LS Episode 526: Confidence Hits Different (feat. Connie Diiamond & Leela James)

Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
What's up its lip service?

Speaker 2 (00:03):
I answer like yee, I'm Gigi Maguire, Jeordie Joor, Connie Diamond,
Leela Jane Oh.

Speaker 1 (00:09):
I love this combination. First of all, both Connie Diamond
and Leelah James have a voice like you could tell
they do music. No, for real, y'all got like just
a music voice, like you could hear it when you
talk like yeah, okay, I'm not I'm not mad at it.
And your both had projects out right now, new ones,

(00:29):
So congratulations, we're going to get all into your business.
People get nervous. Connie was like, what you about to
ask me?

Speaker 3 (00:36):
I'm so nervous.

Speaker 1 (00:39):
Yeah, well, you know, I think, and I always tell people,
we just want you to be comfortable. If there's ever
anything listen, this is the show where you like take
that out. We take it out like no questions asked.
There was even one person that was like, I don't
know if we should hear this, and we didn't. You
know what I'm saying, because it ain't about like trying
to have a gotcha moment ever, and it's more about
the comfortability of it. You know, Leila, I think it's

(01:00):
like twenty years since your first project came.

Speaker 4 (01:02):
Out well, yeah, the original, Yeah, eah, the original. Yeah,
my first album came out two thousand and five.

Speaker 1 (01:09):
That's crazy, it really is twenty years Yeah.

Speaker 5 (01:11):
Two thousand and five. I want change gonna come.

Speaker 1 (01:14):
That is amazing, crazy, Thank you don't Can you imagine
like being in the I've been doing radio for twenty years.

Speaker 5 (01:21):
Yeah, it was a different thing back then, right.

Speaker 1 (01:24):
Yes, think about how my test changed from when you
first put out your first project, yeah, you know, to
what it is now.

Speaker 5 (01:30):
Yeah, it's very, very different.

Speaker 1 (01:32):
What would you say, how like, what's the.

Speaker 5 (01:34):
Good social media? Right off the top, you know, it's
played changers every day. Yeah. I think that's the biggest difference.

Speaker 1 (01:41):
I mean even how music is put out though now,
the music, the way it's put out just I mean,
the tension span now to is so short. Yeah, I
feel like songs got shorter absolutely yeah, right yeah, yeah.

Speaker 4 (01:55):
And there's just like so many artists. There's a lot
of artists now, I think back then. I'm not saying
that it wasn't a lot of artists back then, but
I just feel like it was at a time when
you know, when you had D'Angelo and you had the
Jill Scott's in there, Like it was just like people
stood out. So now it's like it's so much you're like,

(02:18):
I can't even keep up.

Speaker 1 (02:20):
I think it's the access of you know, back in
the day, it was like you have to be signed
to a label. There's a process, then they have to
do like a whole yeah, marketing plan. Then there's a
whole like there's they got to put this single out,
then they wait, and then they put out another single,
and then they wait and put out the album. Now
it's kind of like it's good and it's bad, right,
because it's the access to be able to be like, well,

(02:41):
I'm just gonna throw this out, you know, and that
I think helps with artistry sometimes, but it also makes
it like so much for people to handle.

Speaker 5 (02:49):
Yeah, it's like it's so much traffic. It's a lot.

Speaker 4 (02:53):
But I mean I think it's a it's a good
thing too, because.

Speaker 5 (02:58):
I feel like it's room.

Speaker 1 (03:00):
M hm.

Speaker 5 (03:00):
I feel like it's more than enough room.

Speaker 4 (03:03):
It's just it can be like overload at the same time,
but it's still room.

Speaker 1 (03:09):
I'm always discovering stuff.

Speaker 5 (03:10):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (03:11):
You know, now, Connie Diamond, you've been doing this since
you were fourteen years old pretty much as far as
like poetry music, yes, you know and all of that.
Underdog Season two is out right now. I didn't even
get a chance to talk to you about this the
letter that you're the first track on the project, So
talk to me about the vibe that you were feeling
that because it's very direct it is, Yeah, what do

(03:35):
you feel direct to? I mean or direct for? I
want to ask y' all this while we talk about that,
Like we discuss forgiveness and if it's if it's fuck you,
then it's fuck you always like is it no going back?
Like have people wronged you and then you is it
no forgiveness?

Speaker 3 (03:56):
I don't.

Speaker 1 (03:56):
I don't.

Speaker 3 (03:57):
It really depends on what has happened or what was
done to me. So I'm a very graceful person.

Speaker 1 (04:03):
You are okay, okay? Good? I was like, how do
you feel about that? Because I will say that being
in this business can also make you see like the
Western people sometimes, Yeah, I've been there, and it makes
it really tough because you never know, like who do
you trust? And yeah, people's motives. People you thought you
would never fall out with you end up falling out with.

Speaker 5 (04:26):
All the time.

Speaker 6 (04:27):
Yeah, I feel like for women to especially. I feel
like people in music tear women apart or there's always
comparisons or kind of what you were saying, like, it's
not enough room for all the women, and so how
do y'all stand out? How do y'all feel like, you
know what, this is my individualism and this is what
that looks like, right.

Speaker 3 (04:48):
I mean, I feel like I to go back to
the record the song I try to. I try to.
I created that record because I felt like there's not
enough people talk about like the trials or tribulations or
what they're going through in the process of them, like
creating a project or being in an industry itself. So

(05:09):
it's like the project is supposed to sound like what
we wanted to sound like, but a lot, a lot
of times out of ten is never. You don't never
really hear what you were going through in those moments,
Like you probably hear about it in an interview like
right now, or maybe like if someone is doing like
a podcast or maybe like a tell all behind the
scenes something like that. So I felt like where I
was at in that moment was like I don't want

(05:30):
to paint this shit to look pretty, because it's not pretty.
Right now.

Speaker 1 (05:33):
It's not like that.

Speaker 3 (05:34):
It doesn't feel pretty right now. I'm not gonna I
don't want this project to feel like that. I want
I want to I want people to really understand what
I'm feeling like right now. So that's why I put
let it in my fans because i feel like I'm
in a space where I'm trying to find ways to
connect with them, but I'm also like I'm close off
to a certain degree because I'm trying to be more like,
you know, vulnerable, so they can like get to know

(05:55):
who I am as a person and not just the artist.

Speaker 1 (05:58):
Being vulnerables hired.

Speaker 3 (05:59):
It's very hard.

Speaker 1 (06:00):
You're like exposing yourself, but then you're also exposing like
the things that you feel it could be like insecure
about I guess if that's the right word. And people
use that as a weapon sometimes absolutely, Yeah, especially people
don't care. And you know, Lela, you've done Reality TV
R and B divas. What was that experience like for
you now that you look back at it.

Speaker 5 (06:21):
Initially it started out good.

Speaker 4 (06:23):
I was enjoying it because I went into it thinking
it was going to be just that like reality as
far as they were supposed to try to document our
lives as as artists and then you know, some of
us are mothers and just showing the real.

Speaker 5 (06:41):
Side of our lives outside of just the music industry.

Speaker 4 (06:45):
Then it got weird. If I'm being honest, it just
got weird. You know, typical female crap and I don't
do that shit, so oh I can't.

Speaker 1 (06:53):
Curas, you can't get it.

Speaker 4 (06:57):
Yeah, I just got weird a little where it's like
what we're saying, Like, you didn't I didn't think that
people really compete with each other like that. And we're
like because I grew up around like real folk, like
you know what I mean. I had real friends and
real niggas around me that like, we don't trip off
of certain stuff. So when I got in that environment,
I was like really shocked that.

Speaker 5 (07:18):
Like I was like, people really be like.

Speaker 4 (07:20):
Caddy and like and I had Like again, it was
new to me because I've had solid friends my whole life, right.

Speaker 1 (07:28):
And it's like legendary people on the show, Like you're
respected so much as an artist. We wouldn't think that
you would go on there.

Speaker 4 (07:35):
I mean, and everybody is cool. Don't get me wrong,
I'm not, but it's nothing bad. It's just I just
didn't know that reality wasn't reality, you know what I mean,
because I was like, well, shit, I'm too real for
this shit. I ain't I would it don't. It don't
work for me.

Speaker 1 (07:47):
Like the situations you normally would not be there.

Speaker 5 (07:49):
Yeah, I wouldn't do certain things that just.

Speaker 1 (07:51):
And some things are good for TV but not good
for your personal life.

Speaker 5 (07:55):
Yeah, so it was cool.

Speaker 4 (07:57):
Yeah, So it was just it's portrayed right, and they
you know how this stuff, like it can peace what
they want a piece. And after a while I'm just like,
but that's not how that really went right. So then
you're like, nah, y'all got that. I can't, you know
what I mean, because this is really what it is
for me, you know what I mean? And I don't
fake this like I live.

Speaker 5 (08:17):
This for real.

Speaker 4 (08:18):
So again, it started out cool, but after a while
you start to feel like it might not be.

Speaker 1 (08:23):
Because I felt like you've always been a little like
protective of your personal life. So that's why it was
interesting because it's like, Okay, we get to see like
what we look at going on, but then reality TV
doesn't really necessarily show that, right Yeah.

