Don’t believe everything you hear, or read, about Chanel West Coast (except this article, of course). The entertainer — who is well known from Rob Dyrdek’s MTV shows Fantasy Factory and Ridiculousness — and her former association with Lil’ Wayne and his YMCMB crew, has heard, and seen, her fair share said about her. As with many in the celebrity realm, not all of it’s been true.

An LA Weekly article from 2014 comparing her to Iggy Azalea particularly grates on her. She describes it as, “One of the most false articles you can ever read about me,” adding, “that girl who wrote that is psycho. I’d never done an interview where somebody completely twisted my words, and made shit up, and that’s one of those articles.”

Chalk it up to being one of the pitfalls of fame, as the limelight is currently shining on Chanel West Coast.

Having recently released “The Life,” a single that features Rockie Fresh, and with a single featuring Apl.de.ap from Black Eyed Peas, as well as a new EP on the way, Chanel is in the midst of an impressive summer. She’s also been in the studio with will.i.am, as well as producer Rich Skillz, and is gearing up to be a judge on will.i.am’s new music show on Apple TV.

Her ascent in the music world began on this very site, as Chanel credits Myspace as being her initial launching pad to success. She remembers, “One of my tricks was I went through all the top artists, and then I added all of the top artists’ top friends.”

This wasn’t just a simplistic friend collecting scheme for Chanel; it was a legit networking technique for the then teenage artist. “I figured they might have their manager, or their producer, or somebody who works with them in their top friends, so I might as well collect all their connections.”

The hunch paid off, as Chanel notes, “That’s actually how I met a ton of producers, and a lot of people, and got my way into the music industry.”

While Myspace may have been her launching pad, her history in music actually started at a much younger age. The daughter of a DJ, her crate digging began practically as soon as she could walk. With that in mind, we caught up with Chanel to find out which records, be they albums or singles, have affected and helped shape her life and career.

No Doubt – 'Tragic Kingdom'

Idolizing Gwen Stefani from a young age, Tragic Kingdom was the first album Chanel ever bought.

“My mom gave me 20 bucks and took me to Tower Records, and she was like, ‘OK, go in and pick out whatever you want.’ I was so excited because I really wanted the No Doubt CD.”

Chanel adds, “Me and my friends, we even made a dance for the talent show to ‘Just A Girl.’”

Spice Girls – “Spice Up Your Life”

A consistent winner of her school’s talent shows, it was a group performance of the Spice Girls’ “Spice Up Your Life” that cemented Chanel’s desire to be a performer. Playing the role of Ginger Spice, thanks to some spray-in hair color, she remembers that night as a turning point in her life.

“When I did Spice Girls for the talent show, we killed that dance. I think we got like a standing ovation in the auditorium. It was hilarious. I just knew in that moment, as a little girl, looking at the crowd being so happy for us, I knew that was what I wanted to do, and that’s what made me want to keep performing, and being in front of people doing what I love.”

Although she still hadn’t met the real Ginger Spice, Chanel met Mel B, aka Scary Spice, and told her this story. “She thought it was hilarious,” Chanel says with a laugh. “She thought it was like the cutest thing. She was like, ‘Oh my God, you’re making me feel old!’”

2Pac – “How Do U Want It”

Although she was a bit too young at the time to understand all of the lyrics, “How Do U Want It” was the song that sparked Chanel’s interest in rapping. “I wrote down the lyrics so I could rap along to it,” she remembers, “this was before there was lyrics.com, and all that stuff ... as I was writing the lyrics I was like, ‘Oh, this is like poetry over a beat. I can do this,’ because I wrote poems when I was little. That’s how I got into rap music. Literally, that song is what got me into rapping.”

The Beach Boys – 'Endless Summer'

Now approaching her 28th birthday (which is on September 1), Chanel has been connecting with some of the classic albums from her father’s collection. She notes, “Now that he’s kind of retired as a DJ, I’m starting to steal records from him. I’m like, ‘Dad, I need that!’ I’ve been going in, and slowly but surely bringing back a few each time.”

After her latest visit, she came home with The Beach Boys’ Endless Summer. “I love that one,” she raves. “Did you see the movie about Brian Wilson (Love & Mercy)? You have to watch it. It’s so inspiring ... People don’t realize it, but he wrote everything. He was like the orchestrator of the whole band, but he was also really crazy. It’s a good movie.”

Raise your hand if you expected this article to end with a Brian Wilson mention. Something tells us, as her career continues, that won’t be the last surprise from Chanel West Coast.