Coi Leray on Love, Motherhood & Being “Really Her”

Coi Leray keeps it all the way real with Keke in a conversation about knowing you’re “really her,” even before others recognize it. From growing up between luxury and struggle to the viral hits that shaped her hustle, Coi talks about how becoming a mom changed her purpose and shares the advice Cardi B gave her about pregnancy, her take on female rap beefs, how her relationship surprised her, and her latest track, “Better Than Yours.” See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:00Keke Palmer?

  My next guest is a Grammy nominated rapper whose record players climbed the Billboard charts and took over TikTok. She's hit the biggest stage, she's gone viral, and she's earned cosigns from Busta Rhymes, Beyonce, Cardi B, and more. But what I respect most about Kyla Rae is how she's grown in real time. From being open about mental health to stepping into motherhood, and now entering a bold new era of music. She keeps evolving. And that's what this space is about. Evolution, honesty, becoming. So we're about to get into all of that and more. Because, baby, this is Kiki Bomber.

• 1:05Keke Palmer?

  Please welcome Kyla Rae.

• 1:10Speaker 01

  Hey, girl. You look so cute. Hi. Hey. Oh, my God. You are beautiful. Oh, right back at you. Right back at you, girl. Last time I seen you, we was together on New Year's. New Year's, living our best life. Girl, living too. Girl, after that, I fell right asleep in the car. I was so mad.

• 1:27Keke Palmer?

  Girl, I'm so happy to have you on the show because this is supposed to be happening in 2025. But obviously, you were pregnant. A lot of things was going on. You look so good.

• 1:34Speaker 01

  Thank you.

• 1:35Keke Palmer?

  Mommy to me, Yoko. And she's here.

• 1:37Speaker 01

  She's here.

• 1:37Keke Palmer?

  That's crazy. I get to meet her?

• 1:39Speaker 01

  Yes. Have her say hi to you guys.

• 1:41Keke Palmer?

  I'm so excited. She's so freaking cute.

• 1:43Speaker 01

  Thank you.

• 1:43Keke Palmer?

  Okay, but let's get into these pre-show pull-up questions to get into your mind a little bit. So you're a Taurus.

• 1:49Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 1:49Keke Palmer?

  But you don't know your sun, moon, and rising.

• 1:51Speaker 01

  I don't, and I'm ashamed of one of them that I think that I am.

• 1:56Keke Palmer?

  What is it, do you think?

• 1:57Speaker 01

  A Cancer.

• 1:58Keke Palmer?

  You don't like Cancer energy?

• 1:59Speaker 01

  Oh, my God.

• 2:00Keke Palmer?

  You do give Cancer, because it's very lover girl. Cancers are very lover girl.

• 2:04Speaker 01

  Are so emotional.

• 2:07Keke Palmer?

  I'm a cancer rising.

• 2:09Speaker 01

  I'm, cancer is one of those. My rising moon, it's one of them, but I know for sure it's in there.

• 2:13Keke Palmer?

  Do you feel very Taurus? You give Taurus to me as well.

• 2:16Speaker 01

  I feel like the biggest Taurus in the world.

• 2:18Keke Palmer?

  Tauruses are always somewhere looking cute.

• 2:20Speaker 01

  And we're the best. Like, we really are. Like, everybody says, like, I love a Taurus.

• 2:25Keke Palmer?

  Stop, because what do they do wrong, though, honestly? They're really, they really are one of the signs that you don't have too much crazy to say, except for they say y'all stubborn.

• 2:32Speaker 01

  We're stubborn, but we keep it real.

• 2:33Keke Palmer?

  Yeah, yeah.

• 2:34Speaker 01

  We keep.

• 2:34Keke Palmer?

  So you do feel stubborn a little bit?

• 2:35Speaker 01

  I'm very stubborn, for sure.

• 2:37Keke Palmer?

  Okay, what are you most grateful for today? Waking up in nice weather. Girl, the weather has been crazy, though, for a while, though.

• 2:43Speaker 01

  Yeah, because, you know, I moved back to Jersey, so to be out here in LA during this crazy winter storm.

• 2:49Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 2:49Speaker 01

  I'm like, thank God.

• 2:50Keke Palmer?

  So you still live in Jersey? Yeah. Oh, my gosh. You never thought about moving to New York or LA?

• 2:55Speaker 01

  I lived out here for four years, but I moved back when I had got pregnant.

• 2:59Keke Palmer?

  Yeah, yeah.

• 2:59Speaker 01

  To be closer to my mom. I had bought a house, like, five minutes.

• 3:02Keke Palmer?

  Congrats on that.

• 3:03Speaker 01

  Thank you.

• 3:03Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 3:04Speaker 01

  And, um, but I've been out here working on new music and getting ready for the new year, so.

• 3:10Keke Palmer?

  And you're feeling good in LA. It feels good to be back as a mom.

• 3:13Speaker 01

  Sunlight, got a pool in jacuzzi, I can go swimming any day. I love it here.

• 3:17Keke Palmer?

  I love that. Okay, and then a relationship or friendship non-negotiable for you? I forgive, I don't forget. So, once somebody crosses you, they're done? Is that what you mean by that?

• 3:28Speaker 01

  No, like, I, I could forgive you.

• 3:30Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 3:30Speaker 01

  Like, honestly, you really gotta do some crazy, crazy, crazy, crazy, crazy, snaky stuff to me to make me hate you. But I don't have no hate in my heart. I, I could forgive you and not deal with you at the same time.

• 3:42Keke Palmer?

  How does that go in your friendship sometimes? Do you feel like people really push you to the edge because they know you're so forgiving? Because I feel like that happens to me.

• 3:47Speaker 01

  Yeah, they take my kindness for weakness, but it's all good because you could be forgiven and never hear from me again.

• 3:55Speaker 01

  So, it's all good.

• 3:56Keke Palmer?

  Yeah. Um, what's a question you wished you were asked more in interviews? My nationality.

• 4:00Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 4:01Keke Palmer?

  But I know you're Puerto Rican, black, Cape Verdean.

• 4:03Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 4:03Keke Palmer?

  Yes, and I feel like you do share that.

• 4:05Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 4:06Keke Palmer?

  Yeah, you do share that every now and then. If people would get a look in.

• 4:08Speaker 01

  I feel like, yes, like, the ones that know, know, but I feel like that is the main question that nobody asks.

• 4:14Keke Palmer?

  How do you feel like you relate to all three of those?

• 4:17Speaker 01

  Well, I'm definitely got my Puerto Rican side because I love Spanish food, number one. My grandpa is. You know, he speaks Spanish.

• 4:24Keke Palmer?

  Do you speak a little?

• 4:25Speaker 01

  I don't, but I feel like, uh, pede el albanio, por favor.

• 4:29Keke Palmer?

  Come on, Rosie Perez.

• 4:29Speaker 01

  I learned that in school.

• 4:32Speaker 01

  That's the only thing that stuck with me is Spanish. But you know what's so cool? My nanny is actually Spanish and she teaches me Yoko Spanish. So she, um, she goes, "Bravo." I don't know if "bravo" is really a Spanish word, but I know she goes, "Bravo." And then Yoko claps to "bravo." She'd be like, "Besito." I'm like, "Oh, my gosh."

• 4:51Keke Palmer?

  Oh, my gosh, "besito," that's kiss. I think, "Yes, besito," so cute. Um, who is someone you met that made you feel starstruck? I'm actually surprised by this. LeBron James, you, are you a basketball fan?

• 5:03Speaker 01

  I feel like not, I'm a big sports fan. My mom is big on sports.

• 5:08Keke Palmer?

  Okay.

• 5:08Speaker 01

  Especially football. Big Patriots, from Boston. Tom Brady, ain't things been the same since Tom Brady left, but

• 5:15Speaker 01

  I will say I'm forever Patriots Nation forever, Celtics Nation forever. However, LeBron has something about him that not only as a, like, um, not only as a basketball star and an athlete, he's a great father, he's a great, just a friend.

• 5:30Keke Palmer?

  Great brand and representation.

• 5:31Speaker 01

  Yeah, like, like you.

• 5:33Keke Palmer?

  Girl, stop!

• 5:34Speaker 01

  No, like, real [BLEEP]. Like, literally, like, literally. The jack of all trades, like, just can't do no wrong in my eyes at all.

• 5:40Keke Palmer?

  Oh, my gosh, so when you met LeBron, where, where were you guys at? You were at the game. First of all, you look, oh, my gosh, real quick, quick. You looked so cute at the game.

• 5:48Speaker 01

  Thank you.

• 5:48Keke Palmer?

  I don't know which game this was, but you had, you know, because a lot of times people overdo it at the games. But you, like, actually looked like you was going to a game, but it was still sun.

• 5:55Speaker 01

  It was Celtics versus Lakers. I was so happy to be there.

• 5:57Keke Palmer?

  It was like a casual cute look, but you was still cute.

• 5:59Speaker 01

  A little Chanel sweater, a little Chanel sweats. I like, it's so crazy because everybody be like, "Koi." I'm stuck between, "Koi, put some clothes on," and "Koi, you have on too much." No, it's never too much clothes, but everybody tells me that I need to wear clothes.

• 6:12Keke Palmer?

  Well, it goes back to them early days, which I first, when I first met you in the pre-preed, we talking about the hoodie era, era. We all loved that, Koi, because it reminded us of Left Eye. You know what I mean? It was like, the industry had never been seen, like, it was, everything was so crazy, always sexualized, blah, blah, blah. So, like, when you came on the scene, everybody's always thinking about that. Because we were like, "Koi, with them braids, she came through."

• 6:33Speaker 01

  I had a million girlfriends that I didn't even know I had at that time. Hey, ladies.

• 6:39Keke Palmer?

  We'll get into that, we'll get into that. Okay, the last question was, what's a mantra you live by and why? I'm really her.

• 6:45Speaker 01

  Really her.

• 6:46Keke Palmer?

  I feel like I've heard you say this too.

• 6:48Speaker 01

  I, I, it's so crazy because when I was writing that, I said, yo, I just tweeted this morning. I woke up and really had to remind myself, I'm that girl.

• 6:56Keke Palmer?

  Yeah, yeah.

• 6:56Speaker 01

  Like, you know, obviously I start my day off with prayer, mandatory, but

• 6:59Keke Palmer?

  Amen.

• 7:00Speaker 01

  I need that reminder, especially as a new mom. You know, coming, you know, in this industry, um, wanting to drop new music and beat your last.

• 7:09Keke Palmer?

  What makes you feel like that I'm really her? Like, what is that? Like, how does that, what are those things that make you know that?

• 7:15Speaker 01

  Because as much as I go through, I can't be broken. And I'm really her. Like, I feel like I'm just a shield, like a badass shield with some Louboutins. Like, just imagine me as just a shield with Louboutins.