Speaker 4 (08:37):
Yeah, I mean I think everybody to a certain extent
want to protect their private Lize's that's nothing wrong with that,
But I mean I'm open as far as I'm an artist.
You want to see when I'm in the studio recording, Yeah,
like that's what I'm doing. You want to see how
these conversations is going. To her point with these executives

(08:58):
are being vulnerable to these moments. But that's not what
we was that wouldn't need How is it.

Speaker 1 (09:04):
For you kind of being more vulnerable now as an artist?

Speaker 3 (09:07):
Honestly, I feel like it helps. It's helping me connect
more with my fans, like the fans that really want
to know who I am or want to know like
what inspired me to do certain records or inspire me
to shoot a video a certain type of way or
wear a certain outfit, or why my hair is the
word the color it is. So I'm learning now that
you really got to try to. You got to keep

(09:28):
up with the Joneses, You got to stay in the
loop with you know the way things are going as
far as like social media and how because it's just
it's just ultimate ways to continuously promote yourself and your music.
So right now I'm gonna I'm in an okay space.
I'm experimenting right now with like doing some content that
is going to open up more for like help me

(09:49):
open up more to my my fans.

Speaker 1 (09:51):
Yeah, that's good when you could control it too, Yeah,
Like I think that is such an important thing absolutely, Yeah,
you know it great platform.

Speaker 5 (10:00):
If you can do a reality show, it could be great.

Speaker 1 (10:04):
Now, to be honest, that's the new project that you
have right now. Let's talk about right on time. Yeah,
tell me what that's about, because with your music, I
feel the connection when you sing. I know this is
you know, super personal.

Speaker 4 (10:20):
Yeah, it is right on time, pretty self explanatory, being
vulnerable just speaking on you know, I've been through some
kind of fucked up situations and this was one of
those songs where I was saying, like a lot of
times when you want something, it's not necessarily always in
your time, but it shows up right on time and
when you're not a lot of times when you're least

(10:41):
expecting you. And that's what that was all about, Like
just a coming to a point where I thought like
I was just done, Like I was like, man, I'm cool.

Speaker 1 (10:51):
No one could get back in.

Speaker 4 (10:52):
Yeah, like you know what I mean, Like I've done
tried it married the voice that's not like, oh, I'm done,
and then it's like, look at this showing up right
on time.

Speaker 5 (11:01):
Just I was like, you know what I mean?

Speaker 1 (11:03):
So that's what it is.

Speaker 3 (11:05):
I love that, right Tom.

Speaker 1 (11:08):
Yeah, no, because honestly, like ooh, divorce is one of
the hardest things. One of the reasons I had a
topic this morning on my show. We were talking about
this guy called in. He was proposing after twenty four
years of being with somebody. He says, it's gonna be
our twenty fifth year. I'm going to propose to her.
The whole family's coming for Thanksgiving. I'm like, what made
you decide to do this? Now? Yeah, but I remember

(11:30):
an artist and I won't say who he is because
I want to blow them up. He told me, whatever
you do, don't get married. It changes everything. And he
was married, and I was like, dang it. Honestly, it
did scare me when he said that. He was like,
people act different after you get married. You could have
a great relationship. And I didn't never want to think
about it like that. But we were talking earlier about statistics.
They said women initiate over seventy percent of divorces like

(11:54):
when it comes to it's time to leave. And I
was wondering, like, because you know, they always say it's
cheaper to keep her. Sometimes men don't even bother trying
to do that because it's expensive, you know, to have
to deal with that. But I also think that men
have a tendency to make you break up with them,

(12:14):
you know what I'm saying, Like they do like the
most disrespectful stuff, but they're not gonna break up with you.
They're just gonna act like they're not with you until
you don't really have a choice.

Speaker 6 (12:25):
Or they're just testing the waters to see how far
you can they can go away. But in that same realm,
I saw this trend about women saying even in the
they're happy relationships, that they wouldn't get married again. And
we're encouraging younger women not to get married and you know,
have a partner or have separate homes or something. And

(12:46):
I was like, yeah, because apparently men are the more
happy ones in the heterosexual marriage than women. Like a
lot more things fall on women's shoulders traditionally, you know,
and the vacations, putting the union, the kids to school,
doing the doctor's appointments, all those things, but they.

Speaker 1 (13:05):
Were like I got to go home and take my
kids to school. Yeah, right, which I love it.

Speaker 5 (13:12):
I mean, I have been married.

Speaker 4 (13:14):
I can honestly say there's some I believe in the
institutional marriage. I think it's a beautiful thing. I just
I would say that just.

Speaker 5 (13:23):
Be made to the right person, right.

Speaker 1 (13:25):
But you never know, because you don't you're marrying the
right person. Not I you knew you worried.

Speaker 5 (13:30):
Yeah, yeah, so sometimes.

Speaker 1 (13:34):
I mean, you know, you're like, I'm we're here, We're
in it.

Speaker 5 (13:38):
I ain't doing nothing else, but I'm playing now.

Speaker 4 (13:43):
I think that it's important try to as best as
you can't know the right person. I do also recommend
having separate bathrooms and just in your living.

Speaker 1 (13:53):
Place, things like that.

Speaker 4 (13:56):
Those little things make a difference, right like, because after
a while, you like you literally need your space.

Speaker 1 (14:02):
I feel like I'm never home anyway. And I think
as artists, like you know, we're outside a lot working.
You might be traveling a lot. So I also think
there's that because I do like missing the person i'm with.
Sometimes it's nice to like go away and come back.
I like that too, yeah yeah, because then it makes
you like excited, you know, what I'm saying. But I

(14:24):
understand what you're saying, like having your own space and
having that it's a I don't know. It's weird because
sometimes Gigi would tell you she wanted to be like
the skin in your skin.

Speaker 2 (14:33):
I'm such a clinger, Like when I love somebody, I
just want to be like again like, yeah, in their skin,
Like I just want to be all over them. I'm
so affectionate in love. W But at the same time
I be wanting space too, So I get it.

Speaker 1 (14:46):
Yeah, Yeah, what's your status, Connie?

Speaker 3 (14:50):
What you mean? I'm the same way.

Speaker 1 (14:52):
I'm like, I mean relationship. Are you single now?

Speaker 3 (14:55):
No, I'm in a relationship.

Speaker 1 (14:55):
Okay, all right, so you're clinging in your relationship. She's like,
I'm not playing no guns. Are you seeing anyone? Right?

Speaker 3 (15:06):
On?

Speaker 1 (15:07):
Time?

Speaker 3 (15:07):
Right?

Speaker 1 (15:10):
She said, to be honest.

Speaker 5 (15:13):
You know, I'm just I'm in living right now that
you deserve it. Yeah.

Speaker 4 (15:19):
I think one of the things that was important that
I learned is to take some time to be by myself.
And so when I got back into the dating pool,
if you will, like it made more sense, right, and
I could, you know, navigate a little better. I didn't
think I wanted to initially just get out of something

(15:41):
and jump right into the next day.

Speaker 1 (15:42):
Yea, although sometimes it happens like that.

Speaker 4 (15:44):
It does, but I didn't want to, yeah, because it
didn't work for me in the past. So this time
I was like, let me just chill, and then during
that chilling period is when it showed up right on time.

Speaker 1 (15:56):
Sometimes you got to clean a slate, yeah, for real,
That's how it happens, because if you have too many
distractions and things going on, that's like you're not going
to attract you know what it is that you want
to attract, If that makes sense. I feel like, but
you know, rebound relationships are a real thing. I feel
like I went from one into another. I feel like

(16:17):
I'm never single, Like I had a period of time.
She's right, y'all before he said, what, I've never seen
a single you?

Speaker 5 (16:28):
Wow?

Speaker 1 (16:28):
Yeah, you know why?

Speaker 3 (16:30):
You probably go You probably you like you know when
someone like know that, like you have the feeling like
when you know, like all right, like it's what so
you like? So you be you've been your situation still
but then like you're ready, you already know you're who
you want to be with next, So you're already like
ready to go somewhere else. You know, that's why you're
never see probably like all right, I'm done. I'm really
that because we've been broken up.

Speaker 1 (16:52):
Break up for real?

Speaker 3 (16:53):
Yeah, I think that's all females though, like they we
break up with you in our.

Speaker 2 (16:56):
Heads like maybe shocked to already gone.

Speaker 5 (17:03):
But how does that work though, like when you say
you never seen it, like.

Speaker 1 (17:06):
Well, like okay, so I did have a period of time,
like before my ex ex boyfriend, where I was like,
I need a break because I feel like every time
I started dating somebody, I'm not good at dating several people,
like it's always gonna so that's yeah, so it's hard
for me to do that. I saw like a post
where they were saying they were asking, like when you're
dating somebody, if they're dating other people, are you okay

(17:28):
with that? And for me, I don't even have time
like that, you know what I'm saying, Like if I
like somebody, you know, I be locked in on one
person at a time. It's hard for me to be
like here here. I don't think there's anything wrong with it.
I would have loved to be like that, but I
just feel like it's just never been. You always know
who you like, like, even if it's more than one person,

(17:49):
you know who you like the best, and you kind
of lock in on that. So that's probably why. And
then I think that I guess like roped into a
relationship sometimes, like I don't intend for it to happen,
and then next thing you know, you're seeing one person
and then it's like, okay, I guess that's my.

