December 19, 2024 • 55 mins
Somaya Reece defied all the odds and took her future into her own hands. Somaya shares how she went from being a runaway kid groomed by an older man, to launching her own modeling career and making Latina History, all on her own terms despite experiencing some heavy TRAUMA which includes her son dying in her arms after being unalived by his own father.
We dive into her rise as a reality star, model, actress, musical artist, and influencer who’s made waves in the industry for decades.
Somaya’s story is one of grit, hustle, and unapologetic ambition—a true blueprint for turning dreams into reality.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:02):
Gracias Come Again a podcast by Honey German. Today, we're
thrilled to have a guest who's not only a powerhouse
in the entertainment industry, but also a true entrepreneur and
a massive inspiration. With over thirty one million views and
more than eight hundred and sixty five thousand friends, she
was the first Latin artist on my Space who successfully
(00:23):
proved to be a viral marketing powerhouse. From her early
days on Love and Hip Hop New York to building
a successful career as a music artist, model actress, and
an empire with her health and Wellness brand. Our guest
has continuously reinvented herself. She's a force to be reckoned
with and her journey from a ten year old runaway
to being one of the only latinas with a Pepsi
commercial alongside the likes of Gloria, A, Stefan and Shakira.
(00:46):
Get ready for an inspiring conversation with one strong Salvadorina.
So let's get into it. Please welcome the multi talented
Somayares bim.
Speaker 2 (00:55):
Benida bim Beniva will sare is Ya.
Speaker 1 (01:00):
Today we are talking with Somayaris. So Maya, where are
your people? From. Let's start from the beginning. Not every
single listener. You know, it's going to know of the
bat who I am speaking to every single time, and
I want them to experience who you are thoroughly. Where
are your people from? When I ask where are your
people from? What do you think?
Speaker 3 (01:18):
Thank you? Well?
Speaker 2 (01:19):
Our people you know Latina okay for Latina aside from obvious,
I'm Salvadorian in yeah, yeah, from you know, with the
Afra Latino roots, we are people that are hard workers,
are triumphant, we are amazing. We build from scratch and
(01:44):
we make it happen by all means necessary.
Speaker 3 (01:48):
That's where my people are from.
Speaker 1 (01:49):
A word has been spoken right now. I always knew
you were Subdorian. Now Afro Latino roots from your dad.
Break that down for me. Tell me how you got
your aff Latina routes.
Speaker 3 (02:01):
Yes.
Speaker 2 (02:02):
So my father was abandoned as a child, so he
never knew his father. He was so pass forward, was
you know, kind of told us what he looked like.
And you know, as much as she knew about him.
When she told him that she was pregnant, he was
(02:22):
like peace out and he left her. So he came
around many many years after my father said he was
about like five, so he doesn't have a major recollection
of him. So I asked my father if he would
be open to doing a DNA journey, both to help
him close a chapter. We'll open a chapter and also
close it because there's only so much he knew. And
(02:44):
through our DNA journey, Wow, I found out a lot
of things that now makes sense because I look nothing
like my Salvadorian family. They're all short indigenous lahiraa.
Speaker 3 (02:56):
I'm really really tall. Look. Oh see, so you do
on that for sure.
Speaker 2 (03:06):
So what we found out through that is that we
are very very high indigenous African, heavy African. And of
course there's all the other little tidbits, but those were
the two major roles there. And my father was really
excited because he was like, oh my god, Yeah, he
doesn't know a lot about his roots except the small
(03:27):
little bits and pieces from when he was five.
Speaker 3 (03:30):
So this was a.
Speaker 2 (03:30):
Really amazing emotional journey for us. My father is very
very religious, so he was kind of a little bit like,
I don't know if this is the right thing to do.
God made us a certain way, this is what we know,
and I'm like, Daddy, listen, So she small, so I
need to know. But no, you know, I just told him,
(03:51):
like Daddy, you know, it's really important for me, especially
because my father has a terminal illness unfortunately, and before
he goes, I want to know everything, everything and anything
that he can tell me that we can find out together.
Speaker 3 (04:06):
And that's how that came about.
Speaker 2 (04:08):
But I've always known that, we just didn't confirm it
with DNA, And it makes all the sense in the world.
Now if you like kind of knew me and my family,
and even if you didn't, and you saw the two sides,
like my grandmother looks very different than my other grandmother,
and you could tell there's heavy Afro indigenous roots on
(04:28):
this side and there's heavy just indigenous roots Salvadorian from
this side. And they we went further into detail and
we found out more about our roots and we are
on the Subadian indigenous side from one of the original
you know, tribes, And it just makes.
Speaker 3 (04:47):
All the sense in the world.
Speaker 2 (04:48):
And you know, I even if I was from Mars,
I would still love myself and still you know, I
grew up Salvadorian and I grew up Latina, and it's
just a wonderful thing to kind of tie things together and.
Speaker 3 (05:00):
It makes sense.
Speaker 1 (05:01):
No, it just it just feels good to know your
DNA composition. I did it myself, and it's great because
I've always like I'm Dominican, I'm Dominican, I'm Dominican. It
came back. It was like I was mostly Portuguese and African.
I was like one percent Dominican. But you know what,
I kind of like always knew that because my grandmother
on my dad's side, black woman, was so I already
(05:21):
knew that after Latino aspect was there, Like I have
a picture of her carrying me and she's like one
hundred percent of black woman, but she's a Dominican. And
then Maa Walita my mom's side, indigenous Dominican Indigenous. But
once I got the numbers, it just felt good. And
you know, sometimes when people want to deny us a
certain area of our identity, yeah, I know, having it
on paper, it's just like, well look what I have.
Speaker 3 (05:41):
Yeah, well you take that away from me, no more
at all.
Speaker 2 (05:44):
And that's wonderful that you did that, because you know,
it's like a it's like opening a new chapter and
almost giving you answers, which is not really technically closing
a chapter, but it gives you that like confirmation that
you may have always known inside as well.
Speaker 1 (05:58):
No for sure, and as latinas It's like where made
up of so many different you know.
Speaker 3 (06:01):
Oh yeah, it's like.
Speaker 2 (06:05):
See simos Oka and I love that.
Speaker 1 (06:10):
Now I want to go a little bit back into
your growing up. Where did you grow up?
Speaker 3 (06:14):
I grew up?
Speaker 2 (06:15):
I was born and raised in South Central? Yeah, I
was born and raised in California. I was born and
raised in South Central primarily, you know, in different parts
of it because when I was ten years old, I
actually ran away from home because of a toxic household,
and I raised myself since I was ten, and I
lived in different parts of the hood and it was
(06:36):
very difficult. But you don't realize the struggles that you're
going through because that's all you know ten years old,
so maya, yeah, ten years old. I've been on my
own since then, and it was a very difficult journey,
very traumatizing.
Speaker 3 (06:49):
Very healing.
Speaker 2 (06:50):
Now, which will be we'll get to that later, but
it will reflect on all of my new Latin records
that I have coming out, where I am pouring out
my entire story on a record. It's very truth bound
opens up some doors that maybe people might not have
known about me. But yeah, I was raised in a
household where unfortunately, my father had very heavy alcohol demons
(07:13):
and my mother, you know, she wasn't loved correctly, so
she couldn't love me correctly as a daughter.
Speaker 3 (07:19):
And that was a lot for me.
Speaker 2 (07:22):
And something in my spirit told me I should I don't.
Speaker 1 (07:26):
Belong here because did you go? I need to know,
because I like to know details, like where did you
run that day?
Speaker 2 (07:33):
So I packed up my bag, my little backpack, and
I literally slept in a trap house and I was
sleeping in top houses and I didn't realize how dangerous
it was. I slept in trap houses, I slept in shelters,
and I always looked older. So this was a major
(07:54):
advantage from me. So when I went to a shelter,
I lied and I said I was eighteen. I was
fully developed when I was nine. When on yes, girl, body, body.
Speaker 1 (08:06):
Which is so dangerous, It is very dangerous, and it's
something it's something that happens to a lot of us
latinas you know, and we become prey.
Speaker 2 (08:21):
Yeah, oh absolutely, And part of my story is that
I was preyed on and I was groomed. When I
was you know, on the streets, I was dodging and
fighting to stay alive, to.
Speaker 3 (08:36):
Not be violated.
Speaker 1 (08:37):
To Wow, your story of survival started early.
Speaker 3 (08:41):
Yeah, it's it's uh.
Speaker 2 (08:43):
It's something that I often speak about because I believe
that God allowed me to live, to be a vessel
to bring hope to not only young girls, but to people,
because if I can make it, anybody can. And I'm
not saying that it was easy. I do not come
from rich parents, I do not come from any sort
of help. In fact, my entire career, I can say
there's a very small circle of people that have wanted
(09:06):
the best for me from their heart and that have
not wanted from me. And when I was young, unfortunately,
you know, I didn't know any better, and I was
groomed and I had a baby, and the pos father
left me, and then he came back around and did
something really horrific and my son was murdered, and that
(09:29):
change my entire live and that just made me really
resilient aware that hypervigilant. Yeah, it made me hyper vigilant,
which I realized later on manifested into really bad things
that I had to heal from anger.
Speaker 3 (09:46):
You know, I wouldn't show it, you know, but in the.
Speaker 2 (09:48):
Inside distrust anger it manifests into you know, you don't
realize how things can manifest.
Speaker 3 (09:54):
Later on in your life.
Speaker 2 (09:55):
And I have always been someone that I have to
I know that I have no one. I've always never
had anyone except my father is the only person that
like really had my back. But unfortunately, like my mom
ran the household, so I couldn't find him. I couldn't
look for him because I couldn't go back home. And
so now, you know, I've realized that from all of
(10:19):
the things that I went through, I still have a
lot of love in my heart. But at the same time,
I'm also very, very careful, aware and strong.
Speaker 3 (10:28):
I wish, I don't wish.
Speaker 2 (10:30):
I hope that some of the narratives change in this respect.
Speaker 3 (10:35):
You know.
Speaker 2 (10:35):
I understand some people will say, well, it's because of
what you went through you're so strong. But I don't
want people to continue to have to go through so
much trauma to become strong. This narrative has to change someday.
Speaker 3 (10:47):
It definitely does, and it probably.
Speaker 2 (10:50):
Won't because you know, this is what it is, and
it does make people champions, and it definitely made me.
Speaker 3 (10:57):
You know, grow up really fast.
Speaker 2 (10:59):
So I've always to kind of fight for my own
I've never had the privilege of being you know, I
wasn't raised like, oh, I'm a pretty girl and I
can get away with things that I can do this
and I can do that. I grew up like with
my father and my brother. My brother taught me how
to fight. My dad taught me how to fight. So
I had to always kind of fight for mine But
it gets exhausting. It's exhausting, and so for now I
(11:21):
like to discuss my story, tell my people that yes,
sometimes we do have to go through some things to
make us who we are. I mean, if we don't
have to go through that, and if there's any way
you can protect your child, if you have a little
girl or a little boy, protect.
Speaker 1 (11:36):
Them, so you know the change is gonna happen with us.
You know us a lot of our parents Latino parents.
We're immigrants. Yes, you didn't speak the language.
Speaker 2 (11:48):
You know.
Speaker 1 (11:49):
The finances were a problem. You know, they turned to drugs,
they turned to alcohol, especially in the eighties and the nineties.
I'm not making excuses for them, but I have a
very tumultuous relationship with my own. But when I think back,
I'm like, she was a single mom in Harlem and
she didn't speak the language, and we were bad kids,
and I don't pardon her. But then I see the
(12:10):
struggle that she went through that I am currently not going.
And then I'm like, Okay, this is what led to
verbal abuse, physical abuse, you know, just her not being happy,
my dad not being around because he wasn't happy with her.
So I'm like, it's very different from like, let's say, me,
are you being born here, having citizenship, being able to work,
being able to speak the language. And it's like, I
(12:31):
don't want to excuse our parents for their behavior, but
they had such another layer of like difficulty that we
don't have. So I am just super like hopeful that
we will be able to make changes when it comes to,
you know, the future, you know, because we're not going
to have those barriers, which are big barriers if you
(12:51):
think about it.
Speaker 2 (12:52):
Like they are they are. And I've had this discussion
with my mom because I have tried to help her heal,
but okay, she's not ready. And you know, I chose
for a long time.
Speaker 1 (13:04):
Oh yeah, I can imagine.
Speaker 2 (13:06):
And I just knew it was eating me up inside
and it wasn't allowing me to move forward to be happy.
So I made the decision to forgive her. But forgiving
somebody it doesn't mean that you can still allow them
to kind of walk all over you. I forgive her
because she had it very hard.
Speaker 3 (13:27):
You know.
Speaker 2 (13:27):
She also was not loved correctly, so she does not
know how to love. I don't know what it's like
to have mother and daughter relationship at all, So I
don't miss it because I don't even know what it's like,
you know. But for me, it's like I show up
in a space for everyone in the respect of like
I give the love that I wish that I had.
Speaker 1 (13:48):
And you see, that's what I'm talking about making. You're
making the change. And it's just like, no, we can't
change what already happened, but we can change what's happening now.
Speaker 2 (13:57):
Yeah, it's like and I get it. And I told
my mom, mom Oh, you tried, but Mommy, I'll be like, you.
Speaker 3 (14:03):
Want to be bitter forever. You want to be this
way forever, Mommy, you don't want to be happy.
