Behind the Scenes Scoop: Wanda Dee Dishes on Music, Fashion, and Touring with Her Husband!

Get ready to groove with the one and only Wanda Dee! As the dynamic voice of The KLF, Wanda’s journey through the dance music scene has been nothing short of legendary. From unforgettable gigs with THE KLF around the world to chart-topping hits, she’s kept us moving and grooving all night long. So, kick back, grab a cup of tea, and get ready for some juicy behind-the-scenes stories as we dive into Wanda Dee’s world of music, fashion, and the adventures of touring with her hubby!

Pump it up Magazine: Flashback time! Thinking back to your headline show in L.A. back in 1991, what’s the most outrageous or unforgettable memory that still makes you smile?

Wanda Dee: I headlined a rave at the LAX Hilton in their ballroom believe it or not and I because this was an all-night event, the promoters told me that with revolving foot traffic, he sold over 10,000 tickets between 10pm & 4am. I remember that the very walls of the room were sweating with precipitation caused by the heated perspiration of the thousands of people that were jam packed in there. Every inhaled breath that my dancers and I took onstage felt like we were performing in a sauna and/or hot yoga studio. It was so hot that when I sang “WHAT TIME IS LOVE?” and belted the signature hook of “I WANNA SEE YOU SWEAT”, folks (guys & girls) alike began to take off their clothes until folks were dancing in their underwear and some were butt ass crack naked. It was like a rhythmic orgy scene out of “Caligula”! LMAO! What also made the night memorable, besides the hedonistic happyville I found myself the high priestess of that night, was that apparently the (2) two young male promoters, must not have communicated with one another that day; because they paid me twice! One paid me (my Manager / Husband, Eric) immediately upon our arrival and the other one came and paid Eric again just before we went on stage! Who were we to correct them, huh!? LOL! So unless they’re reading this article now, I guess they’ll never know; and I’m sure that after 33 years, the statute of limitation must have surely ran out by now!

Pump it up Magazine: Reflecting on your career rollercoaster, what’s the most “pinch-me-I’m-dreaming” moment that stands out to you?

Wanda Dee: OMG, too many to count!

Meeting my Husband & best friend of 42 years, Eric Floyd… Harry Belafonte coming all the way to The Bronx to audition (& cast) me for “Beat Street” Beat Street… Recording duets on my latest albums with the likes of the late great Loleatta Holloway, D’Atra Hicks & my legendary ‘showbiz’ Mom, Freda Payne…

WANDA DEE, DAME SHIRLEY, FREDA PAYNE & DIONNE WARWICK

Befriending so very many of my sheroes and femtors such as Eartha Kitt, Chita Rivera, Diahann Carroll, Iris Chacon, Grace Jones, Charo, Dionne Warwick & Dame Shirley Bassey… Headlining before some 200,000 people in Tallinn, Estonia THE KLF featuring The Goddess, WANDA DEE – FULL SHOW Live In Tallinn, Estonia... Seeing myself on the cover of USA TODAY labeled as “the highlight of the entire Rapmania pay-per-view telecast” from The Apollo TheaterWANDA DEE LIVE @ THE APOLLO: “TO THE BONE”… My Son, sIAMeze… Being signed by PWL Records under Stock, Aitken & Waterman twice (once as a DJ / Rapper and again as an international Pop/Dance artist)… Selling out 100,000 seats in St. Petersburg, Russia for New Years Eve 2017 WANDA DEE… Stadium Concert In RUSSIA... Watching 40,000 fans having sex on ecstasy at the Cow Palace in San Francisco on NYE 2005… Shutting down Joe Clarke‘s East Side High School with my risque performance that ended up garnering me over $40 million dollars worth of publicityTHE GODDESS, WANDA DEE SHUTS DOWN EASTSIDE HIGH!!!… Having dinner with Tony Bennett at Sylvia’s Restaurant in Harlem and him telling me how much he loved my music… Filming all of The KLF music videos at Pinewood Studios in London WANDA DEE & THE KLF – “LAST TRAIN TO TRANCENTRAL” & “WHAT TIME IS LOVE?“… Having some of THE greatest disco divas of all time singing backgrounds on (2) two songs on my new album (Peggi Blu, Sharon Brown, Linda Clifford, Carol Douglas, The Emotions, Taana Gardner, D’Atra Hicks, Loleatta Holloway, Ramona Keller, Fonda Rae, Valerie Simpson, Yvonne Turner, Alyson Williams & Carol Williams… Every moment I spent with THE greatest Mother-in-law in the world, the late great Gloria Floyd…

Again, just too many to count. It has been quite the life indeed

Pump it up Magazine: Your upcoming show at the Santa Fe Springs Swap Meet Event Space has fans buzzing with excitement. Can you give us a sneak peek into the musical rollercoaster they’re in for?

