Speaker 1: Hey, guys, welcome to another episode of Eating While Broke.
Speaker 1: I'm your host, Colleen Wait and today we have very
Speaker 1: special guest, pop icon Diddy Jay is in the building.
Speaker 2: How are you hi, I'm fine, Thank you, and thank
Speaker 2: you for having me. I'm very excited. So this is
Speaker 2: I think this is my first cooking show in the States.
Speaker 2: I'm super excited.
Speaker 1: And you're from Serbia.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I'm originally from Serbia.
Speaker 1: And her single right Now dropped it was I like it.
Speaker 1: It's number eighteen, Yeah, charts right now.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's number eighteen, and you're going to the top.
Speaker 1: We're going to the top. And that was within less
Speaker 1: than twenty four hours. Yeah, which is a really big deal.
Speaker 2: Yeah, because the song is great and the producer is amazing.
Speaker 2: I have a big.
Speaker 1: Support the producer on this one.
Speaker 2: Yeah, no goes the kid in the song. He's a
Speaker 2: producer and Dallas Austin needs a distribution for the song.
Speaker 1: Oh wow, yeah, wow, big deal. All right, So tell
Speaker 1: me what you're it's a little smoky because I told
Speaker 1: her to turn on the so for no reasons.
Speaker 2: Yeah, we are doing pancakes today.
Speaker 1: We're doing pancakes, all right, go ahead. I haven't even so.
Speaker 2: It works out hungry too. Okay, So first we're gonna
Speaker 2: put some butter inside.
Speaker 1: So pancakes is such an easy meal. Yeah, surprisingly enough.
Speaker 1: I don't think we've had pancakes on the show.
Speaker 2: I usually I usually don't cook too much because I'm
Speaker 2: traveling and I'm like going to the restaurants or eating food.
Speaker 2: But some from time to time I can do. I
Speaker 2: know how to cook, but usually I don't have time.
Speaker 2: So I didn't cook honestly for a long time. So
Speaker 2: this is gonna be like.
Speaker 1: My it's gonna be a homecoming moment to you.
Speaker 2: Yes, so making pancakes.
Speaker 1: Yes, she has the instant pancake makes you just add water.
Speaker 2: It's very simple. Water, it's very simple. We're going to
Speaker 2: mix this together.
Speaker 1: So take me back to what was going I am
Speaker 1: I talking about what was going on in the time
Speaker 1: of pancakes. Yeah, pancakes.
Speaker 2: I always love to eat pancakes, you know, because when
Speaker 2: I was starting my career, I was so busy I
Speaker 2: didn't have time for lunch, and then I was saying,
Speaker 2: I'm just gonna make pancakes or I'm gonna order pancakes.
Speaker 2: I even love them with the fruit, with the blueberries
Speaker 2: or something like that, or with the maple syrup. So
Speaker 2: those are like one of my favorite foods to go,
Speaker 2: you know, Like when I'm so busy and tired and working,
Speaker 2: I just ordered yeah diet. When I was starting my
Speaker 2: career in the States, I was practicing music and dancing
Speaker 2: and how to sing and to perform on the stage,
Speaker 2: and I actually didn't have time to eat. I was
Speaker 2: so hungry. Yeah, it was very very when you.
Speaker 1: Practice your music in the States or eat. Serbia.
Speaker 2: I started actually my career in Serbia, and then I
Speaker 2: said to my self, oh my god, I want to
Speaker 2: go to the States and make my career there. Because
Speaker 2: since I was a young girl, I always loved Jaelo Madonna.
Speaker 2: And I was saying to my mom one day, I'm
Speaker 2: gonna be like Jelo. And she told me, like back
Speaker 2: in the day, you're never gonna make it. I mean
Speaker 2: not never, but it's very very hard. Because you're from Serbia.
Speaker 2: You would have to work like ten thousand times harder
Speaker 2: to achieve your dreams and goals, and like, don't be
Speaker 2: disappointed if you don't make it. And I said, okay, mom,
Speaker 2: just watch me. One day, I'm going to be a
Speaker 2: superstar in the States.
Speaker 1: Awesome.
Speaker 2: Yeah, and then that's why I started my career in Serbia.
Speaker 2: But I always wanted to be sorry in the US,
Speaker 2: and they knew it there. And I was telling to
Speaker 2: my friends, to my family that I'm going to make
Speaker 2: it one day. Yeah. And then I met Lady Kaga
Speaker 2: a few years ago and she told me. I told
Speaker 2: her my story and she told me, if you really
Speaker 2: want to make it, just fly to New York, do
Speaker 2: your music and start. And that's what I did. A
Speaker 2: few months after that, I moved to Atlanta, actually to
Speaker 2: one Wood Camp. We did music there. It was a
Speaker 2: writing camp. We did a few songs with a super
Speaker 2: great producers. We did a feature with Shaggy and that's
Speaker 2: how everything started.
Speaker 1: Awesome and then go ahead, yes in there.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I'm gonna start making them soon.
Speaker 1: Yeah, okay, so go ahead.
