How old were you when you started rapping?
17.
What made you start?
Basically? Shit I was always a fan of hiphop and we had neighbourhood rappers, ya know. Toddy T, Mixmaster Spade? N*ggaz used to make tapes and sell em in the hood. Talk about girls raped, police rage, the neighbourhood and stuff like that. Me being from the hood, a neighbourhood gangbanger, I wanted to make shit about MY neighbourhood and MY homies so I hooked up with my homeboy who lived in Wattz and he had some turntables, mixer and all that? So we just started making garage tapes, talking about the neighbourhood and stuff like that. From there I started writing about other stuff, besides just the homies and stuff. Then I started making more tapes, more tapes and just selling more tapes, more tapes and the tapes fell in the hands of a local producer? DJ Slip, and from there we just started making real music.
Cool. Is it ok if I say an album title of yours and you just kinda say what you think about the album and what people should know about it?
Yeah.
Ok. First one is A Compton Thang.
Gutter. You know, brand new to the game. Introduction. Letting people know about Compton and new rappers coming out of Compton besides Eazy E and NWA. We had a different flavour and different sound. That was a true underground record right there.
Ok. Was Chill there in the beginning when you first hooked up with DJ Slip?
Yeah. Me and Chill had met in junior highschool so we was already doing our thing together. He was beatboxin? and I was rapping so? And us being in Compton and shit like that made us just decide that ?We?re gonna be Comptons Most Wanted?. Then we hooked up with DJ Slip and from there, capitol got a hand of a demo tape we was doing and that?s how we put our the first record It?s A Compton Thang. The first single was One Time Gaffled Em Up .
Ok. Next album is Straight Checkn?em
New label, Epic Records. A little more promotion. A little more exposure. This time we was able to venture more into more sound. DJ Slip was able to get better equipment? We started going on the road. Meetin? people. Went to New York for the first time? People is really open to Comptons Most Wanted. We had the famous Growing Up In The Hood song on there. Driveby Miss Daisy, Raised In Compton, Can I Kill It? That was a real famous album.
Yeah. And then the group dropped Music To Driveby?
Music To Driveby is like a Comptons Most Wanted classic. It was the favourite Comptons Most Wanted record of all time. Hook-songs like Hood Rat, songs like Another Victim, Death Wish? you know. This was when we brought Mike T to the table. DJ Mike T. He was at the forefront. We had songs like Fuck Timdogg? Music To Drive By was basically just a whole well rounded album. Nation wide album. Getting that exposure, you know, it sold like 400 000 copies? couple of videos? Music To Driveby was a straight gangsta record.
Ok. And then you dropped Represent with the group. I think that was in 2000??
Represent was a coming-back record? hooking up with all the homies. Hooking back up with DJ Slip. Hooking back up with Mike T? Chill had gotten released from jail so Chill was back in? and we also had Boom-Bam on the album. So Represent was basically just trying to get back together. Feel eachother out in the studio, cuz we hadn?t worked with eachother in about 5 or 6 years. So doing Represent was a? You know it was a pit project. It was an independent project. Not nationally. We just wanted to do it to let everybody know that Comptons Most Wanted was still together and we still worked together, and we could still work together as a team.
Ok, cool. And you released a few solo albums too? Like We Come Strapped.
We Come Strapped was my first solo record after Music To Driveby. It follows the success to the Menace 2 Society movie and the soundtrack where I had Straight up Menace. So We Come Strapped was more about MC Eiht. I started a production company with Slip, Half Ounce Records, and that gave me a chance to start producing. I executive produced the record. Basically it was just a chance for me to be involved more business wise and hands-on? Once again; Classic record. Songs like Take 2 With Me and Death Wich III? And songs like Nuthin? But The Gangsta with Redman and Spice 1. We Come Strapped was a real classic record and it sold like 800 000 copies, so it really put us in the game nationally.
Yeah. Cool. And then you released Death Threatz.