Speaker 5 (18:07):
Man, Yeah, my man.

Speaker 1 (18:08):
Yeah. Does anybody say it anymore? Like like when you
settle down, was it like we locked in or did
it just happen?

Speaker 3 (18:17):
I said something, I was like okay, so like I
was like, so I'm not about to keep doing this
or lets you my man? So he was just like
all right, okay, that was it.

Speaker 1 (18:30):
Wow, okay, posted up it and everything. How long has
this been going on?

Speaker 3 (18:38):
Probably like a year?

Speaker 1 (18:41):
Aw Does he understand like all your music stuff? Is
he you know, because sometimes it's hard for a guy
to date somebody who does what you do.

Speaker 3 (18:50):
I think he understands, feels it feels like he understands.
We never really had any issues as far as like
what I'm doing in music or I'm doing music, like
if I'm in the studio, late, or if I'm like
in the studio with a bunch of guys or something
like that. We never had really issues any issues.

Speaker 1 (19:04):
Like Okay, that's good, that's positive. Leela, you're shaking your head. Yes,
what about you know? Cause it is like a difficult
thing I think, and ego wise for guys too, Like
you'll be outside and people want to take pictures, they
want to stop you, and now he got.

Speaker 3 (19:20):
To take the communicate communication thing, like if you if
I'm just in the studio and you and I don't
tell you I'm in studio and you scroll on Instagram
and you see me in the studio with I don't
know Drake and whoever else you're like, where you at,
what you're doing is? I think it's about communicating, Like
I'm going through the studio, I have a session with
this person from this time to that time.

Speaker 1 (19:39):
If somebody tries to kick it to you, would you
tell him?

Speaker 3 (19:46):
I guess I mean nobody really be like I mean,
I don't type of person. I'm not gonna lie like
I don't. I feel like certain things are really unnecessary,
Like I can ignore a lot of things, like if
I feel like if I even think that it's going
to make him feel the type of way. Probably won't
say anything, but h like if I if I if
it'sone I really want to laugh at, Like I'm like, yo.

Speaker 1 (20:07):
Because that's the hard thing, right, because you want to
be honest, but then you don't want to unnecessarily make
somebody feel away, especially because you know you're not going
to do nothing.

Speaker 3 (20:15):
But you have in the past, like I have expressed
something like that in the past.

Speaker 1 (20:19):
Yeah, I don't know if I don't think I would
tell me because you like hate the person forever for
no reason. Yeah, do you know what I'm saying? When
it could be something that's no big deal, you like
I'm straight and then it's over. But then now he
knows and now he's a problem.

Speaker 3 (20:34):
I think that also has to do with like I think,
I mean, I don't know. Maybe maybe because of the
field of work you're into. It's like old Drake Sitney
and d MS and you're like, yeah, but I'm your
favorite of mine.

Speaker 1 (20:45):
You keep saying something Drake is like everybody's nemesis everything
because everybody's like super villain.

Speaker 6 (20:56):
But also I feel like people don't know anymore because
no one really posts each other like that, like do
you post your band?

Speaker 3 (21:02):
I do you do?

Speaker 1 (21:04):
I'm not I'm not a big.

Speaker 6 (21:06):
Poster of my man, like he would be casper to
most of these people, so I don't think they would know.
But I was even in a relationship like yeah, I
did not say anything, you.

Speaker 1 (21:19):
Know, Leilah. For you, when it comes time to work
on music, what is that process like for you? Because
I remember there was a time you took like a
little break from you know, putting out like a full
body of work. I think it was four years.

Speaker 4 (21:32):
Was it was a couple of the yeah, something like that. Yeah,
you know. Again, I'm a mother, so I focused on
my family.

Speaker 5 (21:42):
You know.

Speaker 4 (21:43):
I took some time to do that because when I
did come out years ago, I hit the payment run,
Yes you did, and I was touring a lot between
here and overseas, a lot overseas ands. So it just
reached a point where I had to be still for
myself and for my family. And that's what I did

(22:04):
because I didn't want to lose myself in this industry.

Speaker 1 (22:07):
You know, that's important because people will put and then
next thing. You know, I always feel like women have
it different than men too. We do, Yeah, being a
mom in this business and the responsibility and the guilt.

Speaker 5 (22:19):
People have mom guilt, hell of mom guilt.

Speaker 4 (22:22):
And I was pregnant before I was on the road,
like and then got him off the road and got
pregnant and then he wasn't playing have the baby and
then you go right back out like that's you know.

Speaker 1 (22:35):
People don't understand from men, it's different, like, yeah.

Speaker 4 (22:39):
You're wearing baggy clothes because he's like, I don't want
folks to see I understand what's happening.

Speaker 5 (22:44):
But I'm on stage like, man, my, what about the birds?

Speaker 1 (22:48):
You know what I'm saying.

Speaker 4 (22:49):
And it's like you got all of these you know,
we women, we emotional, We got stuff that we deal with,
and so yeah, it can be hard in.

Speaker 5 (22:56):
This industry is not always female.

Speaker 1 (23:00):
Yeah, he was gonna say something.

Speaker 3 (23:03):
I was gonna say. My homegirl she has she her
daughter's probably like with twelve or thirteen, and she still
feels like if she's away from one than three days,
she's like I need to be home with my daughter,
Like my girl need to be outside, come outside real quick.

Speaker 1 (23:17):
Yeah, I mean, and I think men don't be feeling that,
like I mean, they miss their kids. But it's different,
and it's also physically different because it's not like you
have to give birth, you have to be pregnant, you
have to take a moment, you have postpartum, like those
are all the things that you know and no, I
get it, you know. But and then they also act
like for a woman once you have a kid, they'll

(23:38):
act like your career is going to be like damaged
by that.

Speaker 3 (23:43):
Not you know, it's.

Speaker 5 (23:44):
All kind of guilt. They put all kind of stuff
on you.

Speaker 1 (23:48):
Sure, well, how are you feeling now though with the
project out and everything, and then you did additional songs.

Speaker 4 (23:55):
Right, yeah, I feel good. I'm very excited about the project.
Just to still be able to do what I love
and do it for the people, it feels good, and
I feel good about the body of work. I'm constantly
growing as an artist and evolving, and I just love
the artists and woman that I am now.

Speaker 1 (24:15):
I mean, you have such a phenomenal voice, and it's
so unique. I think once we hear it, it's like
we automatically notice you.

Speaker 5 (24:22):
Thank you.

Speaker 1 (24:23):
You know, it's not because I feel like sometimes it's
also hard, like you said, there's so much right now, yeah,
so to be established in that way is such a
big deal.

Speaker 5 (24:32):
Thank you, Yeah, thank you.

Speaker 1 (24:35):
She's like, I don't even know.

Speaker 6 (24:38):
You know.

Speaker 1 (24:38):
And for you, Connie Diamond, I've just been you know,
a lot of people have been following your path and
your career up until now. And I told you this
when I saw you last time. It feels like now
is your time, like because sometimes we could be impatient
too and be like okay, but it feels like now,
you know, just with this project, I love it. I
think it's amazing and it's it's such a like a vibe,

(25:03):
vibe because this is how I like my music to be,
like how to say New York.

Speaker 3 (25:12):
I appreciate that. I appreciate you.

Speaker 6 (25:14):
Yeah, I was getting ready to it on the way here. Really,
what did you like the most ghetto and ratchet?

Speaker 1 (25:21):
Yeah?

Speaker 3 (25:25):
Is it?

Speaker 1 (25:25):
Let me show you or show something? Let me see something.

Speaker 5 (25:29):
That's my other one?

Speaker 3 (25:29):
I recorded that one in Cali?

Speaker 5 (25:31):
You did?

Speaker 1 (25:33):
Yeah?

Speaker 3 (25:34):
It was a producer's name is Diego. Diego.

Speaker 2 (25:37):
Do you feel like when you record and say another
state or city or even out the country if possible,
that it creates a different vibe for you circumstances or
like the area where you.

Speaker 3 (25:48):
Are absolutely when I first saw with de Gym. They
were flying me out constantly to meet to go to
the studio and met with producers. And I feel like
I made some of my best music when I first
that's good. There's a song that I have with a
DMX semple with these pitches want and I couldn't, I couldn't,
I didn't haven't. It's a most story about getting cleared.
But I feel like that's my favorite soe. It's the

(26:10):
first song I ever recorded. When I got out there,
it was like the first day. It was like such
a vibe. I feel like when I'm when I fly out,
when I go to the studio, I don't know, like
I have a different inspiration, Like I have a different
like the energy is completely different, my thought process is different.
I don't know if it's the air or of just
the assphere or just being in the studio with its
different different creative so like I love, I love flying

(26:30):
out and making music because I always make something fire
and different.

Speaker 1 (26:33):
You probably get like really inspired by where you are too,
you know, aside from being here, what about you, Leela,
is that your experience.

