Hot on the heels of the release of the video for her new single “Liquorice“ … Azealia Banks snagged the cover of Paper Magazine’s Summer Music issue, which is available on newsstands now.
And would you look at that (in)famous pose!
If that pose looks familiar, it’s because Nicki Minaj (and even Drake) did it … after Lil Kim did it … and now Azealia Banks is doing it. (And she’s totally owning that sh*t!)
It should also be noted that both Azealia Banks, Nicki Minaj AND Drake are in separate (but equal) feuds with Lil Kim, who can’t stand either EITHER of them … ESPECIALLY Drake and Nicki Minaj.
A lot to take in, right?
But anyway … inside Paper Mag’s latest issue, Azealia Banks shows off her quirky personality and fashion sense, as she poses in a seashell bikini, with a huge fork in her hair and holding an over-sized Mickey Mouse chain in a photo spread shot by Emily Shur.
In her interview, the “212” rapstress discusses her debut album, her recent move to Los Angeles and how she’s dealing with her newfound fame.
See what the 21-year-old rapper VOCALIST had to share with Paper Magazine below:
On the inspiration behind her breakthrough single “212”:
“Nobody was listening to my music. I had been dropped from [the English record label] XL. My manager dropped me. My boyfriend left me. I was starting to accept that my career was never gonna happen. So the song was just me, like, ‘F*ck y’all. Y’all not gonna help me? I’m gonna get it myself.'”On why she moved to Los Angeles:
“For me there’s three options of where to live: L.A., London and New York. London’s too expensive and New York’s too exciting: too many parties, too many of my friends. If I wanna make this my life, I have to live somewhere I can work, somewhere I can focus. My album will not come out in September if I live in New York.”On the competitive nature of the music industry — aka “the machine”:
“The music industry is like a machine. It’s always going, and this new generation of artists — me, A$AP Rocky, Rita Ora — we’re the fuel that’s keeping it going. And once you get in that machine you’ve gotta run with it. There’s a crazy inertia that’s been going for years and years and years, and it’s not gonna stop for you, so you’ve gotta keep f**king working. The minute you stop working, that’s when you get stuck in the gears. And that’s when it grinds you up and spits you out.”On the advice Interscope chairman Jimmy Iovine gave her:
“The music is what’s important. These people are not gonna wanna talk to you if you don’t have music; they’re not gonna be interested. And your star is not always gonna be as bright. So you really have to seize the day.”
Be on the lookout for Azealia Banks’ next mixtape “Fantasea,” set to drop on July 4th. Her debut album “Broke with Expensive Taste” is expected to be released this fall.