• 7:29Keke Palmer?

  Yeah. You do feel like, you do feel like tough, but also still sweet at the same time.

• 7:35Speaker 01

  Yeah, for sure.

• 7:35Keke Palmer?

  Let's take it back to Boston, where you're from.

• 7:37Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 7:38Keke Palmer?

  So you're born in Boston, Massachusetts, but you grew up in Hackensack?

• 7:41Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 7:42Keke Palmer?

  Okay, so, let's just, tell me about little Koi growing up, how you fell in love with music, what was life like back for you growing up?

• 7:49Speaker 01

  So I feel like I called myself Hannah Montana.

• 7:52Keke Palmer?

  Okay, you was putting on wigs?

• 7:53Speaker 01

  No, I

• 7:56Speaker 01

  No, but I felt like I lived the best of both worlds.

• 7:59Keke Palmer?

  Yes! Come on, best of both worlds.

• 8:02Speaker 01

  I lived the best of both worlds. I got to experience a side at one time where it was just a luxury, nice swimming pools and jacuzzis. And then, I also got to experience the side of what it really feels like to struggle.

• 8:14Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 8:15Speaker 01

  And be starving. Um, and I think both of those made me who I am and molded to be that her that I talk about, you know?

• 8:23Keke Palmer?

  What were some of your favorite artists growing up that you watched and helped shape your sound, you would say?

• 8:27Speaker 01

  Oh my god, girl. It's so crazy because I feel like I grew up in an era of Kidz Bop, right? There was a time where like, like, and don't get it twisted. I love all genres in music, but it was just this time where there was no genre. Like Kidz Bop had Lil Wayne.

• 8:45Keke Palmer?

  Yes.

• 8:46Speaker 01

  Black Eyed Peas.

• 8:47Keke Palmer?

  Oh my gosh, I live for the Black Eyed Peas.

• 8:49Speaker 01

  Like all on one project, I felt like, so. Avril Lavigne, and I was a big like cartoon fan, so whatever celebrities and.

• 8:59Keke Palmer?

  But I honestly feel like I can see that in you as an artist, that you really will hop into a character type vibe. That was one of the things that drew me to you when I first hit you up to be on my song Sticky.

• 9:09Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 9:09Keke Palmer?

  I was like, I love everything you're bringing because you gave me character and then you were hip hop. But it's, I still got that alternative vibe from you, where she was a little punk rock with it. When you, when it came to your music, and I do think this is something that everybody loves about you, you play with a lot of fusion.

• 9:22Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 9:23Keke Palmer?

  How do you go into that when you're, you know, figuring out doing a song or coming up with something?

• 9:27Speaker 01

  Well, it all depends. Um, like recently I was just in the studio and I'm like, I want to pop my.

• 9:35Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 9:35Speaker 01

  Summer's coming. I want to be in the clubs and still have that booty shaking, bop vibe. Throw me in the, you know what I'm saying? Algorithm with the pop that playlist. But I could be going through some real life stuff and then I want to kind of just vent. So the beat changes, the vibes change. Just the other day, I was in the studio with Mr. Hudson, shout out Ben, and um, he has this guitar, he pulling up guitar.

• 10:01Keke Palmer?

  Yep.

• 10:02Speaker 01

  And we started rocking out.

• 10:03Keke Palmer?

  Yes. I love that.

• 10:05Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 10:06Keke Palmer?

  I love the rock.

• 10:06Speaker 01

  I'm like, let me just try. I don't even know if people like.

• 10:10Keke Palmer?

  You had to come with that.

• 10:18Keke Palmer?

  I live for the E-girl movement and I think we need that fusion when we think about hip hop. Like when you were coming onto the scene, one of the things you got most viral initially was, would you say Huddy?

• 10:27Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 10:29Keke Palmer?

  I mean, what did you say coming in, what type of artist you wanted to be? What did you want to bring to the game?

• 10:33Speaker 01

  I came in raw, I came in gritty, I came in not following rules, doing what I want. And I think that's what kind of got me here today. I remember Huddy wasn't even like on the billboard charts, wasn't making a lot of noise. It was in Jersey, I would say.

• 10:49Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 10:50Speaker 01

  And Huddy's what got my deal. That's what, you know, Monty and Avery, that's when they saw the potential from Huddy. And I kind of just took that raw and grittiness, just being this tomboy from Jersey, wanting to pop my wanted the guys to be able to sing my lyrics feel comfortably. Yeah, and then I started just, as I stayed in the studio, I just always created, created, created, created. But what stuck was the turn vibes.

• 11:16Keke Palmer?

  Yeah, yeah.

• 11:17Speaker 01

  And like if I would post a snippet, because I would leak all my songs, all my hit records, I would say, all my billboard records is because when I leaked it, they like blew up, right?

• 11:25Keke Palmer?

  And what you mean by leaked it?

• 11:26Speaker 01

  Like I'll put a snippet online and then the traction that the snippets started getting, it would tell me like, okay, let's go, let's, we gotta go, we gotta drop.

• 11:35Keke Palmer?

  We love a little piloting.

• 11:36Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 11:37Keke Palmer?

  And you're the only girl in a family of six?

• 11:40Speaker 01

  I have, okay, so I have five brothers in total.

• 11:43Keke Palmer?

  Okay.

• 11:44Speaker 01

  All four, me and my four brothers grew up in a household together.

• 11:47Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 11:48Speaker 01

  Until we did it. Uh, my mom has, it's so confusing because it's like, I hate saying half brothers because they're still like my brothers today. But I got three on my mom's side, two on my dad's side.

• 12:00Keke Palmer?

  But you grew up with the four?

• 12:01Speaker 01

  We grew up, yeah.

• 12:02Keke Palmer?

  And one of them was in the Huddy video, right?

• 12:05Speaker 01

  Was one of your brothers in there? Was one of them in Huddy? I don't think so.

• 12:09Keke Palmer?

  I could be wrong, but I'm wondering how just growing up, being like the girl with a whole bunch of boys, how that impacted just your vibe, your swag, and how you wanted to be seen?

• 12:18Speaker 01

  I always felt like I was unstoppable, untouchable. I felt like I was the most toughest, biggest, fifi phone person. And I was this small, little skinny little thing and I just felt like, you know, I was the biggest thing in the world with them.

• 12:30Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 12:31Speaker 01

  Boys are rough, we always played fight. Um, I grew up off tough love, so all that girly stuff, nails and hair and

• 12:39Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 12:39Speaker 01

  makeup, I didn't have, well, it wasn't into, um, until I got older. And then, you know, me and my mom were like always besties. So out of the boys, it was just me and my mom. And I'm like, you know what, mom?

• 12:50Keke Palmer?

  Yeah, I grew up with nine uncles and I remember they had me climbing the walls.

• 12:53Speaker 01

  Nine uncles?

• 12:54Keke Palmer?

  Nine uncles, girl. So I was, I felt the same vibe. And then I got into the real world, I'm like, "Y'all not gonna go up for me?"

• 13:00Speaker 01

  Right.

• 13:00Keke Palmer?

  Like, the men in my family, they go up for me. Why y'all not going up for me? Girl, I was gagged, like, what? But you said that after your parents split up, things got really difficult, just, you know, I guess money discrepancy, or just how it was living. Like, how was, how old were you? And how did that like affect your life all around?

• 13:18Speaker 01

  So I was about nine, 10 years old when things took a turn. My mom and dad were together for about like 10 years and then they broke up. I only remember so much from my childhood, from like first grade to, well, from since first grade, I would say. And it's so funny because being in the industry, a lot of people think I have like this silver spoon and all this other stuff. And I know so much about, you know, my dad and what he's done, but in reality, I've learned more than I've ever known while being in the industry for the past six years.

• 13:50Keke Palmer?

  And I saw a totally different time.

• 13:51Speaker 01

  It's a totally different time. But I say that to say, I don't know how he got it.

• 13:55Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 13:55Speaker 01

  And I don't know how he lost it.

• 13:57Keke Palmer?

  Right, right.

• 13:57Speaker 01

  Um, me and him weren't close enough to have those conversations, I would say, to try to understand, like, okay, where, how did you start this massive, you know, um, unbelievable, incredible moment in hip hop?

• 14:10Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 14:11Speaker 01

  And then how did you lose it? I feel like now that I'm older, we will be able to have a sit down one day and have that conversation.

• 14:19Keke Palmer?

  I mean, when you entered and you started getting into the game, was how much of it was he a part of? Did he, did he know, or he saw, he just, I don't, I only know from the outside looking in.

• 14:27Speaker 01

  I'm the same, I'm the outside looking in. And honestly, you know, being the only girl and my dad always having to work, we didn't have the best relationship, so we didn't, we couldn't have those conversations, but I will say, when everything was gone though, we had to figure it out. And I'm, I'm so grateful for those times because it molded me to this hustler. Like, one thing about me, and I don't know if it's a tourist thing. But I do feel like I am a natural born hustler.

• 14:52Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 14:53Speaker 01

  And I'm gonna make nothing out of something. I'm gonna get it by any means. I might complain a little bit, but I'm going to go ahead and complain while I'm doing it at the same time. Because everybody's gonna do a little complaining.

• 15:05Keke Palmer?

  Yeah, I mean, it's natural. It's only natural. It helps to let off steam.

• 15:08Speaker 01

  Right.

• 15:08Keke Palmer?

  You even worked a couple nine to five jobs.

• 15:10Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 15:10Keke Palmer?

  So what was like one of your craziest jobs and one of your most fun jobs?

• 15:14Speaker 01

  Um, my most fun job was working at this like kids' party place. People would book parties like for their kids. And we would have to be like, bring out the glow guns and bring out the pizza, bring out the cotton candy. I don't know. It was a fun environment. Kids running around, hitting their head. It was just a bunch of things that you just had to be attentive to. The worst job, I would say, which I wouldn't say is worst. Because any, if you're getting money, I don't knock no hustle. I'm gonna be honest. You can go pop that **** you for a real **** change and I ain't gonna judge you. But I will say.

• 15:50Keke Palmer?

  That's a hard job.

• 15:53Speaker 01

  But I will say, um, working at the supermarket, it was very repetitive and as a cashier.

• 15:58Keke Palmer?

  You was bored.

• 15:59Speaker 01

  I was bored. I was actually like, I wanted everybody to come to my line. Because I knew the faster, and the more I didn't watch time, like.

• 16:07Keke Palmer?

  Like Dyna Dash up in the mother.

• 16:08Speaker 01

  Yeah, literally.

• 16:11Keke Palmer?

  Ready? Next customer.

• 16:12Speaker 01

  Literally.

• 16:12Keke Palmer?

  Um, when Huddy started to pick up and you decided to leave school, you later called that time like humbling.

