FEATURE:
Modern Heroines
Part Sixty-Three: Saweetie
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THERE has been a lot of anticipation…
PHOTO CREDIT: John Edmonds for W
around the release of Pretty Bitch Music. The debut album from Saweetie, it has been delayed because she wants to reconstruct some songs. Because of that, the playlist I include at the end of the feature is not going to have as many songs as other artists I have featured in this series. Even though the twenty-eight-year-old Californian rapper is at her debut album stage, I reckon she will be a big artist who is going to inspire a lot of other people. In 2018, her debut E.P., High Maintenance, was released. I am going to source a few interviews that Saweetie has been involved with. Before then, AllMusic wrote a biography about the incredible talent:
“Inspired by similarly forthright rappers Lil' Kim, Trina, and Khia, as well as R&B artist Teedra Moses, Saweetie broke through with her gold-certified 2017 single "ICY GRL" and two years later scored a Top 40 pop hit with "My Type."
Born in Santa Clara, Diamonté Harper grew up in and around the Bay Area, primarily in the city of Hayward. Though she aspired to be a rapper in early childhood, she excelled academically, earned a full-ride college scholarship, and obtained a degree after attending San Diego State and the University of Southern California. Harper's interest in music intensified once she got some attention for short performance clips uploaded to Instagram. One set of nonchalantly celebratory rhymes, delivered over the instrumental of Khia's 2002 hit "My Neck, My Back," developed into "ICY GRL," her debut as Saweetie. The official video for the track, uploaded in October 2017, went viral and notched millions of views, and led to a major-label deal with Warner Bros.
Saweetie's first EP, High Maintenance, arrived in March 2018 and entered Billboard's R&B/hip-hop chart at number 32. Centerpiece "ICY GRL" was certified gold the following January. Almost exactly a year after the arrival of High Maintenance, the rapper returned with a second EP, ICY. Two tracks featured Quavo, but that August, the London on Da Track-produced solo cut "My Type" took Saweetie into the Top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100. A stand-alone track, "Tap In," arrived in June 2020, followed by "Back to the Streets" featuring Jhené Aiko that October. Another song, "Best Friend," featuring Doja Cat, appeared in January 2021”.
PHOTO CREDIT: Dennis Leupold
The first interview I want to bring in is from Harper’s Bazaar. They spoke with her earlier in the year about running her own business and the release of her upcoming album (which has since been delayed):
“The 27-year-old rapper—born Diamonté Harper—is also gearing up to release her debut album, Pretty Bitch Music. With singles like the “Best Friend” earworm featuring Doja Cat, the uplifting breakup anthem “Back to the Streets” with Jhené Aiko, the laid-back “Pretty Bitch Freestyle,” and the TikTok-approved “Tap In,” fans are clamoring for more. And she’s delivered: On April 16, Saweetie set the tone for the upcoming season with the release of her Pretty Summer Playlist: Season 1 EP featuring rising artists like Drakeo the Ruler and Bbyafricka.
Saweetie flourished during the ongoing pandemic, as she was able to completely focus on endeavors other than rap, whether it’s transforming her Instagram into a viral treasure trove or partnering with brands like Quay Australia.
“I think it just goes to show you that I was being overworked, and I didn't have the time that an artist requires when they're first emerging. Like, I literally dropped ‘Icy Girl’ [in 2017], and then was just on the road nonstop,” Saweetie tells BAZAAR.com. “I never had time to really sit down and breathe. So everything that I'm accomplishing right now in quarantine has just been on my wish list to do. So I'm really grateful for this time to just sit down, breathe, recharge, and kind of remap my career.”
Focused on becoming a mogul, Saweetie is not allowing naysayers (whom she calls “annoying cousins”) to deter her path. “I'm on my way to accomplishing so many greater things in life,” she explains. “That's why I try to motivate through my music, through my brand, through my YouTube courses or reality shows. I definitely think that this journey is bigger than me. Once I realized that, it became so much more fulfilling.”
Would you say your communications degree has helped you figure out how to present yourself online?
I don't think [University of Southern California] taught me that. For one, one of my good friends is named Sabrina. Our dads grew up together, and we went to college together. She's my content manager now. So the ideas come from our minds, and I've always had a wild mind ever since I was a little kid. She helps me manage and create this wonderful content. But what I will say is USC helped me with just a whole bunch of invaluable skills that I don't think I would have acquired in corporate America or the street.
It taught me how to deal with different people, how to have patience with business, how to properly manage my time, because I do run my own business. It just taught me responsibility and communication skills, the psychology of interacting with people and how to prosper—especially in such an intense industry like music. Everybody knows USC is such a prestigious school, either you sink or swim. There's no in between. Fortunately, I was blessed enough to get through it and graduate.
I see people who say, “Saweetie relies on samples too much. Where's her original sound?”
