INTERVIURI

[Deena]

Rob Swift: American Me
By Kevin Polowy



With the recent re-release of his first solo album, Soulful Fruit, it??€�s apparent that Rob Swift has made a name for himself based on technical skills. He??€�s long been the one to watch, and a leading advocate in the instrumentation of the turntable. But late in 2005, Swift's released War Games, a jarring narrative on the besieged state of the union and the intangible War on Terror that has put heads everywhere on color-coded alert. With the help of his clever hands, Rob Swift??€�s mind and heart are coming through.

To look further into this analysis, AHH linked up with Rob Swift in his home studio. After a public departure from the X-Ecutionerz, Rob touches on a tumultuous time in his life, his early mentors, and gives a microscopic look at the album and its blunt inspiration. Rob Swift is deep like his crates, folks.

AHH: In the liner notes you talk about first and foremost being inspired by the events of 9/11. So would you say War Games is four years in the making?

Rob Swift: I would say War Games was three years in the making in my mind, and one year physically actually recording everything. But it took me a while to actually get into the right frame of mind and actually start working. After 9/11, I kinda fell into a depression where I wasn??€�t feeling creative. I would go to the turntables to practice, or I would go to the MPC and try to make a beat, and I??€�d question it, like what was the importance of it? Why was I doing this? And I would find myself glued to the TV more and I??€�d find myself more involved with what was going on in the world and how our government was dealing with all that s**t. I cancelled a whole bunch of shows. I didn??€�t wanna fly nowhere. I didn??€�t feel creative. I was just on my couch, all day. [Eventually,] I would sit down in front of the TV, jot down ideas, jot down little things that I would hear Bush say that I felt I could turn into a song and gradually the album started to take shape. I started out with one song, then one song became two songs, then next thing it??€�s three, four songs.

AHH: How do you think the War on Terror and police brutality and poverty, three resonating themes in your album, are interrelated?

Rob Swift: War Games for me, is symbolic of all these things that are happening: poverty, police brutality and then obviously terrorism and war and s**t like that. So being that all of these things interconnect, I felt I needed to address it all. I don??€�t just want to do another album scratching, showing off how good I am. I don??€�t just wanna do another album that??€�s like, ??€?Aw yeah the turntable??€�s a musical instrument.??€? So I thought this would be ill if I figured out a way to get people to think and provoke some type of thought in regards to what??€�s going on, cause its affecting everybody.

AHH: Yeah and the messages aren??€�t as direct either, sometimes they??€�re even ambiguous. When I first heard it, hearing Bush opening a track with one his rallying calls, I questioned your stance on him. It really has to sink in and be taken as a whole.

Rob Swift: I??€�m trying to be less opinionated and more down the middle about stuff. I??€�m trying to be more of a reporter, and I??€�m trying to basically open the door or open a window to things that are going on that aren??€�t talked about as much in my world, the DJ world or music in general. So for example on ??€?Vietnam,??€? I cut Bush saying ??€?War is what they wanted, and war is what they got." I want people to see that that??€�s how he felt, and that??€�s why he went to war. But in the same song, I??€�m also cutting ??€?The war in Iraq is similar/ Is similar to Vietnam/ You better get the riot gear ready.??€? Like that to me, is the soldier's point of view. So I??€�m trying to showcase the soldier??€�s point of view, and Bush??€�s point of view. I??€�m trying to inject less of my opinion and more of the opinions that I see thrown at me from TV.

AHH: Do you consider yourself a political person?

Rob Swift: I??€�ve been influenced by Public Enemy and KRS-One since day one. Over the years people, for some reason, haven??€�t paid as much attention to that side of me as they have the side that says I??€�m trying to be like Coltrane, I??€�m trying to be like Miles. That seems to be the side of Rob Swift that people want to pay attention to. But songs like ??€?Black Music,??€? songs like ??€?The Program,??€? songs like ??€?The Ghetto," for some reason go over people??€�s heads.

AHH: Tell me about the picture inside the album, of you holding the gun??€¦

Rob Swift: I think that some of my fans took it like, what??€�s he trying, is trying to be gangsta now? What is this picture? In no way am I saying that I??€�m 50 Cent or I wanna be like M.O.P. and I??€�m this gangsta dude, in no way am I trying to be that. And I think my fans know that. But Malcolm X has been a huge, huge influence on my life since I was like 13, 14 years old. My favorite book is the Autobiography of Malcolm X. His story made me want to learn more about the history of this country, learn more about my heritage. It's what drove me to take Black Studies classes. And again, these are things about me that the fans don??€�t know, ??€?cause when I was an X-ecutioner, it was all about scratching and battling and stuff like that, and they didn??€�t know that there was this side to me. So the picture for me was more paying homage to him.

AHH: But you weren??€�t allowed to use it as your cover album because of label politics?

Rob Swift. I wasn??€�t able to use it as my cover because of the gun.

AHH: Whose judgment is that?

Rob Swift: Well the people that were distributing the album were like, there??€�s no way we??€�re going to distribute an album with you with a gun on the cover. Point blank. So that??€�s why I put it on the next page. But yeah that was me moreso trying to pay homage to KRS even By Any Means Necessary, had the same picture. I was paying homage to KRS and Malcolm. And for me, War Games is like a By Any Means Necessary by KRS. It's like a It Takes a Nation of Millions??€¦ by Public Enemy.

AHH: Large Professor isn't always willing to get into Main Source stuff at shows and yet here you were able to sign him on for a remix of "A Friendly Game of Baseball." Was that tough to convince him?

Rob Swift: Nah it wasn't man. And it's crazy because Large is a legend. And you're right, from what I??€�ve heard from other people, getting him to even just sit down and talk about Main Source, he won't do it. I'm really lucky and thankful that he took the time to come here and knock out the vocals and help me with the track. ??€?Cause my whole thing was, how do I remake the song but stay true to it, and not f**king abuse it? Because I don't wanna change it too much because it's such a classic. So I was like, ??€?Yo Large, if you could bring some of the records you used back then for the track??€???€¦ and he brought all the music, anything I needed for it, he came through. You know, he??€�s been a mentor of mine since I used to DJ for Akinyele.

AHH: And having Akinyele on there, was that a nod to the past, a throwback track?

Rob Swift: Yeah, to me, that's the one song in the scope of the whole album that is less about anything political. It's more like just a dope track. And I just felt that I needed to do one song that helped break some of the seriousness throughout the album. After battling for two years, DJ??€�ing for Akynele was the next huge phase in my career as a DJ. It helped me reach a wider audience and obviously I owe a lot to him for putting me on as his DJ.

AHH: I??€�ve gotta ask you about the X-Ecutionerz. In retrospect, was leaving them the right move?

Rob Swift: Definitely the right move. I feel like I??€�m in a better place creatively now. Personally I feel like I'm in a better place. I just wasn't happy in the group toward the end years of it. It kind of all started around Built From Scratch and by the time we recorded Revolutions, I just knew that I wasn't being true to myself creatively. I felt like we were all being forced to make music that??€¦ like they would tell us, "Alright fellas we need a song for Rock radio, cause your last hit was 'It??€�s Going Down' with Linkin Park, and we need to attack that audience." I noticed that we would argue a lot more about music, about being creative, argue about things that we never argued before about. In a weird way, the success started to divide us, I feel.

AHH: How is your relationship with those guys now?

Rob Swift: Now it's cool. For a couple of months after I left the group, it was pretty non-existent, to be honest with you. Like they wouldn't call me, I wouldn??€�t call them. And naturally, after I left, they had to get their s**t together and they couldn't focus on dealing with me. And I had to get my s**t together, know what I mean? But it's all good now. I see them, we shake hands, we talk, we catch up every now and then. Raida will call me out of the blue or I??€�ll call him. Same thing with Eclipse. When we see each other I don't feel weird at all. And I don??€�t think they do. I don??€�t sense a tension or anything like that. That s**t happens, you know, every relationship goes through its ups and downs, and not all relationships last forever. Marriages end up in divorce sometimes. And you would hope that you could still be cool with the person. We looked past the differences we had and at the end of the day we realized that before all of this shit, we were best friends. So we worked through it all and I??€�m cool with those guys now.

AHH: Do you think you and Akinyele and Large Pro could ever cut a new record together?

Rob Swift: I don't know, because I don't know where Ak is at mentally as an artist. I know where I'm at. But I don't know if we're all necessarily on the same page. For something like that to happen, man, the planets have to be aligned right and all that s**t.

AHH: Going back to War Games once more - say you had two minutes to sit down with the president, what would you say to him?

Rob Swift: F**k, that's a good question. I think, what I would ask him is, does he think his stubbornness -- well, to me its stubbornness, to him it might be resoluteness or whatever -- does he think that that's worth people dying? I would simply ask him that. Because he seems to be of the mind frame that once you make up your mind, then that's what you do. And to a degree I'm that way sometimes. I feel that whether it's the people around him, or whether it's him, it's that he makes a decision, and then just follows through with it without necessarily considering the consequences as much. And I think that people are so scared of change, that they??€�ll settle. And in a weird way I kinda look at my whole situation with the X-Ecutionerz as a comparison, like, as scary as it was to leave the group, I knew that I could deal with whatever was going to be thrown at me. I was confident enough that, I'll figure out a way to pay the bills. I'll figure out a way to readjust to being a solo artist again. I'll bring myself up again and continue on with my career. The fear didn't make me stay, as scary as it was I was willing to face the fear.

[Deena]

Dilated Peoples: Triple Optics
By Ladessa "Willow" Cobb



George Benson, once sang ??€?I knew back then, what I know now/If I understood the what, when, why and how/Now it's clear to me, what I should have done/But hindsight is 20/20 vision.??€? Dilated Peoples on the other hand, have flipped it and with their fourth release titled 20/20. Here, they are using foresight and leaving the past in the past. Evidence and Rakaa had already formed Dilated Peoples after crossing each others??€� paths at various Hip-Hop shows before DJ Babu of the Beat Junkies became the third member of the group.

After dominating the late 90??€�s indie world with such twelve-inch classics as ??€?Work the Angles??€?, Capitol Records came calling. Having only tasted mediocre crossover success since, Dilated Peoples wear the backpacks placed on them by the industry with pride. Admitting this, a laughing Babu says "I'll wear my backpack with pride, preferably Louis Vuitton, I have no problem with that." Another Louis Vuitton Don, Kanye West checked in on the 2004 album??€�s ??€?This Way??€?, but still undershot the response the group probably intended.

Back at it, Babu and Evidence spoke to AHH about the vision behind 20/20. Old topics are revisited, and you??€�ll get some insight into one of the few artists with independent freedom and major backing. Even Barbara Walters is starving for 20/20, read up.

AHH: How you feeling today?

Evidence: I??€�m good. $**t I am great, excited about this new album.

Babu: I am excited [too].

AHH: I can hear it in your voice. The new single, ??€?Back Again??€? is doing quite well. How is the promotion for that going?

Evidence: Just as good.

AHH: As far as 20/20, what can we expect?

Babu: You can expect us to be doing us.

Evidence: We made this album for our true fans.

AHH: Though MTV supported Neighborhood Watch, those true fans you speak of, seemed to reject it??€¦

Babu: Yeah, you??€�re right with that last album we could??€�ve lost a lot of our fans, but our fans are loyal, and they rode it out with us while we tried our hand at something a little different. Our fans feel as though they know us personally, and we respect their opinion and that is what we take to heart.

Evidence: We took a lot of chances with that album, if nothing else it brought us new fans.

AHH: You once said in the past that the first two albums showed where you came from philosophically, and that the new album shows where you come from literally. Can you explain that?

Evidence: We made some pretty bold statements and got political, but this time around we are back to making good f**kin??€� music, and I felt the need to bring the attention back to lyricism.

AHH: It??€�s as if rappers have taken the helm, and MC??€�s are fighting for position. How would you describe the difference between a rapper and an MC?

Evidence: An MC is the master of ceremony or the mic controller. The one who holds down the party second to the DJ; a rapper on the other hand, brings flavor.

AHH: How do you respond to the critics who point out the teeter-tattering Dilated Peoples does between underground and mainstream?

Evidence: You know, half of the time I don??€�t pay attention to the critics. In most cases, they don??€�t know our music, or from which we came. There are still people who don??€�t even know we are from L.A. Because of our sound being similar to the underground sound of the Bay, they think were from there. So if the facts aren??€�t straight; what the hell does their critique mean?

