mistah fab dj strong big fase the federation

REAL, RAW, & UNCENSORED WEST COAST RAP SHIT
N
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I
T
A
R
E
D
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BISHOP TOON
MR. CAR SLICK
MITCHY
MISTAH F
DJ STRONAB
BIG FASE G
& MORE
O
O
T ORT
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in
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OZONE WEST // 1
2 // OZONE WEST
editor’s note
Publisher
Julia Beverly
Editor-In-Chief
N. Ali Early
Art Director
Tene Gooden
Music Editor
Randy Roper
ADVERTISING SALES
Che Johnson
Isaiah Campbell
Contributors
D-Ray
DJ BackSide
Joey Colombo
Regi Mentle
Wendy Day
Street Reps
Anthony Deavers
Bigg P-Wee
Dee1
Demolition Men
DJ E-Z Cutt
DJ Jam-X
DJ K-Tone
DJ Quote
DJ Strong & DJ Warrior
John Costen
Kewan Lewis
Lisa Coleman
Maroy
Rob J Official
Rob Reyes
Sherita Saulsberry
William Major
ozone west
04
05-09
06
08
10
11
13
14
15
16
17
18-19
20-21
22-24
25
26
THE WEST IS BACKSIDE
CALIFORNIA LOVE
HOW THE WEST WAS WON
SXSW Review
RELEASE THERAPY: MISTAH FAB
WHO’S READING OZONE
BANGIN’ 101: BIG FASE
PATIENTLY WAITING: JUICE
PATIENTLY WAITING: MITCHY SLICK
PATIENTLY WAITING: ROCCETT
DJ PROFILE: DJ STRONG
MR. CARTOON
THE FIXXERS
TOO $HORT
CD REVIEWS
END ZONE
no id
Me
and my ninja finally caught Tyler Perry’s
latest flick Daddy’s Little Girls and I
must say I was pleasantly surprised.
I remember him talking on the radio about how
America didn’t want to accept the idea of a single
Black father raising children… and wanting to do
it. So I got to thinking – because I do that – and
it struck a chord. A week prior to taking in that
movie I watched a disturbing video on the news.
The next day there were endless Internet streams of
the same video, which I’m sure most of conscious
America has been made aware of: two babies
smoking weed in the presence of their uncle and
his friend. They knew how to hold it, pass it and
yes, smoke it. Subsequent reports revealed that
the uncle and friend are both from “dysfunctional
households,” ones where mothers sleep in the very
next room while her toddlers are toking marijuana.
Maybe she was high herself. Who knows? This same
household is responsible for producing multiple
family members who are either currently in jail, on
their way or were recently released.
men whose destiny is to go to jail? Meanwhile, their
female counterparts find their way through college,
graduate school and then the corporate world, if
they so choose.
A couple weeks later I come to find out that these
same babies, who have since been turned over to
the state of Texas, had cocaine in their innocent
systems as well. Judging from the way the uncle
and his friend were acting it was just weed. But to
think that they could have had the indecency to
lace it with ‘caine or worse, give the babies that
shit straight up, was disheartening to say the least.
Take AMG and DJ Quik for instance, now known as
The Fixxers (pg. 20). Their whole mission in coming
back into the Hip Hop fold (congrats on the Interscope deal) they say, is to abandon the identity
that people already have of them and come anew.
Knowing that they’ve been in the thick of it and are
able to identify a need for change, it makes all the
more sense for their offspring extended to follow.
Much the same is the case with Mr. Cartoon (pg. 18),
who’s seen his fair share of struggles and poverty
stricken circumstances, only to become the most
sought after tattoo artist in the country. And then
there’s our cover subject, Too $hort (22). Perhaps
the most consistent artist in Hip Hop’s illustrious
existence, he’s still at it. Survived five years with
Jive when all they wanted to promote was popcorn,
bubblegum bullshit like it was nothin’. Count how
many albums he’s dropped and then add another
one to it. Act like you know beeeyatch!!
So I mulled over growing up and how hard it has to
be in this day and age. I’m sure we had problems
back in the ‘70’s, but we didn’t have disruptive
forces like crack rock ravishing our communities
across the country. We didn’t have the threat of AIDS
at every sexual turn and we didn’t have Hip Hop. As
it’s become the most celebrated musical genre ever,
our culture has taken its hits and deservedly so. As
reporters from the hoods of the United States our
prophets/artists are obligated to discuss what pops
off in the streets. Be it drugs, the police force, sex
or any other matter of importance, it’s their duty to
report the news. It is what it is. If the news is 85%
negative, we are committed to telling it without
reservation and/or prejudice. However, there has to
come a time when we begin to glorify something
other than the same rhetoric bullshit that’s clouded
our vision for more than two decades.
Cold thing about it is we love weed on the West
Coast. It’s to the point where you can damn near
do it legally in California. The case with the boys in
Texas was rare in that they were dumb enough to
tape the shit, but I’m sure it happens in other parts
of the country. So at what point do we stop? When
do we start teaching our seeds instead of rearing
We talk about Hip Hop being grown with the button
down shirts and all the materialistic bullshit that
comes with it, but it doesn’t mean anything if we
don’t look out for each other. Perry addressed it in
the movie when Gabrielle Union’s character bellowed that if she saw “another 30 year old brotha
wearing a throwback” she was going to scream…
and then she did (both). By no means is this an
attempt to point the finger at the dude who carries
his own bottle of hot sauce to Red Lobster (to keep
it all the way one hunned, I had a throwback on
when I was watching the movie – Jerry Rice, #88,
Mississippi Valley State – you know I stay Bay’d
out!). I think Hip Hop means to keep us young and
vibrant, but not ignorant. We have to grow with
our circumstances and realize that as the world
changes, so does our culture.
See, we may not think we have leaders because
their names don’t end in King, Shabazz or Ali, but
we do. They’re in our CD collections, in studios and
in the thick of the hood holding down anonymous
storefronts. And we have a duty to identify who
they are and what message it is we are supposed to
get from their speak.
Peace 2 fingers.
*Our deepest sympathies go out to the family and
friends of Johnny “Ca$h” Castaneda – a promising
rapper from the city of Richmond whose life was
taken away by a gunshot wound to the head. Thizz
In Peace.
OZONE WEST // 3
The West is Back…Side:
The Bay Area’s DJ BackSide links up with the Best of
the West to see what’s really goin’ on in their heads!
Bishop Lamont
T
he Bay Area’s DJ BackSide links up with the
Best of the West to see what’s really goin’ on
in their heads!
Keepin’ it lowridin’ and rather Hollywood, I kept it
in L.A. for this one. I just had to, because perhaps
Bishop Lamont might have insight on Anna Nicole
Smith’s happenings, Britney Spears’ shaved head,
this Black President thing, and even an idea of
his Boss’ Detox album finally coming out AND not
to mention if Dre makes his own beats! During
this interview (which took place at 3 AM) I was
surrounded by not only upcoming Aftermath artist
Bishop Lamont, but also rappers Warren G, Ohwee,
DJ Skee and other bystanders in a mini gym located in the back of their state-of-the-art studio
in L.A. An interesting melting pot, to say the least.
DJ BackSide: I read up about you, lightweight, and
everyone I talk to in the L.A. area has your name
in their mouth.
Bishop Lamont: It was all lies. (Warren G and
Ohwee laugh)
You’re signed to Aftermath?
Yeah, well, it’s actually Delicious Vinyl Records, but
yeah, Aftermath.
What is that like being signed to such a legendary
label as Aftermath?
It’s churchurry! That’s Dre, that’s the boss, I love
him, I love it. We got Warren Gizzle liftin’ weights
in the back. (literally Warren G is lifting weights in
the background) It’s great workin’ with them. It’s
churchurry.
Before we go on, what is the churchurry business?
Churchurry, it’s like waving the magic wand of the
tabernacle, ya know? It’s a whole wand that just
waves goodness, feel me? Use it in a sentence:
The way you was spittin’ that charisma, that was
churchurry. The way the bitch was movin;’ her ass
that was churchurry.
So does Dr. Dre really make his beats?
Hell yeah, shit. Ask his bank account. All you
niggas wanna be him, wanna sound like him. His
Black Card is hella heavy, nigga, you know what it
is. Y’all niggas know what the fuck it is, y’all niggas gonna buy Detox, and y’all still buyin’ Chronic
2001 tryin’ to figure this nigga out.
I’m just askin’. People sayin he just got ghost
peoples. So Detox is really comin’ out this year?
Man, all I know is, God is good, Jesus Christ is our
Lord and Savior. I mean, that’s like askin’ who
killed JFK. I don’t know. That’s Area 51.
So you have this song produced by Scott Storch
with Stacy Adams, yes?
4 // OZONE WEST
Yeah, I love Scott Storch. He’s my
white chocolate.
And Scotty boy dissed Timbaland.
Yeah, it will blow over though. They
need to realize they are both producer
rockstars and cut that shit out. It’s like
singers - that shit that happened with
Justin and Prince. You can’t step to
Prince, man. International lover. Scandalous. Sexy never left, shit. I feel sexier
than a muthafucka.
Are we ready for a black President?
We are ready for A PRESIDENT. It’s not
about being black or white.
So we’re not ready?
I don’t know. Stop callin’ shit black or
white. Does the ABC Channel call themselves the white network? We keep puttin’
color in front. If the people are just ready
to let go of these color lines and respect the man
for the man. The President is a job. It has no color
or ethnicity in it. It’s a position.
So what’s the craziest white girl story out there?
We’ve got “Anna Nicole Smith: Who’s the Father”
and “Britney Spears: Shaved.”
I don’t see either one of them being crazy looking at the circumstances that these people lived
under. Its said that muthafuckas are fightin’ over
a dead woman’s body. It’s sad that muthafuckers
are fighting over money she was fighting over. And
Britney, she’s been under pressure from Mickey
Mouse ‘til now. But really, the craziest white
woman is Patty Hearst. Do your homework on that
white chick!
Your thoughts on the Brandy/Ray J Norwood family right now?
Bless them. And bless Sonja Norwood, their
mother. She just had a dinner with my mother,
Dre’s momma, and Game’s momma. All the Mothers
of Rappers, just had dinner together.
Mothers of Rappers. “M.O.R.”? Is that a cult?
Fa shizzle. That’s Churchurry right there. You came
wit it.
Well, Ray J is a porn star now.
