him. Yeah, proper as proper as could be a gentle bend if I could add that. It was a very gentle bend, but she bent regardless.
SPEAKER_01:I love to see she perform.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, bad, bad, bad, bad, bad performing. I want to talk to you about performing too. You have time for that, David? Always. Alright, good. You have time for that? Alright, good. Before I get to performing, you're talking about Vaughnett and them and those types of, you know, people who would be out sort of outside of the space, different age group, different audience and stuff. Chutney soccer monarch. How did that first one come about? What was the artist's name again? Vanessa Ramutta.
SPEAKER_01:Vanessa Ramuta. Vanessa Ramutta. And Rick Ramuta.
SPEAKER_00:Right.
SPEAKER_01:So they was looking for an artist to come on it. Come on a song. And I think it was Nasa. Nasa and them probably tell them Chaklava. Um, because they went through a different flavor. We could come up with something to match. And then we went in the studio in the Pungalung's factory.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_01:And they send the song, and I say, Yeah, I'll try it. Because I mean I don't want to limit myself to just one thing, you never know. Um, and I tried it. So no sonobalama, so no so no balama, mahubachadiya jai. So that's like, oh, she catch it. Like, you know, and I had a part of singing Hindi and a part of singing, and I like them things where okay, now I challenge myself. I challenge myself to do something different. And we came retired for second. And that was good.
SPEAKER_00:So at that point, you have competition on them thing in your mind at all, or that just competitors, yeah.
SPEAKER_01:I really like competition.
SPEAKER_00:Oh, not your thing. But one thing I'll say hold the song. And the video was bad. It was just a nice contrast. See you to a lady video. Whoever does that video was easy. Hopefully, they didn't run with the money and things like this.
SPEAKER_01:I don't even Venas and them simple.
SPEAKER_00:So come on. I'm fast forward now. Chatney that is. You Marshall and Drew Puty, you're the one called.
SPEAKER_01:I wake up one morning and I see I miss called for my number. And I see Marsha that's your profile put to you. I put on the phone. I see Travis, said called me. And then I see class. Class had sent my demo. So I think I called back. Come on, call first boy. I call Travis. I said, Travis, wait, what one? Yeah, boy wanted the number thing. I say, all right, I really see I miss called for my number. I wasn't sure if that was him now. Thing calling back. And you know, so they say they were send the project and they wanted a voice or something. I was like, alright, go on again.
SPEAKER_02:Challenge.
SPEAKER_01:Challenge again. All I had to say is like where I was, I had to wait till I come back home to record it. But they wanted the vocals before. Before the time that we was coming back from Canada. And Marshall and them organized our studio in Canada. That um somebody who they did business with or whatever. And then we went there and recorded. And on the way to the studio, I write the song. I write my arm. I write my boots. And then listen it. And it was like two, two, write our next piece in the end again for them, just in case I wanted to use it. And then send it back to them. And when we send it back to them, it was our goal. Yeah, so yeah. Marsha like it. Marsha like it. And everybody was like, oh papa, why you know it it good. While I was writing it, I wanted to include things like how I put um where I learned that long ago, don't in the farm. Cause you know, like we learn our wine, we learn it long ago, because long ago is you know, Marshall with um music farm. Was Marshall with music farm when I was younger, I everybody really, you know, yeah, so I put up that in his song, and you know, Marshall is like, yo, that bad. You know, cause you understand, like any farm, like where you saw any man, be the thing like you understand, be the thing like Sonny Man. Sonny man says, roll it, roll it. Yeah, so that's all kind of just history, music, history, and kind of like put it in his song. So yeah, that's where I want to come from. And then we we win yeah, take them.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, we win chutneys.
SPEAKER_01:We win chutney, so come on up.
SPEAKER_00:You wouldn't like competition going well, so it's not something you see yourself trying to get into any of them kind of thing.
SPEAKER_01:That's not your that's not your and I would put the Pungalong's factory right now. Me, and he might do something.
SPEAKER_00:I'm sure.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, because it's quite me, like lava, yeah. So, you know, and if I have my ideas, I will reach out and tell them how you find a song in the like this.
SPEAKER_00:Right. So yeah. So going back to stars fang and over you and thing, the cardie beating, I see you talk about it. I thought it's about it many, many times. Let me tell you what stand out tomorrow, right? And I want to know if it was organic, like if it just happened while it was working together, all your reach out or how. Or that first thing come about where she just started posting your videos. She's just playing your music in the background. That's all it was.
SPEAKER_01:That's just what it was. And like a night she which song it was, bro. One of them songs.