Speaker 2: I'm gonna let you pour these fine. I think this
Speaker 2: is okay.
Speaker 1: Yeah, that's perfect.
Speaker 2: Yeah. Should we start making them?
Speaker 1: Go ahead?
Speaker 2: Yeah? Start See I'm gonna use this man maybe two Yeah,
Speaker 2: let's see.
Speaker 1: I just don't laugh, please, I'm trying not to. Yeah,
Speaker 1: I'm having fun here, just.
Speaker 2: Like very very nice, very perfect.
Speaker 1: You got it? And then do another.
Speaker 2: One, got another one?
Speaker 1: There, you got it, Let's do it.
Speaker 2: Okay, Okay, this is enough.
Speaker 1: That's morning enough. You got it.
Speaker 2: You got it. It's okay, it's okay.
Speaker 1: Yeah, there's no such thing as perfect pancakes. Yeah, you
Speaker 1: got it.
Speaker 2: This is gonna be so cool.
Speaker 1: I think I think all the guests are gonna go
Speaker 1: watching their pancakes.
Speaker 2: I'm doing the States really yeah, and I'm going to
Speaker 2: remember this moment forever.
Speaker 1: Okay, Yeah, I'm gonna remember it too. Yeah, I'm just
Speaker 1: messing with you. Let me cook, Let me cook. Once
Speaker 1: you see the bubbles, you not.
Speaker 2: Of Let's wait for a little right.
Speaker 1: So okay, so let's go back to Serbia. But when
Speaker 1: did you how? How? What were you doing in Serbia
Speaker 1: while you're pursuing the stream, Like, what was going on
Speaker 1: in Serbia?
Speaker 2: I started my career in Serbia. First, it was like
Speaker 2: ten years ago. I won a big music festival there
Speaker 2: and it recorded some songs in Serbia and videos and
Speaker 2: it's okay, it was like the best video ever made there.
Speaker 2: It was like a very very big video. And then
Speaker 2: then I said to myself, I'm not not happy here.
Speaker 2: I want to go to the States. I want to
Speaker 2: do my career there. I want to be like j Lo,
Speaker 2: like Madonna.
Speaker 1: So how are financing everything in Serbia?
Speaker 2: Okay? I have a a big company. I also have
Speaker 2: my beauty center. I do facials, body treatments, you know.
Speaker 1: Yeah in Serbia.
Speaker 2: Yeah.
Speaker 1: So you're a successful entrepreneur in Serbia. And then you're like, hey,
Speaker 1: I don't have enough on my plate.
Speaker 2: Let me add I also work with many fashion brands.
Speaker 2: I promote brands. I'm also a fashion influencer. I go
Speaker 2: to old fashion weeks, for example Paris, New York, and
Speaker 2: I'm like friends with designers. So that's that's like how
Speaker 2: I work. Like, that's it. That is separate from my
Speaker 2: music career. Turn them.
Speaker 1: Okay, yeah, okaycakes is like the go to ya.
Speaker 2: But they look good and and you see those bubbles.
Speaker 1: Take that black, flat looking yeah.
Speaker 2: Yeah, and turn them turn okay, yeah, it.
Speaker 1: All right, let's see.
Speaker 2: Oh god, oh it's good, it's good, it's going great. Yeah.
Speaker 1: D DJ pancakes, d DJ pancakes, all right, Okay, so
Speaker 1: these are thick pancakes, so this is all we need.
Speaker 2: Yeah, you're good, okay, So.
Speaker 1: Take me, So take me back to Serbia because a
Speaker 1: lot of us. We don't know what's going on in Serbia,
Speaker 1: what the what the lifestyle is over there, what they're embracing,
Speaker 1: because I wouldn't imagine Serbia to be that supportive of
Speaker 1: entrepreneur women. So can we start there.
Speaker 2: Yeah, Serbia is a small but a beautiful country. I
Speaker 2: was born and raised there, and I really have my
Speaker 2: family there and great friends. But still when I went
Speaker 2: to the public and when I said that I want
Speaker 2: to make my career in the States, they wouldn't believe me.
Speaker 2: They said that I'm like only dreaming about that and
Speaker 2: I'm never gonna make it. So they weren't like very
Speaker 2: supportive that much about that. Okay, yeah, so because I'm
Speaker 2: the first Serbia making it ever.
Speaker 1: They don't have a top recording artist over there.
Speaker 2: Yeah, they have, but only for the Serbian market. They
Speaker 2: never came to the States to do a career. So
Speaker 2: when I said I'm going to do it here, they said,
Speaker 2: oh my god, you're crazy. She's completely crazy, That's what
Speaker 2: I said. Yeah, so they didn't trust in me, I think.
Speaker 1: So you get out of when at what point did
Speaker 1: you know you wanted to pursue music from a very
Speaker 1: young age. So let's start. Let's take it all the
Speaker 1: way back to I was five. You were five.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I was five, and I said to myself, oh
Speaker 2: my god, I love music, I love fashion. That's my life.