Speaker 4 (26:40):
Definitely definitely like I live in the South now, but
I always fly back home to Cali a lot of
times to record. Just yeah, whether it's palm trees, it's
the beach, just the it's.

Speaker 1 (26:56):
The we're just the feeling of being at home.

Speaker 4 (26:58):
Yeah, it's sad, it's weed this everything, you know what
I'm saying. So it's like it makes you it makes
me feel a way when But I also I lived
here for a long time too, and I recorded my
first couple of projects out here, and I had a
great time too.

Speaker 2 (27:16):
This was a time too. It was a time Yeah,
New York. That was That was a time. I don't
know what to recreate what that was like, man.

Speaker 4 (27:24):
That's what we were saying like that that time, like
it was just it was special.

Speaker 1 (27:29):
Like do you have some stories, because you know, we'd
like to hear some first hand stories of what it
was like being here during that time and record.

Speaker 4 (27:35):
I remember I was living here and then I would
catch your train down to Philly and record. That's where
Touch a jazz studio down there, depth Jesse Jeff Studios,
and I remember being in there with Flow a Tree
and Music Soul Child and everybody was just like all
in different rooms just like working on their projects, right

(27:56):
and like you would just hear like amazing stuff and
then to hear it like several months later come out
and like you blew up like it was just dope,
you know what I mean. It was just it was
just a time. It felt so special. But yeah, I
remember those days and just like how exciting it was

(28:16):
just to it felt like it was a rebirth, a
rebirthing of soul music because it wasn't never like a
situation where soul had left. It's just you hadn't heard
it in that manner in a long time. So to
hear that fresh take on it, to hear these new
artists what was considered at the time of your soul
artists coming out, and you know, to be amongst that,

(28:38):
like it was.

Speaker 1 (28:39):
It was like cruise too kind of in a way,
like you know, and I feel like recording is so
different now, you know too. It's because everything is so
technologically advanced that people don't really be in the studio
together necessarily because it used to be like you at
the studio, I'm gonna pull up. I feel like, I

(29:00):
guess not as much. I don't know if I'm wrong.

Speaker 2 (29:03):
It's pretty much it's a lot of recording and sending
your verse or sending the track.

Speaker 5 (29:07):
Yeah, the collaboration and that energy, the energy ag is important.
Yeah that really it does.

Speaker 3 (29:15):
It turns the song up twenty times.

Speaker 1 (29:17):
It does.

Speaker 5 (29:18):
Oh my god, I wrote.

Speaker 3 (29:19):
Me in the studio anytime I do something with the person. Yes,
I was in when we did get on Ratchet, it
was like, and that's all I feel like, Oh my god,
it's so good.

Speaker 1 (29:28):
And you knew when that you knew when you recorded
that what it was about to be.

Speaker 3 (29:32):
I knew. I was like always over.

Speaker 5 (29:36):
Dam story and stuff like the what.

Speaker 6 (29:42):
Was my favorite line? I gotta look it up. I
just look up the lyrics, but there was some. There
was one that's.

Speaker 1 (29:48):
Doing it is secretly ghetto and Ratchet. Yes, now I'm
walk you hood Princess love it. It is interesting though,
like today I feel like being an artist is not
necessarily just about the music. Before you could get away
with having like an amazing album. Earlier you were talking
about connecting with people. It feels like you got to

(30:10):
do like.

Speaker 3 (30:11):
You can't just make music anymore.

Speaker 1 (30:13):
Yeah, you gotta do it all.

Speaker 2 (30:14):
You gotta like you can't gone as the mostique of
being an entertainer or artist or even a celebrity.

Speaker 1 (30:20):
Everything is so out in the open.

Speaker 2 (30:22):
Now everything so many people are accessible through social media
and meet and greets, and like literally I live in
Atlanta and you can see anybody at like Chick fil
a or Target or you never know where you can
run into somebody at. And it's just like back in
the day, in the nineties and the two thousands, we
weren't seeing celebrities out and about living their real lives.
We didn't know anything about I remember there was a
time but we didn't even know what certain people look

(30:43):
like into their albums draped you.

Speaker 1 (30:44):
Know what I'm saying, And those days can happen. Yeah.

Speaker 2 (30:47):
Now everything is just like in your face, out in
the open, so everybody is so accessible, and you know,
it's just a different time.

Speaker 1 (30:53):
Yeah, yeah, I tell you posting DiAngelo to rest in
peace to di'angelo man, that was it's like so unexpected,
you know when that was announced. But he was somebody
that I feel like you would not just see him
out and about it ever. Yeah.

Speaker 4 (31:10):
Yeah, like she said, the times are just different. I
mean we're talking about as you said earlier twenty years
ago to now, like social media has truly just affected that,
like so you almost got to just be out because
it's like they don't even care about your music.

Speaker 5 (31:26):
They just want to like what she got on, what
he got on.

Speaker 4 (31:30):
It's like, man, like, you understand how dope this artist is,
Like are you listening? You worried more about what he
got on versus what he sounded like in its quality
of So it's like it's more you gotta sell. It
seems like a brand and everything and your personality versus
just your talent. Like I've seen somebody say that recently too.
They it was like the industry cares nothing about the

(31:52):
talent anyo.

Speaker 1 (31:53):
Which sucks. That's the foundation of the industry because there's
definitely people we all could probably think of that we're like, yeah,
I mean not naming no names, but I'm just saying
I'm sure we all could like be like, Okay, you
know this person is.

Speaker 3 (32:12):
But you know what then that and it from an
artists and parts, it does suck because there's a lot
of artists that are that are in that position where
they're like, oh wow, but the talent is not it's
like invisible. But I think that's where the people that
do have talent, that's what they have the advantage because
it's like, okay, cool, so what are they doing that

(32:33):
I'm not doing? And it's not really to compare yourself,
but it's more to see what the people are more
interested in. People want to know about you. Now, if
you're a person that is very private, then it's not
gonna work in your favor. But there are ways to
figure out how to how to get your people in
because I heard that once, once you get someone to
be invested in you as a person, they will they
will buy your fart selling instance, pussy incense like you

(33:01):
could sell anyone anything at that point because they're so
invested in you person.

Speaker 2 (33:06):
Having the town to IoT some bottle pussy what I didn't?
I just I'm you know, I'm an insane girl. I
had to buy the bottle pussy incent I did get.
I don't think they.

Speaker 1 (33:17):
Incense, that's.

Speaker 5 (33:20):
It.

Speaker 1 (33:20):
Yeah, she gave it to me, said he what's this
smell like incense?

Speaker 2 (33:25):
I don't know, yeah, but I think i's not my pussy.

Speaker 1 (33:33):
Earlier about the people have these days.

Speaker 3 (33:37):
That came away, it was told.

Speaker 1 (33:39):
Out, let me ask you this, would you work with
somebody if they were popular but you didn't really think
they were good. Oh, I'm gonna ask both the popular.

Speaker 3 (33:52):
You know, it's get It depends depends where I'm at
my life for real.

Speaker 1 (33:57):
But at right now, if somebody was and you was like.

Speaker 3 (34:00):
But I would because it's a business. For me, this
is business. It's not it's not something I'm doing because
I just literally have to pay my bills. Like it's
a business.

Speaker 1 (34:09):
And exposure matters.

Speaker 3 (34:11):
It does matter because just because I don't feel like
they're that great, but they have, they have an audience.
I'm still looking to expand my audience. So if I
know that I'm great and people who feel like.

Speaker 1 (34:19):
I'm great that I want to, I'm gonna go in
there and be great.

Speaker 3 (34:21):
Either way, that's it. I'm just gonna do what I do.

Speaker 1 (34:23):
And they're not that great is your own personal opinion.

Speaker 4 (34:26):
But you know, yeah, I think it's subjective, you know.
And though I think it's definitely subject.

Speaker 1 (34:31):
Because there's times have you said no to certain like
collaborations that it's like a personal like I'm not really
you know what I'm saying. But even though people may
like them, maybe you don't.

Speaker 4 (34:43):
It's not even so yes, I think again, because I
don't think I don't like to judge people like that.
I don't like to judge other artists because I know
that artists, as an artist be sensitive about our ship
like keep it.

Speaker 5 (34:59):
I don't want to judge.

Speaker 4 (35:00):
It's like it may not be my thing, but that
don't mean it's not a thing, you know what I mean?
Like it it's so subject. It's like there's so many
genres of music. It's like you know, and so that
means it's it's going to be different types of artists
for different types of people.

Speaker 5 (35:14):
So I don't try to judge that. It's more for me.

Speaker 4 (35:16):
It's like if you like on some weird kill kill
kill them, I don't like.

Speaker 5 (35:22):
That or like I'm like, yeah, that's different, you know
what I mean.

Speaker 4 (35:26):
I probably can't rock with that because now we're sending
a message that I don't support. So it's not even
about whether you are viewed as whack or not. It's
just like I don't say that kind of shit, like right,
so like yeah, like yeah, so no, I wouldn't do that.

Speaker 1 (35:41):
You know, you always knew what you wanted to be
right and what you were going to do. Did you
ever have any like odd jobs coming up while you
were trying to make.

Speaker 5 (35:48):
It absolutely I did a little bit or anything.