Death Threatz was going back to basics. You know, hooking back up with my homies from Comptons Most Wanted even tho it was an MC Eiht record. Featuring CMW. We had Chill on there, Boom Bam, we had my young brother Da Foe, and we brought in a couple of other guys to produce; Black Jack from up North in the Bay Area who was producing for Spice 1 and my man Prodigy from South Central Cartel produced a couple of tracks. Death Threatz was just going back to the gangstarizm? Just trying to stick to the pattern of what MC Eiht and CMW was always familiar with and what the fans was always used to hearing. So Death Thretz was a real good record.
Yeah ok. And then there was Last Man Standing.
Last Man Standing was my last record on Epic. Basically Last Man Standing was a transmission of what Epic wanted me to do. Basically going through the politics of record and then wanting to follow trends at the time? and how everybody was bling blingin? and suited and booted and the Mafioso and all that bullshit. So that was basically Epics record, Last Man Standing. They brought in Daz to produce, they brought in Muggs to produce. The album was a good album, but it just wasn?t my album. It was what I was trying to do to please them, because I thought we would continue our relationship which we didn?t cuz that was the last record? Which I kind of knew so I titled it Last Man Standing.
Ok. And then you signed to Hoo Bangin Records and released Section 8.
Section 8 is me trying to get back to the hood. Trying to basically focus on? From the Last Man Standing record it was a 180 turn. Going back to what I been used to doing. It was strictly for the streets, for the homies? dealing with the streets you know, what?s going on, the neighbourhood, how n*ggas still tryina hustle to feed their families and just real music that people of my era appreciate. Everybody was bling blinging, riding on boats and flying planes and all that shit? Section 8 was trying to take them back to? you know just a nice street hood record.
Ok. And then there?s N? My Neighbourhood.
N? My Neighbourhood was once again trying to stick to my old pattern. Like they say; If it ain?t broke, don?t fix it. So I was just basically trying to be mellowed out on N? My Neighbourhood. N? My Neighbourhood was a mellow record. Just trying to pick what was going on in the streets of LA and Compton. Around here. That?s why I titled it N? My Neighbourhood because it was just basically a story of what was going on in my neighbourhood.
Ok. And then you released an independent record called Tha8t?z Gangsta.
Yeah that was my first independent record. I started the label Half Ounce Records so basically it was just an independent record just trying to stay in the game looking at my options? if I wanted to sign with a major label or if I wanted to try to do my own thing. So Tha8t?z Gangsta was just basically trying to test the independent market. See if the fans was still behind me and acceptable to MC Eiht. Like I said, the industry was changing and we had the Eminems going on and the Nellys and all that shit. So that was basically just trying to stay grounded and even though I wasn?t trying to be nation wide or commercial or anything like that, it was just basically MC Eiht trying to exercise, ya know what I?m sayin?
Yeah ok. And then there is Underground Hero?
Underground Hero was another project I did independently. Like I said, once again; Me just loving hiphop and loving street music. What I do. N*ggaz not doing what I like to hear so even though it?s on a minor record I needed to put out a record, you know, just for myself. So Underground Hero was just trying to keep my shit going. Not trying to fall off the horce or fall off the bandwagon and people having nothing to associate with MC Eiht. That was for the most true people who knew about MC Eiht and was always expecting records from MC Eiht. So that was just something to give them. To tie them over till my next move.
Ok. And that?s why you called it Underground Hero I guess.
Right.
Ok. What about Hood Arrest?
Hood Arrest was just some old stuff I had laying around. Old cuts that I had did from way back and songs that I had done from like 97 or 96. So basically I just went to the studio, remastered them and put some new beats behind them? and put it out independently with an other label I had started.
Yeah. And you did an album with Spice 1 called The Pioneers.