Speaker 2: I'm gonna make it one day. And since I was
Speaker 2: young girl, I knew that something's going to happen with
Speaker 2: my career and that I'm going to work with the music.
Speaker 1: Okay, So then you get through high school. Are you doing?
Speaker 1: Am I talking about performing, performing arts and all of that.
Speaker 2: Well, I didn't do too much. I was like practicing
Speaker 2: at home. I didn't go to a music school or
Speaker 2: something like that. I took classes like wocal coaching and
Speaker 2: you know those stuff, but I didn't like go into
Speaker 2: music school or something like that.
Speaker 1: So then after high school, what do you end up doing?
Speaker 2: I was going to the university in Serbia, and I
Speaker 2: was like already dreaming about my US career and how
Speaker 2: I'm going to make it. What should I do? Should
Speaker 2: I start doing music? And that's when I started.
Speaker 1: Okay, yeah, so you start doing music? At what point
Speaker 1: does the how are you financing starting to do music?
Speaker 1: Because I would imagine it costs money.
Speaker 2: Yeah, but my family helped me a lot okay, so, yeah, so.
Speaker 1: You come from a predominantly wealthy family or yeah.
Speaker 2: They're like wealthy family, like regular wealthy family, not like billionaires.
Speaker 1: Like middle class or wealthy.
Speaker 2: But in Serbia it's very wealthy.
Speaker 1: Okay, what did your parents do?
Speaker 2: Well, my parents. I'm actually married okay, yeah for ten years,
Speaker 2: so I live with my husband, you know, and we
Speaker 2: do everything together. Oh, my father passed away last year
Speaker 2: from cancer. Yeah, so that's a very tough story for
Speaker 2: me to talk about my parents right now.
Speaker 1: Okay. Yeah, so you started your music career after you
Speaker 1: got married, no before before you start. Yeah, so your
Speaker 1: parents were helping you in the beginning of your career.
Speaker 2: Yeah. Yeah. At first they told me it's not easy.
Speaker 2: Just be careful, don't be disappointed because the music world
Speaker 2: is very hard today.
Speaker 1: Like it's fine, it's fine, you think it's fine.
Speaker 2: Yeah, they said at first, like, you know, don't be disappointed,
Speaker 2: don't cry because you know music it's very it's a
Speaker 2: very hard job. And I said, trust me, believe me,
Speaker 2: I'm gonna make it. And then I made for a song.
Speaker 2: I went to a big pub festival there I won,
Speaker 2: and then they realized that I'm gonna make it, like really,
Speaker 2: So what.
Speaker 1: Was the first step to go into a recording studio recorders?
Speaker 2: Yeah, I did record my first song, first music there
Speaker 2: in Serbia, and step by step I decided to go here,
Speaker 2: to come here to the States and start doing my music.
Speaker 2: I think that's the most important moment for me in
Speaker 2: my career.
Speaker 1: Yeah. So you you record your first song, you enter
Speaker 1: a festival, and you win.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I won the festival.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and then what did you win when you want
Speaker 1: in the festival?
Speaker 2: I won a price? It was like some I got
Speaker 2: some money from that.
Speaker 1: And yeah, were you able to meet other people to
Speaker 1: make your Yeah?
Speaker 2: Yeah sure. I already was like popular because my cousin
Speaker 2: was a famous tennis player. She's also from Serbia, and
Speaker 2: that's how they connected us in the press. So yeah,
Speaker 2: they started writing writing articles about me. And then I
Speaker 2: went to a TV I mean, there is easy to
Speaker 2: go to a TV station or a radio station. Yeah.
Speaker 1: So then how do you end up meeting with Lady Gaga?
Speaker 2: That was a few years ago in Vienna, actually in Austria.
Speaker 2: She was in a concert there and after a concert
Speaker 2: I had a chance to meet her for some people,
Speaker 2: and we were sitting together for almost an hour. I
Speaker 2: give her my piece of clothes from my clothing line.
Speaker 2: It was the dress and it was a T shirt
Speaker 2: with DDJ. I can remember what was right on it.
Speaker 2: And she she took the present from me and she said,
Speaker 2: if I'm gonna make it, if I really want to
Speaker 2: do this job, you know, and afrcan music, that I
Speaker 2: should like go to New York, move there and start
Speaker 2: working on my career. And I was thinking, oh my god,
Speaker 2: she's right, I'm going to do it. And a few
Speaker 2: months after that, I met a very nice person from Atlanta.
Speaker 2: She's a lawyer and she's also into music industry and
Speaker 2: she helped me a lot here. So that's how I started.
Speaker 1: So you moved to Atlanta.
Speaker 2: No, I didn't move completely. I was like traveling, VI didn't. Yeah,
Speaker 2: And we had like a few months there at the studio.
Speaker 2: We had a big house by the lake, and we
Speaker 2: like we were recording music there. And those are like
Speaker 2: my first songs that I did here for the US market.
Speaker 2: And I'm very happy when I'm talking about that, you know.
Speaker 1: Yeah, so said it. So then when when do you
Speaker 1: cross paths with Dallas Austin.
