Christina K.

I got a boyfriend (uh huh)
I got a man
You chicks ain’t got no man
You chick can’t get no man

What starts off sounding like a quixotic record, delivers a relevant message to young ladies who generally settle for men who run from commitment. Then again, what else would you expect from a young woman who’s strongly inspired by Salt-N-Pepa, a group who was known for empowering females and triumphantly sang “Whatta Man.” The track even samples “Push It,” and was produced, arranged, and written by Ms. Christina K.

Christina K. isn’t new to the music business. She’s already placed her beats with Jive Recording artists but now we get to hear the fresh voice of this hot personality. She’s all about making music that makes you feel good and has hopes of having the mainstream appeal of artists like Gwen Stefani and Fergie, who manage to successfully blend pop and Hip Hop. Her NYC swagger, traces of 80’s sound, and funky flair, sets Christina K. apart from a lot of females who are currently rockin’ mics, and we can’t wait to hear more.

Scheme: I want to start off with your single, “I Got a Boyfriend.” You’ve said that it’s not just a whimsical track, but it also has a message. Can you explain what that is?
Christina K: The way it came about is that a friend of mine, she had been dating this guy and she came to my house one day and she said “Me and Omar are official now.” So I started teasing her. I was like “Tiffany got a boyfriend. Tiffany got a man.” One of my other friends was at the house and she was like “That’s a song!” So then I just started working on it.

The reason why I say that it’s not just whimsical is because I remember when I was younger, like when you’re a little kid and you’re in school and you have a boyfriend you’re really excited. You’re really proud that a guy actually wants you to be his girlfriend, but it seems like as you get older people don’t really have boyfriends, especially in New York where everyone just kind of hooks up. Everyone’s just really not interested in commitment. So I think it’s a better thing to at least have a boyfriend than it is to just be a side piece or a jump-off, which a lot of people promote in the music.

Scheme: I know you’ve produced records for Jive Recordings artists. At what point and why did you decide to pursue your own dreams as a recording artist?
Christina K: I’ve always wanted to be an artist. I started really writing rhymes, and I’m not being funny, but I really started writing rhymes when I was about five or six years old. I grew up in Maryland really close to DC. At the time there was a lot of Go Go music. Most people who were really just into music were really into Go Go.

Most people weren’t really pursuing rap as a career. When I needed music I was really looking into music that was coming out of New York. I met a producer who was from Philly and I saw the musical equipment that he had and I just remembered what it was and I bought it. During that time I started teaching myself how to make beats but it was always with the sole purpose of me actually being able to produce myself. I think I may have thought that producing was easier than it actually was, so I spent a year or two really developing my sound and actually getting good at it.

Then I moved to New York. Once I started getting a chance to work in the industry, I felt that maybe I had spent so much time working on the beats and really not pushing myself as an artist that I had to be a producer- rapper first. Kind of like Kanye or Timbaland, where you establish yourself as a producer and then you come back and start rapping. But the rapping and the making music as an artist was always my first thing.

Once the whole “I Got a Boyfriend” thing came back around, I was able to jump right back in as an artist. I already knew the artist side, I already knew the business side, and I already knew the producing side. So I’m just waiting to make it happen.

Scheme: It’s funny that you mention Go Go because I can hear that in your music.
Christina K: I don’t actually intentionally put it in, but I think in the 80s, like Salt-N-Pepa had that Go Go as far as sound in their music. I grew p in Maryland and I spent all of my time with the DC/Maryland type of influence, but I think my style and my swagger was still a little more progressive and New Yorkish so to speak. Then by moving to New York and spending time there it’s like a different mix than you would get from an artist. So it’s definitely not like I’m a New York artist and it’s not like I’m a DC artist. I think I got the best elements from both.

Scheme: You mentioned Salt-N-Pepa and I feel like your style is very reminiscent of that era. What causes you to gravitate toward that style?
Christina K: That’s what made me want to rap. When you’re a little kid, you don’t really know what you want to be. You may say “Oh, I wanna be famous,” and you always pick the biggest careers. So when I heard Salt-N-Pepa and I saw them I was just like “Whatever those girls are doing, that’s what I have to do with my life.” No one really thought that it was a realistic career, so as I got older I forgot about it.

I started meeting other people when I first got to college and I hopped back into it. So I think for me, after hearing all the different sounds, I guess that’s where my heart is. I’ve been through a lot of stuff, but I’ve had a lot of happy times too. As an artist, I don’t really want to focus on all the negative things and street music. I think it’s a great thing to have an opportunity to make music so I just want to have some fun. It’s just a happy, more fun-loving sound vs. a street, rugged, more negative sound.

Scheme: Right now a lot of women in Hip Hop are extremely oversexed. Why have you chosen not to follow that formula?
Christina K: I’m just being who I am. I’ve always been fly, so I’ve always had guys interested in me without me really having to over-sex myself. I consider myself fairly attractive. A lot of times I try to downplay the attention that I get just being my regular self. So the last thing I want to do is attract more attention and it comes across in my style and my sense of dress.

Scheme: How do you think you compare to other popular females who are in the game right now?
Christina K: As far as on the Hip Hop tip, I really don’t think that I can compare myself to anyone. Maybe the closest comparison I would pick for myself, which is really huge because it’s another person I look up to, would be someone like Missy. She has feel-good music that makes you happy and she’s a producer too. That would be who I would most want to be compared to.

I’ve been compared to Kelis before. I think it’s a hair thing and a style thing, and just being progressive and different from all the other urban chicks. As far as straight rappers, that’s not really the lane that I want to be in. I think my career can expand and not just be pigeon-holed and stuck in one place. I’m going after Fergie and Gwen Stefani.

Scheme: Get ‘em!
Christina K: I’m so serious. I want that Backstreet Boy sleeping bag and lunchbox money. That’s what I’m going after. I want to make such a big impact on society and it’s steps that I’m following to make sure that I get there.

Scheme: Along with making music, you do volunteer work. Can you tell us a little about that?
Christina K: A really big thing that I want to do is really brand myself and become a celebrity, but not just for my own selfish reasons so I can say “Oh, I’m famous.” Of course I felt that way when I was little, but I realized that it was never going to happen if I wasn’t moving for something that was bigger than me and bigger than money, but something that was going to be able to help people.

I pretty much spend most of the week in New York and then I come to back to visit my mom in Maryland during the weekend. There’s a company out there that I found called “Feed Your Friends,” and what they do is prepare meals for people who have AIDS, HIV, Cancer, and other people who are sick and can’t prepare meals for themselves. I go in once every two weeks. I’m in the kitchen packaging the meals, cutting stuff, putting the bread in the tray so they can bake it. It makes me feel good.

Scheme: That’s admirable. Well I definitely want to touch on your unique fashion style. What advice would you give to the not-so style inclined?
Christina K: It’s just a matter of expressing yourself through clothes. I think I feel so good inside that it just radiates out in whatever I wear. So I don’t really think it’s my clothes so much. I think it’s me. I really think it starts with you feeling good about yourself.

Scheme: When can we expect the debut album?
Christina K: I’m looking to get that album out in the third quarter (of this year). I just got MTV to license my music, which will actually add to a lot of promotion.

Scheme: we’ll definitely be looking out for that album. Thank you so much for the interview.
Christina K: Thank you for having me.

Be sure to check out Christina K. on Myspace: www.myspace.com/christinakmusic