Hello, everyone, it's your girl Cheeky's and you've reached the voicemail box for Dear Cheeky's. I'm here to give you advice on anything and everything you need help with. Maybe you're going through a breakup, maybe you're having issues with your family, or maybe you need help figuring out how to balance your checkbook or how to start a business,
whatever the cases, I want to hear from you. Remember these are my thoughts and opinions, and if you're suffering from an issue or hardship, you should seek help from a qualified professional. All right, now go ahead and leave your question at the sound of the beat.
Hi, Cheeky's. So, I've heard you talk about how growing up you had trouble reading and how you would get extra help in school, how they would pull you out of class so you could go to an extra English class. My question to you is when do you feel like you started to get good at reading? And what did you do to get good at reading? And another question, do you feel comfortable reading out loud? If you do, now, what did you do to feel comfortable to read out loud? You get me?
I like your question? Okay, so yes, all of elementary school middle school, I would pray, my hands would sweat, do not call me to read up in front of this class. I think it had to do with like my childhood, and you know, I was going through like the whole sexual abuse thing, and I was a big secret and at home, I had to be responsible for my siblings. So school was never like a huge priority in my life. It was just do what you gotta
do to get by. It wasn't like something that was super like pushed on us, I guess, but I was expected to get good grades. So anyways, I think that all had to do with it, and I just didn't. I mean, my first language, like I said, was Spanish, so I had to learn how to speak English later on in my life and learn how to read it and all that good stuff. But I think practice makes
perfect and that's what I started doing. I want to say that my reading started getting better for sure in high school because there's a lot of reading that you got to do, and I would just read more, and I started falling in love with reading. And I always buy books and I try to like keep them nearby to remind me, Okay, I got to read. Even now, I don't have as much time as i'd like to read. But I think for sure that's where this whole thing practice makes perfect applies. And even with me. Now I
can read publicly. I like reading publicly. I have to do it for like award shows, like when I'm presenting an award or performance. Now I don't get as nervous. But again, it took a while to get there. It just takes time and practice and doing it more and more. And the more that you do it, the more you feel comfortable with it and it becomes more of like something familiar. But if you do it once in a while, or you don't take that risk of doing it, then
you're not going to get better at it. So that's kind of what I did. And I was okay with messing up because there was times in the beginning of my career that I had to do it and I would stumble on a word or I couldn't pronounce a word, mainly in Spanish, and I was like, okay, I'm like, I want to learn this. Like I'm very visual, so in order for me to pronounce a word, I need to see it. And then I'm like, okay, I'll never forget it. I have a photogenetic memory. So that's kind
of what I've done it all. It all depends what works for you. Writing things down have also helped me a lot, like actually writing things with a pencil, not just on the phone, on a notepad, so I can remember things. So but yes, as far as reading, you just got to do more of it. Take the time to say, I'm going to read every day for at least an hour, thirty minutes, at least thirty minutes or a chap. I don't know. But the more you do it, the better you will get. And that's what happened for me.
So thank you for your question. Okay, guys, next question comes from another anonymous listener.
Let's see Hi Cheeky's first. I want to say that I love you. I love this podcast, I love how genuine you are, and I love that you are a cancer because I am also a cancer. I wanted to ask for advice because I feel like I'm going through something really, really tough that I've ever gone through in my life. I know one of your podcasts you had mentioned that you had had an abortion. I also had one not so long ago, and I just wanted to
ask you, how did you overcome this? How do you get over the feeling of guilt, the feeling of what if? I feel like that this was something that I never thought I would have done in a million years, but unfortunately it had to be done because I just wasn't It just wasn't the right time. I'm growing on my career, and I feel so bad because it's like I felt selfish putting myself first, but I need deep down inside,
I just wasn't ready. So yeah, I just wanted to ask you, how did you overcome this and how do you feel now after so many years?
Oh?
Okay, I first of all, I understand you. I know what you're feeling, and it's all normal. It's normal because you have a heart because you didn't do it. Obviously it's willingly, but it's not something like you said. It's not something that I was expecting and I wanted to do. But this is also going to show you to be more responsible with your body and make better choices, and that's a lesson that I feel you need to learn
from this. But I am pro choice. I feel that no one that doesn't want to have a child should have a baby, because that's a forever thing. A child. Yes, is a blessing, but if the time isn't right for you, then the time is it right for you because no one else is going to come in and take care of that child, and you have priorities right now. And I think that if that's your choice, I get it.
For a long time, I also felt very very guilty, especially because I come from a very Christian family, and it was a secret that I was holding in because I'm like, they're going to judge me, I'm going to go to hell. I was very afraid of my mom. I didn't want to disappoint her. I wasn't ready. I was so young. I was so young, you know. And I felt very guilty because it was something that I
was holding in. But I think that when you learn to be honest and transparent about your truth, it doesn't have to be with the world like I did it. But and you just know, Okay, I know God will bless me with the baby when the time is right, and that's that. Like, I think that that definitely starts helping the healing. Of course, therapy, you guys know, I'm huge on that. That help me a lot understanding certain things.