Yup. And he’s the shit. Do that shit well, my nigga.
I got a porno comin out called Smackula. I’mma
just wear a cape with Timbalands on. I was gonna
be a porn star before I started to rap, cause I got
a big dick. But anyways, shouts out to Ray J.
And Brandy?
I mean, it was an accident. And to prosecute
someone for that - you should just pray for her.
Life is fucked up a lot of times. And we pray for
them.
IPod, IPhone?
Nah, I’m a caveman, I don’t like none of that shit.
Even Bluetooth, what the fuck is that? Got shit
comin’ outta your ear like a microwave and shit. I
ain’t fuckin’ wit that shit. But I mean, do what you
do, people. I’m gonna keep it caveman.
Which Jennifer: Jennifer Hudson? Jennifer Lopez?
Or Jennifer Aniston?
Man, I’ll take the one De La Soul was talkin’ about
in that song. Jennifer O Jenny, ‘cause she sound
sexier than a muthafucka. But those other Jennifers are doin’ their thang, so bless them too.
This mixtape called Nigga Noize you have out right
now is pretty dope! And you’re on the cover in a
Klu Klux Klan ‘fit. Bold, don’t you think?
Shit, the KKK stole the white outfits from a Christian sector. So I just did the opposite of that and
turned it back, turned a negative thing and made
it positive. And make it funny, because that’s what
these KKK niggas are. Comical. They take perfectly
good white sheets that you can lay and fuck
bitches on, and cut them up. I mean, with the mixtape I just wanted to give niggas a home-cooked
meal. They been dealin’ wit fast food out there
in Hip Hop. It was meant for Black History Month,
really. Listen to it and you’ll see.
I can attest to that!
For more on Bishop Lamont, make sure you check
out his website at www.myspace.com/bishoplamont and look out for his album to be released
on Aftermath in 2007!
CWAESLTICFOAOSTRPNHOITAO GLAOLLVEERIES
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@ Club 17 (Oak
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D-Ray (01,02,0
Photo Credits:
OZONEWEST
WEST////55
OZONE
T
he Westside of Compton did it again, twice! Young Hootie
has been making a buzz in the streets with a couple
mixtapes, his label Larceny Entertainment and various
other projects in the works. I mentioned dude’s cameo
on El Dorado Red’s “On Bloodz” last issue, but he more
than deserves his own spotlight. Sillk Calone and City Boy
round out Larceny’s first phase of attack on the area’s rap
scene. From the same neighborhood comes a legend-inthe-making, Six Million. Six is no newcomer to the game,
having produced part of the late, great Mausberg’s solo
album Non Fiction, and I gotta say there is no artist out
there who I’d cosign quicker. I wore out three copies of his mixtape The Subway Vol. 1, which had him collaborating with the Young Hoggs and the Black
Tek Rangers, Six’s click that features Peenutt the Weasel, Slimm Ruger and
whole slew of other dudes. Six was locked up for a minute, but he’s preparing
to drop his solo album California Sunshine.
Go East on Rosecrans and take a left on Bullis and you’re sure to find LBG on
the block making a name for himself. Lil Bob Gotti mixes West Coast gangster
shit with gritty New York realism. “Get Your Shit Together” is fuckin’ the
streets up for real right now and that’s on the hood!
Watts native Jay Rock just finished a tour with The Game. I caught one of
the shows and dude had the crowd feelin it fo’ sho’! If “Lift Me Up” doesn’t
make this guy a household name, then people are brazy! Coincidently, Jay
Rock’s flow and style reminds me a lot of his tourmate who lives about 10
minutes south of the infamous Nickerson Garden Projects, where Jay was
raised. Anyone from the area knows that place is no joke with a reputation for
murders, dope dealing and one of the deepest, most vicious gangs banging in
the hoods of Los Angeles. His Watts Finest mixtapes are hittin the streets hard
and his Warner Bros debut should reduce the city to shambles.
A few legends are getting active again. DJ Quik has dropped the DJ and
formed The Fixxers with long-time partner-in-crime AMG. They just signed to
Interscope and have a single called “Can You Werk Wit’ Dat” that’s sure to be a
monster. Tha Dogg Pound got a new album that just dropped called Dog Chit,
but Snoop’s second wave of popularity over the past couple years has pushed
them out of the shadows right in time for the new west takeover. 40 Glocc,
despite not having an album dropping anytime soon, seems to be as active
as ever thanks to his affiliation with G-Unit. He recently jumped on the hyphy
craze with his video “So Hyphy” that’s a trip. No word on Spider Loc or Lil Eazy
E’s debut albums. I really thought both of these would have dropped sooner
but they keep getting pushed back. I have no insight on this but hopefully
they’ll hit before people forget they was even coming.
Big Wy from The Relativez is doing his solo thing now, but it’s still love with
his partner and cousin Suga Buga. His second Hood Hitchcock mixtape is
comin real soon and he just inked a deal with Byrd Gang West, which was
okay’d by Jim Jones of Harlem, New York’s Dipset movement. El Dorado Red
is working in the mix too and it’s sure to be fire if the tracks on Wy’s Myspace
say anything. It’s a beautiful thing when a legend like Big Wy who has been
with this shit since the Bangin’ on Wax days can still get money and open up
doors for other young rappers from the hood. Plenty of people will hate on
this deal due to hood politics, but y’all just hating so you need to sit down.
6 // OZONE WEST
S treets )
the
in
( W hat ’s G ood
Props to Bad Lucc, Damani and Soopafly for coming together under the name
Western Union. It’s great that not everyone feels like they gotta be a solo artist and realizes how few opportunities there are for rappers to get money out
here. There is no shame in linking up and sharing that cheese. Don’t let pride
or jealousy get in the way of you getting up in the world.
And I don’t even get what’s with the hate. It seems like everybody has
something to say about somebody. It wasn’t always like that. People used to
be able to get money and keep their mouths shut, but too many rappers think
it’s in their best interest to speak on other artists like it’s their duty. Most of
these rappers don’t even really know each other. They chop it up for a minute
at an awards show or some shit and put one another on blast a week later
over assumptions made. Beef ain’t nothing new, but I don’t see why people
aren’t working harder to make it something old. Keeping your mouth shut
day to day but only speaking on certain people for personal gain in this rap
business is hypocritical. These should not be considered two different worlds.
How you act on a record and how you act in real life should go hand in hand.
If they don’t, you got some thinking to do because you are not being real to
yourself or anyone you fuck with. And on top of all that, unless someone says
your name on a track or in an interview, you got no reason to think he talking
about you. That shit is plain foolish! How much of this drama was over some
beef shit? And no one gets away from all this like it doesn’t apply to ‘em.
Both coasts lost a ryder over some stupid shit. I know none of y’all forgot
about Tupac or Biggie. Didn’t think so.
I know this is a music magazine but I gotta get political for a second with
y’all. For those that don’t know, the streets of L.A. have taken a turn for
the worst with a heavy war between Mexican and black gangs taking place
every day. Now usually I’d just charge that shit to the game, but it’s getting
a bit too out of hand with innocent civilians getting gunned down over skin
tone and racial slurs getting hit up on the walls alongside the set names.
Depending on what story is airing on the news, the picture is painted as one
side or the other starting this drama, but there really ain’t no one to blame
but the people who keep the shit going and add fuel to the fire. I won’t say
names, because no one needs to be shouted out or get recognition off this
shit, but there has been a few uncalled for disses coming from dudes trying
to get stardom off going at a big name over some hood shit. This is NOT what
Hip Hop, the West Coast or the streets in general needs. Is a check worth that
shit? I hope y’all can’t convince yourselves of that, because it’s gonna get to
a point where I won’t have anything left to write about. Get money together
and influence the hood. Snoop Dogg’s “Vato” with B Real was a nice attempt
at bringing blacks and browns together, but a lot of people put that shit on
blast like it wasn’t legit because B Real aint from a Sureno hood. Who gives
a fuck!? It’s time to squash this shit for real because there is no reason to
drag this out any further. Fruit Town, Jungle Stones, Tree Top, Tortilla Flats,
Compton Varrio 70, Lueders Park, 18 Street, South Los, Hoover… the list is
endless. Y’all need to end the drama and we need to make this money, point
blank period.
I hope I can bounce through next month and open some more eyes to shit I
don’t think gets enough love. Don’t give up on SoCal. For real, don’t do it. You
gonna regret that shit if you do. //
Words by Regi Mentle (regimentle@gmail.com)
CWAESLTICFOAOSTRPNHOITAO GLAOLLVEERIES
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Tamarra (08,21)
7,10,16,20); Ray
Vegas, NV)
8,19); J Lash (0
7,1
5,1
4,1
3,1
1,12,1
3,04,05,06,09,1
D-Ray (01,02,0
Photo Credits:
OZONEWEST
WEST////77
OZONE
South By Southwest
The Pack & the Federation
The night began slowly in Austin, TX as the vibe was seemingly more Open Mic Night than a South by Southwest Bay Area
Showcase as Saafir and Kirby Dominant struggled to connect with the Beauty Bar Patio crowd. But things changed quickly as
soon as The Pack (above) took the stage. The youngsters from Cali headed straight for the end of the stage while the crowd
inched closer in anticipation. The Pack jumped into their single “I’m Shinin’,” raising the show’s intensity almost instantaneously. Next, the group went into “Candy” which had the ladies shaking and popping, and when the group switched into “Oh
Go” the crowded responded by going dummy retarded.
The Pack’s live show warmed up the crowd for The Federation (below) who raised the hyphy levels even higher as they went
into “Go Dumb.” The Federation paused for a brief second for Stresmatic to take a picture of the crowd for his Myspace gallery
but jumped back into their set with “18 Dummy” as The Pack joined them onstage. The Federation kept it going by breaking
out their shades for “I Wear My Stunna Glasses At Night” and ended the evening with “Get You Naked You Beezy,” which had
some audience members taking off their shirts and waving them around like a helicopter as if Petey Pablo was in the building.
