OFFICIAL INTERVIEW: Hit ‘Em With the Keys

PUBLISHED: Tuesday – August 24, 2010

Gutta World recently got to know Keize: keyboard player, writer, singer, rapper, mixer, and producer out of Phoenix. Find out how he slowly, but surely is breaking into the music industry and not letting anyone get in his way.

GW: What are you going to school for?
Keize: Graphic design. I went to school before for audio engineering. I got certified in recording, so I could get my quality good. I always wanted to wear all hats and be well rounded. Now I wanna be in the design process too so I can operate both services, you know, own my own business one day, offer audio and design, and do my own as well, not have to outsource to do it.

GW: Where do you find time to do it all?
Keize: [CHUCKLES] That’s a struggle every day. It’s time management; I’m learning it every day. I still have to do daytimes jobs and I get sessions thrown my way sometimes to help somebody else with their mixes. Like yesterday, I have a remix that has Dorrough and Charlie Boy on it and a couple other local artists. It’s been sittin’ there for like two months and I haven’t been able to finish the song because I been working on other stuff and I’m havin’ to do school work. I just have to force myself to not stay up ‘til like 4 or 5 in the morning.

GW: How long have you been playing the keyboard?
Keize: I was raised into a family that was all into music: my dad, grandparents, everybody. My dad and his brothers had a band, Third Generation, because they were the third generation of musicians in their family. I’m like the fourth generation getting into music. I was raised around his band. He had bought a keyboard for my sister when I was little and I just took it from her and started watchin’ music videos and play along.  Before I knew it, I was playin’ by ear. I kept at it, I can’t read notes or nothin’, but I think I can play up to par for the most part. I could compose and arrange. In Spanish music, they have a lot of complicated keyboard leads and that’s what really made me improve musically I think.

GW: You were in a Tejano band?
Keize: I haven’t been with them for like four or five years. They still do their own thing though. I actually helped them with plugs for design on their CD cover. They won a New Mexico award recently; my dad’s the lead singer of their band, Grupo Eclipse.

GW: You’ve lived in Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, and now Arizona. Why have you moved around so much?
Keize: When I was little it was because of my dad’s job. For whatever reason, I’ve never gotten out of the Southwest. It’s my home region. I don’t believe a lot of artists from Arizona or different states in the Southwest broke into the industry. I don’t think there’s anybody that’s defined a sound for the Southwest. There’s not a signature sound, when you think of the Southwest, you think cactuses [CHUCKLES]. You don’t think of anything music related. That’s my goal, to make a defining sound that can be recognized for this region. I decided to come to Phoenix, I came to school here for audio. It’s like the fifth biggest city in the nation so I figured there’s a lot of potential to get a fan base going and make a statement, draw some attention to this area. I plan on bein’ out here for a while, unless something comes up that’s real big.

GW: Was it a solo move?
Keize: I been with the same girl for a long time already. She’s been a lotta support for me. She moved out here with me, she’s going to school too. I’m trying to get my sister involved. She’s gonna start going to school for music business. I’ve been throwing ideas at her for what we can do together. She’s all for it, so she’s planning on moving out here soon.

GW: You’re 23, turning 24 in October. Do you feel like you’re getting old?
Keize: I’m used to being the youngest one everywhere, now I’m right in the middle. Everywhere I was, I was the baby of the clique. Now, I’m getting more experience. I just feel like it’s a constant race against time. I try not to get caught up in comparing myself to all these teenagers that are getting signed, ‘cause some people catch breaks, some don’t. People make their ways into the industry in different avenues. I’m tryin’ to hold me lane and do what I can. I feel like I’ve accomplished a lot at my age. I try not to measure my success with someone else’s. That’ll always get you negative energy. I try to stay on the positive side. I feel like I’m on a good pace right now.

GW: Describe a time when you’ve stood in your own way?
Keize: A couple years ago, I moved out to Nashville and I was working for a studio. I had a production deal that went bad and a lot of things were going wrong. I totaled my Tahoe off the interstate and everything went wrong at the same time. It’s real easy to just wanna give up sometimes. You’re tryin’ so hard and you blow your last savings tryin’ to get somewhere. Sometimes all those negative things will put a new light in front of your face. I had to regroup, go back to my hometown, Clovis, New Mexico, a real small town, really negative energy there. That’s where I lived the majority of my life, eleven years. It’s where the Texas panhandle is, right in the middle on the state line. You know Hank Baskett, football player for the Eagles? He’s from that town. That’s probably the only recognition that town’s ever got. There’s not much opportunity there. I just tried to save up for a couple months and get outta there as soon as possible. You’ll just get down real quick and that’s how I feel like I can stop myself. I let all that get to me and you lose motivation. Once you lose the motivation, it’s all your drive right there.

GW: You have two mixtapes out, On Deck and On Deck 2. When did they drop?
Keize: The first one was out a couple years ago. In between that I dropped a three song single that had Sean Kinston and Plies on it, two major names, I felt like I had to put it out right away. At that time I was lacking how to distribute. I feel like I went about things in the wrong way when I was younger. Now, I have this On Deck II project and it’s my first complete solo project.  I’ve done duo projects but I haven’t really promoted myself. I feel like I’m gonna be able to promote this in the right way. I’m setting up different distribution routes. I’m gonna make sure everything’s right this time before I just put it out. Right now I’m pushin’ that “Main Girl” song. I’m givin’ that out for free and gonna push that as hard as I can until everybody’s annoyed by that song, then follow up with another one until I feel like I have a good buzz in this area. I want it to have some anticipation.

GW: Who’re your musical inspirations?
Keize: I was real into R&B. My dad used to play that ‘80s R&B. He would play New Edition, stuff like that. That’s what I listened to all the time as a kid. When 2Pac and all those artists got real big, I was like 11. I started getting all into hip-hop. That was around the time I picked up the keyboard. You know, 2Pac was a big influence on everybody. I’d say the people that influenced me the most as far as the way they came up and their style, would be Chamillionaire or B.O.B. In R&B, it would be Jagged Edge. I actually got a video shout out from them, that was real cool.

GW: You also got a shout out from B.O.B. on your mixtape. Do you chill with a lot of big name artists?
Keize: Not really. For some reason, I’ve been good at finding ways to infiltrate, whether it’s some editor or A&R I’ve gotten in contact with.  I’ve been able to get at certain industry artists in one way or another. I just go about it in random ways like what’s the next thing I can do to get my music in this person’s hands. It’s always worth a shot.

GW: You have a song called “Choosy,” featuring OTS, that sounds kind of hyphy. Have you ever been to Cali or the Bay?
Keize: No, but as soon as I came out here I could just see the Bay influence in this whole area.  I performed at a club and did a straight up South song called, “Chill Out.” People kinda vibed to it, but the next act came up and it was just straight up hyphy sounding and the audience was just going crazy. I was like, “Man, I obviously gotta do a West Coast song over here.” JT the Bigga Figga, he did projects with the Game and Snoop, produced that track. OTS is a group out here, getting recognition. So I got the hyphy beat, got them on it, made it happen. I like the transition, I always try to incorporate melody, so I sing on the song.

GW: How choosy are you when it comes to women?
Keize: I think everybody’s picky at times. As far as the club song goes, it’s all about the attraction from somebody. On a personal level, I’m choosy with the intellect. I like to be challenged, you know?

GW: Describe a time when you turned down a female or was turned down by a female.
Keize: Sometimes I feel like I try too hard to be different. Let’s say, a real fine girl walks into a place and all the dudes will go crazy. I’ll be the one dude to act like she’s not there for the moment. That’ll be the different thing to do rather than be like, “Damn, look at that female!” I just try to do the different thing, if that catches the female’s attention, that’ll do it.

GW: Who’s the number one person you would chill with if you could?
Keize: If it was an athlete, I’d say Deion Sanders. If it was a executive type person, I’d say P. Diddy. If it was a artist, I’d say Chamillionaire. If it had to be a superstar female, Beyonce.

GW: What are your feelings/thoughts on the Arizona Anti-Immigration law?
Keize: From what I know, it was pretty much legal racial profiling. They were gonna be allowed to just look at somebody and say, “Hey, you have to have your papers.” You could be arrested, deported, all that. I guess after all the protesting and everything, the judge actually ruled where they couldn’t force anybody to have papers on ‘em all the time to prove their citizenship. I’m bi-racial but most people just think I’m full-blooded Hispanic. I’m half Mexican, part Spaniard, and part white. I would hate for that to have to happen to me. That would be crazy. I haven’t had any family members that’s been directly affected. I know it’s real heavy out here, a lot of local artists are standing up for it, shooting music videos, protesting it. The whole state had to stand up against it, a lot of unity.

GW: What’s the market like for Latino artists in Phoenix?
Keize: It’s real open, to me. There’s a couple that I’ve noticed that are getting recognition. I feel like my diverse background could break that open. I really wish I could break into the Hispanic market and do more crossover material, the way Baby Bash did, something like that. For whatever reason, the black market, or straight hip-hop, has gotten into me. I actually have a Spanish song, that’s when I noticed how the Hispanic market will really support you if you cater to them too. No mainstream Hispanic artists are doin’ real heavy radio play. It’s kinda easy to lose focus on who your target audience is because you’re tryin’ so hard to have that next commercial song. I think that’s another thing I need to focus on: cater to the Hispanic audience. It’s easy to get caught up in a certain sound that’s successful at the moment that you try to emulate.

GW: Do you want commercial success?
Keize: I would like to but I hear bad things at the same time. All the advice I’ve gotten from when I’ve spoken with A&Rs or management companies, they just tell me it’s better to have a really strong fan base before you even think about a major deal. If you don’t, you won’t have any negotiations, you’ll end up with the wackest deals ever. They say that’s what’s goin’ on now, when people get signed they have no leverage. The label’s all they got.

GW: Does it look like your break is getting closer?
Keize: Sometimes I feel like that because it’ll be a regular day, then like, I’ll get on line and there’ll be like a management or marketing company that randomly gets at me. I’m noticing that people are starting to approach me now rather than me always looking for someone to approach, that’s never happened before. It’s starting to balance out a little more. I don’t know if my music is starting to spread a little more now or if I’m just promoting heavy. It doesn’t hurt to have big names attached to your stuff. When I do that, it puts me on a different level. People don’t always wanna hear somebody’s stuff, they wanna just cast ‘em out. When they hear a big name attached to it, they think you’re doing it real big.

GW: If 2012 doesn’t hit us first, where do you see your career in about five years?
Keize: I would like to be an artist and have my own label, my own distribution. If it doesn’t work out, my plan two is to have a business where it’s a design studio and an audio studio under one roof. So, while I’m working, being an artist, I can also be mixing for other people, designing for other people. In five years hopefully I have an established design/audio studio that’s thriving.

GW: Last words?
Keize: I never block the next person and I wish all people would be like that, in a dream world. I see somebody, even if I’m not a fan of their music, that’s just my opinion, I know somebody else is gonna like it. If I see ‘em doing something positive, I’m all for it. If they send me something to help promote, I’ll post it. I just want other artists to be that way too. I ran into a lot of issues with people in radio, they don’t wanna play my songs when people are requesting, just ‘cause they don’t like me personally. I hate those kinda problems. I want people to be more supportive. If you’re a part of that person’s success, it’s gonna come back to you. Everybody can be successful.  I try to network with different people but it’s a lot of politicking goin’ on. People don’t like to let the next person get recognition unless their involved in it. I’m really outnumbered; I’m just trying to slowly get people involved.