• 16:18Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 16:19Keke Palmer?

  So like, what did that season teach you and what made you want to go back in 2021 to finish?

• 16:23Speaker 01

  Right. Well, I dropped out of high school in, I would say, the beginning or towards the mid 10th grade. And I dropped out because an eviction notice came on that door.

• 16:35Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 16:36Speaker 01

  And, um, I had to choose between work and school. The job that I actually landed that was paying me really good was in sales. And it was from nine to seven and school was obviously from eight to three, so I couldn't do both.

• 16:48Keke Palmer?

  Working in sales at 17?

• 16:50Speaker 01

  16.

• 16:50Keke Palmer?

  16.

• 16:51Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 16:51Keke Palmer?

  Interesting.

• 16:52Speaker 01

  I was there like, hello, this is Koi Collins. Am I speaking with John, the owner of ABC Trucking?

• 16:57Keke Palmer?

  Wow.

• 16:58Speaker 01

  I'd be like, your business listing is outdated. What time do you open?

• 17:00Keke Palmer?

  He'd be like, I open at 5 o'clock. Oh, well, how are your customers supposed to know?

• 17:06Speaker 01

  I used to be running it up, girl.

• 17:09Keke Palmer?

  That's crazy.

• 17:09Speaker 01

  Cold calling boots, boop, boop, boop, boop, hello? My money, okay?

• 17:15Keke Palmer?

  Yeah. What made you want to go back in 2021?

• 17:18Speaker 01

  Well, I actually, between us, well, between everybody that's watching this in the world, I dropped out and then I started working and then I obviously just kept working because I wanted my own. I ended up moving out early, getting my own car and everything. This is before I started doing music. But it got to a point where, um, when I, I didn't want to drop out, first of all. I wanted to go to college. I always felt like I could be like some physical therapist or something. I didn't have any long-term goals as a kid.

• 17:50Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 17:50Speaker 01

  But I knew I wanted to graduate. In my mind and during those times, everybody that went to college was successful.

• 17:55Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 17:56Speaker 01

  But I never went and got my G D, nor have I graduated still. And I went to go try to take my G D and it was really hard.

• 18:04Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 18:04Speaker 01

  I opened the book and it was like trigonometry, the first book. Was it trigonometry? Yo, bro, I didn't even learn that in ninth grade. I said, I opened the first page, I seen trigonometry and I said, oh, yeah. Meanwhile, it was a class full of people.

• 18:20Keke Palmer?

  Yeah, it's a lot. I've thought about going back to school, so I didn't really, it was the same thing for me. I was a child entertainer, my family was supporting them with my jobs. It got to a point where it's like, okay, am I going to keep working? I'm going to go to school. And I was like, well, I don't want us to have to like go all the way backwards, so I'm going to keep working. So I tested out of high school. I don't even know what I got, really. Like, I don't know what you call it. It was just like a test out, kind of like an emancipation kind of thing. You know, and I've thought about going back to college or going just to get more education and, you know, but it's, it's totally different, you know?

• 18:50Speaker 01

  It's so different now. I feel like these days you really have to, and because I dropped out and I didn't have a diploma, I always felt like I had to keep myself in books.

• 18:59Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 19:00Speaker 01

  But one thing I will regret not graduating high school and I recommend everybody to just finish high school. If you look back at it, it's so quick. Like,

• 19:09Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 19:09Speaker 01

  You're in no rush to just be grown. Like literally have the best teenage years of your life because when reality hits, girl, it hits. And um,

• 19:17Keke Palmer?

  That makes me think about like Ferris Bueller's Day Off. You ever seen that movie?

• 19:20Speaker 01

  No.

• 19:20Keke Palmer?

  It's like this old John Hughes movie, but the whole movie is really about kind of what you just said. Like, I think when you look at like high school or even college, aside from like learning and getting an education, which is great, like you get to like [BLEEP] up. I think with us or people like us, like a lot of people have had to grow up fast. Like we, we couldn't really mess up.

• 19:37Speaker 01

  Right.

• 19:37Keke Palmer?

  Like we could,

• 19:38Speaker 01

  Right.

• 19:38Keke Palmer?

  but it might cost

• 19:39Speaker 01

  Uh, yeah.

• 19:40Keke Palmer?

  people's stuff.

• 19:41Speaker 01

  And I feel like in, in school, you get to learn communication skills. You get to learn vocabulary, something that I still till this day struggle with is my vocab. Being an amazing songwriter.

• 19:55Keke Palmer?

  Right.

• 19:56Speaker 01

  And I love writing songs. I love, you know, I'm not, but.

• 20:01Keke Palmer?

  But you're just talking about words. I mean, just words, you know?

• 20:04Speaker 01

  You'll hear me a lot ask on a regular day, like, what does that word mean? Like, somebody could just be having a full blown conversation. I would have to stop them and be like, wait, what does that mean?

• 20:12Keke Palmer?

  We about to pull out that Scrabble. Words with friends.

• 20:14Speaker 01

  Literally. I play that. I play that. That's another good one.

• 20:18Keke Palmer?

  It's a good little game.

• 20:19Speaker 01

  Yeah, I'm like on level one eighty.

• 20:20Keke Palmer?

  You got your first RIAA certified platinum hit. Okay, and first Billboard entry was No More Parties featuring Lil Dirk.

• 20:28Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 20:28Keke Palmer?

  What does that record mean to you and Lil Dirk?

• 20:31Speaker 01

  Free Dirk, free Dirk, man. Um, No More Parties was one of the most craziest times of my life. It was where I felt like, yo, you have to, you're either gonna do it or you're not. You're either gonna be big and successful and people are gonna stream your music or you're not. It's, you have one option here. It's either you're gonna do this music thing or go do something else. And um, I had to tell myself like, yo, I gotta put the pain in the music. I can't run and hide. You know, I always wanted to protect other people and be cognizant of what I say in my songs. But then I was like, you know what, I'm gonna be very vulnerable. So if you listen to No More Parties,

• 21:10Speaker 01

  I explained my life story and, um, you know, actually became one of my biggest breakout records, hitting that Hot 100 on Billboard. I was so excited and it, it, it created TikTok, you know, shout out No More Parties. No More Parties built the platform for all the young, talented artists out there that could showcase themselves and their music. Yeah.

• 21:36Keke Palmer?

  Come on, come on. She said I'm a pioneer.

• 21:38Speaker 01

  Yeah, shout out TikTok for helping, you know what I'm saying? We did this together.

• 21:43Keke Palmer?

  What does success look like for you? Like, is it, I just wanna make sure I'm touring? Is it, hey, I want my streaming numbers to go crazy? Is it, you know, what does it, what is, how do you define it?

• 21:53Speaker 01

  There was at some point where I felt like I wanted to be the biggest artist in the world. I wanted to be like Mount Rushmore, you know, faces. But I felt like over time, it's so real. This industry will reveal itself over time and you kinda start, start looking at things and people a little different. And, um, I started realizing now, like, I, of course, I wanna be a global superstar. I think everybody wants to be a global superstar, right? But I'm okay with knowing that I can sell out my own tour.

• 22:26Keke Palmer?

  Right.

• 22:27Speaker 01

  I'm okay with knowing who my fans are, who's gonna come to the pop ups. It's kinda like, uh, a big inspiration would be like, uh, NBA Youngboy or Playboy Cardi.

• 22:37Keke Palmer?

  Yes.

• 22:38Speaker 01

  Right? Like, they're

• 22:39Keke Palmer?

  For sure.

• 22:39Speaker 01

  Two massive artists who can sit there and sell out arenas, sell out, sell tickets, sell merch, diehard fans. You see, Youngboy had like the, it was like Michael Jackson at the time where everybody was in the streets chasing him and he's just like police escorted everywhere. And, um, you know, you don't, you might, but however, you won't see him at the Met Gallages, you won't see him at the red carpets and stuff. And I think that's okay, you know?

• 23:03Keke Palmer?

  Yes, I feel the same way.

• 23:04Speaker 01

  I think that is perfectly fine.

• 23:05Keke Palmer?

  I think a lot of times we confuse visibility with success.

• 23:08Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 23:08Keke Palmer?

  Like, to me, success is like being able to do what I love, make my money off of it, go on a couple of vacations if I want, you know what I'm saying? I ain't a slave to it, but have a little bit of freedom and just, yeah, being able to just stay diverse. Like, I'm always diversifying.

• 23:20Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 23:21Keke Palmer?

  Are there other things outside of music that interest you? Like, would you see yourself acting? Would you see yourself?

• 23:27Speaker 01

  I see myself acting. I could tap into the acting world, but And I've done a little acting in my teenage days. I've got a taste of it. The only thing is in, tell me if I'm wrong. Those call times? The 6 a.m., the 6 a.m.? Tiki, how do you do that?

• 23:46Keke Palmer?

  Girl, you just, you just do it. You be like, I gotta do this, it's my job. You know what I mean?

• 23:50Speaker 01

  I get this money.

• 23:51Keke Palmer?

  Like when you was doing the sales.

• 23:52Speaker 01

  Right.

• 23:53Keke Palmer?

  It's like, I gotta just do it, you know? And then by the time you get out of here and makeup and everything, you done woke up. You know, you ready. But it's like, you like it, you know what I mean? It's what you would wanna do, so that's what pushes you to do it.

• 24:03Speaker 01

  Speaking of acting, I'm sorry, but I see you on this billboard all over California. It is sickening. It's like you and four other people poking out a gate.

• 24:12Keke Palmer?

  The verbs.

• 24:12Speaker 01

  Yes! I'm like, oh my god!

• 24:15Keke Palmer?

  The poking out the gate.

• 24:16Speaker 01

  Cause it's so lit, like it's so eye catching. I'm like, oh my god, I can't wait. I love it.

• 24:22Keke Palmer?

  Girl, I'm so happy about that show. We literally just got a billion views on Peacock, which I can't even, I'm like, how the hell you?

• 24:28Speaker 01

  That's global superstar. The moment you get you a billboard, driving regular, that's how you know you freaking one of the ones. Mount Rushmore, nobody can message you, period.

• 24:38Keke Palmer?

  Oh my gosh, my girl, my girl, I love you. That's why I love when we did our song Sticky, like, I was like, yo, she dope, real artist to artist. Cause I remember I just hit you up and I was like, would you wanna get on this? And you was like, yeah, like.

• 24:49Speaker 01

  Like, let's go.

• 24:49Keke Palmer?

  And I remember you up on top of that car.

• 24:52Speaker 01

  And us on top of the counters and she, yeah, that was a good time.

• 24:56Keke Palmer?

  It was such a good time, girl.

• 24:57Speaker 01

  And it's such a great song.

• 24:58Keke Palmer?

