Kendra Wilkinson has made it known that she loves
Hip-Hop. As a star of the popular E! network show The Girls Next Door, a contestant on MTVs Celebrity Rap Superstar and of course, one of Playboy mogul Hugh Hefners
girlfriends, Kendra is finding ways to fuse her love for Hip-Hop and fashion as
she builds her career.
Playboy has long been known for its lingerie and cute
logo apparel, however in recent years the brand has expanded into a complete
lifestyle for those who like to live like Hef, or look like a Bunny. Kendra has
her own flavor, and shes got an edgy flair when it comes to rocking the
Playboy brand in her own unique way.
We talked with the 23-year-old trendsetter about
some of her favorite pieces in the Playboy line, her own fashion aspirations
and her experience on last years Celebrity
Rap Superstar.
AllHipHop.com: With so many extensions of the
Playboy brand, what is your personal favorite whether its the clothing or some
facet of the lifestyle brand?
Kendra Wilkinson: My favorite clothing in the
Playboy catalog would probably be the workout [line]. I love the workout one,
especially the new one. Theres a couple of them that I love, but theres a
picture of me in this little Playboy jumpsuit thing on gossipgirls.com. I just
love the fabric that they use, the cut, and the style of the workout clothes
for Playboy.Photo from GossipGirls.com
AllHipHop.com: On [The Girls Next Door] you
ladies review the line, whether it be jewelry or clothing. How much input do
you get to have with the designs?
Kendra Wilkinson: I get none, but Im definitely
looking into designing my own line. I have my own style and theres a lot of
people that look at my style and want to imitate my style. I have to be picky
because I have really small hips and really muscular legs. Im actually about
to start designing my own clothing line, its gonna be for juniors and females,
its gonna be nice denim jeans and vests to go with it, cute stuff.
Im very picky with my clothes. People look at me
like Oh, shes just lazy about fashion, Im really not. I really have a good
sense of what looks good. I can look at pictures like Oh man, I shouldnt have
worn that but Im really good at figuring out what looks good on my body and
different body types. So Im definitely looking forward to coming out with my
own line.
AllHipHop.com: So the denim would have a little
more room in the leg for girls with muscles?
Kendra Wilkinson: I know Apple Bottoms make room
for a**es and everything, but sometimes girls have problems with bigger legs,
and not really a butt. So its sort of hard, because once the pants are over
the legs it kind of squishes the butt. I dont know, there needs to be some
sort of stretchiness to the denim, not a cheap stretch, but a nice cut. I hate
all of these jeans that go way too high or too low. I know exactly what looks
flattering on a girl and what girls would need. I think by me designing this,
its gonna be perfect. Itll be good on every butt and shape, Im not gonna
make them too low cut, Im gonna make them for everybody.
AllHipHop.com: From watching the show, we know you
love Hip-Hop fashion. How do you incorporate the Playboy style into your
Hip-Hop attire?
Kendra Wilkinson: I just have my own style and my
own way of walking and talking. Its not even what I do for my outfit, its
just the fact that who I am is what makes my outfit. The way I walk, talk and
my body movements is what makes it more Hip-Hop looking. I can wear anything, I
love to dress it up looking more Hip-Hop than cute, because thats my style and
what I grew up with.
I love the Hip-Hop style more than I like any sort
of girly cute stuff. Any kind of wifebeater I love matching that with [Nike] Cortez
shoes, I wear my Air Forces with them, hoodies, I love to mix and match. Say I
have a really nice Playboy wifebeater on, I love to throw a hoodie over it. I like
to throw my own style in it with the jewelry and a hat to the side. Its not
even really what I wear, its how I wear it more.
AllHipHop.com: You mentioned your jewelry. Have
you particularly made any special pieces and have any of those custom pieces
made it to the line exclusively?
Kendra Wilkinson: No I havent really made any
jewelry, thats not my department. Ill wear it but thats not really my thing.
Im an athlete so I try not to wear too much jewelry, Im always out there playing
sports and I work out everyday. Theres a really good picture of me with a gold
necklace with a pimp cup on it and a Playboy bunny on it. Now who do you think
they had in mind when they made that? [laughs]
AllHipHop.com: You mentioned that you work out
every day. How much more physically active have you had to become over the last
couple of years [to keep your shape]?
Kendra Wilkinson: Its been on and off, when I first
got here I blew up a little bit. Im not saying I was fat, but I blew up. We
get pictures every week and I started to notice I was blowing up. Thats when I
got on my workout routine and invited my trainer to come work out with me, then
when I got tired of working with my trainer then I slacked off and started
doing my own thing. I stayed in shape, didnt really go overboard with my
eating and started working out without my trainer.
I do a good job by myself, but lately I just hired
the best trainer in L.A. Jesse Bruno, hes been working the crap out of me and
people have already noticed a huge difference. Im working my way into the
fitness magazines and the fitness spotlights.
AllHipHop.com: What are the hot trends in
Playboys bikini wear right now?
Kendra Wilkinson: The metallic bathing suits are
the best. I like to stay with the simple bikinis, thats what girls need. They
dont need any fashionable looking ones because it looks disgusting after
taking the bathing suit off and having all of those stupid tan lines. It looks
ugly, its not impressing guys and its covering up way too much. All the
strings and all that stuff need to go away, keep it simple, light, normal and
make sure that they look good on your butt. The butt is the best part about the
whole bathing suit.