Speaker 1 (14:09):
I feel I feel, you know, it is hard, and
I feel like sometimes Latina moms tend to become so
like hard and it's like their whole life is like, oh,
well I had to do this. I had to be hard,
I had to be tough.
Speaker 3 (14:21):
But you don't have to be that way anymore. Mom,
exactly be that way anymore, like you have.
Speaker 2 (14:28):
Between me and my sisters, we help take care of
her as best we can.
Speaker 3 (14:33):
My mom.
Speaker 2 (14:34):
You know, I'm not saying she has an easy life,
because of course she has her own personal traumas. But
at this point in age, I will give you one
example that really changed my perspective of how I know
people can change.
Speaker 3 (14:47):
I have this one aunt who used to be hard. Boy.
Like I thought my mom was tough, this lady was
really really harda. Oh it's Satiya. She's the one. You
could still be scared of her, but you're now forward.
Speaker 2 (15:01):
She has made the most insane effort to change and
heal and see things in a different light that I
know it's possible. And I know it's possible.
Speaker 1 (15:16):
I mean Mom's sister, Oh yeah, so have you left
that man?
Speaker 3 (15:20):
Yeah? She she's tried.
Speaker 2 (15:21):
She tries, and my mom is a good person at heart,
and she has all these wonderful qualities, but I think
that the pain that lives inside of her is very
difficult for her. And I know that, and I can
acknowledge that. It doesn't mean that I'm going to allow
her or anyone to step all over me, but I
do get it, and I have now that I can
(15:43):
accept that, because I before I couldn't accept that. I
was like, but you're my mom, How could you have
let me, you know, run away?
Speaker 3 (15:49):
And like you did you look for me? Did you
even want me?
Speaker 2 (15:52):
You said all these main things to me growing up
and even as an adult.
Speaker 3 (15:56):
But once I saw things from her eyes, like my
mom never really had a backbone.
Speaker 2 (16:01):
My father was an alcoholic, you know, he tried to change,
but he didn't change until his later years. And she
had the difficulty of you know, bringing all her children
from Esalvador through all the valleys almost dehydrating.
Speaker 1 (16:16):
WWI that in hisself is trauma.
Speaker 2 (16:33):
So I understand why she is how she is. But
I also believe that anyone can change. I really want to,
and I know that because I've done it for myself
in certain places in my life.
Speaker 3 (16:44):
So I love I.
Speaker 2 (16:46):
Just tell her, like, Mom, I love you, and that's
all I can say. I'm not your doormat anymore. I
am just freeing myself of the rencor and I am
going to give everybody the love that I didn't get
and for the people that appreciate it, like I believe,
very very much, go where you are celebrated.
Speaker 3 (17:06):
Not where you are tolerated.
Speaker 1 (17:08):
Amen.
Speaker 3 (17:09):
And that's it.
Speaker 1 (17:10):
And I love the fact that you're like me. I
forgive because I don't want that weight of hating or
being mad at anyone brings about. So it's like it's
weight it is, and it's just like, you know what,
I don't know why they I had to do. Mapisote
(17:30):
is nothing like that. And I'm with you on that
one hundred percent, you know. But I understand that, you know,
relationships with mama's Latinas they can be very complex, but
deep down inside I know they want the best for us,
you know, and for all the moms you know that
are listening. Thank you for all you do, Thanks for
raising us, thanks for giving us life.
Speaker 3 (17:48):
You know.
Speaker 1 (17:48):
My mother calls me and she's like, yeah, I'm just
calling to remind you that you wouldn't be on this
earth if it wasn't because of me. I'm like, all right, bendy,
you on, mommy bye, have a nice thank you. But
that's a Latina mom thing to do, you know what
I'm say. And it's just like the guilt, the constant
reminder you are who I am because of me, or
you're here because of me. It's just, you know, something
that they just can't help themselves. And I know, deep
(18:10):
down inside a lot of us that have these you know,
tumultuous relationships with Latina moms. You know, I know deep
down inside they wish it was different.
Speaker 3 (18:17):
But yeah, it's like they can't.
Speaker 2 (18:21):
Yeah, I can tell you, like I can go on
and on about this subject because I have identified a
lot of the things that again, she is the way
she is, And I've had these conversations with other women
as well, and it's like, hey, we always come to
the conclusion, are we all live in with the same mom?
Speaker 3 (18:41):
Like we don't the same mom?
Speaker 1 (18:48):
What is it fraternal twins?
Speaker 3 (18:50):
Yeah, it's exact though, you know.
Speaker 2 (18:52):
And for me the only difference is that, like I
raised myself since I was ten, so that's early. Nobody
can say, oh I did this for you or I helped, No,
you didn't.
Speaker 3 (19:02):
I fed myself.
Speaker 2 (19:04):
I did things for myself and I had to fend
for myself and so therefore for me, you know, knowing
now that it was difficult for myself as well, you know,
my empathy runs a little deeper now. But again, I
will not be a doormat because uh, I have learned
the power of saying no. You know, if I if
(19:25):
my mom were to call me and say something like that,
I'm like, uh uh bye, I'm not I'm not sorry, mommy,
not today, not tomorrow, like I love you coming with
You're feeling better because we do have to set a boundary.
And I know that in our culture it's like considered
disrespectful if if you set a boundary.
Speaker 3 (19:41):
But that has to change.
Speaker 1 (19:43):
Oh, it has changing, that is true. I don't tolerate.
Like I tell my mom, I will have a relationship
with you, but it will not be toxic at all.
And you know what, she has different relationships with I
have five siblings. They all have different relationships. They like, oh, mammy, mammy,
And I'm.
Speaker 3 (19:59):
Like, because girl, you don't know.
Speaker 1 (20:01):
Also because I stop it somehi. When I call my mom,
I'm like, if she wants to go off, I'm like, no,
one want to say this. She has birds. She enjoys
birds every time she lives in Florida. When I go,
(20:26):
I buy her.
Speaker 2 (20:26):
So I'm like, no, but you know, it's it's better
that you do that also for yourself, because you it's
important that you do that for your mental health as well.
Speaker 1 (20:40):
It is only for my mental health that I do.
You have to understand that, Yeah, you.
Speaker 2 (20:46):
You have to and you know and I know that,
Like there's different perspectives of things, you know, Like when
I talked to my aunt about this, she's like, well,
she's like you should set your boundary and you know,
if she's acting up, just hang up, know, and just like, hey, Mom,
let's talk another time. And I just think it's very
silly that at their age. Right now, I'm like, mom,
why are you? What is wrong with you? Bro?
Speaker 1 (21:09):
I'm like Toina sitting the hi yah. And now that
you know I know this about you, I'm even more
impressed at the level of success that you have been
able to reach.
Speaker 3 (21:23):
It's because.
Speaker 1 (21:25):
How did you do this? Like how did you know?
How did you start? Like what was first for you?
Was it modeling the first thing? It's like I have
you no, no, what was the first step towards you
becoming samairies, you know, know public figures.
Speaker 2 (21:42):
So I always so when I was six years old.
I grew up in a landin household. Obviously we're hearing
Celia Cruz. You know, la musicam is something that I
always love to do. So I asked my dad. I
knew to ask my dad and not my mom because
(22:02):
my mom would say no. So I asked my dad,
dadd yet, I want to join chorus in school, and
I want to join like a class to play an instrument.
I originally wanted to play the piano and the flute,
but that class was full and the only instrument they
had was the violin. Okay, and I joined chorus. So
I also did it as a means of getting out
(22:24):
of my home for a few hours per day because
some of the programs were in the evenings and in
the after school, so it was like my escape. I
always wanted to be an actress and a singer. I
didn't know that there was actually employment from that. I
just saw when I would see people on TV. I'm like,
all right, I love that. I want to do that.
(22:45):
And so I actually was in the Highly Gifted program
at six years old. At seven, turning Steven and I
went into the highly Gifted program, but I think that
you know, they also call it like it's like the charter,
the Charter program. And I was able to take an
art class performing arts theater very very young, and so
(23:05):
that's what I wanted to do. And then my dreams
kind of took a back road when I left my
house when I was eighteen years old. I grew up
cleaning houses with my mom and almost you know cibientas
you know up at India Cocina because of Limpia, cocinataente Ginga.
Speaker 3 (23:22):
You know, white people that we would clean their houses,
rich people. And so when I was eighteen, I met
a girl that was like.
Speaker 2 (23:29):
You know, you speak English, like you should get a
job at the hotels and if you work for days
a week you can get health benefits and you know,
you can make more money so that you can get
an apartment.
Speaker 3 (23:43):
And I went to work for a hotel.
Speaker 2 (23:46):
And at this hotel, when I was cleaning every day,
somebody would tell me are you a model? Are you
an actress part time? And I'd be like no, but
I want to be right every daily piano.
Speaker 3 (24:02):
What I didn't I did it.
Speaker 2 (24:04):
I just I know I wanted to do it, but
I'm like, so live in the hood, you know, like
I don't know anyone. And I then got a because
I knew how to speak English, I got a part time.
Speaker 1 (24:15):
I love the fact that you said because I knew
how to speak English. It's so crazy. How like how
do people understand? Like like how are people or like
we're blessed? Like wow, did you speak English?
Speaker 3 (24:27):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (24:28):
And I think we understand that Latino's right and or
as an immigrant, as any immigrant, I learned English. So
I got a part time working in the front desk
and then a part time cleaning the rooms. So somebody
gave me their business card, and of course I'm from
the hood. I'm very distrusting, so I'm like, m I
(24:48):
don't know. Yeah, I'm like, so I sat on this
business card and it was for a talent agent. So
I called and I was like, Hi, can I speak
to this person?
Speaker 3 (24:57):
How I met your parents?
Speaker 2 (24:58):
And they told me that I call you because you're
an agent, and you know, he was like where did
you meet that? And I was like at this hotel
and then I was like I worked there, and then
he's like okay, He's like, well, yeah, you know, we
are looking for a Latina. And I was like okay,
So I took the bus.
Speaker 3 (25:16):
I went and I.
Speaker 2 (25:16):
Auditioned and they didn't sign me right away. It was
a very prestigious agency and they sent me out on auditions.
I booked my first three auditions. I booked a Pepsicola
and an English commercial goligate and a small commercial world.
And that's actually what started my career. So I started
(25:38):
as a scripted actress and I wasn't modeling, but because
my agent was like, you're beautiful, so we need to
get you into modeling too, and I was like hoddeling.
I was like, I'm not I don't look like those girls,
like I don't know if I could do that. And
he was like, let's just send you out and see
what happens. And I just started booking looking back to
(26:00):
back to back, and the discovery happened there but didn't
end there.
Speaker 1 (26:05):
I know what, it's crazy that you say that, because
as I was doing my research of you, I just
that first second I'm like, what's the earliest I know
of some and I'm like, PEPSI I remember.
Speaker 2 (26:16):
Yes, yeh, my first Latina, Like kind of crossed over
commercial Latina to do it for to do any of that,
and it was very eye opening for me because I
was like, and I I don't even think did.
Speaker 3 (26:29):
I have a TV at the time. I don't think
I even have I had TV.
Speaker 2 (26:32):
So I saw the commercial in the office and then
my agent was like, you know, we need to get
you an acting class because you have something very natural,
but we need to develop it. And so I started
taking theater more performing arts.
Speaker 3 (26:47):
Classes and he built.
Speaker 2 (26:50):
He helped me build like a very small like kind
of like a splash page website. I did not have
a laptop, so I would go to the library.
Speaker 1 (26:58):
Are you right now?
Speaker 2 (27:00):
I'm like eighteen nineteen, like I know nothing of life
at this point.
Speaker 1 (27:05):
Were either one of your parents like involved in this
or you were doing this dull.
Speaker 3 (27:09):
Like oh, by myself. So it scares me.
Speaker 1 (27:13):
To think about it right now, I'm like eighteen doing
all this by yourself.
Speaker 2 (27:15):
By myself. But I was trusting in prayer. I was
trusting in my.
Speaker 1 (27:20):
Faith, and you were born hustler, that is yeah.
Speaker 2 (27:23):
And I was like, sh I want to live in
the hood like forever, Like I got to get out of.
Speaker 3 (27:27):
Here, like I don't.
Speaker 2 (27:28):
I knew that I did not want to live the
trauma filled life that I was already presented with. And
what a big change happened within me when my son passed.
That just made me go.
Speaker 3 (27:40):
Hard, like hard, hard, hard, hard heart.
Speaker 1 (27:44):
Was this go hard or go home? Was this before
when you were eighteen?
Speaker 2 (27:48):
Like? Oh, I was sixteen when my son passed, So
I went in many years of this like I awakening
and spiritual awakening experience.
Speaker 1 (27:58):
Do you discuss like what happened with your or is
that something you'd rather not talk about.
Speaker 2 (28:02):
Actually, I'm writing a book and I will talk about
it then. But it's a very complex and complicated situation.
But you know, there is so much that happened. I
could not even be able to tell you in this
interview alone. However, my son died in my arms, and
seeing seeing your baby right as a mother, you want
(28:25):
to protect your baby and knowing I couldn't do that
changed my entire life.
Speaker 3 (28:30):
It really made me who I am.
Speaker 2 (28:32):
It made me very like I've always been a girl's girl,
but it really made me become even.