By: Ness

INTERVIEW: It’s All Love With Bo Valentine

PUBLISHED: Tuesday – August 24, 2010

Bo Valentine, 23, of Westchester County, NY takes some time out of his day to discuss his debut album, Local Celebrity. He’s the first artist on Cogent Records, setting the pace for the label…and in today’s music race, he’s not trailing behind.

GW: Where can we find your album Local Celebrity?
Bo: You can buy that on bovalentine.com, amazon.com, itunes.com, myspace.com/bo914

GW: Who are your inspirations/influences in the game?
Bo: I love DMX, 2Pac, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, The Game, T-Pain, Tank, Pink, Onyx, Bob Baldwin, Michael Jackson.

GW: Is/are there any artists you would compare yourself to?
Bo: Everybody says they hear DMX, Pac, and Bone Thugs. A lot of people been sayin’ Twista, too. I don’t compare myself to anybody. If I had to compare myself to anyone, I’d compare myself to Bone Thugs. I like that real hip-hop. I love Bone Thugs, that’s where the fastness came from. That’s my favorite thing. I love spittin’ fast.

GW: You mention your love of “that real hip-hop,” yet your music on Local Celebrity is mostly club based.
Bo: I always loved to dance; I wanted everyone to have a good time, I made music so everyone could. You could be 1 to 100 and listen to it. There’s at least one song for somebody on that CD.

GW: How did you get started in the game?
Bo: I started out when I was four. I listened to Michael Jackson and grew from there. I was dancin’, singin’ a little bit, you know, this and that. When I was 12, I really got into writin’ hip hop. I joined a group, Child’s Play; they weren’t cuttin’ it for me. I wanted to be in the studio every day and they weren’t really on my level. They wanted to do it for fun and this is all I had. We started an album and then I left the group. We were gettin’ deals and nobody wanted to do it. I branched off by myself and had all the time I needed. I got to do what I needed to do.

GW: You have a song off the album, “We Made It.” Where is the “It” you have made it to?
Bo: I got my name out there. It was a rough road. I started off recording off two boom boxes, you know, real ghetto? You gotta crawl before you walk. I was makin’ music no matter what. If I had to write stuff and put it online, that’s how I’m gettin’ my music out there. Then I finally got a deal and got to release an album. “We Made It” is also for my hometown. I’m doin’ good right now, we’re all gonna be able to eat. I’m not just doin’ this for me, I’m doin’ it for my whole 914, Westchester, New York in general.

GW: You also have a song off the album called, “Hot.” Is there a certain girl who’s currently making you hot?
Bo: [CHUCKLES] I love women. That song was meant for when people go into a club or bar where it’s poppin’. There’s always somebody walkin’, and you like “Daaaayyyummm!” and you wanna say somethin’ but don’t know what to say to her.

GW: Who produces your beats?
Bo: I have two producers: Dennis Johnson and Jon Manierre.

GW: How much say do you have in the beats produced?
Bo: It’s either I make ‘em, or I call my producer up and we make ‘em together. I’ll tell him what I want or he’ll have some beats. All my beats, I get to pick. Either I was there to design ‘em, I got to design ‘em, or I got to choose. I go in the studio and beat box for him or say how the harmony goes and he’s just a genius and he’ll go with whatever. The finished product, he’ll be like, “You like it?” I’ll be like, “Yeah,” or “It needs this.” I don’t know how I’d do it if I didn’t get to choose a beat or be a part of makin’ a beat.

GW: Do you see yourself continuing as an artist catering to the club scene?
Bo: Yeah, I guess so. That’s just how I feel right now. I wanna make great music, feel good music. If it’s workin’ and people can relate to it, I’ll probably keep doin’ it. I enjoy doin’ it. I’m not tryin’ to say that I’m commercial or anything. I been doin’ this for years now, a lot of people are just startin’ to do it. Dennis Johnson told me there’s a bigger world besides hip-hop. Hip-hop is a little box. You gotta think outside the box. I do what I feel. There’s so many sounds and things you can mesh that makes a song so beautiful.

GW: On Track 9, “In the City,” your vocals are on point. To me, it’s the best song on the album.
Bo: Funny story, when I got that beat I honestly thought that song was gonna flop but everybody loved it. When I was writin’ it, we wanted to go emotional and tell a story. I was in the studio with all my peoples, thinkin’ hard for a few days. I made the song about a girl in the city that no one could hear except for me. She could be sexually abused or abused in general. She feels like no one’s there. But I know she’s there, I’m the one that can save her. It messed me up for a few days. I started believin’ myself ‘cause I got so into the song.

GW: Do you write all your own songs?
Bo: I write all my own songs. I put 1,000 percent into every single lyric. I love music so much, I always did. It was somethin’ I was good at. I put so much time and effort into every word, syllable, sound. I want people to enjoy it and be able to feel how I feel when I make it.

GW: What are you not willing to sacrifice to continue in this game?
Bo: I will not change my music for nobody and I will not change who I am for nobody. Another thing that would bother me is leaving the people who’ve helped me get to where I am today. We live by that loyalty rule. I stay true to myself and true to my peoples.

GW: What sacrifices have you made up to now?
Bo: Bein’in the studio everyday and not gettin’ to see my friends. The thing is, all my friends know what I’m doing and what I’m goin’ through so they stick by me. If anything, they even come to the studio with me. I sacrifice a lot of time, but it’s all worth it in the end.

GW: You have a song on the album called, “Rock Star.” Is there a difference between a rock star and a hip-hop star?
Bo: When it comes to music, I feel we all are here for the same thing. Every musician, every artist, we’re here to make music. The rock and hip-hop world, we’re tryin’ to get together. Sometimes it sounds good, sometimes it doesn’t. When I say I’m a rock star, I party like a rock star. I party hard, but I also make hip-hop, pop music.

GW: Describe your party scene.
Bo: Me and my cousin, we hang out all the time. We usually get bottles, champagne, all that, some beer pong, hit the bars, the clubs, be out all night. Then, hit the studio, get some work done there. We’re on a 24/7 grind, havin’ fun, makin’ money, and partyin’.

GW: What’s your favorite drink?
Bo: p.i.n.k. It has caffeine, Guarana, and 80 proof vodka in it. That and Patron Silver. You need Patron, don’t ever forget Patron, definitely Grey Goose.

GW: How do you make your money?
Bo: I work at Easter Seals. I work with children. Kids are beautiful, I love my job. I love to walk into a place where I could have the worst day of my life and then I see all these kids that got nothin’ but love for me. They can come and talk to me and they look at me as a role model. I love helping kids. If there’s anything I can do to help them succeed in the future, that’s what I’m for. It’s cool; I can help change a life. In the afternoon, I have an after school program.

GW: Do you want to be bigger than a local celebrity?
Bo: I would love to be. I wanna make it and I want people to love me like people love Dre or Snoop or Pac. Around my town, 914, Westchester, everybody knows me.

GW: Do you administer your own MySpace account?
Bo: My label helped put up my MySpace. I check it all the time. I answer all my fans. They could talk to me, email me, whatever. I don’t wanna be the dude that people are like, “This dude is so hot, I wish I could see him.” I could be touched, you know? If anybody wants to meet me or see me and it’s doable, that’s totally cool. When I rock shows you could get a autograph. Dap me up, I’m a real person. I enjoy the love from my fans and everything. I wanna give the love back, show that I do care. There shouldn’t be a time that someone wants to meet me and I can’t meet ‘em. Let everyone know that I’m real, they could be like, “Oh my God, I partied with Bo Valentine.” That’s awesome. I wanna do things differently.

GW: Who else can we be looking out for with Cogent Records?
Bo: I’m the first on Cogent. I was around when everything was happening [getting started].

GW: Last words?
Bo: I got so much love and so much appreciation. If it wasn’t for my fans, Cogent, my parents, my friends, my family, I would not really have anything. I’d still probably have two boom boxes. I got nothin’ but love for everyone that supports me or has faith in me. They helped me this far.

Peep the pages:

Official Bo Valentine Artist Page
http://bovalentine.com/music.html

By: Ness

INTERVIEW: In-Depth With Internal Quest

PUBLISHED: Tuesday – August 24, 2010

OFFICIAL INTERVIEW: Yappin’ With Yung Meeze

Published: Wednesday – July 28, 2010

We spent some time chatting with Yung Meeze of Sherman, Texas recently. In ’99, he formed the group Pirate Boys, which led to his solo debut album under Dangerous Chances Records, Thrill 1. Prior to incarceration, Meeze signed with independent label, Dirty Dallas Entertainment. He is out of prison after three years and eagerly searching for a record deal. We caught him on his way to spend time with his daughter.

GW: What are you doing today?
Yung Meeze: On weekends, it’s babysittin’. I have one daughter. We’ll probably go to the park or somethin’.

GW: How old is your little girl?
Yung Meeze: Four now.

GW: How young/old are you?
Yung Meeze: I’m 25. Sometimes I feel like I’m gettin’ old, like I’ve seen too much. I overcome that by thinkin’ about the future, what I want to see.

GW: What was life like as a kid in Sherman, Texas?
Yung Meeze: My life was crazy like everybody else in the ‘hood growin’ up. It ain’t the same. It’s tryin’ to make it. I went through a lot of stuff but it came out good. I been doin’ music 10 or 11 years. Every year it’s gettin’ better.

GW: Do you keep yourself secluded from fans or do you put yourself out there and welcome the love?
Yung Meeze: I be on Facebook all the time, I have a direct name on there. I still be around the ‘hood, talkin’ to them. I’m still the same. I’ll get on Facebook, MySpace. I’ll holla back. I do features. Send me a song.

GW: I heard you had the chance to work with reclusive genius Jon Luvelli?
Yung Meeze: I like the dude. I been knowin’ him for a minute now, 5, 6 years. He did my first Thrill album. I really enjoy workin’ with him, he’s pretty cool. Hopefully in the future I can do more.

GW: We’ve talked before about Jay-Z and Drake inspiring your music. Are there any other artists who’ve done so?
Yung Meeze: I like 2Pac a lot. I like Eminem.

GW: How long have you been in the game?
Yung Meeze: I got a couple albums out from way back ’99. My main album promoted right was The Thrill 1. I been in prison. When I came back from prison, I started workin’ on Thrill 2.

GW: Thrill 2 is set to drop August 27. Where can we look for that?
Yung Meeze: I’m tryin’ to get a distribution deal right now. I’m tryin’ to go farther than Texas. With the help of Luvelli, I’ma try to take it all the way to New York, man.

GW: You have a song on Thrill 2 called “Swag on Fire.” Describe your swag and what’s so fire about it.
Yung Meeze: My swag is hot. I walk around with aqua, crazy colors on, joggin’ pants, a different color suit, all that. I can take it to another level.

GW: Is it solely the clothes?
Yung Meeze: It’s way more than clothes. It’s like your presence, how you carry yourself; your walk, your talk.

GW: You have some Soundclick beats on your album. Do you get the majority of your beats off of that site?
Yung Meeze: I usually get a couple tracks and if I like ‘em, I go buy ‘em.

GW: Your “I Don’t Want Her” song, it seems like you’re looking for a female to be a version of yourself and if she’s not, you “don’t want her.” Is this true?
Yung Meeze: When I look at a female, I want for her to be somethin’ like me. The second verse on that, that’s my baby mama, my wife, Keyeo, who I’m with now. She talkin’ ‘bout how I like ‘em.