Speaker 2: That was for my single, I like it because just
Speaker 2: released this yeah, a new one. Yeah.
Speaker 1: So when you're recording in so you're you're recording in Atlanta,
Speaker 1: and then you meet Gaga. You meet Gaga, then you
Speaker 1: go to Atlanta the first I met.
Speaker 2: First, I met Lady Gaga, and then I went to
Speaker 2: Atlanta to record the music. And I was recording like
Speaker 2: all the time in the last few years, but I
Speaker 2: didn't like hit the Sharks. But this time I did
Speaker 2: like it. And together with the Cops, Kid the producer,
Speaker 2: and the Dallasaustine distribution, and we did it. Yeah, it's
Speaker 2: the Sharks. So like this is the first song which
Speaker 2: is like really really good, making like big steps.
Speaker 1: Yeah yeah, yeah, So okay, I'm pretty sure you can
Speaker 1: turn it off. Okay, yeah, turn it off. You got it,
Speaker 1: You got it, all right, I give you this, Yeah,
Speaker 1: go for it. Yeah, you're gonna give me the better
Speaker 1: look at one, So of course.
Speaker 2: I can do that for my friends. Yeah, and I'm
Speaker 2: going to get this one. Oh my god, I do a.
Speaker 1: Lot of sair. Look at your words. It's okay, it's okay,
Speaker 1: you know what, You're.
Speaker 2: Smart because I was talking to you all the time,
Speaker 2: and then it's.
Speaker 1: So hard, it's so hard to talk and cook.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I know, right.
Speaker 1: Is perfect. It looks great. Yeah, you get to judge
Speaker 1: your own pancakes. Okay, so we try now, I'm gonna
Speaker 1: try it. Yes, I'm gonna wait for you. I'm gonna
Speaker 1: start cutting it up.
Speaker 2: Yeah, let's try. Oh my god, I'm very excited. I
Speaker 2: will never forget this day.
Speaker 1: Your fans are going to be talking about it. And
Speaker 1: I like that you have the crisp bottom. All right, cheers.
Speaker 2: Oh yeah, it's nice.
Speaker 1: You can't mess up.
Speaker 2: It's very good.
Speaker 1: It's very good. Right, are you proud of yourself? It's
Speaker 1: been a long time. Yeah, it's always goes if you
Speaker 1: have not you can like it if you have not
Speaker 1: cooked this in a very long time, and then you
Speaker 1: do a really great job cooking.
Speaker 2: It's very delicious.
Speaker 1: Kind of brings back memories, does Yeah. I can only
Speaker 1: imagine how tough it is to come from another country
Speaker 1: in come here as a states you know, as a
Speaker 1: woman that alone, a mom and a wife. Yeah, but
Speaker 1: I'm really trying to capture what it's like coming from
Speaker 1: another country trusting other people with your career. Yeah, Like,
Speaker 1: how does that decision making process go?
Speaker 2: It was really hard for me. At first, I thought like,
Speaker 2: am I gonna make it here or not? Like everyone
Speaker 2: they were like very nice to me and very kind
Speaker 2: here in the States, but I had to start from zero.
Speaker 2: Even I had some following from the Serbian, from the Balkans,
Speaker 2: from Europe. They said, I had some following before, like
Speaker 2: social media and everything, you know, but I had to
Speaker 2: start from zero here.
Speaker 1: But you have a massive following, yeah I have now. Yeah,
Speaker 1: how hard is it for you to get that massive following?
Speaker 1: Because even even us at eating while Broke struggle with following.
Speaker 2: It was very very hard when I started. I remember
Speaker 2: I was doing like everything for the picture. I was
Speaker 2: doing like pictures every day. Even i'm doing it like
Speaker 2: now still. But when I when I started doing my Instagram,
Speaker 2: it was so hard, you know. I was like thinking
Speaker 2: every day, oh my god, what I'm going to do
Speaker 2: so I can get more likes.
Speaker 1: Yeah, so it was very hard and it is hard still.
Speaker 2: So I need to do like photo shows every day,
Speaker 2: to past every day, to talk to my fans, to
Speaker 2: answer on the comments when I have time. So I'm
Speaker 2: also doing TikTok videos, fashion videos and like dance videos.
Speaker 1: And then you're only in LA for like a couple
Speaker 1: more days. Yeah, you told me your schedule was crazy.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it was crazy. I was doing interviews all the time.
Speaker 2: Yesterday I went to a big red carpet. Then tomorrow
Speaker 2: I have my release party here in La. I'm so
Speaker 2: excited about that. We already did one in New York
Speaker 2: and one in Paris. It was amazing. Wow. Yeah, it's
Speaker 2: a lot, right.
Speaker 1: So okay, so you record? Did you record your whole
Speaker 1: album yet?
Speaker 2: Not yet? The whole album? We were doing it. I
Speaker 2: just did a few songs and we're gonna do probably
Speaker 2: a feature soon and more music is coming now.
Speaker 1: Can you tell me about your Eggy as alias?