SPEAKER_00:Consequences or one of them. Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, think was consequences. Oh, who knows? She had just make a video with it now or singing. It's like everybody started to send it to me and say, Hey, thy lady lover from Trinidad.
SPEAKER_00:She used to tweet it all the time.
SPEAKER_01:And then yeah, she said, Twitter, the um, I'm suffering the consequences of having a good charm. And she had she knew look, she had post my song behind it. So that got plenty traction. Because that was when she was coming out from making her baby. Right? The first time people seen her, and you know, come back out. And she had posted with her song. Um, so it got a lot of traction. And then, you know, she started just just she vibing all these songs like songs of people, though even Charlie. Nobody in children that I show a little bit of people like Charlie, more to be go like that song. Um, and she was like, Yeah, play with Charlie now, play with Charlie now, play with Charlie now. So I know she was going through my she was going through my, you know, my songs and things. Right. And I was like, you know, good. But then when she get when she hears Ringfinger, like that one was he.
SPEAKER_00:When she was going through a lot of life, that one was he.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, that one was the icing on the cake, and she just, you know, she just like ringfinger, and she just continue like anyway. She goes like, yeah, ring finger, who knows sex, and any party she went to at that point in time, D DJs had to play it. So, you know, it just videos among videos where they're all as tape and I sing, wanting to dance to the song, wanting to enjoy that. And um, when I had my show in New York, and the promoter posted me, and I accept the collaboration from the promoter, whatever, and I posted comment in New York. She's like, Lady Lava in New York, I will be there. She commented underneath the post underneath my post, and she was like, Lady Lava and T. Yeah, I come in, and then we was like, okay. Because you know, people might say they're coming somewhere, and that's why I do that. Baby, you is Cardi B. You know, like you is Cardi B. Alright. You know, and it's like, all right, yeah. She might come, she mightn't come. Everybody was like unsure. If she comes, grateful all the time. But if she comes, I know she's a busy individual. Cause you know, I did be busy, and you know, them workload is maybe 20 times more than me. So I know Cadi mad be mad busy doing all the things that she had to do and stuff. Um, but then A class, not A class, first class, um, went to a basketball game with Russian in New York. And they were down where Cardi B and them was. And like when Cadi be meet him, I know what the introduction was, but I know he called me and he said, Yo, Cardi B meet me and she's telling me about you. Like, yeah, you'll be there for Lady Lava party in New York. Lady Lava is going to be in New York, and he was like, she's going to come that party. And then you know, we call the promoters now to put things in place to say if she coming for her to be comfortable, for her to have a section, for her to have drinks, for her to, you know, think because now we like, if she actually telling other people are she me, then yeah, she going to show up at the event. And one of her people contacted my manager, and they were like, she putting things in place. As to say, she coming down to New York, and any night now, I think they call and they say, like, you know, she really coming, eh? We're still like, you know, people, we live in a world where a lot of times things things are said, and you know, it might happen. So we are just upstairs, we was in it any back. And the is a waiter card, you run in, she ran in, she ran in upstairs, cause like she probably acting where she is. Because we was like in the VIP upstairs, yeah. And then she ran in and she comes and she hugged my band. She's like, I told you I was gonna come. And I was like, like, you know, yeah, like, all right, this happening here now. And she's like, I told you I was gonna come, I was gonna come. And she said, You nervous? And I said, No.
SPEAKER_00:That's so to me, you know, I'll never forget that moment. She said nervous, and you answer so far, she's like, Nah, I get it, you're not. Yeah, because I'll be I nervous talking about it, so you really not nervous, you feel?
SPEAKER_01:No, I say nervous. She's like, No. She was like, Okay, then you know, let me party. And I was like, Yeah, and then we went downstairs and party. And even in the in the party, Cardi, you are so genuine, and Cardi B, I think is now guilty, like try to steal somebody's moment because I I know she here, and Cardi is a big thing, right? And yeah, I wanted her to get all the love from us and from the party and thing. And then, you know, Cardi, Cardi telling the DJs like, don't play my song. Play Lady Lava song. Like, you know, this is we come here for Lady Lava. She takes the mic and she's like, we come here for this. And like, you know, let it remain that now boy. And then when we was when I was singing, she came on stage dancing and oh then you're nervous, you good. No, I good dancing and thing, and yeah.