  Yes, shout out to Sticky, get into it, y'all, if you haven't. But I have to let you know, one of the like dopest records of yours that gagged me, like, that's through the Spider verse?

• 25:08Speaker 01

  Oh, Self Love.

• 25:09Keke Palmer?

  Girl, I love that song. That's pretty much, that's a title, that's a title track. And Metro, shout out Metro, shout out Sara, she's so dope.

• 25:17Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 25:17Keke Palmer?

  How did that collaboration come about? I love your voice on that song.

• 25:21Speaker 01

  Thank you. During the time Saint- Uh, he was like, this is the second Spider verse that we have done. I went, I was on the soundtrack of the first one. And then the second one, um, you know, Metro was doing.

• 25:35Keke Palmer?

  Yes.

• 25:35Speaker 01

  And I couldn't wait to work with Metro. I got the call like, yo, Metro wants you on this song. Self-love, um, it's gonna be into the Spider verse.

• 25:43Keke Palmer?

  So good.

• 25:44Speaker 01

  And I'm like, who the hell is not gonna cut anything for Metro? Like, where's Metro booming? Like, he really one of the ones, he know what he be doing when it comes to the music. So I was like, oh yeah, it's a dream come true.

• 25:53Keke Palmer?

  Oh, my gosh, I just love that. I mean, you've collaborated with Gunna, you got a hit with David Guetta. You hopped on Sabrina Conferes nonsense. Um, your range is crazy. What do you attribute your versatility to?

• 26:05Speaker 01

  I, it's so crazy because I struggle with my versatility every day in the studio. I don't know if I want to sing and be like this specific, like, it's like, okay. I could go be this badass girl and be like, yeah, like very pop star. And like, you know, my Katy Perry, because I already say I'm the female Katy Perry, you know what I'm saying? Like, I pop my like, I'm Katy Perry for sure. Or I could be on my, you feel me, like Cardi B keep raw. You know, like Cardi, Megan, all the, all the rap girls for real, like they keep it raw. You know, and even when they do get vulnerable, they still give you that raw, raw, raw. Not saying they're not pop, but.

• 26:45Keke Palmer?

  Yeah, yeah, it's more straight hip hop.

• 26:47Speaker 01

  It's more straight, like to the point to where I'll just be going so far left sometimes. And I don't know if that's my lane because I'll get a lot of noise over here. But then I won't get a lot of noise on the soft side. But then I'll get more engagement on my R and B sexy coy. But then my turn rap cord, they're like, all right, we missed the melodic. So I'm, I'm, I'm going through an identity crisis, right?

• 27:13Keke Palmer?

  I mean, how do you decide what vibe you want to jump into next? Because now we're entering this pink sweats era. Which I think is playing with like some masculine feminine, like which, again, we go back to OG coy. We live for that, like, yo, she low key on that left eye, she coming at you with that TLC energy. How are you deciding that this was the vibe you wanted to get into in 2026? And what can we expect from it?

• 27:35Speaker 01

  Well.

• 27:43Keke Palmer?

  Do you hear that? Baby, a warm getaway must be calling my name because spring has officially sprung. We're saying buh-bye to endless winter layers and hello to sunny beach season. I finally have a little time off coming up and with my crazy schedule, that's rare. So, I'm thinking of a long weekend escape with my family. The question is coastal Santa Barbara vibes or desert stay in Palm Springs? All I know is that when I'm planning a trip, booking a stay on Airbnb just makes everything easier. I just love having a whole house to ourselves. We can each have our own space, no cramped hotel rooms to worry about, and come together for fun movie marathons or epic game nights in the living room.

• 28:26Keke Palmer?

  Everyone can be as loud as they want because things can get competitive, y'all. And let's face it, a meal is better shared around a table than a bed, especially when it's my dad's cooking. But here's the real magic. We get to play locals, wandering through neighborhood parks and popping into all the best family-owned, under-the-radar restaurants on the recommendations of our lovely super host. Mmm, you already know I love a good food tour moment. So, if you're planning spring or summer getaways with your favorite people, find a stay on Airbnb. Trust me, that home away from home feeling can't be topped.

• 29:04Speaker 01

  I would say, becoming a mom, your mind just comes a little bit more clearer. Don't it? Foggy or clearer at the same time? The fog comes with-

• 29:16Keke Palmer?

  Because you're not who you used to be. That's the foggy part.

• 29:19Speaker 01

  Yeah, you're not.

• 29:20Keke Palmer?

  And you're like, so what stays and what goes?

• 29:22Speaker 01

  Yeah, and I feel like, you know, I'm 28, I'll be 29 this year.

• 29:25Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 29:26Speaker 01

  Um, and I love that, you know, I came in the game when I was 21.

• 29:29Keke Palmer?

  Yeah, yeah.

• 29:30Speaker 01

  And I just feel like this new era is just very- I'm her. Like, I'm her. And then also too, I seen somebody tweet this. I don't know who it was, but this was a tweet yesterday and it was like, um, I'm not for everybody and that's okay. And I think that's stuck with me. And I think that's the vibe that I'm going to into this new music, new album, new era is, I, I'm not for everybody and that is okay. The ones that get it, get it. The ones that don't, don't. At the end of the day, I make sure I just move with, you know, as a genuine person, keep God first, um, you know, and just work my ass off. Everything else can just come with it.

• 30:11Keke Palmer?

  Sampling has been a big part of your DNA. Do you love it still? Are you not? Like, how do you feel about it? Do we get some more samples coming in, in 2020?

• 30:17Speaker 01

  I love a sample. Can I get a sample? I love a sample.

• 30:24Speaker 01

  I do. Samples are so cool because it's so dope to be able to recreate something. Like, for example, right now, my new song that I'm about to drop, my milkshake bring on up to the yard.

• 30:38Keke Palmer?

  Girl, how did you flip this? Also, you with Pharrell in general feels like a match.

• 30:42Speaker 01

  Oh, my God.

• 30:43Keke Palmer?

  Have y'all worked together? Y'all did, right? Didn't something? I saw something with y'all.

• 30:46Speaker 01

  We had a song, um, Not in Store come out.

• 30:49Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 30:50Speaker 01

  Uh, for the doodle verse.

• 30:52Keke Palmer?

  Yes.

• 30:52Speaker 01

  That he's done. And then we also have like six unreleased songs and my fault.

• 30:56Keke Palmer?

  You guys feel like a very dope match to me.

• 30:58Speaker 01

  He's amazing.

• 30:58Keke Palmer?

  So, my milkshake bring out of the boys to the yard. So, what, so, yeah, this is crazy. I can't wait to hear this, girl. That is so exciting.

• 31:04Speaker 01

  It's so fun.

• 31:06Keke Palmer?

  You know who else I feel like, I don't know who you did anything with, I don't know if you did anything with them, but Missy Elliott.

• 31:10Speaker 01

  I love her. I got to be in a studio with her, in a real session with her at some point and she's also an amazing.

• 31:16Keke Palmer?

  She's dope.

• 31:17Speaker 01

  Yeah, she's amazing.

• 31:18Keke Palmer?

  Who else would you want to work with that you haven't worked with yet?

• 31:20Speaker 01

  The Weeknd. I really want a song with The Weeknd.

• 31:23Keke Palmer?

  Interesting.

• 31:24Speaker 01

  Yeah. I feel like Sabrina Carpenter owes me a swab. I need an, I need, I need one with Sabrina again for sure. I love her.

• 31:32Keke Palmer?

  Yeah, I mean, the music is so dope.

• 31:34Speaker 01

  I just think her sex appeal and my sex appeal together on stage could just really make like.

• 31:38Keke Palmer?

  It goes very doting very fast.

• 31:40Speaker 01

  Right?

• 31:40Keke Palmer?

  She was daring with that cover art.

• 31:42Speaker 01

  Oh.

• 31:42Keke Palmer?

  On the knees.

• 31:43Speaker 01

  Ooh.

• 31:45Keke Palmer?

  Girl, I was like, okay, Miss Ma'am.

• 31:47Speaker 01

  I know, that's right. I was like, it's called Sabrina.

• 31:50Keke Palmer?

  On mine, it would be the reverse. Get down.

• 31:52Speaker 01

  Right.

• 31:54Speaker 01

  Like this.

• 31:55Keke Palmer?

  Girl, straight up, legs, plant, no. Oh my gosh, that's me giving that Jada energy. Anyway. Players was a huge moment for you. Your first Billboard Top 10. Yes. A Grammy nomination. You dropped remixes for the song, even had Busta Rhymes. That's like OG royalty. Yeah. When you saw it take off, did it, did you feel it coming, like, do you feel like you know when you got a hit? Whatever that means?

• 32:16Speaker 01

  I feel like everything I make is fire. It's just all about like when I, you know, what the people want. So I, that's why I tease. Cause in my mind, I'm like, I'm a number one fan. Like I'm gonna, if any, let's let everything fly. But, um, you know, you gotta, you gotta talk to the fans. So I was talking to them and when I leaked Players, it went crazy. However, Players dropped in December and it didn't blow up till February. A lot of people don't realize that dynamic. Also too, December is Christmas time.

• 32:48Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 32:48Speaker 01

  The label shut down. No, no, no more coins. They don't want to spend no money. The budget is closed. And they opened the budget right on up for Players in the middle of Christmas, couple, right, couple of days before Christmas and made it happen for sure.

• 33:00Keke Palmer?

  Wow.

• 33:01Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 33:01Keke Palmer?

  But then you also said to Complex that during that time you were a little bit unhappy due to things happening so fast. So what was happening so fast that we didn't see?

• 33:10Speaker 01

  Well, I felt like now that I look back on things, I feel like I was at a place where, you know, you can't grow if people around you aren't growing with you. And I got to a, you know, I'm, I'm on top 10 Billboard. You know how hard it is to get a top 10 record solo? Like that's like, and still to this day, I want to beat it, you know?

• 33:29Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 33:29Speaker 01

  Top 10, I want, now I want a number one, I want a top five. And it's so hard. And I felt like during those times, I didn't get to maximize off my opportunity. You know, I never went to the Met galas. I never, um, you know, when it came to the award shows, me being a part of the award shows, other than just a red carpet. I really wanted to be in those award shows. Being a fashion girly, really, you know? It was so much I wanted to do that I felt like I I couldn't maximize on the opportunity because of the things that were going on behind the scenes.

• 34:00Keke Palmer?

  And was it just kind of like not having the proper support? Because obviously, like, people, hopefully, people understand, like, when it comes to, like, the Met Gala, there's gotta be a designer that wants you, somebody's gotta want you at their table.

• 34:08Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 34:08Keke Palmer?

  You know, if you want to be X, Y, and Z, you gotta have the glam, you gotta be the budgets, like. So what was actually some of those things stopping you? Just not having those political things in place, or?

