Meet Big Mama German | Rap Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Big Mama German and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Big Mama, any advice for those thinking about whether to keep going or to give up?
I’m going to share a little story. About 5 years ago, I was trying to enlist into the military. I needed to gain 2 pounds, study for the ASVAB, and workout. Now, I always wanted to be an entertainer, a rapper specifically. I knew that I wanted to be on the big screen, perform in front of millions, showcase my talent, all that good stuff. In 2013 I put out my first song with a group of friends on YouTube called “Get Money”. It was a remix of Junior M.A.F.I.A.’s “Get Money” and at that time I went by “Raspberry German”. I got a lot of support from my peers but my family was not accepting of it. I was told “you need a real job”, “you need to go to college or the military”, “you’re from South Carolina you’re not gonna make it”, “thats not gonna work”, etc. At that time, I let that negativity get to me. I knew I didn’t want to go to College so I worked a bunch of pointless jobs after I graduated High School then eventually decided to join the military. At least, try to. I promise you, no matter what I did, how many jobs I had, music was the only thing on my mind 24/7. I wanted to do something that would provide financial stability and help me get a career so I thought the military was the way to go. I took the ASVAB 4 times and did not meet any of the qualifications. I studied, bought tons of books, worked out, tried to gain weight but none of that was working. My score got lower, lower, and lower each time I took it. The last time I took the test, I went home and cried. I wondered “why isn’t this working for me”. I was determined, driven, I did everything the Sergeant was telling me to do but the results were only getting worse. I prayed hard and asked God “what is my purpose, what do I need to do”. Whole time I knew what my purpose was but because I listened to other people, I was confused and at conflict with myself. After nights and days of praying, God said to me “thats not your calling”. So, I gave up on the military at that point. I then ended up working at a fast food place for the next 2 years. I hated every moment of it. I was working with a bunch of people who were unhappy, mean spirited, settling for less, and i’m not the type of person who represents that. It eventually got to the point where I got fed up. I was unhappy, I was treated poorly, I hated my day to day life, I had horrible friends, everything was bad. Within those 2 years, I finally decided I wanted more for myself. My attitude was “I don’t care what anyone has to say, how they feel, i’m doing what makes me happy and what God has put me on this Earth to do.” That was the one of the best decisions of my life. That’s actually how “Who’s That Girl” came about. That was my breakthrough moment from all the bs. I quit my job, cut off my friends and finally started walking in my purpose. Everything started to flow and manifest. So with that being said, to answer the question. Ask yourself how bad do you want it. What is your “why”? Are you passionate about what you’re trying to do? Is this what YOU want to do or is this something someone else wants you to do or suggested you do? That will tell you everything right there. Trust your intuition, stay true to yourself and who you are, live your life how you want to live it. Don’t listen to people who aren’t happy with their life and didn’t take a chance on their dreams. Throughout all of that, I was still writing rhymes everyday in my composition book. My life long dream of becoming a rapper never left me no matter what. Music is within me. I am music. Thats what makes me happy.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I’m a rap artist. I can sing a little bit but I mainly rap. I’ve always been into music since I came out the womb but I originally wanted to be a singer. Alicia Keys was my idol. I wanted to sing and be just like her. When I was in 3rd grade I got introduced to rapping and I believe that was the first time I heard Lil’ Kim. That is what and who changed the game for me. Since then I started rapping and never stopped. What sets me apart from others cannot be described into words. Its imagery more than anything. The way I carry myself, the way I look, my persona, my aesthetic, the type of music I make, Big Mama German has her own category for sure. Consistency, staying true to myself, being confident, pushing myself has took me thus far. It definitely has not been an easy journey. Sometimes I have my moments where I may not feel my best and sometimes I get writers block but I always remind myself of why I do what I do. The love that I have for music, the passion that I have for this keeps me going. In this business, not everyone has your best interest. There will be haters, people who are jealous, people who don’t want to see you win. I just know, anything that comes my way i’m strong enough to handle it and thats how you have to think. Don’t sweat. I do me. I move how I want to move, stay in my lane and create amazing art. I want the world to know that any time you hear Big Mama German rhyming, Big Mama German wrote it.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
If my best friend was visiting and I wanted to show them the best time I ever we’d go to Frankies Fun Park. Play all the arcade games, go-karts, get on the drop zone, eat some pizza. We’d go to Columbianna Mall, go shopping, get Auntie Annie’s pretzels. I like the original whole pretzel or cinnamon. I love to thrift shop so we’d go all the Goodwills and cute thrift shops. Probably hit up Nancy Nooks of course. If you know you know. There’s a drive-thru zoo about an hour and some change away so we’d drive there or go to Riverbanks Zoo. I love animals, outdoors, and nature. We’ll go downtown take pics by the graffiti and browse art on the buildings, go to the Museum. Try out some restaurants and dessert shops. Concerts or festivals if they’re any going on. Live bands, live music with good food and drinks. Most importantly too, we’d go to Pelican Snoballs. That’ll probably be first. I love that place!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
First, I would like to give a BIG shoutout to God because without him, none of this would be possible. Secondly, shoutout to all my supporters, fans, stans, the producers, artists, photographers, videographers, that i’ve worked with and/or currently working with. Shoutout to my engineer, family, friends, everyone who supports me and contributes to the Big Mama German legacy in any way. Special shoutout to my Mother, NOKAMI, Blvck Amethyst, RADICAL, Pylot Tea and Austin Prescott.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bigmamagerman

Twitter: https://mobile.twitter.com/bigmamagerman

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjZR3uqSWqWsdopOwp_bmjg

Other: Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/bigmamagerman TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@badgyalgerman

Image Credits
Jess: @barbiebloodbath AlexTheGreat: @ap.extras.x