Not even just the hoodrats. Muthafuckers just gotta understand that I’m a real
nigga. At the end of the day I ain’t tryin’ to be nobody who I ain’t. Fuck with
me, that’s all I ask for. I’m not tryin’ to be somebody else.
Where did the Boyz N Da Hood situation fall apart?
It never fell apart. When I did it, it was a one album situation. I got a label deal
at Def Jam. I’m not just an artist, I’m a boss. It was an understanding. It was an
opportunity for me and everybody else. It was a one album thing and we all
understood that. So it didn’t really fall apart, that’s how it was supposed to be.
When Katrina came through, I heard you took care of some people.
I did what any real nigga would do, and that’s my focus for this next album.
I’m gonna get more involved with my hood, places I grew up. I’m really on
that shit right now. A nigga been blessed, so fuck it, I’ma do the right thing
this time. I’m not gonna get caught up in the bullshit. I’m gonna give. Katrina
happened, man, and black people are hurting. Those are my people, so anything
I could do to help, I’ma help.
Do you feel like you don’t get recognized for the positive things you give back?
Controversy and drama, that shit sells. So anytime your baby mama is getting
time you do some positive shit, niggas don’t give a fuck. But it’s cool cause I
ain’t doing it for no press or promo, I’m doing it cause it’s the right thing to do.
Everybody ain’t got it. Sometimes you gotta be the nigga to look out. Fuck it, I
get my blessings on the back end, so I ain’t trippin’.
Have you been able to collaborate with Jay-Z on this album, or has he offered
any words of advice?
We’re both working right now. We’re doing what we do, back and forth talking.
He’s working on his joint, I’m working on mine. A nigga’s in grind mode.
I put the fatigues back on. He’s in his trap and I’m in mine.
You were spending some time on the boards in the studio. Are you getting
into the engineering and production aspect of the music?
Yeah, I’m all over my shit. If I sit around anything long enough, I’m gonna
make up my mind to learn that shit. I don’t like to call somebody and need
help. I’m just one of them types of dudes. I’ma make a bad situation a better
one, and me just being around all the fuckin’ studio shit all the time, I wanted
to learn how to do it so I can get shit done without my engineer there. I
co-produced a lot of shit on my last album but I really wasn’t trippin’ on the
credits. When I go sit down with a nigga in the studio, I know what I want
and where I’m going.
Who are you dealing with as far as production for this album?
Toomp, Speedy, T.A., Shawty Red, Midnight Black, The Drumma Squad. I’ma
give niggas a chance, you know what I mean? I really didn’t get a lot of big
production. I fuck with Timbaland. He came to the hood with me; it’s a classic
I just kept the shit hood.
Are you going to drop another mixtape before this album?
I’m about to do the whole CTE thing, so me and my niggas will probably do
one together – BloodRaw, Slick Pulla, 211, the whole CTE.
What’s up with the USDA album?
What appealed to you about Slick and Blood? Why sign them to CTE?
The niggas are real. I don’t really fuck with a lot of niggas. Me and Slick been
down for a long-ass fuckin’ time, and he’s just a real nigga. Same thing with
‘Raw, his whole persona is just real nigga shit. At the end of the day it’s not
about the music, you gotta be able to trust these niggas. And ‘Raw, he go hard.
That nigga hustles. Slick is the same way. You don’t have to get on a nigga’s
ass, they just do what they do. I hear about more shit them niggas do that I
don’t even know about. They’re out working and creating their own situations,
and I like that. Any nigga that hustles like that, I’ma hustle with them.
And I respected them niggas before I met them. I heard Slick’s shit and was
like, damn, this nigga’s hard. When I heard ‘Raw, he comes from his heart.
Anytime you can feel a nigga’s pain in his music, you really understand it.
When I listen to ‘Raw, I can tell that this nigga really been through this shit.
When I listen to Slick, he’s a real wild ass young dude.
You mentioned that you’re not trying to cross over. Even though mainstream
America looks at “The Snowman” as the bad guy, they’ll probably never
understand that your goal is to be more like a motivational speaker.
