Reality show star and musician Karlie Redd has got a hit on her hands! New single “Werk” featuring Spice and Capella Grey, has been making rounds on everyone’s playlists and has even hit number one!
21Ninenty sat down with the artist, entrepreneur and mogul to talk all about her single and more! Check it out.
Zayna Allen: You reached into your Trinidadian heritage for this song, but this isn’t the first time you reached tapped you roots for your music. What made this track so special for you?
Karlie Redd: Let’s just start from the beginning. So after my first season on the show, some things had happened with my music. I didn’t stop making music but all the comments and stuff about my music really impacted me. I kept making music and I put songs out, but I wasn’t really invested in them, I was just like putting it out because of the love and the passion I have for music, you know?
I signed different record deals, but because of things that is going went on with the music industry, just, it just was bad deal after bad deal, after bad deal. Then finally I got with Legacy Record, so I tapped into producers like Johnny Blaze, and I’m like, yo, I really want y’all to work on my album. I have a deal with legacy records and I think this is gonna blow. They were with it. So of course, you know, Spice is my bestie and I got her to get on the record. We did like three or four records before we choose this one. Then I was like, yo, this needs like a singing hook. I hit up my boy, Capella, like Capella, yo, I need you to get on his joint. He said alright, and then finally, boom, it came together peacefully. Thank God.
View this post on Instagram
ZA: You mentioned Spice being your bestie. We love the friendship. I think something about having girlfriends in the industry that you can actually trust is a really important thing. We’ve seen you grow throughout the show and there have been several people who weren’t necessarily in your corner. So now that you can trust someone that’s in there, what does that feel like to you?
KR: Oh my gosh, it feels so good. I’ve had sleepless nights crying to her about all sorts of things, you know? And it just feels really good. I have her back and she has my back. It just feels really good. She literally inspires me. So that feels so good to have somebody that inspires you in your corner.
ZA: I think that’s so important. Getting back to the song though, you mentioned that you called Capella for the song. How did that process go? Did he send the vocals on time? Did you guys go over how you wanted it to sound?
KR: I called like a million times send the damn vocals. Oh my gosh. I put it together after he sent it and asked him to put something else on it. You know, we went back and forth for a long time, but the important thing is it was done and it was done tastefully. You’re gonna go through a lot, trying to put a record together, but it was done.
ZA: What would you say was the best part about being able to work with these two? Right now in 2022, when you think about artists from the islands who are really doing their thing, you definitely think of Spice and Capella amongst may others. What was this like to have these people on your track?
KR: It means a lot for me not only to have them on the song, but for the song to do well. I sent Capella different records and asked him which song he wanted to get on. He chose this one and I was like, okay, we gonna go make this one happen. Then I went to Spice and told her this is the one he wants to get on. At the time I’m just praying she wanted to do the same one. When she said yes, I was excited. We finally made it happen.
But you know what was exciting with Spice? She’s a perfectionist. She really wanted this to be the right one. So whether we have to record it like 50 million times, she didn’t care. We were both perfectionist about it.
View this post on Instagram
ZA: When your song hit number one, we saw the video of you seeing the news and break it down, crying. Like I’ve said before, we’ve seen your growth on TV and through social media, so to see you win like this, I think we all felt like we felt that win with you. Did you expect this? When you were in the studio for the song, putting it together, were you like, “oh nah, this is the number one”?
KR: I did not expect it because I thought everybody was gonna hate on me again. I was just praying and hoping like this song does good. When it hit number three, I was like, oh shit.
Then it went back down for a little bit but then it came back up to number one. I went crazy. I was just thanking God, because now it just opens up many doors and it opens people’s minds to say, “You know what? She really didn’t stop. She really, really wanted this.” But not only that, I was just hoping to motivate everyone else that had a dream about doing anything. It doesn’t even have to be music, no matter how old you are, no matter what setbacks you’ve had, that dreams really do come true.
ZA: I love that. Being an inspiration is so important too. When you have down moments, or times you want to give up, how do you bring yourself back? How do yo tell yourself, “I gotta keep going?”
KR: I talk to my girls like Spice about things that I’m going through. But I also stay focused. I stay in the studio. I stay working on my restaurants and businesses and I just stay busy. I make sure that I stay busy and then soon as a negative thought comes in, I erase it and start this over again. You gotta just always think positive. Mental awareness is so important and people don’t understand all that. Social media bullying and all that, really gets people. You don’t know how it affects people.
ZA: What’s next for you in the music industry?
KR: I’m gonna put out my album that’s what’s next. That’s gonna be in like four weeks. I think I want to have like a listening party with like major DJ’s. I want everyone to help me pick the right song. I have so many records and I just don’t know which one to go with. So I want to have like a quick little DJ listening party.
ZA: We see so much of you on social media and the show and often times many public figures feel like they’re portrayed incorrectly. Whether it be the editing of the shows or blogs, many just think it isn’t necessarily the truth. So what do you want people to really know about Karlie Redd?
KR: I’m such a hard worker. I’m such a hustler. I motivate kids. I have foundations. There’s so much I have going on. I have a few foundation that I meet with kids once a month to teach them efficacy.
I want people to know that you may see me on TV, but you gotta remember that’s 30 seconds of my whole life. I want them to know that I really hustle hard and I really have worked hard to get to where I’m at. It just didn’t fall in my lap and I’m not giving up no matter what. I’m gonna complete all my goals before I leave this earth.
It’s only up from here for the artist and we can’t wait to see what’s next. Watch the “Werk” music video below.