Speaker 3 (28:38):
More of a girl's girl. Understanding the pain that we
go through. It also helped me.
Speaker 2 (28:43):
Yeah, I was a baby, a baby having a baby,
and I was groomed by an older man and I
didn't know because he looked young.
Speaker 3 (28:50):
He lied to me and then he left me, and
then he came back and he beat me.
Speaker 1 (28:55):
And how are you still standing?
Speaker 3 (28:57):
Like girl, I don't know? You know what I ask myself.
Speaker 1 (29:02):
I'm like, God, grown women can't handle that.
Speaker 3 (29:06):
Give me soft save I do.
Speaker 2 (29:11):
And I joke when I say that, but I do
know that through all of the things, I come back
to this realization that God allowed me to live in
order for me to be the vessel of hope and
the poster of When you feel like giving up, just
come to my page, come say hello, dig into my
(29:33):
story a little bit.
Speaker 3 (29:35):
Feel free to DM me and ask me. It'sis I'm
going through this. What do you think? How can you
help me? I'm open to helping everyone. You know.
Speaker 1 (29:56):
It's crazy somebody that you say that. I used to
have your pictures when you modeled Smooth Magazine. I remember
the picture of you with the poke doon. I'm like,
she's doing it, She's doing and she's doing it latinas
we're winning and it and you felt so relatable and
you just felt so real, and it just made me
feel like you can do it too, you can do
it too. That I saved the pictures and I saved
(30:17):
the magazines that you were in because I saw myself
in you.
Speaker 3 (30:20):
And it's crazy.
Speaker 1 (30:20):
It's like, indirectly you gave me hope when it was
not about Latinas, when we were not the thing that you.
Speaker 3 (30:28):
Know, we were super not on the map like we were.
Speaker 1 (30:31):
But then I saw you, and then I saw people
like Jennifer Lopez, and I'm like, it's possible for me.
I can do this. You know, I can get in
front of a camera, I can talk on the radio,
I can act because you know what, so Maya's I
thought you were like the most beautiful woman in the world,
Like honestly, I was like, this woman is just absolutely gorgeous.
Speaker 3 (30:47):
You were like goods.
Speaker 1 (30:48):
It was like, okay, save this picture and then you
can do your makeup, just like so many has.
Speaker 3 (30:52):
Thank you.
Speaker 2 (30:53):
You know.
Speaker 3 (30:53):
That makes me feel so fulfilled and warm, and it
makes me know and it it's the confirmation that I
continuously need to know that I'm on the right path.
Speaker 1 (31:05):
God, you pass right here.
Speaker 3 (31:07):
God has me here for a reason, and this is
the reason. And The reason is because see, I've always
been so it's very interesting in this industry, right they
want you to be real but not too real. You
wan to talk about that too.
Speaker 1 (31:23):
I told my sister this yesterday. I said, everybody wants
you to keep it real till you keep it real.
Speaker 3 (31:28):
So you keep it real, and they're like, well.
Speaker 1 (31:31):
Then it's a problem.
Speaker 3 (31:32):
You want me to be real, right you, Langue.
Speaker 2 (31:35):
And that's why love and hip hop came for me. Okay,
gave me your wrong because you know, the truth of
the matter is this is that I grew up somewhere
very real. Growing up with the story that I have
and all the things that I went through, I have
no reason to not be one hundred to not be real.
And this is the reason why it's interesting. When I
(31:57):
moved to New York and I've been living basically a
double life out there for the last thirteen plus years,
nobody in New York believed that I was from Keli
only because once in a while I would say certain things.
Speaker 3 (32:07):
They're like, yo, you're so real.
Speaker 2 (32:08):
You not like those Kelly people, And I'm like, you know,
there's a difference people like me that come from the hood.
Speaker 3 (32:15):
We have only a reality to live. There is no
fake bake in the funk. They no Beverly Hills Like
it's real and it's very black and white, it's very
there's no grain. It's the people that move there.
Speaker 2 (32:30):
That have these like very like I don't know what
they think is going to happen, but it's just very delusional.
Speaker 3 (32:35):
And it's not everybody. It's not everybody, but you know
what I'm saying.
Speaker 2 (32:39):
No, yeah, And so I I thank you for saying
that because it does let me know that I'm on
the right path. And that's all I really want to
be in this inspiration for everyone I want to, you know,
and being an inspiration to someone.
Speaker 3 (32:54):
Is also a very heavy role to live in, you know.
Speaker 1 (32:59):
It's pressure.
Speaker 2 (33:00):
Yeah, it's a very heavy role to have. But I'm real,
I am myself.
Speaker 3 (33:04):
I fall.
Speaker 2 (33:06):
I have moments of happiness, moments of depression, moments of anger,
and they will all reflect on who I am.
Speaker 3 (33:12):
But my core is that my.
Speaker 2 (33:15):
Character and my reputation reputation will always be living on
even past anything I do, because my heart has always
shined brighter than anything. And I'm not a hater. I've
never been one. I'm not a I don't step out
of character. You know, I've done reality TV, and when
(33:37):
the lights turn on, I don't turn into someone else.
Speaker 3 (33:40):
I am just who I am.
Speaker 2 (33:41):
And for a long time it was very difficult to
be real because it was like, you know, I didn't
realize how many people can't relate to real because they're
too busy living in their delusion.
Speaker 1 (33:55):
And that is definitely bad. Speaking of you, speaking of real,
I gotta touch on loving up New York. I'm here
in New York And how did that even come to me?
Speaker 3 (34:04):
Oh? Well, I actually didn't get to finish to say
what I was saying.
Speaker 2 (34:07):
So so my agent, No, no, it's okay, totally forgot,
but we can backtrack.
Speaker 1 (34:11):
Oh yea.
Speaker 3 (34:12):
Yeah. The way that that.
Speaker 2 (34:13):
Happened is because so my agent started a splash page
for me, which was a little website. This website had
like a fan kind of a thing that you could like.
It gained ten thousand, twenty thousand, thirty thousand, fives fifty
thousand fans that Tom from my space and people from
(34:35):
Facebook contacted me. Mind you, they were contacting my agent
and manager because I didn't know I had to check
my emails or anything, and they were like, Hi, we're
starting the social media platform. We would like for you
to be a part of it because we see you
have a lot of fans.
Speaker 3 (34:50):
I've watched the commercials and I'm like, I don't even
know what a social media is. Sure, let's check it out.
So I went.
Speaker 2 (34:56):
I met with Tom Me and Tom became good friends,
and he was like, you know, I was telling them
what my aspirations are. I was like, you know, I
still want to like make music, but like I don't
even know.
Speaker 3 (35:04):
Where to start.
Speaker 2 (35:05):
It's like, okay, let's open a music MySpace profile and
let's see what happens.
Speaker 3 (35:11):
Just post photos, be active on there. I became the.
Speaker 2 (35:15):
Number one most friended independent musician Latina on that platform,
and that is what caught the attention of EH one, MTV,
E Television, and that's when I started doing hosting gigs,
satellite radio.
Speaker 3 (35:35):
I had my own radio show.
Speaker 2 (35:37):
Everything just started kind of coming because I was the
first Latina on there, and everyone else was totally different
than me. So that's pretty much how it happened. One
of the producers dm'd me. At the time, MTV was
doing like.
Speaker 3 (35:54):
These like reality shows like for the Love of Rage
as stuff like that those.
Speaker 2 (35:58):
And they offered me one and they wanted me to
do like a bisexual kind of like a dating show.
Speaker 3 (36:03):
But I was super I was so not ready to
do nothing like that. I was like, oh no, my
father will abandon me. No, thank you?
Speaker 1 (36:10):
You still were? You still were?
Speaker 3 (36:12):
I was super not out at all.
Speaker 2 (36:14):
I was very scared, like and however, they still kept
me in the system and I was working doing all
kinds of other gigs with them. So what are The
producers DMed me and they were like, hey, when are
you going to be in New York? Are you in
New York right now? And I basically just went in
there and I was very popular. I really got casted
because I was very popular on MySpace and I had
(36:38):
all the record label offers. I'm the first person on
MySpace that was brought into MySpace Records and Interscope and
the first person that got offered a multimillion dollar record
deals as a nobody like I. But I was in
the hood. I didn't know anything. I was like.
Speaker 3 (36:57):
Oh my god, a record deal. Why are people offering
me millions of dollars? Specious? I'm like, it's very skeptical.
Speaker 2 (37:04):
I'm glad that I'm glad that I did decline some
of these deals because I was I had nobody really
to represent me. I probably who knows where, I who
knows what conversation.
Speaker 1 (37:15):
Yeah, we know that US industry is not.
Speaker 3 (37:18):
It's not what everybody thinks.
Speaker 1 (37:20):
I definitely alive.
Speaker 3 (37:22):
Yeah, and I don't think I would have been really
prepared at the time. I was eighteen, you know what
I mean. I was a.
Speaker 2 (37:27):
Kid, so fast forward. That's how I ended up on
love and Hip Hop. I was very popular on my Space.
I was definitely my story was very very much misrepresented.
Speaker 3 (37:39):
And I have talked about this.
Speaker 1 (37:41):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (37:42):
Yeah, they made it seem as if though I was
a nobody, which all my fans for my space kept
writing like online, like what the hell Samaya was offered
record deals? She's the biggest on my space. Like it
was really a huge like change for me, But it
didn't matter because I was still going to fight for
(38:03):
my career and fight for what's right and fight for
my voice. And I did that and I did that
very successfully, and I was able to, you know, because
of the.
Speaker 3 (38:13):
Show, which I'm really grateful for.
Speaker 2 (38:15):
And regardless of how that happened, that's still one thing
I've learned about these reality shows.
Speaker 3 (38:20):
Don't matter how they serve your food.
Speaker 2 (38:22):
It's what you're going to do past that, after you eat,
you play, because you're still going to do it. But
what are you going to do after? How are you
going to make it work for you? So I just
kept telling my story. I went on a lot of
interviews and just told my story, and I was like, hey, guys,
so I am, this is what I have under my belt.
I didn't come on the show to like sign a
(38:43):
record deal with Jim Jones.
Speaker 3 (38:44):
I just wanted to do a song with them, and
he was really.
Speaker 2 (38:47):
Cool actually, and to me, Jimmy, it has always been
really cool to me.
Speaker 1 (38:52):
And so although you were misrepresented, and you know, you
still don't feel like doing Love and Hip about New
York was a mistake something you regret.
Speaker 2 (39:01):
No, So at the time I had a very conflicted
feeling because I was very like bitter or sweet. Oh yeah,
I was very like like, you know, this is crazy,
Like this is completely like I don't fight with women,
like I don't sit here. First of all, for this,
I would not be sitting there fighting with anybody's girlfriend
(39:21):
because if it's too much drama, I'm like, keep the record, baby,
I don't want to have nothing to do with this.
Speaker 3 (39:27):
Love y'all gotta go.
Speaker 2 (39:29):
But we were filming a TV show, so they wouldn't
let it go. They had to play out the story,
you know. But I think that that just came from
a place of passion, because.
Speaker 3 (39:38):
You know, I was making music and I was at
a place where I wanted development.
Speaker 2 (39:45):
I wanted to work with somebody. I wanted to have
somebody take me under their wing and help me and
develop me.
Speaker 3 (39:52):
But I wasn't asking for handouts. I was like, I'll work.
Speaker 2 (39:56):
There was a part in the show that wasn't shown
where I presented an entire business plan to Jim Jones.
Speaker 3 (40:04):
And I was like, look, here's the whole business plan,
just so you.
Speaker 2 (40:06):
Know, I'm not just some pretty girl coming in here
with millions of followers on my space.
Speaker 3 (40:11):
Like I'm willing to put in that work.
Speaker 2 (40:13):
That's why he was like, Okay, come back to the studio.
Because I wasn't asking for a handout, but I was
definitely kind of, you know, looking for my you know, uh,
looking for my fat Joe, you know what I mean,
my place a piece somebody that could take me under
their wing and kind of help.
Speaker 1 (40:30):
I don't blame you. You know, a lot of us moved
that way, you know what I'm saying. You step into
a room, You're like, is there an opportunity here?
Speaker 3 (40:37):
Yeah?
Speaker 1 (40:37):
When you're young, you're like, who can mentor me?
Speaker 3 (40:39):
You know?
Speaker 1 (40:40):
Yeah, Look, you're like, listen, I will work you just
you know, help me here and there. You're not looking
for a handout, but especially in the music industry, and
you know, somebody like Jimmy was already on hearing, knew
the ins and outs. And you're your keys from New York,
so I can understand your approach, you know. But a
lot of stuff gets, you know, misrepresented. But I love
that you did it, you know, because we got to
(41:01):
know you.
Speaker 3 (41:02):
Yes, and that's what matters ultimately.
Speaker 1 (41:04):
And you've never gone away and you've never gone away.
You've been part of the industry. Yeah, forever. How low
Thego was love and hip of New.
Speaker 3 (41:11):
York, jeez girl over ten years?
Speaker 1 (41:13):
Because I love it. I love the fact that we're
can't we come back though, like.
Speaker 3 (41:17):
We did come back to you remember that they tried
to bring back all the ogs.
Speaker 1 (41:21):
I remember that.
Speaker 2 (41:22):
Yeah, and then COVID happened, and then it shut down
all productions, so we couldn't finish everything.
