Interview: “Chattin’ Shit” with Kari Faux
Houston-based rapper Kari Faux spoke with Afterglow about her new album REAL BITCHES DON’T DIE, her collaboration with Flo Milli, and her upcoming Austin show on September 16.
Written by C.S. Harper
Photos courtesy of Randijah Simmons
Since dropping her mixtape Lost En Los Angeles in 2016, rapper, producer, and DJ Kari Faux has been known for her buttery flow and genre-bending take on hip-hop. Originally from Little Rock, Arkansas, Faux makes homegrown Southern rap. Latest album REAL BITCHES DON’T DIE is no exception, with references to Houston and a Big K.R.I.T. feature weaved amid soul-funk production. Ahead of Faux’s Austin show on September 16, print editor-in-chief C.S. Harper talked to the rapper to learn more about REAL BITCHES DON’T DIE and share her wisdom on life and the music industry.
Afterglow: Tell me about yourself and how you got started with music.
Kari Faux: I got into music — it was just like a hobby that I [would] just kind of do when I was in my teens. I was probably like 14, 15 when I started recording music, and it was just something that me and my friends would do. And we'd post our songs on MySpace or like Facebook way back, and then Twitter became a thing and I started posting my music there. And then SoundCloud was a thing, and so from there, I had made probably — before anybody knew me — I had made like seven mixtapes.
And so it just kind of became this thing where people on the internet were finding me. And I was like, “Oh, this is cool. Like, I'm just gonna keep making music.” And it was because it was never a thing where I grew up where I was like, “I'm gonna be a musician,” or “I'm gonna be an artist.” I just was doing it. And then it was like, “Oh, okay, I enjoyed doing this thing. And then there's other people that enjoy listening to it.” So then it just kind of turned into like my job, which is what it is now. And yes, I've been doing it for about 15 years.
And yeah, I love it. I love writing, I love producing, I love DJing, I love performing, which this tour has been really amazing. To be honest, it's been four years since I’ve toured, because of lockdown and stuff. So yeah, that's a little bit about me. I'm a Gemini. I'm 31. And I like long walks on the beach [laughs].
How did your Southern upbringing influence your sound?
Growing up in the South influenced me, but I'm just like — I went to church a lot…. My family is Southern Baptist and my mom is a minister. So we went to church every Sunday and every Wednesday, and so gospel played a really big part in my household. Also my dad is like a really big funk fan. We listened to the blues a lot in my family reunions. So a lot of the gospel, blues, soul, funk stuff was in my household before I was able to find music on my own. And then I have an older brother who listened to a lot of gangsta rap when I was a kid. So [that’s] just all of the things that informed me musically as a child, and I just took all those things and put it together because it's kind of all I know. And then as I got older I started to listen to more pop-punk, rock kind of stuff. But yeah, my early influences are very much in the soulful gospel, bluesy funk kind of range.
You got to perform your first single off of REAL BITCHES DON’T DIE, “ME FIRST,” for the COLORS Show. Can you tell me more about this single and that performance?
So I mean, this single… I had decided that I wasn't going to make music anymore at the end of 2021. I was like, “I'm not going to do this anymore.” Also, it was like, the world was shut down, there was no “anything” happening. And then literally on the first day of 2022, New Year's Day, I stayed at home by myself, and I just was like, “You know what, I must spend the first day of the year just in my own energy.” And so my friend had sent me a bunch of beats, and I was just playing them. And one of the first beats that I heard was the “ME FIRST” instrumental. So then I just started freestyling. And then that's where the hook came from. And then I was like, “Oh, wait, this is fun.” Like, I liked this. And then I went on to finish writing and recording the song. And instantly, I just knew — I was like, “Oh, this has to come out.”
And so I had been having conversations with COLORS about doing a performance. Because I felt like it was long overdue, they felt like it was long overdue, a bunch of people felt like it should happen. And so I sent them maybe like three songs that I had just been sitting on for however long. And then I sent them “ME FIRST” to see which one that they’d like, and they were like, “Oh, ‘ME FIRST,’” like, we went that way. And so it kind of confirmed that this song was a hit.
You recently got to collaborate with Flo Milli and Maiya the Don on “Anything Flows.” Can you tell me about that experience?