GW: On your, “I’d Rather Get,” you say you’d rather get head over some booty. How does Keyeo feel about you talking about other females?
Yung Meeze: I’m not really speaking directly to a woman. I’m just sayin’, I’d rather get money than sweat a female. I really ain’t got time for it, is really what I’m tryin’ to say.

GW: Since we’re on the subject of getting head, do you give head back?
Yung Meeze: [LAUGHING] I might do it sometimes, just depends. I ain’t got a problem with it.

GW: On a couple of your tracks, you sound like Weezy. Has anybody ever told you that?
Yung Meeze: Man, I ain’t gon lie to you. When I was locked up I didn’t really listen to music. I never heard Weezy. When I came home, everybody was like, “You sound like him.” I try not to. If I listen to his stuff, I might. I try to switch it up a bit, try to do more hard rappin’, stuff like that. But I heard that before. I’m not really a fan on tryin’ to sound like somebody else. I’d rather just get my own style, have somebody soundin’ like me.

GW: You mentioned being locked up. Would you give some details on that?
Yung Meeze: I was locked up on drug charges for three years. I had seven years, I’m still on parole.

GW: What drugs?
Yung Meeze: Marijuana.

GW: Were you guilty or did you take some sort of deal?
Yung Meeze: I plead guilty for it ‘cause I was guilty. On the other hand, they gave me good behavior, I was stayin’ to myself.

GW: Did you write a lot in prison?
Yung Meeze: I did but I didn’t. My mind wasn’t really clear. If I were to write, I’d be writing ‘bout what was goin’ on in prison. I wasn’t with that.

GW: What do you do outside of music?
Yung Meeze: I work in a studio. I record in it sometimes, but I have my own engineer so I really don’t do it a lot.

GW: So you must be exposed to some other talent. Are there any upcoming artists we should know about?
Yung Meeze: I look at a couple of ‘em. I don’t get to meet ‘em like that. I just see ‘em, they come in, do they thing. I don’t try to be that type. I never asked to work with none of ‘em, nothin’ like that.

GW: You had a show at the Days Inn in May. What was that like?
Yung Meeze: They sponsored it. A couple of people wanted me to do it. It came out nice though, they promoted it right. It was a big ball room; a lot of people came out. It was my first show bein’ home.

GW: Do you have any other shows planned?
Yung Meeze: I’m really waitin’ now just to see how I turn out. My manager and promoter tryin’ to come up with somethin’.

GW: What’s it like getting ready for a show?
Yung Meeze: It’s an energetic feel. I need to be in my own zone ‘cause I like to come out and give the show my best. I like to be well rested for that day. I get all my clothes picked out. I get custom made clothes. It’s an underground company, Jiggs. It’s pretty hot. They make all my clothes for performances.

GW: If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?
Yung Meeze: I’d probably go to Africa. I just wanna see another scene, somethin’ crazy, like giraffes and monkeys.

GW: If you had one million dollars, what would you do with it?
Yung Meeze: I’d probably buy a house, buy a couple cars, and put it up. I’m really big on savin’. I get nervous when my money get low.

GW: After you drop your album, what’s the next step?
Yung Meeze: I’m tryin’ to do some more videos, do a little directin’ too. Have some more kids someday.

GW: Shout outs?
Yung Meeze: Keyeo, Greg Jones, the whole Pirate Boys clique, Fly Muzik clique, Sherman, Texas period. I think I’m probably the only artist that’s been in a magazine.

Check the full interview at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/guttaworld/2010/07/10/yappin-with-yung-meezey

Myspace.com/flymuzik
Reverbnation.com/yungmeeze

By: Ness

INTERVIEW: Keepin’ It Real With Kemo The Blaxican

Published: Monday – July 12, 2010

GW: Tell me a little bit about your upcoming, August 17, album, The Upside of Struggle.
Kemo: With the exception of one beat from another camp called Rejected Rhythms, on a song called “1,700 Little Years,” everything is self-produced either by myself or someone from the camp. I don’t necessarily plan it to be that way. I just get on a roll and next thing I know it’s all my beats.

GW: Do you start with your beats, or do you write your verses and then put beats to them?
Kemo: It’s a little of both but in this case, I started off with beats. I’ve been producing tracks for projects and for myself before I got to writing. I had a nice pool of music to draw from. It was crucial for this project, I mean; I did this whole thing probably in about four months. It’s going close to three years since Not So Rich and Famous, my second solo release, and I been wanting to get something out. For whatever reason, life was just kinda doing its thing and I didn’t get crackin’ on a record. I put myself under the gun and said, “All right, you gonna drop a record?” It was a lot of very late nights. Part of it was having a good time.

GW: You call yourself a “Black and Brown brotha,” in your song, “Left Coast Latino.” Are you Black and Mexican?
Kemo: Exactly. My father’s Black and my mother’s Mexican. I refer to myself as a Blaxican. It’s a nice blend, a beautiful thing, so I definitely put it out there. There’s a lot of Latin that I bring out in my music. I grew up mostly on the Latin side of the fence. I’ve always been an advocate of trying to give more balance to the hip-hop game. Latinos gotta come with it if you wanna get some kind of attention. I love hip-hop but support for Latinos in hip-hop is not as much as it should be so I speak out on that often. I think most Latinos in hip-hop think hip-hop first. I know I do. I’m Black and Brown but that doesn’t matter when it comes to the sound of the music.

GW: On Your Simple Plan album, you have a song called “La Receta.” This means “the recipe” in Spanish. Describe what the recipe is?
Kemo: The main ingredients to good music. Music is a huge part of life. For a lot of people, it cements memories or thoughts. You know, you hear a song that you heard 15 years ago and it’s gonna draw some memories. It’s just that mixture of beat, rhymes, for me, drop the horns in there. It was a blend of culture, good people, that’s important in life’s recipes. “La Receta” just turned out to be that perfect harmony of all those elements.

GW: Who are your inspirations in hip-hop?
Kemo: I’m a fan of Curtis Mayfield, James Brown. I like Isaac Hayes. I like a lot of old funk and soul music. Stuff with meaning and substance is a big deal for me. That’s the direction I wanna take my music in. It’s all right to talk about having a good time but in the course of a whole record, for me, I like to touch on some stuff that really matters as well. It really spans across music. There’s rock that I like, Zepplin, and Hendrix. There’s stuff from the Beatles that I dig. Before I even got started, NWA was a big part of what I listened to then as I started listening more, Run DMC, and the old stuff, public enemy. There was something about Chuck D’s cadence. Then as I got older, dudes like Cam would come out and stuff he was talkin’ about had a huge impact and I believe it was very powerful. I’m a big blues fan. It goes across the board. Early on, I got major support from Sen Dog and his camp back in the day. I got an opportunity to meet Sen and slide him a demo tape and we became friends. He really opened doors.

GW: How is The Upside of Struggle different from your previous albums?
Kemo: The minimal use of samples. Everything is pretty much played either on keys or live. As I started to develop the record, that’s something that I strived for. Being that it was live, there were a lot of guitars, somewhat of a rock element on some of the songs. Lyrical content, or subject matter, is something I try to improve on all the time. I don’t dabble a lot into politics but there’s a song on this album called, “That’s When She Died,” it’s a love letter to America. It’s talking about the state of America now and how we’re kind of veering from what our traditions are.

GW: What was your childhood like?
Kemo: I was raised by a woman. She sees someone in need and she wants to reach out to them. That’s the way that I was raised. I feel that I have somewhat of an obligation to put substance out there, state my opinion. If it’s something folks should know, I try to share that.

GW: In your song “Rebel” you urge people to read. What did you last read that impacted you?
Kemo: Confessions of an Economic Hit Man. It really solidified my suspicions at that time. This whole world is run by men, rich folks trying to get theirs. I see it as a big chess match. People get in fights over five bucks. There’s no doubt in my mind that some of what’s being done out there is shady. Every country is capable of doing that.

GW: How has your economic reality changed since you started dropping albums?
Kemo: Quite a bit. Things get tough at times, I support the whole fam. My wife is there taking care of the kids and that’s the way I want it. My mom worked several jobs to keep us afloat. I feel good that my kids have a parent at home when they get home. If I gotta take two, three jobs to make it happen I’ll do that. I’ve always been aware of my priorities. I love makin’ music but, if records ain’t payin’ the bills, if music got in the way of my family, I may make music still but not [as] my main source of income. I’m independent now; I used to be on some majors. That was nice because there was security there. I’ve been independent for a minute. It becomes very difficult. I try to work other angles in the industry. It’s not just about selling and getting everybody to pick it up off the shelf.

GW: What sets you apart from other artists?
Kemo: There’s several levels of artistry and where you wanna take it. An artist that just wants to get out and do his vocals, that’s cool, you get to go in there and just focus on the writing part of it. Write it, drop it, and that’s it, done deal. Then you got the other members on your team that are taking care of the other parts. There’s nothing wrong with that, it just depends on how involved you wanna be. I like to have my hands on a lot of things. I get into the production part, that takes time. Then I have to do the writing part of it. I didn’t mix this record, I’ve mixed the others. I have a clothing line called Joint Clothing; my mind is wrapped around that as well. I do a lot of designing.

GW: How many kids do you have?
Kemo: I have three: a teenager, he’s thirteen, and two little ones that are not in school yet. My oldest is eight years older than the middle one. It’s great. There’s a lot of energy in my house.

GW: That must make it hard when you tour. Do you tour often?
Kemo: I do spot dates and I do small amounts of touring. I dipped out to Europe last December, that’s a place I used to visit a lot. That changes the game. Right after Not So Rich and Famous, my wife had another baby. It was important for me to be able to be there. If I’m working on a record, it cuts down on the time I get to be with the family.

GW: Where did you meet your wife? How did you two connect?
Kemo: We connected a long time ago. We were co-workers and roommates at one time. She’s instrumental in a lot of things that I do. She struggles with me. “1,700 Little Years” tells the story: my struggle trying to make it in the industry and my relationship with her prior to dropping my first record. She brought strength to whatever weaknesses I have.

GW: How many other women did you encounter before you found your wife? Was she your first real love?
Kemo: I didn’t really have trouble with relationships. I’ve met some good people along the way. There’s a time when you find that balance for yourself and she was that person that I found that perfect balance with.

GW: In ten years where do you see yourself?
Kemo: I’ll still be involved in the music industry, God willing, I still have ten years. Production of movies, that’s something that I hope to do. I’ve always been into writing music videos. Hopefully that clothing line really kicks off. It’s done well, had success, been international, but I wanna build it up where it’s something I can leave my family.

GW: Do your kids show any signs of wanting to be artists too?
Kemo: My oldest plays saxophone and guitar. He reads music, that’s something I can’t do myself. My dad used to play any instrument he picked up, somehow my son got a little of that in him. He understands where the notes are and where they go. He likes to play; he’s not into the production right now. The youngsters, they just bang on the keyboard and stuff. They show a lot of interest, they grab the microphone. Every chance they get, they’re in there [studio]. I don’t have a problem with them in there if it’s appropriate.

GW: What did I miss?
Kemo: I got some groups that I’ve been working with on my record company, Dead Silence Records. As soon as I wrap up this [album], there’s really no rest. Thank you for the continued support.

