Before we start, there are a few things you should know about the rap artist Eve.

She describes herself as a “pit bull in a skirt”. Her former stage name was Eve Of Destruction. She has a pair of dog paws tattooed onto her chest. This is an old tattoo, but a prophetic one. At just 22, she has clawed her way to the top, fighting through pressurised auditions to become the only female member of the ard-as-nine-inch-nails, platinum-disc-carrying crew, Ruff Ryders. As a solo artist, she has sold over two million records worldwide.

Now a confession. Meeting her is a somewhat scary prospect. The pictures on her second solo album, Scorpion, have been perused. The two solo records have been listened to, with particular emphasis paid to the lyrical content. The old interviews have been read and reread. She looks mean. Sometimes, when she doesn’t like somebody, she sounds mean.