Silk-E: Crown Steady

Silk-E

Fresh on the heels of ‘The Ambassador’ E-40’s electrifying NPR Tiny Desk concert, the Bay Area’s own ‘Soulstress,’ Silk-E returns with brand new solo music, in addition to other exciting forthcoming endeavors. Affectionately dubbed 'The People's Champ' the singer-songwriter-emcee a.k.a. Sherri Stack-A-Grip is largely known for gracing stages alongside such top tier acts as Rage Against the Machine, Erykah Badu, The Roots, Common and Mos Def, as well as musical collaborations with the likes of Too $hort, Snoop Dogg and the aforementioned 40-Water, to name a few.  

First things first, August 11th 2023 marked the 50th Anniversary of Hip Hop — What exactly does that mean to and for you?   

As a woman in Hip Hop, it means everything to me…to watch the different styles progress and evolve over the years, I am always in AWE of us.

To quote the late, great The Notorious B.I.G., “You never thought that Hip Hop would take it this far!” — Was this something that you ever could’ve imagined?   

Funny you should ask that question…in all honesty, yes, I was fortunate enough to have a brilliant, creative mother that gifted me with a boundless imagination. Plus, I’ve always dreamt of watching or being a part of creating beautiful, elaborate stage shows.

What are some of your fondest, most stand-out moments / memories during your lengthy tenure in this thing called Hip Hop?  

Wow, there are so many ones of them…was when I was on MTV: The Cut and Left Eye, who was the host, and she said I had more styles than Ralph Lauren, lol! Or, when David Foster said he wanted to hear me sing more…or KRS-One said he would sign me on the spot was a monumental…when Boots Riley of The Coup made me a member of the group and tour, and the gift of hip hop let me travel extensively across the states and heavily in Europe…hip hop has truly been a vehicle that has helped me see the world.

That said, what are your future plans and / or goals for the (remainder of the) 2025 season?   

My plans are to take over the world, lol! No, seriously…well, my plans are to finish dropping the music which has been my labor of love. I just released “Yummy,” which is the new single, our release “Summer Kisses,” which is the second single, and…to continue to give you guys visuals and videos, and definitely my goal is to deliver a great stage show so there’ll definitely be a lot of live shows for everyone to come to. Also, to release my short film that goes with a project. Finally, giving people access to my merch, my candles, my lipsticks, etcetera.

Switching gears here, what exactly do you want people to get from your music?  

What I want people to get from my music is that I’m pulling for us; I always say, “if I can’t tell you at least one thing life beneficial as a public personality, I serve no purpose.” I should at least be able to inspire or distract you from life challenges for one minute that when you go back to solving whatever the problem is that you at least felt more clearheaded. Who knows, I might’ve had an answer for you in my music; music can be healing…can calm you, as well as give you perspective. My goal is for you to feel better after you listen to my music; whether you’re done with the situation or excited about a new adventure I want people to feel soul…I want when people are riding down the street and playing my music, they feel like I’m in the passenger seat cheering them on when it comes to feeling good about life and winning at life. Don’t get me wrong, in life we all go through different emotions so does my music. It might be a song where I’m telling somebody off in a situation, but that’s because that was for that topic, but, overall, I want them to feel like I’m somebody that they can ride with and be in agreement with.

Silk-E

If you could collaborate with any one artist, living or dead, who would it be and why?   

Daang…that’s such a hard question! There’s so many; André 3000, Scarface, Gladys Knight, Marvin Gaye, LL Cool J, 2Pac, Tobe Nwigwe, for sure Anderson .Paak, BJ the Chicago Kid…and please let’s not forget Erykahhhh Badu and H.E.R., and that’s not in any particular order…that’s such a hard question.

If you could play any venue in the world, which one would you choose and why?   

The World (Music) Awards, wherever that is held. And, I definitely would want to do Super Bowl halftime…and why? Because at the World Awards, I believe that’s kind of self-explanatory. It shows that you kept pushing for your dreams and you had to go through several levels, you had to overcome several adversities, and internationally you have pushed your dream to one of the biggest stages; you’re literally living it out, and you’re no longer just in your region or in your country; you are competing on the world stage, and I want (it) to be said that I worked hard to be one of the most electrifying performance (artists) of our time with hard work and dedication…and, the halftime at the Super Bowl. I would love to do that because you have a lot of people watching you that normally might not have known that they would have liked your music. It’s like an involuntary pull up. People are having family time, and then surprise, surprise! It’s a chance to introduce yourself to people of all different creeds and colors and mindsets, and you can gain new audiences when they wouldn’t have naturally went and sought it out; that’s a testament that you’re doing and knocking out the goals that you said you owe for yourself.

