Over the course of the past four years, millions across the globe have become familiar with former Danity Kane member Wanita ‘D Woods’ Woodgette. Combining immense talent with an upfront and stylish personality, Woods was a fan favorite on the hit MTV series ‘Making The Band 3’, as her progression and involvement with the band was on full display on a weekly basis.

While some looking on the outside in may speculate that Woods was blessed with a once in a lifetime opportunity with her involvement on the show, the Georgia native insists it was something that she had always been ready for. In getting to know Woods further it is undeniable that performing is something that was always a huge part of her life, regardless of her involvement with Making The Band and Danity Kane.

Being a part of Danity Kane opened up a lot of doors for Woods but she has since moved on from the group as of September of last year and has been pursuing numerous projects in that time. Woods is a key figure to the group, The Girls Club, along with Shanell and Mika Means, and also has visions of working on solo projects as well as furthering her interests towards television and film. It’s evident in the upbeat tone in her voice that Woods looks at her time with Danity Kane as a blessing and a learning lesson as opposed to a missed opportunity.

Woods recently sat down with 24 Hour Hip Hop and discussed many facets of her life. From her early childhood in the Atlanta area, to her time on Making The Band, to her goals for the future, Woods spoke candidly and passionately about her life and times. Regardless of the situation, it’s extremely obvious that she will never shy away from being the person who made her into what she is today. In her own words, these are the thoughts of D Woods…


 
In My Blood…
“I think music was ingrained in my DNA. I have been performing since the age of three and it has always just been in my blood. I never saw myself doing anything different than performing. You can even ask my mother, because she would always have to run upstairs and have to stop us from dancing or performing in front of the mirror. I’ve always just known that this is what I wanted to do. Music was like a bug to me and once you get that bug it just grows from there, like a snowball effect.”
 
Developing a Love…
“I was also into dancing and went to dance school at an early age but of course you can’t have dance without music so that only helped me develop my love for music. I really had to decide what type of music I wanted to dance to do. I started writing my own songs and really had the urge to DJ when I was about seven. One of my best friend’s father was a DJ and we used to always dance to his music whenever he was doing his mix tapes. Everything just spiraled from there and I was doing musical theatre at one point. My first studio recording experience was when I moved to Atlanta around the age of 14. There was just so much going on in Atlanta at the time and I went to Performing Arts High School. I don’t even know who I would be if I didn’t have the arts in my life.”
 
Something that was Chosen…
“The beginning of my experience with Danity Kane was very interesting. Looking back it is interesting how the cards have lined up. It was definitely something that was chosen for me. There were certain opportunities and additions that I have done in the past that I really wanted but still didn’t end up getting for some reason. I feel like I tried my hardest and to get rejected is a bad feeling. Going into that situation I had so much audition experience that I just said to myself that I was going to go out there and show who I was and just how dope I was. I know that it didn’t matter if I got chosen because it wasn’t up to me. I just wanted to know that within my power I was able to go to the audition and just show my ass, so to say.”
 
The Audition Process…
“At the time I was a dancer on the road for the ‘How the West Was Won’ Tour featuring Snoop Dogg and The Game. My tour manager asked where I wanted to go after the last tour date and I told him I wanted to go to Detroit because I knew that’s where the Making The Band auditions where being held. It’s funny that they cut me during that first audition. They didn’t call my name and it didn’t bother me too much and I went on to other things and got ready to catch my next flight. I was down in the lobby waiting for my ride to the airport when one of the production people called my phone and kept asking where I was at. They told me they were starting the dance production. I told them that they had cut me but then they apologized and said it was their mistake and kept urging me to come back. I came back to the room and I just said I was going to do me and I think having that attitude it what really made me stand out in the competition.”
 
Being Yourself…
“I think sometimes when you are trying too hard to please somebody you aren’t really being yourself. My main strength is that I have always been myself. I would just always try my best during the elimination battles and I didn’t worry too much and instead just did what I knew I was capable of. Whenever Puff would match up two girls against each other in a dancing battle I would say to myself ‘I hope this other girl knows some moves because I’m about to do some tricks’. I just had the urge to just go out and try my best and the audition experience was cool for me.”
 