Speaker 3 (41:26):
Good. I know, good, Yes, change the game, girl, But yeah,
you know I'm still here because I'm I'm. I didn't.
Speaker 2 (41:35):
I didn't get on Reality TV like they chose me.
I was doing a legitimate career prior to Reality but
Reality TV was a great place for me to tell
my story. And like you know, like I said, I
had a bittersweet moment for a bit until I looked
at it from a different point of view. I looked
at it in the way, well, I can continue to
(41:57):
tell my story because my story's very real.
Speaker 3 (42:00):
Well, I have had to fight for my career.
Speaker 2 (42:02):
I have had to not in that way, but it
has been you know, roadblocks in and it just was
very heartbreaking for me because all I wanted to do
was music and and and I was asking for guidance
and mentorship and I wasn't asking to do anything else
(42:23):
because I believe that if you're in the smart if
you are this, or if you perceived to be the
smartest person in the room, you're in the wrong room.
I wanted to learn I wasn't here to sleep with
anyone's man or anything like that.
Speaker 3 (42:36):
I would never disrespect myself first that way.
Speaker 2 (42:41):
And so you know, like and I kind of got
over that, you know, And I also made it work
for me and.
Speaker 1 (42:47):
That's the past, and you've done so much ever since.
Oh my god.
Speaker 3 (42:52):
Yeah, the train didn't stop, baby.
Speaker 1 (42:55):
You know, it was just it was just a little
bump in the road, you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 3 (42:58):
And it was it was good. It was good for
me because people got to know that I'm resilient and.
Speaker 1 (43:04):
I feel like we connected with you, of course, and
I hope so.
Speaker 2 (43:08):
And that's the whole thing for me, is that it's
about connection. And I think a lot of people saw that,
Like I was not trying to come in and do
anything negative. It's like almost like I was built, you know,
made the villain for no reason and I and it's
like to me, I was all about love and in
them making me the villain. But I'm from South Central too,
(43:30):
so I wasn't backing down. I don't care who it is,
you know. And it's interesting because when we came back
to love and hip hop and me and Chrissy did talk,
I was like, girl, what were we fighting about? Like,
you know, I think she's great on reality TV. I
think that is a good fit for her because that's
like she's gooder. And I had told her that I
was like, girl, I don't want to go on all
shows fighting people like I I just can't even I
(43:54):
don't find any happiness in it. And you know, no
but Aka, but we put that to rest, as you
guys saw on the show. But we were just starting
to dive into why and how we were going to
move forward and things like that, and you know, again,
you know, the COVID happened, and then we can continue that.
Speaker 3 (44:12):
However, now who I am.
Speaker 2 (44:13):
Now versus then there's still I still have a lot
of heart. I still have no problem asking somebody to
mentor me. I have a couple of mentors that I
learned so.
Speaker 3 (44:23):
Much from Porque.
Speaker 2 (44:25):
I have always understood something that my father taught me,
Miha always use your mind. Always use your mind. Beauty
will fade. Because that was a little girl.
Speaker 3 (44:36):
He always told me you can never stop learning. You
can never stop learning, you know. But also being a
woman and fighting as.
Speaker 2 (44:48):
Being a woman, because some people, really you know, there
are a lot of opportunities for us women. But I
think as a woman, you can understand, but there are
some people that won't give it to you because you're
a woman.
Speaker 1 (44:58):
Oh of course that's sing for me.
Speaker 3 (45:01):
Yeah, and for me, I'm a huge activist for women.
Speaker 2 (45:04):
Women for me are the earth, we are the universe,
and we are just as good in any position. Of course,
maybe some things like might not be a fit for
us as an individual, but as a woman, like, we're amazing,
We're dope. We offer some different you know what I mean,
We offer a different perspective, and I think that it
(45:26):
is amazing, and I really just continue, like to me,
I will continue my story in both in music, like
my new line project that I have coming out is
all it's just in Spanish and it's just me telling
my story and me telling people not to give up.
And some songs are gonna make you cry because you're
going to feel like it's you that's talking. Because my
pain is pain that we've all gone through. But I'm
(45:49):
not afraid to put it out there, and I know
that it can be so difficult, but I want to
continue to be the voice of the voiceless, the voice
for people that can't stand up for themselves yet.
Speaker 1 (46:00):
And we appreciate that this album is going to be
a Latin project.
Speaker 3 (46:17):
You say, right, it is. I have I am on.
Speaker 1 (46:21):
What are we doing ballads? What we do?
Speaker 2 (46:23):
But we do have a ballad and it is very
very personal ballad I speak about my son.
Speaker 1 (46:28):
Is Get a Girl gonna be all? I'm sorry?
Speaker 3 (46:30):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (46:30):
No, Actually, get a Girl is the complete opposite of it. Okay,
it's a complete opposite.
Speaker 3 (46:35):
Get a Girl is super fun.
Speaker 1 (46:37):
So you know, girls like a one off single that
we have our Yeah, it.
Speaker 2 (46:40):
Is a one off single. We did two versions of it.
One is like come more, Wrap Forward, and the second
one is the Jersey Club mix.
Speaker 3 (46:50):
You know, I have to give Jersey their you know,
their flowers.
Speaker 2 (46:54):
I Jersey embraced me when I got out there, and
I just I love Jersey Club. It's I'm as the
club record, but it's the one that I'm like really
super proud of because I wanted to give a message
to the girls. And this is for the girls, all
types of girls. It's not just about when I call
you a bad beat. It's not physical. It's like if
you're smart, you're a mom, you're a single mom, You're
(47:16):
out there getting it girl, get it like It's it's
not age forward.
Speaker 3 (47:21):
It's not you know, it's.
Speaker 1 (47:23):
For all the girls, you know, players to get it.
Speaker 3 (47:26):
Yeah, get it, getty girl. So that's the whole idea.
Speaker 1 (47:30):
And I love the track. I love the track, and
I love you know, the visual like what you did
the photog the fact that you shot your own photos.
Speaker 3 (47:38):
Yes, so I'm.
Speaker 1 (47:40):
Doing here looking for a photographer somebody over here shooting
single covers by myself.
Speaker 3 (47:45):
Girl, let me tell you I shot I shot the
music video visuals to it.
Speaker 2 (47:49):
But the new visuals for this new song I have
coming out. Okay, it will on the twenty ninth. It's
called Asian Is. Basically this entire conversation. At the end
of the day, things will always work out for you,
but you have to hold onto your faith. Get to
remember these words that I say, hold on to your faith.
(48:10):
Don't give up of all the things that you made,
all of your dreams, don't let go. And when I
wrote this record Thlo Noisetyle, I was saying it'll be
alright to Maya, it's gonna be all right, Everything's gonna
be all right, it will work out in your favor.
These were prayers that I put into a record. It
is a beautiful song. It is a side of me
(48:32):
that I don't think anyone has heard of, because I've
developed a lot as an artist, and I'm very proud
of this record and the ones that come after that.
And it is a song built for hope, inspiration, and
I shot the visuals for it, so all of the
visuals have been shot.
Speaker 3 (48:48):
There's a whole music video for it, beauty and of it.
I shot it myself.
Speaker 2 (48:52):
I mean, girl, when you're a hustler and I started
my career, I had to learn how to shoot my
own photos and my own videos.
Speaker 3 (48:58):
Because I was broke.
Speaker 1 (49:00):
We're on a budget afford to.
Speaker 3 (49:02):
Pay anybody to do it. So I was like, I
better learn how to do this myself preservation. Listen, baby,
when I say I'm gonna get it, I'm gonna get it.
I'm gonna get.
Speaker 1 (49:11):
It one hundred percent. Man. I love this for you,
And you know, I love that you're still here, You're
still working, you're still making music, you still look beautiful.
Speaker 3 (49:21):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (49:22):
I love it.
Speaker 3 (49:22):
You know.
Speaker 1 (49:23):
It's like sometimes you have your people and you're like
they changed, but it's like I'm looking at you right
now and it's like the same woman that I admired
I aspired to be like I aspired to look like.
And I want you to know you gave a lot
of us hope, you gave us a lot like you know,
like she's doing it, I can do it, and you know,
I want to thank you, and you're doing amazing. I
(49:44):
look forward to the new project. You know, I've been
ingesting some Maaya content for the past few days. You know,
I saw the gardening. I was like, she's doing gardening,
and I love that.
Speaker 3 (49:53):
It's incredible for your mental health.
Speaker 1 (49:55):
It's incredible better than cooking because I use cooking as
like cooking is great to health too, but gardening is
even better.
Speaker 3 (50:02):
That's from no, you know, it's different.
Speaker 2 (50:04):
It's like, so I'm really a big advocate for mental health,
especially within our POC community, because this isn't talked about,
you know what I mean.
Speaker 3 (50:11):
Growing up, nobody talks about that. You know, it's a
very right.
Speaker 2 (50:16):
So I tell people all the time to find a
hobby that helps you personally with your mental health. So
for me, it's cooking, it's writing, it's creating, Like I
love creating.
Speaker 3 (50:30):
I designed my entire house.
Speaker 2 (50:33):
I literally like HGTV style. I love taking photos. That
is my therapy, and I love gardening and something about
gardening like I've because my mom. You know, growing up Latina,
a lot of moms will have like mathas in their house,
you know, little plants of herbs and stuff. So my
(50:55):
mom taught me a lot of things that I learned
just by watching her. And I started it just for therapy,
and then it just kind of grew into something else.
Speaker 3 (51:03):
And then I became more of a.
Speaker 2 (51:05):
Farm her, which is what I call it, instead of
a farmer farm her. And I also offer fruit and
vegetable boxes on my website, oh wow, go on shop
this fits.
Speaker 3 (51:18):
Me dot com.
Speaker 2 (51:18):
That is my company health website, and we have an
abundance of food here and we barter with our neighbors.
Speaker 3 (51:26):
I live in the countryside.
Speaker 2 (51:28):
Like this is all part of me creating the piece
that I've always wanted and I did not have.
Speaker 3 (51:34):
And it's all about creating it for yourself. That's what
I've learned. So this is what I do. And cooking,
oh man, that is therapy. I love to cook.
Speaker 4 (51:42):
Super fun that created you to create obviously, yes, because
you're creating music, you know, and I love the way
that you're giving back paying it forward and you know,
just creating the life that you want.
Speaker 1 (51:55):
And I feel like that's something that a lot of
us need to do. Is like we think about it,
We're like I want to be this, I want to
be that, but we don't put pen to paper, put
a plan together, put.
Speaker 2 (52:05):
Yeah, because it's you know, we have to also give
ourselves a little grace because when nobody has given us
the map, you have to figure out our own. It
becomes very overwhelming. Right for me, I, for some reason
have always functioned with the fire, even though I don't
want to function that way. It's like sometimes I go
(52:26):
through that where I think it's something, but I don't
follow through, and then something that's inside of me and
gets inside of me and I'm like, hmm, I gotta
follow through with that.
Speaker 3 (52:40):
Boy.
Speaker 1 (52:41):
I love it. I love it. I love it. I
want to thank you so much, Samaya, you know, for
sitting with me today. And you know, we've delved into
a lot of different topics, but it always feels like
it connects a lot back to you know, spirituality. You
know our purpose here on earth, and you know our
latinida and our upbringing and how our roots really have
(53:02):
a lot to do with the people that we are today.
Speaker 2 (53:04):
Yes, and it's important for us not to stop being a.
Speaker 3 (53:08):
Voice for Latinia.
Speaker 1 (53:10):
Oh no, that listen that.
Speaker 3 (53:12):
Anybody says and who tries to stop our voice.
Speaker 1 (53:16):
Never on speaking. You put me in any room and
I'm like, what are we doing for the Latinos? What
are we doing for I am an advocate. You are
not going to erase me. You're not gonna erase my people.
I understand our power in the polls.
Speaker 3 (53:29):
When that's what I did.
Speaker 2 (53:30):
When I went on Love and hip Hop, I was like, Okay,
it's Latino all day over here.
Speaker 1 (53:35):
Y'all like, and I'm a Latina and hip hop and
I listen to me. Do you know this one was Panamanian?
Speaker 3 (53:41):
Or do you know?
Speaker 1 (53:42):
Do you know how Spice is Dominican? You know Cardi
B is Dominican?
Speaker 2 (53:46):
I don't know, but you know that's why we're here,
right to tell people is the cafe? Go tell your
pop smoke? I said, oh he Panamanian? Because I'm like,
you know what, You're not gonna steal my people from me.
Speaker 3 (54:04):
I don't let you know. We will not be erased.
We're here to educate others.
Speaker 1 (54:09):
One hundred percent has us here for bop Anywhere, which
I love one hundred percent. I love Cardi, Cardi that
give me Uptown. I'm like Cardio. It's just I'm not
gonna let it be erased. And I'm not going to
let our contributions to any genre of music or any
(54:31):
role in this community, you know, be forgotten or be erased.
You know what I'm saying. And I really really appreciate
this time that we have spent here today.
Speaker 3 (54:39):
Thank you for.
Speaker 2 (54:39):
Having me, and I appreciate you sharing your energy and
your stories and telling me a little bit about you
that the listener wants to know too.
Speaker 3 (54:48):
And don't you ever stop telling your story. Don't ever
give up.
Speaker 1 (54:52):
I love this listen. I'm gonna record this. I'm gonna
play this that night before I go to bed.