Spice 1 had a talk with me about doing a project. Spice 1 and me had done 2 or 3 songs and we had a couple of videos together? So me and Spice 1 was always homies. When he came to me with the idea? This was something that a lot of people in the Bay was doing? and in the game. R Kelly and Jay-Z did a record? Everybody was doing records together. So we decided that as far as the West coast?s concerned, we should do a record. A lot of Bay Area rappers don?t do songs with Southern Cali rappers so it was a cool transmission for the freeway trip. People up in the Bay had something to relate to and for people down in Compton LA had something to relate to?
Ok, cool. I?m gonna get to Veterans Day soon? but out of these albums we?ve talked about so far, which one?s your favourite?
My favourite album is Music To Driveby? We Come Strapped? And I like the Pioneers record. Those records are, ya know, that?s me. Changing with the times and sticking with what?s really going on. Those are my favourite records because those are the records where I had the chance to just let loose on.
Ok. Do you think that the N.O.T.R album will ever be released?
Yeah we?re working on that right now.
Ohh ok.
This is all about trying to follow steps, ya know. I just put this label together now. We want to get it some recognition so we?re gonna put out the Veterans Day record and get everybody familiar with West music. Get it crackin?. We got a lot of shit lined up. Me and Chill is doing a record together called I.C.M.P. We got a group record with about 10 n*ggaz called Gang-Unit. We got the C.F.W record, we got the N.O.T.R record, Chill?s got a record? So you know we?re doing a lot of stuff. We?re trying to keep that Comptons Most Wanted foundation going.
Yeah cuz a lot of people have been waiting for that Chill record?
Right.
What happened between you and Hoo Bangin Records?
Well basically? Hoo Bangin was a brand new label and Mack 10 would have his own career and do his own thing and then the situation with him and T-Roz getting married and all that? It was a difficult thing to run a label from Atlanta and it?s out here in California? While you?re spending most of your time at home with your wife and your brand new kid. It?s a lot of artists that he had signed to Hoo Bangin? There was me, there was Tecniec, the Comrads, Dru Capone, Children of the Ghetto, CJ Mac? and there were more. There was a lot of artists signed to Hoo Bangin who didn?t have the attention. Nobody got that attention that was needed, because Hoo Bangin was a start-up label. Even though it had the major distribution it just didn?t have the staff and the attention that was needed for these individual artists. The time frame of records wasn?t set up and people was lacking promotion. Lacking publicity. There was no promotional tour set up, no tours, no radio advertising. There was nothing set up, just that simple shit, so a lot of people got frustrated with what was going on. Then when people started complaining, there was basically nobody to complain to. It was Mack 10?s label. You know some cats, like myself sometimes, change number every 2-3 weeks. You can?t get in contact with em. It?s been a month since you talked to em so you don?t know what?s going on or what?s gonna happen? so it got kind of frustrating and it just fell apart.
It could have been a hell of a label.
I mean it could have been a hell of a label but I just think that, you know? First of all if was a start up label and it had to many artists to begin with. It had 8-9 artists signed to a label who hadn?t even put out one record yet. So it was kind of hard to take your resources and what you got from Capitol and try to split it between that many artists. If you had 2 or 3 artists you could?ve split it properly? but when you?ve got 8 groups and you?re trying to rash the money between 8 groups it?s not gonna work out. It was a nice idea but it just didn?t work.
Ok. Are you cool with Mack 10 now?
I haven?t talked to Mack 10 but there ain?t no hard feelings. Everything?s straight.
Ok. What happened to you signing to No Limit Records?
Well basically I had made the decision and then I sat down to talk to Mack 10 and he knew I was getting ready to sign with No Limit because they were basically both distributed through Priority, so word of mouth leaked that I was gonna sign to No Limit. With Snoop signing to No Limit there was a situation there that happened? So I guess Mack 10 felt that he wanted to have somebody significant for his label? Because at the time, everybody on the label were newcomers? besides CJ Mac. I guess by signing MC Eiht, that would give the label a lil more foundation and something to really start off with. I basically signed with Hoo Bangin instead of No Limit because? you know Mack 10 was trying to convince me? you know ?No Limit has a different sound than your sound. You have a West coast sound. They have a down south sound. All your music is gonna sound like you from the south, just like Snoops album. To make that transmission might kill your fans or whatever?, so you know I have to think about my fans cuz they always listened to and appreciated some Eiht. I had to stick to my formath and I decided to go with my intuition and sign with Hoo Bangin.
