Q-Strange Interview
http://www.horrorcore.com/news/index.ph ... category=5
Interview conducted by Preest with Q-Strange of JVH Entertainment.
Preest: Sup this is Preest and I got Q Strange with me right now...Sup Q how are things going?
Q Strange: What�s up man, things are good.
Preest: How is the new CD coming?
Q Strange: I'm working on some new material I�m hoping to have out by fall. The new shit is incredible. Musically it's a little more diverse than the last one. On this new shit I am coming with stuff people may not expect from me. I still got some ill wicked horror type shit on there, but I've been messing with other stuff too. I go back to my hip hop roots on some tracks, I touch on deep real shit, I got the story telling tracks, a bit of everything. Production wise I have been playing with new styles, working with new equipment, I think the new stuff far surpasses the last album in so many ways. Musically, lyrically all across the board
Preest: Now you mention your Hip Hop roots...what's your feelings on Hip Hop today and the differences between Horror Rap and Hip Hop...
Q Strange: See I'm 26 now so I been into Hip Hop since the golden era, like when I was younger hip hop wasn�t the huge commercial industry it is today. I don�t really like much hip hop out now. I mean once in a while your in the club some dope beat comes on you throw your bows and stuff, but it�s not the same I don�t get the same feeling I did back in the day. I was always into underground hip hop, I still am. Horror or otherwise, I like the underground shit, but again I don�t get the same feeling I used to get. Maybe I grew out of it. I think the commercial mainstream shit is just bullshit. You have record labels paying the big commercial stations in one way or another for heavy rotation, same with videos too. The underground has become saturated with nerdy suburbanites and college art fags, but I got so much love for hip hop still. Remember when all hip hop was 40's blunts and gats? Then you had all the true heads bitching about "Yo it should go back to being about fun and partying and not be violence and negative shit" then along came Puff and the glam rap era all about dancing and partying and what happened? People still bitched! "Yo hip hop is so soft now" I think its just hip hop in general moved people a certain way back in the days, and now its just different , its too processed. I still listen to my old shit from like 91-94 maybe just because that was my high school years and I have some memories when I hear it. I don�t know, I ain�t feeling a lot of new shit, when I do get new shit, I always go back to my old stuff.
Preest: I feel the biggest difference is that Hip Hop nowadays a lot of times ignores the feelings and the heart and concentrates instead on the technical skills of rap which really takes the fun and memory out of the music�I remember where I was back in the day when the Luniz, �5 on It� track dropped but couldn�t tell ya when Necros �I need Drugs� did�Hip Hop has become a task...name some shit you still listen to from back in the day...
Q Strange: Shit, Showbiz and AG "Runaway Slave" Souls of Mischief "93 till Infinity" De La Soul "De La Soul is Dead" Tribe Called Quest "Low End Theory" 3rd Bass "Derelicts of Dialect" Lords of the Underground "Here Come the Lords" countless other shit. Even though the shit I do doesn�t necessarily sound anything like those artists, those are some of the older joints I always go back to when I want to bump some music�cant forget Big Daddy Kane, Eric B and Rakim, Special Ed, man I could go on for days
Preest: I still bump 3rd Bass and my Serch and Prime Minister Pete Nice solos!
Q Strange: Yeah me too, they were supposed to reunite a few years ago I guess it never materialized though
Preest: They actually reunited for Tom Hilfiger�s brother or sons birthday or something but...whatever...ha...can ya give the fans some hints and drop some names about this new CD?
Q Strange: Well a few of the tracks I put up for some people to check out as a stream only thing, and then took it down later the same day. Well I didn�t know you could still jack stream shit so they are floating around the net now. But those tracks "Sinphony of Sick" "Emcee Assault" "Strangeland" is a small taste of what the new shit is gonna be, I got some guests on this shit. Rottin is on a dope track "Murder on the Mic" I got Majik Duce on a track, I am working on some collabs still I don�t want to speak on until they are done, but I got some raw horrorcore shit "Still Driftin" deep emotional stuff like "Nothing" personal joints like "Why I�m F'd Up" and "Father Figure" I'm real excited about it. I want to try and find a label to release it because of my financial situation as of late, but I may just scrap up and release it independently again, either way, the shit is gonna be dope. Not being cocky I just think I stepped up a bit since "Creation to ExeQtion"
Preest: Are you ready to announce the name right now or is that still a secret?
