Diamond, a 26-year-old former Atlantan and rap singer, almost landed on "Love and Hip Hop Atlanta" because she was the former beau of Lil Scrappy, a star on VH1's most popular reality program.
But she chose not to get involved on a show that is less about the music and more about relationship drama, about who is cheating on who and whatever ridiculous physical fights they can get into.
"It really wasn't where me, my family and the people working with me wanted to go," said Diamond in a phone interview earlier this week.
Instead, she has ventured to New York and has latched onto a reality show executive produced by Atlanta's T.I. called "Sisterhood of Hip Hop" on the Oxygen Network. It debuts Tuesday, August 12 at 9 p.m.
She found comfort that T.I. had his name attached to the show. She said she felt he would ensure the show would better help build her brand than a show like "Love and Hip Hop."
"Sisterhood of Hip Hop" is about women struggling to get their voices heard in a music business still dominated by men. Many of those powerful men will show up to mentor the women including Timbaland and Rick Ross.
Of the five women featured on the show, Diamond is arguably the best known, having had success in the mid-2000s with an Atlanta group called Crime Mob, which had a two rap hits back in the day "Knuck If You Buck" and "Rock Yo Hips." Although she is only 26, she's been in the business more than a decade and is able to share her experiences with the others. "I think that gives me more of a responsibility," she said.
She also dated both Lil Scrappy, then Soulja Boy. "My relationships have overshadowed my talent," she acknowledged in a preview of the show. (Speaking of Soulja Boy, VH1 is adding him to the mix on "Love and Hip Hop: LA," which is currently in production, according to TMZ. )
But she's driven to become a solo star. "Eve always stressed to me to never be comfortable," she said. "I'm always competing with myself."
She hopes the show will give people a chance to get to know her. "They don't know my real name is Brittany Nicole Carpentero and I'm half Puerto Rican and half black, that my father was victimized by a drunk driver when I was three." Her mom worked at the Atlanta Journal Constitution for several years, she said, though she can't recall what she actually did here.
Diamond also wears her hair color purple because lupus runs in her family and that color symbolizes the long-term disease. And she has a hookah line and body shaper products
She will shoot some of the show in Atlanta, where she still visits frequently. In a scene from the trailer, she meets up with Lil Jon at the Westin Peachtree. "You need to date a regular dude. No more drama!" he advised. (Based on the preview video, she isn't immune to getting a little turned up, so to speak. But the show does not look nearly as "managed" as "Love and Hip Hop.")
Here are quick bits about the other four:
Brianna Perry. A Miami 22-year-old University of Miami student and newcomer to the business.
Nyemiah Supreme: She's a Queen, N.Y. rapper signed to Timbaland's label who has trouble opening up to others.
Bia. A 23-year-old Bostonian who has ties with Pharrell Williams. She was hit by a drunk driver and that has shaped her life since.
Siya. She's a tough-talking Brooklyn 27-year-old rap star who said she dealt drugs in the past. She's also openly gay, which is rare in this business, and struggles balancing career and her girlfriend.
"I have respect for all these women," Diamond said. "We have five different personalities. We get into disagreements. But nothing was set up. This was all very organic."
Watch the 15-minute preview that aired recently:
Diamond remembers being in the AJC in 2006 and I dug up the photos that my former colleague Sonia Murray took in 2006. She said she was trying to hide her pierced belly button from her mom but this was a dead giveaway:
Credit: Rodney Ho
Credit: Rodney Ho
Credit: Rodney Ho
Credit: Rodney Ho
TV preview
"Sisterhood of Hip Hop"
9 p.m., Tuesdays, starting August 12, Oxygen