At the night’s end, the Pack and Federation had represented hyphy and showed SXSW goers what it meant to go dumb by Bay
standards. //
Words by Randy Roper // Photos by Eric N. Perrin
8 // OZONE WEST
CWAESLTICFOAOSTRPNHOITAO GLAOLLVEERIES
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to, & Jonas @ Fa
03 // Vital, Equip
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//
CA
06
d,
lan
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gas, NV) - Dior
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02 // Rico, Mista DJ’s staff hit it bit at All Star
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cis
CA
an
d,
Fr
n
lan
ak
for DJ Juice’s
(Sa
sketball game
Juice @ Club 17 weekend
al @ The Grill (O (San Jose, CA) 05 // The TJ’s
vs Done Deal ba
) 10 // SK & DJ
r
b
, Trac, & Treal Re
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Rich & Beeda
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co, CA) 04 // Kteo, CA) 07 // Big
af
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Rich Boy & Fizzo (Oakland, CA) 17 // Killa Keise // Tuff
E-40 & Slowpok s Vegas, NV) - Karen Douglas Fedx @ Fat City (San Francisco Palace (Las Vegas, NV) 14 //
20
17
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b
CA
Clu
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@
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acs @ Ceasar’s
// Dru Down &
Rich @ Club 17
car
Johnny Rocket
11 // Tone, Rob
ige, & Kendu Isa
ancisco, CA) 16
EL’s streetlow
) 19 // J-Bo &
(Oakland, CA)
Diddy, Mary J Bl Deal basketball game (San Fr
ing (Oakland, CA ) 22 // Kafani & Rick Lee @ KM
ll,
birthday party
Ris
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Ha
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dr
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13 //
tthew @
cisco, CA
(Las Vegas, NV) y Luv, & Lil Ray Luv @ Thizz vs
// Mac Mall & Ma DJ Juice @ Fat City (San Fran
Ra
akland, CA) 18
DJ Quest &
//
15 // Mac Mall, r DJ Juice’s birthday party (O
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CA
d,
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b
Karen Douglas
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2); J Lash (13);
1,2
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Photo Credits:
OZONEWEST
WEST////99
OZONE
A
fter months of preparation for the heavily anticipated video for his
regional smash, “Ghost Ride The Whip,” Oakland’s own Mistah FAB
was given the go ahead to film. Because cable networks considered
ghostriding itself “public endangerment,” FAB was forced to go with Plan
B for the video concept and used the original Ghostbusters car. With MTV,
BET and a host of other cable networks on deck to push the video he was
accosted by Ghostbusters fanatics, who deemed his street interpretation of
the ‘80’s movie “inappropriate.” Thousands of dollars later, for a project he
personally financed, the Freestyle King was forced to answer to Columbia
Pictures, Atlantic Records and “Hannity & Colmes,” the latter to explain antics
that some claim have inspired reckless and even fatal behavior across the nation. OZONE caught up with Fabby in an effort to allow him to “air it out.”
It’s kinda crazy for me cause I spent a lot of time and a lot of hard effort in
the movement that I’ve been tryna create. I did the “Ghost Ride the Whip”
video. I spent my own money, put a lot of time and focus into it and at first
they really wasn’t tryna put it on. Then they finally came around after about
seven edits of the video and let it go. We got “Jam of the Week,” got added to
MTV University and a lot of other stuff was in motion. We were finna do 106th
& Park, the whole shindig.
You know how they got the Star Wars, the Trekkies, Star Trek diehard fans? A
lot of Ghostbusters diehard fans had started this website really tryna knock
me for what I was doin’. Then it was, “Man that’s not right. He’s not representin’ the Bay right,” and I didn’t even understand it. So I kinda lashed out at
them and they just took it to the fullest extreme that they could take it to. I
guess they got Columbia Pictures behind them and Columbia hit us up talkin’
bout I wasn’t representin’ the movie right. They got to talkin’ all type of crazy
shit about what they want the movie to be remembered for. All types of shit.
So they hit MTV up, hit Atlantic and told them they if they didn’t pull the video
they’re going to sue the corporation. So after everything, I’m just sittin’ there
like, “Wow!! Damn, I just spent this amount of thousands, went through this
amount of bullshit, did this, did that, had preparations for this, for that and
you just pull the video like that?”
So they pull the video and they even try to pull it from YouTube. They really
wanted to kill my whole momentum. But I’ve been through so much negative
stuff in life that something like that could never stop me from going to the
next level. We can take a negative and turn it into a positive. So I hit up all
my friends that I have in high places. The media outlets, the Internet and
people who got the moms and pops videos. They gon’ still keep it lit and all
my MySpace friends is still gon’ keep it on they page. At the end of the day
my main objective is to turn this negative into a positive and continue to reap
the benefits from it and laugh at ‘em in they face. If you’ve overcome certain
things in life, that’s what makes you appreciate it more. A lot of people get
overnight stardom and overnight credibility and they don’t really appreciate
the hard effort that you gotta put into it. In this industry and whatever else
you do in life you have to put the time in and try to overcome things. I just
appreciate it because I realize it’s just another obstacle in life that I have to
overcome. And when we overcome it I’ll laugh at the success rate knowing
there was so much opposition. I’ll be able to tell them years later that I’m
still a success story.
It’s wild cause the day that I found out it was funny. It was funny in a
scandalous way though. It was like hysteria. You’re so in disbelief and so in
awe that you can’t believe that it just happened. But people that get banned
eventually became huge: N.W.A, Luke, ‘Pac, Too $hort, so that just put me in
a list amongst legends. Those are all-time greats and I got banned just like
they did. That’s great. It’s huge.
I got a mixtape comin’ out called Can’t Ban the Ghostrider. It’s basically just
10 // OZONE WEST
me telling them that whatever they try to do they can’t ban me. I’m still gon’
be live in the streets and it’s still gon’ be people in the streets talkin’ about
it. So I’m doin’ that with Dow Jones and DJ Skee and that’ll blow up and we’ll
use the momentum from that until my album The Baydestrian drops May 15th.
I’m really not that mad when I think about it. It motivates me and my only
recourse is to do it again. If I did it then I can do it again. It ain’t like I’m one
of them dudes who’s on his last leg. This whole music game is at the beginning for me. I did the independent thing. I look at it like it’s high school.
High school is my graduation. When I first got at it I was in high school and I
graduated and went to college. College was my second album and my senior
year is my senior project and that’s The Baydestrian and then I go on into the
pros. I mean, I’m only 25 years old and I’ve done a lot of stuff that people
twice my age haven’t done yet. But at the same time some of those same
people have done stuff that I can’t even imagine doing. So I just look at it
as a learning experience. I look at the time and money I spent, but that’s
promotion. Look at all the promotion I got from it!! I been on Hannity and
Colmes! That’s crazy!! Just from doin’ that that’s promotion in and of itself. So
the money that I spent I just look at it like it’s promotion money. It ain’t like
my money is about to stop. I’m a hustler so I’ma always be able to create an
avenue for myself to get money. I’ma keep workin’. I love competition and
challenges. They’re always amusing to me because there’s so many critics and
so many speculations as to what I’ma be able to do and whether I’ma be able
to deal with the adversity. Once you face adversity that defines the character
of a person. What are you going to do when you go through something? Are
you gon’ curl up and tuck tail or are you gon’ come back strong. I choose to
come back strong.
When I went on Hannity and Comes I wanted to show that anytime somebody
infiltrates a suburban area, it’s all of a sudden a problem. When N.W.A. was
doin’ they thang and little white kids was wearin’ baggy clothes and tryna
get jheri curls and sportin’ black on black, white America went crazy. The
only reason they came down on it was because they was showin’ clips of
ghostridin’ and it was all white kids in suburban areas. When it crossed over
it was a problem because you’re no longer affecting your community. You’re
affecting their community. They try to point the finger at people and say that
ghostridin’ is dangerous, but there has to be a point in our lives when we
become responsible for our own actions. If I go out in the middle of the street
in the middle of traffic and get hit by a car, how can I blame you if you had a
song called “In the Middle of the Street?” Shouldn’t I be wise enough to know
what’s good for me and what’s not good for me?
Unfortunately some lives have been lost due to some people tryna carry out
this stunna ghostridin’ and that’s nuthin’ you wanna brag about. That’s on
your soul. But at the same time, these were adults. They don’t need someone
to hold their hand. They are grown and they should know right from wrong
and they should be held accountable for their actions. Ghostridin’ is not
something that’s easy to do. It is dangerous, but if you were able to put
ghostridin’ in a controlled environment, it would be one of the biggest things
to do. For those that don’t know the Bay Area culture, a sideshow is like a big
car show and people would love to see it. When cowboys first started ridin’
bulls it was dangerous too, but when they put them in a controlled environment, they called it the “rodeo.” That’s one of America’s favorite pastimes.