Speaker 3 (54:58):
Ever give up on your faith. You are beautiful, you
are wonderful, You are a whole, You are worthy.
Speaker 1 (55:04):
All these affirmations. I love them so much, so maya
Grassias come again. Grassiers Come Again is a production of
Honey German Productions in partnership with Iheart'smichel Thura podcast Network.
Gracias Come Again a podcast by Honey German. Today, we're
thrilled to have a guest who's not only a powerhouse
in the entertainment industry, but also a true entrepreneur and
a massive inspiration. With over thirty one million views and
more than eight hundred and sixty five thousand friends, she
was the first Latin artist on my Space who successfully
(00:23):
proved to be a viral marketing powerhouse. From her early
days on Love and Hip Hop New York to building
a successful career as a music artist, model actress, and
an empire with her health and Wellness brand. Our guest
has continuously reinvented herself. She's a force to be reckoned
with and her journey from a ten year old runaway
to being one of the only latinas with a Pepsi
commercial alongside the likes of Gloria, A, Stefan and Shakira.
(00:46):
Get ready for an inspiring conversation with one strong Salvadorina.
So let's get into it. Please welcome the multi talented
Somayares bim.
Speaker 2 (00:55):
Benida bim Beniva will sare is Ya.
Speaker 1 (01:00):
Today we are talking with Somayaris. So Maya, where are
your people? From. Let's start from the beginning. Not every
single listener. You know, it's going to know of the
bat who I am speaking to every single time, and
I want them to experience who you are thoroughly. Where
are your people from? When I ask where are your
people from? What do you think?
Speaker 3 (01:18):
Thank you? Well?
Speaker 2 (01:19):
Our people you know Latina okay for Latina aside from obvious,
I'm Salvadorian in yeah, yeah, from you know, with the
Afra Latino roots, we are people that are hard workers,
are triumphant, we are amazing. We build from scratch and
(01:44):
we make it happen by all means necessary.
Speaker 3 (01:48):
That's where my people are from.
Speaker 1 (01:49):
A word has been spoken right now. I always knew
you were Subdorian. Now Afro Latino roots from your dad.
Break that down for me. Tell me how you got
your aff Latina routes.
Speaker 3 (02:01):
Yes.
Speaker 2 (02:02):
So my father was abandoned as a child, so he
never knew his father. He was so pass forward, was
you know, kind of told us what he looked like.
And you know, as much as she knew about him.
When she told him that she was pregnant, he was
(02:22):
like peace out and he left her. So he came
around many many years after my father said he was
about like five, so he doesn't have a major recollection
of him. So I asked my father if he would
be open to doing a DNA journey, both to help
him close a chapter. We'll open a chapter and also
close it because there's only so much he knew. And
(02:44):
through our DNA journey, Wow, I found out a lot
of things that now makes sense because I look nothing
like my Salvadorian family. They're all short indigenous lahiraa.
Speaker 3 (02:56):
I'm really really tall. Look. Oh see, so you do
on that for sure.
Speaker 2 (03:06):
So what we found out through that is that we
are very very high indigenous African, heavy African. And of
course there's all the other little tidbits, but those were
the two major roles there. And my father was really
excited because he was like, oh my god, Yeah, he
doesn't know a lot about his roots except the small
(03:27):
little bits and pieces from when he was five.
Speaker 3 (03:30):
So this was a.
Speaker 2 (03:30):
Really amazing emotional journey for us. My father is very
very religious, so he was kind of a little bit like,
I don't know if this is the right thing to do.
God made us a certain way, this is what we know,
and I'm like, Daddy, listen, So she small, so I
need to know. But no, you know, I just told him,
(03:51):
like Daddy, you know, it's really important for me, especially
because my father has a terminal illness unfortunately, and before
he goes, I want to know everything, everything and anything
that he can tell me that we can find out together.
Speaker 3 (04:06):
And that's how that came about.
Speaker 2 (04:08):
But I've always known that, we just didn't confirm it
with DNA, And it makes all the sense in the world.
Now if you like kind of knew me and my family,
and even if you didn't, and you saw the two sides,
like my grandmother looks very different than my other grandmother,
and you could tell there's heavy Afro indigenous roots on
(04:28):
this side and there's heavy just indigenous roots Salvadorian from
this side. And they we went further into detail and
we found out more about our roots and we are
on the Subadian indigenous side from one of the original
you know, tribes, And it just makes.
Speaker 3 (04:47):
All the sense in the world.
Speaker 2 (04:48):
And you know, I even if I was from Mars,
I would still love myself and still you know, I
grew up Salvadorian and I grew up Latina, and it's
just a wonderful thing to kind of tie things together and.
Speaker 3 (05:00):
It makes sense.
Speaker 1 (05:01):
No, it just it just feels good to know your
DNA composition. I did it myself, and it's great because
I've always like I'm Dominican, I'm Dominican, I'm Dominican. It
came back. It was like I was mostly Portuguese and African.
I was like one percent Dominican. But you know what,
I kind of like always knew that because my grandmother
on my dad's side, black woman, was so I already
(05:21):
knew that after Latino aspect was there, Like I have
a picture of her carrying me and she's like one
hundred percent of black woman, but she's a Dominican. And
then Maa Walita my mom's side, indigenous Dominican Indigenous. But
once I got the numbers, it just felt good. And
you know, sometimes when people want to deny us a
certain area of our identity, yeah, I know, having it
on paper, it's just like, well look what I have.
Speaker 3 (05:41):
Yeah, well you take that away from me, no more
at all.
Speaker 2 (05:44):
And that's wonderful that you did that, because you know,
it's like a it's like opening a new chapter and
almost giving you answers, which is not really technically closing
a chapter, but it gives you that like confirmation that
you may have always known inside as well.
Speaker 1 (05:58):
No for sure, and as latinas It's like where made
up of so many different you know.
Speaker 3 (06:01):
Oh yeah, it's like.
Speaker 2 (06:05):
See simos Oka and I love that.
Speaker 1 (06:10):
Now I want to go a little bit back into
your growing up. Where did you grow up?
Speaker 3 (06:14):
I grew up?
Speaker 2 (06:15):
I was born and raised in South Central? Yeah, I
was born and raised in California. I was born and
raised in South Central primarily, you know, in different parts
of it because when I was ten years old, I
actually ran away from home because of a toxic household,
and I raised myself since I was ten, and I
lived in different parts of the hood and it was
(06:36):
very difficult. But you don't realize the struggles that you're
going through because that's all you know ten years old,
so maya, yeah, ten years old. I've been on my
own since then, and it was a very difficult journey,
very traumatizing.
Speaker 3 (06:49):
Very healing.
Speaker 2 (06:50):
Now, which will be we'll get to that later, but
it will reflect on all of my new Latin records
that I have coming out, where I am pouring out
my entire story on a record. It's very truth bound
opens up some doors that maybe people might not have
known about me. But yeah, I was raised in a
household where unfortunately, my father had very heavy alcohol demons
(07:13):
and my mother, you know, she wasn't loved correctly, so
she couldn't love me correctly as a daughter.
Speaker 3 (07:19):
And that was a lot for me.
Speaker 2 (07:22):
And something in my spirit told me I should I don't.
Speaker 1 (07:26):
Belong here because did you go? I need to know,
because I like to know details, like where did you
run that day?
Speaker 2 (07:33):
So I packed up my bag, my little backpack, and
I literally slept in a trap house and I was
sleeping in top houses and I didn't realize how dangerous
it was. I slept in trap houses, I slept in shelters,
and I always looked older. So this was a major
(07:54):
advantage from me. So when I went to a shelter,
I lied and I said I was eighteen. I was
fully developed when I was nine. When on yes, girl, body, body.
Speaker 1 (08:06):
Which is so dangerous, It is very dangerous, and it's
something it's something that happens to a lot of us
latinas you know, and we become prey.
Speaker 2 (08:21):
Yeah, oh absolutely, And part of my story is that
I was preyed on and I was groomed. When I
was you know, on the streets, I was dodging and
fighting to stay alive, to.
Speaker 3 (08:36):
Not be violated.
Speaker 1 (08:37):
To Wow, your story of survival started early.
Speaker 3 (08:41):
Yeah, it's it's uh.
Speaker 2 (08:43):
It's something that I often speak about because I believe
that God allowed me to live, to be a vessel
to bring hope to not only young girls, but to people,
because if I can make it, anybody can. And I'm
not saying that it was easy. I do not come
from rich parents, I do not come from any sort
of help. In fact, my entire career, I can say
there's a very small circle of people that have wanted
(09:06):
the best for me from their heart and that have
not wanted from me. And when I was young, unfortunately,
you know, I didn't know any better, and I was
groomed and I had a baby, and the pos father
left me, and then he came back around and did
something really horrific and my son was murdered, and that
(09:29):
change my entire live and that just made me really
resilient aware that hypervigilant. Yeah, it made me hyper vigilant,
which I realized later on manifested into really bad things
that I had to heal from anger.
Speaker 3 (09:46):
You know, I wouldn't show it, you know, but in the.
Speaker 2 (09:48):
Inside distrust anger it manifests into you know, you don't
realize how things can manifest.
Speaker 3 (09:54):
Later on in your life.
Speaker 2 (09:55):
And I have always been someone that I have to
I know that I have no one. I've always never
had anyone except my father is the only person that
like really had my back. But unfortunately, like my mom
ran the household, so I couldn't find him. I couldn't
look for him because I couldn't go back home. And
so now, you know, I've realized that from all of
(10:19):
the things that I went through, I still have a
lot of love in my heart. But at the same time,
I'm also very, very careful, aware and strong.
Speaker 3 (10:28):
I wish, I don't wish.
Speaker 2 (10:30):
I hope that some of the narratives change in this respect.
Speaker 3 (10:35):
You know.
Speaker 2 (10:35):
I understand some people will say, well, it's because of
what you went through you're so strong. But I don't
want people to continue to have to go through so
much trauma to become strong. This narrative has to change someday.
Speaker 3 (10:47):
It definitely does, and it probably.
Speaker 2 (10:50):
Won't because you know, this is what it is, and
it does make people champions, and it definitely made me.
Speaker 3 (10:57):
You know, grow up really fast.
Speaker 2 (10:59):
So I've always to kind of fight for my own
I've never had the privilege of being you know, I
wasn't raised like, oh, I'm a pretty girl and I
can get away with things that I can do this
and I can do that. I grew up like with
my father and my brother. My brother taught me how
to fight. My dad taught me how to fight. So
I had to always kind of fight for mine But
it gets exhausting. It's exhausting, and so for now I
(11:21):
like to discuss my story, tell my people that yes,
sometimes we do have to go through some things to
make us who we are. I mean, if we don't
have to go through that, and if there's any way
you can protect your child, if you have a little
girl or a little boy, protect.
Speaker 1 (11:36):
Them, so you know the change is gonna happen with us.
You know us a lot of our parents Latino parents.
We're immigrants. Yes, you didn't speak the language.
Speaker 2 (11:48):
You know.
Speaker 1 (11:49):
The finances were a problem. You know, they turned to drugs,
they turned to alcohol, especially in the eighties and the nineties.
I'm not making excuses for them, but I have a
very tumultuous relationship with my own. But when I think back,
I'm like, she was a single mom in Harlem and
she didn't speak the language, and we were bad kids,
and I don't pardon her. But then I see the
(12:10):
struggle that she went through that I am currently not going.
And then I'm like, Okay, this is what led to
verbal abuse, physical abuse, you know, just her not being happy,
my dad not being around because he wasn't happy with her.
So I'm like, it's very different from like, let's say, me,
are you being born here, having citizenship, being able to work,
being able to speak the language. And it's like, I
(12:31):
don't want to excuse our parents for their behavior, but
they had such another layer of like difficulty that we
don't have. So I am just super like hopeful that
we will be able to make changes when it comes to,
you know, the future, you know, because we're not going
to have those barriers, which are big barriers if you
(12:51):
think about it.
Speaker 2 (12:52):
Like they are they are. And I've had this discussion
with my mom because I have tried to help her heal,
but okay, she's not ready. And you know, I chose
for a long time.
Speaker 1 (13:04):
Oh yeah, I can imagine.
Speaker 2 (13:06):
And I just knew it was eating me up inside
and it wasn't allowing me to move forward to be happy.
So I made the decision to forgive her. But forgiving
somebody it doesn't mean that you can still allow them
to kind of walk all over you. I forgive her
because she had it very hard.
Speaker 3 (13:27):
You know.
Speaker 2 (13:27):
She also was not loved correctly, so she does not
know how to love. I don't know what it's like
to have mother and daughter relationship at all, So I
don't miss it because I don't even know what it's like,
you know. But for me, it's like I show up
in a space for everyone in the respect of like
I give the love that I wish that I had.
Speaker 1 (13:48):
And you see, that's what I'm talking about making. You're
making the change. And it's just like, no, we can't
change what already happened, but we can change what's happening now.
Speaker 2 (13:57):
Yeah, it's like and I get it. And I told
my mom, mom Oh, you tried, but Mommy, I'll be like, you.
Speaker 3 (14:03):
Want to be bitter forever. You want to be this
way forever, Mommy, you don't want to be happy.
Speaker 1 (14:09):
I feel I feel, you know, it is hard, and
I feel like sometimes Latina moms tend to become so
like hard and it's like their whole life is like, oh,
well I had to do this. I had to be hard,
I had to be tough.
