Saweetie

Saweetie’s rise is nothing short of meteoric. In the past two years, she’s proven herself a veritable powerhouse--with two platinum hits under her belt--of catchy melodies and dynamic rhymes. Effortlessly glamorous yet approachable, it’s no surprise that the hottest fashion and beauty brands are lining up to work with her. “I always felt like I'd become the person who I am today,” she says, “which is a young mogul.” With that propelling her, she’s ready for even bigger things to come.  

Born Diamonté Harper to an African-American father and Chinese-Filipino mother, the rapper grew up in the veritable melting pot of the Bay Area and Sacramento. “I feel it’s really important to embrace your roots. I appreciate my upbringing.” She loved artists like Lil Kim, Foxy Brown and Lauryn Hill, and like the latter, realized her dexterity in being able to rap and sing. At 14, she began rhyming over YouTube beats. “I felt like I needed to express myself. Rapping allows me to paint a picture. That’s what I ultimately want to do.” Education was integral in facilitating that. She graduated--a rarity in rap--from the University of Southern California and majored in communications and business. “I want to let girls that look like me know that college is important because there's a lot of things that I wouldn't have learned in corporate America or in the street. College is great to better yourself as a human being.”  

She recorded the breakthrough “ICY GRL” in 2018, which garnered over 109 million streams on Spotify and 97 million views on YouTube. The platinum smash led to a deal with Warner Records. Her major-label debut EP, High Maintenance, followed, along with 2019’s platinum hit, “My Type.” A commercial and critical darling, she was dubbed “one to watch” by the Los Angeles Times. 

With all eyes on her, Saweetie is ready for her most personal project, Pretty Bitch Music. “You really understand who I am as a person,” she says. She was incredibly hands-on, sketching out the project’s themes, co-producing tracks, and planning the aesthetics. “I feel like my records are fun, but there’s always an underlying message that makes my fans want to boss up, and to be fabulous while they’re doing it.” That diversity is heard on the first single, “Tap In.” “I feel like my records have become summer anthems.” On “Pretty Bitch Music,” she encourages women to flip the derogatory term into an acronym of empowerment: B(oss) I(ndependent) T(ough) C(EO) H(yphy). “I want my fans to be unapologetically themselves and to be independent. When people listen to my music they feel like a bad bitch.” 

Saweetie is creating her own #girlboss brand with a slew of business ventures. She launched the best-selling ICY jewelry and fashion line and has partnered with brands like Reebok, PrettyLittleThing (launching a second collection this spring), and Morphe. “One day, I can see myself having my own company. The end goal is definitely to have my own products that are solely from my brand.” She’s already diving into acting roles and philanthropic ventures. A multi-hyphenate in the making, she wants it all. “There’s no limit to what I can do.” Sky’s the limit.