I think greatness makes people uncomfortable. And I think people try to come up with excuses to not like me and to make themselves feel better about their life. I don't get as offended as I used to, because there was a point in time where I was dragged for, like, two years on social media. I was trending on Twitter for some bullshit every other day. I never defended myself, because I'm not really a social media pop off-er—I'd rather just pop off in person. So overcoming those obstacles and those negative viral tweets was just to work super hard. I’m gonna sample for the rest of my life; it’s my specialty. Tons of people sample, but my samples just get the most recognition.
Now that you're into fashion and beauty more, what are some things that you’ve learned?
Something that really opened my eyes to the fashion world is quality. Even with my artist merch, there were a couple of tweets that went viral about, “Saweetie’s merch line is too expensive.” But the reason why is because it's cut-and-sew. The fabric is thicker. So this is not something where you're going to wash it in the washing machine, and then it fades or the picture disappears. I want my fans who are, like, 70 to have a T-shirt from 2021 and be like, “Dang, this looks really good. The quality really held up.” … I always make sure that the quality always matches the price point”.
I am going to stick with the themes of fashion and beauty, as I feel Saweetie is a bit of an icon who is influencing other artists – especially Black women in music. W chatted with her in May. She was asked about a difficult incident involving the rapper, Quavo. Saweetie also talked about committing to her own success:
“In her senior year, Saweetie began making videos of herself rapping in her car, which she shared on Instagram. “I was living in rooms that I found on Craigslist,” she said. “And that was a scary thing. I got tired of the lifestyle where my bank account was at zero. So I gave myself a year in L.A. to be discovered, and I decided that if I didn’t get discovered, I would go back to the Bay Area. In the ninth month, I was signed to Warner Records, and they released ‘Icy Girl’ in 2017.”
“Icy Girl” was a big hit, but, more important for Saweetie, the concept of “icy” became central to her mantra of success. “Icy means confident. Icy means strong. Icy means independent. Icy means you are in charge of your life in every way,” Saweetie said, as if she were giving a PowerPoint presentation. She paused. “I am icy.” The video for “Icy Girl,” in which a very blonde Saweetie raps the words while staring down the camera, was an instant sensation. “It caught like wildfire, and it was a lot to take in,” she said.
When they were first getting to know each other, Quavo wrote to Saweetie: “You an icy girl. You need a glacier boy.” She was definitely intrigued. Her 2019 song “My Type,” with its suggestive lyrics (“Eight-inch big, ooh, that’s good pipe... That’s my type”), was perceived as an ode to Quavo. Saweetie will not discuss their relationship or what went wrong, but a week after our conversation, TMZ unearthed a video that was shot in the elevator of her apartment building. In the clip, Saweetie and Quavo are tussling over an orange suitcase, and in the fight for control, Saweetie slips and falls to the floor. Quavo does nothing to help her. Eventually, the doors open, and Saweetie limps out.
According to statements put out by both Saweetie and Quavo, the incident took place last year and was not the reason for their breakup. Not surprisingly, given her forward-motion philosophy of life, Saweetie was not interested in dwelling on the past. “I have goals,” she told me repeatedly. “In quarantine, I did a lot of mood-boarding. I had mood boards for fashion, music, and lifestyle. Lifestyle would be, what kind of cars do I want to have? What kind of house? When do I want to have kids? If I want to be a fashion girl, how far do I go with that? If you want to be successful, you have to be detailed in life.” Saweetie paused and showed me her phone. The screen saver read “900 million.” “I want 900 million dollars,” Saweetie explained. “I look at Rihanna. I look at Kylie. I look at all the girls who are working in the worlds that I’m in. I kind of averaged out the money between all these women I admire, and 900 million is the number. So if I’m having a bad day, I’m just like, 900 million, girl! Go!”
As she turned and looked at her backside in the mirror, Saweetie started to pose. Her hair was styled into an elegant 1960s bouffant pageboy. “Maybe I should wear my hair like this on the cover,” she said, referring to her debut album, Pretty Bitch Music, which is set to be released in late summer. “The world is going to be shocked by my new music,” she said. “From now on, I think they’re going to be shocked by everything I do.” She smiled. “Shocked in a good way. Shocked in a way that makes the world pay attention”.
Penultimately, this interview with The Forty-Five caught my eye. They spotlighted her back in November. Saweetie was tight-lipped regarding the release date for Pretty Bitch Music, but she was eager to say how inspiring the songs will be:
“Saweetie remains tight-lipped today about a definite release date for her debut, ‘Pretty Bitch Music’, but speaks excitedly of how it’s “so many levels up” from her two mixtapes so far. The latest single from it is ‘Back To The Streets’, a brilliantly breezy slice of West Coast hip hop, featuring guest vocals from Jhené Aiko and production from Timbaland. As a lifelong Timbaland, Missy Elliott and Aaliyah fan, working with the legendary producer proved a huge thrill for Saweetie, and yet the collaboration speaks of the league she’s already ascended to at this young stage of her career.
“Expect some inspirational music,” she grins when asked what lies in store on the rest of the album. “Some boss bitch music. Some ratchet music. Some empowering, ‘I’m over you and yo shit’ music.” She laughs, before continuing, “It’s about everything that comes with being a woman. I feel like I touch on a lot of emotion too. I know I make party records, but [the album is] definitely well-rounded.”
