How did you get involved with music?
Music has always been my way of expressing my self. Sometimes I have a problem verbally expressing my self. Instead of talking to somebody about the way I feel about things, I’ve always just wrote them down. Diary, Poems, Song Lyrics, Short Stories and everything. I have been writing since the 3rd grade and started getting serious about it when I was about 13.
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What motivates you to keep doing what you do?
My son (Darius) keeps me motivated to stay focused and not get side tracked with these young gentlemen. He also keep me motivated when I run into set backs and little downfalls, but other than when things start to get negative, I don’t need any motivation because this is something that is all ready in me to do. If there wasn’t any money involved I would still be doing music. I would just have a different source of income because this is what I love.
Who or what are your biggest influences?
The two female rappers I admired the most coming up were Left Eye and Da Brat. I liked Left Eye’s flamboyant yet controversial style and Da Brat’s lyrics along with her whole swagger. Da Brat brought heat to tracks and never really tried to sell sex. She was just being herself and I can appreciate artist like that because god made us all different. So why when I turn on my TV all the videos and songs look and sound the same. I was also a big listener of 2 Pac, Bone Thugs & Harmony, Z-Ro, and Mary J. Blidge. Lately I’ve been listening to an Houston artist by the name of K-Rino with the South Park Coalition. He had one of the best albums (Time Traveler) I’ve ever heard. I got the idea for my album title listening to his album.
What are the key things your music cover’s? What point are you trying to make?
I like touch reality topics and everyday problems we go through. I just try to give it to you real. When I sit down and write, however that beat moves me or whatever it makes me feel, that’s what I write about. I cover a lot of different topics on this album “Self Explanatory Unexplainable” There is something on there for the hustlers, the gangstas, the ladies, the fellas, the club hoppers, the grown and sexy, and the real and trill. A song that is building controversy is “Represent” In the song I say...”This is something for my bitches to ride to!” A lot of older women take that offensive. I look at it from this perspective though, instead of being mad about somebody calling you a bitch, own that. Just turn it into something positive. When I say bitch what I mean is Beautiful, Industrious, Trend-setting, Classy, Hustler. That’s a real bitch. LOL.
What are some of the things you see yourself doing in the near future?
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Well right now I just started my own label (Business 1st Entertainment) where I’m in a partnership with four others. Our motto: don’t talk about it be about it. We just got our company logo, DBA, and got it trade marked. We are currently looking for one more artist. Quite a few labels have offered me deals but in the near future I’m looking to get Business 1st Entertainment a distribution deal. A long term goal of mine after the distribution deal is to open up different business within my community. That way I can allow my money to make me more money and at the same time create employment for my people.
Have you performed live? If so how was that experience?
Yes, after that day that was when I knew in my heart that this is what I want to be doing for the rest of my life. At that point I realized I don’t just like writing, I like entertaining people as well. I enjoyed myself so much out there on the stage that the audience couldn’t do anything but enjoy them selves too. It was at the Sports Resort in Houston, TX. during the Six Figgaz fashion show. BET’s comic Shawn Harris was hosting and I was so nervous because the audience was kind of dead during the other acts. When I got up on stage it’s like something just came over me. My show had so much energy everybody in the building was crunk.
What would you change if anything about your music?
I get a lot of complaints about the profane language I use. At first I was being real stubborn like..”I’ll say what I wanna say and I don’t care what yall think.” Now I’m trying to challenge myself on writing without cursing at all. I still slip up from time to time but I’m working on it, and not because of what others had to say but because I’m trying to work on becoming a better person.
Do you feel your music brings a positive message to the youth?
Not all the time, but I’m not a perfect person. I understand that being a role model comes with the territory of being an entertainer and being in the lime light, but at the same time I can still only be me. A lot of it is positive but it all depends on how you look at it because everybody perceives things differently. I might touch the topic of sex. You have people who will say well teens don’t need to be listening to music about sex.. I say, why not? Instead of trying to ignore the fact teens are having sex, let’s put it in the people face but at the same time inform them on protecting themselves from these STD’s when they do it.
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Is your music based on fact or fiction?