Speaker 2: Yeahboration? That was great. We did a Marceillaga song and
Speaker 2: my manager said, should be called Iggy and ask her
Speaker 2: for a feature. And I said, oh my god, are
Speaker 2: you sure because she's a big star and I wasn't
Speaker 2: sure if she's gonna say yes or no. And in
Speaker 2: that period of a time, I was pregnant and she
Speaker 2: was pregnant, pregnant, and that was during COVID Yeah, yeah, yeah,
Speaker 2: COVID Yeah. And then I went to New York to
Speaker 2: the studio and she was recording in La and she
Speaker 2: was very supportive. So we didn't record at the same
Speaker 2: studio because of COVID, but we actually did it. We
Speaker 2: made the song and she was very supportive. She also,
Speaker 2: I think she put something on IX about me. She said,
Speaker 2: she wrote, Didja is an amazing person and I'm always
Speaker 2: gonna support her. She's so brave, working hard, and that's
Speaker 2: what she said.
Speaker 1: Now, what were the people around you saying, as a like,
Speaker 1: brand new mom with a baby in the belly and
Speaker 1: you're still trying to pursue music, what was everyone saying
Speaker 1: about that?
Speaker 2: Yeah, they were saying that I'm very brave and they
Speaker 2: admired me actually, because you know, it's not easy to
Speaker 2: be pregnant, to be traveling, doing music, doing fashion, still
Speaker 2: doing my business beauty center. You know, it's hard. It's
Speaker 2: not easy.
Speaker 1: And how does your husband deal with all of it?
Speaker 2: He's amazing. He's very supportive. He likes my career, he
Speaker 2: likes everything that I do. So, yeah, we are great.
Speaker 1: And now who raises the baby when you're doing.
Speaker 2: All of this? I'm taking my daughter with me all
Speaker 2: the time. Oh, she's always, She's always with me, usually
Speaker 2: not only this time, because she's like she stayed with
Speaker 2: my mom Okay, yeah, because I'm traveling only for a
Speaker 2: few days, but she's always with me. She likes to travel,
Speaker 2: she likes fashion, she wants to be a model. She
Speaker 2: likes my songs, she can sing the songs. She likes
Speaker 2: Lady Gaga, she knows every song that's hilarious.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and she's only three three, she's four.
Speaker 2: She just starts for almost five in July. She's going
Speaker 2: to be four five this year. Wow.
Speaker 1: Yeah, okay, so you're really taking it on.
Speaker 2: Yeah. I worked really hard and I'm very brave, you know,
Speaker 2: because I understand that I'm not I wasn't born here,
Speaker 2: so I need to work like much harder than any
Speaker 2: other artists from here. But I'm ready for it because
Speaker 2: music is my love, and music and passion and fashion
Speaker 2: art does my twol like passions. And yeah, I'm just
Speaker 2: gonna keep moving, pushing, working, and let's see where is
Speaker 2: that gonna take me.
Speaker 1: What would you say is the hardest aspect of your career?
Speaker 2: Oh, the hardest aspect is that Like transferring from Europe
Speaker 2: to the US. That was like really hard. But I'm
Speaker 2: so happy that the US fans they accept me the
Speaker 2: way I am and they're saying that I'm unique, that
Speaker 2: I'm different. They love my fashion, they love my music.
Speaker 2: So at first I must say that I was very
Speaker 2: scared if they can not love me here, so but
Speaker 2: I'm so happy.
Speaker 1: What kind of negative feedback have you gotten?
Speaker 2: Negative? Like? Of course I have haters like every artist.
Speaker 1: How do you deal with the men in the industry?
Speaker 2: How do you mean?
Speaker 1: I have the men been easy to work with for
Speaker 1: you or harder to work with for you?
Speaker 2: Well? Which was easy? Like I always choose the best
Speaker 2: team around me. I also love to work with the
Speaker 2: gay people. Oh yeah, first they're great, so like the
Speaker 2: biggest part of my team. They're gay, so I love
Speaker 2: them and they're very creative.
Speaker 1: Yeah, where do you want to be after this? After this?
Speaker 2: I want to be in a Grammy.
Speaker 1: Do you want to win a Grammy? Yeah?
Speaker 2: I have like big dreams, like I told you. Yeah,
Speaker 2: i want to be the first Serbian ever meaning a Grammy.
Speaker 2: And I'm sure I'm going to make it together with
Speaker 2: my team. This is like the proof we have. I
Speaker 2: like it on the charts already, So I just need
Speaker 2: to keep working more myself.
Speaker 1: And now you stay in New York permanently now or.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I'm going to stay in New York. Probably I'm
Speaker 2: going to move to La soon. I don't know yet.
Speaker 2: I'm just not thinking about that because I worked so
Speaker 2: hard and like music is my first first goal, you know,
Speaker 2: I'm working on that right now, and I'm just like
Speaker 2: thinking about the promo for my new song and everything
Speaker 2: around that.
Speaker 1: So that's the only thing that is your manager from Serbia?