The album title further feeds into that idea of inspiring others, with Saweetie aiming to reclaim the word ‘bitch’, transforming it from a slur into a badge of honour. “I love 2Pac and what he did with the phrase ‘thug life’, and that’s what I’m doing with ‘bitch.’ So ‘bitch’ stands for boss, independent, tough, creative and the h is hyphy [a Bay-area phrase] which means turn it up and have a good time.”
“All my music is empowering,” she continues. “It’s only right that I had a title that served some form of empowerment for my listeners, because empowerment is so important. I remember being a little girl listening to Destiny’s Child and other songs that empowered me and it can literally change your day. If I can make someone happy or make someone feel motivated then I feel like my job is done.”
Considering how committed she is to using her platform to inspire, I wonder how she squares that with social media’s propensity to mislead, pushing unattainable ideals and impossible standards on potentially vulnerable audiences. “I feel like there’s more pressure for me to get creative, rather than appear perfect,” she replies, thoughtfully. “I think the facade of being perfect is out the window, especially because nowadays the fans want to know exactly who they’re supporting.” The assertion rings true too because, for all the glossy photo shoots, and loved-up pictures of Saweetie with her long-term boyfriend Quavo, there’s plenty of humour and unfiltered-candour to be found on her Instagram grid too”.
This year, Saweetie was named as one of thirty people under thirty to watch: the most inspiring and influential people in the world. Forbes provided that honour and interviewed her. Before wrapping up, I want to bring in some sections of that interview:
“I want to be a global mogul,” says the Forbes Under 30 alum. “Eventually, I want to see my brand supersede Saweetie.”
Her brand, Icy, sells clothing inspired by her lyrics, like $100 terry cloth sweatpants emblazoned with the line “rich with no day job” from her breakout single, “Tap In.”
“I’m just really excited to take over,” she says. “What’s great about me dominating is that I’m very inclusive and love to share my light and help other people out.”
Born Diamonte Harper and nicknamed Saweetie by her grandmother, she began writing poems and setting them to music at 13. But she kept her hobby secret from family—even her grandfather, San Francisco 49’s linebacker Willie Harper, and uncle, MC Hammer—channeling her energy into academia and enrolling in San Diego State University at age 17 to study psychology, theater and communication, according to W. During her sophomore year, she transferred to the University of Southern California to study communications and business at the famed Annenberg School. As a senior, she started sharing videos of her rapping in her car on Instagram because she couldn’t afford studio time. One of these videos, featuring her rapping over Khia’s “My Neck, My Back (Lick It),” caught the attention of Artistry Group CEO Max Gousse. Later that year, Warner Brothers signed her and dropped her first single, “Icy Girl,” on October 2, 2017.
Since then, “Icy Girl” has gone RIAA-certified Platinum. Her subsequent quarantine-era singles “My Type,” “Tap In” and “Best Friend” have been certified Gold and Platinum (the latter is currently number 37 on Spotify’s U.S. Top 50 chart.)
Sternlicht: How has your family influenced the person you are today?
Saweetie: I don’t know what kind of woman I’d be without my family. They make me feel normal. I take the success day-by-day, but people look at me as a celebrity. I don’t feel like a celebrity, to be honest, but my family just makes me feel normal.
Sternlicht: If you weren't a rapper, what would you be?
Saweetie: I’d be Olivia Pope.
Sternlicht: You’re Black, Filipino and Chinese. How has your background shaped you?
Saweetie: At an early age, I struggled with identifying who I was, because it’s two different families, two different sets of rules, two different cultures. But respect is something that both of my families hold with pride. It gave me a bigger perspective of what to expect from the world.
Sternlicht: Has being in the spotlight affected your everyday life and relationships?
Saweetie: Honestly, fame is interesting. It’s a double-edged sword. I’m appreciative of all this fame; however, it’s like I’m under a microscope. It’s something I’m slowly gauging but I’m grateful for the love and support my fans give me so I try not to complain because I realize it comes with the territory.
Sternlicht: Speaking of fans, rising to prominence during the pandemic, you’ve not been able to have concerts and interact with fans face-to-face. What’s it like to emerge on the other side as a celebrity?
Saweetie: I’m a homebody. I flourish the most when I’m at home. Quarantine gave me the time to both think and execute before the world was able to take a breath. It gave me the chance to get back to my creative roots. Through content and creativity we were able to make the brand bigger.
Sternlicht: What is your mission with Icy?
Saweetie: My goal is to create a strong business foundation—not something that’s just for clout or publicity—but a working machine that will last for decades to come. I want my great grandkids running the Icy business”.
I shall leave it there. Ahead of the release of her highly-anticipated debut album, there is so much heat and love around Saweetie. She is one of the most compelling young artists in the world. I have no doubt that she will be one of the most important of her generation. I love her music and feel we will get many albums from her. As a businesswoman, artist and actress, she is such a talent! It has been great spending some time with…
A modern superstar.