Mashonda Gives Her Top Qualities In A Man, New Single "Forbidden Fruit" & The Note To Self Gallery

Name: Mashonda Gives Her Top Qualities In A Man, New Single "Forbidden Fruit" & The Note To Self Gallery
Uploaded: 2025-11-07T06:05:21-08:00
Duration: 33 min 27 s
Channel: SWAY'S UNIVERSE
Description: Musician and author Meshonda T. Fraser discusses her return to the music scene with her new EP 'Note to Self' and single 'Forbidden Fruit,' emphasizing…

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About this episode Musician and author Meshonda T. Fraser discusses her return to the music scene with her new EP 'Note to Self' … AI summary

Musician and author Meshonda T. Fraser discusses her return to the music scene with her new EP 'Note to Self' and single 'Forbidden Fruit,' emphasizing the importance of owning one's publishing and maintaining independence in the modern music industry. She shares candid insights on dating red flags, such as poor treatment of service staff, and stresses the necessity of self-loyalty and personal growth over teaching partners to change. The conversation highlights a shift towards valuing authentic connection and legacy over vanity metrics like social media engagement.

Key takeaways 5

Publishing Rights: Meshonda signed a publishing deal in 1997 for $50,000 without fully understanding the terms, effectively signing away her rights for nearly 20 years. She advises artists to have lawyers explain all contract terms before signing, as losing publishing control is a significant long-term risk.
Dating Red Flags: A major red flag is a partner who cannot see their own faults or refuses to work on them. Another specific indicator is how they treat service staff; Meshonda ended a relationship because her date would not make eye contact with the waitress and went off on her when an order was wrong.
Self-Loyalty Over Teaching: Meshonda states she is done 'teaching men,' noting that adults must change on their own. She emphasizes being loyal to herself first, which includes maintaining privacy and not posting relationship details publicly.
Independence vs. Metrics: While owning publishing provides freedom and control over one's legacy, it requires the artist to handle marketing and funding independently. Meshonda finds the current industry focus on 'vanity metrics' (likes, streams) intimidating and prefers creating music she loves rather than chasing numbers.
Relationship Standards: Ideal partners must be confident, humble, respectful, and transparent. Crucially, she distinguishes between loving someone and liking them, stating she needs to 'like' her partner to enjoy their company, which is why she remains selective.

Notable quotes 5 AI-generated: wording and quote attribution may be wrong. Use the play link to verify.

“I didn't understand [publishing] and so I do recommend for artists and writers to sit down with a lawyer and have them really explain what all those terms mean.”

▶ 6:11 Meshonda reflects on signing a publishing deal in 1997 that she didn't fully understand, which held her rights for nearly two decades.
“My days for teaching men are over... if you can't see that what you just did was up I'm not gonna pull you aside... I'm not teaching anybody right now.”

▶ 12:34 Discussing her low tolerance for partners who lack self-awareness or willingness to grow, emphasizing that adults must change themselves.
“You have to like the person... you could love somebody and not like them... especially family members... I don't know about the learning you know I feel like it's a natural thing.”

Explaining her criteria for long-term relationships, distinguishing between emotional attachment (love) and genuine enjoyment of company (like).
“I'm not here for any of those [vanity metrics]... that part yeah that's that's that's um that ain't in your wheelhouse right.”

▶ 21:16 When discussing the modern music industry's focus on social media numbers, Meshonda asserts that chasing engagement is not her primary motivation.
“Forbidden fruit is such a great... what makes fruit forbidden? ... We treat the conversation of sex and all the beautiful things about it as a taboo.”

▶ 7:20 Explaining the inspiration behind her song 'Forbidden Fruit,' aiming to normalize and celebrate sexual conversation as natural rather than taboo.