Intervju Saweetie: om debutalbumet 'Pretty B*tch Music'

2017 började den amerikanska Bay Area-rapparen Saweetie skapa vågor på den internationella hiphopscenen när hon släppte en tolkning av Khias ikoniska låt “My Neck, My Back”. Det som började som en freestyle på Instagram – är idag en av hennes populäraste låtar, med över 125 miljoner streams på Spotify. Singeln “ICY GRL” skulle bli startskottet på Saweeties karriär. Låttiteln kom även att bli ett smeknamn som hängt med henne fram till idag även om rapparens riktiga namn, Diamanté, är minst lika icy. 

Efter succén med debutsingeln “ICY GRL” signades hon ett år senare till skivbolaget Warner Music Group och släppte sin första EP High Maintenance, och 2019 kom hennes andra projekt ICY. Efter en tids tystnad återvänder Saweetie nu starkare än någonsin – hon har nämligen ett debutalbum på gång. Under sommaren släppte hon en av sina fokussinglar “Tap In”. Hitlåten, som samplar Petey Pablo’s “Freek-a-Leek”, nominerades till “Song of Summer” på årets VMAs, och fick nyligen en remix med DaBaby, Jack Harlow och Post Malone. “I feel like I took a year to focus on my music to be fresh back with ‘Tap In’ […]. I be looking forward to next year because I’ll have a full body of work by then!” säger Saweetie medan hon applicerar ett skimrande lager av rosa läppglans. 

Det är en sen kväll i Sverige när jag ringer upp Saweetie på Zoom för att snacka om hennes kommande debutalbum Pretty B*tch Music. Saweetie ler när vi pratar om projektet och tittar på mig genom sina stora lila solglasögon. Hon kan inte ge oss något exakt releasedatum, men berättar att planen är att släppa albumet till hösten.

“I’m not saving anything this time. I’m tired of doing leftovers”

DOPEST: Your debut album Pretty B*tch Music is coming up – what influences are we gonna hear?

SAWEETIE: “Influences from myself *laughing*! I really am just a student of every era. I love the 70’s, 80’s, 90’s and early 00s. But I feel like my biggest inspiration is myself. I’ve made many mistakes, and from making mistakes you become a perfectionist. [… ] One thing that I really regret is that I kept thinking that I was about to drop an album so I kept saving my ‘quote-on-quote’ album songs for that – an album that I was supposed to drop a year ago, or two years ago. So now I’m just gonna go full out, my hardest shit ever and my most personal shit ever. I’m not saving anything this time. I’m tired of doing leftovers. I ain’t saving it for a rainy day or saving it for a better occasion. Because I’ve made those rookie and amature decisions – I’ve been inspired to just be the best version of myself!”

What music did you listen to growing up? 

“Girl I’m a chameleon. I can go to like any club and enjoy myself! But let’s start with the basics. My parents are hiphop heads. I grew up on a lot of [Ms.] Lauryn Hill, [Lil] Kim, 2pac, Biggie and Bad Boys. But then you also have my momma who would listen to bands like Kings of Leon and Band of horses. And then I had my dad who would listen to Rick James, The Ice brothers, Chaka Khan and Stevie Wonder. I enjoy all types of music. I’m like a vibe currater! Whenever we’re somewhere everybody knows to give me the aux cord because I know how to match the vibes.”

Is there any genre that you wanna try, but feel like you haven’t tapped in to before?

“I would wanna try rock. Have you watched ’Mötley Crüe’ on Netflix? I really admire a rockstar lifestyle. I mean hip hop artists are the new rockstars – but I would love to collaborate with just a grungy, high energy, unapologetic ass rockstar group. So I’m gonna take it there! I got a song called “Pretty Girl Moshpit” … It’s a special song and I can’t wait to get out to the festivals because I’m ‘bout to be out there starting a whole bunch of pretty mosh pits *laughing*!” 

“It’s an exciting moment for women in music. Period!”

How does it feel not being able to do shows with the pandemic going on? 

“It’s a little sad. I love meeting my fans and I love singing my songs with them. So it’s definitely been a little set back. But once we bounce back, I know it’s gonna be a lot of fun!”

What’s the crowd like at your shows, are there more women than men? 

“I feel like, right now, it’s predominantly women. But with songs like the “Tap In – Remix” and my other songs on my project, I feel like I’m bringing in more and more of a diverse crowd”

Do you feel like the scene has changed for women in music since you first started your career? 

“I definitely feel like it’s changed. It’s always changing and it’s gonna continue to change. I feel like women are just putting on and winning in ways that we haven’t seen before. And it’s not only one or two, there are multiple [female artists]. So it’s just a great era of music. As a listener, I wish I had this in highschool. I wish I was a little girl watching all these dope females out there right now because there’s really something to say about that. It’s an exciting moment for women in music. Period!” 

Are we gonna hear any female collaborations on Pretty B*tch Music? 

“Definitely! I have some.There are exciting features. I’m actually scheduled to shoot a video soon with a very talented beautiful young lady so …“

 

I’m guessing you can’t tell me who it is *laughing*! Do you have any advice for females that wanna get into the music business?

“I would definitely say you need a team – a great team! And you need a respected team. Because if people don’t respect your team they wont respect you as an artist. And as a woman already, we’re fighting for our respect on a more personal day-to-day level. So it’s important to have a team that’s respected so that you’re respected in the industry as well.” 

Having a supportive fan base must mean a lot too! Before we hang up, is there anything you’d like to tell your fans? 

“We’re small but we’re strong, and we’re growing and growing every day! I really just appreciate [my fans] for having my back because – to be an artist in this generation, in this moment, you need to have fans supporting you. You can no longer just be the traditional artist that’s just put out by the label and then the world accepts them you know? You have to have fans that are buying, fans that are streaming, fans that are supporting and fighting for you everyday. I really appreciate my fanbase!”

Lyssna på Saweetie nedan i väntan på debutalbumet Pretty B*tch Music!