Q Strange: "Q Strange and the Q'oozahs present: That�s What I Call Q-Zick Vol 7" haha nah man, I haven't decided yet. I have a few titles I'm messing with in my head, but when it�s all done I�ll sit and listen to the shit beginning to end and brainstorm on something that accurately describes it�or whatever sounds cool at the time
Preest: Who are you feeling in the Horror Rap underground?
Q Strange: Well I'm gonna go out on a limb and call people "horror rap" that may not consider themselves that but whatever. I think Necro is dope, I�m feeling Rottin too. I always been down with L U Cipha I think they got lyrics for days. KGPs new shit is sounding dope although I haven�t copped it yet. There is a bunch of shit out there I am not too familiar with though. I think especially on the net and with the popularity of the ICP and stuff a lot of people try to emulate them and these are the people most people consider: horror rap" and this is way a lot of rap and hip hop heads don�t see the real talent. There are dope artists doing it right, they are just harder to find I think because you need to filter out the garbage.
Preest: Where do you see the Horror Rap underground heading and is it good or bad?
Q Strange: well, I don't see any major labels putting any money or interest in horror shit anytime soon. I hope someone proves me wrong though. I think it will be a mostly underground thing; I'd like to see more originality and conceptual shit. I think you have to take it for what it is. Its a form of hip hop that most people wouldn�t be feeling. There is a market for it, but its real small compared to other kinds of rap music. I'd like to see it grow. I think it will continue to grow though. These young kids with computer mics are going to get older and sharpen their skills and get hair on their balls and get deeper voices and continue to rap and who knows? They might make some really dope shit in the years to come. so I don�t know where its heading, I just know as long as people respond to what I�m doing I�m gonna keep putting shit out.
Preest: Cutting Room Floor...what's the deal...the real deal? It's being postponed and delayed like whut...why?
Q Strange: Ok, before Creation to ExeQtion came out I did some shit that only a few people got their hands on, and also some songs I did on the side that nobody heard. So I figured it'd be cool to throw it on a CD and put it out for people who are feeling my shit to check out. WDP offered to put it out in April then he said he had to postpone it. I don't really know what the deal with it on his end is. I know he told me he did in fact have the CDs back from the manufacturer and was sending them to me and shipping preorders, but that was a month ago and I haven�t seen anything. I talk shit behind the mic, in reality I�m not one to talk shit about people especially since I don�t really know the deal. I have no ill will toward Suge. I understand that putting out records cost a lot of money and sometimes you don't recoup. I'm not saying that�s the deal with him. The project was completed on my end from day one. Other than the music I have nothing to do with the release of this album. I know people already sent money for it and I hope they do get their shit. If I could give advice to any music fan ordering CDs it would be NEVER PRE ORDER ANYTHING!!! How are you going to pay for something that doesn�t even exist yet? I know sometimes you get free shit or a package deal, but in my opinion never pay for anything until it's an actual product that can be shipped out immediately. I try to be really good at shipping stuff out to people and hooking people up with free shit, and just being down with people who like my music. I hope these CRF thing dosents spoil that for anybody, but like i said it's out of my hands. I can't answer the question accurately because I really don't know. If for whatever reason the cd doesn�t come out I will hook up anyone who�s interested in hearing it.
Preest: I hear the CDs you'll be getting from his shipment will be priced at $5 dollars whereas his will be $10...is that true?
Q Strange: Yeah but like I said it cost a lot of money to make a cd. Since I have no cost on my end, I don't need to recoup I didn�t invest anything into it. I will be selling it on my web page and locally through the same outlets that i work with now. He has all the other internet stores and record stores to sell it in. I ain�t looking to get rich off of this thing I just thought it'd be cool for anyone who�s a fan of my shit to check out shit i did from before that they never heard. It ain�t like I�m trying to cut anyone�s throat or anything, but since I didn�t invest anything in the project it would be greedy of me to try and charge the same as the guy who did ya know?
