Cardi B Explains Why She Keeps Her Personal Struggles Out Of Her Music

In a candid conversation on Complex’s “Hot Ones,” Bronx-born rap phenomenon Cardi B delved into her reluctance to spread her music with snippets of her personal life. The Grammy-winning artist offered insight into her choices to keep those experiences out of her music.

“A lot of people tell me I should put my pain, my struggle, in my music,” Cardi started the conversation. “But what folks don’t get is most of my struggles aren’t relatable to the average person. Twitter may tear me apart for my experience and my opinions, but the average Jane is more concerned with making it to her 9-to-5 job on time.”

She continued to say that her listeners were not looking for that from her. “The average listener is like, ‘Girl, shut up! I’ve got to clock in tomorrow at 7 a.m.,’” she said. “I want to focus on fun. My intro sets the tone — me standing tall, owning my space — and the rest of the album is pure enjoyment.”

Addressing the challenges of creating clean versions of her often-explicit lyrics, the “Bodak Yellow” rapper brought up the issues she faced with her new hit single, “Bongos,” featuring Megan Thee Stallion. “Really irritating!” she exclaimed. “I recently had to come up with a radio-friendly version, and the process was a nightmare.”

Cardi revealed how her initial attempts to clean the song’s lyrics failed to fit the radio. “I tried adjusting a line to, ‘Baby eat it up like a plum,’ but the label said it’s still not fit for pop radio,” she lamented. “I eventually had to settle for, ‘Baby, eat these peaches and plums,’ which sounds incredibly corny to me. It’s like something out of a children’s show.”

The Megan Thee Stallion collaboration initially debuted at No. 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart but slipped to No. 31 in its second week. Nonetheless, Megan has hinted at a collaborative EP, keeping fans tapped in with excitement. “I’ve already laid down two tracks for her,” she disclosed in a recent Complex interview. “We’re actually building up our EP, and I couldn’t be more thrilled about the direction we’re taking.”

Check out the full interview here below!