But I think that you need to not think of everyone else, because I think that's where the guilt starts coming. It's like what are they going to think and this and that or what society says in the world that we're living in right now. But this is a very personal choice and it's going to take some time. But you need to be compassionate with yourself and give yourself a hug, like literally hug yourself. I started doing that not so long ago, like hugging myself and it feels
so good, and say it's gonna be okay. Because if you bring a child into this world and you're not ready, it's really a disservice to the child. I feel, you know, and you grow resentment towards them, and if you're not ready, like it's just a lot of things. But I understand you're not alone. I'm here for you. I don't think you're a bad person for doing it. I really don't. Don't feel selfish. This is your time to be selfish. You want to focus on your career, but also learn
from this. I don't believe in use abortion as a form of birth control. That for me is a no no. So learn from this, take care of yourself, get on birth control, use a condom, like, learn from this so you don't have to go through it anymore. And I think you need to just forgive yourself, write it on a piece of paper, burn it, or throw it into the ocean, like something where you're just letting go and you're like, Okay, I'm letting bygones be bygones. I'm gonna
let it go. I'm gonna learn from this, I'm gonna grow from this, And you have to just let it go. You can't carry that with you because it's going to cause a lot of issues emotionally and it's not gonna allow you to really embrace and get everything that you are looking forward to in your career, you know. So yes, it's gonna be Okay. I'm sending you a big hug, and yes, look online there's a lot of emotional support. Okay, thank you so much for your question. Okay, guys, our
next question comes from it's our last question. It comes from Issa Hi Tikis.
I was just scrolling on Instagram and I saw your post about performing at NOT in Mexico City, and I just want to tell you how proud I am and how beautiful you look and the stage presence that you have and I'm just blown away and it almost brought tears to my eyes because I know how much this means to you, but for us it also means a
lot because you're such a Chinoana like you are. You do everything that you set your mind to, and you're so strong and you are so powerful and you've been through a lot, and I just want to say, I just want to say, don't ever stop doing it, because you inspire women like me, Mikanas, Latinas, just women in general, to keep doing it and to always be graceful and unique and strong and everything that you are you embody
it in such a beautiful way. And yeah, I just wanted to tell you that, thank you so much for being who you are. And I'm sending you so much love from Atlanta, Georgia. By Tikis. Thank you.
Oh you said You're gonna make me cry. I felt so much honesty, so much love in your voice, and I'm so like, thank you, thank you. I still can't believe, guys, that there are people in the world that love me like this, that wish me well, like they not even know me on a personal level, but they feel my heart through my music or like this particular show Ali Tooia was a huge, huge moment in my career, and
oh my gosh, I can't even explain to you. I was a different person, so so on that stage that night, I feel like it was definitely the best performance that I've ever done. And I'm very proud of myself because that's how I want every performance to be, Like I want every album to be better in the last I have my own competition, so I'm always trying to better it and be the best version of myself, especially as an artist. So thank you so much. I got a
lot of great compliments and I feel very proud. It wasn't sold out, guys, it was not sold out, but I feel like it was full. I felt like it was almost sold out. It was. There was a good amount of people there. I don't know the count yet, but when I walked out on that stage, oh my gosh, and I saw the amount of people that were there. Because I didn't think because of what they were saying, like, oh, the tickets are and selling blah blah blah, I just
I stopped asking after a while. I'm like, I don't want to know how many tickets are being sold. I just want to go there and focus and give a good show. And I know that those people that are there are meant to be there, and they're going to spread the word and people are going to know that I'm a real artist, that I'm a true artist that mentree. So the fact that you said that means a lot, Like I put my heart and soul, not only me, my entire team into the show, and I know a
lot of them. A lot of us were depleted after that show because it was just such a hype and such like a build up to this big championship performance that we were all all of us were very depleted because it took a lot to get, you know, to get it done, but we got it done. And I'm very proud and this comment and this for you to take the moment to leave me this question is just you have no idea like it, and then you said
it with so much love, and I appreciate it. Like you guys told me, I inspire you, and you guys inspire me because it's like, oh my gosh, I gotta keep going. I got this. We're doing good. And for me, it was in a way, to be honest, secretly, it was a big like not f you, because that's not what it was. It was more of like, look for all those people that didn't believe in me, because I
don't want to focus on those people too much. But it was nice to be like, you guys didn't believe in me, and we're talking so much crap, and we went there, We did what we had to do. We did it good. People are happy. It went freaking viral on TikTok, and I'm just like, oh, I want people to see I know what I'm doing on a stage, you know what I mean? Thank God, and little by litt I'm getting better. So thank you. Anyways, long ass response, but I really really appreciate you taking the time and
thank you. Thank you so much, Thank you all. Thank you guys for your questions. I really enjoy listening to you guys and helping you in every way, in any way that I can from the bottom of my heart. There are times that I'm like stuck and I'm like I don't know what to say, But most of the time I feel like I have a pretty good advice. So if you guys have a question for me, please It could be about finances, about love, about school, about anything,
really anything. I am willing to answer it, So leave your question at speakpipe dot com, slash Cheeks and Chill podcast e los Qiro Mucho, and I will I'll be here. I'll be here waiting for you on the next episode of Dear Cheeks. This is a production of iHeartRadio and
the Microdura podcast Network. Follow us on Instagram at Michael Dura Podcasts and follow me Cheeky's That's c h i q u i s. For more podcasts from iHeart, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite podcast, and check us out on YouTube.