Wanda Dee: Fun, flesh & fantasy. Be prepared to be Goddessized by me, Wanda Dee & Company; along with my electrifying Son, sIAMeze and some of my fellow multi-platinum, international Pop/Dance superstar friends like Technotronic, Snap, La Bouche, Nina Sky, 20 Fingers, 2 In A Room, and Xaviera Gold. PLANET HOUSE is gonna be a night to remember!

Pump it up Magazine: Alright, spill the beans! With such a hiatus since your last headline show, how are you planning to spice things up to keep old fans dancing and new fans grooving in Los Angeles?

Wanda Dee: No ‘hiatus’ for me, I’ve been touring 10 months a year since 1991, headlining shows in 48 U.S. states,150 global cities in 90 countries on 6 continents. I just haven’t played Los Angeles in 33 years! LMAO! Let’s just say, I’ve been “busy”… big ass world out there.

Pump it up Magazine: Let’s talk fashion! Your stage presence is iconic. Can you share any insights into how you plan your stage outfits to match the energy of your performances?

Wanda Dee: Believe it or not, Eric has always styled my costumes. I think with him growing up and touring and/or working with the likes of style icons like Eartha Kitt, Grace Jones, Dame Shirley Bassey, Vivian Reed and Ernestine Jackson, he always knows how to both dress me… and undress me. LOL!

Pump it up Magazine: Let’s get healthy! What are some of your wellness habits or rituals you follow before hitting the stage to ensure you’re at your best performance-wise?

Wanda Dee: I drink something daily Eric and I call The Emperor’s Elixir (as ‘Emperor Floyd‘ himself is the one who came up with it), consisting of alkaline water, ginger, lemon, lime & apple cider vinegar; keeps the mind clear and your tubes (veins, arterries, capillaries, upper & lower intestines) and organs clean and clear of blockages, all the while boosting your immune system and giving you mad energy! We fast one day a week (Wednesdays) for 4 decades and I never eat after 7pm! I’m 61 years old and as Eartha Kitt told me to my face; “Wanda, you gotta keep it right & tight!”

Wanda Dee and Husband Eric Floyd – THE KLF

Pump it up Magazine: Let’s get personal! What’s it like touring with your husband? Any funny or heartwarming anecdotes you can share from life on the road together?

Wanda Dee: The joy of my life is being able to tour the world with my best friend and soulmate. We have laughed and loved all over the world together for decades now, while delivering miles of smiles to the international masses! Now, how amazing is that, huh!? One thing that sticks out is when I was headlining at a casino in Riga, Latvia in the summer of 1993 and I was being romanced (apparently) by “the head of the Russian Mafia” (because that’s how he introduced himself to me when his henchmen brought me over to him). LOL! He respectfully asked if he could dance with me while I was sitting with the casino owner, Eric & my crew after my show and Eric gave me the head nod to do so. But once he started whispering sweet nothings in my ear about wanting to “take me back to Mother Russia and gifting me with allowance of $100,000 a month” if I accepted his offer! Thinking that he was clearly joking, I asked him flat out, “And what about my Husband”? He snared back at me; “What about him”!? Flabbergasted, I gave Eric the signal that I was in trouble and he lept into action. Sitting at the owners table was also action star Charles Bronson (of the “Death Wish” film franchise) and apparently Eric had a conversation with him and the next thing I knew, Mr. Bronson came over to me with TV cameras in tow behind him and asked to cut in; ‘Mafia King’ had no choice but to release me into Mr. Bronson’s arms… who danced me right off the floor and out the back door of the restaurant, where Eric & my crew were there waiting for me. We hoped in our limo and sped off to our hotel, packed up and got the hell outta there to the airport. A night I’ll never forget!

Pump it up Magazine: Let’s get creative! Can you take us behind the scenes of your craziest track creation process and spill the tea on how you plan to serve it up live?