Ok cool. What?s the name of the label you got now?
The label now is my own label called West Music. It?s just basically me trying to bring West Coast music back to the forefront. Instead of having everybody do our music, why not have a pioneer for West coast music represent West coast music. It was just a natural choice for me to call the label West Music and to try to signify our sound by releasing West coast artists. Not to discriminate against the South or the East coast or nobody, but nobody is representing true West Coast music. We?ve got a few labels on the West coast. Snoop?s got his label and Suge?s got Death Row? and there?s Ruthless and a few other independent labels or whatever but nobody?s getting the avenues because everybody knows with Suge and them? and Ruthless hasn?t released a record whoknowswhen. And Snoop signed to the Neptunes and all that?
Haha.
Nobody?s representing West Coast music.
What do you think about Snoop signing wi?
I think that?s pretty fucked up. I think it?s fucked up that West coast artists has to follow other trends to try to get heard because I don?t know if they?re afraid to try to do what they?re known for cuz they might be blackballed? but it?s kind of flagrant because you got East coast artists trying to do what we do. They wear bandanas. They talk about they certified gangstas. How they take shots, how they pop shots. How they set up on the block. Bullet proof vests and tattoos? Dippin? 64s and all that? But that?s US. We afraid to do that. We rap about all other type of shit? Like the Westside Connection record disappointed me because I thought?. I was ready to hear some straight West Coast? And the album was basically a party record. There?s a few songs on there, but some other songs I couldn?t get with because? This is not westcoast sound. From the first Westside Connection record where they was like ?Fuck the east coast? or ?Fuck the magazines? and ?Gangstas make the world go around?? It went from that to? You know? ?Get ignite? and ?So many rappers in love? and songs like that. From songs like ?Bow Down? and ?The gangsta the killa and the dope dealer?. It?s just a transmission. And Snoop went from ?Gin n Juice? and ?Murder was the case? and shit like that to ?Drop it like it?s hot? and ?Beautiful? and shit like that. They gotta do what they gotta do to eat, but you know? I?ve never been one to say fuck it. Sell out for what the next man is doing? cuz I wanna be rich. I?mma be like that. Hustle and do my thang. Like they force feed that shit on you, I?mma force feed this true west coast gangsta on you. Cuz n*ggaz wanna hear that. They can?t tell me that. If they can listen to other people do what we originated, then they gonna listen to us who originated it. But we have to represent it true. If we ain?t ready to do that then we?re fallin into that hole and can?t climb up, while they?re on top representing what we do. While we?re in the hole blinded by the chains and the fancy cars, they?re on top wearing bullet proof vests, having tattoos and having rags hang out they pockets. That?s what made me come with this record. I was like ?Hey I?mma address that. I?ve got to address all this shit that?s going on.?
Ok so that?s why you decided to do an other album?
Yeah definitely. I was just kickin? back doin? my thing but when I start seeing all this shit? Everybody wearing pink and shit. One day you wanna wear pink and one day you wanna gang bang with a bullet proof vest like ?we from the hood. What?s up blood, what?s up cuz?. I?m like holey shit. Back in the days when I was doing that, I couldn?t get a song on the radio. I couldn?t get a video played because they got banned. I had senators and congressmen and presidential candidates with my name all up in the paper talkin? about ?don?t buy MC Eiht records?. And now, hey, it?s all on MTV like it?s open season. It?s crazy how shit transmissions and shit. Let me show em where it came from. Let me show em who originated it. If the n*ggaz who got the power are scared to do it, let an underground hero do it and make some noise. That?s how 50 made his name. An underground hero. He said ?I?mma bite the trend from these n*ggaz out in L.A. Represent what they?re doing. I?m ready to twist this New York game?. He fooled everybody.