Speaker 2: No, my manager is from La I don't have anything
Speaker 2: it's Serbia anymore. Like my team is from here from
Speaker 2: the States.
Speaker 1: Oh wow, yeah, you how are you accumulating your team though?
Speaker 2: I mean we are online all the time. I really
Speaker 2: have a big team.
Speaker 1: And like, how are we talk?
Speaker 2: We travel together? My manager travels with me. If we
Speaker 2: go to New York, we go. For example, we did
Speaker 2: I like it in Las Vegas. He came to Las
Speaker 2: Vegas and sinking, Like how do you meet them? Oh?
Speaker 2: Through my connections from my friends, you know, like I
Speaker 2: know many people here already, like I'm spending my time
Speaker 2: here for years.
Speaker 1: So oh wow, okay, okay, So what is your aspirations
Speaker 1: for New York? Well? I love New York.
Speaker 2: It's an amazing city. If you ask me which one
Speaker 2: I love more. New York or LA. I think LA
Speaker 2: is maybe more beautiful, but I have more connections and
Speaker 2: more friends in New York for now, Okay, but I
Speaker 2: maybe I would love to move to LA.
Speaker 1: To LA because of the weather.
Speaker 2: Yeah, because of the weather. It's beautiful and it's fancies
Speaker 2: like just like me h.
Speaker 1: Yeah, what are some things that your fans aren't aware
Speaker 1: of that they would be surprised to know about you?
Speaker 2: Maybe that I'm just a normal, normal, like a regular person.
Speaker 2: Even I have my fashion high fashion. I'm always in
Speaker 2: the high heels.
Speaker 1: Like see it's really cute.
Speaker 2: I the very high heels all the time, and I'm
Speaker 2: like glamorous. I have like big following photo shoots and
Speaker 2: everything like, but personally, I'm a very emotional person. M h.
Speaker 2: And I'm like, I'm normal, even if I'm already famous.
Speaker 2: I'm just a normal person.
Speaker 1: That's like that's me. Yeah.
Speaker 2: Yeah.
Speaker 1: So you're a Serbia artist, Yeah, coming all the way
Speaker 1: from Serbia.
Speaker 2: Yeah okay, and I've been through a lot, You've been
Speaker 2: there a lot to.
Speaker 1: Get here, So let's start unpacking just from Cyber Serbia.
Speaker 1: Let's go back to you winning the contest. Yeah, and
Speaker 1: then take me through that step by step I'm here
Speaker 1: for you. I want to hear it all.
Speaker 2: Okay, So what happened? So I won the festival in Serbia.
Speaker 2: It was a pup big pop festival, and that's how
Speaker 2: everything started. I was recording my music there and did
Speaker 2: a few music videos. I've been on a tiv I've
Speaker 2: been everywhere. But I wasn't happy. I wasn't happy because
Speaker 2: I always wanted to have my career in the States.
Speaker 2: I know it was very hard to get here, but
Speaker 2: I said, I'm never gonna give up. I'm gonna fight,
Speaker 2: I'm gonna do I'm going to do anything I can
Speaker 2: just to be here and to be successful.
Speaker 1: What about the United States looked so appealing to you
Speaker 1: compared to Serbia.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think it's very different because here people are
Speaker 2: very supportive. I cannot say that for Serbia because anything
Speaker 2: I do, they're they're not like too much supportive. They're
Speaker 2: saying that I'm crazy, that I think that I'm going
Speaker 2: to make it here, or that I'm just dreaming about it,
Speaker 2: so they couldn't believe that I'm going to really make
Speaker 2: it here.
Speaker 1: Are there a lot of recording artists in Serbia?
Speaker 2: Yeah? There are, Yeah, of course, but they're just from Serbia.
Speaker 2: They're staying there and they're like doing everything for the
Speaker 2: Serbian market. But me, I wanted to go to the
Speaker 2: US to record music here, you know, to be popular,
Speaker 2: to be on the Sharks. And I know it was
Speaker 2: like very hard for me. I was, I was struggling.
Speaker 2: I was crying sometimes because I was refused many times,
Speaker 2: like they said that I should start from zero. Sometimes
Speaker 2: I didn't get like to go to a TV show
Speaker 2: to do a TV interview. They said, they said, it's
Speaker 2: not time yet. You need to work hard. You need
Speaker 2: to like work more to be present here. And it
Speaker 2: took years for me to be here now with you
Speaker 2: and to have a I like it on the charts.
Speaker 1: Yeah. Yeah, so you you were hearing all this like
Speaker 1: pushback and then you're like, well, I'm gonna still keep trying.
Speaker 2: Yeah.
Speaker 1: And then was Lady Gaga like a pivotal moment in
Speaker 1: your career, Yeah.
Speaker 2: She was. I had that advice from her, like and
Speaker 2: from a mom my. Mum also told me that I
Speaker 2: should like keep going, like don't never give up. Like,
Speaker 2: and I'm the person I'm like very emotional even when
Speaker 2: I cry. When I said, I'm like very like I'm struggling.