Speaker 1 (35:51):
What did you do?

Speaker 5 (35:52):
Uh?

Speaker 4 (35:56):
Well, I mean I did graduate from college, so I
was hustling.

Speaker 1 (36:00):
What do you think you were going to be?

Speaker 4 (36:01):
Like what you major in communications? I was trying to
go to law school. I still work in entertainment and
be an entertainment attorney. I saw real estate. I was
a children's entertainer, you know them clowns and people.

Speaker 1 (36:17):
I was sniffing burgers.

Speaker 5 (36:19):
I was sniffing berger. I mean you know I had
to eat.

Speaker 1 (36:22):
No, no, listen, I loved it because I think it's
important for people to hear that because they might be
like she always could sing, she knew this.

Speaker 5 (36:30):
Is what she worked at Macy's.

Speaker 1 (36:32):
Me too, I worked at Macy's too.

Speaker 5 (36:35):
Got my discount, Yeah, I.

Speaker 1 (36:36):
Still never mind. I feel like it's okay to say
you now right, you still use the discount. I definitely
use my discount. But definitely there was like a whole
little thing going on all anybody could work at Macy's
and not never mind that, can I say, I mean,

(37:00):
it can't work now. It was so long ago. No,
let me not do that.

Speaker 3 (37:06):
Get your girl.

Speaker 1 (37:06):
No, well, listen, what I used to do was we
used to go. I would return stuff that I never bought,
so I would go to the register to somebody I
knew she would bring it up as a return, and
then I would get credit and shot, so it looked
like transaction. Yeah, you know, everybody. And it was interesting
because I did that and mad people was getting fired
because they were straight up stealing. But I was at

(37:29):
least like going because they could look on the cameras
and see you at the register. As long as it
looked like I would just bring stuff up, they would
ring it up and ring it up as a return,
so they didn't know we might got to take this out.
I don't know if I can say this, but I
was young, like in college. You like that. I'm gonna

(37:51):
ask y'all and keep it. Who did not steal? Here?
Everybody done stole something, right, candy? Yeah? But okay, you
so don't try to.

Speaker 3 (38:03):
I don't like I don't like jail. I don't even
switch the tag on something in the Okay, okay, put
thank you?

Speaker 1 (38:10):
What's the cheapest tag that made me stand out?

Speaker 3 (38:12):
Here?

Speaker 1 (38:12):
By flat I'm scared.

Speaker 2 (38:15):
I've always been scared to just flat out still, but
I have booked the system of TIMEA two.

Speaker 1 (38:20):
Let's just say that I just couple that I didn't like. Okay,
the school, juice check out, Okay, mad things.

Speaker 6 (38:30):
Now, yeah, you know, and I got caught ones, you
got questioning ones.

Speaker 5 (38:37):
Yeah. I was stealing a suitcase.

Speaker 1 (38:43):
Oh that's big, a huge suitcase. Just dumb.

Speaker 6 (38:47):
And I was like leaving and they brought me to
the room and I was like, I actually didn't have
my I d luckily, and I gave them a fake name,
give them a fake birthday, and they're like, okay, well
you just can't come here. The cops came in everything.
I was like okay, and then they let me go.

Speaker 1 (39:05):
Suitcase, how did you walk I think you were going
to walk out with a suitcake?

Speaker 6 (39:09):
She said it because I had a tag like I
scanned it.

Speaker 1 (39:14):
But yeah, really wanted to get Yeah, I'm gonna I
stole so much stuff in my I had an ex
boyfriend that worked at AKIA. He was my boyfriend at
the time. I my first apartment out of college. We
soole everything, the whole thing. Yeah, so you know how
they had the ass this department. So I literally stole

(39:34):
sofas out, the entertainment system, a king sized bed, a
mattress everything he just said. And because he was sucking
the girl. I found this out later at the register,
and so she was bringing everything up as like a
dollar a dollar for him, but no, she knew it
was for me. She knew I was his girlfriend. She

(39:55):
just you know, it is what it is. And then
we broke up, and then he tried to we we
had a lot we had. I had to get a
restraining order. Has anybody else ever had to get a
restraint I just did recently? Oh yeah, we got to
talk about this. Yeah, but yeah, So in court he
tried to tell the judge, I want my furniture back.
I said, whatever you had the receipt for, we'll get
we'll get it back for you. No receipt you can have.

(40:18):
I have a brother steal some carpet out of home
people before okay, see, don't y'all leave me out here
like no, I did. I did a whole big it's
not bad. Told them.

Speaker 2 (40:30):
They just picked up the roller carpet and walked out
with it. We just walked out of home people with
the roller carpet.

Speaker 1 (40:34):
This is all right. Don't don't nobody do this. I
know it's a government shut down.

Speaker 6 (40:39):
I'm like, look at the diamonds and the loop.

Speaker 1 (40:43):
Oh yeah, I ain't still it from the loop. I
was professional. That was crazy. So wait, Jordan, what's this story?

Speaker 6 (40:49):
Oh okay, So remember I got a new laptop, so
I had this man little shopping spree, went on a
little shopping spree, got some ship, got a new computer,
and he started acting crazy. After that, hung out with
him the whole day, you know, let him live his
little fantasy like whatever, hugged him goodbye and what about

(41:13):
our merry little way. Then he started acting a little
cool cool, and I was like, you know what, I'm
gonna hold it.

Speaker 5 (41:20):
I'm gonna wait.

Speaker 6 (41:21):
He was supposed to be getting me passes to something
that was coming up, so I was like, let me
just wait the little three weeks to tolerate him, and
then I'll block him and I'll never have to deal
with him again. So he starts really just amping up
the crazy, amping up the crazy.

Speaker 1 (41:36):
The example, saying he was saying shit.

Speaker 6 (41:42):
He was just saying weird shit, taking pictures of like
the ground and being like, are you gonna come come
meet me at home? Deeper like just weirdly clearly drunk
or whatever type shit. So finally I was like, no,
I go to it was the US Open. Going to
the US Open. He was supposed to get me passes,

(42:02):
didn't get me the passes. I was like, fucking, I'll
buy my own ticket. Then he was like, so you
don't want to see me, and I was like no,
well no, what was the point of that. So then
he gets mad that I went anyway, hits me up NonStop,
won't leave me alone, looking at my page from different profiles.

Speaker 1 (42:18):
Whatever, that's weird.

Speaker 6 (42:20):
I do an interview where I talk about I used
to have a roster and I had a pipe cleaner
on my roster, okay, And I guess that really triggered
him because the next thing I know, he's calling me
non stop, texting me non stop, telling me that I
should get the pipe cleaner to send him ten thousand
dollars to pay him back for all to pay.

Speaker 1 (42:40):
Yeah, you don't get money, bag. If you decided to
buy somebody something.

Speaker 6 (42:44):
You said yes every time AMX texted you and said
is this you?

Speaker 1 (42:48):
So?

Speaker 6 (42:48):
I'm so sorry to say so anyway, I was like, yeah,
I'm good. Restraining order there was Wow, you be.

Speaker 1 (42:54):
Getting a Ristinia order is no joke. And I'm glad
nobody else had to do that. What are some things,
like you said that you learn from, like being married
and divorced, for moving on in the future.

Speaker 4 (43:07):
Again being married, that keeping your individuality, that that emotional space.
I like having my own closet. I like having to
be able to you know, to date in the marriage,
like really still date. So when I say closets, like

(43:29):
you have your own space. I have my own space.

Speaker 5 (43:31):
Go that side of the house and you don't get
ready you need your own house next door.

Speaker 4 (43:37):
No, no, no, It's like if we're all, if we're
all on top of each other, then like excitement.

Speaker 5 (43:42):
Sometimes I get boring, they get comfortable.

Speaker 1 (43:45):
That's why New York is tough.

Speaker 5 (43:46):
It's like it's like it's.

Speaker 4 (43:49):
When we come together after like, oh I didn't know
that's what you know, Like we look good, you know,
you got yourself together, and now we meet in the
family room, and it's like it feels it keeps feeling fresh, right,
you know what I mean? So I learned that and
then and then after being single and all that, it's
just I feel like when you have kids, you got
to figure out how to put them first and swallow

(44:15):
whatever that you might be feeling towards the other person
because it's about the kids, Like, yeah, I like.

Speaker 1 (44:22):
You, but but they don't got to know that. Yeah,
because they.

Speaker 4 (44:25):
Just got to know how to like actually just be
grown and mature. And it's not always easy because sometimes
we want to crash out. People, you know, make us upset.
So just learning how to juggle, you know, the maturity
of actually having to be responsible for another.

Speaker 1 (44:43):
And having kids, it's definitely our next level in a
relationship of trying to make sure that like, the kids
come first, I mean, I like.

Speaker 5 (44:51):
You, and then one other thing.

Speaker 4 (44:54):
I will say this, this is just old school, and
I didn't think of it until afterwards, but I had
a that she always told me, she keep your own money,
keep your own account, and all that kind of stuff,
and it made sense.

Speaker 1 (45:07):
I agree with that.

Speaker 5 (45:09):
Keep your He ain't got no anything, right, he don't
need to know anything.