I study the greats. I study Muhammad Ali, Michael Jordan, all the greats and
I realize that they all went through challenges in their lives. This is only a
challenge that was meant for me to get over. If I wanna claim greatness, then
I gotta overcome this, and that’s what I’m going to do. //
As told to N. Ali Early
Photo by D-Ray
eas?t
n
o
z
o
g
n
i
ho’sread westco
w
w
KMEL’s streetlo
01 // J-Diggs @
ey, CA) 02 // Pit
ter
on
(M
ow
sh
car
Club (Sunnyvale
a
lon
rce
Ba
@
bull
&
e Bigga Figga
CA) 03 // JT Th
b 17 (Oakland,
Clu
@
ck
Bu
g
Youn
nna signing
CA) 04 // Shaw
Youth UpRising
@
hs
ap
gr
auto
05 // Grown Up
)
CA
d,
lan
(Oak
Ver weekend (Las
Sta
All
@
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dd
Go
Flip Side @ Youth
//
06
)
NV
s,
ga
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d, CA) 07 // Tit
UpRising (Oaklan Import Nights
Hot
@
Bo
J&
ll
Be
&
) 08 // Rick Lee
(San Mateo, CA
car
EL’s streetlow
KM
@
k
or
tw
Ne
l
, CA) 09 // Darry
show (Monterey Thizz All Star
for
in
dd
Ala
e
Th
@
s, NV) 10 // Kid
party (Las Vega
Club (San Jose,
ht
Nig
s
on
To
@
st
@ Booker’s (Ea
CA) 11 // Lil Al
// DJ Jam-X
12
)
CA
,
nd
kla
Oa
geles, CA) 13
& Persia (Los An
photo shoot
his
@
ate
vg
Ba
//
CA) 14 // Cup,
nd
kla
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st
(Ea
uth UpRising
cake & Boo @ Yo Gary Archer,
15 //
)
CA
d,
lan
ak
(O
@ Toons
Ryan, & DJ Amen , CA) 16 //
Jose
n
(Sa
b
clu
ht
Nig
EL’s streetlow
Goldtoes @ KM
terey, CA) 17
car show (Mon
e Aladdin for
// Sean G @ Th
s Vegas, NV) 18
Thizz Party (La
ez @ KMEL’s
// Gizmo & Sque
ow (Monterey,
streetlow car sh ris @
y Ch
CA) 19 // Hyph
(Oakland, CA)
Youth UpRising
known 15 @
20 // T-Mo & Un
(Oakland,
Youth UpRising
h @ Toons
CA) 21 // Stretc
Jose, CA) 22
Nightclub (San
t & friends
// J Stalin, Habit
ing (Oakland,
@ Youth UpRis
Dank @
CA) 23 // Sleep
llejo, CA) 24
Thizz Picnic (Va
Squeez @
// Stackman &
w car show
KMEL’s streetlo
25 // Angel
(Monterey, CA)
Club Raw
of Wild 94.9 @
26 // DJ
(San Jose, CA)
Love (Los
Jam-X & Monie
// MagAngeles, CA) 27
Dante @
nolia Chop & Big
d, CA) 28
Club 17 (Oaklan
his photo
// Little Bruce @ 29 //
CA)
shoot (Vallejo,
Shawnna @
Pretty Black &
(Oakland,
Youth UpRising
hn @ Hot
CA) 30 // St Jo
(San MaImport Nights
mskull
teo, CA) 31 // Nu car
tlow
@ KMEL’s stree
, CA) 32
show (Monterey
’s street// Tone @ KMEL terey,
on
low car show (M & Joe
ana
CA) 33 // Mont
end (Las
@ All Star week
// Lil Al &
Vegas, NV) 34
s (East
crew @ Booker’
// Tito
Oakland, CA) 35
EL’s
B & Bugsy @ KM
ow
streetlow car sh //
36
(Monterey, CA)
Import
Furious @ Hot
teo,
Nights (San Ma
Archer
CA) 37 // Gary
KMEL’s
& Lil Corner @
ow
streetlow car sh //
38
(Monterey, CA)
Rising
Unk @ Youth Up
(Oakland, CA)
All
Photo Credits:
y
photos by D-Ra
by
except #12 & 26
DJ Jam-X
OZONE WEST // 11
12 // OZONE WEST
I
’
WORDS BY Regi Mentle // PHOTO BY KING BIZZY
know you had a lot of attention come your way due to some drama that
took place on the set of a Spider Loc video in Cedar Block hood.
To keep it all the way real and one hunned, Game introduced me to Spider
a few years back as a friend of his. When him and Spider clashed for whatever
reason I made sure Spider knew I had my brothers back 100% and from there
lines were drawn. Fast forward - The Game goes Glendale on me and my day
one niggas who were his backbone, and Fase100 is left to figure it out or start
from scratch, so to speak. The Ain’t No Game DVD tells that story in full, so cop
that.
One of my day one niggas named G-Ride lost his Father and was left with the
burden of putting his dad to rest. The Game didn’t come to his rescue in a time
of need but Spider of all people heard about it and came to Brazil Street solo
and dropped a donation on him. Were good from that point. Fast forward - Spider asked me to get flamed up in all red to be in his video. I thought it would
be a good look so I agreed. The shoot went good and just before it wrapped
up, this guy from my hood shows up on the corner loud talkin on his phone. As
Spider backed off the block nothing was said to him. The guy came up right after Spider left, trying to tell me who I could and couldn’t have on my street. As
soon as he got close enough he took a swing and connected, all to my surprise.
I got up and thought about retaliation in the worst way but I kept my sanity
and shook it off. Dude’s life was in no way worth mine so I let him live. Then a
day later I found out it was all on tape and aired on YouTube. Wow!
It’s been said that the whole Game/Fase situation has really torn your neighborhood apart. Some could guess that the root of all that funk is money. Obviously there is more to that, but do you wish you could rewind time and give up
the spotlight to have the hood the same as it used to be? Are the opportunities
that have become available worth it in the grand scheme of things?
I accept whatever God puts in front of me, man. Everything is written, so I’m
just livin’ it. That dude on YouTube and the other ones that run behind my lil’
brother need they ass whooped. They don’t know him at all, they just know it’s
possibly a couple hunned dollars to make, if that, standin’ around lookin’ tough.
Me and Mr. YouTube had a few arguments about how he suckin’ my lil’ brother
dick before the one that the internet world saw. Old ass loser ain’t no go getta.
They been hatin on Fase in the hood just for being a man! I take it and smile.
What is the history of Cedar Block? You have two Piru neighborhoods right by
you that we hear a lot about: Fruit Town and Tree Top, but not much about the
Cedars.
Fruit Town is a hood that has always been big in numbers because it’s a big
neighborhood land-wise. And Tree Top got its popularity with DJ Quik just as
Cedar Block did with The Game and BigFase100. But Cedar Block was always here
just like the rest of ’em. Started by OGs like Gangsta Blood, Big Hen, McKinley, LP
& Mad Man Rodney, Cedar Block didn’t allow walk ons, you had to really be from
this hood. I was ground rooted from the time my grandpa arrived in the 50s;
been here since birth.
Growing up in Compton, did you feel like you were in a world of your own
seperated from Inglewood, Watts, South Central, Gardena, Long Beach, etc? A lot
of outsiders don’t understand that these are all separate areas and like to just
consider it Los Angeles. Did you stick to your block or were you all over growing
up?
I’m a Compton nigga, dawg, through and through. I stayed in my own circle
mostly but I’m proud of the fact that I was part of that era where niggas could
kick it in other Piru/Blood hoods with no drama. Them was the days. Now it’s
any and everybody’s a killer.
What do you think of the gangbanging craze that has stretched to cities on the
East Coast?
It seems like a lot of people think that a rapper from L.A. fucking with a rapper
from N.Y. who is involved with gang shit over there means they are cosigning
that shit. It’s flattering but young dudes out here don’t even know the code or
the rules anymore so I don’t think they got the right understanding in other
states. It’s all twisted up now anyway, its just self-segregation now and maybe
has always been.
Anything you’d like to say about the future of Brazil Street Records?
Grab that DVD when it drops! Ain’t No Game. Brazil Street Records baby, I’m sittin’ on a gold mine. My young Compton duo The Lost Soulz got next! Then my lil’
sis B Fly, That Bitch! I’m going to stay grindin’ so keep hatin’, it’s fuel! //
OZONE WEST // 13
PARTS & LABOR
T
PHOENIX, AZ
here is a big differ
ence between a loc
al rapper and a glo
cee. While the local
bal emdawg just hangs on
street corners like
on bad teeth, the glo
plaque
ba
l
cat
is
a performer with car
seeking worldwide
eer
recognition. There
is purpose in his pre ambitions
on his mind, seven
sence, issues
-figu
emcee. No doubt. An re contracts seeking his signature.
Juice is an
d as they say on his
that twisted or misco
West side of things
– don’t get
nstrued, my dude.
“I’m the heir to Th
dynasty. And I had
e Black Wall
to earn it. It wasn’t
given to me,” Juice
blank aiming his dis
says, point
cussion. “So stay tun
over here.”
ed. Don’t miss it. We
in business
Just recently return
ing from Europe an
d later Canada on
tour with the homi
a promotional
e Game, Juice – kn
owing he had the
support and respe
national fan
ct from the hood –
turned his focus to
Wall’s gangsta rap
expanding The
brand across the glo
be
the West Coast and
having full support . “Being that new breath off
of my label, it’s jus
ation and I’m makin
t a good situg a lot of noise aro
und the world,” Jui
a break from his pa
ce
perchase route to
chop it up with a pe says, taking
bringing the origin
n pusher. “I’m
al West Coast back.
Th
gangsta.”
at true music. That
original
Juice signed with Bla
ck Wall Street in 20
06, a year in which
ful of Hip Hop acts
only a handhung platinum pla
ques in their billia
his arrival to the Int
rd rooms. Upon
erscope-distribute
d BWS, Juice was ea
ger to drop his
14 // OZONE WEST
debut and let every
mu’fucka know ho
w hot the streets are
AZ. But label head
The Game, fresh off
in Phoenix,
the five-time-plat
now classic The Do
success of his
cumentary, and jus
t prior to the relea
platinum Doctor’s
se of the now
Advo
a classic Hip Hop alb cate, had a clearer idea of what it tak
es to craft
um – time. “The wa
y that the industry
you can’t drop and
is right now,
just do a million un
its. Computer piracy
of excellence in mu
and the lack
sic
“Game was like, ‘Yo are the primary reasons for that,” Jui
u got the ability an
ce theorizes.
d the intelligence,
your time and put
now just take
a classic together’
,” Juice remembers.
respect that. We’re
“And I had to
here to put togeth
er classics. There’s
no rush.”
If you have yet to
hear Juice spit over
a J.R. Rotem track,
one of the great pu
you’re missing
re UpRisings in mo
dern Hip Hop. Rotem
clarity with the pia
’s classical
no rides shotgun be
side
to hear Juice and Ga
me exchange cue sti Juice’s driven lyricism. And
market is reminisce
ck stock on Wall Str
nt of Ren and Cube
eet’s Black
sh
to understand the
truth Juice spits fro ooting pool on a Dre track. But
m the booth, you mu
stand the soldier sto
st first underry
22 years in the milita young homie was raised in. Juice’s
father served
ry, active duty, so
urban warfare ato
battlefields is nothi
p these industry
ng new. Battle blo
od streams through
on his mind, flows
his veins, stays
in his raps, hangs
on the industries Bla
J.U.I.C.E. – Just Un
ckest Wall.
derstand I Could Ex
plode. At any minu
te, my dude. //
Words by Tone Swep
GUNS AND BUTTER
San Diego, CA
S
end in your
u are already a leg
daunting, but if yo
Slick (whose
y
ch
Mit
is
me
na
udden fame can be
ur
nding area and yo
od thing.
hood and its surrou by an entire state), fame can be a go
d
a major deal
t
cke
go
ba
is
He
y.
tus
lon
hood sta
n Diego is Jayo Fe
Sa
in
from Hip
big
its
it
fru
ne
do
have not seen the
“The only one who
. Other than that we hadowed. If you look at the map
ord
rec
hit
a
t
ou
t
and pu
en overs
ange.