• 34:18Speaker 01

  I felt like, yeah, like, a bun- a mix of everything, you know? I even got to that point where I even learned, like, yo, you, being nice is gonna take you to the number one. And I even changed, I felt like, my my attitude and, you know, the things that I've learned within, and it still didn't get me to where, I'm like, yo, I have a top ten record in the world, I'm global, you can go in the airport.

• 34:39Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 34:40Speaker 01

  You know, and the moment you hear your songs on the airplane, that you made it.

• 34:43Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 34:43Speaker 01

  And I'm on the airplane's playlist, I'm in malls, I'm in, you know, Forever Twenty One, and I'm just like, yo, something's not making any sense. Why aren't the campaigns getting bigger? How come the brands aren't getting bigger? You know, and and as artists, we are just the artists. You know, we gotta have people out there pushing and still cold calling, like, when I was back in sales and picking up that phone, like, yo, what's up, what's up? And, um.

• 35:10Keke Palmer?

  My mom still sends out emails.

• 35:11Speaker 01

  Still, you know?

• 35:13Keke Palmer?

  Like a freaking newsletter.

• 35:13Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 35:14Keke Palmer?

  Keke Palmer is doing this lately. And it's like, you are me, Sharon, what are you doing?

• 35:18Speaker 01

  And a lot of people, I feel like they depended on my organic viralness.

• 35:25Keke Palmer?

  Sure.

• 35:25Speaker 01

  And I hate that.

• 35:26Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 35:26Speaker 01

  Because I deserve, I don't want to keep making videos in my bathroom and then going viral just for you to now want to come do something.

• 35:35Keke Palmer?

  Well, because they make the money from that streaming, they make the money for being where they is. They don't make all the money when it come to your touring, when it come to your merch, when it come to you getting a campaign with Dior.

• 35:44Speaker 01

  Right.

• 35:44Keke Palmer?

  So it don't, it ain't on their mind.

• 35:45Speaker 01

  Right.

• 35:46Keke Palmer?

  So it's very important, what you're saying, because at the end of the day, those labels are just wanting to do what, gonna get their money right back.

• 35:51Speaker 01

  Right, right.

• 35:52Keke Palmer?

  And then it's up to us to figure out how to maximize our brand. And some of the things you're saying is so interesting to me, because I wonder how that affects how your brand has evolved.

• 35:59Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 36:00Keke Palmer?

  In terms of just, like, I hate to use this word, but commercialability.

• 36:03Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 36:03Keke Palmer?

  What people are expecting from female rappers.

• 36:05Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 36:06Keke Palmer?

  What people are expecting from women.

• 36:08Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 36:08Keke Palmer?

  So how, like, on that journey, how did you grapple with, like, I'm all these vibes, but like, how do I stay true to myself, but then also give myself a brand that I feel like I can scale?

• 36:19Speaker 01

  I stopped looking and I kinda just, I feel like I was looking everywhere else but within. And then I had a reality check and I had to realize, I don't know, you would just have these days where you just wake up and you're like, hold on. I don't know if what blunt I was smoking that day or what was going on that day, but I was just like, no one's gonna market myself better than me. And I can't dwell on what I don't have and I, and be mad at what I don't have because that makes me feel very ungrateful because there is so many beautiful blessings that's going on. So it was playing mind tricks. I was talking to myself a lot, just playing mind tricks for myself, like, alright. You know, don't be ungrateful because God is blessing you with a lot. Even though you're unhappy and you feel like you deserve more, keep pushing.

• 37:01Speaker 01

  And, um, you know, I'm, I'm still on that wave and I feel like it's, it's, it's gotten me still this far, you know, I can still say that I'm very much in the top, top female artist category and really her. And you know, I'm a tourist, I'm a competitor, like, nobody [BLEEP] with me, like, and I'm standing on that.

• 37:22Keke Palmer?

  I mean, in 2024, I mean, let's talk about the Grammys real quick. Beyonce sent you flowers. Beyonce showed you girl I love. I mean, real talk, what were you at when you found out?

• 37:32Speaker 01

  I was at home. I had opened up for her with DJ Khalid, which is crazy.

• 37:37Keke Palmer?

  Which is crazy because no artist opened up for Beyonce. I was at that show, watching. I saw you.

• 37:42Speaker 01

  And I had the blue pixie.

• 37:43Keke Palmer?

  Yes, and you were eating. I live for that. Girl, you can wear any hairstyle though, I ain't gonna lie, but I do love the pixie.

• 37:48Speaker 01

  Yes, the blue pixie was a vibe, for sure. It was fun. Beyonce is amazing. Then I seen her and Jay-Z at a Michael Rubin's event, twice. And, um, she came up to me and she was like, oh my God, like, how's mommyhood? And I was like, it's going so good. Wait, I'm like, how do you know? Oh, you're watching? You see me?

• 38:09Keke Palmer?

  Honestly, I feel like she really, she, I remember back then, we used to think that she had like a little low-key Snapchat page, she watching everybody. She gotta know what the culture is doing because she gotta know what we need.

• 38:19Speaker 01

  And at some point, I'm like, somebody's running, this account is ran by management. No, no, no, y'all be surprised, Beyonce is out there watching, honey, don't do her. She's very much in tune. I love you, B.

• 38:29Keke Palmer?

  Who have been some of the sisters in hip-hop that have lifted you up and supported you, you know, over the course of your career?

• 38:34Speaker 01

  Well, um, shout out Cardi B. She was there during my pregnancy.

• 38:38Keke Palmer?

  During the pregnancy?

• 38:40Speaker 01

  Yeah, like she helped. She gave me some really amazing advice.

• 38:42Keke Palmer?

  I thought she was in the hospital. I'm like, damn, y'all close.

• 38:45Speaker 01

  She wasn't in the hospital, but, but she gave me some really, really great advice, um, before I had my baby and after I had my baby.

• 38:52Keke Palmer?

  You would share it or was it like low, super private?

• 38:54Speaker 01

  Just more so like, um, you do what is best for you and what you want to do. That's exactly what her advice was. Don't let nobody change your mind on that. Do what you want to do in your heart. And I kind of, I stuck by that, you know, being pregnant and vulnerable and, you know, first pregnancy, it's a lot. As women, we.

• 39:15Keke Palmer?

  And as a career woman. And in hip hop, like I do remember when Cardi B at the top of her career decided to have a baby and everybody was like, she's done. And even after her most recent, when she had these kids, they're like, she's dead again, done. She just keep on moving.

• 39:29Speaker 01

  And she just popped one out and hopped right back on tour, sold out.

• 39:33Keke Palmer?

  So I think that's really dope of her, you know. Um, now back in twenty twenty four, you tweeted, if you ask me, it seemed like these labels are behind the female controversy. They see it pushes the records. I mean, I feel like we all kind of think that, you know, even if we're not in the industry, like I think it seems, at a certain point, it gets WWE. But at that time for you, when you tweeted it, what was happening behind the scenes for you?

• 39:54Speaker 01

  I just feel like you got to think about it. Like, none of us female artists are from the same hoods, schools, grew up together. We don't, you know, I don't even think anybody's messing with anybody's boyfriends behind the scenes.

• 40:09Keke Palmer?

  Cause that would do it.

• 40:10Speaker 01

  That would do it. And, and maybe they are, who knows? But I don't think so. And I feel like, yo, there has to be some reason why these people are turning on each other so much. It just don't make sense. Like, I don't have a, a hate bone in my body. I'm competitive. But at the end of the competition, I'll still be like, yo, we did this together. Like, I couldn't do it without you at the end of the day. And, um.

• 40:31Keke Palmer?

  I feel like everybody wants to feel like that too. I feel like all the girls want to feel like that, but there's so much trust issues and BS that goes on behind the scenes that it creates, you know, that wall that we all put up and it makes you might feel like you do have to defend yourself or you might be feeling attacked in some way. I'm not gonna lie, at the end of this next song that I'm about to drop, I'm popping my [BLEEP]. I'm like, get in the booth, you know I ain't worried. You [BLEEP] can't dress, you know I ain't worried. You [BLEEP] can't rap, you know I ain't worried. Like, yeah, I'm popping it. But it's just like, I was ready for that. She said she ain't worried, I'm in the back. She said she not worried. You heard any of what?

• 41:07Speaker 01

  I know that is right.

• 41:10Keke Palmer?

  So I mean, because my thing is, it's interesting too. Like whenever girls beef in rap, it's like, oh my gosh, it becomes so critical. But I mean, obviously, we've had some crazy beefs even with male rap. We're [BLEEP] nuts. But I think like back in the day, a lot of times too, like it seemed like more like sparring and it also was like a way to, it was almost like WWE, almost like how Twitch streamers pretend that they're arguing in order to bring attention to each other's projects. Do you feel like that could be used more in female rap? If the women actually agreed to, like would you?

• 41:38Speaker 01

  I feel like I'm down to do a little, like ain't nothing wrong with a, it's like a versus, right? But at the same time, true talent gonna outshine everything. I feel like it's more than to our pen and it's more, it's more to being a female artist than your pen and just your music. And that's where I think the competitiveness comes from. Because it's like, I could do a song and we could rap battle each other, but then it's like, all right, who gonna do the, who gonna look the best on the red carpets? I feel like, or who gonna have that fashion week locked in? Or who's gonna do the, who's gonna be the best performer and really take it there?

• 42:14Keke Palmer?

  I think it's so interesting how you are so brand minded and then I think about what your dad created in culture. You guys are very aligned when it comes to like aesthetic and just like what it means to have a whole overall cultural reflection.

• 42:27Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 42:27Keke Palmer?

  That's very interesting. Yeah, that's like, because I'm like, you don't talk like, just like, I'm just an artist. You talk like somebody that sees yourself as a brand.

• 42:34Speaker 01

  Yeah, for sure.

• 42:35Keke Palmer?

  That's, I mean, where did that come from? Is this just what you, how you think? Did you study?

• 42:39Speaker 01

  Always, since a kid, I've always felt like, um, I, girl, I played lacrosse one time.

• 42:48Speaker 01

  Did I ever think I was gonna play lacrosse? Like, imagine being in high school, like, yo, let's just go sign up and play lacrosse. Like, that was me. So, I don't know, I feel like I'm a jack of all trades. I can do anything. I'm very, but I think that comes from being raised by boys, too.

• 43:04Keke Palmer?

  Yeah, feeling like you can do anything.

• 43:06Speaker 01

  They'll get on the bikes and ride down the hill and then like know how to press their brakes. And then I'm like, okay, yeah, let me get on it. And I don't know how to press my brakes. And now I'm like, all right, but you know, you gotta get in there to figure it out. So I'm, I'm, I'm the best at getting my hands dirty and I don't mind unexpected.