Speaker 1 (45:14):
I was reading this, didn't I tell you all this?
Oh my god, I was reading right about it. I
was reading this post today about this guy who was
like really him and his wife and he was really
struggling to make as meet, working two jobs, and she
had I think it was like what forty six forty
seven thousand dollars saved up and he didn't know about it.

(45:35):
But it felt like I was like, if he was
struggling and doing all that, he ain't had to know
you have forty seven thousand.

Speaker 3 (45:43):
But did she help him?

Speaker 5 (45:44):
Though, No, he didn't.

Speaker 1 (45:46):
And he was like stressed out, struggling and she wasn't
saying nothing about that money.

Speaker 3 (45:51):
I don't like that.

Speaker 1 (45:52):
I felt like that was that was too much. But
I agree with having your.

Speaker 2 (45:56):
Own, absolutely having your own, but if he's struggling.

Speaker 1 (46:00):
Because there's times that one person's up and they were married, yeah, yeah,
they were married.

Speaker 5 (46:05):
Like you could have you could help them. Like, it's
not like.

Speaker 1 (46:10):
Could you with somebody that you make more than and
be okay and have yeah okay.

Speaker 4 (46:15):
Yeah, I mean it's just it is what it is.
It's not like you try but try to.

Speaker 1 (46:21):
Be like sometimes man, there's nothing like being spoiled though, yeah,
because I think what that teaches you what happened? Something
happened because I don't even know that was the trigger.

(46:41):
You know, well, we don't gotta talk about it, it's
too soon. I want to hear about it. Because your
reaction with the what does the money be the issue.
Money is the number one reason people it's adultery, but
it's money. It's the money. It's the money is the
issue is like, why you gotta ak funny with the money?
And if you have more.

Speaker 4 (47:02):
Like you said, if you have, if you're a female
a lot of times and you got more than them,
that can get a man.

Speaker 2 (47:08):
It's when a man thinks that you don't need it
because you got.

Speaker 1 (47:12):
It, I still need it. I don't care that I
got it.

Speaker 2 (47:16):
Give me yours too, Yeah, and don't ask funny when
I ask you for it.

Speaker 1 (47:20):
I don't care what I got. I want choice because
you don't care that I got vagina. You want mine,
You want to moth you and everything. Gosh, what are
you gonna say?

Speaker 2 (47:31):
Time?

Speaker 3 (47:32):
Companionship, whether whether we have our own or not, a
man should still be willing to like to take.

Speaker 1 (47:42):
Some things that the world.

Speaker 6 (47:46):
The way our society works is it's set up to
benefit people with penises. We have to struggle whether it's
we're on our period, we're giving birth, we're doing whatever.
We have a different set of things. We have to
cut through every moment that we're live. So I'm like,
the least you could do is send me a little
pair of shoes or a little thousand dollars if I'm down,

(48:08):
or something for even existing in your world.

Speaker 5 (48:11):
You pushed out this baby. I have ten months.

Speaker 2 (48:17):
Hello, body still like, come on, you swallow them babies
do something.

Speaker 4 (48:25):
And then some guys really can't handle when women make
more than them right right so.

Speaker 1 (48:29):
Now, And I think that's the main thing. It's an
ego thing too, because the dynamics of the relationships sometimes
men like feel like not as masculine if they're like,
you know, they don't even want to ask you. And
then sometimes they can take it for granted too, because
then at first they don't want to ask you, but
then they get used to this shit.

Speaker 4 (48:49):
You know, they don't want to ask you, but then
they also expecting you.

Speaker 5 (48:53):
You got it? Like, so, which one is it?

Speaker 1 (48:56):
Because I think sometimes too, like we can try to
be too like, okay, no worries, like that's me. Yeah,
I'm always like I don't want to figure it out. Yeah, yeah,
you don't want to make out? Why should I have
to keep figuring it?

Speaker 2 (49:09):
A lout?

Speaker 5 (49:11):
But you're strong because you have to be, not because
you always want not.

Speaker 2 (49:15):
Because you want to be right, I don't want to
be strong. Listen, I have to be I don't want
to be you know.

Speaker 1 (49:22):
I want to ask you all this because I saw
another post where people are talking about does your past
to find who you are today? Because some people feel
like I can make some assumptions about you based on
things you've done in the past, but some people will say,
my past doesn't define me. So first I want you
to think about this about yourself, right, how much does
your past to find who you are today? Do you

(49:43):
think that people can make assumptions about you based off
things that you've done before? And then we'll think about
how we view other people. But Jordan, let's start with you, like,
how much does your past to find who you are today?

Speaker 6 (49:55):
I feel like it doesn't necessarily now, but I would
say right after I did boy, there was an assumption,
especially when dating men, there was an assumption that that
meant like I was bustling wide open immediately when really
was like one I will celibate at the time, like
they didn't have anything to do with each other. I

(50:15):
don't think that so much affects me now, I would say, now,
it's more. When I was on a reality show that
my summer house that I think is more projected onto me,
and that was three four years ago.

Speaker 1 (50:29):
Do you let people know, like, do they discover they
playboy and then you tell them? Or do you give
somebody a heads up like my titties on the internet.

Speaker 6 (50:37):
You know, I haven't had the conversation in a long time.
But I also think that's because I haven't been in
a relationship.

Speaker 1 (50:42):
Okay.

Speaker 6 (50:42):
I think if I actually really liked someone and cared
about someone that I didn't already know, yeah, I would tell.

Speaker 1 (50:49):
Them mm hmm, yeah, because I wonder how does that work?
Because they'll google you. They're there, and they're there, They're there.

Speaker 6 (50:55):
It looks great, they look great, they have a milk
chick in the shop. Yeah, when you look back at that,
that's not something that you regret at all. Right, never, Okay,
I just want to make sure as we're talking about it,
because I don't want to talk about something you're uncomfortable with.
I love both of my shoes, and I wrote my
own article in it, and I talked about being a

(51:18):
woman who's comfortable in my body, and especially Black women,
how we're not encouraged to be confident in ourselves and
be sexual and even doing a podcast like lip Service,
it would be like white women and they could do
that all day and it's like, let's give her millions
of dollars.

Speaker 1 (51:36):
But like these hosts, Yeah, you want to talk about
it disgusting. Yeah, And it's really not even just about that.
It's just, you know, sometimes it's more women empowerment. It's
more being in a safe space and having conversations about
things that people might consider taboo. But we need to know,
but we need to talk about it, and it's a
healthy conversation. So Leila, if you think about yourself in

(51:58):
the past, you think that people could judge you based
on your past, you have a problem with that.

Speaker 5 (52:04):
I kind of don't care. I mean I think people
judge people all the time, and.

Speaker 4 (52:10):
So they probably some maybe one or two people like that, Yeah,
don't want to accept me for today. They want to
You're always gonna have no folks. It's like, well, I
remember when she was working at Macy's or whatever, Like
I remember.

Speaker 1 (52:24):
What she's Yeah, it's always always gonna be like, it's
always going to be that group of type of people
that's on that type ship that just still want to
just be like she ain't so and socause she used
to live over here whatever, but niggas so what Yeah
that's part of the story. Yeah, I love that story.

Speaker 4 (52:43):
That's what I'm saying, Like, I don't care, Like, yeah, yes,
that's part of my past and this my present and
my future right too, So what you know what I'm saying.

Speaker 5 (52:54):
Period.

Speaker 1 (52:54):
I hope I don't get banned from Macy's after all this.
I don't want I did, Okay, But anyway, what about you, Connie,
if people had to judge you from your past, what
would you say? Do you think that's a good measure
of who you are today or not?

Speaker 3 (53:11):
I'm kind of piggyback off what she said. I don't
really care. I think that I'm I'm in my head
a lot, so I'll be judging myself. I feel like
wherever I was in the past or things I've done
in the past, I'm always looking to evolve and to
be better or to progress. So I think that I
care more about like just the thought of where I

(53:31):
was before where I'm at now, based before I came
a fuck about what somebody else thinks about what I
was doing five years ago, how I was years ago,
and where I'm what I'm doing today, I don't really care.

Speaker 1 (53:40):
You know, It's interesting to me, Connie Connie Diamond because
I find that in your music you are so like
confident and don't give a fuck, But then talking to you,
it feels like you second guess yourself sometimes, if that
makes sense? Are you more like you know what I'm saying.
I would never think you would be nervous about anything.
Oh okay, I get that, you know what I mean, Like,

(54:03):
like I'm a little nervous to do and even I
saw you posting like when you did your photoshit you
had the tell fire on my tel vire so I today,
but I saw you saying like you were you know,
you were a little nervous, like you don't give that.
But I love that that.

Speaker 3 (54:17):
That's the most important thing about it because I feel
like I feel like you have to lead with example.
You have to show you are confident in what you're in,
what you're representing, like it's what it's your own brand,
what it's yourself to right. But I feel like we're
all humans, so everybody, everyone has a moment where they're
like a little self conscious about something or insecure about something.

(54:38):
I think that's super regular. But I feel like where
I'm at is like I feel like I have to
be that way because I feel like as soon as
you like show a little bit of weakness or show that,
people find ways to try to tear you down.