Listen to the entire, exclusive interview at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/guttaworld/2010/07/02/keepin-it-real-with-kemo-the-blaxican

www.kemotheblaxican.com
www.upsideofstruggle.com/epk
www.myspace.com/kemotheblaxican

By: Ness

OFFICIAL: DEM CROWN BOYZ IN, THE GANGLAND INTERVIEW

Published: Thursday – May 2, 2010

GW: Who are Dem Crown Boyz?
DEM CROWN BOYZ: You already know it’s Judah Boy and Rasta Baby right here man, Charlotte North Carolina ya know, 704 shit. Basically we Judah Boy and Rasta Baby we make up two halves of Dem Crown Boyz. Commin out of the 704 Charlotte. Ya know what I’m talkin about from local to global ya heard me.

GW: Can you tell me about your new mix tape?
DCB: It’s called Gangland its bout to drop soon. We got nine tracks on there, two volumes of it. We got a I’m So Carolina mix tape that’s going to drop after that. Ya know what I’m sayin then we got our LP droppin’ with Mr. Servon, from No Limit. It’s gonna drop in the fall sometime. We getting it in, we getting out da mud tryin to make it big ya heard me.

GW: Damn, you have three mix tapes commin out?
DCB: Yeah we workin’ on a couple projects right now. Ya know, but da Gangland is already finished and done with.

GW: Why did you guys name it Gangland?
DCB: We got the name Gangland from the show Gangland because ya know the History channel had done a documentary on our neighborhood, ya feel me Hidden Valley in Charlotte, but we originally from Derita; which is an area on the Norfside beside Hidden Valley,we like ‘sister hoods”..we stayed in Hidden Valley,and was raised wit all the HVK’s. They put our faces all over the documentary really without permission and what not. So what we did was we took their name Gangland and used it for a positive thing, ya know so we could make money off of it, ya feel me too. So we made a CD Gangland, we talkin’ about what goes on in the north side of Charlotte. Let everybody know what’s really going on, so people know we real out here. You can’t kill us, you can’t kill our image, can’t do known of that., we gonna eat regardless, ya feel me. What we’ve been through, what we going through, what we’ve done done, ya know, what we gonna do. It’s basically for the hood. Big shout out to Hidden Valley and O.K’s , Sweet “beat-a-man” Pea and Roscoe Abell, ya know what I’m sayin. We puttin off everybody that’s down, everyone that died for the hood, that’s for the hood, a righteousness ya know what I’m sayin. We put on for all of them. Everybody that’s locked up behind bars.

GW: Your telling me Gangland went and put your faces on national television without your permission?
DCB: Yeah without our permission as far as our photo’s, that was without our permission. Then they tried to railroad the hood, they tried to make the hood seem like it was just a bunch of crack dealers and murders and shit ya know that that wasn’t even the case. It’s a nice community, it’s a hood just like any other hood. It’s like your hood, the same thing go on in your hood that goes on in our hood. Ya feel me, so they tried to flip it around the police and the feds, and make it seem like it was a negative neighborhood with negative people in it when that wasn’t even the case. So it pissed us off a little bit but its all good we folks struggling strive ya know what I’m sayin, everything’s all good. It is what it is. We just talkin to the hood, anybody out there with a dream and what not, its possible. Because me and Juddah Boy we’ve been at the bottom and we come risin’ to the top now…anything is possible. We’ve done lived in the projects, we’ve done lived in the hood and now we elevatin’, and we want everybody to know, the hood stay in you everything stays in your heart, but its ok to leave because you can always come back. If you real and thoroughbred and niggas respect you, you can always come back. You always gonna get that love, it’s gonna be like you never left. But people got to elevate their minds to stop doin the same dumb shit that’s keeping them stuck in the same position. Folks don’t want to ever elevate, they aight with not havin’ shit and not doin’ anything positive and righteous ya feel me. Now the Gangland kinda showed us niggas just doin the same typical stuff when that’s not the case. We very active in the community and what not, we do a lot of things behind closed doors. Not just us but the whole community, the whole north side of Charlotte. They railroaded us on some other shit so now we bout to railroad them and get paid off them.

GW: When did the two of you decide to come up and create Dem Crown Boyz?
DCB: Well you know me and Rasta Baby are first cousins ya know, so our whole life we’ve been around each other rappin and what not, be knuckleheads commin up. We started taken it real real serious probably I say around 2002. We was doin a lot of local shows and concerts and what not. And the little One Mic Mondays. Ya know we’ve been doin it for awhile, but we’ve been doin big things for a couple of years. Ya know the jail situation had hinder us a lot. That’s what stopped us in 2007, we got caught with a couple charges. Ya know and I got shot last year it was a rude awakening;  ya know so 2010 is really like the year awakening. I don’t know just putting all the bullshit aside and behind us, the drama the beef all that, ya know what I’m sayin we put all that behind us, we left that in 09. So in 2010 we’ve just been real focused on being a focused and getting this music out there, and making this music that niggas want to hear, need to hear. And Charlotte, there’s nobody comin out of Charlotte that has either one, a major distribution behind them or really sounds like Charlotte. Much love to all my artist’s in Charlotte, it ain’t no hatin or nothing like that, ya know there’s a lot of other artist’s commin out of Charlotte sound like other cities. We not trying to teach kids to drop out of school and sale crack, ya know what I’m sayin that’s dead. It’s over for that ya feel me. The thing with Charlotte we trying to bring a whole new sound and a whole new swagger to the game.

GW: You guys have had the law stand in your way. Are these obstacles still trying to keep you down or are you not involved in those activities anymore?
DCB: Basically those were things that we were involved in back then, but now, I mean that’s in the past so. Everyone makes mistakes and we’ve done moved on. We doin’ bigger and better things, so its not really in our way anymore. I mean we’ve been doin music since the early 2000’s but 2007 is really when we stepped out and started doing shows. We did a big Jingle Jam concert at Cricket Arena for Gucci Mane and Plies, you know we’ve been doin’ shit. So we’ve been makin’ noise. Ya know there’s two sides to the game, just because you can rap you gotta have a business side behind you, and back then we were young we were just out here hungry payin to do shows, all that payin promoters to get on the mic, ya know the shit that your not really suppose to do without representation and you don’t even know that. Ya know if you don’t have management behind you, you don’t even know dat. So we was doin all that and we a hell of a buzz in crown town but we didn’t have no manager or label to back us and invest in us and put the money up and do whatever it takes for us to be on. We were just networking and doing everything ourselves in our own manners and shit. And then last year everything started to come together. To keep it one hundred with ya, in 2007 we weren’t even paying rent for our apartment we were spending our money on straight music. We were getting our money for our apartment, well you know what I’m talkin about. But now we got all of our backing, we out of jail we free all of charges and everything are straight. Ya know we got a whole different outlook on life, we about to take over and we not stopping for nobody.

GW: How did you guys go about getting your manger and signing to your label?
DCB: Well you know our manager is Jzajaidah “Jah” Huskey,CEO or DollHouseENT,a major entertainment company here in the 704. As far as our label goes, its kind of a funny situation. We was doin what we do on the regular, one weekend downtown in Charlotte sellin CD’s doin what we doin and we ran into a guy that was from Salt Lake City and we contacted with him and gave him our CD. We put it in, he was listenin to it he liked it whateva and he had his own independent label so we connected with him, we doin business like that from the East coast to the West coast. Big ups to Chris from Lake Star Entertainment, you gonna hear that name. We rockin with ya’ll till the wheels fall off. Chris ya know, he left Charlotte and went to D.C., New York, Chicago then back to Salt Lake and he was playin our CD in all those different cities and everybody that listened to it was like damn who’s that, that shit is hard. By the time he got back to Salt Lake he was like I gotta flirt with ya’ll we gotta do business and we were like damn that’s what’s up. And this was like July 2009 and shit two months later we signed a deal, signed the contact Lake Star Entertainment. And big ups to Music Factory that’s our in house studio in Charlotte, North Carolina and Super Producer Kino Watson,who is a protege’ of Jermaine Dupri. Shoutout his company UMG.

GW: What’s something important that you’ve learned since just starting hard in the music industry?
DCB: Even though we just started there’s two things we’ve learned. The industry is a dirty ass industry, ya know only the strong survive. And secondly you have to remain humble. If you don’t show love to the people that show you love, its gonna eat yo ass up. It’s going to shit on you, stab you in the back left and right and you’ll never be successful. Everyone around you plays a part. So we show love to everybody that’s showed up love, that’s just the way it is.

GW: How have things changed for Dem Crown Boyz since you’ve signed to you label?
DCB: Everything. So many doors have opened. From doing this interview right here, club promoters want us to come through just to show our faces. Like our homeboys who doin the same shit we was doin a few years ago without any representation be looking at us like mentors. We give our advice on how we did it. We not saying hey we big we blown up, but we on the right path to it. So many different ways, different avenues and different doors have been open. Once you have representation you can holla at radio stations. So all kinds of doors have been opened from meeting people to doing shows. And psychologically too, from not have anything, like I didn’t know how I was going to get a dollar to feed my little girl tomorrow. I mean everything about us has changed our whole swagger. Just knowing that we can see the light at the end of the tunnel, the light still may be a little distant but I can see that mutha fucka and I’m walking towards it. Just that in general, the feeling of hope, a lot of changes in a lot of different ways. Just knowing something good is about to happen.

GW: What’s different about North Carolina’s music than the rest of the United States?
DCB: Personally I feel Charlotte; we have our own swagger, we kinda speak different then other cities and states and we kinda stand out ya know what I’m sayin in our own little way. And I know as far as Dem Crown Boyz, we came up hard man and we ain’t ever got nothing easy, so with us it’s more passion behind the words of our music. And like other independent artist’s down here feel the same way. We all came up struggling hard and we tried to stand out from other places man. Bein’ that we don’t have somebody from North Carolina that’s successful, we tryin’ to get to that point, and I think we are going to be the first ones to make that happen. The thing about North Carolina being an untapped market cause you got like Greensboro their more plugged towards, I don’t want to call them like up north niggas but they swagger is more of a D.C., Philadelphia, New York swag. But then you come down to Charlotte and its more stay southern, South Carolina and Georgia swag. But yet still we different because we don’t rap about the same shit other niggas rap about. Charlotte niggas we not flashy, and don’t want to say we pretty boys or nothing like that but we have a lot of confidence, but we carry ourselves with our head always up. Like the in the prison system they call Charlotte boys the “6-0″. Everyone know Charlotte in prison because it’s the way we carry ourselves, they think we pretty boys but we be the same ones that will knock your head off. They call Charlotte like the new south, like Atlanta the old south that’s confederate city, ya know what I’m sayin you know the history. Charlotte is like a modern south, it’s a new city. It’s just now really getting big, but it’s a big ass city, it’s like the second fastest growing city in the country now. But everything about us is just new, its like a melting pot because there’s so many people from different places that influence our style, but we state southern pride though.

GW: You have people like 9th Wonder and Petey Pablo that have come from North Carolina, who has set the stage for you to get in the game or was it not even North Carolina?
DCB: The only thing is with artist’s from North Carolina is they get a deal and move to Atlanta or they move to LA or they move to wherever they go and they don’t say nothing else about North Carolina. That’s our only problem that we have with North Carolina’s artist, but as far as who has really motivated us, to be honest wit ya I guess it would have to be somebody from another place. I like TI, Boosie and old school boys like Ghetto Boys, Scarface ya know what I’m sayin and Trick Daddy, the old Cash Money, the original Hot Boys, No Limit of course. They the ones that really put on for the south, even Outkast, that made it cool to not be from New York or LA, I’m not from either one of those places, I’m south, I’m southern. I think any successful artist that came from the bottom to the top has opened the doors not just for us but for other upcoming rappers too. Without them I don’t think it would be possible, because they already went through what we goin’ through, so we basically tryin’ to get to where they at. So big up to everybody in the game that doin’ their thing and other independent artist’s that tryin’ to come up man. And big ups to Jodec for makin the way for us because when they were makin’ hits they were still comin’ in the hood hangin’ with us. We show love to everybody, I could name the list but the list goes on and on and on that I could name from Charlotte alone, that put on for the city and for Carolina.