SPEAKER_00:So let's say about performing now before we leave, before the pub you're out of here, right? That's not nervous thing. Because you have a way. It has some things you do that I've never seen artists do before, right? So Miami Beach, stinking dirty. These events are 15,000, 20,000 people. You everybody drunk. I know how it feels 6'70 more than you coming on in prime time, right? Everybody drunk high. You don't know we self-demours, right? And you coming on a stage, you have monster hits you could you could do what you want at this point in time with them, right? But you're cutting all the beats and you're going back to the pastor, teacher poetry back in the day. Where that start?
SPEAKER_01:From the beginning. How does it learn? From all right, so here why I said it. Because remember before, when I started to perform my songs, now I used to play on the radio. Right. So people did not know the lyrics of my songs. So because I used to be going and performing and my song wasn't playing on the radio, I wanted them to actually hear the lyrics.
SPEAKER_00:He was teaching.
SPEAKER_01:So yeah, I was actually like trilling the songs, like teaching them the songs. So that's why now I um I used to stop. I used to stop from the beginning of time. And you know, I used to be doing that, and not even so conscious I'd doing it until like squid at times say, Hey, I like that style, and I like how it is yeah, you know, it's carry down the beat and let them hear what is the saying. Because I saw it's like, yo, and let them actually hear the words. But that actually started because I'm a second radio play. So when I go out wherever I'm going to perform, I at least want them to hear not the chorus, but the verses that hey, it have a little bit of lyrics in it, and you know, for them to see my rhyme and style, or for them to say, Well, yeah, boy, that bad was she say. So that is where that started from. And I just continue with it.
SPEAKER_00:So people die, no matter the size of the venue, size of the stage. I see a dude right there with Cardi B, Cardi B, and you do yours.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:Before I got more into it, we see DJ that had the timing so correct where because you had to drop back in.
SPEAKER_01:Um, the DJ would just really give me his um chips. That's my that's my personal DJ chips. Um, celebrity gibs. Very good. Very when we chemistry.
SPEAKER_00:How long is something it's having plenty together though?
SPEAKER_02:These days we don't use but I think now we have uh understanding, yeah.
SPEAKER_01:Like he know he knows why I want and he knows when I go in and drop, you know, he understands the signals and thing. If I go, I go do him so or you know I say you know, when I go into certain things, I think we perform together so long that he understands. But before, we said we we do real cells in order for me to reach where we are today for him to understand and for him to know we do real cells, and like where he used to, you know, always loop the beat, so he know he knows the time and when when I go into fast or slow.
SPEAKER_00:So evidently, evidently. It's one of them things people might only try if they have a band. So when I see you do it, DJs like so much stopping the beat in a fet like this, but no, it's not nobody knows the lyrics again. Yeah, that's my attack time when it beat drop, that when man has a hide. High weak yes, nobody neighbor who live in who and so on.
SPEAKER_01:And then yeah, let them let the crowd, let the crowd feel like they're part of the show here now. You understand? So let them sing and let them be in the show and understand what it is. And sometimes digest my style. I see people commenting and saying, Well, she's had a study before relax yourself.
SPEAKER_00:Or people is people sitting.
SPEAKER_01:People is commenting and say, what kind of thing? But at that point in time, let the people get to intro it. Because I could come and sing the song normal, but I same thing we hear on the CD. Then we come for a performance, so then just let them play, just let them play the play the song. If you if you want to hear the song exactly the same way, then just play the song any party, but it didn't come to you.
SPEAKER_00:You're talking about some performers nowadays, or that's not a big one. No, just checking. Just checking.
SPEAKER_01:Crazy, bring her confusion on.
SPEAKER_00:Just check. That's all right. I find if I pay to see somebody perform, I want to see the somebody.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, wherever the somebody, you know, they want a different something, a different experience, rather than the just saying the song. So, you know, that is my little way of saying whatever I had to say, you know. Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:So that confidence. So the last couple of questions about that confidence, you know where it comes from because that's not easy to accomplish. I don't know, no, I don't know where that one comes from. Just any.
SPEAKER_01:People are saying for doesn't. No, when I say I'm not nervous when Cardi B day, I'm not nervous in her because I understand what it is, and I understand that I'm not I'm not here to hug me as an individual. I'm not here to hug Cardi B space. I'm not here to make her feel uncomfortable. I'm not here to use Cardi B. I'm not here with no bad intention towards her in no way. You know, so I understand that hey, I appreciate the moment, you understand, but I'm not nervous in any way because I'm here to make her feel comfortable. You understand? I don't want her to feel no sense of discomfort for me to be doing awkward things. So, you know, and I'm here to use your moment in no way, and I here for that. So I wanted her to be comfortable. So in that order, you know, I was calm and and you know, just humble in my element to say, hey, this is what it is, and appreciate the moment and she wants to have fun, that is what it's going to be. Now, performing that confidence I have a little thing. I still get my little You scare little things inside in your stomach. Um, but no, I know they say that you scare butterflies and things when you want to do good.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, I suppose.