Babu: It can be upsetting at times because some of our new fans that are not familiar with us prior to ??€?This Way??€? may buy, based upon a review and that gets to us at times.

AHH: You all are down with Okay Player; do you interact with a lot of the other artists or people on message boards?

Evidence: Not really, there are some hot acts over there, like ?uestlove and Black Thought - those are my boys. But I haven??€�t been in touch with the people from Okay Player in some time.

AHH: Are you feeling The Boondocks?

Evidence: What??€�s that?

AHH: You??€�ve never seen The Boondocks; the cartoon created from the comic strip?

Evidence: No, I don??€�t get much television time in.

Babu: I have seen it, and I was laughin??€� my ass off, but I am not avid watcher.

AHH: With three creative minds, not to mention artistry with testosterone flowing how have you all withstood the pressure?

Evidence: Understanding my position. I have a dual role of producer and rapper, but most importantly, I understand I??€�m in a group.

AHH: It??€�s been said that you, Joey Chavez and Alchemist function as a unit. With the individual shine that Al has gotten through his resume and solo albums, has it made you step your game up?

Evidence: Hell yeah, he is doing his thing right now, perfecting my skills is a must right now.

AHH: Looking back, what ever happened with that Eminem beef?

Evidence: It??€�s done! I don??€�t talk about it anymore, but I will say this: I didn??€�t have anything to do with it originally, and didn??€�t authorize the money made from it.

AHH: Gotcha. Some say Hip-Hop in its truest form is being choked out by the mainstream; what do you think?

Babu: Hip-Hop as a culture is beautiful, and the music is phenomenal. Things go wrong when you have people who don??€�t understand or live the life, it gets all messed up in their repackaging efforts. To do our part, we??€�ve always maintained creative control at Capitol [Records].

AHH: How have you been able to do so because you all still have the mindset of independents?

Babu: Yeah, something like that. We??€�ve been [at Capitol] longer than some of the employees, and seen some of the executives come and go. We??€�ve been out there finding out for ourselves from day-one and that??€�s what??€�s helped us live up to the expectation and foundation laid. We are probably the only artist sitting in on promo meetings and looking over shoulders. We have been self-managed from the inception. We just hired a management team to ease some of the load. We are firm believers in not letting anyone else project an image of us out to the masses that is not a true representation.

AHH: That said, what happened with the Volvo commercial, that wasn??€�t really you guys, right?

Babu: There??€�s a crazy story behind that situation. Dave Myers who is one of the top directors in the game, he was working on a commercial for Volvo and they wanted to use the song, and have us to in the commercial. We all went back and forth with Volvo and we thought all was fine. Then we get phone calls telling us the commercial was out. Volvo went out and got actors who favored us and went with their own concept. That was crazy, but it all ended up well because Dave directed the video and we came up with what hot concepts for the video.

AHH: Babu, one of the impressive independent releases of 2005 was The L.J.??€�s project you did with Defari. Still, don??€�t you think it was a little strange to use the Likwit Junkies??€� name and not include The Liks, Lootpack, King Tee, or Phil Da Agony?

Babu: You know, Defari and I had been working together and the album just came together. It's a crazy hot album. It was nothing personal. Those are my dudes too.

[iLL:WiLL]

C-Rayz Walz: Mind of a Lunatic
By Christopher ??€?Milan??€? Thomas




Napolean Bonaparte once said, "There is only one step from the sublime to the ridiculous." Almost 200 years later, C-Rayz Walz may be living evidence of such within Hip-Hop. The Uptown anthem-maker was ripping apart battles and releasing twelve-inches long before he garnered a major spotlight through MTV's Made. Street-lore suggests that long before the C-Rayz choked the mic, he was choking vics on sidewalks. So if you think he's weird for being different, don't be so quick to judge.

AllHipHop.com traveled to C-Rayz' Bronx residence to watch the MC do something his friends Raekwon and Ghostface would surely approve of - cook fish. But as Walz fries flounder, he drops severe science on the recent surge of fame and criticism, a poorly received album in Year of the Beast, as well as teaching at a highly-accredited university this year. C-Rayz shares on his bond with unlikely comrade, Juelz Santana. The MC also touches upon pornography while watching an Evil Angel release in another room. Within his reflections, C-Rayz makes some interesting, some hilarious, and some downright strange claims. Amidst it all though, his passion is quite clear. The one-time stick-up kid is back to show a legion of fans another route, and continuously bring the character back into Hip-Hop.

AHH: What have you been up to since Year of the Beast came out?
C-Rayz Walz: I??€�m about to do a winter tour. A whole bunch of ski lodges. I want to let everyone know what??€�s coming. Wherever there??€�s snow, that??€�s where I??€�m going to be at. I??€�m letting motherf**kers know that I??€�ve been staying in the lab. For real, I??€�m changing my name to C-Rayz Lab this year. My next solo album is called Crazy. It??€�s got Flava Flav and KRS-One on it.

AHH: Listening to your discography, we can hear your style continuously evolving into the lyricist you are today. What would you say is the motivation behind your changing attitude?
C-Rayz Walz: My music is a straight, direct reflection of who I am. It??€�s more enlightened, more comedic. It??€�s everything that I am and there ain??€�t no negativity to it. A lot of people can??€�t say that, you know what I??€�m sayin? Later on this year, you??€�ll see when I come up on a more commercial scene and start rubbin??€� elbows with known people, I won??€�t compromise my craft. My s**t is next level, but it??€�s still street on a personal level. I had to take it to the hood.

AHH: How can you become commercial by taking it to the hood? The hood doesn??€�t buy records...
C-Rayz Walz: The hood never buys records, but the hood becomes the records. The records become the hood. Meaning, these kids who buy 50 Cent records [become] hard, in Iowa! They??€�re hard in Little Rock! They??€�re banging hard out there and they ain??€�t been around nothing [that I??€�ve been]. So I gotta report what??€�s really going on. There ain??€�t been a $10,000 chain in my hood in years. You know how the game go. Too much hustlers, not enough customers - so now everybody??€�s selling drugs through music.

AHH: So it seems things are bigger than Hip-Hop??€¦
C-Rayz Walz: I??€�m supposed to teach a Hip-Hop course at Berkeley. I??€�m preparing for that s**t. The job is offered for the end of this year. Hopefully, I??€�ll develop my skills as a professor so I can be prepared for [it].

AHH: What will you teach your students?
C-Rayz Walz: [How to be] conscious of your thoughts. As soon as you get that thought, it??€�s born and it??€�s up to you to harvest it or cancel it out. When I get negative thoughts, I??€�m always like, "Cancel, cancel, cancel." For instance, I always think about grabbing my son by the ankles and slamming him on the concrete. Now, I think about people who do things like that. [They] probably had an ill thought. Once they had that thought, they began the process of making [it real]. That may be an extreme example, but the energy of doubting yourself may be just as strong as that. When you think about your own failures, it??€�s like, wow, your brain remembers that. Humans are definitely part elephant, man.

AHH: How are things going with your label, Definitive Jux. It??€�s been said that you aren??€�t happy with your current situation with them.
C-Rayz Walz: I really appreciate them for everything that they??€�ve done. They??€�ve really made me rekindle my creative spirit that made [founder El-P] want to sign me. I??€�ve said thousands of things about him in past interviews, personal s**t doesn??€�t bother [me]. But Jux as a whole, is not as Definitive as it was when I came on board.

AHH: What happened?
C-Rayz Walz: I??€�ve been on tour [by myself] for the last two years just to survive. If we were to tour as a whole label, we would be much bigger. I??€�m tired of going on tour and having people ask me, ??€?Yo, when is Jux going on tour? When we gonna see Aesop? When we gonna see El???€? I??€�m tired of saying, ??€?I don??€�t know.??€? I planned on coming to them for marketing ideas but it??€�s kinda late for it now. My label ain??€�t helping me to do that.

AHH: Let me first say that your fans are very passionate about your work and a lot of them have questions for you. Many of them want to know why, in their opinion, your latest album, ??€?Year of the Beast,??€? is not on the same level as your earlier work. They say that there has been a definite change to your music--and it has been negative. How would you respond to that?

C-Rayz Walz: All right, imagine this: There would be a whole different view of my work if I called my album Nerd Rap. I don??€�t need a fan. If you relate to my music and you wanna buy it, that??€�s on you. I made [Year of the Beast] for me. [My discography] is a different aspect of truth??€¦it??€�s a big book with gold embroidery around it.

AHH: It??€�s been a while since it happened, but do you care to talk about the MTV Made episode?
C-Rayz Walz: Ayo, if my man Niles [the Minnesota teen he mentored known as "Blitz"] was here right now, and you had any inkling of rhyming in you??€�he would blaze you. You would wanna stop rhyming. That s**t was real, and there was nothing fake about it. People come up to me every day and tell me, ??€?That was the best Made I ever saw." They really captured a lot of good elements.

AHH: How would you respond to someone saying that the episode exploited the culture by exposing it to white suburbia?
C-Rayz Walz: [My philosophy is] ??€?be comfortable.??€? Whether we??€�re in the ??€?burbs or the hood all we have to do is have a conversation to make a connection. Hip-Hop runs the f**kin' world. People still don??€�t realize that. My phone rings all the time [with suburban kids saying] ??€?C-Rayz, my friends is faking the funk. Can you spit a hot eight bars to let ??€?em know [that we??€�re connected?] "Eight bars for those that don??€�t think I??€�m horrid/ So you called the vampire/ He hit you back with garlic/Crossed your middle fingers for you/ Then left you in the back like LaToya while the Jack son??€�s upon you/ Clap son they royal/ Battle wasn??€�t royal/ Even Verizon said he??€�s online/ He??€�ll employ you/For futuristic flows you know what you know/For C-Rayz Walz 718 is the code, peace." And then I hang up. That energy keeps me alive.

AHH: Your skills at MC Battling are well known. Off the top of my head, I can say that you??€�ve defeated Supernatural on multiple occasions. But I want to discuss a time when you lost a battle to Immortal Technique. What do you think about him?
C-Rayz Walz: Immortal Technique is rich. He went platinum in Ecuador [Laughs]. I think I bust his ass that day, but I think it was the crowd??€�s [fault that I lost]. He is the only MC that can give it to me in a battle at this point. Technique is a motherf**ker on the mic, and I love him. He doesn??€�t give a f**k about humanity and he??€�s giving a positive message [at the same time]. He??€�s balanced it out.

AHH: I want to talk about your run-in with another MC, Juelz Santana. I heard you and him got locked up together?
C-Rayz Walz: Locked up? Juelz? Me and him got sent to central bookings mad times together in Manhattan Tombs. One time, we rolled a stick of haze with [notebook] paper. We was locked up in a cage with like 30 n****s surrounding us, and me and him just turned our backs to them and passed the L back and forth to each other. He was like, ??€?I??€�m tight??€? and I was like, ??€?Me too, son.??€? We smoked that haze until it was this big [gestures with his fingers] before we passed it to them. That s**t was crazy.

[ At this point in the interview, C-Rayz excused himself to go to the room where the porno video was playing ??€?to make a phone call.??€? He exclaimed, ??€?I gotta beat off to this!??€? Immediately knowing he was detected, he flipped his words around and said ??€?I got a beat off of this??€¦to freestyle to!??€?]

AHH: You must get a lot of groupie love on the road, right?
C Rayz Walz: I got h**d from a porn star before??€¦

AHH: Who?
C-Rayz Walz: [Smiles] Wait for her album to drop.

AHH: Oh, I know who you??€�re talking about??€¦
C-Rayz Walz: Ayo! All y'all fake ass players, take a page out my book, man. Go to shortie??€�s house, play some music, take a shower, smoke a L and then bounce in like ten minutes. I can??€�t believe I??€�m sharing this with the world. [Then] pretend you??€�re on the phone with your man and be like ??€?Aight son, I ain??€�t forget about you??€¦pick me up at 81st and 5th. One.??€? Don??€�t pay her any attention. That will drive your girl crazy. You??€�re playing love tag. The next time you see her, you??€�re ??€?it.??€? [Smiles] All of that was in my old life. I??€�m celibate this year, you know what I??€�m sayin'?

AHH: But the year just started...
C-Rayz Walz: [Laughs] This year I??€�m a ??€?sell-a-bit??€? of records! I??€�m tired of this p***y s**t, for real.