Do you think anything can the pop rap coming out right now? I mean ofcourse there?s real hiphop coming out right now but most of it doesn?t get to the mainstream media? Like an album I?d say is pop will sell 10 million and an other album that I like much better will sell 10 000 if they?re lucky.
That?s the masses, man. It?s the mass appeal of? If you on Interscope and Aftermath working with a hundred million, you can force feed the public and get them to do whatever you want them to do.
Do you think that?ll change?
I don?t think it?ll change because people are corrupt these days. It?s the way of the dollar? I mean it could change if everybody would stand up and start petitions in the way shit is happening on the radio and on the videos, and in these high price magazines and shit. You?ve got to spend money and understand about promotion, but it?s conspiracy when you got a record that?s 10 times better than n*ggaz that get played 50 times a day on the radio. I mean? I won?t say fuck no n*gga unless I got true beef, but you can?t tell me that mothafuckas wanna ride around and listen to drop down and get yo eagle on girl all day on the radio. You can?t tell me that!
Hahaha.
And I don?t dislike Nelly. I watch BET Uncut every night. I appreciate a n*gga who can come out from just nowhere and sell 12 million records but it?s just some songs you don?t do! Nelly: It?s just some songs you don?t do? But in this day and age of the all mighty dollar when you done sold 12 million records on Universal and THEY wanna put out ?Drop dead and get yo eagle on? you finna watch that. You finna hear it. Back in the days of my day, let em walk in there with that record, DJs would go ?No Way!? ?No way. C?mon?. That?s a straight club song? straight club. I don?t play club songs in my car. It?s a difference of settings. When I?m in my house I don?t play songs that I play in my car. When I?m in my car I play ?Bomp bomp n*gga what?. When I?m in the club I can listen to ?Drop down and get yo eagle on? and club songs and shit like that. I can?t bump certain songs in my car tho. That?s what payola does to us nowdays. That?s what paying the radio stations 250 000 dollars get you, because you walk in there with that check and they play your song a hundred times a day. We?re gonna have to accept ?Drop down and get yo eagle on?. We?re gonna have to accept songs that you on a typical day would go like ?Why is this shit on the radio?? We have to be subject to that because we as a people don?t have a voice no more. Oh they say we can call in and request shit, but c?mon. Let a hundred people call in and request MC Eiht ?You know why?. They?re not gonna play it. They?re gonna play it once and then call me and go like ?Now what you wanna do? How much you wanna spend to take it to the next level??. C?mon! If people request it, play it mothafucka. Don?t tell me how much I gotta pay you to start playing it when you?ve got public opinion telling you they wanna hear a record. So I don?t think the music business will ever change unless they make a law that you can?t pay them to get yo shit played. It would have to be vote or request it and that?s it.
Yeah it seems like?
Why do I have to hear the same shit every day? You got plenty of records from millions of people that deals with you listeners. Why do I have to hear the same shit 50 times a day? Why can?t I hear a different song? It might be a song from Bojoe or the homie around the block or somebody from up north, or somebody from Canada who?s doing the same things I do. They ain?t cussin on no records, they ain?t killing nobody. They?re sticking to the foremath. Why can?t I hear their records? Their records are probably just as good as a Cam?ron or a Snoops or mothafuckin Eihts. Ya know? Why can?t I have that choise? Why must I be forced to hear Jay-Z every minute? Why must I be forced to hear 50 Cent every fucking minute? That?s what happens with the corporate world and the dollar. I mean I might play a Jay-Z song or a 50 Cent song just like the rest of everybody, but I?m not gonna play that fuckin shit every fucking day 10 times a day. I?mma listen to the CD once, pick out a couple of songs and play em every now and then. I finna play some old school shit. I finna play some new shit. Some shit a n*gga handed me when walking through the mall. Some shit I got outta town at a convention. I?m playing everything. I?m not just saying ?fuck that. I?mma discriminate those n*ggaz and put these n*ggaz in my CD?. How are you gonna be truly a n*gga for the real if you?re not acceptable to all kinds of shit? If you just wanna program that shit? and that?s what they?re doing. Programming us to listen to one tupe of music. So unless the money don?t stop controlling it, it?ll never stop.
