Years later we connected and he got me on the show and he embraced me as his younger sister. We've been rocking for three years.

Empress: Would you consider this your dream job?

Dee: Absolutely! Sometimes I wake up and I'm like WOW. Like today I went to the screening for Get Smart, then I went to meet with a jewelry company because I'll be doing some things with them. Sometimes I think , I have to get to this meeting then to another, then I'm like, wait this is all I have to do, it's my job. Sometimes I get overwhelmed but the stuff I get overwhelmed with is always good.

Empress: When working on the radio are there good days and bad days?

Dee: There are definitely good days and bad days. One thing I can say is that when I have a very bad day and I walk into the studio everything always seems good. It's really a family atmosphere in there. If someone has a bad day, people are going to call you out on it. Someone will say 'What up Dee, you good?', then I'm like 'Yeah I'm good' and I fix my face. (lol)

Empress: How does your show, Shade 45 on Sirius differ from the show you do with Kay Slay on Hot 97?

Dee: It differs in every kind of way; on Sirius it's uncensored so we can say anything. I'm not a big curser, but for people who do like to curse you are more than welcome to listen to Sirius. We do 4 hours up there opposed to 2 hours on Hot 97. We get really comfortable up there and it's all over, nationwide.

We have people from all over the country coming into the radio station. On Sirius we play everything from different artists all around the country. That's the cool part; you get put on to a lot of different rappers and artists.

Empress: If you weren’t doing radio what would be your next dream job?

Dee: I would say either owning a clothing store (I know I will do that eventually), or teaching. I love being around children and teaching children. It sounds cheesy but they really are our future. The teachers in my life have had a really big impact on me. My mother and stepfather worked really hard so a lot of times we had to depend on our teachers in school to show us the right way.

Empress: Do you work with children now?

Dee: Yes, I do. Another thing I do is go to different prisons and do motivational speaking. Some of these people feel bad for what they have done and they are ready to turn over a new leaf. I like to speak to the prisoners and give them motivation and inspiration. I think they really appreciate that; to know somebody that somebody out there cares. I let them know that they are not the stereotype; whatever you want to do you can do it.

Empress: You host the #1 Countdown: Hip-Hop on Fuse Network and do radio; do you prefer one to the other?

Dee: I love television. A lot of people don't know this; I have hosted “Video City” on Cable Access Television and and I've done feature work on BET and Current TV Networks. I love being behind the scenes as well as being in front of the camera. That's my first love. It took me a little time to get used to radio, which is so funny. The difference between radio and TV for me is that radio is all about the imagination of the mind. You can wink and smile on the camera to send a message. If you try to do that on radio all you hear is silence. Everything has to be vocalized; you have to sound in the moment.

Television is visual attached to the vocal, everything is there. Radio takes a lot more work to me, but I'm up for the challenge.

Empress: How is it dating and being a career woman? How do you handle the two?

Dee: I don't handle. I'm not handling, I'm not in control of (lol). This is one part of my life where I can say 'I don't know'. It's hard. With my career I want to make all the right moves but at the same time I want to make sure what I'm representing is something positive and something that people can relate to. It's really about maintaining my true identity.

When you work hard, your beautiful and in this game they'll look at you like your fly, she's doing her thing but once they see what is behind that ambition it's a different story.

Empress: Any tips for females trying to get in the game?

Dee: Professionalism is key especially in the entertainment world. You can get caught up in the moment when you are in the nightlife and everyone is drinking or having a good time, just stay focused. That was the number one thing that got me through everything.

Also be prepared for situations. There were times when I wasn't prepared and I felt it hard. Then there were times when I was overly prepared and that's when things happened. You can never be overly prepared you have to assume any situation can happen and you have to be prepared for it.

The 2 P's, professionalism and preparation.

Empress: What does the word Empress mean to you?

Dee: Someone that is respected and someone that gives out respect. When I think of an Empress I think of someone that is adored, highly respected, and beautiful. When I say beautiful it's not just on the outside but in the inside also.