Steph Lecor Talks Being the First Lady of DJ Khaled’s We The Best, ‘Saturday’ & Repping Haiti
With half of her head shaved off, Steph Lecor dons electric blue tresses down to the middle of her head to her mid-back. The Haitian American singer, who's set to be the latest breakout star from Miami, one of 2015's biggest anthem with "Saturday." She's also the only woman signed to DJ Khaled's label, which makes her the First Lady of We the Best.
With "Saturday," Lecor has the power to rival Jhene Aiko's infamous line from "Post to Be," as she sings "he ate the booty on Saturday." But before her newfound success, the twenty-something singer already had a list of accomplishments such as opening for the legendary rock band, Van Halen and crafting jams in the pop group, Kulture Shock.
It's all in the family too, as Lecor's dad was one of the founding members of the kompa band, Macho Man. And while she already knits kreyol in her music, Lecor hopes to reunite her dad's band for a song collaboration. She recently nabbed a photo with Wyclef Jean as well and hinted at some new music on the horizon between the two.
In an interview with The Boombox, Lecor talks about being the first woman to join DJ Khaled's We The Best, the origins of her blue hair and when fans can expect to hear some new music.
The Boombox: So first question, what made you decide to don blue hair?
Steph Lecor: Oh, yeah. Yeah, I would say that I hate giving this person credit because they’re so cocky. But, I was in a group before this for like seven years and one of the group members, a guy, was like, “It would be so cool if you had green hair” and I was like, “never gonna happen.” Then he finally convinced me but I went pink first and I loved it so I started playing with different colors and I landed on blue and it was nice. It's my favorite color on me. So that’s how blue hair came about.
How is it been being with DJ Khaled’s We the Best? Has it been a boost for your career?
It’s been of major boost for my career. I was doing really well in a group that I was in before but after getting such a huge co-sign from DJ Khaled, I see a spike in everything. It's kind of surreal to be a part of the We The Best family. It just feels great tat someone who's this successful in the industry is taking on my project. People genuinely like him. He's a really good person so just having that co-sign, I've seen a difference in my Instagram followers. Khaled is just amazing with marketing and promotions. And he's really put a lot of promotion behind me. So there's definitely a lot of interest in me with being First Lady of We The Best and DJ Khaled's artist.
Yeah, I see you call yourself the First Lady of We the Best. How'd that come about?
I didn't give myself that title, Khaled did. It's funny because I was doing an interview with him -- it was actually the first interview we did together and it was actually the interview where he announced that I was his artist on the We The Best roster. And he said he never wanted a female artist -- never thought he'd have one -- but he met me and the energy was so great. He knew that it was the next move for him.
How is it like being the only woman on the team though?
Amazing. It's amazing. You know, honestly it's just really a honor. I feel really blessed to be given an opportunity and to know that he saw something in me that made him decide to make me the first female artist on his roster. You know, Khaled has worked with so many different artists and he's been around everyone -- the biggest stars in the game. So that's just like everything.
What inspired you to create "Saturday?"
I actually didn't create "Saturday." It was written and produced by a team based out of Miami. They submitted the song. When E Class, my manager, played the record for me I knew that it was definitely something that I could stand behind. A lot of the things that are spoken about in the record, I feel very comfortable saying. And I felt like it was a really great record. It's kind of like an introduction to Steph Lecor. I knew it was dope. That's how that came about.
What drew you to it?
Firstly, the beat. Aside from the lyrics, I think the beat is super dope. I think it's contagious. Even if you don't like what I'm saying in the lyrics, the beat is really a monster of a beat. Lyrically, I think it's sexy. I think it's Miami. And all of those things drew me to the record. I would never do something I wasn't comfortable with but when I heard it I said 'I can rock with this.' Like this should be everybody's turn up on a Saturday -- on every day. It felt like it was such a girl's anthem. It's all the things we enjoy.
Do you remember the first song you sang to or rapped to?
Yeah. The first song I remember ever singing was Mariah Carey “Hero" and that was my go to song for all my talent shows and auditions and the people who would ask me “can you sing?”
Who are you listening to now?
Who am I listening to now...well, exactly right now, I must, right now as in these days, I’ve been listening to Ska, I really like her. Lana Del Rey, Sia and when I want like my old music fix, I do a lot of Janet Jackson, Andre 3000 and Aaliyah.
You mentioned a few artists but who would you love to collaborate with?