Yeah that would probably be a good idea to try to stop that?
There is always ways for n*ggaz like me to be heard. When n*ggaz like me put out records and mothafuckas wanna know why they ain?t on the radio, they?re gonna be intrigued. ?That n*gga spit some gangsta shit. He spit that real shit. We need to listen and be upon that and hear what?s going on so that I?m not a mothafucka to get lost in the fake world?.
Ok. These things you?re talking about right now are things that you talk about on the album, right?
Definitely.
And you got Chill on there.
Right.
And that?s the only guest? Did you not bring on too many guests on purpose?
Yeah. I didn?t wanna run out and start calling? Especially when you?re doing your own project on your own start-up label. I ain?t finna pay n*ggaz no million dollars to do no 16 bars with me. I can hang on 16 bars my damn self. I?ve never felt like I needed other mothafuckas to come back me up. So I say fuck it. Me and Chill got together, he got the beats, I listened to his tracks? Him knowing my flavour cuz we always worked together, knowing how I spit, knowing how I get down. It was just so easy so why spend time trying to call in favours from n*ggaz. Respect to the homies in the game and that I respect but why waist time and get a project together when I can get down like that and get an other one and an other one done. I can hold my own on the mic and I always have.
Yeah.
I wanted the record to reflect true west coast. I don?t want the record to reflect like I?m trying to squeeze into everybody?s little circle, cuz I?ve been there. I been to Florida, I been to New York, I been to Kentucky? I?ve been everywhere up in this mothafucka. Overseas and back. I?ve been in everybodys camp and everybody accept MC Eiht. From New York to Tokyo to Germany to L.A. I ain?t on that ?well let?s do a song with Trick Daddy so that n*ggaz accept me in Florida. Let?s go do a song with Ludacris so n*ggaz respect me in Atlanta?. I been had that. So I feel like that in this day and age I wanna show mothafuckas that I can still stand on my own two feet. I don?t need a gang of people to lean on. That?ll come in time, ya know what I?m saying? I did an underground project before Veterans Day that I had a gang of n*ggaz on. Game, Daz, Young Buck, RBX? It?s an independent project called Smokin? This City. But for my shit I don?t need that. I can stand up and show people that true rappers can stand on their own. I ain?t the best mothafucka whatever whatever but a n*gga can hang with what n*ggaz is spittin nowdays. C?mon. The shit people are spitting these days give you a headache.
Do you think there?s any new young rappers that can match the old school from the early 90?s and that era?
I don?t see it. I mean the young rappers, the ?hood rappers? or the ?gangsta rappers? or the ?hophopers? or whatever, it?s they age. It?s for the teeny boppers, ya know? They don?t know what they liked in my era. I was making records when I was 16-17. Some of these kids wasn?t even borne when I put out my first album? But their parents know. People 40 and 50 years old know about me. I reach them people, and them the youngsters? they look at it as a whole new aspect. ?Oh who is this representing L.A. and Compton?? They hear about Game and they hear about Guerilla Black, but the good thing about it is their moms and their dads and their uncles and aunties got the Menace 2 Society DVD and it?s on TV and movies like Thicker than Wather and shit like that? It associates the new public with who MC Eiht is. So the new rappers today? their flow is kind of different from what we do. The old cats pick up on what?s going on. We can hang with these new n*ggaz. The Julez Santanas, Lloyd Banks and Fabolous and all these new cats. Put them up any day against a Eiht or a LL, Ice T or Scarface. It won?t work.
You mentioned before that Chill produced on the album. Did he produce all the songs on it?
