”As a woman in the industry, there are so many things you're up against..."
The latest issue- VIBE Vixen writer, Adelle Platon, phoned in the ever so lovely Casandra Ventura to get the scoop for her cover story: "Breaking Bad"....
How do you stand your ground as a woman in a male-dominated industry?
”As a woman in the industry, there are so many things you’re up against. If you’re pretty, you’re too pretty. If you’re talented, you’re too talented to the point where people don’t want to listen to your music. And I’m not talking about Beyoncé, who is way up there. I’m just talking about people who are making the music that they love. It’s a confidence thing. It doesn’t matter what you bring out as long as you believe in it and back it up. That’s something that took time to learn. I would second guess myself a lot.
The first time I stepped out of the zone of standing behind somebody and being worried about giving my opinion was when I did “The Boys” video with Nicki Minaj. It was a trying experience, putting looks together with my team and being very, very involved and saying, “No, I’m not wearing that. This is not happening. This is how I want my hair and make-up.” That was the first time I really stood my ground and when everyone looked up, it was like “Girl, you really killed it.” It’s knowing what I want, being aware and sure of it. And not being phased by all the other bull that goes down...."
The first time I stepped out of the zone of standing behind somebody and being worried about giving my opinion was when I did “The Boys” video with Nicki Minaj. It was a trying experience, putting looks together with my team and being very, very involved and saying, “No, I’m not wearing that. This is not happening. This is how I want my hair and make-up.” That was the first time I really stood my ground and when everyone looked up, it was like “Girl, you really killed it.” It’s knowing what I want, being aware and sure of it. And not being phased by all the other bull that goes down...."
There’s a level of confidence that’s so evident in the way you present yourself these days. You aren’t hesitant to talk that shit on RockaByeBaby. What caused the transformation?
”Most of the things that have happened to me have been very organic. The first thing that I actually put out was the “All Gold, All Girls (Remix)” with Trina and Lola Monroe. That was where the sound kind of started. The first song I recorded for the actual mixtape was “Numb” and then I added Rick Ross to it. It was a vibe that I was creating and the story came to be from the attitude of the songs. Like you said, I was talking a lot of shit. I was really putting myself out there but I love the fact that I finally got the chance to do something with the attitude that I have. You hold back to a certain extent when everybody is saying, “This needs to go to a chart and that’s the only way it can be successful.” But no, you can be successful by making music that people love. We got over 2 million downloads on this mixtape that I never ever imagined at all....."