Always Ready…
“I don’t think there can ever be a moment where I stop and realize that I’m not at home anymore and that what I am doing is real, because I have been doing this since I was three years old. It has just been different levels of experience along the way. Even before I joined on Making The Band I had already traveled the world performing. I had done theatre in South Africa and Holland, I was part of a professional dance company and I’ve danced on tours with other professional artists. I think I was always ready for it and I had been through the things that prepared me for it. There were so many things that polished me and I learned so much from other artists and from interacting with the crowd.”
 
Standing Ovation…
“The first time that I had the crowd really scream for me was at the end of the competition season on the show. They threw us a curveball and put us into two groups and told us that we had to perform as the opening act for the Backstreet Boys. That was in front of an audience of about 10,000 people and whoever had the biggest reaction from the crowd would win the competition. That was the first time I had received a standing ovation from a crowd of that size just for my performance alone. I knew I was ready for something like that but it really hit me that we were ready for something big at that moment. Those people didn’t know me from Adam and they didn’t know the song we were singing yet they still gave us a standing ovation and that was one of the best experiences I had throughout the whole Making The Band process.”
 
Achieving a Vision…
“I was able to achieve a lot of goals that I set out for myself long before I came into the show. Sometimes you know when you set a goal for yourself or you write it down but it never comes around. I know that I had always been spiritual and always hoped for some kind of great vision. Sometimes you make a request in your prayers and it’s like you almost forget about it. Then when something happens you have to think back and you realize that you had already asked for that wish. It happened for me. I remember when somebody asked me a long time ago where I saw myself in five years and I said that I wanted to be a household name. I knew that meant that I had to do a lot in order to get to that point but literally that’s where I am today. Not every household might recognize my name but a whole lot can identify with me. Even people in different countries are familiar with what I was a part of and it makes me realize that I achieved part of what I set out to do.”
 
Running Together…
“In a way I used my sixth sense to shine light on to my close friends and give them somewhat of a preview of what we are capable of doing in the future. Through the success of Danity Kane I am able to speak about a lot of things and branch out into a lot of other areas. Mika Means is a close friend and she is signed to Motown Universal. Shanell is on tour with Lil’ Wayne and people are starting to hear about her and how dope she is. People know that we all run together and that I had spoke about them in a lot of my interviews. I am glad to be able to help like that.”
 
Girls Club…
“The idea for the Girls Club was born in the living room of Shanell. We had been working together for a long time. Mika Means, Shanell, and I all performed in this theatre in Atlanta and there were a lot of very talented people around us. That is where we all saw each other grow and we found our image and our individuality. We always supported each other and when it came down to us all pursuing a music career we figured we should all help each other instead of going off into the world by ourselves. Instead of worrying about people who don’t know us from Adam, we realized we had been knowing each other since we were teenagers and we all knew where we came from. We came up with this concept that we were all going to go to the studio together, write together, and perform together. That’s where the Girls Club came from.”
 
Preparing for the Next Season…
“Everything is a stepping stone and everything comes into your life for a reason and a season. It’s all to only get you prepared for the next season. Since September I have been really defining where I am going to go next and I have been developing a lot of new music, both for myself and collaborating with the Girls Club. There are other artists I have been working with. I can’t say exactly who it is because people will just have to wait and see. I have to keep a lot of things a secret until the time is right. I’ve been in the studio a lot and also focusing on film and television projects, from producing to getting on stage and even in the director’s chair.”
 
Playing the Role of Mentor…
“I would tell any young females trying to break into this industry to just keep doing their thing. Don’t let anybody tell you that you can’t do it. I look at the Girls Club as somewhat of a sorority in the music business and we have a charity based project called Project Girls Club where we will be developing projects to encourage and give opportunities, education, and instruction in the world of performing arts and entertainment industry. I hope to be able to mentor a lot of new girls coming into the game because there are so many traps that you could easily fall into while just trying to make it. We want to give them an alternative path to follow and that’s another big focus of mine.”


 
 
For more information on D Woods please visit her at www.myspace.com/yagirldwoods and also visit the newly renovated www.missdwoods.com website where you can get pictures, videos, and write ups.

Questions for Chris can be sent to Trimond@aol.com
 
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