‘People Weren’t Accepting of a White Female Trying to Rap’: Molly Mawlz Talks Growth, Hip-Hop, and Staying True to Herself

Molly Mawlz is a rapper, podcast host, actress, audio engineer, and producer whose career has taken her from Pittsburgh’s underground music scene to Los Angeles’s independent spotlight. With roots in rap and hip-hop, she’s shared the stage with icons like Snoop Dogg and Twista and brings a DIY spirit to every part of her work. Molly also co-hosts “Mawlz and Donn,” a podcast where she shines a light on independent artists. And she even engineers her own music, ensuring her sound stays true to her vision.

In this new episode of “10 Minute Chats,” Molly opens up about building confidence as an artist, facing down early criticism, and the surprising influences behind her latest tracks.

— You’ve opened for icons like Snoop Dogg and Twista. How did performing with such legends shape your perspective on music?

It was incredibly inspiring to have those opportunities. This was back when I was just starting my music career, still in Pittsburgh, around 2010 to 2013, right before moving to LA. I was getting traction in Pittsburgh, and that led to opening for these artists. With Snoop, it was more of a passing thing, so we didn’t really speak. But with Twista, I got to go on his tour bus after a show because he missed half of my opening set. People were telling him, “You’ve got to check out this girl. She can rap real fast.”

So, I performed for him on his bus. I was nervous and sped it up even more than usual. He was super encouraging, gave me pointers, told me to slow down, and was just really kind. That experience gave me a lot of motivation and really lit a fire in me to pursue more opportunities, which eventually led to me getting signed.

— You went from ‘Quit Bein Scared’ to ‘Smoov Lil Blanco.’ When did you truly stop being afraid, and is there anything that scares you now?

I released my first project, ‘Quit Bein Scared’, back in 2011, and at the time, I was getting a lot of love, but also just as much hate.

A lot of people weren’t really accepting of the fact that I was a white female trying to rap. They would say things like, “You’re trying to be Black” or accuse me of cultural appropriation, which was never my intention. That was just the style of music and the sound that I liked.

So, for a while, it was really nerve-wracking, knowing that every time I put something out, I was going to receive a bunch of hate just for that—just because I was a white girl.

Around 2014 to 2016, there was a shift where that kind of backlash wasn’t as much of an issue. I think hip-hop has become more accepting of rappers from all backgrounds, so now it’s not really brought up as much. I mean, artists like Iggy Azalea, Jack Harlow, and even Eminem faced similar issues early in their careers. So, it’s not unique to me, but I think now it’s more socially and culturally accepted.

As for ‘Smoov Lil Blanco,’ I haven’t even put out that EP yet. I haven’t released all the songs because I had a lot of personal stuff going on over the last year or two, and I had to take a step back and go on a hiatus for a while. Now, I’m re-emerging and getting ready to produce and put out a lot more music. The EP is a collection of about five or six songs, and I’d say that facing that adversity early on really helped solidify my confidence. Once you’ve had people coming at you with negativity, it becomes easier to deal with because you realize that not everyone is going to like what you do—and that’s okay. They’re just not your audience.

— You host a podcast for independent artists. What inspired you to create this platform, and what has been your favorite moment on the show so far?

— I co-host a podcast with Donn Johnson, who’s also a rapper. The way it started is kind of interesting. I was actually friends with his cousin, who invited me to a studio session. When I got there, they didn’t have an engineer—their engineer either wasn’t going to show up, or he was late, I forget exactly what it was. So I told them, “I can engineer,” because I had those skills too.

I ended up engineering the first half of that session for them, and they were surprised that I could do it. That’s something I’ve noticed—people often underestimate what women can do in the industry.

I made friends with everyone at that session, and then Donn presented the idea to me. He said, “We’re both artists, we’ve both been in the industry in different ways, so why don’t we try to do a podcast or show where we can spotlight people like us? Give some attention to people who might not have the means for interviews or live performances.” That’s how we got started.

We ran it for about a year and a half, doing over 45 or 50 episodes, and we had around 70 guests on the show. My favorite moments were always hearing the artists’ stories—where they started and where they are now. I loved hearing them perform their songs too, but it was really amazing that we were able to organize some live showcases, where artists could come out, perform, and gain new fans. We also did some red carpet interviews thanks to our work on the podcast. It’s cool to see how something we didn’t necessarily plan to take that far just kept growing. People still ask us, “When are you guys going to start back up?” We’ve been on a bit of a hiatus, but we’re currently in talks to change a few things and hopefully continue soon.

— In one of your interviews, you mentioned the “power of the universe.” In what moments do you truly trust it, and when does your own will kick in, saying, “No, I’ll do it my way”?

— I always trust in the power of the universe, and I say that because I believe everything happens for a reason, even if you don’t immediately know what that reason is. Every rejection, in my view, is a kind of divine redirection. So for me, I lean on that sense of trust, knowing that the way things have worked out for me in the past tends to be for the best.

But when it comes to moments where I actually need to make a decision or choose whether to go forward with something, I rely more on my own intuition and logic. I think about things like, “What’s the return on investment here?” or, “Is this collaboration going to lead me down a path with an image I want to be associated with, or not?” I just try to use a lot of rationale and logic for everything else and my business dealings, but as far as creativity and whether things work out or not, I tend to leave that up to the hands of the universe.

— What advice would you give to emerging artists about creating their own opportunities?

— First and foremost, if you don’t believe in yourself, nobody else will. Having a really strong belief in yourself and self-confidence is so important. If you don’t have it, you need to find a way to cultivate it, because, as they say, “scared money don’t make money.”

Networking is also essential. You have to collaborate with like-minded people, but also with those who are farther along in their career or have different skill sets that you don’t have. It’s really bad to have an ego and not be teachable. 

A lot of artists get stuck in their ways or are overly protective of their ideas and craft, which I totally understand and believe in, but you have to leave some room for compromise. You can’t think you know everything.

Being open to learning from others is what will help you grow as an artist.