The UB Interview: YoYo Talks New Music & ‘Love & Hip Hop Hollywood’

Yolanda “YoYo” Whitaker is a rapper, actress, educator and philanthropist. The new member of VH1’s popular “Love & Hip Hop Hollywood” series is affectionately known as Auntie YoYo. Raised in the South Central district of Los Angeles, her big break came when she appeared on Ice Cube‘s 1990 debut, “AmeriKKKa’s Most Wanted,” featured on “It’s A Man’s World,” representing her gender in admirable style.

Her own debut “Make Way for the Motherload” introduced her confident attitude along with the formation of the Intelligent Black Women’s Coalition organization. Her songs “You Can’t Play With My YoYo,” “Bonnie & Clyde Theme” with Ice Cube and her feature on Brandy’s “I Wanna Be Down” remix with MC Lyte and Queen Latifah are classics.

As an actress, she has appeared in the Academy Awards-nominated film “Boyz N the Hood” as well as a number of television shows including ‘90s sitcom “Martin” where she portrayed the memorable, comical recurring character Keylolo. She also served as a co-host of VH1’s “Miss Rap Supreme.” In 2013, she founded the YoYo School of Hip Hop music academy where she teaches youth about arts and academics. With a commitment to educating our youth, YoYo is an Ambassador for the Black College Expo. For more than seven years, YoYo’s “How to Get A’s in English Through Hip Hop” seminar has been a main feature during the expo.

YoYo also makes her mark on the airwaves as co-host of Café Mocha, the #1 nationally syndicated radio show for women of color, alongside Emmy award winner Loni Love and broadcast veteran Angelique Perrin. The Gracie award-winning show is heard in over 35 markets across the United States and on SiriusXM Channel 141. YoYo teaches women about health and fitness via her “Get Fit With YoYo” program.

Next month YoYo will be releasing “Out of Control,” her first new song in more than 10 years. The track features “Love & Hip Hop Hollywood” castmate Brittany B and Tyeler Reign, season 5 winner of Jermaine Dupri’s “Rap Game” series, as well as Patient Picasso.

Recently Aries from UB spoke to YoYo about joining the cast of Love & Hip Hop Hollywood, her upcoming single “Out of Control,” what inspires her to advocate, plus she joins the current conversation on female rappers & more.

UrbanBridgez.com: What made you want to join the cast of Love & Hip Hop: Hollywood?
YoYo: It’s an attempt to dive in. Dive into anything that is happening in today’s times. I consider it a great opportunity, to dive in and be a voice.

UrbanBridgez.com: What do you think fans will learn about you from watching this season?
YoYo: Well I finally get a chance to show my authentic self. I think the road I’ve peaked along my journey is something to be seen. So I’m happy to present, a woman who has been in this industry for 30 years. All of my mistakes, all of my influences, relationships to everything that I’ve learned. From my regrets, are all exposed. My parenting and motherhood. Which is hard for a woman in this industry. So just to be real, makes me excited for the platform.

UrbanBridgez.com: What’s been the biggest challenge for you filming reality TV?
YoYo: I think the biggest challenge for me, is introducing my family. I mean it’s not always easy. I see myself as one way. I’ve been this way since I was 17. So to include my family and my mom. To be be reintroduced to a generation, where some don’t know who I am or what I stand for. I think it’s still exciting as a whole.

UrbanBridgez.com: Female rappers have been a very hot topic as of recent, which is great! Being a pioneer, what’s your thoughts on the conversation. What would you like to see more or less of so to speak?
YoYo: Well I love the power of women. I’m such a feminist, so with that comes, the double headed sword. Knowing who we are, being able to finally have a voice. To finally get the attention it deserves. What I would like to see more of when it comes to women in Hip Hop. Is more of their authentic self and not just the hype of it or the trend of it. But as a whole because we are mothers, we are leaders, we are sexual, we are lovers. You know, we are…

UrbanBridgez.com: Everything!
YoYo: Exactly!

UrbanBridgez.com: I had chance to preview your fire new single “Out of Control,” with Tyeler Reign and Britany B, that you have coming. Can you give us anymore details on that and more new music?
YoYo: Do you like it?