AllHipHop.com: Youve been on TV for a few years
under the reality TV spotlight, and youve made a few cameos here and there. Do
you see yourself actually getting into true acting gigs, and do you see
yourself getting into acting at any time?
Kendra Wilkinson: Yeah, why not? Im, a very
adventurous person, I never knew that I was gonna be here today. This was never
a dream of mine, Im the type of person that never dreams the impossible. At
the time I never dreamt it because its like why dream it if its never going
to happen? I kind of just took it day by day working my a** off for the moment
and the day and time. I never knew this Hollywood stuff existed, something I
did in my life was right and it picked me up and brought me here today.
Im a strong person, and very smart when it comes
to decision making. Im not the type of person that will just say yes to
anything. Im a very adventurous person and I wanna have fun in this industry.
It depends on what kind of role and
everything, but I would love to act. Im not saying my goal and dream is to be
an actress, but I would love to do it, it would be fun for me and I think I would
be good at it because I was on TV and I think the first step to being good at
acting is getting used to the cameras and being comfortable. Let me tell you,
Im very used to the cameras. [laughs]
AllHipHop.com: With Celebrity Rap Superstar, it was something you looked like you had a
lot of fun doing. What was the biggest lesson you learned through the show, and
what was the most fun about it overall?
Kendra Wilkinson: Celebrity Rap Superstar was probably the highlight of my life. I
love Hip-Hop, Ive grown up on Hip-Hop, I like the real Hip-Hop instead of some
of the stuff thats out today. I love Hip-Hop and to me its art. Nas says
Hip-Hops dead and I agree with him, and thats why Ive been staying away
right now. Im staying 100% away from [todays] Hip-Hop right now. Of course
Im still listening to Jay-Z, but with all of this new stuff as long as Im in
the club Ill bounce to it and everything but when they put on Gang Starr, A
Tribe Called Quest, Wu-Tang, thats when youll see me really shake my
a**.
I love Hip-Hop and being on Celebrity Rap Superstar with MC Lyte, Redman, Too Short, Kurupt,
Tone Loc, Warren G, those are people I grew up listening to. Its crazy because
I didnt believe all of those people were gonna be on there, I thought it was
gonna be someone like Soulja Boy and I was like Oh God, what am I getting
myself into? Then I found out the people that were gonna be in it and I was
like, Im not doing it unless I have Too Short, because hes like my guy I
really grew up listening to. Even though its pretty bad stuff [with the nasty
lyrics], hes the artist I grew up bobbing my head to in the car everyday of my
life going to high school and coming back from high school. Hes the number one
guy I remember as an artist. As soon as I heard he was going to be in it, I was
like, Oh my God, I have to work with him.
It was a hard decision because there were so many
people to work with. MC Lyte is the classiest, hottest woman in this world,
shes above any woman Ive ever seen in my entire life. Shes a true talent and
she definitely gave Hip-Hop a great name, working with all of them was a dream
come true. Everyday I woke up so excited to get right back on the stage with
all of them like, Oh my God, pinch me right now. Am I living a dream? Im
gonna record a song with f**king Too Short and be on stage with all of these legendary
artists. I couldnt believe my eyes, and couldnt believe where I was. It was
a dream come true to me.
AllHipHop.com: You mentioned Soulja Boy. Have you
been following this Soulja Boy vs. Ice T beef at all?
Kendra Wilkinson: Ice-T is 100 percent wrong. Even
though I dont agree that Soulja Boy is Hip-Hop. He should never say that
because whos the one thats going in the stores and going on the internet,
buying music and motivating these artists to keep going with their music? Its
us, the listeners turning on the radio and listening to this crap. Good for Soulja
Boy, good for him, I say go Soulja Boy. Hes making money and doing what he
needs to do to survive in this world, and its us the listeners who are
listening to this crap. Everybody needs to make a living, so good for him. He
probably didnt even know that this was gonna go far.
AllHipHop.com: How do you feel about the outcome
of the NBA Finals?
Kendra Wilkinson: I think Boston was the toughest
team throughout the whole season, period. As soon as they picked up Kevin Garnett
I was like, Theyre gonna go, theres no stopping that team. It was amazing
that the Lakers wet this far, how they pulled it off and everybody was excited,
but at the end of the day the Celtics were the toughest team, it was obvious
and no one could stop them.
The Lakers put up their best shot and I give them
props for making it so far, but the Celtics deserved it. They worked together
as a brotherly team. The Lakers love each other, but you can tell Boston has
that chemistry, and the friendship and brotherhood. Everybody knew from the
start that they were gonna be the ones to win it.
AllHipHop.com: For football, are you happy with
the choices that the Chargers and the Eagles made in the draft?
Kendra Wilkinson: Yeah, Im very excited with what
the Chargers did, Im really good friends with John Spanos and his family, and
Im really excited that they made good decisions adding to their defense. Were good on our defense, but we just need
some good coverage. Weve got a couple of good guards in the draft, I think its
just gonna add youth and quickness to our team and maybe get some of the holes
out there filled up.
AllHipHop.com: Is there anything else that you
want us to know about what youve got coming up?
Kendra Wilkinson: The [clothing] line is working
out, I have a great factory and design team and I think the stuff that Im gonna
come up with is really good, but I dont wanna promote it just yet. Also we have a whole new 20 episodes of The Girls Next Door coming up, even
though Im not on it as much as the last couple of seasons.Check out some more Playboy fashions at www.shopthebunny.com, and see what Kendra is up to at www.myspace.com/kendrawilkinson