Miss Chay Bella aka The Rap Princess is an American singer, songwriter, performer, author, and actress. From beauty pageants to Rap Princess duties, Miss Chay Bella completely took the world by storm. As Junior Miss International, Chay Bella has literally been winning hearts and talent shows since her toddler years. Talent show after talent show, it appears she left a lasting impression! She is obviously made for whichever stage she chooses. Ultimately, she wanted more than beauty pageants and compliments on her looks. She exchanged her loneliness for education and music. Academically, she served as DECA Vice President, Sophomore Class Vice President, ran a few school stores, wrote for the school newspaper, and sat on Old Dominion University’s Homecoming Court. In 2012, she walked away with a BA in Communication and continued to win our hearts by excelling all over again with more matured music! She has spoken and performed at many amazing venues and events including Hip Hop Day, The Department Store, Maximum Exposure, Centerstage, Union EAV, Bourbon Room, Harlem Nights, The Doles Center, Kryptonite, Lovecraft, Rampage Skatepark, New York Comicon, and The Harbor Lights Yacht. She is also a published comic book hero and motivational guest speaker. She has climbed numerous music charts including Slacker Radio, SpitYoGame, Myspace, and Soundclick. She has partnered with WODU Studios, iHeartMedia, and Entercom Communications. Miss Chay Bella has been featured on Glocawear Radio, Da Blacktop Radio, Grounded Magazine, Patchwerk Studio’s Artwerk Periscope Show, and won a contest with BeatStars. She has been seen in CrazySexyCool, The Game, FBI, Love Thy Neighbor, Blindspot, The Walking Dead, The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Above The Shadows, and Star on Fox. She has landed major auditions with Adidas, Purple Rain The Musical, Covergirl, Under Armour, and more. Her hobbies include songwriting, meditation, theater, mentoring, and book publishing. Her latest projects include Permanently On Vacation, Back At It Again, Something From Nunu, and Bella’s Secret Closet.

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1.) What elements and/or characteristics made you say to yourself that you wanted to do music for a living? Who are your influences/heroes/role models?

I was an awkward kid growing up and didn’t fit in. I just wanted to belong to something creative, and music chose me. Other artists embraced me, and we stood together. My grandmother is my hero, & I’m influenced by the entire music community made up of many genres.

2.) If you could compare yourself to an already established artist, who would that be and why? If you don’t like to compare yourself, then music-wise, what separates you from other musicians?

I connect to music emotionally and think outside of the box. I can perform to any crowd and completely be myself.

3.) Everyone in life goes through adversity of some sort. Is there anything in your life that has any influence on the kind of songs you write? What is the most difficult thing you’ve had to endure on your path to becoming a musician?

Losing my dad has been very difficult for me growing up as a young woman who wants her daddy wondering what life would’ve been like if he was around. A lot of my music at a young age started out so angry because I felt alone. I’ve opened up and softened things up a bit since then. I hope my fans understand the different emotions.

4.) How do you prepare yourself to write certain songs? What is your song-writing and recording process?

My process has varied over the 20+ years I’ve been writing, but I think I have a solid routine now! I start off with the instrumental, freestyle to it on my voice memos a few times (mostly for the melody and natural flow), write down the lines that makes sense during playback, and then I fill in the blanks. I love to record myself if the option is available.

5.) Unfortunately the music industry is full of talented individuals who just don’t get any recognition for their talent and/or hard work. What do you plan to do to make sure you stand out and get noticed? Would you rather be on a major label or would you rather stay independent? Why or why not? In regards to the music industry itself, do you think that the traditional music industry model as we know it is dead?

Social media does wonders for music, and I am so thankful computers have always been a big part of my life! I want to stay independent, grow my label, and help other artists make their own way to whatever their end goals may be. It really does take a lot to stand out, but that’s the beauty of it! It is my job to figure out what works, grow my network, show love to my fans, look, act, feel, and think like an artist who’s about business.

6.) Are you able to make a living with your music? If so, how were you able to attain a career doing what you love? If not, what do you do in order to fund your music career? What advice would give to someone who’s interested in pursuing a career in music?

Pursuing a career in music is difficult but absolutely not impossible. I was told that I would never make it to this point, and look at me now! I was told so many bad things, and I persevered. I believe that is what’s important. If it means the world to you, you keep going, and you keep learning new stuff every day including yourself. Then find out what the people want. What actually sells? It definitely takes more than just the music so be prepared for the ride of your life! It’s also nice to have business going on in other areas. So save yourself the depression, and don’t be that unmotivated person depending solely on music just hoping that it will all work out. Let’s sit down to figure out why it’s not working. Let’s revise our plan. In the meantime, why not work for another business that you truly believe in or gives you leverage? Use that income to invest into your music promotion so you can start seeing the results you really want! Save, save, save. Invest, invest, invest!

7.) How do you think the internet and social media affected the music industry and how musicians are able to market themselves? Social media is obviously an extremely important element in today’s world, especially when it comes to business, branding, marketing, etc. With that being said, do you think an artist will be able to survive in today’s music industry if they’re not social media savvy?

Social media is very important. However, an artist can survive without being social media or even tech savvy! It takes good old fashioned hard work and persistence. The right artist will have a great presence, plenty of personality, a lot of interactions offline, and a great team to do the social media for them.

8.) Artists who try to make music for the general public and make more money are usually seen as “sell-outs.” Do you see it that way and if so, what do you plan to do to make sure your music stays true to your brand and make a good living at the same time without having to “sell out”?

First and foremost, I make the music that I like and want to listen to. I am a strong songwriter with plenty of story to tell. I hope everyone likes my music, but I know that isn’t always the case. I can only stay true to myself and the fans who genuinely love my art. Of course I want to make a living with my music, and I hope it all balances out the bigger I get.

9.) Professionally, where do you see yourself 5 years from now?

A principal actress making a lot of million dollar movies lol. I started off as background so it would be a pretty big deal. I want to grow my charities and my business ventures. I also see myself as one of the most influential and respected in the industry without question. Are you with me? Let’s change the world 🙂