“We always have be
that is about to ch
Hop,” Mitchy says.
in the corner. But all
ay
aw
d
ke
tuc
r
rde
we are at the bo
ck.”
the state on my ba
I’m about to carry
me state
San Diego as the ho
llam. But,
ll enthusiasts know
Sa
tba
an
sh
foo
d
Ra
d
an
an
als
en
du
All
Most indivi
Slick.
ggie Bush, Marcus
y
Re
ch
ers
Mit
nn
wi
ask
t
y
ph
Jus
for Heisman tro
ole lot different.
wh
a
runs
are
air
s
sp
ng
de
d
thi
an
e,
on the southeast sid of southeast San Diego, where crime
ir
the
to
d
be
land
peers who succum
Raised in the gang
tions, howmirrored that of his
op
life
y’s
s
ch
ck’
Mit
Sli
.
y
ng
ch
ba
Mit
rampant,
ng or gang
where you either sla matter
environment – one
s just a
wa
It
le.
ab
ail
av
ever minimal, were
of seeing them.
m Up Records
homie LT start Botto existed
“I watched my big
ies
nit
lize that opportu
I began to
and it made me rea
life,” he recalls. “So
ng
ga
the
of
de
o was
outsi
wh
,
mu
Da
e
ad
my comr
get it cracking with
the time.”
already rhyming at
s in the
er a demo Mitchy wa
After putting togeth week later mingling with
a
heart of Los Angeles Snoop, Dre and DJ Quik
like
al radio
West Coast legends
e a mainstay on loc
and his record becam ’t long before intersn
wa
Z90 and 98.9 FM. It
Dub C was
one from Xzibit to
est grew and every ises and features.
pra
honoring him with
Romey
my own album with d Yuk“In 2000, I put out
an
40
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str
in the
Rome. I did 50,000
mies.
and the rest was ho
mouth was features
t is where my
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ts
ee
str
We smashed the
me,” he
as far as the rap ga
to the
credibility came in
It’s
r.
ste
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ga
straight
tentells. “My music is
lis
is
it
Un
n
Suppressio
point that the Gang
ing on in the
go
is
at
wh
ne
mi
ing to it to deter
tabs on me.”
streets and to keep
ng on
streets and appeari
Braving the rough
ent albums,
ist
ns
co
d
an
s
pe
a slew of mixta
with
when he hooked up
it was no surprise
Arm
g
on
Str
up
er gro
Xzibit to join the sup ned to DJ Muggs’
sig
Steady. Mitchy later
dent
release his indepen
Angeles Records to tion with his label
nc
solo efforts in conju
cords.
Tha Wrong Kind Re
ck
Syndrome, Mitchy Sli
On Urban Survival
in
le
sty
life
led
fue
yspeaks on the mone
t as gratifying as it
a seductive way. Bu
us lifestyle is full
rio
glo
the
d,
may soun
tence and death,
sen
l
jai
of pitfalls with
id details with
viv
in
which he explains
//
s.
rap
d
ase
-b
lity
his rea
abazz
Words by Raheim Sh
OZONE WEST // 15
SOUTHSIDE CONNEC
F
T
or many inner city
males, either you sla
ng crack rocks or yo
got a wicked jump
shot. When Jermone
u
Rockett realized his
crossover wouldn’t
be breaking any NB
year-old focused his
A ankles, the then
attention on anoth
16er
everybody’s into sp
orts when you’re yo hustle: rapping. “You know,
ung,” the rapper no
Roccett remembers.
w known as
“After I saw that I
wa
to be in school, on
the bench just bang sn’t Jordan or Kobe, I used
in’ on the tables an
rhymes together.”
d putting
In hindsight, Rocce
tt, now 22, made the
doned the hardwoo
right choice when
he aband and picked up a
microphone. After
mixtape grinding,
years of heavy
the Carson, CA reside
nt’s impromptu pe
caught the attentio
rformance
n of ATL’s favorite
Snowman. “[Jeezy]
folks that I used to
knew some
get at,” Roccett ex
plains. “We went do
function he had. Th
wn to this
ey had a freestyle
session outside. So
I went out
cARSON, CA
there and did my thi
ng. He was like ‘Ni
gg
you in the booth.’
Since then it’s been a, you’re nice. We need to get
CTE
Entertainment’s ne
west acquisition, Ro .” Now, as Corporate Thugz
ccett
Inglewood, CA emcee
211 as the group Ro has been paired with
ccett & 211.
We all know Jeezy
is one for thug mo
tivation. But by pa
artists who are me
iring two
mbers of the coun
try’s most notoriou
(Roccett is a Crip an
s gang rivalry
d 211 is a Blood),
has Jeezy lost his
mind? Roccett insist
crack-cooking
s it’s not an issue
for the new CTE du
o.
But gang affiliatio
ns aren’t Roccett’s
on
ly questionable cir
in joining the CTE
cumstance
regime. He’s found
himself fending ag
throwing rocks du
ainst critics
e to Roccett joinin
g a Southern label
izing from A-Town
and capitalaffiliations which inc
lude an appearanc
upcoming USDA alb
e on the
um and a track with
Atlanta’s Killer Mik
e entitled
“LA 2 ATL” which ha
s caught the atten
tion of Hip Hop pu
rists from coast to
coast. “A lot of peop
le
gonna go to the So ask me, ‘How you
uth and get a deal?
’,”
Roccett says. “The
South got so much
love for music, perio
d. Jeezy embraced
me with open arm
s.”
Regardless of Jeezy’
s southern hospita
lity, Roccett has co
ntinued to grind on
his own. His new Co
lors mixtape with
DJ Warrior has kept
his name buzzing
in
the streets and his
face is more recog
nizable by the day
as a sponsored art
ist
for Makaveli Brand
Clothing. “Jeezy’s
an artist before he
’s anything else, he
’s
got to take care of
his music,” Roccett
says. “Being signe
d to an artist, you’v
e
gotta be patient an
d wait until it’s yo
ur
turn to make it do
what it do. But I als
o
know how to work
too.”
When his work finall
y reaches the
masses, Roccett ho
pes people will
relate to his music
and understand his
message. “If you’r
e from the hood, yo
u
got dead homies,
you getting up going
to work, your baby
ma
or maybe you’re ha ma trippin’,
vin
and everything’s gra g a good day
vy. I done been
through all of that,
my nigga, so I
relate to however
you’re feeling,” he
says. “And I’m [ab
out] to put it on tra
ck
so you can feel me
, and the world can
feel me.” //
Words by Randy Ro
per
16 // OZONE WEST
DJ STRONG
W
hat does the union of DJ Strong and DJ Warrior mean to the West
Coast?
Well, we came together around 2001 and formed Cali Untouchables,
which was a collective of not just DJs, but anything that has to do with
entertainment and music. It’s a collection of professional individuals, but
me and him built it off our love for DJs and the mixtape hustle we saw that
was untapped and that’s L.A.. There really was no West Coast mixtape scene.
Generally if you were gonna go find mixtapes you would have gone to the
swapmeets or something like that and you’d find radio mixes. At the time
the radio DJs were getting songs from the labels and they were getting the
exclusives and they would go and put out there little radio jam mixes and
shit like that. So it wasn’t like New York where it was an exclusive and they
were producing and making albums basically. So we got with a bunch of artists (Boo Ya Tribe, Crooked I, Outlaws, Kurupt, etc.) and started getting them
mixtape beats. So we basically started doing our own shit. We always looked
out for the West Coast. We always DJ. We know how to mix and we took that
with all our freestyles and started making concepts, Cali Untouchable Radio,
the Palm Trees and Gangsters series and just started building a whole scene
for the West. Keep in mind there’s never been a mixtape culture over here and
we did it our way.
What brought the two of you together initially?
I knew him through doing work with Stronghouse Records, which was my
record company that I had. I was putting out singles of people that were
around me or that I just knew. Turns out I met some underground rappers so
I just started putting out vinyl singles. He was doing a record pool and at the
time he was trying to get me to join. I was like, “Nah, I’m cool,” but we just
started building a relationship and started running with the Cali Untouchables
and started grinding and promoting. We’ve always been real [serious] about
getting our promotions out through emails, clubs, networking and knowing
people. He’d been hollering at a lot of people in the industry more than me
and I was just doing my thing starting my company. We generally have a lot
of fans that are consumer based and they just started recognizing us. We put
out several hundred mixtapes a day.
The more that you wear this CEO hat do you step further away from DJing or
does your creative energy still call you?
I’ve been going in that direction more. Right now I’m just trying to find the
time to do a little bit of both because I’m still an artist myself. I still like to
be creative and work with [different kinds] of music. But Hip Hop West and
the business end of it is taking up a lot of my time. I’ve been wearing the CEO
hat a lot and it’s cool and it feels comfortable to me. That’s what I’m good
at. Then we do the radio show, the Sirius Satellite Cali Untouchable Radio
Show and work with new artists like Tri Star. We’ve always supported artists
like Game and Omar Cruz and Glasses Malone, all the people before they got
deals. We put a lot of their singles on mixtapes before anyone. Some people
know that. A lot of people don’t.
What’s the most memorable mixtape you’ve done?
Palm Trees and Gangstas. It’s the first one that Kurupt hosted, one that I
really took my time with. It just kinda made itself. You can play it all the way
through. It doesn’t get boring. 40 Glocc, Kurupt, Jayo Felony and Prodigy from
Mobb Deep, so I got a lotta exclusives from them. But yeah, people still hit me
up to the day about that. Now they’re more on the Lil Eazy E tapes, the Cali
Untouchable tapes and stuff like that, but that was my best one. Eventually I
wanna turn it into an album – Palm Trees and Gangstas: The Album.
You moved to the Jersey for a minute before things cracked off for you. Did
that have anything to do with you wanting to DJ?
My big influence was my brother. He was four, five years older than me. He
always came home with Parliament, Funkadelic, introduced me to Too $hort,
Run-DMC. I lived over in Australia in Sydney for a year and that’s actually
where I got introduced to Three 6 Mafia. It was fuckin’ crazy. The only dude
I ever met out there was a local cat who was holding down a lot of shit. I
befriended him because he was the only guy that was listening to underground rap. Everybody else was listening to Techno. But most of my influence
came from Southern California – the gangster culture, N.W.A. – shit that I was
listening to while I was riding the bus. But I also listen to classic rock and
hard rock, Metallica and shit like that. I’m pretty diverse.
