Courtesy of Loop 21

Loop 21 caught up with singer/rapper/songwriter, Kalenna, formerly of Diddy Dirty Money, to discuss her transition from songwriter to group member, to rising solo star, the image issues she’s faced as a black woman in the music industry, all while being a wife and mother.

On top of that, Kalenna is also the ambassador of The Lupus Foundation, which celebrates awareness of the disease the entire month of May. Having worked with a spectrum of artist ranging from Christina Aguilera and the Pussycat Dolls, to Ciara, Aretha Franklin, Charlotte Church and more since 2004, Kalenna’s built quite a resume. Now, she’s decided to try out a solo career and prove that she’s not just a back up.

Loop 21: Tell us about your project Chamber of Diaries. What message were you trying to convey with that?

Kalenna: Chamber of Diaries was an extension of who I was as a member of Dirty Money. I felt that I created the sound for the group and I wanted the world to know that I wasn’t just this mystery girl. My resume spoke for itself and I wanted the world to know where the swag came from. Diddy is Diddy. Dawn was the girl from Danity Kane and he needed someone to come in with the swag. So when I put Chamber of Diaries together I didn’t mean for it to be a mixtape, I was working on the album. And people were like this is dope and I should put it out.

Article source: http://uptownmagazine.com/2012/05/kalenna-life-after-diddy-dirty-money/