Rapsody Opens Up About Almost Giving Up Music: 'It's Hard To Be Who I Am In The Business'

Rapsody may have bars for days, but she admits that she’s contemplated leaving music behind at times.

Sitting down with Hot 97’s TT Torres in an interview published on Wednesday (December 20), the North Carolina native opened up about the struggle she’s felt in the past to cut through the noise of the music industry.

“It wasn’t hard to be myself [on my new album], but it’s hard to be who I am in the music business and feel that people care or there’s space for you or people value you just as much as they value somebody who may be more entertaining,” she admitted. “It’s hard to want to continue the journey and that was a real thought for me. I said it in ‘Asteroids‘ – ‘I almost went ghost like Lauryn.'”

She continued: “It was a thought, like maybe it’s just done for me. I don’t know if people really care. But you know, I love what I do and I had to realize the value is not in the numbers, the followers, the accolades the Grammys, this award, that award, platinum plaques. It’s in my impact on people. And that’s what’s like, yo there’s space for me. I don’t need all those other things to validate me.”

Rapsody’s new album, which is expected soon, will be her first body of work since 2019’s Eve, which featured appearances from J. Cole, Queen Latifah, JID, GZA, D’Angelo and more.

Talking to Torres about the new effort, the Jamla artist revealed she took a bit of a new approach.

“With this album, I wasn’t as focused on what I’m necessarily known for – being lyrical and all these metaphors and similes,” she said. “It’s going to come out naturally when it does, but it wasn’t a focus. I was focused on being more profound this time. Because especially like as a woman, I would love to be a representation for women and speak for women and have a connection with women.”

She continued: “I always thought my bigger fanbase would be women but it’s not, so it was a self-reflection of, ‘Okay, what’s my disconnect? What can I grow in to have a better connection with my sisters musically?’ And so it was like, yo, just be profound.”

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In October, Rapsody shared a teaser video for the album narrated by her “BFF” Darin Michelle, who sings the praises of the upcoming work.

“I just listened to your album again on the way home from the Badu concert,” Michelle said in the video. “And I just — I just needed to say that that shit is so special. It’s so, so, so special. It is like your heart on wax, and I just wanted you to know how special it is. And that’s it.”

“The hardest step she ever took was to blindly trust in who she was.” Album done,” Rapsody wrote in the caption.