SPEAKER_01:When you want somebody to understand your art or your craft, how you intend it, you would feel a sense of something inside you still tingling inside. If you don't care, you might as well and never get no feeling and say, ah and do whatever you want because you don't care. But once you want some people to take your art with the intention that you want to deliver it with, you would get a nervousness because you want to do good. Um the confidence I think it's because I live in is is it it's not fake to me. Like, you know, what I say, I could stand by it. So the confidence is in the authenticness of what it is I'm doing. I'm doing me. I doing Lady Lava, I'm doing Keisha, and not trying to do nobody and I trying to copy nobody, you know, to say, well, I don't know. If I doing it right, boy, no, I doing me. I could if I do in me, I'm doing it right. Because that's me, I doing so that confidence I think probably comes from that knowing that I doing this. I own everything that I have here confident with everything that I see in and I go in on the stage to deliver my brand. Not a brand I trying to take from somebody, not nothing like that. Authentic. So I understand what I doing. The songs I singing, what I see freaky ones, the ones that talking about life itself, whichever one it is, I own it. So if they say you know, she say wherever, yes, I did.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, yes, yes, the woman asks you what rumors you want to clear up for the say all you want.
SPEAKER_01:None believe all I want. Believe where I want because is it true? I can't you can't stop on, you can stop to clear rumors. Yeah, no, you can't stop because if you stop at this one set the sand that one center, then where you really want to go your slowing on yourself.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, well, you know your end goal. Yeah. Mummy still mashing up, cassette. How she feels about these songs and things.
SPEAKER_01:No, she could.
SPEAKER_00:Alright, good.
SPEAKER_01:Now she say queen freak.
SPEAKER_00:Look at us.
SPEAKER_01:She say money woman. She right all kind of everybody knows my mother. My mother is beyond my comments on Instagram. Um, big lady lava, money woman, queen freak, boy. Sometimes she calls money for you. She queen freak. Yes, like, oh my god. Why would you say that? Why would he say that? But I think I think is a lot to do with like evolution with my mother and well, too, where she left Trinidad and went away. And when she went to America, she learned a different style of living. Because she originally from St. Vincent. So St. Vincent is a different upbringing and then come into Trinidad. But when she went to America and she started dealing with children who have autism and they're dealing with different things, they get a different style of parenting, and then they got a different style of living itself. So, you know, when she reached there, yes, she still is good at change, but it's not like all we everything is based on that.
SPEAKER_00:No, so yeah, sometimes we forget when we're young, like while we grow in our parents growing to the evolve and do their own evolution. Well, listen, Adana, we spoke to Adana yesterday, and everything she says is true. She tells us that authenticity. I was telling her that about some of the things I was going to talk to you about, and that authenticity, it comes through in the room here, just talking to you about it. Because I say Adana frightening or say, Well, but when you say cassette, I know I'm in the right room. I say, I can't talk young people because they can't take it out frightening. Maybe you're a cassette mashing up in the right place. But something I want to let you know that I appreciate is that that idea of you being your authentic self is very important for us as a society to me. Because young people watching you and they're seeing that success. And the success is not for me, just where you're doing now. It's that selling the water and selling the slipper, and then you have to figure out the coconut water, and that's just life. Life has a million different obstacles, and you navigating it. So thanks very much. We good, David. Thanks for I could check my list just to make sure I didn't forget nothing. Because the queen of steamer. Hey, my notes, right? The pastors are poets, price reaction, boot and shagonas, water ice cream. There's the most random note list I ever had. Water ice cream, coconut water. Premier Studios and Inico, we didn't talk about that, but he knows. Yeah, we cover everything. We ain't nobody don't even. Oh, one more thing. I just wanted to talk about. You said when you spoke about Billionaire Studio.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:And uh, I heard you say when people come and they come forward as advice so to work with you and things. You usually tell young artists your source of income. I just wanted you to talk about it a little bit. Why?
