Initially making her rap debut on Three 6 Mafia’s original Mystic Stylezalbum, La Chat has been known as one of the most underrated emcees to emerge from Memphis. Though she wouldn’t gain national exposure until that particular scene stealing verse on Project Pat’s “Chickenhead,” there’s been a level of consistency that’s worked well for Ms. Chasity Daniels.
Starting with her debut album and local classic Murder She Spoke, La Chat has been the definition of gangsta rap with a female lean. Favorites including “A Crumb 2 A Brick” and “Slob On My Knob” response “Slob On My Cat” have become Southern Hip Hop staples in their own rights. Makes sense considering her association with Hypnotize Minds.
Several mixtapes and albums later, she’s back with a sequel to Murder She Spoke through Murder She Spoke 2. Essentially a return to form for La Chat, it’s everything fans should expect from the “U Aint Mad Iz Ya” rapper. Of course, Murder She Spoke 2coincides with the release of her larger presence on Watch What U Wish from rebranded Three 6 Mafia outlet Da Mafia Six•
La Chat Explains Acting in “Choices” & “Murder She Spoke 2”
DX:2001 was essentially your breakout year within Memphis Hip Hop. You had the “Chicken Head” verse with Project Pat and then the underrated classic Murder She Spoke. What exactly was going on with you personally and professionally?
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La Chat:I was being an independent artist, grinding, and going to talent shows and beasting talent shows. I was a good dancer too, going to dance contests and all of that. Just getting my name around locally. You know, I was also in the streets a little bit but I was more of a rapper than anything. By the time DJ Paul and Juicy J found me, I was at my hungriest peak and I’m still there.
DX:Around that time you had a significant acting role in the film Choices. What did you think about your role in the film?
La Chat:Aww, man. I never had a clue that I would be acting and everyone would love the role because really, I was being me. While we were filming it, like the room would be quiet but when I started acting everyone would get to laugh. I was like what’s so funny? It was so fun. As a matter of fact, we were in L.A. some of the time filming just as much as Memphis. It was very fun and I loved it.
DX:When exactly did you find your footing in your style as an artist?
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La Chat:I’ve always been comfortable with it because I just did me. I really didn’t know how the streets or the industry was going to accept me. I feel like I’ve always been the underdog and I always say the underdog gotta come out from under one day. When she come out, she still going to be humble. At the end of the day, I just be me and give it to them real. I represent the struggle. Even as hood as I am, when people come to my house, people won’t believe that my house and ride is so nice. At the end of the day, I still speak from the heart. There’s women out here who are struggling, there are women out here who are hustling. It is single mothers out here who are playing the momma and daddy roles and got to get down and dirty to take care of their business. That’s just what they do. You can move up out the hood but you still can’t take the thoughts of what you’ve been through and did away. You might have moved forward, but there are still females out here that did what you use to do or known for doing.
DX:How exactly do you move forward as an artist, but keep day one fans satisfied with Murder She Spoke 2?
La Chat:I dropped a couple of albums between then and now but I knew how much the streets loved Murder She Spoke and figured Murder She Spoke 2would grab them more. Some people might compare them, but it doesn’t matter because they’re both me. You know how people do. Some people may say one is better than the other but it’s just La Chat and I’m still speaking murder.
DX:This is a personal question for me. On Da Hood Homegirlalbum you straight snapped on the “Bad Bitch” track. What place does that project have in your entire catalogue?
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La Chat:Man, I love that album. One of my other favorite projects was the Dramatized project. I loved Da Hood Homegirl, Murder She Spoke and Dramatized. I love the other ones but those are my top three. Wait, wait; Murder She Spoke 2 is my top one now though.
DX:One of the most noticeable things was that you never put your sexuality at the forefront of your music. Was that a conscious decision or just natural?
La Chat:I just figured that they should already know that I’m too hard. My sexuality is straight on the real, just to let everybody know. A bitch can’t do nothing for me, they too soft. I don’t trust bitches, period; point blank. You too weak minded. I don’t fuck with them. Y’all will get me set up, hurt and killed. I don’t like bitches.
[Laughter]
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DX:Understandable. Talk about your time growing up in Memphis. Who is Chastity Daniels?
La Chat: My life as Chastity Daniels. Well, you know I’m an Aries, which means I’m stubborn and bullheaded. We’re rams. We always try to do too much. We always like the attention and do whatever we gotta do. In school, I was well known as the new student who fit in like they were the old student. The streets loved me. I was always known as an outgoing person. Everywhere I went before the rap game, folks loved me. I was the typical child that had a good mom and stepdad as my biological dad died when I was eleven. [I] Really was the.. I didn’t have to be in the streets type chick, but I was one of those hardheaded mutha’fuckas who had to just get in them.
[Laughter]
You know I had a baby daddy and we had the child together when I was 19-years-old but I was still in the streets. I was thirteen or fourteen-years-old but still in the streets. I ended up being a street chick. That’s normally how street chicks end up being street chicks, by learning from a street dude. It just doesn’t happen that way:, good girls just don’t turn bad. Just like I got the “Good Girl Gone Bad” track on Murder She Spoke 2. They just don’t jump bad, that happens through learning experiences. I got out there. I didn’t do no whoring but I did some hustling and toted a couple of units. I’m licensed to carry but I’m stuck to toting pistols and I love guns now. In the streets of Memphis, you got to have them.
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DX: Have a favorite gun?
La Chat:Yeah, a 38.
DX:Oh yes! Good choice.
La Chat:That’s my favorite even though I take my nine with me everywhere but I love a 38•
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La Chat Discusses Motherhood & “Witch” Project With Gangsta Boo
DX: Wait, you have a child?