GW: How will your music change?
DCB: We tryin’ to be the ones that can get in the game and open up doors for other independent artist’s. So we can be like Atlanta and have multiple artist’s coming out of Charlotte. But as far as our music changing right now, basically we rap about our lives, day to day situations, problems and eventually when we get to point where we want to be at of course the music will probably change a little bit but we always going to keep it one hundred. There’s always going to be someone out there that can fuck with our music who won’t feel that shit. We joke with our label all the time, we like the niggas next door. Like the girls next door, we like the niggas next door. We want be who everybody can relate to ya know what I’m sayin’ cause like I was sayin’ we done been in the gudda, we still in da gudda. Don’t put yourself in a box, I don’t want to label myself as a dope boy just because I did this and that and don’t label me a gang banger, don’t put yourself in a box. Just because I’ve done different things doesn’t mean I don’t like to party and have fun, it doesn’t mean I’m not a father and I don’t take care of my daughter. We don’t want to be put into no box, we want to be able to make music that everybody can relate to, every race, every nationality all of dat. We just want to make music that everyone can feel from the top to the bottom.

GW: Do you guys freestyle and cypher or do you just focus on making albums?
DCB: We can do it all but at the moment now we are more focusing on making good music, albums and mix tapes. But the freestyle, we get down a little bit with that too. But of course you can’t really do music without freestylin’, cause you’d look like an asshole if you said no I don’t freestyle. But before we were in the studio that’s when we were freestylin’ all day everyday, ya know smoking’ blunts getting drunk and whatever whatever, high school days sittin’ in the whip goin’ hard on the block freestylin’. We just do it now to get our voices ready, just to get that energy ready before we hit the studio or before we do a show. But yeah we do it all though.

GW: Do you guys write your own material?
DCB: Oh yeah we both write all of our own music, we don’t have any ghost writers or anything like that. Yeah nobody is writin’ our lyrics, it comes straight from us. Rasta Baby’s lyrics are my lyrics, my lyrics are his lyrics. Straight from the heart ya know what I’m sayin’. Everything that we rap about that we write is shit that we do or done certified and you can ask anybody in my city about it. We’ll write for other people, but we do write our own music.

GW: If you all could hook up and perform with any artist(s) who would it be?
DCB: Ah man, wow, I’ve always wanted to work with Trey Songz. Ya know there’s a lot a people, even though they all aren’t rappers its cool because we got a new genre of music comin’ out called R&G, Rhythm and Gangsta. It’s not all soft shit it be coming for a hood prospective. But it’s something that a girl can relate to, but this is on a whole tip but that’s why we said Trey Songz. We’d like to do shit with T.I., Gucci, Luther, Wale all my south rappers ya know. I’d especially like to do something with Outkast man, cause I’ve been on them since I’ve been real real young. And all the way to west coast, I’m talkin Snoop and Ice Cube. I mean anybody, everybody is motivation to me, if you can make good music I’d love to make a song with you. There’s not to many artist’s that I can say I don’t like, I just love music ya know what I’m sayin’.

GW: You guys make sure not to tie yourselves down to one type of rap?
DCB: Life you livin’, as you live life everyday it’s not the same. I don’t care what you do if your on the block if your workin’ nine to five. It might be routine because of your time schedule, but everyday is not the same. So livin’ your life doin’ different things, so if we’re makin music that imitates your life it has to be different. You can’t just make music about hustling’, you can’t just make music about killin’, because everyday your not doin’ that same shit. At some point in your life you may be with a female that you love, you should write about that or you may have lost some homeboys or lost some loved ones in your family ya know you should make songs about that. You may have celebrations or family reunions, ya know good times. When you only make one kind of music that means your fan base is only going to be one type of crowd. If I’m only making hardcore shit that’s all I’m going to have is hardcore niggas from the hood and ghetto girls, and that’s okay but your cutting yourself short. We stop outside the box everyday of our lives that we have to make music that shows that. We aren’t fake, we don’t have nothing to hide.

GW: How did you come up with the group name Dem Crown Boyz?
DCB: Well they call Charlotte crown town and we thought that the name Dem Crown Boyz was good, DCB, yeah DCB. We’re well known and popular in our city so I guess that was the best name that fit us, Dem Crown Boyz. But that’s where the name came from. And we drink straight Crown Royal all the time! That’s our favorite drink, its crown, it’s royalty ya know what I’m sayin, the city of queens, queen city ya hear me. Queen Charlotte ya feel me Crown Town. That’s how we rock, like we royalty. Get a cup of Crown and toast to the good life, ya hear me. 704 pride.

GW: Can you tell me about your association with the Hidden Valley Kings?
DCB: As far as the Hidden Valley Kings they my niggas. Just my niggas that’s what they are, we are not that, but they are our friends. I’m ride or die for them and I love all of them, all of them lock up all of them still out. I don’t people to get a mishap like that’s what we are and try to label us something we’re not, cause we’re not.

GW: So you guys want to lay to rest all that snitchin’ stuff?
DCB: Snitchin’ can go on in every hood and every city ya feel me, in every hood niggas are snitchin’. If Snoop Dogg is sayin stop snitchin’, so that let you know in L.A. people are snitchin’ too, ya feel me. So when niggas see the Hidden Valley thang and they see niggas snitchin’ don’t look at it like its just a neighborhood of snitches because I could say the same shit for your hood. I mean niggas talk here, certain niggas say this and that, whatever whatever. It is what it is and at the end of the day I still love Hidden Valley. I still love all my Hidden Valley Kings. No we not Hidden Valley kings but they our niggas. So everybody knows that for the record. Fuck CNPD for hatin’ on niggas, tryin’ to railroad niggas, fuck the feds for doin’ their shady shit. Because all the charges they had on niggas was from the 90’s, niggas off that shit, niggas doin righteous shit now. Niggas tryin’ to feed their families shit like that, niggas weren’t even doin’ crazy shit like they tried to make it seem like a Hollywood movie or something. It was just niggas made some bad decisions and then they payin the consequences. But they didn’t have to do my niggas like that on the Gangland and they put us on their too. And a lot of that was false information. None of it was true.

GW: Your saying all the information that was put out there, the snitchin, name callin’ and all that shit wasn’t true?
DCB: It was just a couple of snitches, ya know what I’m sayin’. Other than that it was just regular hood shit. In any hood niggas make money. I can’t say and nobody else can say the same shit happen in your hood, there going to be snitches in yo shit, if something happen in your neighborhood like that.

GW: Do all of these incidents reflect in your music?
DCB: Yeah, yeah the incidents that happen we say a couple lyrics and words about them. Cause when its all said and done everybody makes mistakes, the law is bullshit. You kill a nigga and you get ten years, then you fuck around and make some money, however you make it and they give niggas twenty or twenty-five years to life. And the fact is everybody knows the system is made against us. When it’s all said and one it’s us against them. I don’t want to sound all political but I’m very knowledgeable on everything, so I know the system is made against us. It’s not equal. If they really felt that the neighborhood was on the verge of being so destructive, then they should’ve had people in the neighborhood talking to us to try and see what is really going on and do some community shit, ya know what I’m sayin’ and keep people positive. We just tryin’ to bring the city together and put on for Charlotte man. Charlotte is just a beautiful city and once people get a taste of this Charlotte shit and people start coming here and see what’s really going down, niggas a be like damn why didn’t I ever know about Charlotte before. We got a lot of shit goin’ on here! Also like to give a shout out to Mecklenburgs Illest, Rude Boyz, Game Tyme ENT, Cutty Boi, Swag Tac, Bettie Grind, Golden Boy ENT, Black ICE ENT, Big O Promotions, Club Vox and Club Ice. So join the movement!

By: Tiff Mac

OFFICIAL INTERVIEW: The Buzz ‘Bout B-Cide

Published – Tuesday – May 11, 2010

GW: What’s been goin’ on in your life?
B-CIDE: I been really pushin’ my album that I released, like about two summers ago, called Free Agent. I went on, about, three tours in like two years across the states tryin’ to promote this thing with this group called Project Born. We toured the country. The CD, Free Agent’s, actually in Best Buy nationwide. I got a feature on it from my boy, Cognito, he just recently signed to Strange Music, Tech N9ne’s label.

GW: Your musical influences appear to be a fusion of rock and rap. Did one grab you before the other?
B-CIDE: I’ll tell ya, punk rock, like, Green Day, that was my first love, honestly. Then it just kinda evolved to more, rap. I could express myself in that. To me, it’s the ultimate form of expression. I could say whatever I want to whoever I want, whenever I want. It’s kinda like punk rock mentality, actually. I see the old underground punk scene the way that the underground rap scene is; not the mainstream, ‘cause the mainstream sucks right now. The comparisons between the scenes are very similar: rebellion.

GW: In your music, it seems like you don’t give a fuck.
B-CIDE: I don’t give a fuck. I have message behind all my music, you know, if you really listen to the shit. It’s not just words. Some people like to spit words, I like to put a lot of meaning and feeling behind my songs. This is my life. My life does not imitate my music, my music is more my life than anything.

GW: Your song “When You Hear the Sound,” sounds like it has hidden meaning to it.
B-CIDE: The whole song is kinda like, talking about pop culture; all the shootings and bullshit like that. Basically, I’m runnin’ through the town and they kill me at the end. I’m really sick of all this manufactured, bull shit music. It doesn’t get any worse than it is today. Auto-Tune is the fuckin’ worst thing in the world! It’s played out. People are usin’ it ‘cause they really can’t sing. The reason they made the thing was to enhance your voice, you know what I’m sayin’? If you can sing, it’s cool. Kid Rock used it, Cher has used it. It’s not tasteful the way they’re using these things. Then, you look inside album credits and see five people writing songs. What? What am I doin’, payin’ to listen to the artist or payin’ for everybody else who contributed to the fuckin’ song? I’m tryin’ to bring the realness back to this craft, you know?

GW: Are you an artist who wants to keep things as is or an artist who wants to change the game?
B-CIDE: I definitely wanna change it, I mean, I think my style’s different than a lot of people’s. I really do think I have somethin’ to say. It’s not like the shit that’s comin’ out now, people tell me that. I’m goin’ in the right direction. I haven’t changed what I’ve done; you can look back in my catalogue. I’m lettin’ people download all my albums. I’m givin’ away free versions of all my albums on my website. If you feel it and it’s real, you’re gonna grab onto that product, you know?

GW: How long have you been rapping and making music?
B-CIDE: Since 1998.

GW: How old were you then?
B-CIDE: 15, 16.

GW: Have you always been in Utica, NY, upstate?
B-CIDE: Yeah, I mean, I’ve been fortunate enough to be able to travel and get my CD’s out and I got the whole digital thing with the iTunes. Like I said, I have Free Agent in Best Buy now. I like to try and do tours, get out to the people, just the whole poudin’ the pavement you know? Grassroots marketing.

GW: Where do you go when you tour?
B-CIDE: I’ve been from Pennsylvania to Connecticut, as far as Seattle, Washington. Los Angeles, all over the place: Texas; Kentucky; Michigan; Mississippi; New Orleans. I try and get my shit out there as much as possible. I just love pursuing my dream, that’s really what it’s all about, you know?

