Tinashe has hit out at her former label RCA Records following the viral success of her latest single “Nasty”.
While preparing to perform the hit on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, the singer spoke with TMZabout her current status as an independent artist and the success that has followed.
“Oh my God, this is so exciting, it’s like my first Billboard entry by myself,” she said. “They said you couldn’t do it but you can. Independently, just hard work. Shout out to the fans, they really made it pop.”
About RCA, she commented: “We didn’t need them. All you need is hard work, good fans and talent. I know they gagging.”
“Nasty” became Tinashe’s first solo entry on the Billboard Hot 100 when it debuted at No. 90, after previous tracks such as “2 On,” “All My Friends,” “Slumber Party” and “Body Language” all featured other artists.
Tinashe has previously expressed regret about working with controversial artists such as R. Kelly and Chris Brown when she was signed to RCA.
The singer worked with both artists in 2015 and blamed her then label for putting the songs together.
“You think I wanted to [do those songs]?” she began. “I literally block out that R. Kelly song from my mind. I forget that it even exists. That is so embarrassing. That is so unreal that I even have a song with R. Kelly. That’s so embarrassing.
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“Yes that was labely! And I was so young too. I feel like I did that song when I just signed to that label. I was probably like 20. That was crazy.”
She continued: “You [lack a lot of control in that situation.] And especially when it comes to singles like the song with Chris – that was a song that we all wanted to be this big moment, this big single.
“So I feel like in [the label’s] mind, they were like, ‘You need the support.’ And he was like their biggest artist that they had on rhythmic radio at the time.
“And to me, I was like, ‘Well this is a pop song. So I really don’t feel like we should put Chris on it. That doesn’t compute to me.’ But I don’t know!”
