07/10/2020
SAWEETIE: A Filipina shines in American hip hop music scene
Saweetie
After Bruno Mars, Nicole Scherzinger, Apl.de.ap, Vanessa Hudgens, Darren Criss, Arnel Pineda and the artist formerly known as Charice made Filipinos proud when they broke through the competitive American and international music scenes, another half-Filipina artist is currently making waves stateside in hip hop music. Her name is Saweetie and she’s a multi-platinum selling rapper.
Born Diamonté Harper to an African-American father and a Filipina mother, the rapper grew up in the melting pot of the San Francisco Bay Area and Sacramento but is ever proud of her Filipino blood.
“My mother is from Tondo. A lot of people don’t know that she’s actually an immigrant,” Saweetie declared in this exclusive online interview with The Sunday Times Magazine.
“She came here when she was 13 years old, and something that has always stuck with me from my mom was just working hard. So I’ve always been a hard worker too. I’ve always got good grades — not always been a hustler — and I feel like that’s what a true Filipino is.”
Indeed, in a previous interview with cable channel MTV, Saweetie affirmed her Filipino roots and ways when a crew visited and caught her eating adobo, sinigang and pancit in between college classes. She has since earned a diploma — a rarity among rap artists — from the University of Southern California where the feature took place. In fact, she completed a double degree in Communications and Business.