OZONE WEST // 17
Words by Wendy Day
Photos by EstevanOriol.com
C
artoon holds a secure place in Hip Hop history without ever having dropped a rhyme
or mixed a record. Cartoon is an artist — a
tattoo artist, to be exact. And while he could name
drop Eminem, 50 Cent, Fat Joe, C-Murder, Method
Man, Redman, Slim Thug, David Banner, Paul Wall,
Nas, Pharrell, The Clipse, and many others as his
walking canvases, he never would. That’s just not
his style. He’s the kind of guy you can share a secret with and know it’ll stay with him to the death.
A Hip Hop O.G., he’s also a walking success story.
The first time I met Cartoon was with David Banner
in February 2003. We were in Los Angeles shopping
his deal with Steve Rifkind (SRC/Universal). When
shopping a deal, labels try to find out what’s
important to the artist and the negotiator, and
they try to fill those needs to build a quick bond
of trust and friendship that will give them additional leverage to secure the deal. It’s hard for
labels to impress me because I’m not swayed by
the usual trappings: money, cars, jewelry, scantily
clad hoes (or in my case, half naked buff men),
etc. But Gaby, the President of SRC, threw Banner,
his manager, and me in a van, and took us into a
barren industrial district in downtown Los Angeles.
The neighborhood was deserted and I briefly wondered if the plan was to put a gun to our heads to
get us to sign the deal, because this would have
been the perfect surroundings for that. Much to
our delight, we pulled up to a building next to a
Gun Club and walked through double doors with
no markings of any kind on the outside.
Once inside, the walls were covered with artistic
photos of tattooed clients showing off their skin.
Sitting there in what looked like a barber’s chair
was Cartoon. He was one of the people I’d been
dying to meet. I’d seen his work for years on
various body parts of my favorite rappers and
old school album covers. I had been wearing the
gear from his clothing line, Joker Brand, for years.
Cartoon’s graffiti had even adorned the walls in
the background of a Michael Jackson video. David
18 // OZONE WEST
Banner was already dreaming of the tattoo he’d
get whenever his deal was finalized and he was on
his way to becoming a star. Cartoon was the only
artist he had in mind.
Four years later, almost to the day, I pulled up to
the same deserted industrial area in downtown
Los Angeles. There were still no markings or signs
on the outside of the building and although it
looked familiar, I wondered if I was in the right
place. A door with no handle cracked open and I
saw Paul Wall and Michael “5000” Watts just inside.
I was in the right place. A new generation of rappers has found Cartoon.
Cartoon’s operation has grown since the last time
I was there. He’s still in the same complex, but
has a much larger space next door. Paul Wall, who
has been tattooed numerous times in the past by
Cartoon, was there to fit him for a new grill. How
appropriate!
“Coming to Cartoon’s is an experience that you
never forget,” Paul explained Cartoon’s value
while making the mold for his mouth. “I have
other tattoos from other artists that I had before,
but as soon as I got the Cartoon tattoos, I was like
a member of an elite club — an elite underground
organization. So when people see it they ask,
‘Did Cartoon do that?’ I’m like the cool kid in
school with the new shoes. It’s low key - there’s
not a million people in here, so when I’m in here
screaming and squirming, we’ll joke around about
it and laugh about what’s going on.
“The tattoos mean something. He makes them FOR
me. I give him an idea of what I want and then
we sit around and talk and kick it. We hang out
and discuss it and then he makes suggestions like,
‘How about if we do this and then we change this
around.’ That evolves into a piece of art on me.
It’s not a picture from a book where I said, ‘Gimme
that one,’ and it’s the same one that everyone else
has. It’s an experience!”
I look at the most recent tattoo on Paul’s forearm,
which sits just above the flag of Texas that he has
on the back of his hand. It’s a signature Cartoon
clown, only an exact likeness of Paul, his grill
exposed and all. “Yeah,” Paul continues, “I get
some, then I come back two weeks later right
when they’re healing and I get another one, and
then another one...”
Cartoon has inked up more than just brave rappers. He’s done street dudes, homies from around
the way, actors, rock stars, musicians and just
about anyone willing to wait. His schedule is
five months out. But his business is founded on
the day-to-day people who see the value of Mr
Cartoon. “The artists get me these interviews,” he
notes. “Nobody wants to interview me about the
soccer mom I just tattooed or the stripper or the
homie that works at FedEx. We tattoo muthafuckers on the street. They aren’t a platinum rapper,
they are just the right dude on the street that
needs to get tattooed. They might just be someone I vibe with.”
Cartoon’s spirituality and the beautiful human
being that he is, is what gets the attention from
most of the people who know him. David Banner
told me that what made him decide to get his
tattoo was a “spiritual connection. We vibed on
GOD first and he told me that I carried Mississippi
on my back and I should do it literally.” So he did.
Banner was not a platinum rapper when Cartoon
tattooed him. The Mississippi across his upper back
stretching from shoulder to shoulder is also his
one and only tattoo.
Cartoon started on the streets of L.A. and is proud
to be giving back to the community. He enjoys
speaking to young people and feels the biggest
problem with kids is that they don’t know what
they want to do when they grow up. He reaches
out to kids regularly because he feels sharing that
passion and his blueprint to success is important.
“Money is important, because I have 4 kids to
support,” Cartoon shares, “but money is a way for
me to implement programs for kids and to help
people.”
Cartoon started as an artist at 8 years old and
feels lucky to have found his life’s calling so early.
But he doesn’t use ‘luck’ in the conventional sense
of the word. “Labor, Using, Correct Knowledge,
Yearly,” he explains his self-made motto. “Labor:
busting your ass; Using: putting the work to use;
Correct Knowledge: learning what works in your
life and putting action behind it; and putting action behind it and doing it every year consistently,
which is Yearly.”
A true inspiration, Cartoon has a clothing company, a film deal and a shoe deal with Nike. He
also designed a limited edition T-Mobile sidekick,
has a major motion picture coming about his life,
a retail store coming soon and a graphic novel
that will be in stores soon. But he didn’t start out
saying he wanted to do licensing deals. He started
by drawing stick figures on paper at 8 years old
with parents who supported him by telling him he
had talent and could be anything he wanted to be.
“When I was younger, I thought my street life was
payback for my talent,” he tells. “I felt I had to
suffer to pay for this gift I had.” And suffer he did,
embracing drugs and street life before he got back
on track.
At the age of 12, Cartoon got paid for his first art
job, lettering on store windows. At 16, he started
air brushing t-shirts at Swap Meets. By the time
he was 18, he felt he was getting a lot better
as an artist and started going to car shows and
airbrushing cars.
He did Kid Frost’s album cover in 1990 or 1991,
and he got to see a giant billboard of his work
with the album cover on Sunset Blvd. This led to
more business from record labels and television
studios. This constant reinforcement showed him
he was on the right career track, but success
was hard for him because he felt like his friends
would look at him differently and that he might
have to become shrewd and evil to be successful in business. He began to blow opportunities
because of his negative mental associations with
money. Finally, he was able to resolve the issue by
realizing how much good he could do with money.
He realized that money was not evil and he had
the choice to be righteous and fair, regardless of
the money.
Cartoon’s vision is incredible. When sharing his
ideas he makes it a point to say “I will,” instead of
“I’d like to.” It’s the difference between him just
being a dreamer and putting things into action. He
expects to make things happen instead of hoping
that they will. For example, when I asked if, at 37
years old, he’s training the next Cartoon, he talks
about starting a university eventually, where he
will teach the lost art of pin striping and airbrushing cars.
I noticed he was wearing a gorgeous Breitling
watch and realized that people would pay big
money to have a Cartoon-designed watch (hell,
I would). He discussed how he will have watches
that he designs to sell in the store he will open
down the street. His “can do” attitude is infectious.
Just the same is his focus is on the importance
of keeping artistic integrity. One of his secrets to
success is focusing on the “artistic integrity by
keeping up the quality level and not coming off
corny. A good artist worries about selling out.
Once you jeopardize your artwork, and start getting lazy and corny and your artwork comes off as
half-assed, or once you start listening to people
who don’t know what it’s about and you start
tailoring it to them, that’s selling out.”
Selling out means losing authenticity and fans
ultimately. Cartoon explains how he designed a
limited edition T-Mobile Sidekick (a six-figure
deal) without losing his integrity. “I did work on
a cell phone, a Sidekick that is so hardcore in
terms of the imagery that it’s never been seen on
something that big.” They only made 13,000 of
them, but he kept control of what artwork would
be on the sidekick. He kept the meaning of the
design personal: “an Aztec pyramid to symbolize my heritage, a Low Rider, a home boy with a
Pendleton brim hat, a chainlink fence to represent
the fence around our city that keep homeboys
from never traveling out of the neighborhood.”
That’s authentic.
At this stage Cartoon realizes he has to be careful
about which opportunities he accepts. “They’ll
throw checks at you all the time,” he shares. “I
want to do deals with the best of the best, like
Nike. I look at the next 10 years and what I want
to do. I gotta do it the right way. I gotta put the
right quality out there. I could have 4 shops out
there: a shop in NY, Miami, Frisco, and LA - Houston if I wanted to, with neon and pictures of all
the rappers on the wall and 2 for 1 specials, put a
stripper pole in there and I might get a check off
of that. But my thing is that when fools see the
artwork there’s a buzz about it. They know how
hard it is to go to get an appointment. There’s a
one on one - I’m building with customers one on
one about what the artwork is gonna be. It’s a
slow process. The business comes down to originality. We get so much support from the streets.
We keep doing what we are doing and eventually
they’ll get it.” Eventually the corporations do get
it and the fortunate ones get to do the Cartoon
deals. Right now, that limited edition Mr Cartoondesigned Sidekick, which is no longer available
through T-Mobile, sells on eBay for upwards of
$300, new in the box.
Cartoon came up in an era of Hip Hop when “keep
it real” actually meant something. He doesn’t take
ideas from anyone else no matter how hot they
are and focuses on what means something to him.
He has evolved from an artist into a business man.
He feels the business comes down to originality
and not biting other people’s shit. He expands on
his theory by sharing some of the things that have
led to his success.
“Loyalty. Don’t cut the next man’s throat over
dough. Let people know the real. Be honest. They
don’t teach morals and ethics in high school.