• 43:25Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 43:25Speaker 01

  I'm like, I'm a daredevil. I went skydiving before.

• 43:29Keke Palmer?

  I've always wanted to go skydiving. Was it crazy? That girl, what's this like, tell me, like, did you just like?

• 43:34Speaker 01

  I was suffocating in the air. I was falling out. Okay, wait, so I was falling out and I was like, ah. And then the guy in front of me is like recording me and I'm like, he's like, you're good. I'm like, I'm like, I can't breathe, I can't breathe, I can't breathe. I'm like, help. Meanwhile, we're falling, air. And, um, I thought I was gonna die. That was the day I was talking to God and I said, there's no way I'm going out like this. I didn't imagine. And then five seconds later, the parachute opened. Ah, I was like.

• 44:08Speaker 01

  I was trying to cry, tears are just. I was like, oh, my God, I'll never do it again, though.

• 44:13Keke Palmer?

  When you landed, like, what did you think?

• 44:16Speaker 01

  You have to land with your feet like this because the guy lands on his feet. So I thought I was gonna die again. I'm like, all right, I didn't die this time, but we've still gotta get on the floor.

• 44:26Keke Palmer?

  Oh, my God.

• 44:26Speaker 01

  And you have to land in the grass. And he's like, you land, he's dragging his feet. And the moment you put your feet, you could break your ankles off.

• 44:33Keke Palmer?

  Yeah, it's a lot of impact, but that is sick.

• 44:36Speaker 01

  It was so fun.

• 44:37Keke Palmer?

  I need to do that.

• 44:38Speaker 01

  Yeah, you should.

• 44:39Keke Palmer?

  Also, congrats on signing with Eppa Records in 2025. You told the Hollywood Reporter, they support me rather than tell me what to do. That is very difficult to get a label to do.

• 44:47Speaker 01

  Shout out Zeke, uh, shout out Sylvia.

• 44:50Keke Palmer?

  Zeke, girl, let me tell you, back in the day, Zeke was literally my A and R.

• 44:54Speaker 01

  He's a songwriter.

• 44:56Keke Palmer?

  And he was a songwriter, everything. When I was a kid, literally when I had my first record deal with Atlantic Records at 12. Zeke, I just seen him. He also does stuff with Tyler, too. Shout out to you, Zeke, love you, boo.

• 45:05Speaker 01

  He's the best.

• 45:06Keke Palmer?

  I just saw him and I feel like he's aging backwards.

• 45:08Speaker 01

  Oh, my God, he looks so good. He's so, he's such an amazing man. And, um, I would say. Him being a songwriter and the CEO of a label and knowing so much is just because he's wrote in hits. A lot of people don't know that.

• 45:24Keke Palmer?

  They don't even know Icebox, that's him in the back. I don't even know if I'm allowed to say that.

• 45:27Speaker 01

  No, he wrote Icebox.

• 45:28Keke Palmer?

  He wrote Icebox and that's him. I'm so cold.

• 45:31Speaker 01

  Yeah, I'm so cold. Yeah, no, I got the best CEO ever.

• 45:36Keke Palmer?

  Back in the day, he was, I'm pretty sure, a part of the clutch, which was like, Kerry Hilson was a part of that, Zeke was a part of that.

• 45:42Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 45:43Keke Palmer?

  There was J Q, there was, oh my gosh, it was another young woman, light skinned, I cannot think of her name right now, but that was a whole moment. They did so many hits. I even think they did four minutes for Avon. Y'all know nothing about Avon. Y'all know nothing about Avon. But that's dope. So you loving working with them and you getting ready to drop this album or the mixtape? Like, what all are we gonna expect in 2026 from you?

• 46:04Speaker 01

  So, we're about to come with records, we're gearing up for the album. I'm just not ready to drop an album right now. I just had a baby. I'm ready to get back outside, get in those trenches, get in the clubs. Come on, club.

• 46:17Keke Palmer?

  Yeah. The clubs aren't the same anymore, though, girl.

• 46:19Speaker 01

  Girl, come to my section. Come to my section.

• 46:23Keke Palmer?

  I feel like I'll be up in there like this.

• 46:25Speaker 01

  Uh, uh, I'll be up in there, ready to, on top of cars, on top of cars.

• 46:31Keke Palmer?

  How did it feel having your baby? Not literally having, because ouch, it hurts.

• 46:35Speaker 01

  I'm like, ah, well, I had a C-section, so they like numb you straight down. And all I remember was looking at my mom and my mom was like, staring at me like, like, I don't know what the hell. She was just staring at me like, like, are you okay?

• 46:51Keke Palmer?

  Because your insides were out.

• 46:53Speaker 01

  Oh, my God. And she kept going like this, because it's occurring. She kept going, oh, my God. I was like, what?

• 46:59Keke Palmer?

  And you didn't feel nothing?

• 47:01Speaker 01

  She's like, your whole inside. I'm like, wait, what? Why? I'm like, I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die. Girl, it was crazy.

• 47:09Keke Palmer?

  And what, you didn't feel none of it?

• 47:11Speaker 01

  No, you just feel like a little bit of pressure coming out, but no, your whole body's numb. I was actually claustrophobic because I couldn't move. So, once they numbed all this, I was like, and I, um, I was eight centimeters dilated until she, Ms. Mom was just wasn't coming out. They was like, we gotta do a C-section, she ain't gonna come out.

• 47:30Keke Palmer?

  Oh, my God.

• 47:31Speaker 01

  And I was like, no, I wear low waist pants.

• 47:35Speaker 01

  I say help push. I will get her, I'll do anything, just get out. And he was like, no, honey.

• 47:40Keke Palmer?

  That whole thing was so crazy for me, I will never forget. I was trying so hard to like, you know, do the whole not epidural thing. Not that there's anything wrong with it, but I was just trying to be like, I wanted to see how strong I was. Girl, I was barely dilated.

• 47:51Speaker 01

  Did you do it?

• 47:52Keke Palmer?

  Yes, I got to epidural so fast and I was pressing that thing. I was like, yes, numb these legs.

• 47:57Speaker 01

  Me too, me too.

• 47:58Keke Palmer?

  Numb these legs. And I didn't, I mean, I remember like feeling the pressure of, of my son, you know, coming out. And I just remember thinking, please don't let me squeeze my baby into a weird head shape. Cause you know when it gets stuck on the coming out? And I'm like, I was so scared about that. But I just remember seeing my son and immediately being like, I'm so happy to meet you.

• 48:14Speaker 01

  It's so crazy, cause do you feel like, like they say birth is such the hardest thing to do? But when you do it, you kind of look back at it. I don't know what's more hard, the pregnancy or actually giving birth?

• 48:25Keke Palmer?

  Well, it depends, cause like, the pregnancy for me, I felt like physically it was fine. But when I look back, I think emotionally, I was like so going through so much. But like, I was also weirdly happy, but I was also like, you know, also feeling like weird a little bit. You know, not totally supported. So it was like very strange. But then when I had my, my son, I feel like, yeah, I feel like that the birth was maybe more happier.

• 48:50Speaker 01

  You don't want to say easy, cause it's like, it's like hard. It's like, you don't want to say easy, cause they say giving birth is the hardest thing. But it's, once it's done, you're like.

• 48:59Keke Palmer?

  The pregnancy, anything for nine months is tough. How about that?

• 49:03Speaker 01

  You get ingrown.

• 49:03Keke Palmer?

  You just do black hurts.

• 49:05Speaker 01

  I had an ingrown toenail one time, I've never knew that you can even get. I'm like, nah, this pregnancy.

• 49:10Keke Palmer?

  Half of my body became a different color as well. I don't know if that happened to you.

• 49:13Speaker 01

  Mine is still.

• 49:14Keke Palmer?

  Like, it was just totally discolored. Like, what does that do to affect the baby?

• 49:17Speaker 01

  Brown here, and it has like this little line going down, yeah.

• 49:20Keke Palmer?

  It's like, what did it mean? You know, like, how did that help the baby?

• 49:23Speaker 01

  Literally.

• 49:23Keke Palmer?

  Anyway, it's, it's a journey. What would you say motherhood has so far taught you about yourself that you didn't realize? If anything?

• 49:39Speaker 01

  Motherhood has taught me patience. Um, I had to sit pregnant for a very long time. Well, because it feels like forever, but yeah, you sit for nine months and you have to wait. It's a waiting game. And then when your baby comes, you know, you want to give her or him the best life that you can ever think possible. You know, and just imagine trying to give somebody the best life. Like the best, like you get everything that I did not go through. I want everything I did not go through to happen. I want you to live better than me. And um, you know, use it as motivation and I feel like it's changed me a lot. Not only as a mom, as an artist, but as a friend, as a girlfriend, as a daughter.

• 50:24Speaker 01

  Like my mom, I look at her so different since I had a child.

• 50:28Keke Palmer?

  That happens real fast.

• 50:29Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 50:30Keke Palmer?

  When I realized that I'm my mom's baby.

• 50:32Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 50:34Keke Palmer?

  Because the way that I feel about my Leotis, I'm like, Mom, you feel like that about me?

• 50:39Speaker 01

  Girl, I'm so sorry and I love you down boots.

• 50:44Keke Palmer?

  Because it's so crazy when you feel the love of having your own child.

• 50:48Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 50:48Keke Palmer?

  You realize everything that probably scared your mom.

• 50:52Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 50:53Keke Palmer?

  Everything that your mom had the courage to do for you.

• 50:56Speaker 01

  Sacrifices.

• 50:57Keke Palmer?

  The sacrifices.

• 50:58Speaker 01

  And we're lucky because we're so blessed to have, you know, the luxury and the success that we've been, was able to provide, you know, for ourselves and our kids. Our parents, so can you imagine? And I also feel for so many like mothers out there and single mothers out there and the ones who are just like, shout out to all of y'all. I want to let you know y'all doing an amazing job.

• 51:18Keke Palmer?

  For sure.

• 51:18Speaker 01

  Um, everybody, God's time is always on time. Everybody's testimony and journey is different.

• 51:24Keke Palmer?

  Yep.

• 51:25Speaker 01

  Never compare yourself to other moms. Give yourself grace and be easy on yourself, please. Because I feel for you, girl.

• 51:31Keke Palmer?

  A lot of times that's the main thing we need is just a little compassion and gratitude for ourselves.

• 51:35Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 51:36Keke Palmer?

  I mean, you've grown in the public eye from internet backlash to chart success to now motherhood.

• 51:43Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 51:43Keke Palmer?

  When you look back at your career, what version of yourself are you most proud of protecting?