[cain.marko]

concluzie: C-Rayz nu este tocmai in toate mintile si vrea sa plece de la DefJux

cam aiurea faza cu dat copy paste la fiecare interviu www.allhiphop.com

[Dj HUMANkut]

INTERVIU ROB SWIFT (fost membru X-Ecutioners)
ASCULTATIL ! ! ! HERE : http://www.demostreams.com/mp3Player/ni ... 363/songs/

[Deena]

Scarface & The Product: Training Day
By Brandon Edward




Contrary to popular belief and media advertisement, many individuals aren??€�t the least bit happy with the way the world of Hip-Hop music has played out in the 21st century. Whether shady business deals or watered down, carbon copy songs are the illness, hopeful rap heads are fortunate to have hungry artists in the booth working to cook up a remedy.

Three of those individuals are in The Product. Led by who many would claim, is the undisputed "King of the South" ??€� Scarface, the trio has a legend at the core. Then, the troupe is given some flavor from Bay Area veteran, Will Hen. Lastly, the youthful charge comes from Mississippi bred, Young Malice. This trio linked up with veteran producer Tone Capone to thread the needle, that??€�s likely to be jabbed in the industry??€�s veins.

Young Malice remains relatively quiet as Scarface and Will Hen reveal their plan to AllHipHop.com. ??€?Face??€�s Underground Railroad Records may not be what Harriet Tubman had in mind, but the liberation of Black Music, as the Houston icon describes it, will begin this Black History Month. One Hunnid Percent independent.

AHH: What??€�s up with the Underground Railroad movement?

Scarface: I??€�m just trying to free the slaves.

AHH: Are you talking about underground artists?

Scarface: These big corporate slave-driving motherf**kers??€¦ I??€�ve gotten so many slave offers in the past five months from these major labels; they still aint trying to give a n***a a fair f**king run. I mean, they want that and want this, but ain??€�t trying to give a n***a shit. I??€�ve got to own my s**t.

AHH: So you??€�re just going to continue putting your life on wax??€¦

Scarface: I??€�m an artist, man. I??€�ll always have ideas. 20 years down the line, if somebody wants to use one of my songs, and the person who owns the publishing and masters of it is getting paid, that ain??€�t right. I did all the work. I think every artist in the music industry should boycott that s**t, and demand some of the ownership back. We??€�re in a position to start owning our music.

AHH: The industry doesn??€�t get a chance to really feast on Bay Area music. I know it??€�s a land of independent hustle; can you fill us in?

Will Hen: It??€�s moving. The Bay is doing things themselves. We??€�ll let the industry catch on later. Back in the day when Bay area artists were selling 100,000 plus records themselves, Atlantic, Priority and everybody else came out here trying to get a piece; ??€?We??€�ll take 20 and you can keep 80.??€� They were giving out real deals back then, beyond joint ventures. It??€�s getting back there. It??€�s a buzzing music scene. Everyone??€�s doing something different: street s**t, crunk, spittin??€� game and stepping up their craft.

AHH: I know you released an album in 2002, Filmoism. But for fans who may be discovering you by way of ??€?Face, can you give us some background on yourself, as far as taking the pimp game and transcending into rapping?

Will Hen: I??€�m a real Fillmore n***a. I??€�m from San Francisco, California. The pimp game to me is like the crack game, an alternative, nothing out of the ordinary. I??€�ve done anything anyone in the street had to do to survive. Anyone with any sense is going to elevate his or herself. A smart n***a??€�s not going to work hard, but work smart. We all can probably be gangster; grab a gun and hustle rocks, but the key is to find an easier way to get to the top.

AHH: Everybody wants to pimp in rap today. What are your thoughts?

Will Hen: I don??€�t like it. I feel like, when I went outside and put my hard shoes on and played the part, it was real. I had to really study the game and deal with the ups and downs and everything that came with it. It ain??€�t all sweet out here in the city. I gotta ride like I??€�m supposed to and be holding what I??€�m supposed to??€¦ even though I was in the Mack game. You gotta stay gangsta on these n***as and pimpish on these hoes. A sucker or a n***a on that bulls**t is gone see a whole ??€?nother side.

AHH: People may remember Tone Capone for doing, ??€?I Got 5 On It??€? ten years ago. As a producer for The Product, what element does Tone Capone bring to your music?

Will Hen: He??€�s very influential. When a producer and MC have good chemistry, the possibilities are endless. The first time we met, we cranked out a joint. He??€�s an experienced professional. Tone and ??€?Face both have that ear for music??€¦ they [both] old school heads for real, digging in the crates. That impressed me. Tone played a joint we did for ??€?Face, and he felt like it was time for me to get down.

AHH: What went into the process of making One Hunnid?

Scarface: We just sat down and said, ??€?Let??€�s try and make our s**t rock harder than anything else out there.??€� I??€�m a fan of the game. I love music. I feel like the game needs every song we??€�ve made, ??€?cause right now, we f***d. When you got n***as that don??€�t appreciate it, and just want to get a payday out of it, then we f***d.

AHH: The South is dominant in the rap game today. How do you set yourself apart from the other acts?

Young Malice: I feel like what we??€�re saying has a bit more relevance.

Will Hen: That n***a??€�s dope man. He dope for real. He??€�s finna change what everybody think about a Mississippi n***a.

AHH: What was it like working with Scarface?

Young Malice: It was a family environment. It was us doing what we had to do to get to where we wanted to be. When you??€�re working with professionals, it??€�s easier. I??€�ve been in the studio with cats that didn??€�t know what the f**k they were doing. Next thing you know, you??€�ve been in the studio for hours without a completed project. It takes no time for us to put a classic song together when we??€�re in the studio. That??€�s what made it so good working with Brad and Hen.

AHH: As a spotlighted new artist, what do you want fans to take from the upcoming album One Hunnid?

Young Malice: I want you to gain our experience from the album. We??€�re voicing our lives and current events. Take knowledge from the album. Don??€�t try to be like one of us. Listen to the positive and negative parts, learn from the negative and try to take the positive with you to better yourself.

Scarface: When you listening to it, just think in your head: ??€?This is what we need, what the world??€�s been missing.??€�

[RapX]

Raekwon Cuban Links 2 Interview



With fans and rappers alike complaining about how New York has lost its stronghold over the game, it seems like there’s no better time to drop a follow-up to a classic that helped define an era long-gone. Raekwon is about take it there going full circle to create Only Built 4 Cuban Linx 2 and is fully aware of what’s riding on this decision. Due for a spring release, Rae says it’s 97% done—with 103% to put on top of it—and will help re-vamp the Wu-Tang Movement.

While the jury’s still out as to whether Dr. Dre or Ghostface will contribute, Rae has his reasons for maintaining secrets. Raekwon tells AllHipHop.com about the album-in-the-making, as well as his reaction to the last two, ill received works. Raekwon may be a man without rhyme books, but he’s got lots of thoughts.You were warned the first time around that the Chef would be cooking up all types of marvelous things …

AllHipHop.com: Where’d you get the idea to come out with [Only Built 4 Cuban Linx as] a purple tape? I thought it was a defect when I got mine.

Raekwon: Only because being that we from the block, we was finagling in certain situations where the things that you was dealing with had to be separated from what everybody else was dealing with. I always ran with that as one of my traits in anything I do to separate myself from others. Back when we used to sling and do what we do, we would have certain color caps [to viles]. Certain color caps resembled certain people that were doing s**t different than everybody else. It’s like, “Yo, this is our color. Anybody step on this color, you got an issue at that time.” So I decided with my music, this is my world—this is my thing and I wanna put a color on it just so everybody will know. That’s how the purple tape even came in existence. I think I had wanted a red one at first and then I thought how somebody else had did it already. I made it like that specifically….

AllHipHop.com: I don’t think tapes are still made now so are you going to do something similar with Cuban Linx 2, even though it’s probably going to only be on CD?

Raekwon: We definitely want to keep it in the same formula, the same brand-style of it, because people respected that. But now, like you said, nobody don’t really handle tapes—I don’t even think they make tapes no more. So, trust me—if they made tapes, we would do it again. But I’m really shooting for the CD to be purple because this is a traditional thing.

AllHipHop.com: There was something of a storyline in Linx, especially in the beginning with you and Ghost trying to get out of the game after one last run. Is there going to be anything like that this time?

Raekwon: When we had did that, we did that only according to how we were rhyming at that time. A storyline just came in like that because we like to talk on our albums, we like to make people laugh. It was just showing you some hustling n***as with big dreams but they just ain’t got no money yet. This one would definitely fit that criterion to a degree, but at the same time, now we on. The album is definitely gonna have that feeling and that talk that everybody like to hear.

AllHipHop.com: Yeah, the Wu interludes are infamous.

Raekwon: When you listen to Wu albums, we always gotta have some kind of funny s**t on there because to me that makes an album. See, one thing people gotta remember too is that we make albums. We don’t just put ten songs together—we try to make you throw the CD in and don’t touch that motherf**er for the next hour and a half.

AllHipHop.com: There’s been speculation as to whether Ghost is going to be on the album like how he was before?

Raekwon: That right there, I wanna surprise people. We’re not gonna rewrite the whole me and Ghost theory. But Ghost will be on the project, though. He already put his word, and he takes it very seriously. We don’t know what’s going to happen right now. I ain’t gonna sit here and say yeah he’s gonna be all over it. And I ain’t gonna say that he’s not gonna be on it. I know what it is, but I want y’all to still be in suspense. It’s like going to the movies; you can’t tell everybody everything.

AllHipHop.com: non-Wu guests?

Raekwon: I may have one special guest, or if not one, I’ll say two and we outta there. On the last one it was just Nas on it, so on this one it may be somebody else that we all really love and respect like that. And it might be somebody that you would never think, either. He might not even be from New York. All I’m saying is that I can’t bite off but too much on this album.

AllHipHop.com: It’s also good timing because people in New York are hungering for the spot back in Hip-Hop.

Raekwon: This is the season for the hard s**t. Hip-Hop seems like it’s going back in that direction—at least New York Hip-Hop. New York is the backbone of Hip-Hop. We the rough edge, the underworld of the conceptual ideas and things that go on in Hip-Hop.

AllHipHop.com: So, people have been waiting for this like you said, but now what about the pressure that comes with trying to do a Part 2 to such a classic album?

Raekwon: I mean, to me, it’s nothing. I just look at it like this: “Rae, you at your best with your rhyming game, you got a good ear for music, for beats and all that, so just knit it as if you was a sewer and you was sewing. The bottom line is to just tear it up.” I got a lot of fans that believe in me and know what I do, so I really try not to sit there and worry about if it’s gonna be better or if it’s gonna be worse [than Cuban Linx].

AllHipHop.com: Where do you get ideas of rhymes? Are you in the booth coming up with stuff or are you all the time just writing down…

Raekwon: No. See, one thing about me, the kind of MC that I am, I’m more or less an MC who vibes off of feeling and music. I’m not the type of MC that just be sitting around writing all day and having stacks of books. Raekwon the Chef never ever owned a [rhyme] book! If anything I owned a bunch of papers or folders, but I’ll write on anything—paper cups, plastic plates, pizza boxes—anything just to get it out real quick. I never owned a book, so I think that was one my gifts. Just to do it like that.

AllHipHop.com: There is a whole specific language, a hierarchy, and a movement to the Wu-Tang Clan. That seems similar to what the Diplomats are doing. However, you guys seemed grounded on the 5 Percent knowledge…

Raekwon: Everybody in the game got a piece of something that we said or that we did, and that’s respect. I got a lot of respect for a lot of teams that play the field, ‘cause it came from the field. By us having the 5% knowledge that we have, people should have took more of that into consideration. When we come across positive or come across emotional in our rhymes, it’s not because we tried to go somewhere else; it’s just because this is what our duty is supposed to be. You listen to a lot of dudes, and all they talk about is guns and coke and your kids is listening to that. At least out of the Wu, you could get that—cause we know that, we been there and done that—but at the same time, we could give you more. I think a lot of people weren’t ready to accept somebody constantly telling them, “I’m teaching you.”

AllHipHop.com: The Internet and bloggers play a major role in criticism and reacting to albums. What’s your opinion on the advancement?