Speaker 3 (14:21):
But you don't have to be that way anymore. Mom,
exactly be that way anymore, like you have.
Speaker 2 (14:28):
Between me and my sisters, we help take care of
her as best we can.
Speaker 3 (14:33):
My mom.
Speaker 2 (14:34):
You know, I'm not saying she has an easy life,
because of course she has her own personal traumas. But
at this point in age, I will give you one
example that really changed my perspective of how I know
people can change.
Speaker 3 (14:47):
I have this one aunt who used to be hard. Boy.
Like I thought my mom was tough, this lady was
really really harda. Oh it's Satiya. She's the one. You
could still be scared of her, but you're now forward.
Speaker 2 (15:01):
She has made the most insane effort to change and
heal and see things in a different light that I
know it's possible. And I know it's possible.
Speaker 1 (15:16):
I mean Mom's sister, Oh yeah, so have you left
that man?
Speaker 3 (15:20):
Yeah? She she's tried.
Speaker 2 (15:21):
She tries, and my mom is a good person at heart,
and she has all these wonderful qualities, but I think
that the pain that lives inside of her is very
difficult for her. And I know that, and I can
acknowledge that. It doesn't mean that I'm going to allow
her or anyone to step all over me, but I
do get it, and I have now that I can
(15:43):
accept that, because I before I couldn't accept that. I
was like, but you're my mom, How could you have
let me, you know, run away?
Speaker 3 (15:49):
And like you did you look for me? Did you
even want me?
Speaker 2 (15:52):
You said all these main things to me growing up
and even as an adult.
Speaker 3 (15:56):
But once I saw things from her eyes, like my
mom never really had a backbone.
Speaker 2 (16:01):
My father was an alcoholic, you know, he tried to change,
but he didn't change until his later years. And she
had the difficulty of you know, bringing all her children
from Esalvador through all the valleys almost dehydrating.
Speaker 1 (16:16):
WWI that in hisself is trauma.
Speaker 2 (16:33):
So I understand why she is how she is. But
I also believe that anyone can change. I really want to,
and I know that because I've done it for myself
in certain places in my life.
Speaker 3 (16:44):
So I love I.
Speaker 2 (16:46):
Just tell her, like, Mom, I love you, and that's
all I can say. I'm not your doormat anymore. I
am just freeing myself of the rencor and I am
going to give everybody the love that I didn't get
and for the people that appreciate it, like I believe,
very very much, go where you are celebrated.
Speaker 3 (17:06):
Not where you are tolerated.
Speaker 1 (17:08):
Amen.
Speaker 3 (17:09):
And that's it.
Speaker 1 (17:10):
And I love the fact that you're like me. I
forgive because I don't want that weight of hating or
being mad at anyone brings about. So it's like it's
weight it is, and it's just like, you know what,
I don't know why they I had to do. Mapisote
(17:30):
is nothing like that. And I'm with you on that
one hundred percent, you know. But I understand that, you know,
relationships with mama's Latinas they can be very complex, but
deep down inside I know they want the best for us,
you know, and for all the moms you know that
are listening. Thank you for all you do, Thanks for
raising us, thanks for giving us life.
Speaker 3 (17:48):
You know.
Speaker 1 (17:48):
My mother calls me and she's like, yeah, I'm just
calling to remind you that you wouldn't be on this
earth if it wasn't because of me. I'm like, all right, bendy,
you on, mommy bye, have a nice thank you. But
that's a Latina mom thing to do, you know what
I'm say. And it's just like the guilt, the constant
reminder you are who I am because of me, or
you're here because of me. It's just, you know, something
that they just can't help themselves. And I know, deep
(18:10):
down inside a lot of us that have these you know,
tumultuous relationships with Latina moms. You know, I know deep
down inside they wish it was different.
Speaker 3 (18:17):
But yeah, it's like they can't.
Speaker 2 (18:21):
Yeah, I can tell you, like I can go on
and on about this subject because I have identified a
lot of the things that again, she is the way
she is, And I've had these conversations with other women
as well, and it's like, hey, we always come to
the conclusion, are we all live in with the same mom?
Speaker 3 (18:41):
Like we don't the same mom?
Speaker 1 (18:48):
What is it fraternal twins?
Speaker 3 (18:50):
Yeah, it's exact though, you know.
Speaker 2 (18:52):
And for me the only difference is that, like I
raised myself since I was ten, so that's early. Nobody
can say, oh I did this for you or I helped, No,
you didn't.
Speaker 3 (19:02):
I fed myself.
Speaker 2 (19:04):
I did things for myself and I had to fend
for myself and so therefore for me, you know, knowing
now that it was difficult for myself as well, you know,
my empathy runs a little deeper now. But again, I
will not be a doormat because uh, I have learned
the power of saying no. You know, if I if
(19:25):
my mom were to call me and say something like that,
I'm like, uh uh bye, I'm not I'm not sorry, mommy,
not today, not tomorrow, like I love you coming with
You're feeling better because we do have to set a boundary.
And I know that in our culture it's like considered
disrespectful if if you set a boundary.
Speaker 3 (19:41):
But that has to change.
Speaker 1 (19:43):
Oh, it has changing, that is true. I don't tolerate.
Like I tell my mom, I will have a relationship
with you, but it will not be toxic at all.
And you know what, she has different relationships with I
have five siblings. They all have different relationships. They like, oh, mammy, mammy,
And I'm.
Speaker 3 (19:59):
Like, because girl, you don't know.
Speaker 1 (20:01):
Also because I stop it somehi. When I call my mom,
I'm like, if she wants to go off, I'm like, no,
one want to say this. She has birds. She enjoys
birds every time she lives in Florida. When I go,
(20:26):
I buy her.
Speaker 2 (20:26):
So I'm like, no, but you know, it's it's better
that you do that also for yourself, because you it's
important that you do that for your mental health as well.
Speaker 1 (20:40):
It is only for my mental health that I do.
You have to understand that, Yeah, you.
Speaker 2 (20:46):
You have to and you know and I know that,
Like there's different perspectives of things, you know, Like when
I talked to my aunt about this, she's like, well,
she's like you should set your boundary and you know,
if she's acting up, just hang up, know, and just like, hey, Mom,
let's talk another time. And I just think it's very
silly that at their age. Right now, I'm like, mom,
why are you? What is wrong with you? Bro?
Speaker 1 (21:09):
I'm like Toina sitting the hi yah. And now that
you know I know this about you, I'm even more
impressed at the level of success that you have been
able to reach.
Speaker 3 (21:23):
It's because.
Speaker 1 (21:25):
How did you do this? Like how did you know?
How did you start? Like what was first for you?
Was it modeling the first thing? It's like I have
you no, no, what was the first step towards you
becoming samairies, you know, know public figures.
Speaker 2 (21:42):
So I always so when I was six years old.
I grew up in a landin household. Obviously we're hearing
Celia Cruz. You know, la musicam is something that I
always love to do. So I asked my dad. I
knew to ask my dad and not my mom because
(22:02):
my mom would say no. So I asked my dad,
dadd yet, I want to join chorus in school, and
I want to join like a class to play an instrument.
I originally wanted to play the piano and the flute,
but that class was full and the only instrument they
had was the violin. Okay, and I joined chorus. So
I also did it as a means of getting out
(22:24):
of my home for a few hours per day because
some of the programs were in the evenings and in
the after school, so it was like my escape. I
always wanted to be an actress and a singer. I
didn't know that there was actually employment from that. I
just saw when I would see people on TV. I'm like,
all right, I love that. I want to do that.
(22:45):
And so I actually was in the Highly Gifted program
at six years old. At seven, turning Steven and I
went into the highly Gifted program, but I think that
you know, they also call it like it's like the charter,
the Charter program. And I was able to take an
art class performing arts theater very very young, and so
(23:05):
that's what I wanted to do. And then my dreams
kind of took a back road when I left my
house when I was eighteen years old. I grew up
cleaning houses with my mom and almost you know cibientas
you know up at India Cocina because of Limpia, cocinataente Ginga.
Speaker 3 (23:22):
You know, white people that we would clean their houses,
rich people. And so when I was eighteen, I met
a girl that was like.
Speaker 2 (23:29):
You know, you speak English, like you should get a
job at the hotels and if you work for days
a week you can get health benefits and you know,
you can make more money so that you can get
an apartment.
Speaker 3 (23:43):
And I went to work for a hotel.
Speaker 2 (23:46):
And at this hotel, when I was cleaning every day,
somebody would tell me are you a model? Are you
an actress part time? And I'd be like no, but
I want to be right every daily piano.
Speaker 3 (24:02):
What I didn't I did it.
Speaker 2 (24:04):
I just I know I wanted to do it, but
I'm like, so live in the hood, you know, like
I don't know anyone. And I then got a because
I knew how to speak English, I got a part time.
Speaker 1 (24:15):
I love the fact that you said because I knew
how to speak English. It's so crazy. How like how
do people understand? Like like how are people or like
we're blessed? Like wow, did you speak English?
Speaker 3 (24:27):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (24:28):
And I think we understand that Latino's right and or
as an immigrant, as any immigrant, I learned English. So
I got a part time working in the front desk
and then a part time cleaning the rooms. So somebody
gave me their business card, and of course I'm from
the hood. I'm very distrusting, so I'm like, m I
(24:48):
don't know. Yeah, I'm like, so I sat on this
business card and it was for a talent agent. So
I called and I was like, Hi, can I speak
to this person?
Speaker 3 (24:57):
How I met your parents?
Speaker 2 (24:58):
And they told me that I call you because you're
an agent, and you know, he was like where did
you meet that? And I was like at this hotel
and then I was like I worked there, and then
he's like okay, He's like, well, yeah, you know, we
are looking for a Latina. And I was like okay,
So I took the bus.
Speaker 3 (25:16):
I went and I.
Speaker 2 (25:16):
Auditioned and they didn't sign me right away. It was
a very prestigious agency and they sent me out on auditions.
I booked my first three auditions. I booked a Pepsicola
and an English commercial goligate and a small commercial world.
And that's actually what started my career. So I started
(25:38):
as a scripted actress and I wasn't modeling, but because
my agent was like, you're beautiful, so we need to
get you into modeling too, and I was like hoddeling.
I was like, I'm not I don't look like those girls,
like I don't know if I could do that. And
he was like, let's just send you out and see
what happens. And I just started booking looking back to
(26:00):
back to back, and the discovery happened there but didn't
end there.
Speaker 1 (26:05):
I know what, it's crazy that you say that, because
as I was doing my research of you, I just
that first second I'm like, what's the earliest I know
of some and I'm like, PEPSI I remember.
Speaker 2 (26:16):
Yes, yeh, my first Latina, Like kind of crossed over
commercial Latina to do it for to do any of that,
and it was very eye opening for me because I
was like, and I I don't even think did.
Speaker 3 (26:29):
I have a TV at the time. I don't think
I even have I had TV.
Speaker 2 (26:32):
So I saw the commercial in the office and then
my agent was like, you know, we need to get
you an acting class because you have something very natural,
but we need to develop it. And so I started
taking theater more performing arts.
Speaker 3 (26:47):
Classes and he built.
Speaker 2 (26:50):
He helped me build like a very small like kind
of like a splash page website. I did not have
a laptop, so I would go to the library.
Speaker 1 (26:58):
Are you right now?
Speaker 2 (27:00):
I'm like eighteen nineteen, like I know nothing of life
at this point.
Speaker 1 (27:05):
Were either one of your parents like involved in this
or you were doing this dull.
Speaker 3 (27:09):
Like oh, by myself. So it scares me.
Speaker 1 (27:13):
To think about it right now, I'm like eighteen doing
all this by yourself.
Speaker 2 (27:15):
By myself. But I was trusting in prayer. I was
trusting in my.
Speaker 1 (27:20):
Faith, and you were born hustler, that is yeah.
Speaker 2 (27:23):
And I was like, sh I want to live in
the hood like forever, Like I got to get out of.
Speaker 3 (27:27):
Here, like I don't.
Speaker 2 (27:28):
I knew that I did not want to live the
trauma filled life that I was already presented with. And
what a big change happened within me when my son passed.
That just made me go.
Speaker 3 (27:40):
Hard, like hard, hard, hard, hard heart.
Speaker 1 (27:44):
Was this go hard or go home? Was this before
when you were eighteen?
Speaker 2 (27:48):
Like? Oh, I was sixteen when my son passed, So
I went in many years of this like I awakening
and spiritual awakening experience.
Speaker 1 (27:58):
Do you discuss like what happened with your or is
that something you'd rather not talk about.
Speaker 2 (28:02):
Actually, I'm writing a book and I will talk about
it then. But it's a very complex and complicated situation.
But you know, there is so much that happened. I
could not even be able to tell you in this
interview alone. However, my son died in my arms, and
seeing seeing your baby right as a mother, you want
(28:25):
to protect your baby and knowing I couldn't do that
changed my entire life.
Speaker 3 (28:30):
It really made me who I am.
Speaker 2 (28:32):
It made me very like I've always been a girl's girl,
but it really made me become even.
Speaker 3 (28:38):
More of a girl's girl. Understanding the pain that we
go through. It also helped me.
Speaker 2 (28:43):
Yeah, I was a baby, a baby having a baby,
and I was groomed by an older man and I
didn't know because he looked young.
Speaker 3 (28:50):
He lied to me and then he left me, and
then he came back and he beat me.
