A female rap artist from the city of Riverside, California, Big Lady K first got into the music scene through the biggest hip-hop promoter of the Inland Empire (Riverside/San Bernardino-area) Cliff Richey Jr. Big Lady K used Richey's help to get her name heard around town through shows, promotions, and other events. Her exposure would soon land her a deal with Priority Records making her the Inland Empire's first artist (along with Rodney O's deal on Atlantic Records) to get signed to a major hip-hop label (and became Priority Record's first female artist to get signed on the label). At around this same time Lady K was attending Riverside's La Sierra High School along with future hip-hop artist Robert ODM Guiterrez. While in high school she introduced Guiterrez to Richey who then teamed him up with two local Riverside hip-hop artists and would soon form Lighter Shade of Brown in 1990.