Raekwon: The internet is a killer, too. If you sit there and let that control you… oh, man—it’ll f**k you over. When I did my album, Immobilarity, that was the first time I had the heart to do an album alone. I never did an album before; I was always team-playing and being a soldier and standing in line. So when I did that, I felt good about the album, I felt like as a real dude and as a consumer and a critic, I don’t feel I let anybody down. I was rhyming on there. The beats wasn’t all RZA, but that don’t mean that the beat wasn’t sounding good. When you deal with certain dudes in the business, [it’s only natural] you look for more growth out of them. Like in my hood, n***as say they dion’t really like Nas’ [Street’s Disciple], but they like Nas. So they could respect it, but they didn’t necessarily have to like it. I have dudes come up to me like, “Yo, they slept on Lex Diamond, [because it] ain’t get no marketing.” And it’s cool, but it makes you think about where Hip-Hop is headed.

AllHipHop.com: Where is that?

Raekwon: I think it will come around and be a time where everybody start looking at each individual for what it is. It’s just about having the right people really understanding what the verse is about. You got a younger generation that don’t know nothing about what you did. All you know is you keep hearing a bunch of people talking about Cuban Linx this and next thing you know, they wanna be biased of whatever else you may have to offer.

AllHipHop.com: Did you take the criticism to heart, that you received on Immobilarity and The Lex Diamond Story?

Raekwon: I ain’t gonna front - I was a little discouraged at the fact that nobody didn’t understand the fact that Rae did it on his own this time. But on the same note, you can never please everybody. I get a lot of love in the street. I try to keep a balance in my own head. But what does hurt me is when people say, “Yo, I never heard it.” How you ain’t hear it? If you a big fan of me… All you can do is look at that individual for what he’s done and give him the gratification he deserves, when it’s time to give it to him.

AllHipHop.com: That moment is projected to arrive with Cuban Linx 2. How do you feel about the potential impact?

Raekwon: I feel like it’s gonna bring dudes to a turning level of their careers. I think sometimes when we do get together and we work on something that’s such a high velocity of what people want, it kind of makes us stronger, better to knock it out. But when we do it, we do it with ease; it’s nothing to it, it’s just really more or less about that production. When you playing with a person like RZA, you gotta know everything about RZA before you even try to act like you accept what he’s doing, or don’t accept it. You gotta know the kind of producer he is; he’s not your Kanye, he’s not your Premier, he’s RZA. He’s really the Abbott. We named him the Abbott for a reason because his style—his s**t is so much advanced on music and just sound period, [and that] one of his mentors is Marley Marl.

AllHipHop.com: So Marley influenced RZA. Who would you say influenced you?

Raekwon: I grew up in the 80s listening to all that and you had cats like Rakim, Slick Rick and Kane…Biz, G Rap, even Kurtis Blow to a degree with some of the things he was saying and doing back then.

[RapX]

[Necro Interview]



First I'd like some background info. I already know that you're 29, you're parent's are israelli expatriates, your father was a combat soldier, and your mother orthodox Ba'al Teshuva.

You grew up in Brooklyn?
Yes I did, my whole life I have lived in Brooklyn.

How was you're upbringing, were you raised according to your
religion?
I grew up in the projects, so I was always mixed with kids of different cultures, from black to russian to irish to italian, so it was a melting pot. My mother attempted to make us religious like her but like nore said, mommy that just aint me.

Are you personally religious?
I am not religious like the rest of the people on earth. I believe in a creator, but that creator is the creator of all. I suppose I’m more agnostic than anything. I feel God is an alien. I have never gotten any doors open for me because I am jewish, hopefully at some point I will, it would be nice, but I have never experienced this. All I have experienced is hard work, struggle, obstacles and pain as well as the joy and happiness of seeing the fruits of your labor come to life, so its part of the game. I’d rather work hard for it and earn it then have it handed to me for free, because then I wouldn't appreciate it like most rich kids

How old were you when you realized you wanted to work with music?
I guess 9 years old.

Has your family always supported you on your choice?
My brother always did it. He didn't support me technically as much as critiqued me brutally, but eventually he did support me, but at the start it was like little brother following big brother. Uncle howie helped us and probably didn't even realize it. He gave Bill a Gibson Epiphone bass when Bill was like 13 and that changed everything, cuz playing instruments became something me and Bill did from that point on. My mom was in her own zone, so she didn't really support it. She would say she didn't have any money to buy us instruments, and my father loved music, but he didn't support us that much either. But for my birthday when I was like 12, I got him to buy me a b c rich warlock yellow colored with dunlop pick ups I think. It was real dope. And my grandmothers, 2 of which I had, my mother's mother would have supported us in anything we did, but she passed away. My fathers mother was shady. She was more concerned in shitting on my mother than to help us with anything.

When was your first appearance?
My first appearances were playing guitar at like 11 at metal shows. I can’t remember my first metal show, we used to do a lot of them back then. The experience was always weird, cuz i was younger than everyone in the club. I was 11… I think it has had a great influence on me in the long run

Can you tell us about your time in a metal group?
It was sick. It taught me a lot, but I was real young so it was one stage out of many in my life. We used to be all about technical brutal riff.

What was the name of the first group you were in?
Injustice. My brother Bill came up with the name. Back then I had no parts in names and lyrics, so I just ran with it.

How did you get the name you use today?
I needed to come up with a brutal hiphop name, the sickest name, and I called myself Necrophiliac. I then later shortened it to Necro, cuz Necro is more general and includes all aspects of death.

What kind of music do you prefer personally?
I like my hiphop and I like metal, and ofcourse 70’s shit.

What do you feel about record companies view on a white artist in a genre
dominated by blacks?
I hate it. The industry is racist, so it makes it very hard for me. But I’m used to it now and I have a big fanbase and I will succeed against all odds, so fuck em all.

Did you start rapping, producing?
I think I start rapping first and then I started producing. What inspires me most, is that I know there is nothing on earth like what I do. Nobody can do it, nobody can do it, I got my own shit, so I have to give the fans what they want plus I’m a fan of myself, so I wanna see what I’m gonna do next. I’m Necro’s biggest fan actually.

Do you get problems for vulgar language?
I got banned from a few clubs and I think a few mags hate on me for this. But I haven't blown up big enough yet for it to be an Eminem problem, hopefully soon.

How has your past in metal influenced your music?
I have many angles to grab from. I always experiment and try new things. I don't feel limited.

You have worked with a lot of metal legends like Vinnie Appice (Dio/Black Sabbath), Igor Cavalera(Sepultura), Alex Skolnick(Testament) the guys from Obituary, Jamey Jasta(Hatebreed), Matt from Exhumed, Away from Voivod, Danny Liker from Nuclear Assault/S.O.D and I guess the list can go on … Many of these are Necro fans and Necro has a special credibility in the metal scene that very few rappers have ... So how was it to involve these metal musicians to your rap?
It was awesome, especially because nobody has done it before. I like doing cutting edge shit and I know what I have been doing is new. Even though the haters don't think so, the real heads know the deal. I found it an honor to work with these guys.

When did you release your first cd/lp?
I released my first 12" in 97 and I felt it was cool. I kinda had to drop what they wanted me to drop cuz they liked the song Get On Ya Knees, so I felt like my 12" was cool but was fiending to do something better. My first cd was dropped in 2000 and it was like a compilation of all my 12"'s with a few extra songs. But it was accepted like an album to brand new heads and it opened up the doorway to my huge fanbase, even though the 12"s were making a mark. It was my first cd that cleared the path, seems almost humerous that my first actual cd dropped in 2000 considering we were rapping since 1990. But it is what it is when u do everything ya self and have to learn everything on ya own.

Other releases? What has changed in your music, anything you feel have improved personally?
I feel I get better all around. I don't think what Ii do now blows away what I did in 2000, but I feel I expand. I drop new flows, I grow, I get iller which makes sense to only get better. Most rappers get worse, not me.

What were you're merits when you started playing music?
It feels great to create and know u played dope shit. I’m only starting. I have so much more to contribute.

Can you tell us a little about your resent albums / Gory days/ I need
drugs/ the pre fix for death / sexorcist/?
All Necro records where I do my thing, Gory Days was a brutal album dropped right around 9/11. People were somber, that whole album is death, so u will be shreaded. Prefix for death is like part 2 of that, cuz that whole record is gore. Both of those records are more death than even I need drugs. But I had to make it known that I’m the king of brutality, and it takes dropping classic albums one after the other to show the kids, the sexorcist is all pornography. I think it's a genius album and the best sex record ever, but that's my opinion. Who's ya daddy? Is the dopest porn track ever, die!!!

You have a lot of porn stars on the sexorcist. why?
I Think that is self explanatory.

You've produced a porn movie, as well as some hip hop videos, can you fill me in on this?
Yeah, I made a porn DVD and dropped it on the fans. The fans loved it, my gory days DVD was a huge success as well. It sold like hotcakes.

One of these have you're uncle in it, shooting up, how were the reactions?
People were bugging. I remember laughing so hard on the floor, like over 100 times during the process of making that video and editing it. The feeling in my stomach was pride and greatness. I feel that shit is classic and insane. Anyone that watches that shit is touched, either repulsed or in awe.

You do all bass and guitar on your beats ... You've made everything on the track Edge Play I've been told. Can you tell me more about this?
Yeah some tracks I play from Scratch, just for fun, and I’m dope on bass, so I played the bass on that and added guitar and Fender Rhodes to it. Some 70’s jazz fusion evil shit, then I created that bile hook and had this girl sing it. The track was created for evil bondage porn, all planned to destroy you originally.

You have a new album “Secret Society” coming soon. When can we expect this album being released?
This one will be all illuminati shit, and I’m not sure when it’s dropping. Right now the release date is classified.

You've been elected number to being most important human being, as well as number two in best producer. And to top it of, producing your brothers solo album which got the fifth place in best album, and producing on the very succesful non phixion. How do you feel about being this succesfull?
It feels good, but it don't get to my head because I got bigger goals. Someone saying something nice is dope. But I want my bank account to match the nice words, and I want the respect from everyone on earth, or atleast I want everyone that would like me to have a chance to hear it. So I think bigger than people praising me. I love fans more than they love me, but I got huge goals so I stay focused.

Are people hyped now more than before/ what do you feel about this?
I feel my buzz gets bigger and bigger. I’m shocked that I’m still slept on, but I guess that’s part of the game and it will only make me a sicker and iller

[Chill Will]