On a more serious note, are you happy with the current state of Hip Hop?   

There’s pros and cons to that; there are several things that I do love…I love that the women and hip hop are consistently doing songs together and showing up in each other’s videos and openly rocking with each other. Not just on the red carpet either, and hip hop you would normally have one girl be the girl in a group with guys…unless they were (already) a group, and it was always refreshing when all the girls wind up doing something together…but it was once every blue moon, it wasn’t as consistent as how the men and hip hop do songs with each other. All the time girls will feature on guy songs, but they weren’t heavily with each other and I love the support that the women are given each other to show. It is different types of artists and they all can win. It just doesn’t have to be one. It’s room for everybody, so that’s beautiful, too. I love that artists are getting brand deals and sponsorship and have been for a while. I love all of the additional opportunities that are coming down the pike for artists. I love that! Independent artists are winning and able to see their money. I love the new surge of hip hop artists being on top of their business and venturing out into other fields, that is beautiful to see. What I don’t like is that we (are) losing so many great artists to the street. I don’t like that their lives are being cut down or bad choices or landing them in long-term jail sentences. The success I’m proud of and happy about, with the loss of life I am not. It also pains me that’s so many lives are over before they get started.

What do you feel has and will continue to be the key to your longevity?    

God first, knowing that this is a gift that he gave me. I’m not perfect by any means, but I’m solid and I was taught a good name is better than gold. I believe that songwriting and being a person of the people resonates. If you think through your life, you remember how somebody made you feel; good or bad, so I believe staying in open communication with the man upstairs, him knowing the intentions of my heart and doing my best to be solid when nobody is looking; God will continue to open doors, and I pray that he keeps me and people’s minds and hearts in a way that is memorable where they feel good every time they see me, and as long as God allows me to give my all on stage the goal is for me to do this all the way up and throughout those Patti LaBelle years. God willing.

Do you have any other outside / additional (future) aspirations, maybe even completely away from entertainment?  

Yes, I do. My first album was titled Urban Therapy, and I always wanted to have an Urban Therapy outreach program of sorts because I always felt like the ‘hood needs a healing, and there’s so many beautiful people in the city that just needs opportunities and resources. From counseling, being taught about emotional intelligence, being taught financial literacy to avoid certain pitfalls…also to build an Academy that has a music wing connected to it in honor of my mother who is still here and a phenomenal educator; she always said I can teach you how to get the answer, but if I teach you the formula you can use that through life…I definitely wouldn’t mind a skin care (line). I have an aunt Christine who taught us make-up is who you wanna be, skin care is who you are. I have other aspirations as well, but we will be here all day.

What’s an average day like for you?  And, please discuss how you interact with and respond to fans...   

It’s heartwarming to get all of the love that I get because, again, you never know how your music or what someone’s interpretation is of your music…but for people to come up to me and tell me that they listen to certain songs riding home, or this song got me through this or the surprise that I do both; rap and sing with a bit of reggae…and if you catch me on the right day, I’ll rock out, lol! What I’m most proud of is that it’s a generational fan-base; there are my fans of a particular age who watched me grow up and that are proud of me for maneuvering through the industry the way that I do with my name intact, and then there’s others that are like, “hey, sis, you go crazy on stage!” Or, to hear that vocalist that has watched me over the years tell me that I’ve been an inspiration; that’s why it’s imperative to keep your crown steady because you never know who you’re inspiring, who you helped stick with their dream or their craft, or just on course when a particular fan told me that my songs were a soundtrack of a certain point in their life. I was so proud because it made me feel like I was walking through it with them. I know I wasn’t there, but I know the type of messages that I put in my music; sometimes people gotta get checked and sometimes people need to be loved on, and I feel like I give that so to be received as and or recognized for what my intention was for someone’s experience of me, I’m flattered and proud that it has been well received. I love that men love my music as well, and that they’re proud to call me “Lil Sis” or “Big Sis,” or tell me that I’m one of their favorite females in hip hop. I’m proud of that! That women feel like they have somebody that delivers it the way they would want it delivered and I’m proud; that means (they) ride with me in a way where they tell me I put your song on and it was slapping so hard. I had to rewind it a few times; I’m happy about that from rap to soul music. I’m proud of the interactions and or even when someone’s grandmother approaches me and tells me that they like my music or they like how I carry myself. I’m most proud of that. 

