Vibe.com, August 26th, 2005
Rhyming has been second nature for the St. Louis-bred rapper ever since she touched her first mic as a youngster. After getting a hold of music executive Big Bob (J-Kwon’s manager) through mutual connections, Ebony Eyez parlayed her way onto J-Kwon’s platinum debut Hood Hop and even scored a track on the XXX2 soundtrack before introducing her lead single “In Ya Face.” The 20-something rapper spoke with Vibe.com about her promising career and her attempt to put the men in their place.
Vibe.com: Are you prepared for the “female rapper” stigma?
Ebony Eyez: [Laughs] I’m definitely prepared for it. I’m hoping to definitely prove myself so the word “female” can be taken off and it can be just “rapper.” So once I get to that point, I’ll know that I made my mark.
Most female MCs look to draw attention away from being a female and a rapper.
Exactly. We don’t say “male rappers.” They’re just rappers.
People usually want to know what type of image a female MC is bringing, whether it’s sexy, gangster, whatever it may be. What type of image do you portray? (Watch The Video feat. Trina)
I think I kind of portray a little bit of everything. I mean, of course I have songs where I’m trying to bring more of a sexy vibe across. I have songs [that] are more lyrical and street, so I’m talking to the people who really listen to lyrics and check for that kind of stuff. I have songs that [have] a message. Like, I have a song called “Dear Father” on the album [where] I’m writing a letter to God talking about some things that are going on in my life at the moment. And I have a lot of songs speaking to the ladies, songs that I know they gon’ feel me on. I have a song called “Good Vibrations,” and it’s talking about a vibrator. [Laughs] I like concepts a lot. I like people to walk away feeling like that they know I took time out to really make this record. There’s a reason behind why I do every song that I do. I don’t ever just go to the studio and record a record just to be doing it.
The concept of your album 7 Day Cycle is kind of unique—going through the different stages women experience in a week.
It’s kind of like, within a week’s time from Sunday to Saturday, I’m taking you on a lyrical journey of the typical emotions and things a woman may go through in seven days. I’m especially thinking about the things that I went through, that I usually go through. I know most women kind of feel me on this and a lot of guys too because a lot of stuff is just what people might go through within a week.
Was the concept your idea?
Yeah, I was just sitting at home one day and I had a lot of different titles. Then I just went and really started studying the album. This kind of sounds like a - not like a diary - it’s like an autobiography of a lot of things that I’ve been going through.
Jean Grae did something similar with her album This Week. She did the 7-day theme, but it wasn’t really from a feminine viewpoint. Why did you decide to present your album using that theme?
Actually I didn’t know that was her theme, so that’s news to me. [Laughs] I’ve had the title [since] probably last year some time. So, like I said, when I really listened to my album that’s what I really felt it was. And seven is the number of completion. I felt that it was a complete album. It took me seven years to get to the point where I’m at, so it all made sense to just tie it in together. That’s how I came up with the title.
Are the experiences you talk about specific to Black women in particular or all women?
Just women as a whole. Like, I have a song called “Take Me Back,” which is probably gon’ be my next single. And it’s touching on a lot of things that we go through as far as being in relationships with men. Women finally let go and say, “I’m done with you; I’m leaving.” We really fed up, so it’s like now he wants to call back begging you to take him back, pleading, promising this time it’s gonna be different. And it’s like, “No, You know it’s not gon’ be different. You’ve been down this road.” Tell him this time, “No, for real.” And that’s a song I know any woman can relate to and a lot of men, too, because they’ve been in the experience with us.
Your first single “In Ya Face” is a club song, though. Why’d you take that route, why not this song, which may represents your album better?
Well, first of all, I knew that it had a lot of shock value. It was really inspired by someone. I was in a club one night and this guy came up to me, and he was really acting disrespectful to me. He was saying a lot of things that were just out of pocket. He’s telling me he thinks I got a fat butt, and he wanna see me bend over and drop it like it’s hot and do all this kind of stuff. And I have a smart mouth, so I just turned around to him, and I’m like, 'Okay, you don’t even know me and you’re coming up to me and telling me you want me to bend over and touch my toes. If you want me to bend over, let me put my ass in your face.' And he kind of looked at me like I disrespected him by saying that.
'Okay, now you’re just getting a dose of what I felt when you came up to me.'
So I went to the studio, like, 'I got this concept for this record. I wanna do this record.' And the TrackBoyz listened to what I was saying, and we just worked on it and it turned out hot. We put it out to a few people in St. Louis to get a response on it, and it just started spreading like wildfire. That’s how it came to be the first single.
So with all the misogyny going on with the men in rap, is it your agenda to counter the negativity?
Yeah, I feel this is like the equal opportunity song—the ladies anthem.
A lot of people love the record, but then there’s some people who are saying it’s kind of harsh and vulgar for a woman.
Okay, I can respect your opinion. But you don’t have a problem listening to the Ying Yang Twins’ “Wait to you see my...” You don’t have a problem listening to Lil Webbie’s “Girl Gimme That.” You don’t have a problem listening to “Tip Drill” and all these other kind of records, or “Drop It Like Its Hot.”
So why do you have a problem, ‘cause it’s coming from a woman? C’mon. This is equal opportunity. I feel like the industry is one-sided right now. I’m trying to come through and cause a little controversy and hopefully change this.
There seems to be a problem with female artists sticking together, especially rappers. Is that something you’re concerned about?
Yeah I am, because our presence is already very short-lived right now in the rap industry. We come and go so quickly, and I feel we need to just start respecting what each other does. This whole catty thing is really getting old. It’s time for a lot of us to really start stepping up, coming together and making our presence known, put differences aside and start making this money. Because at the end of the day that’s what it’s about—making money, being happy, doing good music, and pleasing your fans. ‘Cause the guys know how to just collaborate and do stuff together and make money, and I feel that should be the women’s goal.
Do you anticipate any beef or controversy from other female rappers?
No, no. [Laughs] Because I’m kind of a peaceful person. When I meet people, I like to find the good in everybody. I definitely would be ready for it if it happens, but hopefully it won’t because that’s not the kind of message I’m trying to come across with. I’m trying to really come in the game and really make my presence known and felt, and be here for awhile. That’s what I’m looking at.
What happened with the first two groups that you were involved in early on, why didn’t those situations work out?
Yeah, the first one I was like 9 or 10. [Laughs] We were so young and it was just more for fun. We didn’t really know how to go about it—we were up in the studio doing a few songs—but we didn’t really have an adult person in our lives who knew anything about the music business to take us to the next level.
As we started getting older, we started getting into other things like sports and boys and all that kind of stuff so we kind of all went our own ways. And when I was like 17, I met another female and we started rapping. We did [music] for about five years, and she really started getting frustrated with the way things were going. A lot of people were turning us down, like, “Female duos don’t really work. Women won’t stay together” and all that kind of stuff. So she just kind of got tired of it and decided she didn’t want to do it anymore. I respected her decision, but I [had to] keep moving. This is me. This is what I wanna do.
What’s the influence of St. Louis on your rhymes?
That’s where I’m from. That’s where I grew up most of my life. And I definitely have the same kind of slang and everything as far as Nelly and the way we say stuff. And some of the things that I’ve learned, I definitely put it into my music, whether it be from my family or friends or just people I’ve met once or twice.
Is rapping all there is for you or can we expect more?
Oh, you can definitely expect more. Like I said, I’m a writer more than anything, so I plan on getting into writing movie scripts, books. This is definitely the tip of the iceberg for me.
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