GW: When was your first show?
B-CIDE: My first show was in 2000, probably.

GW: It seems like this is something you’re passionate about and not stopping.
B-CIDE: Yeah, this is real. This means a lot to me, this is life.

GW: You have tattoos. Would you describe them?
B-CIDE: I got 315 for my area. I got my B-Cide logo on my arm. I got a clown tattooed on the inside of my arm with B-Cide on it. I got a microphone with music notes comin’ off it and shit.

GW: Do you work a 9 to 5?
B-CIDE: Not anymore. I was able to leave. I had to go out and do some touring and I had to stop doin’ that to keep doin’ this. That’s where my priorities are. I worked at Subway, man, for six years. I was the manager at that motherfucker.

GW: Is it hard pursuing music? Are you making ends?
B-CIDE: It’s here and there, the economy’s not great right now but we’re just on this promotional push tryin’ to get as much done as possible: magazines, pushin’ the CDs out to people, shit like that.

GW: Is Eastside Productions Web Store your business?
B-CIDE: Yup, that’s us [B-Cide and Shysty]. That’s all me. We been doin’ Eastside Productions since 2002. It’s just been a little local thing and then we just been droppin’ albums and gettin’ ‘em out through there and through the internet. Any means of distribution.

GW: How profitable is it? Have you increased in business over the years?
B-CIDE: Definitely. That’s why I know I got somethin’. I’m just like, OK; it’s time to really take it up a notch. This whole thing with Best Buy, with the album, just did something for me personally.

GW: Do you have any kids, baby mamas?
B-CIDE: No, hell no. Not in my plans right now; not until everything is ultra successful and I’m able to have a great life for my child. I come from a home where my father wasn’t really around. Just recently my parents just got back together.

GW: What’s a typical day like for you in Utica?
B-CIDE: Wake up, you know, hit up the computer, see what’s goin’ on with messages and anybody wantin’ to do collaborations. Then we get up and talk about what we wanna get goin’ for the week. Sometimes is might just be plannin’ out an episode of what we wanna do for B TV. We’re actually doin’ that right now, to tell you the truth. That is a little internet show that kinda started and compiled and I put it up on Youtube. I actually just did a video for this other song, “Independent.” We just try and get as much shit done as possible. Some days, we might not do nothin’.

GW: Where are people most likely to find you? Where do you spend most of your time?
B-CIDE: I would say in the studio and my office.

GW: What’s the last artist you listened to?
B-CIDE: In the car, when I was comin’ in, C-Murder.

GW: Do you want to put Utica on the map in terms of mainstream music?
B-CIDE: I wanna put Utica on the map, period, you know what I’m sayin’? I don’t know about necessarily mainstream. Once more than 100 people know what the fuck it is (chuckles) then we’ll go from there.

GW: What will you do to put Utica on the map, to put upstate on?
B-CIDE: If there were people in Utica itself that actually cared about the craft and not hatin’ on everybody and there was more unity, then I would actually give a shit about Utica and the scene and itself. But, everybody is out to get everybody. At one time, everybody was dissin’ Shysty and myself. There was a song called, “Fuck Shysty and B-Cide.” I’m laughin’ at it, ‘cause I just kinda stuck to my grind. I had my blinders on and went forward. I wasn’t goin’ any other way to try to get away from what I was doin’. It helps when the city supports you. This city, it’s like, “Oh, I know Bob. I know Tom. They ain’t rappers.” These small communities, they just don’t know what the fuck is goin’ on. I’ll leave here and go other places, there’ll be bitches on my dick and shit like that.

GW: Have you ever been locked up?
B-CIDE: That ain’t me. I hang out with people that have been locked up but I can’t waste time.

GW: Did I miss anything?
B-CIDE: We’re workin’ on a few new projects, actually. I’m workin’ on a new solo album; it’s called, Utica: The Mob Files. I’m Italian. I touch on that in my song “2008 BC.” That’s pretty much like my life story. That’s on Free Agent. Utica was a mob town back in the ‘40s and ‘50s. I wanted to do a throwback to that. The music itself is not gonna be themed like that. I’m not gonna do Godfather samples. The whole mafia shit’s played out with rappers. There aren’t a lot of rappers that are Italian; they shouldn’t even be doin’ that shit. I like to do shit differently. I’m workin’ on some songs for that [Mob Files]. I got my main producer, GreenRoom Productions. Then, me and Shysty, we’re workin’ on a new Shysty and B-Cide album. We’re tryin’ to get a lot of shit in the works.

www.b-cide.com
www.myspace.com/bcide

By: Ness

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Tacaloc Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere

Published: Friday – May 7, 2010

GW: When you started rapping, you were about 16 with the Young Assasins?
TACALOC: Correct.

GW: Then you hooked up with the Loccest?
TACALOC: It was some neighborhood friends that was a little bit older than me and whatnot. I definitely took a liking to their music and just bein’ around certain people, association brings similarity. By them bein’ so dope as artists, man, I just kept on doing it. Man, I love these guys. I would keep it to myself but I started unleashin’ it to the public, or whatnot, in the neighborhood and to other talent shows, and people took a liking to my music so I just kept it persistent.

GW: Where were you during Hurricane Katrina? What were you doing?
TACALOC: I was actually in New Orleans. My grandmother lived on the Westside of New Orleans which didn’t get any water. If the hurricane was just a little to the right, then we would’ve got water also, but we didn’t. I lived on the East Bank in New Orleans, that’s where my house was and we lost everything. Basically, the house had 15 ft. of water and I had a child at the time that was six months and I wanted to stay. My grandmother kept callin’ me so we went to the Westside, by the grace of God I went. I was in New Orleans, I didn’t evacuate.

GW: I was reading about the difficulties of evacuation during the hurricane due to a lack of transportation. Did you have the transportation?
TACALOC: We had the transportation. We’ve been through so many hurricanes in New Orleans that, OK it’s just another. It’s gon’ come and go, but it didn’t. We shoulda knew but we didn’t. We had to evacuate afterwards because we had no electricity, no water for weeks. Everybody definitely had to evacuate but a lot of people didn’t evacuate ‘cause of money too, not just transportation.

GW: On your mixtape, I Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere, you mention Hurricane Katrina a couple of times but don’t have an entire song dedicated to it…
TACALOC: I never dedicated a whole song to it, but we do have a whole CD we puttin’ out called Post-Katrina Syndrome. That was the actual CD that got put together after Hurricane Katrina and a lot of songs was lost. We still have some of ‘em. So DJ Ice Mike, which is one of my DJs behind me right now, I think that we’re gonna still be putting it out. Post-Katrina still is post-Katrina, years the later the city is still suffering, things haven’t been rebuilt. The economics of the city…all the money ain’t right. So hopefully ya’ll will hear that and they do have Katrina songs on there.

GW: You mentioned you had a child? How many kids do you have?
TACALOC: Yes ma’am. I have one daughter and she is five years old. I love her, definitely. That’s been a blessing in my music, since she’s been born, to make me wanna strive harder for it. I had not had parents. I had my mom in and out when she wasn’t in jail or when she wasn’t on drugs. I had no father figure, so by me not havin’ parents, I’m dedicated to my daughter like 100%.

GW: Would you go into the details about your mom a little bit?
TACALOC: She was in and outta jail, on drugs. When I was nine, she went to jail for armed robbery with my little brother’s dad. After she got out the first time, she got on drugs real bad and when she did start to get her life right, when I was probably about 17, I finally got on my own, she moved to North Carolina and I didn’t go. I love my mom; it made me who I am today.

GW: Who is Dee Martin?
TACALOC: The real me. My real name is Derrick Martin. That’s my government name but Tacaloc is, not an alter ego, but my music, you know? It’s to analyze certain aspects, learnin’ out culture. Our culture is about music, or life period, you know what I mean? I’m a very deep person, I like to study things. I like to be observant and watch my surroundings. Whatever I’m puttin’ into my music, I’m doin’ research for certain songs, I’m tryin’ to find out about certain things that make music about our life, opposed to just makin’ a song about shinin’ or blingin’. Not to knock anybody’s music, ‘cause everybody does what they do. Me, I like originality. If you sound like somebody else, I’m not listenin’ to you. I was thinkin’ about comin’ out as my government as a rap name, but everybody keeps tellin’ me go with Tacaloc ‘cause it’s original. So, I think ima just run with that.

GW: Why do you wear a mask in some of your shows?
TACALOC: Shout out to my dude, Code 6. The first time I actually did a stage show, scheduled to perform on the bill, me and my guy, Code 6, came out with the original Jason mask, just to do something outlandish. If everybody’s up there on stage and people’s watchin’ you, you wanna be the one to get talked about, so we jumped up there with the mask. It was crazy! All publicity is good publicity, whether they talkin’ bad about you or good. The mask gives you a mystique. They wanna find out who is behind the mask. It’s definitely somethin’ to stir up talk, promotion.

GW: Being from New Orleans, would you be interested in working with Lil’ Wayne and Young Money?
TACALOC: Depending on the artist and the song, I’m very choosy. If the song doesn’t fit my character, I’m most likely not gonna do it, ‘cause I don’t believe in artists that do stuff just ‘cause everyone else is doin’ it. I believe in makin’ good music, do you on a song, be yourself.

GW: You host a radio show on blogtalkradio as well?
TACALOC: It’s through blogtalk but it’s also urbanunionradio.com. It’s hosted by myself and DJ Ice Mike. We do interviews with artists, it’s an opportunity to get artists out there. To even do a show like that, you have to respect that. We have a talk show segment on Sundays called, Getcha Game Sundays. We talk about stuff the labels don’t want you to know about the music business and encourage artists to do the right thing about the music.

GW: It seems like you’re very much about helping young artists who are trying to come up.
TACALOC: Right. I’m a young artist, tryin’ to come up. Everybody needs somebody. Give everybody a shot until they prove you wrong. I try to help every artist out there, man, ya’ll want features, I’m a local artist in New Orleans, I’m tryin’ to get what they’re tryin’ to get. If I can help you, each one teach one.

GW: You talk about how much you smoke on your mixtape. Does smoking help you get through your struggles?
TACALOC: Yeah, it do, man. Everybody that smoke know one thing: if you goin’ through a messed up time, all kinda negative shit comin’ your way, you just gon spark up. Some people need it to be artistic. With me, I believe that you don’t need that in order to be artistic. I wrote some of my best songs when I was sober.

GW: You wear a shirt that says, “Hip Hop is Alive.” Do you think that people who say hip hop is dead have given up on hip hop?
TACALOC: They haven’t given up on hip hop. They’re brainwashed by the radio and the TV that’s playin’ nothin’…there’s real artists out there, they just gotta find ‘em. There’s a lot of dope talent throughout the world right now, it’s just getting’ slept on. It’s not getting’ broadcasted by the DJs. I’m talkin’ about the BETs and the MTVS, they brainwashin’ the people with this saturated music, so that’s all the people think’s out there. If they would dig into they roots, they would find hip hop is alive. I called [the mixtape] I’m Here to Stay and [the upcoming mixtape] I Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere because I feel real music will never die. If you got concepts and social commentary in your music, it lasts forever.

GW: On your radio show, when you play music, do you play music from local underground artists only?
TACALOC: Support local music means, not just your local city. We’re based out of Houston, New Orleans, and we have a West Coast Wednesday show that’s in the work right now. We just support local music, period, and no I don’t play the same songs you gon be hearin’ on your radio or BET. I won’t play those. The point is to have somethin’ new for your ear that nobody else is puttin’ out there. A lot of the cats that we interview and play they’re music, they’ve never had an interview or had play on any radio station. It’s just another outlet for local artists to get their voice heard.

