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Mala exudes that same confidence on the business side, as an artist very involved in all the day-to-day decisions that concern her budding brand.
“I’ve been building my brand – myself – for years. So, now that me and Nicky are partners, we want to keep my vision. That’s the whole thing, we’re definitely going with how I see my image, and she definitely respects that and loves it and wants to keep true to it.”
Along with the vision, Mala is cognizant that it takes dedication and determination to get to the top, and has become somewhat of a student of the game, trying to avoid the same mistakes and missteps that have befallen other female MCs before her.
“I’ve been watching the game for many, many years,” she explains. “I been observing what the other girls are doing. Some things I will do, some things I won’t. I just take lessons from what everybody else is doing. I feel like I’m playing it safe. I hope people see that I’m very careful with the moves I make, the way I carry myself and the way my music is out there and how I’m represented.”
She expresses frustration at an indecisive hip hop audience. “People pass judgment so quickly and they are used to the same thing. They come to expect it and then they grow tired of it. When somebody comes with some real shit, it easily gets dismissed as ‘Oh, that’s that underground shit.’ At the same time, they’ll sit there and complain ‘Oh, I’m so tired of hearing these same songs on the radio,’ but then you don’t give the other music a chance.”
This frustration is compounded by the continued lack of attention and respect female MCs receive, something Mala has reluctantly become accustomed to, explaining, “We are constantly not given the respect we deserve. Constantly getting the cold shoulder, and when they finally give somebody a chance, it’s the same damn thing we’ve been given for years that we’re already tired of. I wish it wasn’t like that. I know so many dope female MCs that really work hard and are about their business but they don’t even get the time of day.”
Mala certainly feels that she is one of them, and that the only way to crack the glass ceiling is to be fully engaged with what you do, to make the music your focus and devote all your time to it. It’s the same advice she gives to her counterparts, “Basically, what I say is if you do music on the side, it’s always gonna be on the side. If you really want to do something in life, you have to put 110% in to it. You can’t leave the music for the weekend or whenever you can fit it in, because if you treat it that way, that’s what it’s gonna be.”
She emphasizes, “You have to think about it all the time. Plan ahead. Politic with the right people and come up with a game plan.”
Aside from the difficulties that continue to plague female MCs, Mala faces a saturated marketplace and changing music business, facilitated by the ease of the internet as an outlet for many aspiring artists, making it increasingly more difficult to get noticed.
“Now that’s it’s so easy for anybody to just start rapping, everybody’s doing it,” she states. “You’re in competition with the whole world. As easy as it is to get your music out there, it’s as difficult now to stand out. You have to consistently put time and effort to make yourself special, to be different; to get people to notice you, and make them like your music. To make them want to play it more than once.” She repeats her earlier mantra, “It takes a lot of work. You have to really make it your everyday; you can’t put it on the side. Make it a priority. If it’s what you want to do, then you just have to do it.”