Once you get past the hood, a lot of people don’t get it. Well – I should say –
once you get past people who live like you, people who hustle and struggle
and people who live life the way I’ve lived it – some people still don’t get it.
22 // OZONE MAG
They think I’m crazy – why are you talking about this? But I get it. All the
drug dealing rappers are like, muthafucker, you couldn’t walk a day in my
shoes. You ain’t good where I’m good. You can’t survive where I’ve survived.
Life is life – everybody can’t live the same. I don’t know about your job, I
might not be good at whatever you do, but I know where I came from. I
made a way when there wasn’t no way to be made, so I’ma respect that and
you should do the same. I could drop you off where the fuck I was at and
you couldn’t survive a day. You couldn’t even lace my shoes up. That “Air
Forces” song was dead ass true. A lot of muthafuckers couldn’t walk a mile
in my shoes. Niggas criticize me, all he talks about this and that, well, that’s
who the fuck I am. If you don’t like my shit, don’t buy it. For real. I don’t need
your favors. My niggas fuck with me, so I’m cool. When I say “crossover,” I
mean, I ain’t gonna do nothing that makes me feel like I’m doing it just to sell
records. I might do a big song, but I ain’t gonna do something that makes me
feel uncomfortable. I don’t wanna be somewhere and hear a nigga tell me that
the shit is whack. I’ma do what I feel like is right by ‘em, so hopefully niggas
will get it.
You’ve got 84 songs done for this album already? Who have you worked with
as far as features?
Yep. I’ll probably only do like 14 on the album. I’m gonna have some features,
but I really don’t bank on my features. I’m more concerned with having a
solid album.
What’s the process of narrowing 84 songs down to 14 like?
Just depends on what I feel. I might smoke a couple blunts and listen and pick.
You just gotta know what sounds right. I think I put too many songs on the
last album – I gave niggas a chance to say what they didn’t like and what they
did like. If it had been like 14 songs it’d be a classic, period.
Is The Inspiration a classic?
Thug Motivation shit I gotta
hit them in the head, you know?
Do you think you’re in a position to become the next big rap superstar? Do
you think we need a Tupac or Biggie?
They weren’t superstars. They were just real niggas. I think in this industry
right now, niggas are scared to be themselves. They go with what’s hot. Everybody
tries to jump on what’s hot to sell records, cause everybody wants to
get on. Pac didn’t give a fuck what single he dropped. He wasn’t talking about,
“This is my radio single.” He just did what he felt. Same with Big. Once you
try to break that shit down into “radio singles” and “club singles,” c’mon, man.
You’re gimmicking yourself.
Are you worried about The Inspiration getting leaked and bootlegged like
your last album?
Hell naw. If my shit gets leaked this time, I’m going to jail, point blank.
Is it true that a Patchwerk Studios employee caught a beatdown for that?
It is what it is. No comment. I don’t wanna get sued again. These bitch niggas
are out here suing.
What’s up with your clothing line USDA?
December 1st we’re in stores. But the government was trippin’ on the USDA
which is USDA how we used to do it on the old-school pagers. So my clothing
Everybody says they’ve got a clothing line. Are you actually designing clothes
or is it just t-shirts?
Oh, hell no. I’m gonna be where Sean John, LRG, Rocawear, and everything
is at. I’ma be right there with them. I got all that, jeans, hats, velour jackets,
sweaters, all that shit. It’s no bullshit. I know you hear about niggas saying
they’ve got a clothing line, but this is some real shit.
Are you still putting out the book Thug Motivation?
I’m still working on it. It took a little bit longer than I thought. I really wanna
impress niggas.
Any other projects you’ve got going on?
Trap or Die, the movie. I’m probably gonna fuck with that. It’s my life story,
but I ain’t gonna do it like everybody else did it. I’ma just transition to show
how it is. It’s gonna be more like a documentary than a movie. Other than
that, just working on Slick and Blood’s stuff. “Birds Fly South” in the clubs
right now. That BloodRaw mixtape is hitting hard.
Anything else you’d like to say?
Look out for that album late October, The Inspiration. You know what it is.
2006