That’s maybe one of the benefits from being from
a gang. You learn that type of thinking. Paint a
picture of yourself in your ultimate life—see yourself doing it, surround yourself with winners who
think like you. If you want to get there ten times
faster, don’t be smoking weed and getting high
and drinking every day. That’s what they want
us to do. They want us to be half there and half
retarded and not achieve our goals. Take direction
from older people. Don’t waste time judging and
hating on others, critiquing everything you see
on TV. Go out there and do something. You can
sit there all day and talk shit about rappers but
what have you done this week? What have you
accomplished? People critique so much that they
aren’t getting anything done. Do you have a skill?
Are you needed? If I lose everything, I can go back
to painting store windows because I have a skill.
If you are dope, you’ll get there.”
Cartoon’s interest was the business side of tattooing, not just the artistic side. He realized that
he was building a brand, not just inking skin. He’s
changing the perception that tattoo artists are not
business minded. He’s also changing the perception that tattooing is not a valuable art form. He
locked down a three picture deal with Brian Glazer
(8 Mile, Davinci Code, Beautiful Mind) because he
felt they excel at telling personal stories.
He worked on this process three years. His idea
started years ago as an idea for a documentary
about tattooing and grew into his life story at
Imagine Films. He says it won’t be “a Mexican
8 Mile, though.” For three years he had doors
slammed in his face about making the movie, until
Brian Glazer saw the vision. “It’s about my life in
my early 20s, but it’s really about my family and
my team. I say ‘I’ in my interviews, but it’s really
‘we.’ It’s about my life which involves everyone.”
With a graphic novel about to drop through Time
Warner books, Cartoon says “it’ll be hard to follow the company’s last release, Sin City, but I’m
looking forward to getting our story out there.”
It’s the story of a young Japanese kid who comes
to America because he’s in love with our culture,
but he witnesses a murder and his dream kinda
becomes a nightmare. Cartoon also has an action
figure coming that was replicated from one of his
tattoo characters. It’s a collector’s item.
As I am leaving his tattoo shop, I can’t help but
think to myself that everything Cartoon creates is
a collector’s item, especially those unique stylized
Cartoon tattoos. Unique to each collector, whether
a soccer mom or a huge international Superstar. //
To hear pieces of the actual Cartoon interview, go
to www.22LBS.com or www.ozonemag.com
OZONE WEST // 19
T
ime flies. A little over fifteen years ago DJ Quik and AMG were youngsters in a genre that was growing before their very eyes. Fourteen
albums later, between them, they’ve amassed production and album
credits that have come to define them as both artists and men. Fittingly,
they’ve found good reason to reunite for the world to see and more importantly, hear. In so doing, their indigenous connection has found its way right
back into not only the West Coast Hip Hop panorama, but the industry as a
whole. In the midst of serving five months in jail for a heavily publicized
family dispute with his sister (where he allegedly brandished a weapon and
assaulted her), Quik’s partner in rhyme came to the rescue. His brainchild
was a welcome one and has since grown into a label that the two claim with
a renewed sense of energy.
As the Fixxers, which is also the name of their new label, Quik and AMG are
expectedly making noise. Their lead single, “Can You Werk Wit Dat?” is in
heavy rotation on the West Coast and is gaining momentum across the country, which is intentional. Says Quik, who’s permanently dropped the “DJ” from
his name, “It’s not like it’s just a West Coast record, cause who can really
define what the West Coast sound is outside of just categorizing it as some
common gangster shit or some angry shit? We doin’ some other shit.”
So don’t expect a “Quik’s Groove X,” because as AMG eloquently puts it, “This
is a Fixxers album.” In that, the funk era that Quik all but perfected, is over
– at least for The Fixxers. What you can expect is the same camaraderie that
produced hits like “Bitch Better Have My Money,” “The Vertical Joyride” and
classic albums like Quik Is The Name and Give A Dog A Bone.
Fuck what you heard. This is The Midnight Life.
This project is a welcome surprise. You’ve both been busy over the years and
obviously haven’t lost that magic touch. How did the Fixxers come about?
AMG: Well, it’s a new concept and it’s a new idea. We’ve always worked together. It’s not a big deal. But just to do something else [was fun]. It woulda
been whack to call it Quik and AMG. It’s a concept that we’re branding.
Quik: I had to go sit down, man. I had to really rethink everything, because
I got to a point where it really just wasn’t fun. Wasn’t nuthin’ fun, like, “What
kinda shit is this?” Well, we’re musicians and we’ve had some success and
now I get into family fights and shit and end up in jail. Something had to
change. So I started talkin’ to G when I was locked up and my nigga had
some ideas and I’m listening. I’m like, “That’s a good idea… that’s a great
idea,” and when I got out we just sat down. Then we looked at the state of
us. Fuck Hip Hop for a minute. I hate answering that question. We looked at
the state of where we are and just tried to make sense of it.
When you say the state of you two do you mean you as artists or the West
Coast?
Quik: Well, as friends. We were friends before we were this. We were just
trying to make sense of where we stand and how relevant we are to the
business or if we’re even relevant.
So is this album about proving that relevancy?
Quik: We know where we are with that. This record is more about doing
something new and fun for our coast, for this side here, for everybody. It’s
not like it’s just a West Coast record, cause who can really define what the
West Coast sound is outside of just categorizing it as some common gangster
shit or some angry shit? We doin’ some other shit.
People talk about the West Coast and say it was dead before the Hyphy
movement and it seems to be losing some steam. Does the name the Fixxers
have anything to do with keeping the West Coast afloat?
AMG: You can make it into what you want to, but the underlying concept is, it
was a jazzy name when we came up with it. When we started building more
into it we came up with some concepts, but not building the West, cause we
didn’t build it single-handedly anyway. We tryna get mu’fuckin’ money. We
gon’ fix our pockets.
Do you buy into the concept that the West Coast is dead or was dead before
the Hyphy movement?
AMG: Ah nah. It’s not dead. It’s just takin’ a break. It’s ten years. Everybody
got there ten year run. Our shit just expanded into everybody else’s shit.
Nobody tryna rap like Run and shit. Nobody tryna rap like Nas. They tryna
rap like us and make a record like us. U gotta remember, we from ’91. Niggas
didn’t even cuss back then til we started cussin’.
Quik: Biggie? That shit was all West Coast. That shit was all gangsta rap. That
shit was all West Coast and they never denied it.
Quik, why’d you drop the DJ from your name?
20 // OZONE WEST
Quik: (To AMG) Last night I was fuckin’ it up, G. Did you hear me last
night on vinyl nigga, playin’ King T bass and cut that shit up perfectly?
I thought I was DJ Joe Cooley last night. I might pick it back up. I might
put DJ back in my name… Real talk though, I been watchin’ these youngsters just clown like, “Wow, I can’t do that shit.” So why even disrespect
the title, cause DJ is a title.
So tell me about the album.
Quik: It’s a concept album. It’s kinda different. It’s a different direction
for me. We strayin’ away from the big deep musician shit… the funk,
cause funk is passé and boring to death now. That era has seen its
heyday and it’s a wrap for that. You gotta give people what they want
and we’ve been striking a chord lately because five year olds dance to
our music as well as fifty year olds. That’s where we kinda wanna stay.
It’s more marketable now. It’s not so underground and so misogynistic
and hateful and diss driven. It’s more community driven. It’s more social.
We’re socializing and having fun. We got gangsters in there rockin’ their
colors no matter what color it is and that’s just something you don’t get
anymore.
Given that The Midnight Life is about you all putting your sound out
there, I know there aren’t any other producers to speak of, but what
about collaborations? Did you reach beyond the West Coast?
AMG: It’s gon’ be a few. We don’t really have anything set in stone right
now, but there’s a few guys we’ve been workin’ with. Yung Joc, Rick Ross,
Jim Jones and Tierra Marie. //
Words by N. Ali Early
“
“
Everybody got
their ten year
run. Our shit just
expanded into
everybody else’s
shit. Nobody
tryna rap like Run
and shit. Nobody
tryna rap like
Nas. They tryna
rap like us and
make a record
like us.
OZONE WEST // 21
bizness
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Photos by
Sometime during the height of Freaknik’s
success, Too $hort admitted to being turned
out by the city of Atlanta. Shortly thereafter he made it official and bolted from the
Town in favor of Southern Hospitality. Now,
find out why Shorty the Pimp felt the need
to restore order in the beloved Bay.
22 // OZONE WEST
You definitely have more of a presence in the Bay than in years past, and
you’re kinda back and forth between there and Atlanta. Why do you feel it’s
necessary to be home more now?
I just went back to record some music. They need a little guidance so I went
back to help.
A lot of people talk about how the hyphy movement has led so many
youngsters astray. Is you going back as much about the music as it is the
community, or do the two work in hand from where you stand?
Well, you know, it’s always been the independent thing goin’ on where a lot
of folks wanna put a project together and put it out independent and try
to sell 50,000 copies. A handful of groups got signed by major labels from
out here last year. That got the morale up a little bit as far as gettin’ on the
national arena. Everybody’s content with the local success and the regional
success, but we still watch TV and they wanna be in the big leagues. So that’s
what’s goin’ on. You got some folks that recognize that if all these millions
of people on this end of the world love what’s comin’ from the Bay… if they
could just get it on a national arena, a lot more people might like it. So that’s
the struggle right now.
From day one, the opportunities were never there for us as Bay artists to be
on MTV and BET. It was never really there for me or E-40. We slipped through
the cracks every now and then, but as far as the majority of the Bay Area
music scene, we had huge success. We sold a lot of records and made a lot of
money, but BET and MTV would never ever check for an artist here that does
the same thing as an artist from another area. If another artist from another
area was doin’ it year in and year out the labels would rush to sign them, but
it just doesn’t happen here.
Why has that always been the case? Is it because the Bay has always stood on
its own and maintained that independent mindset?
Yeah, because we really don’t pursue the deals and then if you got somebody
who makes a hundred, two, three hundred thousand a year independently
and you come and tell them, “Man I’ll sign you. I’ll give you $100,000 to sign
and you get 10% off all your stuff,” the
answer is “No.” Once you get the person in
a position to earn a deal and you run the
numbers to them and what you’re offering,
it’s an insult.
Would you say “hyphy” is dead or alive?
