Sexy and on her grind, model Dria Emanuel sits down with HHNLive.com to talk about why she tries to stay away from music videos, her best and worst modelling experiences, where her nickname comes from and much more.

Dria on models: "...the models who are successful and booking consecutive jobs are far from dumb and know that sleeping with the 'guy in the limelight' will not get you far."

HHNLive.com: Where were you born?

Dria Emanuel: I was born in Miami, FL and the Bronx, NY is the where I rep. However, I live in Manhattan now and frequently travel to L.A & Atlanta very often. I'm a city girl by nature...But it's not where your from, it's where u at!! LoL.

HHNLive.com: How did you get into modelling?

Dria: Ummm, a man by the name of J. Nasdaq, who at the time was an agent/casting director discovered me on the streets of downtown Manhattan (it was one of my first times ever going to a club, that just so happened to be an industry party). He was the same guy who discovered Julexa...2006's face of Apple Bottom & PZI Jeans. Once he seen me, he convinced me that he was legit and really wanted to work with me. He then got me in front of the camera for a test shoot and needless to say I fell in love with the camera, and then took my career into my own hands, so I could do it my way. I began to network, and get my 'weight' up in the industry. And basically, shit is history in the making as we speak.

HHNLive.com: Have you appeared in any music videos? And if so, which ones?

Dria: I only have done one video in my career. My first few weeks in the game I was offered a small role in J.R Writer's 'Grill Em'. I took it for what it was. It was an experience. All I had to do was make my Grill Em face but I try to stay away from videos nowadays, unlike many models trying to break thru. I try to shy away from anything that might type cast me or tarnish my image. I'm not trying to be the ultimate video girl or the 'it girl' in men magazines for a year aka a fad. I am trying to build an empire here.. And I wont settle for anything less.



HHNLive.com: What do you think are some common mistakes men make when approaching pretty women?

Dria: I believe the most common mistake is a man thinking to himself...well what can I say that she hasn't heard before? When I feel, men should look at it as what should I NOT say. To me, the best approach is to greet the female with a compliment to make her smile, leave her a business card and go about your ways. That way, you leave some mystery which will always make a girl think twice. It also lets a woman know that you are about your business.

HHNLive.com: You're based out of New York City. Is that purely for career reasons or do you have other attachments to NYC? What do you enjoy about the city?

Dria: NYC is home. Bronx is my town, the town I know best, as well as where all my family resides. However, I now live in downtown Manhattan, and that move was purely for business purposes. When you see the BILLIONS of dollars generated in the city, it inspires you to go out there and get it yourself. And I'm not talking about 100 grand brown paper bag money LoL. I'm talking about 10-15 million corporate/Wall Street money!! Aside from the inspiring millionaires in the city I love the plethora of people from different walks of life, and the endless amount of opportunities.

HHNLive.com: Have any rappers/actors ever tried to step to you? And if so, who had the best and worst game?

Dria: OOOoohh man.. u are trying to get me to dry snitch eh?? LoL. Well, not happening. But I can say this, yes people in this industry have approached me before-- rappers, athletes, etc. However, there isn't too much game involved. They think all they have to do is approach you and you owe them play because of who they are. Needless to say, I am not impressed by superficial sh** i.e-- fame & money. I am looking to build my own empire and make my own money and I refuse to screw up my rep in anyway by people saying I had to dabble in dirty politics to get to the top.

HHNLive.com: Tell us about your nickname "Lexx Bubble." Who gave it to you? How did it come about?

Dria: well basically my real name is aLEXanDRIA. While family called me 'Alex' everyone on the streets always called me LeXx, which eventually turned into LeXx Diamond (from Raekwon's LP-- The Lex Diamond story) and the fellaz just had fun with it and called me 'LeXx BuBBLe' 4 obvious reasons ::ahem BUBBLE BOOTY:: LoLz. So it kind of just stuck.. However as I grew older, people would say that the name "LeXx" could come off as a stripper alias or even masculine at times. And getting into show business, I wanted to be taken very seriously because I have a blueprint to one day build an empire and becoming a mogul. Modeling to me was a form of expression that brought out an alter ego...the feminine, sex kitten side of me, which is how DRIA (the last 4 letters of my name) came about as well.