• 51:49Speaker 01

  I feel like. Being an artist and a female artist and then a female artist in hip hop, um, your passion can be mistaken as being a bitch or having an attitude or, um, but no, I'm always someone who knows what I want. And I'm not settling for anything less. Obviously, you want to move with kindness. You want to be sweet. You want to have grace. You want to, um, be an empath, but,

• 52:20Speaker 01

  um, nah, I'm standing on anything and everything I've ever went through and ever said in this industry. I'm standing on it. It made me who I am. You know, because at one point I said to say, at one point, people try to say like, you know, coiler is a little difficult. Or coiler is crazy, or coiler might not be the easiest to work.

• 52:37Keke Palmer?

  Really?

• 52:38Speaker 01

  Yeah, but I learned this.

• 52:41Speaker 01

  You're only not going to be easy to work with when they don't want you to do what they want you. You, what they don't, when they don't want you to do what they want you to do.

• 52:48Keke Palmer?

  Yes.

• 52:49Speaker 01

  That's the only time you become difficult.

• 52:51Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 52:52Speaker 01

  And, um, I had to stand strong and believe in myself no matter what, no matter what, you know, um, and not let that affect me. And the people around, you know, having to go to, having to meet people in real life in person and be like, hi, like, hello, I'm, I'm coy, like, and people be like, oh, my God. I didn't even know you was, I didn't know you was that cool. A lot of people think I'm cocky. I didn't know you was this humble. So.

• 53:22Keke Palmer?

  Yeah, people, it's interesting, cocky, people say that, but it's also like you seem to affirm yourself. And I think that's really awesome.

• 53:28Speaker 01

  I'm her.

• 53:29Keke Palmer?

  Yeah, like you should, why, why shouldn't we affirm it? Just because I'm her don't mean you not her. You know what I mean? Like, that's what I think the thing is, is people got to know, just because I'm saying I'm dope, I ain't saying you not dope.

• 53:39Speaker 01

  Right.

• 53:39Keke Palmer?

  You know, um, you care so deeply about mental health, which I think I found out about your camp courage. You started Camp Courage, you know, it's a nonprofit that's dedicated to empowering and uplifting youth in inner cities. Was that something you always wanted to do or did it kind of find its way to you?

• 53:53Speaker 01

  I feel like as a female artist or a public figure, you have to make, it's like the brand thing, right? What is your purpose? I can sit here and make music, travel the world, but like, what is the purpose behind all this stuff? And I might not be the best role model, right? I don't wanna ever, and I don't mind being a role model, because I'm a really great person.

• 54:16Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 54:17Speaker 01

  And I'm very smart, so I, I should be, I am a great role model for whoever needs a role model out there.

• 54:25Speaker 01

  But I just know that there's a bigger purpose to everything, and all these club nights, and all the traveling that we do, and all the glam and the glitz, and what about the people that aren't? That don't get to experience this lifestyle, or they don't even get to see it?

• 54:44Keke Palmer?

  Hmm.

• 54:45Speaker 01

  And coming up with Camp Courage World, Courage the Cowardly Dog is my, one of my favorite cartoons.

• 54:50Keke Palmer?

  That's a good cartoon.

• 54:51Speaker 01

  And I, that's how I came up with the name, because Courage was somebody who protected his family no matter what. Even, uh, the grandpa, he was so mean to him. And he still, no matter what, made sure he protected Miriam and he protected him, and, and he was scared, but was fearless. Every time, every obstacle and every demon that came Courage's way, he fought it, and he did whatever he needed to do to protect his family. So, I feel like with Camp Courage World, you know, outside of just looking cute and everything, us female artists, or all artists in general, have to come together in a way to give back, and share, shed light in other ways that people can relate, outside of just what we got going on.

• 55:32Keke Palmer?

  Yes, I love that. You know what that just made me think about when you were saying that was just like, you remember the song Ladies Night?

• 55:36Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 55:37Keke Palmer?

  I be the one smoking your pepper graduate, like, there was all the girls, you know what I mean? Coming together, we haven't had something like that in a really long time.

• 55:43Speaker 01

  I tweeted about that like, four years ago, like, damn, this is gonna, there's never gonna be another Ladies Night.

• 55:48Keke Palmer?

  I wish so. I feel like you could champion it.

• 55:51Speaker 01

  I'm into it. And it's, I feel like if we do a Ladies Night with everybody, everybody's gonna be like, I wanna go first, I wanna go second, I wanna go third, like, or I wanna have, or someone's not long enough here, or long enough here.

• 56:01Keke Palmer?

  And then now they done heard your verse, and now they wanna new verse.

• 56:03Speaker 01

  Now they wanna new verse.

• 56:04Keke Palmer?

  Girl, you should've showed up from the beginning.

• 56:05Speaker 01

  You should've just showed up, baby. Get in the booth, know I ain't worth.

• 56:11Keke Palmer?

  You've, um, what's helped you, you, would you say personally protect your peace as you've grown? If there are things that you do, like, are you into, you know, meditation or yoga or just with your family?

• 56:22Speaker 01

  The gym helps.

• 56:23Keke Palmer?

  Okay, yeah, I do like the gym too.

• 56:25Speaker 01

  I was in the gym, like, at a hundred and eight pounds, but I wasn't going to try to get the body. I was going because I needed a hobby. Like, I would wake up and be on my phone and just be on my phone and scroll. I'm like, nah, bro, you gotta wake up and do something. The moment you just are stagnant is when the chaos comes because you sit with your own thoughts and your brain will, like, literally have a mind of its own. So I feel like, you know, uh, going on walks. I like camping, I like fishing, I like hiking.

• 56:55Keke Palmer?

  Oh, my gosh, yes.

• 56:56Speaker 01

  Cooking.

• 56:57Keke Palmer?

  I love camping and I love fishing. My dad used to take me fishing a lot back in the day in Chicago. You know, Midwest, girl, we'd be eating sardines all the time.

• 57:05Speaker 01

  The sardines out the can with the hot sauce?

• 57:07Keke Palmer?

  You know what I mean? It's just those memories to me that that's the type of stuff that money cannot buy.

• 57:11Speaker 01

  At all.

• 57:12Keke Palmer?

  What are those things that you can't wait to show Mioko, your daughter?

• 57:16Speaker 01

  I can't wait to take her around the world. I feel like that's something I've always wanted to do, still till this day, like, being, I've been around so many places and I didn't even get to experience the place because it was just like work. You know, you come in, you're coming for a show and, um, you're in and you're out. But no, I want to take her all around the world. I want her to experience new food, just that tourism experience, you know? I want to, I don't want to just go and go to the, the Ritz Carlton Resort and chill on the beach for a little bit. I'm trying to hit the excursions, jump off the mountains, go to the museums.

• 57:49Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 57:49Speaker 01

  I want her to learn that there's so much out there in this world than, you know, any negative negativity or anything, um, that can cloud her mind. Because,

• 58:04Speaker 01

  you'll be surprised, like, have you been to India?

• 58:06Keke Palmer?

  I just went to.

• 58:08Speaker 01

  You went?

• 58:09Keke Palmer?

  No, I went to Indonesia.

• 58:11Speaker 01

  That's still very far, though.

• 58:15Speaker 01

  Well, I haven't been to India. I'm saying it like I've been. But it's like, bro, that's one of the main places I really wanna go.

• 58:21Keke Palmer?

  Oh, my gosh, yeah, cuz you wanna be on that. Nam yo horangik yo.

• 58:24Speaker 01

  I wanna just go experience. I wanna feel the fabrics. I wanna see the sandals. I wanna see girls' hairs. I wanna... Everything. I wanna learn about the culture.

• 58:32Keke Palmer?

  I do love the traveling, traveling, traveling. It's so awesome. I remember I was talking to... I went to ABFF. Um, like the gala that they do, and I was sitting next to Mario Van Peebles. And he was like telling me how him and his son went to Costa Rica and lived for a year. When he was a little boy.

• 58:49Speaker 01

  What?

• 58:49Keke Palmer?

  And I was just like, that is so cool. And I was thinking to myself, "Sixty-nine years old, hm, I could do that."

• 58:56Speaker 01

  I wanna retire on a farm. You know Bretman Rock?

• 58:59Keke Palmer?

  Oh, Bretman Rock, the... Influ... influenced you.

• 59:01Speaker 01

  Yes, yeah.

• 59:03Keke Palmer?

  His hair is everything.

• 59:04Speaker 01

  I'm so... Listen, I'm jealous, okay? I love him. I want his whole life. He wakes up in Hawaii with these mountains behind him. He feeds his chickens. He got his avocados.

• 59:14Keke Palmer?

  Now, when did he move there?

• 59:16Speaker 01

  He's from there.

• 59:17Keke Palmer?

  Oh, he been always there?

• 59:18Speaker 01

  I... I think he's always been there, but maybe he was out here working, but...

• 59:21Keke Palmer?

  Sure, sure.

• 59:22Speaker 01

  He... Go on his TikTok, girl.

• 59:23Keke Palmer?

  Girl, I just live for that. There is something about me that wants to be off the grid.

• 59:27Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 59:27Keke Palmer?

  You know, I still got some stuff that I gotta do in the grid. But I would love one day to just be like, "We y'all still ain't see Kiki, where she at?" You know, I'm on my loyal hill.

• 59:36Speaker 01

  Our farms is next to each other. I'll be like, "You want any more milk from your cow?"

• 59:39Keke Palmer?

  Girl, my friend... One of my, uh, close best friends, she has, uh, chickens. She was living in New Orleans, and I don't know if she... When she moved, she changed, but she used to give me eggs.

• 59:47Speaker 01

  And she never ran out of eggs.

• 59:48Keke Palmer?

  Never ran out of eggs.

• 59:50Speaker 01

  As much... As expensive eggs were, shout out to everybody that got their own chicken coop.

• 59:54Keke Palmer?

  But you know, we gotta get into this love because, I mean, you're in love, girl. Like, it's like... Honestly, it is not easy to find partnership at any stage in your life, but especially after you have a kid. As a single mom, you know, just being busy even, let alone the emotional capacity. How did you find yourself back in a relationship and even be okay with sharing it with us?

• 1:00:15Speaker 01

  Yeah, I, um... Okay, so, it's so funny because I didn't expect to be in another relationship.

• 1:00:22Keke Palmer?

  Sure.

• 1:00:23Speaker 01

  Um, anytime soon. And I was very focused and locked in, still very focused and very locked in, but I was like, you know, coming from my last situation, I'm like, "Nah, I gotta just... Me, my daughter, this work, nothing else. I am a robot. Don't talk to me. Don't talk to me." That's how my mind was.

• 1:00:42Keke Palmer?

  I am a robot.

