Dess Dior for Pause Her Magazine

“In a lane of my own” as mentioned by Dess Dior who took a moment to PAUSE about her Rich Rich music and fly lifestyle.

The spark of rapping emerged for Dess during the pandemic when she became super motivated to chase her dreams, since then Dess Dior is cooking up her rap skills in the studio.

From her jewellery, handbags down to her boots, Dess is always prepped for the streets and keeps giving us looks, moods and bars.

With over 1 million followers on Instagram, We at PAUSE Her sat down with Dess to discuss her favourite fashion brands, inspirations and how she came up with the name Dess Dior

You relocated from Savannah to Atlanta, was that for your career. What inspired you to move?

Yes. Well I think that Atlanta is a really good work space for me, and it puts me in this creative mindset and there’s endless growth in Atlanta; I’m always inspired. So, that’s where I wanted to be.

What is it about the Atlanta ‘buzz’ and culture that makes everyone from Atlanta stay winning?

We are the culture… we set the trends. Everybody follows us. We’re always forming new waves and set everything. We’re it.

How did you come up with your name?

Well, I love fashion so it had to tie into some fly sh*t. My YouTube channel was ‘Dess’, and I thought it needed something else, something catchy, and me and my creative director at the time actually came up with it… we said it needed to be “DD”, so we started thinking of brands and we said ‘Dess Dior’.

Why Dior?

I don’t know there wasn’t really a specific reason, it just sounded good. ‘DD’… Dess Dior. It just fit.

Where did your rap flow spark from?

Well, I was always in the studio trying different things, so it kind of just came to me while I was recording, learning music, learning my style. It took me a minute to really find my sound, but once it came, I knew it was it. And I just stuck with it. So, that’s where it comes from.

And with the global pandemic, you kind of started your career in the middle of it, right?

Well no, I’ve been rapping since I was young, but I feel like I really locked in during the pandemic. During the pandemic, I had time to really sit, focus, and lock myself in the studio. Like, I had nothing else to do. So, I just focused on my craft. No distractions.

Would you say it was a blessing for you, or was it difficult?

I would say that it’s a blessing, for sure. I came up with some fire stuff during the pandemic… I released my EP during the pandemic, I was on go. I was super motivated. 

Are you super motivated now?

I mean, I’m even more motivated now! Before the pandemic I was kind of like in a phase where I was a little stuck, but during the pandemic I just started coming up with all of these different ideas to help my brand.

What challenges would you say you faced? 

I feel like the challenge I faced was staying inspired. You start to feel stagnant and feel like you’re not going anywhere or coming up with new ideas to grow. I think that’s the biggest challenge… you’ve got to push yourself to keep going and not stop, even when you do feel stagnant. 

During the pandemic you couldn’t get the experience of performing live, how did you get through performing to your audience?

There were a lot of things going on via social media, like different challenges. People were getting on the internet and rapping… I participated in all of that kind of stuff. I did Rolling Loud virtually. There were different things to keep me going and busy.

What’s your favourite luxury house?

My favourite? That’s hard I don’t really have a favourite. If I had to pick I would pick Chanel. 

If you had to pick, would it be Chanel or Dior?

Oh, Chanel! I know I sound crazy, but Chanel!

Describe your music in one word.

Rich… Motivational! 

Describe your style in three words.

Fun, fly, and effortless.

Describe your lifestyle in two words.

My lifestyle in two words would be inspirational and fly.

What three things would you not leave your house without? 

My wallet, my purse, and my stuff to protect myself with.

What if it’s to do with your look?

I mean my jewellery, of course. A good handbag, And then…

When you say your jewellery, do you mean your rings, earrings…?

My earrings, mainly. If I had to pick, my earrings. I cannot leave without my earrings. It would be a good handbag and then a lip gloss.

Who inspires you?

I would say that my dad inspires me the most because he is always learning new things. Even when there’s a broken bridge in the road, he keeps going. He always motivates me. So, he inspired me to keep going.

Musically, who inspires you?

I know this might sound cliché but Nicki (Minaj). 

Why?

Because she’s the queen! She’s dope as f*ck, you can’t box her in. She always has a new flow… she’s that girl. All the way around, from music to fashion… to everything! Rihanna too.

Your favourite pair of boots?

Hmm, I am a boot girl. My favourite pair of boots right now might be my Margielas.

And your favourite pair of sneakers?

My favourite pair of sneakers would be Nikes.

What advice would you give to other females to stay focused in an industry that is male dominated?

Umm, in any room you walk in don’t get intimidated by anybody, male or female. Stay on your sh*t! Handle your business, and don’t let anybody play with you.

You stay focused. What are your goals for 2022?

My goals for 2022 are to become very structured with everything in my life right now. Discipline… and just to connect all of the dots in my career.