NEW APATHY INTERVIEW






Hey Apathy, it's Joel from Art of Rhyme.com...
Apathy: Oh, Joel man. I just ignored your call like 10 times because it says TV Guide. I'm like, Fuck that!
I figured while we were talking I could figure if you cancelled your subscription or not. That's the real deal job, you know.
A: No doubt. It's good to talk to you man. I feel like I've known you forever.
You've got all kinds of stuff going on, huh?
A: Hell yeah. I'm doing it all man.
It's good to hear a real official release from you. Happy days, you know?
A: You're telling me man. It's been a labor of love and it's been crazy.
Is that tremendous weight off of your shoulders?
A: Oh hell yeah. You know there's still more to do, but to get this album to the point I wanted it is really dope. It's kind of crazy too because I built this album up so much in my head -- it's like a parent with a kid. I have such high expectations for it. It got leaked a little bit early and I expected a certain amount of kids to really be sweating it. A lot of kids loved it. Mad people gave me love, and then I saw a little hate. That never affected me before, but now that I've put out this album I'm like "damn." It's a crazy thing. I've never ever cared about criticism or hate.
Why don't you tell us a little bit about Eastern Philosophy, from how you wrote the songs to the production on it?
A: Well, before I sat down and really knew what the tracks were going to be, I knew what I wanted in my head. I knew the vibe I wanted to invoke with it. Before I started doing anything, for months and month I would only listen to the same 10 or 12 albums. Even if someone was like, "Yo, you hear that new Ludacris song?" I was like, "nah, I'm not even on that right now." I was listening to Only Built 4 Cuban Linx, Hard to Earn, Organized Konfusion, Nas??€� Illmatic, Reasonable Doubt, Midnight Marauders. I wanted to get in that whole mindset and be like I was in that time period. That time is so important to me and so close to my heart that I feel almost cheated that I was too young to release an album then. So I'm trying to make up for it by making an album that I feel could be that time. Evoke that type of feeling. Also, just to do songs to show how I felt back at that time. I really wanted to do an album that reflected that time period. Up to date obviously, but something that was in that same vein.
You've been talking about and working on Eastern Philosophy for a long time. We talked to you a while back and I remember you were in the process of it, and then there were some politics. Did you have to make some changes between then and now?
A: When I talked to you guys last about it, there's not a single song that's the same on there. All those songs have been put out on the bootleg or Where's Your Album? Or just scrapped all together. There are some songs I recorded way back that are just going to be coming out. Like the song Naturally Nasty which will be coming out on the Celph Titled UK album. It was originally going to be for this album but it didn't match the vibe as much and that was important to me. I wanted to make sure it was cohesive. I have some happier shit, but there was some shit that just didn't match. It'd be like putting something whimsical on Liquid Swords.
You and your crew have been doing lots of work with Babygrande Records, where does that relationship come from?
A: It's just all about what they come with. It's nothing to do with a personal relationship. They make the best offer; they want to put the most effort and energy into it. I'm going to go with them as far as the indie thing goes. I'm still signed to Atlantic and Atlantic had to give permission. We had to go through this whole big process. Atlantic even owns the masters. If you look at the copyright information it says "Atlantic Records under exclusive license from Babygrande." Babygrande was willing to get behind it, be excited about it, shoot a video for it and really go crazy with it. They also gave a good offer.
What is the word on your Atlantic album?
A: I don't even know. To be honest, it's up in the air. I'm not even sweating it. My A&R called me recently when I was on tour. He said, "I know it's taking forever for us all to get on the same page, and figure out what exactly we're trying to do. I'm not trying to be the big bad label, so let me make this clear; you are not shelved by any means. However, if you want to go I'll give you a release. I don't want to hold back your career." The problem is there is an insane amount of confusion. I don't have great communication with them. There have been times where I've recorded songs and he's said to me, "Oh my God, this is it. This is the hit." And this dudes an asshole. I've recorded songs and he's said, "I've played it for Craig Kallman, and it's a hit." This is a dude who's very blunt with me. He'll say, "nah that's wack and corny. I'm not feeling that."
Is this why he's an asshole?
A: Yes. I don't mean that in a disrespectful way, but this dude is brutally honest with me. So after I submit 100's of songs to him and he's finally like, "You've got your hit. You just opened up your budget." I'm ready to pop some bottles, and then nothing comes out of it.
Is that how it typically works? You're signed to Atlantic, but you have to prove yourself and cause them to get off their asses?
A: Yeah. Especially with new artists, but I recently learned even when Twista does an album, Mike will sit there and listen to the songs and Twista has to come with the right songs. They obviously give him more attention and bigger producers are willing to work with him, but it's the same process. Everything has changed a lot. Everyone has this perception that I just go off to a studio, record 16 tracks, put it together in a neat little kit and they say yes or no. I send my A&R every song I do and we figure out what level we're going to go at.
Now the songs they don't like, they still own them?
A: Yeah, they still own them technically. But I have all of the masters. It doesn't mean I own them, but I have them. But it's a long process and it's just confusing and frustrating. It's like, "what do I do? What more can I do? What can you do to hook me up with this person? Why isn't this happening?" It's to the point now that I don't know what's going to happen.
Now, it's not like a city job where you just sit around and just get paid...
A: Hell no.
...so you've got to go out and drop an album like Eastern Philosophy if they're not putting you on to the big show.
A: And I got permission from my A&R to do it because he knows I've got to eat. I've licensed shit before for TV Shows and video games, and that makes some money but you have to be real consistent with that to make a lot of money.
Wasn't it a CSI you licensed that track for?
A: It was a CSI Miami. And the same track was on Midnight Club 3.
How does one of your tracks get licensed like that? Do you have to submit like an audition?
A: I did a couple of things. When I first got signed, my A&R was like, "they're looking for a song for the Dare Devil soundtrack" and I asked what type of song and they go "it's for the first time you see King Pin." So I did a song, and honestly Joel, it was one of the illest songs I've ever done. It was called The King Pin. I wish I had the masters, but I don't even have a copy because I recorded it at my A&R's crib. It was one of the illest songs. The beat kind of had the same sound as Public Service Announcement, like a real ill hardrock acid sample. My hook and the lyrics were fucking bananas. It was mad smart, it was dope. I submitted it, and the dudes were like, "this is incredible. It's perfect. We love it." Then it comes down to crunch time and the music directors and the people were like, "Yeah, this is hot, we want to use it." Then some dude that doesn't know music shit, but one of the business men came along and said, "ehh, we need somebody with a bigger name than this." So they used Neptune??€�s - Rock Star which had been out for a while already so it was already somewhat played out, but they used it. I was like, mother fucker. It gets worse though. You know the song that was on CSI: Miami? My A&R called me up and was like "Need for Speed II needs some songs for the soundtrack, get to work." My A&R linked me up with this dude Bris who did the beat. I got the beat and Celph came up to Connecticut. I sat there and wrote it, banged it out, we recorded it, then I submitted it. They were like, "yes, we're definitely using this." My A&R called me on my birthday and told me they were going to use it and we just had to talk about money situations. So I'm thinking everything is poppin off. Then about a week and a half later, they pulled the same thing. They were like, "we need somebody who's either a Def Jam artist, or has a bigger name." So that got shelved.
A: Then, a little bit down the road, I was like, "I'll believe it when I see it." Get this, they said it was going to be in one episode and at the last minute they said they had a change and it was going to be used in a later episode. Finally they ended up using it, which was awesome. Then recently, Midnight Club 3 used it in their video game which I didn't even expect to happen.
You mention Celph. I feel like his game is really on the rise. What is the official line-up of the Demigodz right now?
A: Celph and I is literally my best friend. That's like my brother. We talk almost every single day, we're best friends, we've never had beef in all the years we've been friends. We're like Redman and Method Man, like Raekwon and Ghost. Celph and I decided the Demigodz needs to be something more formative, because it was always all over the place. That's the reason the roster continued to change. Some people wouldn't be around all of the time, or we couldn't get in touch with them. We decided to make it a definitive group of people who all work well together and all stay in contact with each other. And that is: Me, Celph, Esoteric, Motive, and Styles of Beyond are the MCs. Then we have the DJs: Chum the Skrilla Guerilla, 7L, and Cheapshot. Then we've got a producer Scoop Deville.
So when we refer to the Demigodz, that's who we're talking about?
A: That's who it is. Rise, Spin 4th, and Open Mic are still affiliates. It's like with the Wu-Tang how there's Sunz of Man, Killarmy and Killah Priest. Rise and Open Mic and Digga, all of them, they??€�re still cool with us.
What about Louis Logic? I didn't hear his name mentioned.
A: Louis...I don't have anything to do with Louis. He was always more Celph's friend, I never rocked that tight with him. He was cool at first because he was more of a hip-hop MC. Then he started to get a little funny throughout the years.
I was going to say, his first album was really good. I want to say I haven't heard that much from him since then.
A: I liked his style back when he first started doing stuff when he would rap normal. Then he started to get more crazy and animated and I got turned off at that point. Then he started doing kooky shit that just didn't sound like Demigodz shit.
On his first album, parts of it were reminiscent of Eminem when he was starting out - (Yup) - and I feel like Eminem went down that same track. I hear an Eminem song now and I'm like, "what'd you do?" In my mind, it's like he must be laughing behind the scenes that people are still buying it.
A: I don't know what's up with him, but that's not my people. That was Celph's people.
What about the Army of the Pharaohs album? When is it dropping and how much of a role did you play in that?
A: That album is dropping the same day as my album is dropping. I don't like that idea, but they are dropping March 21st. I was supposed to be in the original Army of the Pharaohs back in the day, but I was busy recording my shit and wasn't able to do it at that time. I've been down with Jedi Mind for a long time so it was essential that we did this. I produced a beat and rapped on 3 tracks. I wish I could have done more but I was dead in the middle of recording Eastern Philosophy.
The AOTP album has been highly anticipated, I hope it lives up to the hype.
A: Yeah, it's cool. I heard it, it's cool.
You don't sound blown away by it.
A: Nah. It's cool. I like it, it's a good album. It's what the fans will like. Everybody's lyrics are amazing, and that's what people want.
You may have, in your mind, a list of people you want to work with. You have to get the label motivated...
A: Before you finish that thought, I don't know what I'm going to do. I don't know if it's going to be with Atlantic, but I know it's going to be on a major label. Whether it's with Atlantic, or it's with someone else, it's going to happen. I don't know that the same process will apply elsewhere.
Your A&R kind of gave you permission to get out of the deal, have you been courted by any other labels?
A: Yeah. I don't want to talk about to. Everybody does that, saying, "I don't want to talk about who." It would really be shooting myself in the foot if I started to blast off, but there are some obvious connections that I have that are interested. There is definitely a good amount of majors that are interested. I have real dope lawyer Theo Sedlmayr, he's Eminem and 50's lawyer who represents Jim Jones and Just Blaze. I'm going to be doing something big.
I'd have to imagine it's like being signed to the NBA, but sitting on the bench. It's like, "give me a starting position."
A: It really is. It's frustrating too because -- everybody says this -- but there's so much wack shit out there. I know from the material that I'm making that I can make some dope shit, but people are afraid to take a chance.
Did Atlantic do anything else to promote the album with Babygrande, or do they just sit back?
A: Yup. The dope thing, well, dope in some senses and wack in other, but it helps me out because it evens out my balance with them. It's like paying off a credit card. I got an up front amount from Babygrande, which is good. Then, the publishing and the royalties are going to go back to paying off my budget with Atlantic, which I love. I'd rather have a zero balance so that when I'm out I don't owe them shit.
Is that budget from all these tracks that you make that they don't use?
A: Yeah. I've spent a good amount. I've gone to LA where we locked down Paramount Studio for about a month. We recorded in there and did a whole bunch of shit. I've spent a good amount of change out of my budget. I want to get that out of the red.
Tell me about your tour with Fort Minor.
A: It was so dope being opened up to a different fan base. It was really incredible.
How receptive is that fan base?
A: At first they're real timid. There are a lot of younger fans that aren't use to the culture, they're Linkin Park fans. We come out there like, "Yay! Throw your fucking hands up!" They get scared a little bit. Towards the end when they hear our lyrics and everything they open up. Ever since Mike Shinoda showed us love, his fans show us tons of live.
As I was watching the Grammy??€�s the other night, I saw Linkin Park perform and didn't think the guy rapping looked like Mike. Was I mistaken?
A: He use to have long hair, but now he has shorter hair and wears a baseball hat. But yeah, he was there. We were in Georgia and had a couple of days off and he flew out to the Grammy??€�s and came back the next day. We were all watching him perform from the hotel, watching him perform with Hov and Paul McCartney. That was hot.
AHave you seen the site recently?
A: I did! I saw that you guys updated it, it's all black and it looks dope. The only sites I go to for new shit is you guys and hiphopgame.com.
Anything else you'd like to add?
A: Just that we're really looking to promote Motives album next. We all think that his album has something special. It's going to be a good one.

[cafteala]

Ignorance in Effect (Oh Word)



The villains of hip-hop videos have long been overlooked and marginalized. By the late 90s, simplistic superhero vs. evildoer plots and motifs had become pass?©, and the age of the Video Vixen and Fish-Eye Lens was soon upon us. In the spirit of shining light on the unrecognized, we caught up with Ignorance, Jeru The Damaja??€�s arch-nemesis and rap video legend.

OhWord: Perhaps we should begin by allowing you to introduce yourself to those of our readers who may not be familiar with Ignorance.

Ignorance: (clears throat) Oh, certainly, my name is Ignorance, and I was born on March 15th, 1968. I was raised in a lower-middle class, multi-ethnic, polyglot shithole called Ridgewood, Queens- big up entire Ridgedood Masif, bo! Ridgewood borders Bushwick, Brooklyn and is just a stone??€�s throw away from the most unsavory locales of East New York, Bed-Stuy, and Brownsville, places where I first began my career in socio-pathic and nihilistic wrongdoing (begins to laughs maniacally, but stop suddenly, as if self-conscious).

OhWord: Now, ??€?Ignorance??€? ??€¦ Is that your name ??€¦ or is it a nomme d??€�plum?

Ignorance: It??€�s a nomme d??€�plum. (chortles).

OhWord: Would you tell us your real name if we asked?

Ignorance: No.

OhWord: (pauses reflectively) Why not?

Ignorance: (clears throat, says nothing).

OhWord: Okay then. What was your childhood like?

Ignorance: Why, blissful, of course. My father, that filthy rat bastard mick, was a union contractor and part-time gunrunner. My dirty wop of a mother was a woefully under-qualified, tenured seventh grade Social Studies teacher. In all, I had eight siblings- two sisters and six brothers; all were involved in juvenile delinquency from an early age. Despite our Papist leanings, we eschewed charitable action in favor of sadistic hooliganism. I remember the holidays as being especially joyous. (heehaws)

OhWord: What would you say was the most pivotal incident during your early development as a paragon of ignorance and bad will?