• 1:00:43Speaker 01

  I'm like, I am a robot, don't talk to me, I am not real. And then, I met Justin and um, we did, I, I went on his podcast, he gave me mad flowers. And it's so crazy because after the podcast, like, I didn't expect what to walk into. I didn't know what he looked like, I didn't know what, I just knew that, okay, I'm coming to release new music, it's time to promote.

• 1:01:10Speaker 01

  Girl, the moment I see him, like, we locked eyes so crazy, but,

• 1:01:15Keke Palmer?

  What?

• 1:01:15Speaker 01

  Yeah, but,

• 1:01:17Keke Palmer?

  Girl, what?

• 1:01:18Speaker 01

  I know, but after that, I was like, nah, this, I ain't about to let him run his movie on me, like, I don't trust it, I got my guard up. So I dubbed him for a couple of weeks, like, but he applied pressure, girl.

• 1:01:30Keke Palmer?

  He just kept hitting you up?

• 1:01:31Speaker 01

  He kept hitting me up, he's like, yo, I wanna take you out, I wanna take you out, he's like, let me take you out, I'm in the city, you're in Jersey, like, let me take you out. And I'm like, no, Justin, you not about to run your movie on me, I don't have the mental capacity to get my feelings right.

• 1:01:43Keke Palmer?

  And y'all the same age, is he older, is he younger?

• 1:01:45Speaker 01

  He's thirty-four, I'm twenty-eight.

• 1:01:46Keke Palmer?

  So just a little bit older?

• 1:01:46Speaker 01

  A little bit, yeah, but it's very, it's giving romance.

• 1:01:51Keke Palmer?

  And so what did that first date entail that?

• 1:01:53Speaker 01

  This little laugh that just came, that was crazy, she said.

• 1:01:58Keke Palmer?

  That's too funny, what, what, what did he say, what was on this date, girl? Because y'all have, I've seen, like, y'all been locked in ever since that we saw y'all together, like.

• 1:02:09Speaker 01

  I just felt, I think I fell for his personality. He's the most funniest person ever. He's such a good vibe, he's such a good time, but also too, like, you know, now that we're together, I've gotten to experience, like, it's the way he pours into me.

• 1:02:29Speaker 01

  And I think that was the main thing that I fell in love with because,

• 1:02:36Speaker 01

  I've never been with anyone, ever, that poured into me the way he did, you know, it doesn't feel like a competition.

• 1:02:43Keke Palmer?

  Yeah.

• 1:02:44Speaker 01

  It doesn't feel like there's ego there, it doesn't feel like, you know, he's, he doesn't care if I'm more successful as an artist, and I don't care if he's more successful, you know, as, as in media, but. It just seems like we're so...

• 1:02:59Keke Palmer?

  What do you think made you unafraid to be public again? Because I've never even really been that public. And the little splashes that I've gotten, it's like, I don't want anyone ever to know me. You know, so how do you be like, I'm gonna do an interview and we gonna do a podcast? Like, you know what I mean? What makes you fearless with that?

• 1:03:16Speaker 01

  It all happened organic, girl. I'm telling you, like, if I could just play you guys a timeline of everything and you could just see, like, behind the scenes, you would be like, oh, wow. Like, it just fell into play. Like, we just end up, I don't know who posted first, him or me? I think he posted me first, and then I posted him. But it was just, like, in the moment. And then also, too, I'm a tourist, like, yes, my man. Let me show y'all what's going on. Like, I honestly feel like you shouldn't hide your significant other. I'm standing on that. I think that you should let the world know. You don't have to make it your lifestyle, but I do think that you should let the world know.

• 1:03:53Keke Palmer?

  Jalen told me that. She was like, if that's your man, that's your man.

• 1:03:55Speaker 01

  That's your man. What the hell?

• 1:03:57Keke Palmer?

  Virgos are like, hell, no.

• 1:04:00Speaker 01

  Y'all like, what, man?

• 1:04:04Keke Palmer?

  I'm a man.

• 1:04:07Keke Palmer?

  Well, you know, we're all healing.

• 1:04:08Speaker 01

  I know that's fair. We're all healing.

• 1:04:11Keke Palmer?

  Well, I guess I gotta let you go. But before I let you go, boo, we've got to play a little game.

• 1:04:16Speaker 01

  Okay.

• 1:04:21Keke Palmer?

  Female rap is one of the hardest genres to break through, period. So when we talk about legacy, we're really giving flowers to women who kick the door open. So today, I want to see how well you really know female rap across generations. So we're gonna go head to head in some female rap trivia. This is Ladies Who Rap Quiz. Okay, we're gonna take turns, so I'll let you go first as the guest.

• 1:04:45Keke Palmer?

  Which female rapper became the first rap artist to win a Grammy for Album of the Year? Who's my choices? Lauryn Hill, Cardi B, Monique Love, Lil' Kim?

• 1:04:56Keke Palmer?

  I'm gonna say Lauryn Hill.

• 1:04:58Speaker 01

  That was a good answer, cuz that's a great dancer.

• 1:05:01Keke Palmer?

  Yes!

• 1:05:04Keke Palmer?

  Okay, who was the first female rapper inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? A, Queen Latifah, B, Missy Elliott.

• 1:05:12Speaker 01

  Missy Elliott.

• 1:05:13Keke Palmer?

  Damn, that's true. That's wow. So are we on a timer now? I'm like, Missy Elliott. She knew. I couldn't wait to answer that one. Shout out, Missy. Shout out, Missy.

• 1:05:21Speaker 01

  I can't say.

• 1:05:22Keke Palmer?

  Your alternative, baby. It's my ex, ex, ex. It's my window. I, I can't say. Oh my gosh, I love you, Missy. Anyway, your turn.

• 1:05:32Speaker 01

  Okay. Who was the first female rapper, or rapper in general, to perform at the Super Bowl halftime show? Nicki Minaj, Missy Elliott, Mary J. Blige, or Queen Latifah?

• 1:05:46Keke Palmer?

  This is tough.

• 1:05:48Speaker 01

  It is tough.

• 1:05:48Keke Palmer?

  This is tough. Queen Latifah, Mary J. Blige, uh, Nicki Minaj, or who?

• 1:05:54Speaker 01

  Missy Elliott.

• 1:05:55Keke Palmer?

  Missy Elliott.

• 1:05:56Speaker 01

  The first female rapper to perform at the Super Bowl halftime show. Just think about who you haven't seen on there.

• 1:06:04Keke Palmer?

  Cuz I feel like we ain't seen Nicki.

• 1:06:06Speaker 01

  No.

• 1:06:07Keke Palmer?

  We definitely ain't. I mean, Mary J. Blige isn't a rapper. Um, we've never seen Queen Latifah. Have we seen Queen Latifah? I feel like it wasn't a... Uh-oh. Uh-oh. We seen her. U-N-I-T-Y. It was Queen.

• 1:06:24Keke Palmer?

  Yes! Come on, Queen Latifah. That's crazy. Queen Latifah is everything to me. She was like, I was that little kid that was like, who do you look up to? Queen Latifah?

• 1:06:31Speaker 01

  My favorite Queen Latifah moment, I'm sorry, is... Day after day.

• 1:06:37Speaker 01

  She'd be like...

• 1:06:38Keke Palmer?

  I hate that they shot her.

• 1:06:40Speaker 01

  You cried?

• 1:06:41Keke Palmer?

  I cried.

• 1:06:42Speaker 01

  I cried too.

• 1:06:42Keke Palmer?

  I can't even watch that movie. Like, and in the scene when, um, Jada Pinkett, they, they playing... I'm missing you.

• 1:06:48Speaker 01

  Yes, yes.

• 1:06:49Keke Palmer?

  That?

• 1:06:49Speaker 01

  I cried.

• 1:06:50Keke Palmer?

  Get on my nerves, girl. Okay, um, which female rapper had her own self-titled sitcom in the early 2000s? Foxy Brown, Lisa Left Eye Lopez, Eve, or Remy?

• 1:07:00Speaker 01

  Eve.

• 1:07:02Speaker 01

  It was Eve, right?

• 1:07:02Keke Palmer?

  It's Eevee Eve, yes!

• 1:07:04Speaker 01

  Because Eve had a show!

• 1:07:05Keke Palmer?

  She did, and it was really good. I used to love Eve's show. But it was weird because her name was like something else on the show. Yeah, it was like Eve. The show was like The Eve Show, but then she was Shelly in it.

• 1:07:15Speaker 01

  I'm like, uh-uh, who's the director? Who wrote that script? I need to see, I need answers.

• 1:07:19Keke Palmer?

  Like what?

• 1:07:21Speaker 01

  All right. Which female rapper was the first woman to win Best Rap Song at the Grammys? Megan Thee Stallion, Nicki Minaj, Ice Spice, or Doja Cat?

• 1:07:32Keke Palmer?

  Well, I know it ain't Nicki because she's mad. So, it ain't her.

• 1:07:37Speaker 01

  It is her?

• 1:07:39Keke Palmer?

  No. Yeah, it ain't her. It had to be. It probably, so name the other people again.

• 1:07:42Speaker 01

  Ice Spice, Doja Cat, Megan Thee Stallion.

• 1:07:45Keke Palmer?

  I'm gonna say Megan Thee Stallion?

• 1:07:47Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 1:07:48Keke Palmer?

  It was Meg.

• 1:07:49Speaker 01

  She won a Grammy! I'm a savage.

• 1:07:52Keke Palmer?

  Classy, bougie, ratchet. That was during COVID too.

• 1:07:55Speaker 01

  Right?

• 1:07:55Keke Palmer?

  She had us...

• 1:07:56Speaker 01

  She had the, had the, had COVID locked in. Mm-hmm, sure was.

• 1:08:00Keke Palmer?

  Okay, this is gonna be hard. So I'm gonna make the last one a little bit... Which 90's female rapper was part of the Juice Crew and known for rap battle? Or battle rap? We have MC Light, Lil' Kim, Roxanne Shanté, Missy Elliott.

• 1:08:18Speaker 01

  It's gonna be between Roxanne and MC Light. Um, I'm gonna go with Roxanne.

• 1:08:23Keke Palmer?

  And you would be correct.

• 1:08:24Speaker 01

  Oh, let's go! My mom is a big Roxanne fan.

• 1:08:28Keke Palmer?

  Roxanne, Roxanne!

• 1:08:30Speaker 01

  Yes, thank you so much for coming! You are awesome, and I'm so happy for everything.

• 1:08:38Keke Palmer?

  Okay, I love that conversation. Come on, Coi La Rae. You don't always get to see every layer of an artist in one sitting. From the grind to the growth, to stepping into motherhood and a whole new era. She is owning it. And that's powerful. Make sure y'all stream the new music and tap into everything she's building because something tells me this next chapter is about to be major. I'll see you next time on Baby. This is Keke Palmer.