GW: What are your musical inspirations?
TACALOC: Pac was always my favorite artist. R&B, Al Greene, Marvin Gaye, man, I grew up wantin’ to make music off of that. Reggae, Bob Marley was a big influence. As far as rap artists besides 2Pac, a guy named Tech N9ne. He’s from Kansas City, man, this guy right here, I been listenin’ to him since ’96. This guy came from nothin’. His music is so different, he developed his own fan base and is sellin’ out packed arenas and whatnot. If he can do it, anybody can. It’s about your grind. You get what you put in. All ya’ll artists out there that’s young, just keep your focus.

www.twitter.com/tacaloc
www.myspace.com/tacaloc
www.facebook.com/tacaloc
www.tacaloc.ning.com
www.urbanunionradio.com

By: Ness

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Kavio Hittin’ The World Hard

Published: Monday – May 3, 2010

GW: Are you on the road promoting your album?
KAVIO: Yeah. We been on the road almost two years, promotin’ the album, promotin’ new projects, and just networkin’ and gettin’ it in with everybody. State to state, city to city.

GW: When did your album, Hittas on tha Payroll come out?
KAVIO: That already had dropped, so I been out here pushin’ that for a while now. Right now, I’m about to present my boys from Boss Gang, which is my crew. I’m getting all the promo and everything ready for that also right now, so, I appreciate ya’ll doin’ the interview for your magazine and things like that.

GW: Of course. Describe your life up until now. What did you go through to get here?
KAVIO: Ah man, you know, it was hard. They tried to give me 15 years to life and I fought it for, like, a whole year. I went from bein’, like, almost 190-200 lbs. to bein’ 140 lbs. When the judge had dropped everything and let me go, they had me sweatin’ for, like, almost a whole year goin’ into my court dates. I started from the street with my own lawyer and things like that and, you know, all my boys was there, my brothers. It was just crazy, you know? I just wanted to let my peoples know that I was gon do somethin’ different than what I was doin’. What I was doin’ ended up gettin’ me almost 15 years to life. So, once you almost get 15 years to life, it’s like, the system was tellin’ me I’m gonna have to change my game. I had to change the things that I do, in order to survive out here. That’s what made me wanna get into the music game, but I felt that there was a lotta people that was in the music game that’s tellin’ the stories of life but they really ain’t livin’ that life. They never really been through that. The one’s that have, I respect them a whole lot.

GW: What kind of things were you doing that got you locked up?
KAVIO: In my song, “You Can Make It,” that’s the truth. Everything you hear in that song is the truth. It’s everything that I was doin’ that was negative or positive, but mostly I was doin’ negative things.

GW: For the people who haven’t heard the song, name a couple of those negative things.

KAVIO: Well, far as bein’ in the streets, bein’ in a gang, you know, slangin’ dope, I mean, everything up under the sun that anybody, if you’s a street person and you from the ‘hood, you understand where I’m comin’ from. Whatever was criminal, I was doin’ it. You know, a lotta people say, “It ain’t what you do, it’s how you do it.” That’s why I let everybody know, it’s just a certain way things have to be done, ‘cause I done been there and done that, you know? So I understand how things is supposed to be done and how they get done. I try to motivate people and I don’t try to mislead people. Like, I don’t wanna mislead kids, you know. I’ll tell a kid, “Get yo’ money instead of killin’ somebody. Get yo’ money!” I’d rather we start really trainin’ them how to get they money, you know, if they really a person who can be a hustler or be within this game, or even if they go to school or work a job. I done all that. I don’t discriminate. I discriminate when people is tryin’ to be somethin’ that they’re not, you know? But other than that, as long as people are theyselves, I could deal with anybody. It don’t matter they sex, gender, what they like, female, male, or whatever they do. As long as they good people, man and they bein’ who they are. I’m always gonna deal with those types of people.

GW: Were you rapping before you got locked up?
KAVIO: Na. The Compton sheriffs, they killed my uncle, he always used to rap. We used to be around each other and that was his dream. If you heard the song called, “I Miss You,” dedicated to him, a lot of stuff that I learned, far as streetwise, he taught me a lot of it. So it’s like, far as bein’ a hustler, he taught me ‘bout the hustle. I always felt like he was with me anyway. I just wanted to make somethin’ basically come true for him. I didn’t expect to get attention I got, dealin’ with a lotta mainstream artists I done worked with and things like that. I feel like I got lucky, like somebody was with me or God was there to help me get through, help me do things and help people in many ways as well, you know?

GW: Even with being lucky, you still had to put in the time and the work?
KAVIO: I put in the work. You know, sometimes you can put in the hard work and do everything and still come out short. But, I didn’t come out short. I came out with way more than I ever expected, feel me? It’s like, crazy to me sometimes, you know?

GW: You mentioned that you’ve worked with mainstream artists. Name a couple you’ve worked with.
KAVIO: Lil’ Flip. I done worked with all of the Screwed Up Click. It ain’t too many artists outta Los Angeles or the West Coast or the South, far as Texas, that I haven’t really worked with. All of ‘em look out for me and all of ‘em, if I reach out to them, they gon show love back to me and they call me and I’m there, you know?

GW: You mentioned your uncle as one of your influences as a rapper. Do you have any other influences in the game?
KAVIO: Any rapper, brand new or old, man, from the West Coast that’s doin’ they thing, they influence me. You know, Big Snoop Dogg influenced me; people from the Bay influenced me: Yukmouth and Bo; but really, Tha Dogg Pound and Snoop Dogg; MC Eiht; Westside Connection; DJ Screw; people like that influenced me the most. They showed me you could get up out this game if you willing to put in the hard work. Once you see it, you know that it’s possible and you put yo’ work into action, you know?

GW: You mentioned a lot of old rappers. Are you on that current West Coast beefin’ between OGs and young rappers on the come up?
KAVIO: What I don’t like about a lotta old rappers is they hate on the new. They hate on the new, when I feel like they done already had they time. That don’t mean that I don’t respect them. All I’m sayin’ is pass the torch to the young ones that’s gon hold it down, you know? You up there tryin’ to keep yo’ same thing that you had in the ‘90s. If you pass the torch, you just helpin’ somebody else at the same time keep yo’ name alive, you know?

GW: Anyone specifically? I know some youngin’s have had some issues with Ice Cube.
KAVIO: Ice Cube is foul. You got the little homie, Jay Roc, you got a lot of us smashin’ right now, but you don’t wanna work with them though? You don’t wanna work with them because you feel like you tired of niggas eatin’ off yo’ name. But damn, Cube, he used to be the shit! Cube still the nigga, he still hot, but nigga, yo’ bars ain’t like they used to be on that Lynch Mob shit. Yo’ bars ain’t like they used to be on that Westside Connection shit, so why you hatin’ on us new niggas and the niggas comin’ up? Nigga, you been in the game like 30 years, why wouldn’t you wanna bless yo’ seeds, man? Like, we come from you, Cube, you wanna hate on us though. You know what I mean? You niggas the ones that fumbled the mu- fuckin’ ball. All you old niggas is the ones that fumbled the ball and let the South get it. No hatin’ on the South, I got love for the South, they show me love. If they [OGs] wanna blame anybody for anything, it was them[selves]. Seriously, they ones that bringin’ the gang shit into this music and really actin’ like they labels was a set, ridin’ on each other like colors. Nigga, this is music. If we got beef with each other, it’s a personal beef, we handle it between each other. We don’t involve our ‘hoods into our beefs. That’s what happened. They let they ‘hoods into the beef and then you got yo’ ‘hood dudes, yo’ ‘hood niggas, they’ll die for you. They’ll bust a nigga’s head open for you. They’ll merk somebody for you. So, what do they care about some music? They care about gettin’ close enough to the nigga that’s runnin’ the shit so if they gotta bust a head or two, it don’t matter to them. Just like that shit with 2 Pac and Biggie. If they woulda sat down (and 2 Pac wasn’t such a hot head, but me bein’ a Gemini, he’s a Gemini, I know how we can get) … at the same time, if there ain’t no talkin’ out the situation then, it gotta get handled how it gotta get handled. That’s why a lotta these labels, they think twice before they really deal with a LA nigga or a grimy Bay nigga. They think twice before they wanna give us a major deal because they know a lot of us is really livin’ it, you know?

GW: You mentioned you’ve been on the road plenty. What’s your favorite city?
KAVIO: Presently, Omaha and Des Moines. I just love Omaha and Des Moines. I make so much money out there, it’s crazy.(Laughs) I love Kansas City; St. Lois; I gotta give a shout out to Wisconsin, ‘cause that’s where I started a little bit, Milwaukee; Detroit; Ohio; Wichita, Kansas; Oklahoma, I can’t forget Oklahoma, Tulsa and Oklahoma City; Missouri; the whole Midwest, East Coast, South, West Coast, I been there.

GW: Say something good to the women out there.
KAVIO: All the ladies, all the women that have checked out my [Myspace] page, all ya’ll that hold me down, all ya’ll that still believe in me to the fullest, much love to all of ya’ll. Keep representin’, keep smashin’ for us ‘cause we need it all.

By: Ness

EXCLUSIVE GUTTA MEETS GUDDA

Published: Wednesday – April 21, 2010

GUTTA WORLD had the chance to hook up with Young Money’s Gudda Gudda for an exclusive in depth interview. Getting the word on the true Gudda Gudda, everything from the success of his debut mix tape Guddaville and the launch of Back 2 Guddaville, to him hustlin’ to make it in the rap game and who really influenced him to become the rapper we blowin’ our speakers up with to now.

GW: Let’s just start it off, when did you know that music was something youwere going to pursue seriously?
GUDDA: I probably realized that maybe like ten years ago. Basically I use to be on the road wit Lil’Wayne a lot, I use to just travel wit him. And he wanted to start his own record company and basically he was looking for a bunch of artists and he found a couple of artists from out in the city in New Orleans ya know what I mean, and during that process he was like man why don’t you just try and write raps, ya know.  He’s like you got a lot to talk about and you’ve been through a lot, he’s like why don’t you just try and write raps and try an make something, so I was like aight. So I tried it out and we started puttin mixed tapes out and I started to build a buzz for myself. And the rest is history.

GW: That’s how you became a part of Young Money, you were from the very beginning?
GUDDA: Yeah yeah. I actually was one of the people that was…it was three of us in a room when we started Young Money. I’ve been there from the real beginning of Young Money.

GW: Did you plan on becoming a rapper or did you have other plans?
GUDDA: Oooh no, I was knee deep in the streets, I wasn’t even thinking about rappin that was the last thing. I dropped out of school when I was in the ninth grade and had my kid when I was sixteen. So you know I was really runnin around just tryin to get money! I definitely wasn’t thinking about a career at all, until he brought it to my attention, ya know what I mean. I always did a little music, I always loved be around music. I use to sit in the studio wit him days at a time. Every time he cord something he’d come to me and be like whatcha you think about this ya know, cause he know I listen to music a lot and he come to me to critic his music. Ya know I always did have a love for music but I never thought I’d be doin music, at that point back then, ten years ago.

GW: If you weren’t doing music right now, what do you think you’d be doing?
GUDDA: The same thing I was doing back then, probably hustling.

GW: You grew up in New Orleans and it sounds like it was pretty tough.