UrbanBridgez.com: I love it!
YoYo: Oh do you? I’m so excited to hear that, because I struggle with getting back in. I struggle with it because of the music business. When I got out of it Lil Kim and Foxy were coming in. And I could never make myself feel like I fit again. But I have to do some self evaluating. Soul searching of who am I? What does it mean to me? This song makes me feel like I’m right there in the middle. I just got a distribution deal with Fountain Media. So I’m independent and the song will be available in October. The video is shooting October 13th. So I’m working with my team now to set up pre-sales and hopefully have the video out by October 20th. So we’re right there.

UrbanBridgez.com: So great to hear! Iz It Still All Good, with the late great Gerald LeVert will always be one of my favorites. That was your last release on a major and the album Ebony never came. Take us back to that time and tell us how that all played out.
YoYo: So Something is On Your Mind with Gerald LeVert. To be totally honest that was me trying to find my medium. In an industry that had drastically changed. So for a long time I couldn’t find myself, I couldn’t find my cool. With Gerald LeVert on it, someone who I looked up to. It helped me to release a side of me that I felt comfortable. With Ebony I worked with Cube and Sylvia Rhone at the time. There was no beef we just really couldn’t get the attention of Ice Cube because of the companies that were merging at the time. So for me being from the west coast, working with east coast artist, I was sort of happy it didn’t come out. Because I was getting more love from the east coast than the west coast. So I felt like I wasn’t representing the west like I could have. So I was actually happy, it didn’t come out.

UrbanBridgez.com: Out of your catalog, what are your top 3-5 favorite tracks you’ve recorded? My three are So Funky, Bonnie & Clyde Theme and Iz It Still All Good.
YoYo: Oh God let’s see, You Can’t Play with My YoYo, Mama Don’t Take No Mess and Bonnie and Clyde.

UrbanBridgez.com: What’s been your biggest accomplishment in your career for you?
YoYo: My biggest accomplishment of my career so far. Is getting my kids to respect me. Knowing that it’s not easy to be a mother and a artist. And my biggest accomplishment, is me feeling like I did accomplish that. I feel like my kids respect me, they know who I am, they respect my work ethics. They inspire and encourage me to keep going. Before I thought it was more of a, that’s enough. So my biggest accomplishment is gaining the respect of my family.

UrbanBridgez.com: You started advocating when you debuted with IBCW, later establishing YoYo’s School of Hip-Hop. What motivates you to advocate and what would you suggest to others who
want to, but don’t know how or where to start?
YoYo: What started my journey was everything I did. All of my fears. And that’s why I’m YoYo Fearless on social media. I think all of my fears haunted me. The fact that I didn’t know all that I wanted to know. The pretentious life is such a falsely of life. It’s such a fake life. But to go through the journey and completing 30 years, can you imagine? To go through it and to come out on the other side. Is like looking back and saying, whoa is that all you got (both laugh)? But when I was going through I was thinking, dang can I breathe again? Is this the death of me? It’s such a hard journey and it’s such a tough experience. Specially being a mother and raising kids. Trying to be the best artist you can and to show up. With me for YoYo’s School of Hip-Hop, I’ve given what I didn’t have. To be totally honest, when I surrendered. When I decided to admit that I knew nothing. Admit that I’ve lied, that some of my stories weren’t always true. When I decided to admit my wrong, it made me want to say more. With more came people wanting to learn more. They wanted more information. Me working with the kids, teaching them how to watch what they say. Those are the things that I started doing with YoYo’s School of Hip-Hop. Just wanting to teach them how to have longevity in this industry. What I would say to those trying to get into it. What I’ve learned is the more I give is the more I get. So the more I poured myself into other people, the more I opened myself up. Seriously, the more serious conversations I had. They educated me, I didn’t realize how closed off I was by not having conversations. So I would tell people who want to advocate to always show up. I wasn’t always prepared for the show up. I didn’t know what the conversation was going to be. I’ve been YoYo since I was 17 and I didn’t go to college. But I went back to educate myself, because I knew that I didn’t want anyone to taunt me. I didn’t want to feel like I didn’t know anything. So educate yourself and don’t be afraid to give yourself. Take time to hear somebody out, it could be the start of something you’re very passionate about.

UrbanBridgez.com: What’s next for YoYo?
YoYo: You know it’s politics. Yup seeing my face on a brochure asking people to vote for me. So that I can be the voice of my community. So that I can bring their concerns to the forefront. To go to war for them. That’s really next for me. Of course being a great grandmother, there for my daughter. This generation I’m a young grandma. My goals for the future is being accountable and not for just myself. But for those that look up to me, put faith in me and believe in me. Those that want a better me.