Speaker 1 (54:53):
See they figured they figure it.

Speaker 3 (54:55):
Out and the old world like nah, Like I want
you to know that I don't I don't give a fuck,
and I'm here and I'm right here and I'm gonna
talk my shit. I'm gonna gonna do it a hundred times.
But I do like whatever whatever the case is, like
I want to I always want to project confidence in
what I do because I believe in myself and I
believe in anything that I want to do, I work
towards it. I believe in myself. So I just always
want to project that. But I'm not going to act

(55:16):
like there are moments where I do feel insecure or
I feel like there's certain things that I'm worried about,
Like even right now, like I've been working on this freestyle,
Like people know me for doing freestyles, like Kanye got
even freestyle, Like I got signed off my freestyle sign
and like I have.

Speaker 1 (55:32):
That it's some amazing beats.

Speaker 3 (55:33):
And yeah, like that's my thing, Like that used to
be my thing. Like I used to be on a
train writing freestyles, and now it's like, because I'm where
I'm at in the industry, now it's like you need
to create songs, you need to create records. The focus
is creating records. So I kind of lost that. I
don't know what it is that spark or that that
energy that used to maybe just want to sit down

(55:54):
and just write, just free write to a beat that
I like. And I've been working on this freestyle to
Cardi B's pretty pretty ump petty, but I've been I'm
self conscious about it, lady, because I'm like, damn, it's
not hidden how I wanted to hit or it was
not sounded like I needed to sound because I haven't
been really like doing that.

Speaker 1 (56:12):
I haven't been in that bad.

Speaker 3 (56:13):
But I'm not gonna I'm not gonna go along and
be like yeah, yo, I can't. I'm not gonna scream
about it.

Speaker 1 (56:17):
I'm just gonna on it.

Speaker 3 (56:18):
And when I actually put it out, it's gonna look
like I did this ship with ease. I did this
ship in my sleep. It's gonna look like that. When
I'm bitched you feel me, so I feel like you know, that's.

Speaker 1 (56:26):
Just who do you listen to when it comes to that?
Like do you like free?

Speaker 3 (56:30):
So?

Speaker 1 (56:30):
Yeah? Like no, like this in particular, like are you
you know, like maybe a man is it remy? Are
you like listen to this but you think? Or do
you just not tell nobody and work on it alone?

Speaker 3 (56:41):
Right now? I've been I like, I love my I
let my man here, like a couple of bars I
had and my best friend who's like my number one
like supporter, Like, I was like, how's this soundings so far?
She was like it sounds good. You're in your head,
like get out your head, you know, get out your head.
I think that's as artists we always were own reds credit.
We felt like it's good, They're like, na, this shit
as far Like nah, but it's really about a feeling.

(57:02):
And now when I'm in the studio and I'm working
with people, I always tell him like I like it,
but I don't feel it. And I need to add
it's something I feel if I don't know how to
describe it. But if when I feel it, I know,
all right, this is done, this is it. I don't
and you know what that feeling is that's it, and
I will not put something out. I don't feel it.
I don't give a fucks a hundred people feel it.
I don't feel like it's not happening.

Speaker 1 (57:23):
So yeah, okay, listen and you know what works for you.
But you know what I will say, sometimes people don't know.
I've heard so many stories about artists who their biggest
record has that ever happened to you? Was a song
that maybe you weren't in love with.

Speaker 3 (57:36):
But other people was like, yeah, that happened to me.

Speaker 1 (57:40):
I think about Race Sweet Lady. Oh yeah, yeah. I
feel like so many artists say that, Like, you know,
like Big Sean the song he had with Chris Brown,
he hated it and then they put it out, you
know what I mean? Like the certain sounds a lot
he said.

Speaker 3 (57:56):
That was a lot of artists, like a lot of
big artists today, they have that story.

Speaker 1 (57:59):
Yeah, what about you, Lee? Was there ever a song
that you didn't really love but people were like this
is amazing?

Speaker 3 (58:06):
Are you?

Speaker 1 (58:06):
Yeah?

Speaker 5 (58:08):
Yeah, but we didn't put it out.

Speaker 1 (58:10):
I did, Okay, Yeah.

Speaker 4 (58:12):
It was one people like, but I probably should have
because you still can.

Speaker 5 (58:16):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (58:17):
I feel like your music is so timeless. Thank you,
because it's like soulful, it's beauty, you know what I'm saying,
it could just like transcend. Yeah, to be twenty years
in and be like this ship still could come out
right now.

Speaker 5 (58:31):
Yeah, I don't know. It's like she said, it's a pheel.

Speaker 4 (58:36):
I'm a soul artist at heart, so like it literally
comes from the soul. For me, it has to and
I gotta feel it like that. And so I think
that's what what makes soul music special, is it it
is timeless, It is transcends, you know, decades. If you
put on a Marvin Gaye album right now, it's still

(58:56):
going to.

Speaker 1 (58:57):
Feel I need what's going on right now like I am.
And so that's what makes it.

Speaker 4 (59:03):
That's soul music though, because it came from that place
that you know, you can't fake that and you can't.

Speaker 5 (59:10):
That is not contrived and that that's that's different.

Speaker 1 (59:14):
Even thinking about like your first big song, that's a classic,
you know what I'm saying.

Speaker 5 (59:19):
Yeah, Like all.

Speaker 1 (59:21):
Right now, Giji, I didn't even ask you if somebody
has to judge who you were before and who you
are now.

Speaker 2 (59:25):
My past, because we know my past is very checkered.
I just feel like I have no regrets. I've lived
a life that if I was to walk out of
here and it was the end for me, I would
be happy with how what I've done. I feel like
when people judge's projection, I feel like people see something

(59:46):
in you that they wish they saw in themselves, and
then they try to turn that against you and make
it bad. I also feel that what I eat don't
make you shit, so I don't care if you like it.
I loved it, I digested it, and I'm shitting it out.
And guess what You're not like. You get what I'm saying.
I've always been that type of person. I also have
done a lot of things that people will consider taboo

(01:00:06):
right within my career and choices that I've made in life,
and just you know, all of the things. But again,
life is to be lived and it's for you. I'm
only in competition with who I was yesterday, so that's
the only person I gotta worry about. I gotta worry
about coffee yesterday, not coffee today. And in the future.
We evolved, like you said, we grow, we evolve, and

(01:00:28):
we move on. And I think that I might have
done some things. I know I've done some things in
the past that most people could never or would never
see themselves doing. But my reasons is my reasons. The
method to my badness has always been I've been in
the state of survival.

Speaker 1 (01:00:43):
So I didn't.

Speaker 2 (01:00:44):
Choose to become an exotic entertainer because I wanted to
be naked for strangers. I had to take care of
a child, I was homeless. I had my reasons for
doing what I did, And if people want to judge
me for that, then okay, judge your mama agree.

Speaker 1 (01:00:56):
But what I love is like Magic City docu series,
which by the way, Gji narrated and produced. Okay, and listen,
well we just got nominated for a Critical Ue Award.
I'm really but I love the fact that your story
has come full circle. Yeah, you know, from people judging
you to now you being able to twenty years later. Yeah,

(01:01:17):
twenty years later. Yeah, So that's such a big deal.
And I think a lot of what we did in
the past makes us who we are today, absolutely and
not to be judged by it, but to also know
this is part of like the fabric of my story,
you know what I'm saying.

Speaker 2 (01:01:32):
Can I do get the people in the comments and
online or whatever that want to say that that's my
whole life, Like, oh, all you want to talk about
is how you was a stripper. It was a big
chunk of my life, Like I can'tnot say that that's
what I used to do. Like you used to work
in Macie you said, used to work in Macy's. Like
you know what I'm saying, Like that was a part

(01:01:53):
of your story. A big chunk of my life was
adult entertainment. So it's like, I am not the girl
who's trying to sweep that under drug. You know, that
was a level of life for me that allowed me
to assent to where I am now and I will
never be ashamed of it. Do you feel like some
type of vindication like now, yes, absolutely with the documentary.

(01:02:14):
Hell because the same the same way that I was
put down because of how I chose to hustle and
make my money is what has me on a higher
level than those same people to that, you know what
I'm saying, Like, how many other people have I'm sorry,
have helped produce a documentary on stars that's about their
true life story.

Speaker 1 (01:02:34):
Exactly with Drake And with Drake.

Speaker 2 (01:02:37):
Drake, you know what I'm saying like I am in
sentences and I am in paragraphs, and I'm in Harper's
Bizarre Online because of Magic City. A lot of people
can't say that, So like, judge me for that if
you want to.

Speaker 1 (01:02:51):
But I'm proud of where I'm at and I would.

Speaker 2 (01:02:53):
Never try to like hide it or or you know,
take it back, like I don't regret it at all,
and I have fun doing it and mad a whole
lot of Monela.

Speaker 1 (01:03:03):
What was your first record deal?

Speaker 5 (01:03:05):
Like? Was it one of rough Nation Warner Brothers? It was?
It was, It wasn't a good deal, but I was
happy to be signed.

Speaker 1 (01:03:14):
Everybody's story.