La Chat: Yup, he just turned 18-years-old.
DX: How does your child feel about the role you played in Memphis Hip Hop?
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La Chat: The crazy part about it is that he never wanted it. To be honest, he’s a street boy now. I have to tell him, he can’t do certain things because I’m his mother. Everybody knows I’m his mother, everybody doesn’t know the mothers that he rolls with. I guess you can’t take it out of him but at the same time, he’s happy that I’m his mother and he will kill someone about it. He ain’t gone play about me. Growing up, we’d go places and they’d shut the mall down for us. They’d shut the mall down because I was in there. He never wanted it. In fact, I tried to put him in the music business and he never wanted it. He know that I’m about what I talk about. He’s been the passenger in the things I’ve talked about.
DX: You made your debut on Three 6 Mafia’s Mystic Stylez album on the title track. Could you explain the Memphis Hip Hop around that time and that project’s impact on the scene?
La Chat: It was real grimy, hood, raw. That’s all we knew. It was kill a mutha fucka, shoot a mutha fucka, stuff him in a body bag and bury you in the dirt. That’s all Memphis wanted to hear period. When we dropped that Mystic Stylez, it just took off and blew everyone away.
DX: What’s your wildest memory during Hypnotized Minds?
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La Chat: My wildest memory was when we dropped “Chicken Head.” Plus, I was working a job as well. I came from being a street chick to working a job which was a big experience for me and I’m a mother. All of a sudden, “Chicken Head” came out and changed my life and I still never changed. We was doing talk shows and all sorts of things. It broke me out and my life ain’t been the same ever since.
DX: Last year you did the Witch collaboration with Gangsta Boo. What took that so long to come into fruition and any thoughts on the reception?
La Chat: I guess it the timing. She always had things going on and I always had things going on. We bumped heads a lot but we never had time to record an album together. We finally got it done last year. The title is Witch but it really stand for bitch so all yall who think it’s about some evil ass shit. nah. We some witches but we some bitches and we kept that shit real and gangsta. We really didn’t have to take from each other because Boo is Boo and I’m Chat. Our chemistry is good together because when you put the beat on, she’s going to say what she say and I’m going to say what I say. We put it together and we make magic.
DX: Why do you think it’s so hard for females to do collaborative projects like that?
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La Chat: Because females think it’s always about competition, they don’t look at it as a hustle or a way to eat. They have to be hustling. It’s not about competition or being the top bitch or best bitch. It’s about eating and making money. It was about showing niggas that females could get together. Males get together and make collaborative projects all the time and make hits. They eating and touring off that shit. But bitches, just like I told you, I don’t like them. They always want to be in competition with each other. It’s always a competition game with them. That’s why they go out and get the fake booty and tities so they can look the best. At the end of the day, they mind don’t change. You can change everything about you but if your mind ain’t strong you ain’t change shit.
La Chat Talks Greatest Memory With Lord Infamous Before His Death & Working on “Watch What You Wish”
DX: Where were you when you heard the news of Lord Infamous’ death and talk about your relationship with him?
La Chat: Like I tell everyone, Lord Infamous was the funniest guy in the world. If you was sad, crying or whatever, all you had to do was get with Lord and he was going to make you laugh. There will never be another Lord Infamous. If people just got to know him. Sure, he had his flaws like everyone else. He got high but who don’t get high. A lot of people get high. At the end of the day, he was a good guy and when we lost him, we lost a piece of our soul. I know I did for one. He was a good, great guy. I was at home sleep when I heard the news. I got the phone call and I couldn’t believe it. I wanted to go back to sleep and wake up again because it was so unbelieveable. You know they buried him, we had the wake and he looked good. He looked like he was asleep and at peace.
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DX: Do you have a favorite moment with him ?
La Chat: Alright, Ooooh!! Alright. We were out of town one time and at the hotel. You know Computer from Adventures In Hollyhood? One day, me and Lord Infamous was like we’re going to break into Computer’s room because he left his door unlocked. So what we did was break into his room and ramshacked it. We threw all his clothes in the tub and tore the whole room up. By the time he came back to our rooms, went to the show and came back like nothing had happened. Man, Computer looked like he was about to have a stroke. He was like someone broke into my room. I think he had to get another room and all that. So the next day, we were on the tour bus and everybody was talking about how someone broke in Computer’s room. So Infamous was laughing so hard about it that he ended up telling the truth. Like we almost gave Computer a heart attack. It was so funny because we went through his suitcase and everything. It was all Ricky’s idea. I know Computer was mad.
[Laughter]
DX: From your perspective, what lead the dismantling of Three 6 Mafia to the rebranding of Da Mafia 6ix?
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La Chat: I couldn’t believe it either. I never thought we would be back with each other working again. Paul said Lord Infamous would have wanted this. Me and Lord kept working even after Da Mafia Six project. I was never in the group and really was a solo artist. You’d see Three 6 Mafia featuring La Chat or Da Mafia 6ix featuring La Chat but I was just an artist on the label. For me to be so involved now with the project is a blessing for me.
DX: You have a nice presence on Da Mafia 6ix’s Watch What U Wish. How did you end up getting involved the way you were on the project?
La Chat: Well you the group was down a little bit. DJ Paul and Boo were having their problems and Lord Infamous passed away. He had to have that fill-in so he called me. I’m sure I would have been a part of the project anyway but not as much. I was never a part of the group as I was a solo artist. It was just that me and DJ Paul were close when we were around each other. I was more a part of the project due to the places that had to be filled.