I would be like so excited to work with Sia. I think she’s such a phenomenal singer and songwriter and that would be the dream. Wyclef is another one just because I love the Fugees and I love Wyclef. I think he’s super talented and I would love to work him. Janet Jackson, Andre 3000...it’s a really long list.
It’s funny you mentioned that – because I feel like there’s a few artists now that are fully repping Haiti again after the Fugees like you have Future and Jason Derulo. Do you think Haiti is on the come up?
I definitely only think it’s more popular to just say you’re Haitian. I think there was the time when Haitians were kind of like not really repping where they came from in certain places. I’m from Miami and I don’t know if you’ve been to Miami but Miami definitely has a huge Haitian community and we’re very proud down there. You know like our cars have Haitian flags on them and we wear Haitian t-shirts and bandanas. All day, every day. But I definitely think that it’s becoming more accepting. I think the media has always portrayed Haiti to be a very poor country, which it is, but you know, hasn’t really highlighted all the positive things in Haiti. So I think nowadays, you know, the younger generation is definitely stepping up.
Were you born in Haiti or were you born in South Florida?
I was born and raised in Miami but both my parents are from Haiti and you know, when you live in a Haitian household that’s just like all you know. Like you learn American things in school and things like that but at home it’s all just like our culture at home.
Definitely. So as a woman of Haitian descent with Haitian parents, do you think it’s important to rep Haiti?
Not just being a woman, you know, I just feel like I’m so proud of who I am and where I come from and really like you know, my culture is really how I grew up. My morals and everything is based on that culture so for me it’s just second nature to just say, 'Hey this is who I am.' It’s such a huge part of me that I couldn’t see myself being represented in any other way.
I don’t know if you’ve heard -- there’s been an outcry because the Dominican Republic is deporting Haitians. I was wondering if you have any comment on it or any thoughts or....?
I actually, from where I understand it’s very tragic and I think that from my understanding it’s not just Haitians, it’s Dominicans as well -- anyone who has been born or raised in Dominican Republic that doesn’t have proper paperwork is being deported and I just think it’s tragic and I pray for them. I honestly don’t -- I’m not too involved in politics to have like an official or correct answer. I can just say that if that is the situation, it’s unfortunate.
So if you could, what would you do to make the world a better place? Or what do you think you are doing already to make the world a better place?
Right now I feel like music is my passion and I love it a lot. I also think that it is a gateway to be able to do a lot more things. Once I have the money behind me and the celebrity behind me. Not to say that that’s all it takes but there’s a lot that I want to do. I want to open a school in Haiti. My family has land there. So that’s one of my dreams and my sister has Crohn’s disease. So we’ve been working on putting together a non-profit organization to figure that out. My nephew also has autism so that’s something I’m invested in. So for me, it’s just being a human. I think number one and just like understanding that you know, this is God’s work and God’s plan and just, I’m just going to serve him and whatever he speaks into me, I’ll try it and be a better person.
You mentioned a few things like building a school, do you have any other interest outside of music?
Well I consider myself to be a mogul in the making. I think that there are a lot of things I want to do -- I know that there are a lot of things that I want to do. Fashion, I’m very interested in fashion, I love fashion, I love perfume, I love make up. Like I said, I want to open a school and everything like that, maybe a school in Miami for music and so there are a lot of things. I love to cook, I definitely see myself opening a restaurant. My mom has had her own restaurant my whole life. My mother and I actually had a catering company and food truck. So, I just can definitely see myself having a couple more businesses with her in the future.
The South Florida scene has been on the come up too with Art Basel, etc. Are there any places or areas you like to visit?
Of course that’s actually one of my favorite places is Wynwood. I think Wynwood is so fun and it’s so artsy and it’s such like the backpack kids. It’s a little cool spot with a lot of offices and shop then it will be low-key and laid back when you want to get away from all the madness on the beach it’s like an amazing alternative.
Cool. Do you any other plans or what are your plans in the new year?
Hopefully an album will drop. A couple of more singles and I will be traveling the world - right now I am traveling the country which is amazing. But the hopefully, it will be the world and I’ll just be doing everything I am doing now just on a larger scale.
Do you have any songs like specifically that you are excited for fans to hear that they haven’t heard yet?
Yes, I have a couple but I can’t give away any singles on the way, so my fans, just stay tuned to my social media. I’m always giving hints so just stay tuned. We're working.