I think that the word doesn’t mean much to people out here. It does not
define what’s going on. If you say that to the wrong lil youngsters you might
get a sour reaction. If you ask them if they “go hyphy” they might laugh. It’s
not like anybody is on the daily coming to the table talking about how we
gotta preserve “hyphy.” It’s actually just a way of life. It might have a new
name by the time the summer comes around. They might get tired of that
word and come up with something else. But when you step back and look
at it it’s still the same thing. It looks identical to the same things that we
was doin’ when I was a youngster but it’s just new and improved. It’s just a
different style. It’s the same behavior. We did the cars. We stood around the
intersection and had a party in the parking lot somewhere. We did all that
stuff. All they doin’ is doin’ what they supposed to do and they doin’ it they
own way and now they got a soundtrack to go with it. Back in the day you
had Richie Rich, Too $hort and some E-40. Now they got Keak Da Sneak and
Mistah FAB. They just a little more hyper.
Are you droppin’ another album?
I just got out of the studio and it should be mixed and mastered by next
week. I’m releasing a farewell album with Jive. No more albums with them.
We outta there. The relationship is over. It’s not going to be a whole album
– just like ten songs – something to commemorate the fact that I’ve been
on Jive for twenty years. Fourteen albums with Jive and it’s the end of the
relationship. Also on my Up All Nite label I’m releasing two compilations and
probably whoever gets the nod, whoever gets the hot song first is the first
group to go. I got like three groups with albums ready to go. And of course
The Pack is coming out on Jive. I got them a deal on Jive and they’re part of
the Up All Nite crew.
So it’s The Pack and two other groups?
I got three groups in the cut on the independent side. They don’t have major
deals. I’m just cultivating them right now. They got a little momentum but
it’s about whoever got that hot single. We got the albums ready to go, but
nowadays you can’t just be like, “I’m puttin’
you out next. You next, you after them…” You
gotta time it with a hot record and if your
record ain’t in rotation right now, you just
ain’t ready yet. You get that weight up and
get a record crackin’. In the meantime rap
everywhere you can rap. Do any verse you
can do on anybody’s stuff you can, mixtapes.
Be active. If you can’t shine in your own spot
right now, what makes you think you’re going to shine anywhere else in the world? It’s
whoever got that hustle; whoever got that
spark. What I’m doing in the Bay right now
is the same thing that I’m doing in Atlanta.
In Atlanta I had been on a whole different
agenda the whole time I had been there.
I wasn’t really tryna find somebody with
the hot hand and help them get on. I was
more or less working with artists who
were up and coming and getting them in
the studio and get them on their way. But
now, I’m just tryna see who is the hottest
artist and who needs some help. I’m not
really into artist development anymore. I
wasn’t really too good at that. My good natured heart makes me good at artist development, but as for the skill that it takes to develop an artist, it’s not
my forte. I’d prefer to just take super talented people and give them a couple
steps and help them elevate their game.
, the op“From day oneere
portunities was Banyeavertrists.
there for us t of records
We sold a lo lot of money,
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never ever c at does the
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same thing r area.”
from anothe
Everybody readily acknowledges you as
the godfather of the Bay and you’ve seen
everything transcend from two or three
generations before you. Now, this generation
seems to have everybody up in arms. Do you
see it that way or is the Bay the same as it’s
always been?
The youngsters right now, the 25 and under
generation is wilder right now in every city
than any generation at that age. They grew
up with the TV violence, the movie violence,
the street violence and the music is violent, so
it’s just a different world. Just imagine being a
little kid and you grow up around crack and you
live in the hood. People in your house on crack.
It’s just a different pace in the streets as far as
the tolerance level of just “violating my space”
or whatever. It ain’t about fightin’ no more and I
just feel like the combination of how bad it is with all the killin’. There’s so
many teenagers gettin’ killed, high school kids killin’ each other for real. Add
that in with the music and the music is being made by a lot of youngsters, but
a lot of the artists that the kids are into are in their 20’s. At the same time,
the kids are the ones that are driving the sound and that’s what’s inspiring
the artists to make the music that they’re making. So it’s still all about the
youngsters any way you look at it. It’s the whole lil movement. It’s not just
the hyphy and the “shake ya dreads” stuff. They do the turf dancin’ and it’s
a whole bunch of different [sides] to what they’re callin’ “The Movement.”
It’s not just “hyphy, get dumb, go stupid.” It’s a bunch of stuff out here. We
got a car culture and that’s very much a part of it. And it has a lot to do with
the swagger. Everybody says I got the game. I’m laced with the game. I’m
not just like no lil thug. I actually know the game. It’s a lot of little things
that add to the Bay Area swagger and to make a long story short, I’m here
to kinda deaden the whole idea that a youngster has no choice, like, “I have
to be a gangsta. I have to do this killin’ or stealin’ or whatever.” I’m just
sayin’, “Look at this right here; this music thing. As many of y’all that jump
into this, you have an opportunity to make some real money.” I ain’t talkin’
about savin’ you from the street or sayin’ what a preacher or a counselor or
somebody would say. I’m just like, let’s make some music and you can make
some money.
What was it about The Pack that brought y’all together and made things stick?
Over the years I’ve seen all the people who I knew who were talented and
all the people that I helped out, knowing that they were talented producers,
singers, musicians and actually knowing that the few that rose to the top,
they had a quality about them. It wasn’t a certain rhyme skill, or a look or
any kind of sound. Sometimes you just get a package and you just know it
will fit. Like, “Damn, this is what people will like.” It’s like them Aunt Jemima
pancakes. You just add water. You ain’t gotta add the eggs and the oil and all
that stuff. You just add water and it’s perfect. So I tend to favor those types
of situations over the years and I look back and say, “Who did I enjoy dealing
with the best?” And that goes for musicians, singers and people I just found
trying to get in it and they ended up having nice careers.
Who all you workin’ with on your album?
I’m actually debuting the Up All Nite crew. It’s not about name brand producers. I might get one single, cause it’s prolly going to be a one single album.
The guys that I got on the list of giving me that one single are Lil Jon, Jazze
OZONE WEST // 23
Pha and maybe Polow da Don – one of those three. Outside of that everything
is in house. I wanna put me together a whole lil click of people that I work
with in Atlanta and people that I work with in the Bay and I just fly back and
forth. I hate to predict the future and tell people what I’m about to do, but
we got a lotta music in the can. It’s a lotta activity jumpin’ off on the Internet
and different ways to sell music as far as iTunes and ringtones and stuff. It’s
a lot more beneficial these days to be independent because it’s so much less
stressful in the digital world. So I’m bringing my futuristic life to the surface.
We goin’ digital all the way.
Are you enjoying the idea of managing the label, so to speak, as opposed to
being an artist at this point?
I mean, dawg, realistically man, I’ve long overstayed my welcome as an
artist. I’m just still doin’ it cause they keep lettin’ me do it. It’s not like it’s a
necessity. I love doin’ it. I’ve had so much success and the whole world said,
“WHY??” Radio stations and magazines like, “Why did he do another one?” Too
$hort fans like, “Oh my God, he finally lost it,” I’d take the criticism like, “Well
you know I had to hit a brick one day.” But I’ve survived something that I
know recording artists can’t survive. I survived a label that put out a string
of albums without promoting. I survived that shit. I worked year round and
everything’s cool, man. I don’t know how an artist could survive five albums
without a single, without ads, without a video and he still got the whole
world goin’ on.
Is there a similar feeling in your gut with respect to the first time you “announced” your retirement?
Well, I can say now that there was never an intention for retirement and it
was a point of me psyching myself up to where I couldn’t be a 30 something
year old rapper. As fast as we did the press release I was already negotiating
the paperwork to move forward with a new contract with Jive. Now that word
is not even going to get entertained by me. Regardless of any rapper who
ever stepped up and said, “I quit rappin’,” I don’t know anyone who ever did
it. It’s Hip Hop. It’s like drugs. Not to say that that’s the only reference I could
come up with for Hip Hop, but it is very, very, very addictive. I don’t know
anybody of any age who actually retired the microphone. Everybody who said
it has already made an album since they said it.
You endorsed J Stalin’ on the intro of a recent mixtape. Is he in your camp?
He soon will be if I keep seein’ him do his thing and if he needs some help.
It’s about three cats out here that I would love to work with but I can’t jump
the gun. I don’t wanna tell you, “You down with me,” and then I got a whole
full schedule and I can’t handle you. But he’s definitely one of the ones who
I know has that “it.” I’m down widit. He was just on stage with us the other
night in Vegas.
Who are the other artists in the Up All Nite crew?
I’m working with the Hoodstarz right now. They got a major movement goin’
on in the Bay. I got another guy named Dolla Will. But the Hoodstarz, they
from East Palo Alto. They got that good momentum and they were major
candidates out here for just needing a little push in the right direction. I
been takin’ them way outta town, like way outta their market, just throwin’
em on stage and they battin’ a thousand no matter what crowd they step to.
No matter if they ever heard of ‘em or if they never heard any of their songs,
they got about a fifteen minute show that’ll rock any crowd.
So who do you see being the face of the Bay? Who’s that dude right now?
I mean definitely, if you wanna see who got the weight out here, it’s undeniable that Short Dog and E-40 are the OGs. But if you talkin’ bout who’s the
heavyweight out here on the scene, it’s Keak and FAB. FAB likes to get around
and make sure that the Bay gets represented. He’s tryna be the face of the
Bay. Keak Da Sneak, he got his lil lovely world. He gettin’ his money on, but
he not really tryna truly be the face of it. He more into the streets. He’s like
the street favorite. Then it’s a whole bunch of cats that’s right there with
them that’s the supporting cast. You got the Hoodstarz. You got the new kids
on the block, The Pack. You got the Team. They definitely heavyweights out
here. EA Ski and his group Frontline, they definitely stay on the radio. Youngstas love The Federation and Turf Talk. So it’s a whole click of ‘em out there.
Then you got the Messy Marvs and the San Quinns; the youngstas love them.
Speaking of youngstas, the term is a little outdated, but what do you think
about the New Bay, considering your legacy and how you’ve ushered most, if
not all of the talent that you just mentioned?
I think it’s something that needed to be said to distinguish a change. It’s not
like it really picked up like it was picked as a movement. I mean, I use it. I say
it. It’s the uptempo, the hyphy sound, the go stupid, turf dancin’… That’s the
new thing. The dreads. It’s the New Bay. It’s lovely. //
The Pack, signed to Too $hort’s
label Up All Nite/Jive Records
24 // OZONE WEST
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OZONE WEST // 25
endzone
Location: Oakland, CA
Venue: 2232 MLK
Event: Oakland vs. Memphis dance battle
Date: March 11th, 2007
Photo: D-Ray
26 // OZONE WEST
OZONE WEST // 27