Cardi B opened up about her life, her childhood, and her journey to fame in a candid conversation with Mariah Carey for Interview magazine published on Tuesday.
The interview covered everything from Cardi's insecurities growing up in the Bronx to the discrimination she's faced as a woman of color in the music and fashion industries.
And the "Bodak Yellow" rapper also opened up about her experience working as a stripper, explaining why she would never feel "ashamed" of the work, even if people judged her for it.
When Mariah asked why she got into the business, Cardi recalled how it began as a way for her to get out of a bad situation, but stripping ended up helping her build her confidence.
"When I first entered the strip club, I was really shy," the 28-year-old recalled. "I felt really uncomfortable. I felt very ashamed. There were times when I was crying, like, 'Oh my gosh, if my mom or my dad found out, they'd be so humiliated.' But I needed the fucking money."
"I just wanted enough money to rent a room," she said, explaining that she had been kicked out of her parents' house and was living with a boyfriend at the time. "That's how desperate I was to get the fuck out of the situation I was in."
"I just wanted to make $20,000," Cardi went on. "'If I make $20,000,' I thought, 'I'll open a fucking business and I won’t have to strip anymore.'"
"I felt on top of the world," Cardi said of her job. "I felt so untouchable and so sexy, because there were rappers that all these girls lust over who would come to the strip club and request me to go to their section."
But, Cardi explained, when she started making music, her ultimate goal — to make money — began to change.
"Now I just be telling my fans, 'If you work hard, it could happen, because it happened for me,'" Cardi said. "I always had a dream, but I just felt like, 'Man, get the fuck out of here. Why me?' And it happened."