So basically, an agency I guess that was putting together the commercial, they just reached out to me, and they were like, “Hey, we really love what you’re doing. We have this song with Flo Milli, Maiya the Don, and 2Rare, and we wanted you to be a part of it.” And I was like, “Sure?” [laughs]. Which I mean, I love Millie. Like I've been a fan of her. I had just found Maiya the Don lowkey like right before the commercial. And then I think I found 2Rare — I've met 2Rare on set. And so I was like, “Yeah, this is cool.” Like I fuck with what everybody was doing. And so doing the song and shooting the commercial was such a big production. I had never been a part of something that was that big. And it was so much fun being on set. The 7-Eleven people were cool. I don't know, it was just such a great experience to be a part of a commercial that I've never had before that I was like, “Okay, I want to have more experiences like that.” So hopefully that opens me up to more commercial work, but it was fun!
I immediately recognized your verse when I first listened to “Anything Flows.” Would you say that being an independent artist allows you to put out more unique work?
I mean, I can't really say but I would want to believe that there are experiences being signed, where you can sign to a major label [and] do what you want to do…. But I know for me, I think that I'm very particular about the sound that I want to put out or what it is I want to say. And I don't really like too many people telling me what I need to do. So yeah, I think that being independent, I do get the luxury of just kind of deciding what it is that I want to do, what I want to say, and how I want to say, without too many opinions of people being like, “Oh, well, I think you should do this like this, or whatever.” I don't know, I just get to be myself.
And I'm really blessed to be able to, you know, have the success that I have. I've done an interview one time, and somebody was like, “Are you happy with where you are in your career?” And I'm like, “Yeah, I am.” Because the thing is, people think that if you're not selling out arenas, or if [you don’t] have 100 billion streams, then you're not successful, and to me, that's not necessarily true. Like, for me, success has been able to do this tour, because right now, people are canceling their tours, like people that have millions of followers are having to cancel their tours because people aren't buying tickets, you know what I mean? I'm able to tour and sell merch, and kick it with my friends and have them pull up to the shows and people know all the words. Like, to me, I am successful. Like, I'm fine. So I think that being independent — it is hard work. You have to be very disciplined and self-driven. But at the end of the day, I get to make my own rules and I'm having fun.
Who created the cover of REAL BITCHES DON’T DIE, and what was that process like?
So this guy named McKay Felt, he's an artist, illustrator. He drew it, and … we just had a long conversation about what the album meant to me and the elements from the songs, like “WHITE CAPRICE,” of course, the car’s on there, and then the dogs [for “DOG”]. And then a lot of personal things about the people that I lost, and how I'm finding joy in a time where grief is very present, and still being able to live my life and not feel the shame for finding joy in times of grief, or in times where the world is just chaotic, or whatever. And so essentially, that is what the album is about, like grief and loss, but then understanding that you can still live in honor of those that you lost. And he took that and that the album art that you see is what he got from that conversation.
That really contextualizes the title of REAL BITCHES DON’T DIE.
Well, it’s one side of it. It's about having the staying power because I've been doing this for so long and I'm still here. And people are still checking for what I'm doing. People are still looking to me to be like, “Okay, what is she doing?” There are a lot of people that we knew of, and then we didn't hear anything from them ever again. But then it's also the other side of me losing loved ones with them still being with me. And still reminding me all the time to still live my fullest life. And just because I've lost people, I shouldn't give up. I shouldn't quit because they wouldn't want me to do that.
Thank you for sharing that, that’s so profound! I have one last question for you: How’d you find your fashion style?
Honestly, I don't know, I just put on whatever I'm feeling at the time. It's so funny because I see people who really like [using mood boards], like, “Okay, this is gonna be my style. This is gonna be my thing or whatever.” And I just be like, I'm just gonna wear whatever [laughs]. Right now, I'm really into cowboy boots since I moved to Texas. I have so many pairs of cowboy boots now. And then I'll just wear that with whatever I'm feeling.
So I think for me, it's just more about just feeling good about whatever I'm wearing. Because even if it's something that somebody else would be like, “Oh, I would never” — like the amount of times I hear people say, “I would never wear that but it looks good on you.” That's because it's something that I want to wear. Like I feel confident in it. Confidence has more to do with how you look in something than how much it costs, or what the fabric it is or whatever. Like if you put it on, and you wear it, and you like it, and you love it, you're gonna exude something different than somebody who's just putting something on because it costs a lot of money or it's designer or it's trendy or whatever. Like, that's what style is to me. It's about putting something together and putting it on and wearing it in a way that is very authentic to who you are and makes you feel good about yourself when you go out the house.
Very wise words indeed! Anything else you’d like to say?
I just want everybody to come to the Austin show!
You can follow Kari Faux on Instagram and stream her music on Bandcamp, Spotify, and Apple Music. Buy tickets for her Austin show here.
This interview has been minimally edited for clarity and length.