Twenty-two million YouTube views can’t be wrong, can they? “Gucci Gucci” became this summer’s anthem, turning Kreayshawn into a sensation. From interviews with XXL and Complex magazine, selling out mini-tours, and getting covered on a freestyle by Lil’ Wayne, the California native is literally, everywhere. Kreayshawn is currently signed to Sony and is hard at work on her first full-length album. She called from Los Angeles to talk about the White Girl Mob, getting signed to a major label, and how to get her attention.
CherryGRRL (CG): You said, “I never started making records to get a deal,” so how did it feel when Sony/Columbia approached you? Was there a part of you that was like, “Finally?”
Kreayshawn: Yeah. It was crazy. It was something I never expected, but it happened. It’s true that I never went looking for a deal. That’s not me. When I made songs, I wasn’t thinking, “Hey, I’m going to make this hit and get a deal.” But when the buzz started, I was feelin’ it like, “Damn, now I gotta keep doin’ this. I can do something big.” It definitely wasn’t something I was thinking about when I started though.
CG: Let’s go back a bit. There’s a video called ‘Online Fantasy,’ and you’re kinda feelin’ this girl … And I noticed that she popped up again in the ‘Bumpin’ Bumpin’ video. What can you tell me about the premise behind ‘Online Fantasy’, and your relationship with her?
Kreayshawn: Oh, I’ve been best friends with her since I was 10. I directed the ‘Online Fantasy’ video. It’s just about having a crush on someone, but you can’t reach them because they’re online. That’s interesting to me: to put a visual behind music. I love watching things. I love good movies and good music, and when you can put them together, it tells a story. If you have a good knowledge of both of them, it just makes something else. All the videos you see on YouTube is me practicing.
CG: That being said, which film is more gangsta: “Set It Off” or “Waiting To Exhale”?
Kreayshawn: Oh, “Set It Off” for sure.
CG: You’ve got a lot of fans/admirers … What’s the best way for someone to try and holler at you?
Kreayshawn: [Laughs] I like getting gifts, so if you come creative with the gifts… Yeah.
CG: Are you treating the process of making your first full-length record any differently than the mixtape process?
Kreayshawn: Definitely not. I’ve been going back to Oakland to write and record in the same studio I was before I got signed. I’m not messin’ with that. I’m keeping things as close to my comfort zone as I can.
CG: What would people be surprised to know about you?
Kreayshawn: Hmm… I don’t know. There’s so many things out there about me now. Well, I’m trained in Facility Maintenance, so I can do any type of maintenance work for the city. I could be a Custodian and clean all kinds of sh*t and all that.
CG: The rap game is full of beef and controversy, but when you say something, sh*t gets REAL. Do you think you get an unusual amount of attention because you’re new or came up so fast? Does it get tiring having whatever your crew (the White Girl Mob) say held against you?
Kreayshawn: I don’t know what it is. I think I’m a vocal person. I’m always on Twitter or blogging on Video (YouTube). I’m always talking, you know. I’m good at that, and I have a lot of opinions. But once you say something, it’s held against you and whoever you roll with. That’s just how it is. But it’s whatever. We just have to be smarter as a group, and we all gotta work together on how we put sh*t out there.
CG: What are your guilty pleasures?
Kreayshawn: I have this thing with milk. I always have to drink milk. When I do shows at the club, they have to have milk on ice for me. And the club managers or whatever are always askin’ “Did she drink the milk?” Hell yeah, I drank it. It’s gotta be whole milk though. (continued on next page)
