Do You Believe In Santa? Female Rapper SANTA takes You Deep Inside Her World

(SANTA DELIVERS)

Give us some background info as to who you are.

I am a female hip-hop artist from Brooklyn. I have been signed to a record label twice before owning my own record company, LienCa Music Inc., specializing in branding our artist worldwide. I have a team of experienced professionals that have worked within a number of major labels from Jive to Sony. One of which is currently at MTV and has assisted with the international marketing of major acts such as Britney Spears, R. Kelly, Justin Timberlake and Outkast to name a few.

I have been active in the music industry as an artist for the past 15 years, I was very young when I started pursuing my dream to be a great artist and have evolved drastically. I can now create songs in French and Creole, in addition to English. My live performances went from standing in one place to owning the stage and the moment.

Since I have been performing for the past 12 years, I dropped out of high school to pursue this dream. The business side of this dream has shown me just how "greasy" and "shady" this game can be. I have learned that it’s all business at the end of the day so it's up to you as the artist to educate yourself. This is why I am currently pursuing a degree in Entertainment Law. I want to bring style and class to the game, its okay to be an educated emcee.

What is the significance of your name?

They call me SANTA cause I DELIVER!

What sets you apart from other aspiring rappers?

What sets me apart is that the world is my audience, not just the U.S. My ability to create songs in a different language has enabled me to have my songs in rotation in countries such as Germany, France, Italy, Czech Republic, Canada, Africa, etc. and still keep my U.S fans intrigued. I remember being signed and the label executives telling me to create more commercial songs "like the ones on the radio". I create music from my heart; this is my form of art. That's why artists like SADE, PRINCE, JAY Z, and MICHAEL JACKSON will always be great, their music is not motivated by commercial success and money but it is motivated by the love they have in their heart for their craft. I am different because I'm doing it and will continue to do it my way. Money, social status, and fame are not my motivation. I truly love music, not just hip-hop, but music. As my success reaches its peak, I guarantee many aspiring artists will re-evaluate their direction, they will learn that they can be themselves and still be successful. After all, being you is what got people’s attention in the first place. Why change it to fit in?

What is the philosophy by which you live by?

"I THINK, THEREFORE I AM"
-Rene Descartes

Which artists have inspired you?

Only two individuals inspire me, JAY Z and OPRAH. Both came from nothing but their ability to see the bigger picture has brought them so much success.
"Don't look at me as a young girl from the ghetto that made good, look at me as a young girl who knew at a very young age she had to make good." -Oprah Winfrey

Who does your production?

I am grateful to have worked with some real legendary producers. King of Chill, who produced "Cha, Cha, Cha", "Paper Thin" and a number of other hits for MC Lyte. He produced the majority of my album. I also worked with Lou "Phat Kat" Vega, who produced "OPP" for Naughty by Nature, and number of hits for Queen Latifah, Greg Nice, etc. I can only work with people based on their energy and then talent. I created many of the songs on my album as the beats were being made, art is within and both of these producers are beyond talented, and had an important part of the birth and growth of hip-hop. Their beats are produced from the love of their craft and not created to sound like what’s currently "out". Their beats are created with a timeless feel and sound. I wanted to capture that. Fate brought us together, filling the created music with beautiful energy. I guess that's why many people tell me when they listen to my music they remember a time when hip-hop was about the love.

What is your opinion of the current state of Hip Hop?

Hip-hop is dead and has been murdered by the greed from people within the industry who see hip-hop as an opportunity to exploit artist, whether major or independent. I love hip-hop but we will never have another Biggie, Wu-Tang, Fugees, or Jay-z. Music you hear on the radio is not being played because they are good music but the labels or the artist is paying to be played instead of payola it is now called "sponsoring". Artists are now being manufactured and branded like products. I agree its all business but you can't manufacture art, you can't manufacture the next Tupac, Nas, or Michael Jackson. Music is created from within, it’s like your possessed and your soul is dancing with the beat...that feeling can't be manufactured. I apologize if I offended anyone, but realistically hip-hop is dead, my mission is to revive it through my music and the artist LienCa Music will release.

If you can change one thing about the music industry what would it be and why?

I would change the people in the industry because they are destroying what the founding fathers of hip-hop have created and turned into a billion dollar empire. It’s crazy cause they are constantly criticizing the direction of the game and the failure of the majors, but the people currently in the industry don't realize all the trouble started with them. I would change the program directors for not playing good music and destroying the future of hip-hop as our youths emulate the garbage they are hearing and I would challenge every artist to be themselves and not the person they think will be accepted.

Are there any singers that you would like to collaborate with in the future?

I would love to work with Sade, Rihanna, Prince and Jennifer Hudson.

What producer would you like to collaborate with in the future?

I would love to collaborate with Dr. Dre and Kanye West.

What is your favorite movie and favorite book?

My favorite movie is Malcom X and my favorite books are "The Secret" written by Rhonda Byrne and "The Power of Now" written by Eckhart Tolle.

What are some major misconceptions that you think people have of you?

People are often amazed when they meet me or have a conversation with me because they don't expect me to speak proper or to be so formal. As stated previously, I run a business and as a business owner it’s imperative I educate myself. People never expect me to know as much as I do. They expect me to be ghetto or speak Ebonics just cause I’m a female rapper. There’s a time and place for everything, I can be hood, but that’s not who I am.

What is your favorite part of your live show? How has it evolved?

My Favorite part of my live shows is the expressions on the audiences face when they see me do my thing. It's crazy because they don't expect a female hip-hop artist to be doing choreography and doing it right. I first started performing 12 years ago; as time went by I went from a hardcore artist to an entertainer. I created songs to perform, I have been dancing with my dancers for the past 10 years and I must admit I started out a little shaky but now I can execute choreography like nobody's business. My shows have evolved as I became more comfortable on stage and realized that where I was born to be is on stage. Nothing is equivalent to that feeling, especially when the audience loves you.

What is your LP going to be like?

No LP, I am currently working on my second album "I AM QUEEN". My debut album "The Delivery" was very successful independently. My first single "No Panties" received over 400,000 downloads worldwide, which was followed by my second single "The Art of Seduction", which received over 6-700 air plays a week for consecutive weeks and still continues to do well and is on rotation in Germany, France, Italy, Czech Republic, Australia etc. It's also on the "Top 10 Independent Artist" on Radiowave (monitors satellite and internet plays) and Live365.

What is your website?

www.SantasMusic.com

Any final words for the people.

I just want to let people know real music does exist and welcome to SANTA's Music World. Never will a female hip-hop artist be viewed the same again. Enjoy the ride.

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