Ignorance: In 1984 I was a wisecracking, high school dropout/ mailroom clerk at the New York Post. Crack had just hit the streets of central Brooklyn hard, but community groups in Bushwick were mobilizing to counter the epidemic. I was frankly frightened by the possibility of real social improvement in our time. Lemme tell ya, it was a real eye opener, a wake up call, even! Something had to be done. I had to make the transition from uninformed apathy into a full-time advocacy of hatred and social deterioration. You know, become a man. (sniggers)

OhWord: So what came out of this moment of opacity?

Ignorance: I soon developed my famous, patented ??€?Babies Having Babies??€? campaign in response. (titters)

OhWord: Now ??€?Babies Having Babies??€? was a slept-on classic! A lot of people were jockin??€� ??€?Poisoning Our Babies??€? just because Grand Puba mentioned it in a song. Fucking sheep will jock anything if Grand Puba mentions it. Anyway, how did the success of ??€?Babies Having Babies??€? change your outlook?

Ignorance: I couldn??€�t content myself with having only spearheaded ??€?Babies Having Babies??€? ??€¦ it needed a followup, something big. There had to be a way to make sure that the phenomenon of babies having babies was even more stressful and dangerous. One afternoon while watching the hilariously edited TV version of The Warriors, I had a vision of a chaotic, nearly unlivable New York. That was the beginning of my ??€?Young Niggaz Selling Crack??€? campaign, my longest running and most successful campaign ever! (teehees)

OhWord: Word up, that shit was all the rage in NYC in the late 80s. I remember it well. I was shot by a crackhead for my sheepskin coat back in ??€�85 out on Jamaica Avenue.

Ignorance: See, the kids these days have it easy- our generation dropped the ball and failed to pass on the legacy. They don??€�t know how it was- addicts on every subway line, Delancey Street stick-up kids, crazy Brooklyn dreds, my nigga Bernie Goetz wilin??€� out??€¦ What a time to be alive, scared out of your mind, and completely ignorant! Everywhere you went- Spanish Harlem, L.E.S., QB, The Bricks, Wyandanche, Canarsie- total chaos. Shit hasn??€�t been the same since about ??€�96. (snickers)

OhWord: Wordlife! Nowadays you got cats like Damon Dash making movies about the Golden Age, without giving props to the most important pioneers. Do you feel like your contribution has been glossed over?

Ignorance: It??€�s all good, playa. Ignorance begets more ignorance. The less people are informed, the better. I benefit from any ignorant act committed anywhere on this despicable globe. To quote the great Kanye West: ??€?da man get paid off alladat!??€? When it comes to getting paid off of human suffering, I??€�m all over that shit.??€¦ (awkward pause, piercing feedback whistle is heard)??€¦ um, no homo. (convulses in laughter)

OhWord: Who would you name as your influences or inspirations?

Ignorance: First and foremost, I gotta give ??€?nuff respect to the cops in the video for ??€?The Message??€?- not only were they unaware of the Furious Five??€�s growing fame, they just casually assumed that they were a gang! Brilliant work I tells ya- did you peep how the one cop just shoves Cowboy into the back seat? I laughed my ass off. Also, the drug dealers in LL Cool J??€�s ??€?I??€�m Bad??€? video. These were some superlatively ignorant mahfuckas- branching out into kidnapping and extortion just ??€?cause some Troop clad brat from Hollis posted a few fliers. At the time I had not really broken into the industry, and that shit made me want to cross over into the field of full-fledged supervillainry, you know, do it professionally. (cachinnates)

OhWord: Right on. What are the origins of your beef with Jeru the Damaja?

Ignorance: Jeru was a problem for years. Even as a youth he was bright, focused, and principled. I threw every temptation, every obstacle in his way, in the desperate hope that PCP addiction or a craving for pork-based snacks might take him out for good. In retrospect, my team underestimated the extent of his super-scientifical powers as well as his unmatched skill at throwing sharp steel bookmarks. Plus, we didn??€�t know it at the time, but some local skeezer, possibly an embittered, unemployed Nikki D., dropped a dime on us. As you know, my crew paid dearly for their oversights. (guffaws)

OhWord: Now, concerning what Jeru did to your wife, Deceit??€�

Ignorance: (interrupting) It was nothing; I have others. Cowardice, for example, has been my down-ass boo for some time. Ms. Treachery holds me down when times is hard. Besides, if there??€�s one thing that Jeru and I can agree on, it??€�s that the bitches ain??€�t shit but the handmaidens of all things devious and morally bankrupt! Next question! (writhes in exultation)

OhWord: You seem more agitated then your cavalier statements suggest.

Ignorance: (somberly) Listen, man ??€¦ I gotta keep it real with you, that shit hurt. Deceit was my first and favorite wife. We used to draw our initials in the sand at Howard Beach, nahmean? For him to kill her like that ??€¦ that??€�s some never forgive action. Still my coterie of fiendish honeydips is a minor consolation, I can??€�t front. (cackles)

OhWord: What is your opinion of Jeru??€�s career post-Premier?

Ignorance: There??€�s no shame in mopping the floors of peep-show establishments, so long as you use that experience to climb up the malevolent ladder. (hardy-hars awkwardly)

OhWord: Um, are you aware that Jeru continued to record music after he parted ways with his label and stopped working with Primo?

Ignorance: I heard a delicious rumor that he was signed to Irv Gotti??€�s label and was poised to become the next crossover smash, performing soft duets with some bearded lady or some such nonsense. I didn??€�t know how seriously to take it. I mean Jeru on TRL? What??€�s next, MC Shan, American Idol? (sniggles)

OhWord: Whatever. How many times has Greedy Lou been killed in action?

Ignorance: About sixteen or seventeen but he hasn??€�t been merked since about 1997, when he joined Puff Daddy??€�s Hitmen production team, along with Lord Finesse, Jesse West, Tony Dofat, and Brian Austin Green. He??€�s living lavish these days, and rightfully so. Hard worker, and a great guy all around. (crows)

OhWord: Whatever happened to Tricknology?

Ignorance: Tricknology- that??€�s my boy. You can??€�t front on the kid. Back in 1994 he signed a multi-million dollar deal with the Bilderberg Group. He??€�s the one who put surveillance cameras in every project, and he has a bright future ahead of him installing microchips into hands and foreheads. Oh, he also has his own rare grooves and breakbeats show on Sirius radio. Don??€�t sleep! (giggles)

OhWord: You seemed to be rather low-key during the late 90s. Did you leave the music industry altogether?

Ignorance: By 1997, it was harder for me to get gigs as an artist. I did two tracks with this underground guy Aceyalone called ??€?The Jabberwocky,??€? and ??€?Grandfather Clock.??€? Those songs were a little too heavy for most people, especially when you consider that Lewis Carroll??€�s fame had been eclipsed by that of DMX. I did not leave the scene entirely, but I stayed behind the scenes, doing a little consulting and A & R work here and there. Still, it was not yet the right time for me to shine. Unconscionably violent and misogynistic ignorance had not yet taken over rap. Sure, there was a resurgence of carefree licentiousness and gaudy materialism, but full-blown idiocy coupled with casual indifference and amoral complacency was at least half a decade away. (cracks up)

Ohword: Now it??€�s time for a word association game. I??€�ll say a word, phrase, or name, and you respond with the first thing that comes to mind. Okay ??€� Afrika Islam.

Ignorance: Who??€�s a what??€�s it now?

OhWord: N.O.R.E.

Ignorance: Fam.

OhWord: Professor X.

Ignorance: Biter.

OhWord: Fu-Shnickens

Ignorance: Parking attendants.

OhWord: thebreaks.com.

Ignorance: Violatin??€�!

OhWord: Hip-Hop Blogs.

Ignorance: Banal.

OhWord: Mos Def.

Ignorance: Simian.

OhWord: Busta Rhymes

Ignorance: Gentile.

OhWord: Reggaeton.

Ignorance: Reg-gay-tone.

OhWord: Rap sucks.

Ignorance: But it sounds good in da club!

OhWord: That??€�s all the time we have for now, any parting words?

Ignorance: Sure, first I??€�d like to say peace to the 85% nation of powerless know-nothings. Keep destroying and subtracting from the cipher. Shout out to Lee??€�s brother from Wildstyle, Rappin??€� Duke, News on the DL, The Ying-Yang Twins, Dip Set, Soup from Jurassic 5, and Sacha Jenkins. Be sure to pick up my upcoming, long-awaited debut album, Aborted Downs Syndrome Babies Selling Crack To Young Niggaz WIth Babies, dropping June 14th on Koch Records. I??€�m outtie, ya??€�ll. (yucks it up)

[cafteala]

Lost Children of Babylon: Conspiracy Theories

Within the last few years, America has been through a lot. Terrorist attacks, war in Iraq and a devastating hurricane are among the events the country has experienced, with the government taking a lot of the heat. Lost Children of Babylon, a Philadelphia-based group featuring Rasul Allahu, the Breath of Judah, Richard Raw, Cosmic Crusader, Ancient Kemite, Amun Sen Hotep Re, Atum Sen Geb the Eloheem, Stretch the Mad Scientist and Wazulu the Ill Dravidian, have no fear when sharing its views on the government on their new album, The 911 Report, The Ultimate Conspiracy. Rasul Allah takes a moment to chat with Hiphopsite.com about the album's title, references to Osama Bin Laden and Huey Newton and the lost state of hip-hop.

HipHopSite: What can fans expect from the new album?

The unveiling of truth in its most vigorous form. Basically, we're exposing not just what happened in 911, but what is happening in the world today with religion and politics.

HHS: What is the meaning of the album's title, The 911 Report: The Ultimate Conspiracy?

Basically, it's equivalent to the 911 Commission, but in hip-hop form for our culture to better understand what took place. The meaning behind the 911 title is ultimately that the US government had prior knowledge of these events. We want to illuminate what a majority of people might not be aware of, specifically that the government did nothing to prevent the catastrophe from happening. These attacks were one element in a broader campaign: to begin a new war with the Middle East.

HHS: The album is described as "a somber reflection on the events of September 11th but no less of an indictment of the government's actions in the wake of 911 as well as the ideological battle against the very principles of Islam under the guise of the "War On Terror." What is your opinion concerning the recent controversy surrounding the cartoons of the prophet Muhammad?

Rasul Allah: First of all, if you really think about it, most Arabs have done this to themselves. The cartoons aren't a depiction of the prophet Muhammad because the Sunni unorthodox Muslims claim they don't know what he looked like, aside from brief descriptions of him in the quran and Hadiff. So if there's no true image of Muhammad then there should be no problem. I think what they're really mad about is feeling discriminated for their religion, which really is just an institutionalized form of slavery that binds people emotionally and psychologically.

HHS: This album looks to cause a lot of controversy. You pull no punches about Bush and the state of the government as well as the reasons for going to war. Has the government done more to insure a safe country since 9/11?

Rasul Allah- Not at all. The whole situation with the National Security Agency was concocted to make the American people feel unsafe after 911, in order to instill the Patriot Act, which is the same thing that happened at Pearl Harbor. The themes are universal throughout history in terms of the "Nazinisation" of a nation. You have to understand the Bush Family and their ties to the Illuminati, which originated in Germany.

The current new world order philosophy comes from Adolph Hitler's, which was a vision of a single world order, where everyone lives under one leadership, under the rule of one dictating state. George Bush's grandfather Prescott Bush was part owner of the Harriman Bank which was the main Wall Street connection for German companies during Hitler's reign.

Historically, the ties are there. America is following the German "single world order" ideology but shrouding it as a global democratic "overhaul." And Asia is next on the list. What people have to understand is that World Powers create conflicts for wars that are not real but at heart are aligned with business ambitions. In that way, the illuminati can gain more natural resources and control.

The great Sun Zu who wrote the art of war once said "a war is not meant to be won, but to be continuous." The "war on terror" to provide for our security, and our supposed "best interest" in staying the course is a convenient rationalization for this perpetual state of war. And all authorities across the world are a part of this.

HHS: In "America's Hallen Heroes," Osama Bin Laden is labeled a freedom fighter, rather than a terrorist. Why?