Speaker 1 (28:55):
And how are you still standing?
Speaker 3 (28:57):
Like girl, I don't know? You know what I ask myself.
Speaker 1 (29:02):
I'm like, God, grown women can't handle that.
Speaker 3 (29:06):
Give me soft save I do.
Speaker 2 (29:11):
And I joke when I say that, but I do
know that through all of the things, I come back
to this realization that God allowed me to live in
order for me to be the vessel of hope and
the poster of When you feel like giving up, just
come to my page, come say hello, dig into my
(29:33):
story a little bit.
Speaker 3 (29:35):
Feel free to DM me and ask me. It'sis I'm
going through this. What do you think? How can you
help me? I'm open to helping everyone. You know.
Speaker 1 (29:56):
It's crazy somebody that you say that. I used to
have your pictures when you modeled Smooth Magazine. I remember
the picture of you with the poke doon. I'm like,
she's doing it, She's doing and she's doing it latinas
we're winning and it and you felt so relatable and
you just felt so real, and it just made me
feel like you can do it too, you can do
it too. That I saved the pictures and I saved
(30:17):
the magazines that you were in because I saw myself
in you.
Speaker 3 (30:20):
And it's crazy.
Speaker 1 (30:20):
It's like, indirectly you gave me hope when it was
not about Latinas, when we were not the thing that you.
Speaker 3 (30:28):
Know, we were super not on the map like we were.
Speaker 1 (30:31):
But then I saw you, and then I saw people
like Jennifer Lopez, and I'm like, it's possible for me.
I can do this. You know, I can get in
front of a camera, I can talk on the radio,
I can act because you know what, so Maya's I
thought you were like the most beautiful woman in the world,
Like honestly, I was like, this woman is just absolutely gorgeous.
Speaker 3 (30:47):
You were like goods.
Speaker 1 (30:48):
It was like, okay, save this picture and then you
can do your makeup, just like so many has.
Speaker 3 (30:52):
Thank you.
Speaker 2 (30:53):
You know.
Speaker 3 (30:53):
That makes me feel so fulfilled and warm, and it
makes me know and it it's the confirmation that I
continuously need to know that I'm on the right path.
Speaker 1 (31:05):
God, you pass right here.
Speaker 3 (31:07):
God has me here for a reason, and this is
the reason. And The reason is because see, I've always
been so it's very interesting in this industry, right they
want you to be real but not too real. You
wan to talk about that too.
Speaker 1 (31:23):
I told my sister this yesterday. I said, everybody wants
you to keep it real till you keep it real.
Speaker 3 (31:28):
So you keep it real, and they're like, well.
Speaker 1 (31:31):
Then it's a problem.
Speaker 3 (31:32):
You want me to be real, right you, Langue.
Speaker 2 (31:35):
And that's why love and hip hop came for me. Okay,
gave me your wrong because you know, the truth of
the matter is this is that I grew up somewhere
very real. Growing up with the story that I have
and all the things that I went through, I have
no reason to not be one hundred to not be real.
And this is the reason why it's interesting. When I
(31:57):
moved to New York and I've been living basically a
double life out there for the last thirteen plus years,
nobody in New York believed that I was from Keli
only because once in a while I would say certain things.
Speaker 3 (32:07):
They're like, yo, you're so real.
Speaker 2 (32:08):
You not like those Kelly people, And I'm like, you know,
there's a difference people like me that come from the hood.
Speaker 3 (32:15):
We have only a reality to live. There is no
fake bake in the funk. They no Beverly Hills Like
it's real and it's very black and white, it's very
there's no grain. It's the people that move there.
Speaker 2 (32:30):
That have these like very like I don't know what
they think is going to happen, but it's just very delusional.
Speaker 3 (32:35):
And it's not everybody. It's not everybody, but you know
what I'm saying.
Speaker 2 (32:39):
No, yeah, And so I I thank you for saying
that because it does let me know that I'm on
the right path. And that's all I really want to
be in this inspiration for everyone I want to, you know,
and being an inspiration to someone.
Speaker 3 (32:54):
Is also a very heavy role to live in, you know.
Speaker 1 (32:59):
It's pressure.
Speaker 2 (33:00):
Yeah, it's a very heavy role to have. But I'm real,
I am myself.
Speaker 3 (33:04):
I fall.
Speaker 2 (33:06):
I have moments of happiness, moments of depression, moments of anger,
and they will all reflect on who I am.
Speaker 3 (33:12):
But my core is that my.
Speaker 2 (33:15):
Character and my reputation reputation will always be living on
even past anything I do, because my heart has always
shined brighter than anything. And I'm not a hater. I've
never been one. I'm not a I don't step out
of character. You know, I've done reality TV, and when
(33:37):
the lights turn on, I don't turn into someone else.
Speaker 3 (33:40):
I am just who I am.
Speaker 2 (33:41):
And for a long time it was very difficult to
be real because it was like, you know, I didn't
realize how many people can't relate to real because they're
too busy living in their delusion.
Speaker 1 (33:55):
And that is definitely bad. Speaking of you, speaking of real,
I gotta touch on loving up New York. I'm here
in New York And how did that even come to me?
Speaker 3 (34:04):
Oh? Well, I actually didn't get to finish to say
what I was saying.
Speaker 2 (34:07):
So so my agent, No, no, it's okay, totally forgot,
but we can backtrack.
Speaker 1 (34:11):
Oh yea.
Speaker 3 (34:12):
Yeah. The way that that.
Speaker 2 (34:13):
Happened is because so my agent started a splash page
for me, which was a little website. This website had
like a fan kind of a thing that you could like.
It gained ten thousand, twenty thousand, thirty thousand, fives fifty
thousand fans that Tom from my space and people from
(34:35):
Facebook contacted me. Mind you, they were contacting my agent
and manager because I didn't know I had to check
my emails or anything, and they were like, Hi, we're
starting the social media platform. We would like for you
to be a part of it because we see you
have a lot of fans.
Speaker 3 (34:50):
I've watched the commercials and I'm like, I don't even
know what a social media is. Sure, let's check it out.
So I went.
Speaker 2 (34:56):
I met with Tom Me and Tom became good friends,
and he was like, you know, I was telling them
what my aspirations are. I was like, you know, I
still want to like make music, but like I don't
even know.
Speaker 3 (35:04):
Where to start.
Speaker 2 (35:05):
It's like, okay, let's open a music MySpace profile and
let's see what happens.
Speaker 3 (35:11):
Just post photos, be active on there. I became the.
Speaker 2 (35:15):
Number one most friended independent musician Latina on that platform,
and that is what caught the attention of EH one, MTV,
E Television, and that's when I started doing hosting gigs,
satellite radio.
Speaker 3 (35:35):
I had my own radio show.
Speaker 2 (35:37):
Everything just started kind of coming because I was the
first Latina on there, and everyone else was totally different
than me. So that's pretty much how it happened. One
of the producers dm'd me. At the time, MTV was
doing like.
Speaker 3 (35:54):
These like reality shows like for the Love of Rage
as stuff like that those.
Speaker 2 (35:58):
And they offered me one and they wanted me to
do like a bisexual kind of like a dating show.
Speaker 3 (36:03):
But I was super I was so not ready to
do nothing like that. I was like, oh no, my
father will abandon me. No, thank you?
Speaker 1 (36:10):
You still were? You still were?
Speaker 3 (36:12):
I was super not out at all.
Speaker 2 (36:14):
I was very scared, like and however, they still kept
me in the system and I was working doing all
kinds of other gigs with them. So what are The
producers DMed me and they were like, hey, when are
you going to be in New York? Are you in
New York right now? And I basically just went in
there and I was very popular. I really got casted
because I was very popular on MySpace and I had
(36:38):
all the record label offers. I'm the first person on
MySpace that was brought into MySpace Records and Interscope and
the first person that got offered a multimillion dollar record
deals as a nobody like I. But I was in
the hood. I didn't know anything. I was like.
Speaker 3 (36:57):
Oh my god, a record deal. Why are people offering
me millions of dollars? Specious? I'm like, it's very skeptical.
Speaker 2 (37:04):
I'm glad that I'm glad that I did decline some
of these deals because I was I had nobody really
to represent me. I probably who knows where, I who
knows what conversation.
Speaker 1 (37:15):
Yeah, we know that US industry is not.
Speaker 3 (37:18):
It's not what everybody thinks.
Speaker 1 (37:20):
I definitely alive.
Speaker 3 (37:22):
Yeah, and I don't think I would have been really
prepared at the time. I was eighteen, you know what
I mean. I was a.
Speaker 2 (37:27):
Kid, so fast forward. That's how I ended up on
love and Hip Hop. I was very popular on my Space.
I was definitely my story was very very much misrepresented.
Speaker 3 (37:39):
And I have talked about this.
Speaker 1 (37:41):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (37:42):
Yeah, they made it seem as if though I was
a nobody, which all my fans for my space kept
writing like online, like what the hell Samaya was offered
record deals? She's the biggest on my space. Like it
was really a huge like change for me, But it
didn't matter because I was still going to fight for
(38:03):
my career and fight for what's right and fight for
my voice. And I did that and I did that
very successfully, and I was able to, you know, because
of the.
Speaker 3 (38:13):
Show, which I'm really grateful for.
Speaker 2 (38:15):
And regardless of how that happened, that's still one thing
I've learned about these reality shows.
Speaker 3 (38:20):
Don't matter how they serve your food.
Speaker 2 (38:22):
It's what you're going to do past that, after you eat,
you play, because you're still going to do it. But
what are you going to do after? How are you
going to make it work for you? So I just
kept telling my story. I went on a lot of
interviews and just told my story, and I was like, hey, guys,
so I am, this is what I have under my belt.
I didn't come on the show to like sign a
(38:43):
record deal with Jim Jones.
Speaker 3 (38:44):
I just wanted to do a song with them, and
he was really.
Speaker 2 (38:47):
Cool actually, and to me, Jimmy, it has always been
really cool to me.
Speaker 1 (38:52):
And so although you were misrepresented, and you know, you
still don't feel like doing Love and Hip about New
York was a mistake something you regret.
Speaker 2 (39:01):
No, So at the time I had a very conflicted
feeling because I was very like bitter or sweet. Oh yeah,
I was very like like, you know, this is crazy,
Like this is completely like I don't fight with women,
like I don't sit here. First of all, for this,
I would not be sitting there fighting with anybody's girlfriend
(39:21):
because if it's too much drama, I'm like, keep the record, baby,
I don't want to have nothing to do with this.
Speaker 3 (39:27):
Love y'all gotta go.
Speaker 2 (39:29):
But we were filming a TV show, so they wouldn't
let it go. They had to play out the story,
you know. But I think that that just came from
a place of passion, because.
Speaker 3 (39:38):
You know, I was making music and I was at
a place where I wanted development.
Speaker 2 (39:45):
I wanted to work with somebody. I wanted to have
somebody take me under their wing and help me and
develop me.
Speaker 3 (39:52):
But I wasn't asking for handouts. I was like, I'll work.
Speaker 2 (39:56):
There was a part in the show that wasn't shown
where I presented an entire business plan to Jim Jones.
Speaker 3 (40:04):
And I was like, look, here's the whole business plan,
just so you.
Speaker 2 (40:06):
Know, I'm not just some pretty girl coming in here
with millions of followers on my space.
Speaker 3 (40:11):
Like I'm willing to put in that work.
Speaker 2 (40:13):
That's why he was like, Okay, come back to the studio.
Because I wasn't asking for a handout, but I was
definitely kind of, you know, looking for my you know, uh,
looking for my fat Joe, you know what I mean,
my place a piece somebody that could take me under
their wing and kind of help.
Speaker 1 (40:30):
I don't blame you. You know, a lot of us moved
that way, you know what I'm saying. You step into
a room, You're like, is there an opportunity here?
Speaker 3 (40:37):
Yeah?
Speaker 1 (40:37):
When you're young, you're like, who can mentor me?
Speaker 3 (40:39):
You know?
Speaker 1 (40:40):
Yeah, Look, you're like, listen, I will work you just
you know, help me here and there. You're not looking
for a handout, but especially in the music industry, and
you know, somebody like Jimmy was already on hearing, knew
the ins and outs. And you're your keys from New York,
so I can understand your approach, you know. But a
lot of stuff gets, you know, misrepresented. But I love
that you did it, you know, because we got to
(41:01):
know you.
Speaker 3 (41:02):
Yes, and that's what matters ultimately.
Speaker 1 (41:04):
And you've never gone away and you've never gone away.
You've been part of the industry. Yeah, forever. How low
Thego was love and hip of New.
Speaker 3 (41:11):
York, jeez girl over ten years?
Speaker 1 (41:13):
Because I love it. I love the fact that we're
can't we come back though, like.
Speaker 3 (41:17):
We did come back to you remember that they tried
to bring back all the ogs.
Speaker 1 (41:21):
I remember that.
Speaker 2 (41:22):
Yeah, and then COVID happened, and then it shut down
all productions, so we couldn't finish everything.
Speaker 3 (41:26):
Good. I know, good, Yes, change the game, girl, But yeah,
you know I'm still here because I'm I'm. I didn't.
Speaker 2 (41:35):
I didn't get on Reality TV like they chose me.