Preest: Well I suggest people hit Q up and grab this for $5 no doubt...ya can't beat this price...Any concerts on the way for Q Strange?
Q Strange: Right now I just have a show on August 12 in NJ. All the info is on the page
http://horrorcoreateshore.cjb.net Other than that anyone in the Providence RI area can see me occasionally at the monthly U.N.I.T.Y shows at the MET.
Preest: Has Q ever thought of a music video?
Q Strange: Yeah I actually had a film student offer to make an Eternal Bliss video for free I just never went out and shot the footage for it. If I did it would be really cheesy though. When I recorded Murderkill in 97 I was working as a security guard in a hospital 3rd shift, and I filmed some ill shit in the morgue. Now I think about it that shit was really fucked up, I had the jars with the organs and shit in them, I was lying on the autopsy table, I was rapping next to a real dead body. I mean it was like 3 in the morning and I had a key to the morgue so it seemed like a good idea at the time. It never got edited and actually was destroyed with a bunch of other shit in a fire I had in my apartment, I�m glad though man, that shit was real bad. I�m going to hell for that shit. If I did a video it ain�t like I�d have an outlet to showcase it other than the internet so it'd be real cheese if I do one
Preest: Have you considered grouping up with any other horror rappers?
Q Strange : If the opportunity came along and it was with some peeps I respected and was feeling the shit they was doing and I felt we could do some real good music, I would consider forming a group with some people. I�m open to anything really. If someone said you got some ill lyrics want to work with my band, I�d be down to do that too. I love experimenting and just being around musicians and shit feeding off each others creativity and stuff
Preest: What suggestion can you make to kids out there looking to be another Q and do what Q does?
Q Strange: I mean if you mean Q as in the character that kills people and is fucked in the head and mutilates corpses and eats them and shit then I'd suggest getting a psychiatric exam right away. If you mean just me as an artist, I�m still in the developmental stages myself. This shit is like an obsessive hobby to me. I say if you�re feeling the music and want to make things happen and get a name for yourself in the underground, just keep doing what you�re doing and expose as many people as you can to your music until you find a responsive audience. If you suck, just keep practicing until you get your skills tight. But PLEASE remember there is nothing wrong with just being a fan. Not everyone has to be a rapper, just sit back and enjoy the music from people who know what they are doing.
Preest: Good point...not all fans can be rappers...I think that's what's screwing up Horror rap today is the over saturation of fans trying to be something that their skill level won't allow...
Q Strange: yeah man I think everyone wants to be a rock star, but some people just aren�t gifted in that way but then again who the fuck am I to tell someone they suck?
Preest: Ha...A lot of Hip Hop fans feel keeping it real is the way to go but in Horror Rap it should be the opposite...do you think kids nowadays take Horror rap too seriously?
Q Strange: Nah I don't think so, I think for the most part kids take it at face value which is just entertainment. Keeping it real is good too, but that�s just a catch phrase anyway. I can't see any kind of music being so influential it would drive someone to do something they wouldn�t do otherwise.
Preest: Back to CRF really quickly...have you decided to stay on with WDP after this fiasco or are you definitely moving on?
Q Strange: Well neither Suge nor I ever had the intentions of me releasing anything else on WDP. It was basically I wanted to put out a cd of old shit and didn�t want to put the money into it. He saw the opportunity to capitalize on it a little and we made a deal. We never discussed putting out anything else on WDP other than some tracks for compilations. I'm thinking of sending a demo to this label growing real fast. Man they got some ill shit coming out and I just wanna be down with these cats. Fallen Ent. you ever heard of them?
Q Strange: haha
Preest: Ha ha...I may have heard something about them�sounds familiar, making mad mad moves I hear
Q Strange: Power moves kid!
Preest: Whoop Whoop!!
Preest: Has there been any benefits to performing Horror Rap as opposed to mainstream Hip Hop?