Speaker 2: Then the other day I say, oh my god, I'm
Speaker 2: gonna I'm gonna stand up, wake up, I'm gonna go
Speaker 2: and I'm gonna make it. So that's the way like
Speaker 2: how I do usually, And I said, I'm gonna make
Speaker 2: it here. Whatever I need to do, I'm gonna do
Speaker 2: it and I won't stop. And that's what I did.
Speaker 2: I came here and i'm here.
Speaker 1: With you're dominating.
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, dominating, and I will This is only the beginning.
Speaker 1: Well, number eighteen with the massive following is yeah, pretty dominating.
Speaker 2: Thank you.
Speaker 1: That's like a super like when when we're behind the
Speaker 1: camera we're talking about booking talent, where's like, okay, let's
Speaker 1: review the talent, and you're like, oh, this person has
Speaker 1: a three billion plus following. They're charting at number eighteen.
Speaker 1: You're like, wait, this is something going on.
Speaker 2: And also I think before I didn't have the right
Speaker 2: team around me here in the States. They were like
Speaker 2: promising everything and lying to me. I mussay, and I
Speaker 2: didn't get like what I deserve and I only needed
Speaker 2: one chance. So I think I got this chance with
Speaker 2: the go Ski the producer, and that was shausting and
Speaker 2: I'm so happy about it.
Speaker 1: Okay, now what did that whole coming together with those
Speaker 1: two look like?
Speaker 2: Well, Ghost is amazing producer. Actually he was the one
Speaker 2: who called me first and also said yeah. I was
Speaker 2: so excited when I got his text, Oh my god,
Speaker 2: is this serious? Is he fake or is he real?
Speaker 2: And I answered, and he said, let's do music together.
Speaker 2: I already started making his song for you. I said,
Speaker 2: oh my god, are you serious? Are you really gonna
Speaker 2: work with me? And he said, yeah, let's go. Let's
Speaker 2: come to the studio to Vegas. And then I flew
Speaker 2: to beya. I flew to Vegas to meet him.
Speaker 1: Yeah, did you fly with the baby or.
Speaker 2: No? Baby stayed? Baby said yeah, yeah, of course a
Speaker 2: few days. Yeah yeah, yeah, yeah she stayed. And then
Speaker 2: I came to the studio together with him. We did
Speaker 2: like in a few days, the song we did together
Speaker 2: at the studio. We even didn't have the lyrics before it.
Speaker 2: I was coming into the studio to do I Like it,
Speaker 2: which is like on the charts, and we didn't have anything.
Speaker 2: We came to the studio and he said, start singing this,
Speaker 2: start singing that. Like we changed like for a million times.
Speaker 1: The lyrics and in the end when we said did
Speaker 1: you write on it too?
Speaker 2: Or no? Yeah, how a little? But Ghost was the
Speaker 2: one who did everything. Yeah, he's like he's amazing, so talented.
Speaker 2: And then we we did like it and we were
Speaker 2: like jumping from the chairs. I can remember when that happened,
Speaker 2: like we were so excited.
Speaker 1: So who was the first person you played it for?
Speaker 2: I played it to my manager because he was there,
Speaker 2: and I said, Joy, please come here, you must hear this.
Speaker 2: The song is amazing. Yeah, and he was very excited too.
Speaker 1: Okay. And then so now once you get the song,
Speaker 1: what does that roll out and push out? Look like?
Speaker 2: Well, we needed a distribution company and said that Dallas
Speaker 2: Osin would love to help, so we we signed a
Speaker 2: contract with him.
Speaker 1: Okay yeah. And with the distribution, what do they do?
Speaker 1: Do they market and how does that work?
Speaker 2: Yeah? I think that that's separate. Distribution is something different.
Speaker 2: And then there is marketing plus that my team is doing.
Speaker 1: So you're on the marketing yeah okay, yeah, and then
Speaker 1: he's doing the distribution.
Speaker 2: Yeah.
Speaker 1: This is for like digital downloads.
Speaker 2: Yeah yeah, Spotify, iTunes, platforms.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and then you have to take on all the marketing.
Speaker 2: Yeah.
Speaker 1: Now, that has to be a nightmare.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I know.
Speaker 1: Right.
Speaker 2: We are also doing we are still doing the promo
Speaker 2: and promoting the song because it came out in February, right,
Speaker 2: we still need to do social media promo. I'm just
Speaker 2: trying to promote. I just like did my new choreography
Speaker 2: for the song. I'm trying like to dance with those
Speaker 2: moves like on TikTok and Instagram, and I'm just working
Speaker 2: hard like every day.
Speaker 1: Now, have you started performing the song yet?
Speaker 2: Not yet? Not yet, Yeah, but I will, I will.
Speaker 2: I'm having my release party tomorrow evening, so maybe you
Speaker 2: from there. Yeah, you have to perform at the Sparty party.
Speaker 2: It's at nine pm, nine pm, Yeah in La Yeah,
Speaker 2: in La where yeah? Abby?
Speaker 1: Abby?
Speaker 2: Yeah? Abby? Yeah, that's Holly.