I was doing a legitimate career prior to Reality but
Reality TV was a great place for me to tell
my story. And like you know, like I said, I
had a bittersweet moment for a bit until I looked
at it from a different point of view. I looked
at it in the way, well, I can continue to
(41:57):
tell my story because my story's very real.
Speaker 3 (42:00):
Well, I have had to fight for my career.
Speaker 2 (42:02):
I have had to not in that way, but it
has been you know, roadblocks in and it just was
very heartbreaking for me because all I wanted to do
was music and and and I was asking for guidance
and mentorship and I wasn't asking to do anything else
(42:23):
because I believe that if you're in the smart if
you are this, or if you perceived to be the
smartest person in the room, you're in the wrong room.
I wanted to learn I wasn't here to sleep with
anyone's man or anything like that.
Speaker 3 (42:36):
I would never disrespect myself first that way.
Speaker 2 (42:41):
And so you know, like and I kind of got
over that, you know, And I also made it work
for me and.
Speaker 1 (42:47):
That's the past, and you've done so much ever since.
Oh my god.
Speaker 3 (42:52):
Yeah, the train didn't stop, baby.
Speaker 1 (42:55):
You know, it was just it was just a little
bump in the road, you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 3 (42:58):
And it was it was good. It was good for
me because people got to know that I'm resilient and.
Speaker 1 (43:04):
I feel like we connected with you, of course, and
I hope so.
Speaker 2 (43:08):
And that's the whole thing for me, is that it's
about connection. And I think a lot of people saw that,
Like I was not trying to come in and do
anything negative. It's like almost like I was built, you know,
made the villain for no reason and I and it's
like to me, I was all about love and in
them making me the villain. But I'm from South Central too,
(43:30):
so I wasn't backing down. I don't care who it is,
you know. And it's interesting because when we came back
to love and hip hop and me and Chrissy did talk,
I was like, girl, what were we fighting about? Like,
you know, I think she's great on reality TV. I
think that is a good fit for her because that's
like she's gooder. And I had told her that I
was like, girl, I don't want to go on all
shows fighting people like I I just can't even I
(43:54):
don't find any happiness in it. And you know, no
but Aka, but we put that to rest, as you
guys saw on the show. But we were just starting
to dive into why and how we were going to
move forward and things like that, and you know, again,
you know, the COVID happened, and then we can continue that.
Speaker 3 (44:12):
However, now who I am.
Speaker 2 (44:13):
Now versus then there's still I still have a lot
of heart. I still have no problem asking somebody to
mentor me. I have a couple of mentors that I
learned so.
Speaker 3 (44:23):
Much from Porque.
Speaker 2 (44:25):
I have always understood something that my father taught me,
Miha always use your mind. Always use your mind. Beauty
will fade. Because that was a little girl.
Speaker 3 (44:36):
He always told me you can never stop learning. You
can never stop learning, you know. But also being a
woman and fighting as.
Speaker 2 (44:48):
Being a woman, because some people, really you know, there
are a lot of opportunities for us women. But I
think as a woman, you can understand, but there are
some people that won't give it to you because you're
a woman.
Speaker 1 (44:58):
Oh of course that's sing for me.
Speaker 3 (45:01):
Yeah, and for me, I'm a huge activist for women.
Speaker 2 (45:04):
Women for me are the earth, we are the universe,
and we are just as good in any position. Of course,
maybe some things like might not be a fit for
us as an individual, but as a woman, like, we're amazing,
We're dope. We offer some different you know what I mean,
We offer a different perspective, and I think that it
(45:26):
is amazing, and I really just continue, like to me,
I will continue my story in both in music, like
my new line project that I have coming out is
all it's just in Spanish and it's just me telling
my story and me telling people not to give up.
And some songs are gonna make you cry because you're
going to feel like it's you that's talking. Because my
pain is pain that we've all gone through. But I'm
(45:49):
not afraid to put it out there, and I know
that it can be so difficult, but I want to
continue to be the voice of the voiceless, the voice
for people that can't stand up for themselves yet.
Speaker 1 (46:00):
And we appreciate that this album is going to be
a Latin project.
Speaker 3 (46:17):
You say, right, it is. I have I am on.
Speaker 1 (46:21):
What are we doing ballads? What we do?
Speaker 2 (46:23):
But we do have a ballad and it is very
very personal ballad I speak about my son.
Speaker 1 (46:28):
Is Get a Girl gonna be all? I'm sorry?
Speaker 3 (46:30):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (46:30):
No, Actually, get a Girl is the complete opposite of it. Okay,
it's a complete opposite.
Speaker 3 (46:35):
Get a Girl is super fun.
Speaker 1 (46:37):
So you know, girls like a one off single that
we have our Yeah, it.
Speaker 2 (46:40):
Is a one off single. We did two versions of it.
One is like come more, Wrap Forward, and the second
one is the Jersey Club mix.
Speaker 3 (46:50):
You know, I have to give Jersey their you know,
their flowers.
Speaker 2 (46:54):
I Jersey embraced me when I got out there, and
I just I love Jersey Club. It's I'm as the
club record, but it's the one that I'm like really
super proud of because I wanted to give a message
to the girls. And this is for the girls, all
types of girls. It's not just about when I call
you a bad beat. It's not physical. It's like if
you're smart, you're a mom, you're a single mom, You're
(47:16):
out there getting it girl, get it like It's it's
not age forward.
Speaker 3 (47:21):
It's not you know, it's.
Speaker 1 (47:23):
For all the girls, you know, players to get it.
Speaker 3 (47:26):
Yeah, get it, getty girl. So that's the whole idea.
Speaker 1 (47:30):
And I love the track. I love the track, and
I love you know, the visual like what you did
the photog the fact that you shot your own photos.
Speaker 3 (47:38):
Yes, so I'm.
Speaker 1 (47:40):
Doing here looking for a photographer somebody over here shooting
single covers by myself.
Speaker 3 (47:45):
Girl, let me tell you I shot I shot the
music video visuals to it.
Speaker 2 (47:49):
But the new visuals for this new song I have
coming out. Okay, it will on the twenty ninth. It's
called Asian Is. Basically this entire conversation. At the end
of the day, things will always work out for you,
but you have to hold onto your faith. Get to
remember these words that I say, hold on to your faith.
(48:10):
Don't give up of all the things that you made,
all of your dreams, don't let go. And when I
wrote this record Thlo Noisetyle, I was saying it'll be
alright to Maya, it's gonna be all right, Everything's gonna
be all right, it will work out in your favor.
These were prayers that I put into a record. It
is a beautiful song. It is a side of me
(48:32):
that I don't think anyone has heard of, because I've
developed a lot as an artist, and I'm very proud
of this record and the ones that come after that.
And it is a song built for hope, inspiration, and
I shot the visuals for it, so all of the
visuals have been shot.
Speaker 3 (48:48):
There's a whole music video for it, beauty and of it.
I shot it myself.
Speaker 2 (48:52):
I mean, girl, when you're a hustler and I started
my career, I had to learn how to shoot my
own photos and my own videos.
Speaker 3 (48:58):
Because I was broke.
Speaker 1 (49:00):
We're on a budget afford to.
Speaker 3 (49:02):
Pay anybody to do it. So I was like, I
better learn how to do this myself preservation. Listen, baby,
when I say I'm gonna get it, I'm gonna get it.
I'm gonna get.
Speaker 1 (49:11):
It one hundred percent. Man. I love this for you,
And you know, I love that you're still here, You're
still working, you're still making music, you still look beautiful.
Speaker 3 (49:21):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (49:22):
I love it.
Speaker 3 (49:22):
You know.
Speaker 1 (49:23):
It's like sometimes you have your people and you're like
they changed, but it's like I'm looking at you right
now and it's like the same woman that I admired
I aspired to be like I aspired to look like.
And I want you to know you gave a lot
of us hope, you gave us a lot like you know,
like she's doing it, I can do it, and you know,
I want to thank you, and you're doing amazing. I
(49:44):
look forward to the new project. You know, I've been
ingesting some Maaya content for the past few days. You know,
I saw the gardening. I was like, she's doing gardening,
and I love that.
Speaker 3 (49:53):
It's incredible for your mental health.
Speaker 1 (49:55):
It's incredible better than cooking because I use cooking as
like cooking is great to health too, but gardening is
even better.
Speaker 3 (50:02):
That's from no, you know, it's different.
Speaker 2 (50:04):
It's like, so I'm really a big advocate for mental health,
especially within our POC community, because this isn't talked about,
you know what I mean.
Speaker 3 (50:11):
Growing up, nobody talks about that. You know, it's a
very right.
Speaker 2 (50:16):
So I tell people all the time to find a
hobby that helps you personally with your mental health. So
for me, it's cooking, it's writing, it's creating, Like I
love creating.
Speaker 3 (50:30):
I designed my entire house.
Speaker 2 (50:33):
I literally like HGTV style. I love taking photos. That
is my therapy, and I love gardening and something about
gardening like I've because my mom. You know, growing up Latina,
a lot of moms will have like mathas in their house,
you know, little plants of herbs and stuff. So my
(50:55):
mom taught me a lot of things that I learned
just by watching her. And I started it just for therapy,
and then it just kind of grew into something else.
Speaker 3 (51:03):
And then I became more of a.
Speaker 2 (51:05):
Farm her, which is what I call it, instead of
a farmer farm her. And I also offer fruit and
vegetable boxes on my website, oh wow, go on shop
this fits.
Speaker 3 (51:18):
Me dot com.
Speaker 2 (51:18):
That is my company health website, and we have an
abundance of food here and we barter with our neighbors.
Speaker 3 (51:26):
I live in the countryside.
Speaker 2 (51:28):
Like this is all part of me creating the piece
that I've always wanted and I did not have.
Speaker 3 (51:34):
And it's all about creating it for yourself. That's what
I've learned. So this is what I do. And cooking,
oh man, that is therapy. I love to cook.
Speaker 4 (51:42):
Super fun that created you to create obviously, yes, because
you're creating music, you know, and I love the way
that you're giving back paying it forward and you know,
just creating the life that you want.
Speaker 1 (51:55):
And I feel like that's something that a lot of
us need to do. Is like we think about it,
We're like I want to be this, I want to
be that, but we don't put pen to paper, put
a plan together, put.
Speaker 2 (52:05):
Yeah, because it's you know, we have to also give
ourselves a little grace because when nobody has given us
the map, you have to figure out our own. It
becomes very overwhelming. Right for me, I, for some reason
have always functioned with the fire, even though I don't
want to function that way. It's like sometimes I go
(52:26):
through that where I think it's something, but I don't
follow through, and then something that's inside of me and
gets inside of me and I'm like, hmm, I gotta
follow through with that.
Speaker 3 (52:40):
Boy.
Speaker 1 (52:41):
I love it. I love it. I love it. I
want to thank you so much, Samaya, you know, for
sitting with me today. And you know, we've delved into
a lot of different topics, but it always feels like
it connects a lot back to you know, spirituality. You
know our purpose here on earth, and you know our
latinida and our upbringing and how our roots really have
(53:02):
a lot to do with the people that we are today.
Speaker 2 (53:04):
Yes, and it's important for us not to stop being a.
Speaker 3 (53:08):
Voice for Latinia.
Speaker 1 (53:10):
Oh no, that listen that.
Speaker 3 (53:12):
Anybody says and who tries to stop our voice.
Speaker 1 (53:16):
Never on speaking. You put me in any room and
I'm like, what are we doing for the Latinos? What
are we doing for I am an advocate. You are
not going to erase me. You're not gonna erase my people.
I understand our power in the polls.
Speaker 3 (53:29):
When that's what I did.
Speaker 2 (53:30):
When I went on Love and hip Hop, I was like, Okay,
it's Latino all day over here.
Speaker 1 (53:35):
Y'all like, and I'm a Latina and hip hop and
I listen to me. Do you know this one was Panamanian?
Speaker 3 (53:41):
Or do you know?
Speaker 1 (53:42):
Do you know how Spice is Dominican? You know Cardi
B is Dominican?
Speaker 2 (53:46):
I don't know, but you know that's why we're here,
right to tell people is the cafe? Go tell your
pop smoke? I said, oh he Panamanian? Because I'm like,
you know what, You're not gonna steal my people from me.
Speaker 3 (54:04):
I don't let you know. We will not be erased.
We're here to educate others.
Speaker 1 (54:09):
One hundred percent has us here for bop Anywhere, which
I love one hundred percent. I love Cardi, Cardi that
give me Uptown. I'm like Cardio. It's just I'm not
gonna let it be erased. And I'm not going to
let our contributions to any genre of music or any
(54:31):
role in this community, you know, be forgotten or be erased.
You know what I'm saying. And I really really appreciate
this time that we have spent here today.
Speaker 3 (54:39):
Thank you for.
Speaker 2 (54:39):
Having me, and I appreciate you sharing your energy and
your stories and telling me a little bit about you
that the listener wants to know too.
Speaker 3 (54:48):
And don't you ever stop telling your story. Don't ever
give up.
Speaker 1 (54:52):
I love this listen. I'm gonna record this. I'm gonna
play this that night before I go to bed.
Speaker 3 (54:58):
Ever give up on your faith. You are beautiful, you
are wonderful, You are a whole, You are worthy.
Speaker 1 (55:04):
All these affirmations. I love them so much, so maya
Grassias come again. Grassiers Come Again is a production of
Honey German Productions in partnership with Iheart'smichel Thura podcast Network.
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