MOVING FORWARD
Snow tha Product has been grinding for more than a decade.
The Mexican-American rapper, born Claudia Alexandra Feliciano, moved from California to Texas several years ago. She spent that time honing her craft, finding her voice and building a devoted fanbase who rallied behind her English- and Spanishlanguage verses.
It’s all come together in the past year. She was one of the featured MCs on “Immigrants (We Get the Job Done)” from “The Hamilton Mixtape,” compiled by Broadway superstar Lin Manuel Miranda. She made her acting debut in a multiepisode arc on USA Network’s “Queen of the South.” And the clip for her current single “Nuestra Cancion Pt. 2,” featuring reggaeton star Arcangel, is closing in on 10 million YouTube views.
Which is why Snow tha Product seems primed for her breakout moment. But she’s barely had time to notice.
“Sometimes I’m so caught up in grinding that I don’t see anything. I’m so Mexican. We just work. I don’t lift my head and just look back at what’s been happening,” she says. The musician performs Friday at Warehouse Live. Several dates on her Vibe Higher Tour have been sellouts.
Between tour stops and new projects, Snow tha Product talked about her time in Texas and being a role model for young fans.
Q: What memories do you have of Houston?
A: Houston was the first city in Texas that I ever went to and did a show. Texas, in general, I just love it. I always went back and forth between Fort Worth and Houston. I loved the people, the Southern hospitality, the food. My mom still lives in Fort Worth. I still have a house in Fort Worth. Texas is always gonna be a part of me.
Q: You’ve tried lots of different things in the past year. Was branching out beyond tradtional rap always the goal?
A: I always wanted to tour and have fans all over the country and just kind of matter. This is really it. It can only grow from here, but as far as I’m concerned, the fact that I have fans that tell me I’ve changed their life or impacted them in any way is really what I wanted.
Q: Do you feel a responsibility to be a role model? Your fans really seem to look to you for inspiration.
A: I do feel as a Mexican rapper specifically, because we’re so underrepresented, we do have a little bit more pressure. Other rappers, I think, sometimes don’t have to care about certain issues. It helps that ever since I started, I really cared about the culture. I’m bilingual. I really always wanted to make sure I represented correctly.
Q: How do you deal with the unique
challenges of being Mexican-American and a woman in hip-hop?
A: You just gotta face it. Pointing out your shortcomings or your struggles, that just doesn’t help, especially when you’re known as the “weaker sex.” You can’t even give it more attention, because then people go, “See, that’s what we mean.” You just face it, and you have to be stronger than most people.
Q: You’ve been very open, particularly on Instagram, with fans about your anxiety and bisexuality.
A: For a very long time, I kept my private life private. It was respecting my son and his life, respecting my significant other at the time. But as I’ve grown, I’ve also talked to a lot of kids that literally tell me all these issues that I’ve struggled with. They talk to me like I don’t have those issues. I was like, “Am I (expletive) up by not talking about certain things?” … I have all of those issues. I stopped being scared of what people were gonna say and started focusing on what people were gonna gain from all of this. I cared too much for too long.
Q: It’s so important because when someone sees you going through similar things, it makes them feel less alone.
A: Representation really matters, you know? I was in a straight relationship for so many years that I left (bisexuality) out of my identity because I was in a happy relationship. I didn’t feel like I needed to say it all the time. But ever since I have came out more to my fans, I’ve had so many girls be like, “You made it so easy for me. To just have an example to show my parents — you’re successful, and you’re doing it.”