What is your favorite part about this line of work? Your least favorite? And, why?   

My favorite part about this line of work is creating the music and the anticipation of how it’s gonna be received. Also, that doing music it helps you travel the world because it’s a universal language even when you don’t understand someone’s language; you know if the music feels good or if it feels dark, your response is an involuntary response. If you’re in earshot, you know when something made you feel better or uncomfortable, but I love that music has helped me travel the world and meet so many people and gotten me in rooms to create even more opportunities and music.

My least favorite is the thievery and the greedy mess that comes over people, friends, business partners; I don’t like that they look at you like something that they want to steal from; that when people see this gift that God has given you they want to extract from you and take a possessive ownership over your intellectual property and not pay you for your gift. I despise that it brings out the ugly in people. It makes long-term friends uncomfortably distant when it’s supposed to make life better and more enjoyable.

What advice would you have for someone wanting to follow in your footsteps?  

My advice would be to get your business straight first, so you leave no money on the table. Make sure that your business is highly protected. Don’t let people have access to your accounts. Be very careful about who you have speaking on your behalf, that they’re not doing side deals. To women, ladies, girls don’t get me wrong. Everybody has free will to live their life the way they want to and everybody’s road is not the same, but in this business with everything you can keep your honor and your dignity intact as much as you can. I’m proud to say that I have not been sleeping (around) on the way to the top. Normally (it’s) just get you outside and uninvited, because they’re onto the next; (do) your best to be respected for your gift and whatever you do or whoever you choose in your free time is your business, but you know much (of) your business (is) wrapped up with people that have the ability to make decisions or ruin decisions for you; do your best to not have blurred lines ‘cause if and when it goes left, so did the opportunity. This is just some woman advice, not saying you’ll never see someone that you think is attractive, but you have to be mindful of who you tether yourself to because who somebody is when they’re mad that’s what you’re stuck with dealing with, so try to keep your lines clean and separate or at least know what you’re doing.

Looking ahead, say five or maybe even ten years from now, where do you see yourself?      

God willing, the goal is to be one of the most recognized live show performers; to be one of the most recognized songwriters, for my music to reach people the way I see it or however God feels free to blow my mind, lol! To have my mother‘s Academy built, and that I’ve started with more philanthropy work and has done some acting on (the) big screen by then. 

Is there anything I left out or just plain forgot to mention?          

Well, I personally wanna send one love to my family and friends and supporters who have stood with me on this journey, I appreciate you more than you know. It’s the people that are being solid in the quiet time that you have to remember to show your love to because we don’t do this road alone, although we can feel that way. He sends us living angels that stand in the gap and for sure wanna be able to be a healthy blessing to them. I always wanna openly say one love to Boots Riley for the access and large stages; Coachella, Rock The Bells, across the street from the White House, 100,000 people in a live performance revolutionary protest campaign. Also, I’m fresh off a Tiny Desk with E-40, Bosko Kante, vocals and electro spit, Kev Choice on keys, Marcus Phillips on bass, Martin Luther McCoy on guitar, DJ KMP on the ones and twos, Howard Wiley on saxophone and yours truly all vocals and vibes, lol! And, it was a great experience. It felt like a bunch of superheroes meeting up to rap for the Bay Area. Just saw that Rock The Bells called it a “classic” Tiny Desk. It’s only been out for 48 hours, and we’re getting such a great response. E-40 named us “Da Slapperz”; we wanted to deliver a performance that we could be proud of, and so far so good. The response has been crazy; from airports to restaurants, to driving down the street. It’s been beautiful.

Any “parting” words for our readers? 

You can find me under Silk E People’s Champ on all streaming platforms. We will be delivering more performances. You can follow on YouTube to learn more for the people on newly being introduced to me. I wanna say thank you to you guys for reaching out to me, and taking your time out to tap in with me. God bless, straight like that! 

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