ONE-WOMAN EMPIRE

“THROUGHOUT my life, I’ve been judged because I’ve been labeled a pretty girl,” says Saweetie. “To me, energy is pretty. Confidence is pretty. It’s how you carry yourself and how you help people out.” The 27-year-old star, born Diamonté Harper, is doing her best to “change what ‘pretty’ means” in her multifaceted career as a hitmaker, a glamorous fashionista, a branding whiz, an actress on TV’s Grown-ish, an activist, and more. Her upcoming debut album, Pretty Bitch Music, follows more than 2 billion cumulative streams for singles like “Tap In.” “When I say ‘bitch’ in my music, I want my fans to know that it stands for something,” she says, explaining that she uses the word as an acronym for “Boss, Independent, Tough, CEO, Hyphy.” ¶ After collaborating with cosmetics firm Morphe on a 2020 collection, Saweetie is working on starting her own makeup company. “I appreciate the stepping stone, but I love owning my own thing,” she says. She’s been “kind of speed dating” in search of the right business partner: “I’m looking at manufacturing, the quality of products, and aesthetics. Where will it be made, and how will it be packaged?” ¶ Someday, she’d like to create a full fashion line. In the meantime, she’s hands-on with the creation of the clothing and accessories she sells. “I have to have merch that I would wear,” she says. “It doesn’t look like the typical ‘slap the artist’s brand on a random T-shirt.’” Her goal is for her brand, Icy, to “supersede the Saweetie brand,” so that “whatever else falls under that umbrella can stand on its own two feet.” ¶ Sports and gaming are other key areas for her: Saweetie grew up as a self-described tomboy, earning MVP titles in track and volleyball, and her grandfather played for the 49ers. She put that background to work this year by hosting the Saweetie Bowl, a taped competition between Snoop Dogg and the Patriots’ Julian Edelman that raised $10,000 in donations for the Snoop Youth Football League, as part of an ongoing partnership with Xbox. ¶ But she’s perhaps proudest of the Icy Baby Foundation, which she launched to “help lowincome families, single mothers and kids from neighborhoods that don’t have access to education, as well as [to help] autistic kids.” (Her grandmother, who has a background in philanthropy, is the foundation’s president.) A USC alum, Saweetie’s also given back to fans with tutorials like “How to Start Your Own Business” on YouTube, and she’s partnered with Facebook for an upcoming series of classes. What’s next? The sky’s the limit. “I’m not just an artist,” Saweetie says. “I’m literally a walking business model.”