HHNLive.com: Did I also read you're involved in real estate? That's quite a switch from modelling. How did that come about?

Dria: Ahhh yes. Real Estate. After being discovered and getting a feel for the industry and what is was about I knew that I had to put time aside to make sure I had a back up plan once I had to drop out of St. John's University due to financial discrepancies. So I basically put modeling to the side for a few, so I could attend real estate school and attain a NY state license. Which I have now accomplished. I would like to one day upgrade to a broker's license, but maybe later on down the line...once I can get out there on the market, get more familiar with the hustle and give it my all. I currently travel a lot.

HHNLive.com: Do most models get along? Or is there a lot of hate?

Dria: Well for the most part I get along with a lot of the models I work with. I've actually had 1 or 2 bad experiences myself, however nothing compared to things I've witnessed.

HHNLive.com: What is the single biggest conception about models?

Dria: I'd definitely have to say the stigmas!!! The biggest stigma is that we are dumb or just plain groupies. While there are girls who do fit these stigmas, for the most part, the models who are successful and booking consecutive jobs are far from dumb and know that sleeping with the 'guy in the limelight' will not get you far. We are actually business women who know that your reputation has a lot to do with what can make or break your career.



HHNLive.com: What has been your best and worst modelling experience?

Dria: The best I would say was my first time working the magic show in Vegas. I was 20 years old and never even been to the west coast!! Let alone the wild yet fabulous city of Las Vegas. I had so much fun, while working ::ahem aka making money LoL:: & networking at the same time.

I'd say the worst modeling experience was one of my first video castings. The girls were so catty, and there were more than a few altercations between a few models. One girl even made it clear that she was asked to take off her clothing during her audition, and once she refused, they sent her away. But once my audition came around, the director tried to persuade me into sleeping with him insisting he was a CEO of a major record label, etc. He immediately implied if I wanted the part I would have 'sleep with him' etc. Needless to say, he got no play and I didn't book that video. I couldn't have cared less however. I knew from that day, that it was not my scene. And I became determined to build on branding my name into something viable, that way I can possibly one day skip the whole process of the underground video castings.



HHNLive.com: Are you single?

Dria: Ummm...I definitely have a special somebody. And just for the record, he is in no way connected to the entertainment biz. I like to keep my private life separate from my work.

HHNLive.com: What is your ultimate career goal?

Dria: Wow. I have so many plans for my future. But my ultimate career goal would be building a profitable empire. I would definitely like to become accomplished in the modeling game thru print work and film and the next step after that would be booking major movie roles. But aside from that, I want to capitalize on my real estate knowledge and possibly start my own corporation. I have plans to design my own clothing line one day, along with perfume, designer bags, and even my own line of jewellery...all things I very much have a passion for. And the last thing I would like to achieve on the other side of the spectrum would be writing and publishing my very own non-fiction novel one day that is capable of best seller's status.

HHNLive.com: Where should we look for you in the near future?

Dria: Well, I have my website launch MissDria.com sponsored by GSEA.net for top of 2008, so look out for that. And thanks to GSEA, I have press lined up to promote my site. So look out for me in major national publications as well. I plan to get into a lot of film, and maybe just maybe a few videos if the role is right (mostly based around acting and not seductive butt shaking)

HHNLive.com: Do you have any final message for the HHNLive.com readers?

Dria: Well first off, I would just like to thank HHNLive.com for giving me the opportunity and the exposure. I would like all the readers from HHNLive.com to know that I appreciate you taking out the time to learn a little bit about me. Thanks for support. Much Love :)

"Success is a journey, not a destination."