Crunk is a man’s sport, even more so that traditional Hip-Hop. Fortunately, there are a few strong women that can breakup the testosterone party. Picking up trails blazed by pioneers like Gangsta Boo, Princess and Diamond represent the next generation of the genre with their Atlanta-based group Crime Mob, a group that’s got crowds crazy with "Knuck if Yo Buck." With due respect to other group members Lil Jay, Princess, Killa C, MIG, and Psycho Blak, its high time the world discover what makes these girls want to get buck so bad
AllHipHop.com: So tell me how did you get hook up in the Crime Mob, and how did you get into the Rap game?
Diamond: I was [always] into writing poetry. I had books and books. I had so many books of poetry; it was to the point where people use to steal my books, and wouldn’t give it back or whatever. But Princess and Lil’ Jay, they [supported] me. And one day, I was walking outside, and they were all inside Lil’ Jay’s house with the studio, which we were recording, “Knuck if You Buck.” And Princess was outside, and I asked her what was going on, and what were they doing she said they were rapping and I told her I was interested. So she said then, me and her will form our own group. As a family, we would be Crime Mob, but just us two, we would be Diamond and Princess.
Princess: I never thought “Knuck if You Buck” would go this far. I used to hate that song, because my brother is a perfectionist, and he would not stop until he thought the beat was right. He would wake me up at four in the morning on a school night, so that I can hear a beat. He would always play that beat to the point were I was, ‘Okay, Jon John the beat sounds the same, all your beats sound the same.’ I learned to like it.
AllHipHop.com: So how old are you if you don’t mind me asking you?
Diamond: I’m 16.
Princess: I am 17 years old.
AllHipHop.com: Okay, so you’re still in school and everything?
Princess: Yeah, I do home-school.
AllHipHop.com: How’s it been trying to juggle you rap career and school at the same time?
Princess: Last year, it slipped a little bit because we were doing shows on week days; getting home at three and getting up at six that was really tiring. Once the teachers found out I was rapping and when I would ask them for homework and assignments I missed, they would chastise me by saying, ‘You shouldn’t have been out in the streets rapping and you should have been here and I am not going to give you the homework.’ So I had to find ways around that, and now that I am in home-schooled.
Diamond: It’s been hard work; it’s kind of like two different worlds. Monday through Friday, when we here in Atlanta it basically school work, you know kind of living a regular life. And then from Friday to Sunday, we are celebrities. It’s a good thing, but it’s also something you cant just slack up on, it’s hard work you got to maintain and make sure you stay on top in your game. I feel that education should be the most important thing in case anything happen, I mean I can lose my voice, and if I’m educated, I can have something to…on do something else with my life.
AllHipHop.com: Diamond, do you have haters in school, people getting jealous and stuff?
Diamond: Oh yeah. Petty much when you do anything, and the person sees you coming to the top, you know it’s going to be that one person out of the whole bunch who is going to be jealous, but I would say its more love than hate.
AllHipHop.com: I assume, you and your mom are pretty close and what not. You’re doing a little cursing on the record, does she say anything about it?
Diamond: The way my mom sees it, outside of rapping I’m Britney, I have respect, I’ve been brought up well to know how to act in certain environment, to respect my elders, or to have respect for my self so other people can respect me. My mother looks at it as me being a performer, but outside of the performance, I’m still her baby, I’m still her daughter, and I still do what I have to do whenever she tell me to do it. She is accepting it more now, because that just my style. As long as it’s nothing degrading, I don’t dress degrading. A lot of my body, I don’t do anything that’ll make me look bad.
AllHipHop.com: Speaking of performance, you were sounding kind of hard on the record, how much of that is really you?
Princess: In a way it is a part of my personality, but I just don’t show it. It only comes out when it is provoked. I don’t start it, I won’t go up to somebody like, ‘What’s up B####?’ Well maybe, if I knew the person and [it was] in a funny way. But if somebody comes up to me, I’ll be ready to get it poppin’ with my stilettos. But I don’t start fights, I finish them. I took a couple of classes. I got trophies to show you and got stuff in my year books to show you, that I be knuckin’ and buckin’, and ready to fight.
Diamond: Basically I’m cool and kind hearted, I’ll go out my way for a person in a minute if they need anything from me, but at the same time, once you cross the line, that’s it.
AllHipHop.com: Do you feel that there is pressure to live up to the standards you brother has set?
Princess: No, not really. To me, it is no pressure because that is my brother. That is my heart, and as long as he is happy. Even if a label just wanted to sign him, I would be like, “Okay, he made it happen for all of us.’ So there is no real pressure, because either way I can still get paid, because if I wanted money he would give it to me. I told him that I am going to start making beats because like two years ago he tried to sit me down and show me how to make beats, and I just wasn’t feeling it. Now I know that is were all the money is at, all the attention. Maybe I can be like Missy, and do a beat one day. I work with the piano, but not with the drums and what they do but they teach me.
AllHipHop.com: What would you say is the hardest thing about doing this?
Diamond: One, knowing no matter what you do, what you say, how your actions are, there is always one person that looks up to you, and admires you and may want to be like you and anything you say, and they may try to do it, or at the same time it’s kind of hard ‘cause you may want to be with your family and friends. Just like me being young, I want to go to the prom, walk with my class, I wanna spend time, hang out with my friends but I can’t do that ‘cause I’m gone on the weekends. When I’m here on the week days, I have to go to school.
AllHipHop.com: I know you perform at clubs and stuff. A lot of the clubs I know that you’re not even old enough to get in. Does that bug you out a little bit?
Diamond: I’m the baby and everybody else in my family is older than me. I don’t hang around any body my age, and I feel than I’m this 18-20 year old trapped in this 16 year old, ‘cause I don’t think my age. I’m so much more mature. People get the age twisted, just because I’m 16. I know way more than what you think I know.
AllHipHop.com: Tell me about the single stilettos, what’s the deal?
Princess: It feels like a girl power song. Maybe it is the beat, I don’t know about these Crime Mob beats, but it’s crazy and too everybody love stilettos. For this single we are talking about a video for it and taking treatments and looking for a director, so hopefully it will be good.
Diamond: My girl Iyesha, originally it was her idea to do the song. She came to me and said, ‘Girl, I did a song called ‘Stilettos’, and I want you to record it with me.’ But you know, in this type of business I never had time, and she was like come on you got to do it. We decided around the time, that we were gonna put it on the album. We wrote the verse, she came up with the hook, and me, I liked the tracked a lot, so I had a lot to talk about. It’s like crazy. We knew it was a good song, but we didn’t think it was going to blow. You’ll be surprised, males and females, all they do is Stilettos, pump, in the club. And when we perform, we like all the ladies come to the front. If you got stilettos on, take them off and put them in the air. It’s crazy, I can’t wait to do the video. I would like to get some cameos in there, ‘cause you know we got to hold it down for the ladies.
