Music Capital 

In all of your career milestones, what sticks out as the most exciting?

Mama Duke

What about [something] people don't know yet – How about that? Not everybody pops up on you on the side of the street with cameras and stuff, so I'm going to give that to you. Citizen M, which is a hotel, they're doing a grand opening here and I'm one of the citizens and the faces to open up for the hotel. 

Music Capital

Yeah, that's incredible. And you're doing music full time, right? I saw that you were looking to collaborate with other artists and venture outside of rap music. What's a project that you've got coming up that you're really excited about? 

Mama Duke

Oh man, I'm going to have to go commercial for a little bit, just because that's what it just calls for. I can do rap forever, but it's like, let's open that next door type shit. So yeah, pop music is something that is just heavy on my plate right now. I'm writing pop music for people, so I'm in a pop-blow era, you know? So that's what I'm doing. That's what I'm working on for the next album. 

Music Capital

When does your next album come out?

Mama Duke

It's summertime.

Music Capital

Yes! We need this. It's post-pandemic, we need the pop music. I was reading a previous interview that you said you felt like in your first record, Ballsy, you almost had to defend yourself. Do you still feel that way about the music that you're working on? 

Mama Duke

I don't, I'm here. She's here. She's done it. You've done the work, so you kind of get to play a little bit, you know? So that's what I'm doing, I'm playing. 

Music Capital

And I heard you did a really cool collaboration with The Contemporary Austin, with artist Vivian Caccuri. The project was called This Land. What was it about that project that inspired you in the creative process?

Mama Duke

Yeah, so the Contemporary Art Museum, they hit me and was like, there's an artist from Brazil that is doing an installation here. Are you down to do a song with her? And I was like, hell yeah. It was about mosquitoes, and it just pushed my pin. It was like, what? How am I going to relate a human to a mosquito? It's crazy. But you know what, as an artist, you don't say no to a bag. And so, mosquitoes is what we rock about. 

Music Capital

Wow, I love it. So yeah, I mean, the Austin hip-hop scene is growing, and I think part of that could be because of the work that you're doing with ATX Social Club and how that bolsters the community in the city. 

Mama Duke

So here's the thing, I'm a part of a lot of different communities. I am Black. I am Latina. I am a woman. I am queer. I'm all these things. And so my community comes with a community, and so I just want to, because I didn't have anybody to pull me, I mean, of course people help me out, but I didn't have that one person pull in and reach. I just want to be that for somebody, even if it's one person. So ATX Social Club for me is like, let's get as many people, you know, that need that extra little push, and let's see if we can make some shit shake, you know? 

Music Capital

What can we look forward to with ATX Social Club this year? 

Mama Duke

Oh man, so much stuff. There's the South by Southwest event we're doing, where I have some folks from London coming out. When I went to London, that's what sparked the things that I'm doing right now with ATX Social Club. So for them to come down and now return the favor is like super cool. 

Music Capital

What are you doing in London?

Spred

London was tight, so we were up there for like three weeks, like a month, and basically just like playing shows and stuff. SoFar Sounds, that's what it's called. SoFar Sounds puts on these little shows, kind of intimate, you know? Everyone's sitting down, really paying attention to the artists, and they took us to London, you know? Yeah, they paid for our tickets and everything, which is really cool. And yeah, we just took us around. We played a few shows and got to meet a lot of people.

Mama Duke

That’s what's up. I mean, London for a month, that's crazy. There's not a lot of times where you can feel like an actual superstar. It's like, cool, we play these shows, and what is it really? But to be flown out to London for a month, and you're paying for stuff, and you book the shows, that's different. That's different. 

Music Capital

What was the coolest place you played with SoFar Sounds in London?

Mama Duke

So the, what is it called? The Flat that they put us in – it had an area up top for events. So to go from our room, to take the elevator up, you know what I'm saying? To play there, it was like, oh! 

Spred

With the view, right? The whole view of London. Wow. At the very top, it was sick. 

Mama Duke

And we invited strangers back to our room. It was like, who gives a shit? You know, hey y'all, we're on the whatever floor, y'all come up. That was cool. 

Music Capital

Wow, that is the rockstar life. That is amazing. Well, before we wrap up, any shout outs? Anything you want to promote? What you got coming up?

Mama Duke 

South by Southwest, my official showcase is March 16th. Yeah, look out for that. Follow me on Instagram. If you look me up and a dog comes up, that's the wrong bitch. I'm Mama Duke, that's Marma Duke. This is Spread. S-P-R-E-D. Yeah. Shout out Austin. Shout out Austin FC!

Music Capital

Alright, thanks y'all, this was awesome. We're excited for the show tonight.

Mama Duke

Yay. Yeah! That was love. That was dope. So good.

Follow Mama Duke on Instagram: @mama.duke

Follow Spred on Instagram: @officialspred