Q Strange: Well I never did mainstream rap, I did like underground shit with the group 3rd Floor Productions, and there wasn�t really any advantage or disadvantage, I was just doing the same type of shit for a while, and I wanted to get ill with it, do some more creative shit. I think with horror rap you need to depend on other forms of promotion like the internet if your not in a region that supports that kind of thing. In other types of rap, you basically start locally and try to build from that. If I did that I�d have 24 people bumping my shit and 13 of them would be my relatives
Preest: So kids that rely solely on the internet are also going about it the wrong way and vice versa with people that only work the streets?
Q Strange: It depends; I mean whatever works for you. I can�t do the street thing in my area. I could but for me, I have a large following through the internet, I don�t see that as a negative thing, I don't discount the value of being able to promote your music all over the world. I think it�s a good tool, but shouldn�t be the only tool. Street promotion is the best way to do it if you want to build a regional fan base. Hit up the mix tapes, do shows, get flyers and posters out there. It depends on the artist and what market they want to target I guess. I sell most of my shit in the mid west states, now I live on the east coast. I could go do shows with cats like Sage Francis but them kids would just look at me funny unless I was doing Emcee Assault or some shit. So for me the net helped a lot
Preest: Is there a preference as to whether an upcoming artist should begin with CDR albums or pro-pressed?
Q Strange: Again, it depends what you want to do, if you plan on giving that cd to labels, distributors, magazines, radio stations, then the CD-R won�t be taken seriously and presentation is important in a situation like that. But if you just wanna pimp your shit on the streets and try to build a fan base I say CD-R is just as good, it all depends on what�s on it really. I know a dude out of Brooklyn called Raadar Vaan he is down with some cats in Wu Tang or some shit, but anyway, this cat goes to Times Square outside the big Virgin Records store and sells a cheap ass CD-R of all non mastered shit to anyone who'll listen for 10 bucks. Man the dude sold over 500 just on the street hollering at every kid that walk by. So he made 5000 bucks on cheap non mixed non mastered CD-Rs so he�s gonna record some decent shit and pro press a nice CD. So I think to get your music out and see if you got an audience CD-R is good enough for me.
Preest: What's Q's favorite movie?
Q Strange: haha, probably like the Goonies or some shit.
Preest: That old school mask you used to wear...was that a Troma mask? It reminded me of a Toxic Avenger mask I saw once...
Q Strange: Oh man that mask was some shit I found on clearance after Halloween for like 2.99 it was a melted face. Like half melted. The mask thing got kind of played so I dropped it. But I still got that bitch. I liked it because the jaw was exposed so I could like rap and shit and wear it onstage and it wasn�t covering my mouth. I don�t car what no one says, that shit was ill!
Preest: Ever consider holding a cool little contest someday to have a fan win it or is it something you'll keep till you wear diapers?
Q Strange: haha, yeah that�s a good idea, nobody really knew my shit back then though, but I found a wholesale store that sells them and thought of buying a shitload to sell on the internet, but then I gave the whole mask thing up. Maybe I will give away the original though
Preest: What's that smell?
Q Strange: the crusty mask in my pocket
Preest: If you were a Clown what would your name be?
Q Strange: Steve
Preest: What's your favorite cartoon?
Q Strange: El Kabong, when Quickdraw McGraw puts on the mask and becomes El Kabong and hits people with his guitar
Preest: hahahaha�Shout out time...let's hear those names...
Q Strange: yo yo yo big ups to my peeps in the hood holding it down, to my peeps on lockdown. To Big Pooky, Lil Pooky, Regular Pooky, to my main bitch Shaniqua up in building 12.
Preest: hahaha�sup with the O.G.s and The Vatos out on The Bully slangin those QB's?
Q Strange: No seriously, shouts to everyone helping me spread the word with this music shit, and all the other artists trying to help build this underground shit. Everyone whose reading this thing, buy my friggin album bitch!
Preest: Any last words before I pull the switch?
Q Strange: no
Preest: Click�Peace
Q Strange: Peace
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