Apple Music Radio broadcasted live in recent days from the company’s brand new studio in Los Angeles, with Cardi B hosting her own takeover.
Cardi B tells Apple Music about “Imaginary Playerz” and why she can never get a seat at Carbone ever again:
So last summer, I was big as f**k, I was pregnant with Blossom, and I’m not even gonna lie, I had a whole plan planned out: I’m gonna record all summer so that my album can be out in the beginning of the year. I was in the studio all summer, all locked in for like four days, five days in, sleeping in the studio, wearing motherfuckin’ Target clothes all day, f**king wig coming off and all that sh*t. There was just one day where I had an argument the night before, and then on that day, I was just laying on the studio couch. My engineer, Ed, it was like 1 o’ clock, and Ed’s like, ‘Come on! Look outside, get up!’ I’m just like, ‘I’m not in the mood.’ I was really, really sad. I felt sad, I’m big, I’m pregnant, I’m f**ked up, you know, I haven’t gotten my hair done in a minute. He said ‘Get up! and then he just started playing ’Imaginary Players,’ and I just started laughing and smiling. I was like, ‘This sh*t would be hot if I f**king do this song like my version, like the female version.’
“It’s so funny to me, because growing up in New York, especially having my uncle Jeffrey, he always used to play this song. He was a cute pretty boy, drug dealer boy—they deported his ass—but he went to state, he went to G Dubs, if you from the Heights you should know. This song, when I hear the beat start playing, I don’t know what it is, some music, some songs, I don’t know, it’s so weird to say—it has a feel, but it also got a smell to it. I could really smell summertime, I could really smell my grandma’s block. My mom, she didn’t used to like me hanging out on the block in the Bronx, but my grandma would let me hang out in front of her building. I remember when my uncle Jeffrey used to come around, he lent me three dollars, and he used to play this song a lot. For Ed to randomly play that song, it got me up and lifted me up. And I was like ‘Yo, it would be funny if I flipped this sh*t.’ So yes, I started working on this song last summer, on my lowest, and this song just got me up, and got me giddied up and stuff. And now when I’m doing it, I’m like, god, I’m a little f**kin’ scared, because it’s like, you never know when big artists or someone who’s a whole billionaire is even listening to your shit. But I was like, hold on: if this record is gonna be cleared, it gotta be cleared by the JAY-Z, so I just started taking my time. I was like, what’s something that’s fire, and every bitch is doing? I was looking at all the scammer bitches from Brooklyn at what the fuck they doing, I was looking at all the fly shit these bitches be doing, and I was also talking about my f**kin’ life, because you bitches—you know what I be hating? I really hate when bitches think they can relate to me. You can’t relate to me, bitch. You can’t. But anyways. I just started taking notes on seeing what’s fly and what’s not.
“The only that I really hate about this record is I’m never going to get a seat at Carbone ever again. They never gonna give me a seat, and I’m a little sad about it, but I took that risk. Because I really wanted to shit, but like, I really hate that I had to sh*t on one of my favorite restaurants, so no more rigatoni for me or branzino. So anyways. I’m very, very, very thankful that JAY-Z cleared it. I know the risk that I was gonna take, and I know the risk that it was going to be for this song to be out, because I know y’all was gonna critique it, but it’s like, y’all gonna critique anything I do.”
Cardi B tells Apple Music what summertime feels like to her
“Honest truth: What I envision in my head for summertime, it never goes for me. Last year, summertime, I wanted to go out, be with my friends, I thought my album was gonna come out, but it’s like, I didn’t finish my album, I was very depressed in the beginning of the year. So summertime never look like what I expect it to be. This year, I haven’t been able to get in the pool because I been working so hard! I can’t even dip my feet in the pool. But summertime to me is being in my house and my pool, going outside, being sluts with my friends, drinking and all that stuff. So that’s what summertime give to me: being on the block. This July 4th, I was overseas, but usually on July 4th I love going to the Bronx and sh*t, and seeing the fireworks in the Bronx, and chilling with my n***s and my bitches. That’s what summertime gives to me, but unfortunately, work is like, artist life.”
Cardi B picks songs for every mood…
Kehlani’s “Fold That”: This song right here, I picked it, it’s the type of song—you ever haven’t talked to your man for five days? The first two days of you not talking to your man, it’s like, aight, you angry. Then the third day it’s like, you kind of get it over with. And then the fourth day, you horny. Like, oh my gosh, I wanna f**k him right now. But it’s like nah, f**k him—not literally f**k him, but f**k him. That’s what you wanna do. But this song right here is from Kehlani ,“Fold That.” Fold me up, motherf**ker! Split me in fuckin’ 4, 5, 6! Put me in 7 different positions! Put me in the corner of the motherf**kin’ bed! Put me everywhere! Fold me up!”
On Summer Walker’s “Karma”: The next mood is when you want a man car to crash. You know what, sometimes, you gotta give it to God. The next song right here is when you in that mood. You could be petty. You know you got the power to be petty. You know you got the power to be a bitch. You know you got the power to get a n***a beat up. You know you got the power to break a n***a crib up. You know you got the power to expose a n***a. But you know what? Sometimes you just need to shut the fuck up and let karma deal with them.“
On Selena Gomez & benny blanco’s “Ojos Tristes”: “I grew up listening to the original song of this record [Jeanette’s 1981 single ”Ojos Tristes“]. I really, really love, she’s one of my favorite artists, the original record, so I was surprised that Selena Gomez even know this song, but she do, and she actually killed it, and she sounds so pretty. This song is, I’m pretty sure it’s from the ‘70s.”
On Lady Lava’s “Ring Finger”: “I wanna say happy birthday Lady Lava. I know she’s in New York so I just might go to her party. This song right here, I’m sure I’m outside with my girls this summer, you don’t have a ring, you don’t have a mister, if you don’t have a fuckin’ ring, you don’t have a mister. Don’t be like, “I’m not going outside, my man—” stop that shit! This is the song. She’s Lady Lava, she’s really one of my favorite artists right now. I love her. I might go see her this Sunday.”
