Dawn Richard presented her 10-track EP Armor On to a packed house at a listening session in Beverly Hills last night. With producer Druski by her side, Rap-Up TV spoke with the former Danity Kane diva about the project, the end of Dirty Money, and her split from Bad Boy.
“You’re gonna hear R&B taken to a whole ‘nother level,” shared an excited Dawn, who worked with Druski on nine of the EP’s 10 tracks.
The explosive first single “Bombs” will debut next week and she will appear on “106 & Park” to premiere the dance-heavy video. “It’s really aggressive and what I love about is it’s our ‘Hearts have arrived’ record,” she explained. “It’s such a confident record and the way we approached it is super aggressive and super cocky.”
She also set the record straight on her departure from Bad Boy, explaining that the split was amicable. Following the disbanding of Dirty Money, Diddy told her that she would have to wait a year or two to release a solo project if she stuck around, but after requesting a release, he granted it.
“It was a choice and I needed to go where the best place was for me,” said Dawn. “As an artist, you can’t wait two years. People forget about you in three seconds, so you have to grind like no other to stay relevant. He was gracious enough to say, ‘I’ll let you do that.’ Labels don’t do that. They’ll shelve you.”
Dawn is grateful to her former boss for releasing her from her contract to pursue a solo career. “I was so thankful that he didn’t do what everybody said he was gonna do. He was like, ‘You gave me six years, so here’s your chance.'”
Armor On will be available exclusively on iTunes on March 27.