Rasul Allah: I think what your stating is from the verse where rich raw says "Hey listen I've been bragging about the threat of Bin Laden /of Al- Queda/ A Terrorist?/ Not likely call him a freedom fighter/just think if the Black Panthers would've remained/ would the government view Huey P. as one in the same?"

What he is questioning is how American society would view Huey P. if he was alive right now. Would the government label him a terrorist? I think so. Another example is Fred Hampton, who was killed by Chicago Police. They basically go after anyone who exposes and revolts the illuminati and their new world order Agenda.

HHS: With the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, the government has been criticized for their late response to the disaster as well as the whole recovery process. Any thoughts?

Rasul Allah- I think that Katrina was another example of using a tragedy to separate the rich from the poor. Nowhere was the economic and social divide more on display than in the aftermath of Katrina. I saw on CNN the other day that the government is starting to cut funding for Katrina victims, the majority of which are black people. Budgetary issues or racism in disguise?

HHS: Your group is a throwback to groups like Public Enemy and X-Clan as well as current artists Immortal Technique and dead prez, who voice their opinion about the government and current issues. With all the emphasis on money, girls and guns, do you feel hip-hop is lost right now?

Rasul Allah: Yes I do , and it won't be the same until some revolutionary hip-hop comes along and brings back the essence to the culture, like Public Enemy in the 80's, Wu-Tang in the 90's Immortal Technique/Dead Prez currently. Similarly, we're trying to bring back some global consciousness back into rap

HHS: Although there seems to be a renewed emphasis on conscious rap (ie. Common, Kanye West, Talib Kweli, etc.), can hip-hop ever get back to being as Chuck D called it "the CNN of Black America?" Will the media and more importantly rap fans allow politically charged rap to come back to the forefront?

Rasul Allah: First of all Common, Kanye, and Kweli shouldn't be labeled as the "faces" of conscious rap. Nas, Kool G Rap and others are as much as conscious if not more, but just express themselves in a different way. The word "conscious" means "TO KNOW" and basically is an awareness of your surroundings, political, economic, social and otherwise. If people are to support real hip-hop, there can be another golden era, but I don't see that happening until people start supporting some real revolutionary hip-hop along the lines of The Lost Children of Babylon, Killah Priest, Immortal Technique and Dead Prez.

HHS: In closing, can (or should) rappers pick up the torch left by MLK, Malcolm X and most recently Coretta Scott King?

Rasul Allah- I think that the examples set forth by Chuck D and KRS can be very influential if exposed properly. Unfortunately, aside from them there is no one in hip-hop I see that is endeavoring to pick up the torch. And the corporate culture does not help either. Record labels, TV and radio programmers control who and what gets played and heard. As a business, they are just looking to perpetuate what is working so that they can meet their quarterly numbers. They have no interest in effecting positive change, and the cycle of negativity continues.

[Deena]

Apathy: King Of C.T.

Interviewed by Darin Gloe

Hip-Hop started in the Bronx, but Connecticut? Hell yeah, Connecticut is where Apathy is resides and continues to rep to this day. After dropping successful bootlegs and several independent releases, Apathy has truly dropped a masterpiece in "Eastern Philosophy" which is released on March 21st. We sat down with Ap and found out what Atlantic's problem is, what he's got on his plate and where he's going from here. If you weren't an Apathy fan yet, you better wake up because it's about time.

What's good, how are you doing.

I'm doing good right now, laying on the tour bus. We are in the middle of driving from New York to Georgia, 18 hours or something like that.

But that's the life of hip-hop superstar right... (laughs)

Please...I'm on the coattails of a superstar, riding along with Shinoda. As soon as this tour is over and I go on an Apathy tour. It's going to be a big difference from a lavish tour bus to a little humble van or something like that.

The question on everybody's mind is what's up with Atlantic...what is their problem over there?

Honestly is really hard for us to get on the same page. I don't really know what they are looking for, my biggest beef is with one of the dudes who I respect over there, and that's my A&R. He has taught me a lot and he is mad cool. He is my A&R, and he's kind of a friend and I don't know what I have to do. I'm kind of frustrated and I don't know what more I have to do to impress him. I've recorded tons of material and I've done everything under the sun. I've hit every spectrum, from doing some crazy wild Outkast out there type songs to doing straight boom bap to doing semi-club joints. I've done from here to there and everything in between. They have actually told me verbatim "congratulations man, you just made your hit, this is it, you've just opened up your budget". Then 8 months later I'm calling them like "hello, what's going on" then they tell me they need 5 or 10 more songs and then we'll fly you out here again and really start to work on the album. So I do that and call and it's like I'm bothering them, so they tell me come up and we'll do 20 songs and we'll pick the best and go into album mode. I'm just like "are you kidding me?" Every time I call them it's a new thing.

So the album is done then, like 3 times over?

I wouldn't say that, I keep getting hit in so many different directions. When I did "Eastern Philosophy" I knew what I wanted to do to. It was very cohesive and I knew what songs were going where and in what order. But with the Atlantic project I just have a big clusterfuck of songs and I don't have a cohesive album. I have tons of songs recorded, and pretty soon I'm going to release a bootleg 2 CD, so people can see what I've been doing for Atlantic. That way people can hear what I've been doing and how many different directions I've taken.

What would you say is the major difference between a major label and an indie label is for the artist?

Oh god, it's night and day. Majors tell you what to do and what you can and you can't use. Majors deal with the sample clearance issues and everything. On indies you do whatever you want to do and you create your album how it's supposed to be. Don't get me wrong there is bullshit with indie label's too. There is bullshit with any label you're going to deal with. Unless you are putting it out solely by yourself you're going to deal with some bullshit if another person is involved and in the mix.

So in the meantime you have taken your career into your own hands, "Eastern Philosophy" is on Babygrande correct and comes out March 21st. Why Babygrande?

There was a whole bunch of people who were interested. I'm not going to say names, but you know, the usual suspects, all the major indie labels were ready to go. One of the biggest that was ready to go and then all of a sudden Babygrande came in and made me a really good offer. They came in and made the offer as long as I took all the other deals off the table. We agreed and I ready to go. They guaranteed things like making a video which has already been shot. Everybody came through for that, Demigodz, my crew the Dough Rakas and even Shinoda came through and did a little guest shot in the video

So I'm just going to ask, would you ever bounce from Atlantic and sign with Fort Minor?

Fuck yeah, hell yeah...I'm not even going to lie. Atlantic has to think of it from my perspective. If the relationship is not there and nothing is going on, why wouldn't I leave the label? Don't get me wrong, my A&R knows what's going on and knows we can't get on the same page and he said to me "you're not shelved and I'd like you to grind it out with us over here, but I don't want to be that big bad label and hold you back from your career. If you want to go, I'll let you go". So I can't sit back and vilify him and make him out to be a dickhead, because he's not. That's real talk.

You have always repped CT and from the title and the sound of the album, you are really repping the east coast as a whole. Do you feel the east needs that resurgence in hip-hop?

If you want all this shit, it's cool that all these dudes rap like this. But back in the day the east coast had its own sound. Kool G Rap, Big Daddy, Gangstarr, DITC, they all sounded different but they were still east coast. Nowadays everything sounds the same. "Y'all pop shots/we gonna do it like this/my man come through/you get hit with a fist"

(Laughs)

Everybody sounds identical, there are only a couple of dudes from the east who still sound the same and still have their own style.

Ryu of Styles of Beyond makes an appearance on "Can't Leave Rap Alone", which is the b-side of the single. Styles of Beyond and the Demigodz have very different styles, how did that collaboration come about?

Well, as you might know Styles is Demigodz, we brought them on a while back. We actually didn't know Shinoda and SOB did. Those dudes are literally like our brothers, they fit so well into our group and how we are. Ryu and I are like twins, the way we act, it's crazy. For instance, the first 3 nights of the show by accident we ended up wearing the same gear. Shit was crazy...we were like what the fuck?

(Laughs) That is crazy, I can't really see Ryu punching somebody in the face where you I can.

That's funny, because you couldn't be more wrong (laughs). For instance, we were at the VMA's and we had some issues with one of the biggest rap crews out in the mainstream. I'm not going to say who it was, but Ryu was taking off his chain and we all taking off our shit getting ready to bang out with these dudes. It got real tense and heated and make no mistake about it, Ryu is a scrapper. Knowing that Ryu and Celph have my back I know everything is good.

On "The Winter" you bring back the missing in action Blue Raspberry and you really flip your style into a story telling emcee. Is "Winter" analogy to a personal experience that you have gone through?

For real man, that's every year of my life. Winter is hell; it's like a parallel hell where Satan freezes. Coming from the east coast and everybody in those areas knows that when you get hit with hard winters it just fucking kills you. You watch all the trees die, you watch everything die and everything turns gloomy. Sometimes it gets so cold it hurts your skin, you take a deep breath and you start to cough. You go outside and it makes you feel sick and it hurts. I wrote that song just sitting around, it's cold and I got bags under my eyes and I didn't even have the motivation to get up and take a shower. Chum played the sample and I was like, "that feels like today". Chum flipped it and we started writing. We originally going to do cuts for the hook, but I thought there was already too many cutting tracks on the album. I sat there and thought Blue Raspberry from Wu-Tang clan be perfect for this. Chum and I are huge Wu-Tang fan and we thought Wu did her wrong when they stopped using her. So I'm driving around singing all high pitch and shit like she would, so that was my mission...find Blue Raspberry. It took mad long.

Since I'm a DJ and when I hear some cuts that really make me rewind the tape like on "All About Crime", who is the dj?

DJ Mekalek (from Time Machine) did those cuts. That song has been done for a really long time. That's funny because that was going to be on the first version of "Eastern Philosophy" and that song originally was completely different. I tell everybody before I play that song for people I tell them that those cuts are my favorite cuts of all time other than when Primo cuts up "DWYCK". Mek is Chum's favorite DJ and Chum is my DJ, so Chum said this is the only guy would I would say to do the cuts. After he did it, Chum and I just looked at each other after he did and looked at him like..."what the fuck was that".

Turning to the production side of "Eastern Philosophy", Chum the Skrilla Gorilla produced 8 of the 14 tracks on the album. Who exactly is he and how did you guys hook up?

I met Chum a long long time ago. I met Chum through a mutual friend. It's a funny story, the original Demigodz were me and Open Mic. Mic had an ASR-10 and that's what we would always make beats on. Mic ends up selling the ASR-10 to a local music store and remember, this is before me and Chum ever even met. He actually ended up buying Mic's ASR-10 and then years later when we met I went to his house and noticed his ASR-10 had this scratch that Mic and I had put on it when we where moving it out of the car years earlier. So Chum tells us where he got it and it just bugged us out how it stayed in the family. Chum kept working with us and there is no one else I like working with more than Chum. No one is really on the same page as Chum. It's mostly me, Chum and Celph who do most of the recording and mixing and we are all on the same page of how we go about doing things.

So what's next for Apathy, we know Atlantic is still coming (hopefully), but you are a very busy man...what's on your plate right now.

Biggest thing I want to say is go buy "Eastern Philosophy" on March 21st. Also, I want everybody to check for my man Motive's album. His album is along the same lines as "Eastern Philosophy". Me and Chum did all the beats and honestly his album is classic. He is going to come out of now where, he's going to be the next one out of the Demigodz. Also, Styles of Beyond is working on their album and everything they are doing is on some next level shit. Plus, 7L and Esoteric is working on some new shit and Celph Titled and J-Zone got the "Boss Hogg Barbarians" dropping March 14th.

[iLL:WiLL]

MURS
Interview by Jim Mahfood

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


MURS: MAKIN' UNDERGROUND RAW SHIT. THAT'S WHAT THE MAN'S NAME STANDS FOR. AND THE MAN IS ONE OF THE DOPEST RAPPERS ON THE PLANET. IF YOU DON'T BELIEVE ME, SHUFFLE YOUR FAT ASS TO YOUR LOCAL RECORD STORE AND PICK UP ANY ONE OF HIS INCREDIBLE PROJECTS. NOBODY DOES IT QUITE LIKE HIM. UNDERGROUND CARTOONIST JIM MAHFOOD CONVINCED THE MAN TO MEET HIM IN HOLLYWOOD TO CHECK OUT THE NEW GOODS AT MELTDOWN COMICS. AND AFTER SOME GEEKING OUT AND LUNCH AT SUNSET THAI, THE TWO NERDS SETTLED DOWN IN MAHFOOD'S STUDIO FOR THE FOLLOWING CHAT.