GUDDA: Tough for everybody in New Orleans ya know what I mean, like everybody know the story about New Orleans, every man for himself. Ihad a kid at a early age so I was just out there tryin’ to get this money by any means necessary, so that’s what it was.

GW: From what you’ve gone through from the beginning with money and everything, what’s been your biggest obstacle you had to overcome to get your start in the music industry?
GUDDA: Just making that transition ya know what I mean. At first it was just one foot in one foot out. When I first started rappin, even though I had people that built a following I still didn’t know if that’s what I wanted to do, ya know because money wasn’t comin’ in. It was like people knew who I was, everyone knew who I was it just felt like I was makin more money hustling then I was rappin shit. That was a hard transition for me to make, from jumpin out of the streets to getting into the music.

GW: Were you thinking maybe I should quit this [music] and go back to hustling?
GUDDA: Actually at some point I was still hustling and rappin, ya know what I mean. So it was really like one foot in one foot out. They’d be in the studio and I wouldn’t show up, for weeks because I was tryin to get it. That was the hardest transition tryin to make it all the way out of the streets and get focused on my music.

GW: When your not in the studio, what are you doing?
GUDDA: If I’m not in the studio then I probably on the road doin shows, if I’m not doin shows then I’m spending time with my kid or hanging out with the homies, ya know just regular people stuff. Ya know I don’t do nuttin to much, I don’t like clubin’ to much. I only go out if I’m paid to be there, so I don’t do to much clubin’. So I just chill out with my family ya know and just kick back.

GW: I think people will be surprised to hear that, I think they expect you to be a crazier partier and clubber and the fact that you don’t like doin that…
GUDDA: Yeah, I don’t like doin that because I have to do it so much. By just bein my job I’m always in a club like at least two or three times a week, ya know if the wallet gets dead ya know what I mean…at this point in my life I’m more comfortable wit just chillin’ wit my family and spending time with my kid. By me being gone so much and bein away from my kid, when I’m home I like to be wit my kid and hang out.

GW: Who or what is your biggest influence as an artist?
GUDDA: Wayne! I mean basically he’s hands on he taught me everything about this music. He literally taught me how to rap. Ya know what I mean, when I wrote my first rap I didn’t know how to stop, where to stop, I didn’t know what sixteen bars was, I didn’t know what a hook was, I didn’t know nothing he had to explain all that to me. I’d come in with these long raps, two three sheets long of raps! He’d be like where you goin start rappin at, where’s your hook at? He’d be like you got to format this, you got to make it sixteen bars here a eight bar chorus another sixteen bars here another chorus then another sixteen bars, he taught me all that kind of stuff and still telling me how to improve as a lyrists too. Don’t use this many words, you can short
that out by doin this, he really taught me how to rap. I’m really his protégé. For real.

GW: You have your Guddaville mix tape and your getting ready for Back 2 Guddaville. What’s goin on with that? When can we expect it?
GUDDA: Actually I’m wrappin it up now. I just realized today, I was ridin in my truck wit one of my homies ya know and we were listenin to all the songs I had recorded and a couple of days ago I was feelin like I was missin a lot of songs, but I have em’ on so many different cd’s and I was goin through my disc changer and I listened to all three of them and was like its just seventeen of em’ right here. I mean solid songs not bullshit songs, it could be the mix tape right here. But I mean I do want to add a few touches to it. Basically its done I’m just waitin on a couple features and I’m goin knock out like two more joints by myself and that’s a wrap.

GW: What should the fans expect?
GUDDA: I mean I named it Back 2 Guddaville because it was like I got such a good response from the Guddaville mix tape, I just wanted to take them back to Guddaville. Ya know I didn’t want to leave that place. So basically if you were a fan of the Guddaville mix tape and you have the mix tape, still listenin to the mix tape, your gonna love Back 2 Guddaville on a whole another level. Because I took this one to another level, its on the same content its just on a whole another level as far as the features, better songs, my lyrics got better. I grow as an artist so at this point ya know what I mean, I think they’ll like this.

GW: It actually means something, like Guddaville was just a good place that you don’t want to leave there and you want to keep the fans there, but you’ve takin it to another level.
GUDDA: Right, right. I’m just trying to take it up a notch. I don’t want them to think I’m leaving Guddaville, that level I was on when I made Guddaville ya know what I mean. I’m at a different space in life now from when I first made Guddaville, but I’m still in the mind frame as when I first made Guddaville. The contents should be similar.

GW: Who are some of the features on Back 2 Guddaville?
GUDDA: As of right now I got Wocka on there, of course Birdman, that Young Money family. Wayne of course. I got a bunch of other joints with other people but I’m not sure if I’m going to use it for my mix tape yet, so I don’t really want to call it out. I gotta a few features on it ya know. But the for sure ones will be Wocka, Jules Santana, Baby of course and the Young Money family. That’s what it is so far.

GW: If you could explain the meaning of Guddaville in one word, what would it be?
GUDDA: In one word…to me, to me, a masterpiece.

GW: What’s in your Mp3 player right now?
GUDDA: Right now I got Wiz Khalifa old mix tapes, Burn After Rolling, I still to that lot, when I’m on the airplane I listen to his mix tapes a lot. Of course I got Gucci in there, all of Wayne anything Wayne all the Young Money stuff. All my new music that nobody even heard yet. I listen to that like twenty five times a day just to critic my own music so see if I need to fix something ya know.

GW: With everything that you and Wayne have been through and your listening to his music all the time you two must be like best friends…?
GUDDA: I mean just like you said, it’s like we best friends like brothers ya know what I mean. Like I just talk to him yesterday like two times on the phone. He call me from jail, we just talk about regular stuff ya know what I mean. We talk about business too, but most of the conversation will be about regular stuff. Ya know how da kids doin, how da family doin, how you doin, you alright. And then we get to, whatcha gonna record? Then we talk about the music or whatever. But its more like brothers ya know what I mean we talk about family first make sure each other straight. I ask him if I aight, if he need anything and he say the same thing back to me. Like brothers for real.

GW: Your holding up pretty well then, talking to him everyday, every week?
GUDDA: Yeah I get a phone call from him like two usually three times a week. Ya know we talk a lot. He was telling me he reads all of his fan mail he get, that’s what he do. To pass time he works out and reads every bit of his fan mail. So any fan that’s sending him mail, he’s reading it!

GW: What’s your favorite social network?
GUDDA: I ain’t real big on the computer thing, ya know the whole cyber thing. I do Twitter that’s like the only thing I do besides check my email. Twitter is the main thing, I try and send out one tweet a day. Then I pick one day were I’ll reply to fans, reply to the ladies and everybody. But I don’t tweet every much, I’m not big on the cyber thing. I don’t do the live Ustreams, I don’t do any of that, that was never my style ya know. But there’s Guddaville.com, it keeps you updated on everything and not just me either but everything Young Money. If Nicki Minaj puts something out, if Drake puts something out, my people that handle Guddaville.com will make sure everything is put up there. You can go up there an get all my show dates, know all the cities I’m gonna be in, let you know the location of where I’m gonna be at and just keep updated with all my music.

GW: From everything that you’ve learned from Wayne in the last ten years, do you plan on mentoring anybody?
GUDDA: I am, I already do that. Ya know its not on the level where I put them out there already but its like, I already started doin that. I have someone I talk to and give them the exact same game that was given to me ya know what I mean. I have people around that I do that with already.

GW: Are you going to go on tour? Or are you just going to do shows and appearances?
GUDDA: I just do shows and appearances right now, I’m not on tour right now. Just doing spot dates and different appearances and stuff in different cities, there’s no tour I’m puttin together right now. I believe we’re suppose to be putting together some kind of Young Money tour together soon, don’t quote me on that but that’s what the talks are about right now. If not in a few months I will be putting together a Guddaville tour together.

GW: Will you be touring the United States only or are you gonna take it international to?
GUDDA: Everywhere. Actually people are calling from everywhere. I was surprised about how many people and promoters are calling to try and book me for different things. Ya know I didn’t know the mix tape got that far out, until I realized how many downloads it actually had. It’s over a million downloads so really a lot of people have the music, so a lot of different promoters all for different things. Even your putting together a tour you don’t want it where you have two shows this week then two show the following week. I want to put it together where I’ll have three or four shows a week for a month straight and I’m going to call that the Guddaville tour, so ya know. I’m just tryin to work it out now get all the bases together and talk to all the
promoters and just tryin’ to make it a big tour. United States, overseas, everywhere.

GW: Are you thinking about doing a solo album anytime soon?
GUDDA: Of course, of course. I’m probably try and do something by the end of this year. If not the end of this year then the top of nextyear.

GW: What do you think you’ll title it?
GUDDA: I don’t even have a title of it yet. Like when I put Guddaville out, it almost became an album. The response from it was so big from it, it almost turned into an album. We were almost going to make it an album but you know it was like to much rushin’ it. I just want to keep puttin out good music and just build it up to the point where it’s a real album. I don’t want to put a mix tape out and throw three extra songs on it and say here’s my album. That’s not how I want to put my first album out.

GW: Did it surprise you how successful Guddaville became?
GUDDA: Yeah it really did. Yeah it did. I knew the music was good, I was real confident in the music when I put Guddaville together. Because I analyze my music for months. I don’t let nobody hear the music. My manager, the deejay’s I work with, you can ask all of them, they didn’t hear Guddaville until two days before we put it out. So I sit down and analyze my own music, for months maybe even months and weeks at a time, however long that I think is right. I’m talkin about from the order of the songs, to lyrics, to who’s on the songs, like I got to anaylze everything. I gotta make sure the cd flows right, I make sure everything is just right before I hand it off to anybody. It’s the exact same process that I’m doin now with Back 2 Guddaville. Like nobody has heard anything off Back 2 Guddaville, my manager might of hear five or six joints. But nobody has heard nothing, I don’t want to hear nobodies opinion. Because someone’s opinion could make you do something that’s wrong. Ya know what I mean, I’d rather do that and have everything fall on me. If I do wrong I want it to fall on me, not because someone else made me do another move. I just keep my music to myself, analyze it until I think its perfect or near perfect or perfect in my eyes. Ya know what I mean, then I give it to my people and my family and be like aight hear it is.

GW: How did you come up with name Gudda Gudda?
GUDDA: That name was given to me. Ya know my home boys use to call me that. That was before the rap, my home boys use to call me Gudda. I’m a junior first, like my whole family calls me Jay. Like I was never called by my government name, which is Carl. I’ve neva been called by my government name, except when I was in elementary school my teachers use to call me Carl. But from me bein a junior my whole family call me Jay my whole life, like nobody in my family called me by my government name. So Jay was my name in the streets, my homies use to call me Jay Gudda. So when I started rappin I just kept the name. I forgot how the extra Gudda got added on but I believe Wayne stuck it in a rap a long time ago, something about ‘my homie Gudda Gudda..’ And then people started sayin where’s Gudda Gudda at, I want to see Gudda Gudda and I just stuck with it.

GW: Is there anything else you’d like the fans to know?
GUDDA: Basically Rebirth in stores now. Of course Young Money album in stores now. Thanks for the support. Tryin’ to push them platinum. Back 2 Guddaville comin soon, don’t have a date on it yet but its almost finished so it will be out sometime in the next few weeks. Follow me on Twitter @imguddagudda. And check my website out Guddaville.com updated on all my info.

GW: Thanks for hitting us up on GUTTA WORLD.
GUDDA: Yeah yeah yeah, I got you! I’m all in lets do it!

By: Tiff Mac

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