Wanda Dee: Recording a duet with the legendary late great Queen of Club, House & Dance, Loleatta Holloway joined me on a sizzling remake of “DON’T LEAVE ME THIS WAY” that Eric Produced with Mickey Garcia engineering; and Loleatta’s voice was so powerful, Eric had to ask her to stand at least 10 feet from the mic. Because when he initially let her stand right in front of the mic (like a normal voiced human being), the moment she’d open her mouth, she’d send the audio monitors into the red. She truly was a roof raising, gut wrenching, no nonsense, kick ass brown, round, mound of sound; whom when she sang, the walls came crumbling down! LMAO! God rest her soul. Starting off as a DJ, I was obviously intimidated to sing alongside her until Eric wisely pulled me aside into a bathroom, held me by both shoulders and said; “Look, Loleatta is all the thunder down under, but you are all the lightening up top; it takes both of you to make the storm… and nobody’s ever been injured or killed by ‘thunder’; it’s the lightning that’s dangerous and will kill ya”! I got it immediately and I went out there and sang my natural black ass off! It’s truly one of the hottest tracks on my album; “The Goddess Is Here”.

They say it takes 10,000 hours to become an expert at anything; well, when it comes to performing live, I surpassed over 10,000 hours back in the 90’s… so it’s safe to say that me and L.A. are gonna have a real good time together on Saturday, May 11th; because there’s an “expert” veteran onstage to bedazzle, amaze & blaze!

Pump it up Magazine: Europe’s dance music scene has seen more twists and turns than a roller disco. How has this evolution influenced your dance moves on stage?

Wanda Dee: Eric, starting off as a dancer, has always taught me that “a good dancer does something to the music, but a great dancer lets the music do something to them”! I feel my music… I feel my audience… I feel my dancers… I feel my partner… up there on that stage; and so no two shows are alike when it comes to me. I have a lot of friends and family who will be in that audience too and I’m sure I’ll feel them too; and that’s the kind of positive love energy that drives me; for at the end of the day, seeing is not believing, feeling is!

Pump it up Magazine: THE KLF left an indelible mark on the dance music world, but what do you think your legacy truly is, and how does it still make waves today?

Wanda Dee: THE KLF producers Jim Cauty & Bill Drummond were ahead of their time, which is why the music still holds its own today! However, The KLF was just a footnote in my entire story and career progression; as long before I was an EDM Empress,

I was and remain Hip Hop’s 1st Female DJ, 1st Female Rapper to score platinum (1986 “Blue Eyes”), Hip Hop’s 1st glamorous Female Rapper Hip-Hop’s Leading Ladies 🎤 Need To Know, 1st Female DJ depicted in a motion picture (“Beat Street“), 1st Female DJ to tour globally (1984), 1st Female DJ / Rapper / Singer to tour Russia (1991) and a plethora of other ‘firsts’ that are far too extensive to list at this time. So if you can’t name another pioneering, platinum selling (35 million records sold & counting) female DJ turned Rapper turned (multi-lingual) Singer in the recording industry with the receipts to prove it, then it’s safe to say that my legacy is intact… and it’s still being written.

Pump it up Magazine: Tour life is never short of surprises. What’s the craziest thing that’s ever happened to you on the road? We’re ready for the wild ride!

Wanda Dee: Road dogs… gypsy’s… globe trotters… or whatever you want to call us; are a very rare breed of seasoned disciplined people. Touring requires inescapable demands, dogma, devotion, determination and divinity; especially as Eric & I are lifelong non-drinkers, non-smokers & non-drug users! I can’t tell you the ‘craziest’ things that have happened to us, or nobody will buy my book, but I will say that in our regard the ‘sex, hugs & rock-n-roll’ has been nothing short of supernatural! LOL! Oh yeah, Eric and I have fueled with the best of em, some famous and some completely unknown to the public, but all biblically known by us and all oh so beautiful! And we make no apologies about it; after all, what we eat, won’t make you fat! LMAO!

At the end of the day, if the world spent more time making love instead of making war, each day, we’d all wake up in passionate paradise! Now, picture that!

But for now, the closest you’ll get to that state of euphoria will be when you’re in the audience at any one of my live shows! Saturday May 11th Los Angeles and surrounding areas, come down to PLANET HOUSE and let it all hang out!!!