SPEAKER_01:Um so you'd have artists that you know want you to help them, right? But I don't I mean I don't want artists to think when you decide I want to be an artist and I have a song and I have a talent that tomorrow it's going to be all well and good. It's not going to happen. And thinking that it's going to happen will only slow down your process. Right? Music is money. Investing in when I was investing in music, I was making less money than where I would have, you know, naturally have in my hand, right? Because music is money. I could only help you so much. The rest you have to want it for yourself. So if an artist say a way to help me with something, no problem, I here. I here for it. But if I get my producer to record here, mix here and master yeah. That is at our course. You might pay, I might have to pay this course. But now I say, come my comrade and do a photo shoot.
SPEAKER_00:Your course.
SPEAKER_01:No, it's ought to be at your course. We're going half and half. Remember, I don't want to be a manager because I sell him. I am not in a position to be nobody manager. I'm not going to fool nobody. I'm not in a position to be a manager. What I can do is help you with artist development, which is to make you reach at a certain point where somebody would want to manage you. Right? But in order to do that, we have to work hand in hand. You can't be in doing nothing wholly when the day comes, and then out all my money had to spend on you, and I don't get it back and not looking for it back. But what I saying is you have to understand the work in process so you will appreciate what it is you're doing. So when a young artist comes, some young artists come, my tonight. When you come, where's your source of income? You don't have none track when you want. I don't play myself no games and doing nothing why I cannot handle. I don't want you to play yourself no games neither. Do let me play one another. You understand? A lot of people end up in problems because here what? You have the talent, but you do have the discipline. You do have the discipline to go and get the money. Music is money. If you really want to do it, you have to invest in yourself. You understand? If you can, it have a lot of people still waiting because they're waiting on somebody to invest in them because they feel somebody owes them something because they have talent and they hear a story, and then one man, I thought a man that did see a fella and the fella was singing, and the man said, Hey, you're real bad, and the man had money, and he take them out. It will happen. That do have to be your story. Or it might not be a story. You know how much people we be seeing, and we like, we're real talented boy. He a real talent boy. But how he never was, boy. I sure I could boss him now. He maybe do have the discipline to do it. Look how much people we just know who more talented than other people.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:I know dancers that could dance better than other dancers would just be on frontline stage. But this dancer might be on time, this dancer mightn't be on time, this dancer might reach for further for the opportunity. That's the next thing I sell I'm playing. When I was now coming up, I said be early. Now, all now I just want to be. I be vex on late. Like well, this morning, I've vexed on eight. So that's why I say what do get my morning things because mornings, my mornings is be full. Then the traffic, I still had to decide when I'll drop my son. If it's a traffic coming back, so morning it'll be tight for me because I don't want to be late. True. I sell all them young artists that come by me. If you know you have to go in the radio station, and the telecom for one, reach a quarter to one. Or reach a 20 to one. Meanwhile, then you're rich because you people go feel good when you're rich and but when you reach early, you don't know who you're gonna meet any room. You don't know what the conversation is going to be, and you don't know what the opportunity is going to be. You know how much rooms it is going on because you reach early, somebody walking them. Who's a lava? You know I says person from wherever I really see and never get to meet you in person, and know you make a relationship with somebody who is somebody who might help you in the future. So just for the younger people, I tell them have an income. And plenty of times when I tell them go and get work or get an income and come back. If you ain't come back, you don't answer you don't solve the you don't solve the problem already. If you if you come back and you say, hey, lava, I get a little lost or working wherever which right true, alright now. What do you want to do? Now I go see you make the first step and I go make the second step. I might spend more than you, but I don't know in that. But I know that you're willing, and I know that when you put your money here, you won't want it to waste. But if I alone put in my money here, and you not pay no money here, that means you have no losses. Or you don't want the loss. I alone can lose here. If two are we putting, I might still feel like you want to lose the money. Or she ain't gonna want to lose your money, and she go make a little investment, and she will understand, and then you will understand that here. Well, this year we're doing is a serious thing. Because a lot of people feel is a music friend, and I why plenty of people that may even start day. Why plenty in Trinidad doesn't like you because they feel is a music friend, but the end of the day is a music business, and it's music business because it's business, everything has a course, yeah, and that is why it's music business and a music friend is a music business, but in Trinidad, as I said to talk business, everybody's vexed with you and say, or you know, they might say you feel a day because you might come with business, you feel it rich. If you know it's not uh before I was in this position I in, if I had a loss, it would have been a smaller loss. The position that I am in now, if I have a loss, is a greater loss than before. So I have to do certain things to do. Anyway, we had a wrap up, David is ready to go. And my child after my my child after get picked up from school and Conrad after Winnie Jimmy.
SPEAKER_00:Conrad? Thank you very much, ma'am. I appreciate it and everything else you did for us. Thank you very much.
SPEAKER_01:You're welcome.