100% fact. If it isn’t about something going on within our society, something I’ve experienced I feel others can relate to, or something I’ve learned that I feel others can relate to I don’t put it on wax.
Do you have any songs on the radio? If so, what stations if not, what are you doing to get more exposure?
DJ Chill over at Houston’s 90.1 Damage Control has “Hustle Hard” in rotation. DJ White Mike at Party 104.9 has Pum Nani Nani in rotation during Mean Greens Street heat mix. Right now I’m just working on creating a buzz here in Houston. Doing as many shows as possible, keeping my ear to the streets, and staying in the mix. Selling mixtapes, passing out flyers, hanging up posters, and just being out here on the grind networking and trying to make it happen.
What are you bringing to the game that is different? What is so unique about you or your style of music?
Well what separates me from artist in my hometown is I’m not the average Houston artist that everybody is used to that talks about Rims, Slabs, Candy paint, and diamonds in they grill. I’m not knocking those that do, to each is own. I just feel like there is more to talk about. I’m different from other chicks in the game because I’m trying to sell good music but at the same time carry myself like a young lady is supposed to. I also have a very strong aggressive delivery that catches the listener’s attention.
Are you getting love from the home front? How does that make you feel?
Yeah, I’m from the S.W.A.T. (Southwest Alief Texas) and the hood is behind me %100. They feeling me and they love my music. It’s just getting the hometown major station (97.9 the box) to put you in rotation because they play the same 10 song over and over again all day. They don’t really give there own cities artist a chance. And if you don’t have an investor money can be a huge problem cause not only can you not get the major station to play you but some Dj’s are going to want you to pay them just to get spins in the club. It’s like, we both from Houston. You all ready told me the song was hot so why not just show me some love and play it, ya feel me?
Do you have a crew you run with? If so, who are they and how do they help with the music? If not, how do you manage to come up with all of your music?
Business 1st Entertainment is the crew I run with both business and personal. Chill is my image consultant, Shelly is my stylist, KB is my photographer and web designer, Cortney B is my homie and singer under the label, Bench Warmers ( a group on the label) have been down with me since I was in high school, and Dj White Mike and Dj V-Town are my Dj’s. People like to say that they don’t have friends and they roll one deep, but I value friendships or just relationships period because contrary to what everyone else thinkgs I feel like you do need friends and I try to keep my same friends I’ve always had around like Hameria, Djuana, C-Luck, Tann, Ebony, Quita, and the Sheard sistahs. They help me stay grounded and get the word out there.
Do you produce your own tracks or do you have a producer. If so, how do you get inspired to produce your tracks? If you use a producer, why did you choose this producer and what is so unique about him/her?
I can produce tracks and they sound pretty nice but since that’s not what I do, I worked with severl prducers for this album. Some of the producers I worked with were Dope E, Willie James, P-Nutt, Q- Beats, D.Willz (united kingdom), Dj K-Dawg, and more... I started off doing mixtapes so the producers heard me and started as I listened to them, they were the producers who had the hottest tracks in my opinion. They were all unique though and each one had something different to bring to the table. All of them are so good I couldn’t even tell you which is my favorite.
Do you have anything else you would like to share with our readers? Any words of motivation or encouragement?
Well first I wanna let yall know that these are different websites I can be found on if you want to check me out...
• www.CandiRedd.com
• myspace.com/CandiRedd
• tagworld.com/CandiRedd
• soundclick.com/CandiRedd
• isounds.com/Candi_Redd
• myspace.com/realandtrillbitches
Since this is the Young & Successful issue of Nine5Four, I just want to tell all the readers to do what makes you happy. If you are sitting at a desk broke and working a 9-5 everyday that you hate to go to, figure out what makes you happy and how you can turn that into a career. To me, the true meaning of success is not just making good money but making money doing what you love to do. I always want to end my day on a postive note and you can’t do that if you’re frustrated and unhappy with life. There is nothing wrong with going after your dreams. You have to put the god you serve first and give your all not being afraid to fail because we don’t plan to fail, we only fail to plan. As long as you have a vision and can see where you want to be, you can achieve it and that’s real talk.