Speaker 1: So that's why you're doing a lot of press right now. Yeah,
Speaker 1: and then and then after La you're going back to
Speaker 1: New York. Does your New York run look.
Speaker 2: Like I'm also doing press there, team interviews, radio interviews,
Speaker 2: podcasts like photo shoots.
Speaker 1: Are you Are you planning to release another follow up single?
Speaker 2: Yeah? Sure, I need like something like a spring single,
Speaker 2: like something from the spring summer. So we have we
Speaker 2: have two songs already, so I'm thinking which want to
Speaker 2: release first? But first let's let's do let's work on
Speaker 2: I like it more?
Speaker 1: Yeah, I think I like it.
Speaker 2: It's more promo yeah yeah.
Speaker 1: Yeah, okay, okay, And then what else can people be
Speaker 1: looking forward to?
Speaker 2: To my social media, to my platforms. I'm on Instagram,
Speaker 2: d DJ official or some TikTok the same name, d
Speaker 2: DJ official, the id i J Official, then Spotify, like
Speaker 2: I'm on all platforms, yeah, all of them.
Speaker 1: And then how would you describe your music to fans
Speaker 1: that don't already know how to keep up with DDJ?
Speaker 2: My music is pop up dance, like fashionable because I
Speaker 2: put fashion into everything special you need? Can they must
Speaker 2: hear it first so they can decide, like what they
Speaker 2: want to hear from me, Like, but I think I'm
Speaker 2: unique and different. That's right, hard, that's right, thank you. Yeah,
Speaker 2: that's very important for me. And I'm so happy that
Speaker 2: I'm having already founds from the US. They love me,
Speaker 2: They're very supportive. I'm so happy about that.
Speaker 1: Well, I mean, you're scared.
Speaker 2: I was scared if they're gonna like me or not?
Speaker 2: You know, I must say.
Speaker 1: Yeah, well I think yeah, if you're gonna put something out.
Speaker 1: You're constantly looking at the fans what they're saying. Guys
Speaker 1: gotta be nice.
Speaker 2: Yeah, their opinion and their support is everything to yea.
Speaker 1: And when you get a bad comment, what do you do?
Speaker 1: Do you ignore that stuff?
Speaker 2: I ignore it?
Speaker 1: Yeah?
Speaker 2: Usually I ignore it for some strange reason.
Speaker 1: When I see a bad comment, I don't know, A
Speaker 1: sick part of me likes it.
Speaker 2: You want to answer, I have fun with it.
Speaker 1: I have fun with it. I've had people call me like,
Speaker 1: why is this old person wearing hats? I've had people.
Speaker 1: I've had so many people make jokes. But first, like
Speaker 1: I'll see a million good comments and i'll see one
Speaker 1: bad and I'll just think about the bad. Yeah, but
Speaker 1: more in a like a humorous way.
Speaker 2: Yeah.
Speaker 1: I don't know why.
Speaker 2: I mean, there are always people who's going to love
Speaker 2: you or don't you know that's like normal? Yeah?
Speaker 1: Pretty music show be yeah yeah yeah no, we get
Speaker 1: it here all the time at eating Well Broke. Yeah,
Speaker 1: I'll tell you this. You make a good pancake like it.
Speaker 2: I like it.
Speaker 1: You're going to see me finish the pancakes and I'll.
Speaker 2: Give your mind too.
Speaker 1: Did you like Wars?
Speaker 2: Yeah, I like it. Yeah, yeah, sure here making sure.
Speaker 1: Thank you so much, thank you for having a crazy schedule.
Speaker 2: Thank you.
Speaker 1: I'm excited with us a little bit about Serbia. Yeah,
Speaker 1: culture us Serbia, I would love you. If you have anybody,
Speaker 1: I'll go. I won't even think twice about it.
Speaker 2: You must be my guys there and try Serbian food.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I'm down. I just I just sometimes I think
Speaker 1: when I see people from other countries, I just wonder, like,
Speaker 1: because people look at the US like US is great,
Speaker 1: and I'm always like, do we pretend like we're great?
Speaker 1: Are we really? Is America really that great?
Speaker 2: Yeah? It is? It is the favorite.
Speaker 1: Yeah, Serbia and your second home. Okay, okay, but you
Speaker 1: would never leave Serbia entirely.
Speaker 2: Yeah no not yet.
Speaker 1: Yeah.
Speaker 2: I mean I'm gonna move here, but still I have
Speaker 2: my family there.
Speaker 1: Yeah, you know, and yeah I can only imagine. All right. Well,
Speaker 1: thank you guys for tuning into another episode of Eating
Speaker 1: Well Broke Again. I'm your host Coley Went and today
Speaker 1: we have special guests d d J in the building.
Speaker 1: Check out her single right now, I like it popping
Speaker 1: really high in the charts. You can look her up
Speaker 1: on Instagram. D I d i J official of course
Speaker 1: official on Instagram and all other tiktoks and all that
Speaker 1: yeady yady YadA stuff.
Speaker 2: He said so much