Jim Mahfood: Okay, so, I'm hanging out with Murs in my studio, and he's looking at the new issue of Playboy.

Murs: Debbie Gibson!

JM: (laughs) Checkin' out Debbie Gibson. How's she look?

M: She looks good, man. She looks hot.

JM: She gets the thumbs up from Murs?

M: If you're naked and you're famous, that's all it takes to get the thumbs up from me.

Both: (laugh)

JM: So, when are you going to get gold fronts, some diamonds 'n' shit, and make the transition into acting?

M: (laughs) No gold. I don't believe in gold. But acting, the movie comes out this June.

JM: What movie?

M: It's based on "Walk Like A Man" from the Murs 3:16 album. I shot a short independent film that I financed, produced, and starred in. It's a 20- to 30-minute short film featuring a soundtrack with exclusive tracks from Atmosphere, Blueprint, the "Hustle" remix with E-40 and [wrestler] John Cena. I don't know what the project is going to be called yet, but the movie and the soundtrack will be packaged together.

JM: Sweet. Tell me about John Cena. You got him to bust some raps on the track "Hustle", and even got him to be in the video.

M: He's just a great guy. One of the coolest people I've met. He came down to South Central, and we blocked off this neighborhood and did the video. People were bugging the fuck out when they saw him. They were going nuts! He was amazing; he signed every single autograph, and was totally down-to-earth.

JM: And he has an album coming out, right? I mean, he can actually rap?

M: Hell yeah. I wanna be like him when I grow up.

JM: Tell me what else you got going on as far as work goes.

M: New Living Legends album dropped on March 8th. I'm only on five songs, so I don't really count that as one of my projects, but you should buy it anyway. Felt 2, starring Slug and Murs, is coming out in May or July. That's still up in the air right now. We got the new 3MG's album starring Eligh, Scarub, and myself; that comes out in June.

JM: Cool. You're going to have a busy summer.

M: Yes.

JM: How did the whole Felt thing come about? Or, I guess I should ask first, how did you meet Slug?

M: We met on the Hieroglyphics tour whenever Full Circle came out. Or, no... wait, not Full Circle. What was the one before that?

JM: 3rd Eye Vision?

M: Yeah. When was that? '98?

JM: Yeah, I think so.

M: So, we were on that tour. Living Legends and Atmosphere were opening up for Hiero. When we were in Minneapolis, ya know, we shouted out "Atmosphere", and the crowd went fucking nuts! And I was like, "Wow, these guys are actually doing something! They're puttin' it down in their city, and that's dope." So Sean [Slug] and I would trade tapes, and we got to know each other and become friends. I listened to Overcast before it came out, and dug it. So time passed and we would talk all the time. And then Sean came out to L.A. once for a vacation. He wanted an excuse to get outta town, so he called me and said, "Let's make an album." So he came out, and all we did was drink beer, smoke cigarettes, and write raps all night. And that was Felt 1: A Tribute To Christina Ricci. And then we went out to Grouch's house and recorded everything. People think we didn't spend a lot of time on it, but day in and day out we were together-- except for female time-- workin' on it. And then we went on tour after that. And after all that was over, it was like we were bonded for life. Atmosphere tours are, like, serious-ass, 75-day grueling, in a van, rain, sleet or snow, professional, all-out tours!

JM: That was the year you guys did that show at The Bash On Ash [venue] in Tempe, and I rocked the live art. That was the first time I met Slug and Mr. Dibbs.

M: That's right.

JM: That was my last show in Tempe before I left. You sent me off proper; you got the whole crowd to chant, "I read Grrl Scouts," over and over again! (laughs)

M: (laughs) Yes!

JM: And I gave Sean some of my comics, and he gave me an advanced copy of Felt 1. I listened to it the next day when I moved out to L.A.

M: So, Felt holds a special place in your heart.

JM: Yeah.

Both: (laugh)

JM: So, after that tour, like you said, you guys were bonded for life. It's like you went to war together.

M: Exactly. Going on tour is like going out to sea with somebody. Whether you like them or not, you're going to learn how to deal with them by the time you get home. (laughs) You go through your ups and your downs. I got so fucking sick on that tour I was literally shitting on myself. I had to get steroid shots. I left $3,000 in a bedroom somewhere; I was so out of my mind. So we'd been through it, like, got chairs thrown at us, almost fought each other, all that.

JM: (laughs) Jesus.

M: But that stuff just strengthens things. And I think that shows in the music.

JM: Let's talk about Felt 2. I think the album is incredible, and I'm not just saying that 'cause you're my buddy. This is you and Sean at the top of your game. And Ant's beats and production are just ridiculous. The whole thing is drenched in Seventies funk and soul, and it's just a fuckin' banger!

M: (laughs) Thanks. Yeah, Ant came through. He's a real producer; he was there. He doesn't just do the beat and send it to you in ProTools. He was there throughout the whole process, and was very hands on. We'd be at home writing, and he would come through after he got off work or whatever. Even if he was just there, all quiet and nodding his head, he was part of it all.

JM: If there's a Felt 3, can I do the comic book for that, too?

M: (laughs) Of course. If we're worthy of another comic. Everyone, buy the Felt comic book when it drops on May 4th. You won't regret it!

JM: There's some shameless pimping going on here!

Both: (laugh)

JM: You were on the road touring relentlessly all year in 2004. No major touring for you this year?

M: Not really. Unless I can open up for the Deftones or something like that. At this point, the money isn't that important to me. Only thing you're doing when you're touring is trying to pay bills. I'm blessed because I don't have any children or anything like that. I have three little goddaughters that lost their father that I take care of, but other than that I'm trying to find ways to be happy with what I have. If fortune and fame do come this year, I wanna be happy first. Because fortune and fame don't bring happiness.

JM: Have you been offered to sign with any major labels?

M: Yeah, but I don't play their game. I never felt like shopping a demo, ever. What I don't get, even though I'm polite to them, is kids that come up to me and say, "Listen to my stuff and tell me what you think!" And I'm like, "Fuck what I think!" I never did that to anybody I know. If you're selling your shit, I'll buy it, period. I was in the mall the other day and some ghetto kids, some straight gangbangers, were sellin' their CD, and I already had one of 'em. And I told them where I got it, somewhere on the Vegas strip, and they were like, "Oh, yeah. Cool. Thanks for supporting us." I mean, Jay-Z has bought underground tapes from cats I know. I respect that hustle.

JM: Have you ever discovered anyone that's really good from buying tapes or CDs?

M: Not really. No, wait. There was some kid whose demo I got that I totally loved. This year I'm trying to help a lot more people with their music. I'm not going to say their names, 'cause someone will try and steal them away from me. (laughs)

JM: Do you think hip-hop is going to cycle around so that one day guys like you will be on the radio or on MTV? Does that even matter?

M: We've been waiting for that cycle to come around for so many years. I've heard Saul Williams and people talk about it. I've heard everybody say it, and, personally, I don't give a fuck. If you put your head down and get serious and work really hard, you're going to succeed. If you never give up, you can never fail.

JM: I've heard you rap on your albums about how you feel like the black community doesn't embrace your work as much as you'd like.

M: Yeah.

JM: So, who would your ideal audience be then?

M: I don't know. But I know I haven't found them yet. Or they haven't found me.

JM: Do you think that's because you're not a stereotypical black guy? I mean, you rock street-style rhymes, but you also collect comics and toys, you play video games, you skate....

M: Yeah, that could be. But I come from the same neighborhood as most black guys. I probably got beat up, and beat up a lot more people than your favorite gangster rapper. I been shot at more times and had a gun in my hands more times than most. Right now, I'm rappin' to Aesop Rock's audience and Atmosphere's audience, and that needs to change and expand. Because to me, I'm the best rapper on the West Coast. I'm not being arrogant, but there's not a lot of people that are as versatile and decent and solid as I am as a writer and MC; live show-wise, work ethic, just period.

JM: Do you like arty hip-hop, like Anticon?

M: No, I'm not a big fan of it. It's some of the worst music out there. I think that people that make that type of music don't have enough reality in their lives. I don't like to say anything negative about anybody 'cause it's just my opinion, and it may not mean shit. But it's not my thing.

JM: What about Anti-Pop Consortium or Beans or stuff like that?

M: Yeah, not my thing. I think they're great people, but I listen to gangster rap every day. Give me some E-40 and I'm happy. That's my life, that's where I grew up, and that's what I relate to. But that's not necessarily the type of music I make. That would be like you only reading Marvel comics, but you make indie comics.

JM: Right. Did you used to drink a lot of 40s?

M: (laughs) Yeah.

JM: Smoke a lot of weed?

M: Yeah.

JM: You used to deal weed?

M: Yeah.

JM: When did you quit doing all that shit?

M: Last year. Well, I quit with the weed when I was 17. I quit drinking last year, and quit smoking cigarettes, too. I even quit eating meat.

JM: Who are some of the guys in the underground that deserve more attention?

M: Brother Ali, Blueprint, One.Be.Lo, and Eyedea and Abilities, who have been shit on and overlooked so much. Eyedea and Abilities are the only guys I know that take this shit as seriously as I do. Slug, too. I mean, we're all like scientists when it comes to this music. We'll break some shit down to you, especially when it comes to hip-hop. And, you know, I can't forget Justice League and Little Brother and them.

JM: You're on Z-Trip's new album, Shifting Gears, rapping on a track called "The Breakfast Club", which is going to blow people's minds and put a smile on their face when they hear it. Tell me about that track.

M: Yeah, Z-Trip and I have been hanging out, making lots of shit together over the last year; stuff people haven't heard yet. He's got almost a whole rhyme book of mine at this point. So he wanted to get me on the new album. I got my wisdom teeth pulled out one day, and drove from my dentist in South Central to Zach's [Z-Trip's] house to rip that track. My mouth was still numb when I was doing it, and I couldn't feel one of my eyes. I was bleeding profusely!

Both: (laugh)

JM: You really are the hardest working man in hip-hop!

M: Yes.

JM: Who's your favorite porn star?

M: Wow! Huh, lemme see. I just saw her in Vice. Tierra something or other. She's the only Mexican girl in the Max Hardcore videos. And Olivia O'Lovely, 'cause she was in my "Risky Business" video, and she let me spank her.

JM: You a Belladonna fan?

M: Who's that?

JM: She's this totally hot, all-natural, crazy white girl with tattoos. Really dirty and filthy. You'd like her.

M: Whoa!

JM: The crazy thing about living in L.A. is you can actually run into porn stars in your neighborhood. I ran into Charmane Star one day at my bank. I was standing in line behind her, and I recognized the tattoo on her arm. It was crazy!

M: What did you say to her?

JM: Nothing. I couldn't speak. It was just too tripped out for me.

Both: (laugh)

M: I've only seen Kool Keith at my bank.

JM: What?!? Kool Keith! That's my man!

M: That guy is fuckin' insane in the membrane.

JM: When are you guys going to do something together?

M: I don't know if I could work with him. I don't even know if Keith speaks English.

Both: (laugh)

JM: Did you talk to him at the bank?

M: Yeah. I told him to stop wearing all that goddamn red. And he just laughed at me.

Both: (laugh)

M: But anyway, he's legally insane. Can't drive a car. He has to have a driver with him at all times. He has one house for his clothes, one house for his shoes, and one house for his cereal.

JM: What?!? That's not true!

M: I'm serious, dude! I have reliable sources. So, he wakes up in the morning and gets dressed, and then walks down the street barefoot to his shoe apartment, gets his shoes, and then walks to his other apartment where his cereal is at.

JM: Wow! Tell me another Keith story.

M: I know one time backstage, during the Black Elvis tour, he made a friend of mine individually wrap 140 pieces of chicken into sandwich bags so he could give them out to the crowd for snack time with some Capri Suns.

JM: I love that!

M: And at the end of the night he wouldn't talk to the kid because he was white.

Both: (laugh)

JM: Damn, man. I think we should end it there. That's funny shit. We've been talking for over an hour, and I still have to transcribe this whole thing.

M: Really? Damn.

JM: Yeah. I thought tastes like chicken had some little intern that does that, but apparently not. Thanks so much for your time, man. I really appreciate it.

M: Anything for Food One.

[iLL:WiLL]

Army Of The Pharoahes interview

http://www.hiphopsite.com/NEWS/interviews.hhs

[cafteala]

Vinnie Paz Interview (talking about collaborating with RA and Ill Bill on new JMT album)

http://www.hiphopgame.com/index2.php3?page=aotp