Singer, songwriter and now reality star, Kelly Price has worked with many of the biggest names in the business, from Whitney Houston to Elton John to Aretha Franklin and Mariah Carey. But due to her weight, Kelly initially had been behind the scenes singing background vocals, writing hit songs or touring as a background singer. Many told her she didn't "fit the profile." The R&B Diva sounds off about what she's learned about herself, being a mother and her image over the past few years.
Kelly Price said, "A record executive told me, 'You have one of the greatest voices I've ever heard, but nobody wants to see a fat girl sing.' "
"I was over 300 pounds and it's not so much about what I was eating that made me gain the wait, it was the times that I was eating and what I was eating, plus I have a very sluggish metabolism. All of that made me gain the weight quick."
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So with that knowledge, Kelly still wasn't losing the weight in the right way. When tragedy struck her family her mother and her mother in law were both sick and that took a toll on the family and Kelly's health.
"Right after a show, we'd have to hop on a plane to Texas or hop on a plane somewhere else to see my mother in law before she died. Then we'd hop on a plane to New York to check on the kids. I was stressed and angry and hurting."
Kelly learned an important lesson. "For me, in order to keep my weight under a certain number, I'm always going to have to mobile. To be moving in order to boost my metabolism."
On teaching her daughter to appreciate her natural beauty:
"Raising a young black girl in a society where they are being shown beauty is only one thing. It’s very difficult. To raise a young girl and to show her that anything is beautiful other than long, straight hair is not an easy job. I had a hard time trying to teach my daughter that ‘No you don’t need your hair pressed,’ and as she got older that ‘No you don’t need a weave…’ I think as black parents we have to be willing to fight the images that tell our daughters that unless that’s what they look like, they’re not beautiful. We need to tell them yes, they are beautiful, just like God created us to be."
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On her reality TV experience:
"You don’t know what reality TV is until you do it…and now I know what reality TV is! I’m not turned off by it. I have actually had an animal awakened in me, and so with that I am going to pursue it in a manner that only Kelly Price can. And that...
...for me coming off of the ‘R&B Divas’ experience is to pursue more opportunities in TV and film with a Kelly Price twist.
On using her weight criticisms from the music industry as inspiration for a new reality show:
For me to have a story of one who was nearly denied a successful career because I was too big…it’s time for me to pay it forward. Being an overweight girl, I am a worker. I’ve worked for everything it is that I have. So if there is anyone out there who is serious about having a career as a singer, as a model, as a dancer, as an actor, as an actress, as a personality in this industry…if they’re willing to work for it and they’ve had doors closed because they’re overweight, then this is the opportunity for them to have an opportunity.