Speaker 4 (01:03:16):
I was just happy to be signed because I have
been up until that point working so hard, just trying
to quote unquote get discovered. And so when I got
my first deal, yeah it was. It was exciting. At
least I thought it was. I thought I was like, oh, nigga,
flow up, but let's go. Yeah. I remember being happy
and then reality said how this game really goes? But

(01:03:40):
sometimes you get to do everybody think you rich, but
yeah I was still broke.

Speaker 1 (01:03:45):
That's crazy. Ain't that crazy? Like to just Kindie's like
mm hmm.

Speaker 3 (01:03:52):
They're gonna kick my ass, like, honey, listen please.

Speaker 1 (01:04:00):
You know, but and like you said, it's different nowadays though,
I feel like also, I feel like anytime my artist
signs a deal, they still got to move like the independent.

Speaker 3 (01:04:08):
Oh yeah. The first thing I learned when I signed,
I was like, it ain't like everything that I was
doing before I signed, Like, now there's like people that's
going to do it for you. It's like, oh no,
now you really need to do it. Yeah, that's when
just the name on it and get you a couple
of dollars, put you on a couple of blocks, especially now,
put your music in a couple of rooms. But you
still look you a couple of cars to locations. But

(01:04:29):
that's it.

Speaker 1 (01:04:29):
It's like, oh ship, Oh yes, I still got to pick.

Speaker 3 (01:04:33):
The real work started when you get signed.

Speaker 5 (01:04:35):
That's true.

Speaker 1 (01:04:37):
But you know, listen, I gotta say, like for both
of you, you know, just congratulations on both of you
have new projects out right now, so I want to
make sure that everybody, you.

Speaker 5 (01:04:48):
Know, congratulations.

Speaker 1 (01:04:50):
Yeah, and I appreciate the conversation. See this wasn't too crazy, yeah,
next time though.

Speaker 5 (01:04:57):
It was, it was it was real peace. I loved it.
There tell all of y'all. Man, this is nice. I've
never done nothing like this. Yeah, it was cool.

Speaker 1 (01:05:04):
Now we're just greezing you up. Now next time it's
going to okay.

Speaker 3 (01:05:08):
Time.

Speaker 1 (01:05:08):
Yeah, everything like and where you are today? You know,
I got to come out, like where can people find
like these tour dates and everything so they can come
and see you in person? Because it's not a game.

Speaker 4 (01:05:24):
Oh no, I was just well, golly, I was just
in Virginia two nights ago.

Speaker 5 (01:05:31):
But I'm going to be in Detroit.

Speaker 1 (01:05:33):
That's not a second home.

Speaker 4 (01:05:35):
So we'll come there, come and see me there, and
I think Cleveland. It's only a couple of shows left
and then I'm gonna chill for the holidays and pick
back up in January and I go overseas to Europe,
but then I'll be back over here.

Speaker 1 (01:05:47):
Do you love being on tour or do you or
is it just just curious, like I do.

Speaker 5 (01:05:52):
I guilty, I do guilty pleasure, Yeah.

Speaker 4 (01:05:57):
I do, But I hate being away from my family.
So it's just trying to find that balance. When I
was younger, you know, before the kids, it was very
fun because I didn't feel nothing.

Speaker 5 (01:06:09):
It was I didn't you.

Speaker 1 (01:06:10):
Know, I wasn't responsible.

Speaker 4 (01:06:12):
Yeah, I wasn't responsible for anything. But now it's really
it feels more like work at times, but I enjoy it,
but it's it's definitely working it because.

Speaker 1 (01:06:20):
What you wanted is how we have to look at
it sometimes like this is what you asked for it. Yeah,
do do your kids know you're famous?

Speaker 2 (01:06:28):
They don't care about it, But I'm saying, like when
they go to school, they yeah, they.

Speaker 4 (01:06:32):
Look at stuff because they know. I mean again, they
got the internet now. But my I'm such a reflection
of like my environment and my family and in terms
of like nobody cares, like that's probably why I'm so grounded,
because like grow you back in here and wash some dishes,
Like my mom still talks to me like that, Like
so no one literally cares.

Speaker 5 (01:06:52):
I'm just I'm just mom.

Speaker 1 (01:06:55):
Like, but there's some things they see you doing and
they're like, that's so dope. My mom did this on
the game.

Speaker 5 (01:07:00):
My daughter thinks she'd be like, mom, that's cringe. Don't
do that.

Speaker 4 (01:07:04):
She's that generation's like, Mommy, don't do that, that's cran.
But when I come to my shows and they.

Speaker 5 (01:07:11):
See, oh, it's okay. But then after after that.

Speaker 1 (01:07:16):
Gets yeah, he question.

Speaker 3 (01:07:20):
Yeah, of course, So you've been doing music for how
long you would say I was, it's twenty plus years, Okay, yeah,
I have a question. So, like I've been doing music
for a long time as well, but I won't even
time for like probably three years now, and I find

(01:07:40):
it really hard for me to transition during the holidays
and you know, howdy, you know, when the industry shuts down,
it's like there's no work. It's just you with your family,
which is great, but I don't have kids, so you know,
I'm just like, and this is the first time I'm
living on my own, like since I've been on so
like i've been I want to, like my goal right now,

(01:08:03):
I want to complete three It sounds hard, but I
want to do three short projects by January, like a
three song project, a five song project of something small
by January, right from now January. But I don't know
why I feel like I get like I feel like
because the industry shuts now, I feel like, all right,
it's over, it's done, although it's not, but it just
feels like because nothing's going on, Like obviously you're touring

(01:08:26):
right now for most artists like bigger artists around this time,
this is the touring season for them, right, But for
artists that are not in that in that stage, you're
not in that area yet. Like what how were you
able to stay like grounded? What were you doing to
like have to.

Speaker 5 (01:08:39):
Go in the hardest?

Speaker 4 (01:08:40):
You go in, go in the studio, lock in, go hot,
like you go in a hibernation. You know, that's when
you reset. This is your time to recruit, reset, rest
you good. You're not good for nothing if you're not
taking care of that. You gotta rest. So when you
come back at the top of the you hitting them hard.
That's what I'm like, you gotta rest, That's what see
what I want to do. Yeah, going it feels so dark.

(01:09:02):
It feels like everything is shut down.

Speaker 3 (01:09:05):
You don't speak to nobody at the label, you know,
speaking on A and R, you don't speak to nobody,
and everybody's alright, it's.

Speaker 2 (01:09:11):
Like going to going to it right Christmas? Right, girl,
I gotta think. I gotta think that's the best time.
That's a great time to give back. Yeah, okay, toy drives, Yeah, it.

Speaker 1 (01:09:34):
Might be some some bay time.

Speaker 3 (01:09:36):
I want to use it to work.

Speaker 6 (01:09:38):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (01:09:38):
Yeah, are you an Earth sign?

Speaker 3 (01:09:40):
I'm a tourist.

Speaker 1 (01:09:41):
Yeah, I thought, so you.

Speaker 5 (01:09:43):
Give I don't stop wait and I would ask do
you get bored or something.

Speaker 3 (01:09:48):
Like, no, I get bored.

Speaker 1 (01:09:49):
I just get.

Speaker 3 (01:09:50):
I get, I get.

Speaker 1 (01:09:51):
I feel like depressed.

Speaker 3 (01:09:52):
I feel like what I do?

Speaker 1 (01:09:53):
I get doing something?

Speaker 3 (01:09:55):
Yeah, I feel like, what's what? What's happening?

Speaker 5 (01:09:58):
Why?

Speaker 1 (01:09:58):
Why did closed?

Speaker 3 (01:10:00):
Why shut down?

Speaker 1 (01:10:01):
What do you mean?

Speaker 3 (01:10:02):
So January, like while we're not working, while we're not
working every single day right now?

Speaker 4 (01:10:06):
Like no, but you know you can work though, Like
that's the that's the thing, Like you don't get caught up.
You can work, you can right right, just finish your projects.

Speaker 3 (01:10:16):
That's I set that goal for myself up. Yeah.

Speaker 1 (01:10:18):
And it's also a good time when everybody is not
having to like tour and work, it's a good time
to catch other people to do stuff. All those people
you were like we home, everybody at home. Everybody was
a lot of people that want to get out of
the house. Yeah, I'm like everybody was working, and you know.

Speaker 5 (01:10:39):
Yeah, it seemed like you got more done.

Speaker 2 (01:10:41):
Have that mindset I need to do, don't worry. Well,
let me know I got you.

Speaker 1 (01:10:47):
We're getting some stuff to do now.

Speaker 5 (01:10:49):
Yeah, my kids need another aunty.

Speaker 3 (01:10:55):
I'm gonna get my belt right well.

Speaker 1 (01:11:01):
To be honest, that's out right now. So it's Underdog
season two. Thank you both for joining us. This is
a great time. I feel like we're going to get
a lot accomplished. Holidays is coming. Let's get and listen, y'all.
Don't steal now, girls stealing bad.

Speaker 5 (01:11:20):
Thank you all for having me.

Speaker 1 (01:11:22):
I appreciate you.

Speaker 2 (01:11:24):
Being such a calm service, but in a great way.
Give you two turns. Sometimes I enjoyed times sift service

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Host

Angela Yee

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