Chill produced the majority of the songs and I co-produced like two of them. My man from the South Central Cartel, Prodigy, produced one. So basically it was like a two man project. Day in and day out. Me and Chill in the studio.
Ok. A lot of albums have different producers on all the songs so one song is completely different from the next song, and it sounds like a compilation or something instead of a solo album?
Right. I didn?t want my album to go out like that. I wanted my album to follow a steady pattern. A trail. If you listen to the whole album it?s all coming together. Like a cake. All the ingredients fit. I didn?t want my record to be a run-off record like one song is about something and then the next song jump into something completely different. Every song follows a pattern weather it?s up tempo or mellowed out or even hard core. It?s all following that story line.
Yeah. I guess that?s how you make an album a classic album?
Definitely. Albums that have a sense and a meaning and you can always relate to it. You can pick it up 5 years from now and put it in and be like ?Yeah?. I can still play songs off of Music To Driveby or We Come Strapped. People still be like ?Damn where can I get that record at?? That?s how you know that those were classic records. When people don?t talk about your records 3 or 4 years from now, that?s when you know the record was just at the time.
Yeah? There was a rumour about you doing a track with DJ Quik recently. Is there any truth in that?
Me and Quik has squashed our beef and we was supposed to do something. He was working on some projects and I agreed to get on the project. I actually got on the project but I never knew what happened to it. He did the song and the hook and I did a verse on there. Mausberg did a verse on there. I don?t know what happened to the song, but you know how lost tapes shit come up after a while so maybe it?ll re-surface after a couple of years. Who knows.
Nowdays you hear about faked beefs? I guess they?re saying that Jay-Z and Nas faked their beef for publicity and all that? How serious was your beef with DJ Quik?
That was real street beef. N*ggaz being gangbangers and coming from two different neighbourhoods. He was a blood and I was a crip so there you have it right there. When you coming from the West Coast? n*ggaz know gang banging over here wasn?t no gimmick. That was real. Shit they made movies about. That right there has more significance than the rap itself. It was just being from two different sets. Both being from the city of Compton but him being from a blood neighbourhood and me being from a crip neighbourhood? so that just fuelled the fire right there. It wasn?t really about no rap. It was him trying to establish himself as a rapper representing bloods and me a rapper representing crips. That?s what it was really about.
How did you squash the beef?
Basically just a lot of shit was going on. A lot of beefs? a lot of shoot outs. People was getting shot at in Compton over the 2pac and Biggie shit. Us being in Compton from Compton, n*ggaz get caught up in that transmission. 2pac and Biggie had beef. N*ggaz was dropping. Me and Quik got beef so n*ggaz gonna drop. N*ggaz fighting at clubs and shit. Stare-downs on the streets and shit like that. So it was a lot of shit involved. A lot of innocent people could?ve lost their lives behind this shit so we felt like fuck it we should squash this before we gotta go to the homies funerals and this turn into some life-long shit. N*ggaz be shooting at eachother for life like the Hatfields and McCoys. So we felt like fuck it let?s squash it. We both got kids and we don?t want homies to be involved. It was just a man thing.
Do you think that whole beef was good or bad for you as an artist? For the music?
For the music part of it, it was good. You always need competition. You always need to look over your shoulder and see the next n*gga creeping up trying to take your spot, and it?s always good for somebody to come out and represent where they?re from? But if you a man that?s how it needs to get down. If n*ggaz need to fight it up then let?s scrap. I think it?s good for the fans because controversy sells? People like that shit. They feed off of that shit. That?s why Jerry Springer is on TV every day and Divorce court and shit like that. People like controversy. So why not fuel off of that shit, but you have to be able to get the water on the fire when it start getting out of control. You have to be able to let people know you ain?t gonna take it to the next level and shoot up your mamas house or kidnap his kids or shit like that. You have to let em know that they got their beef or disagreement and shit and they might take it to a fist fight, but that?s where you stop it.
You?re touching on some New York rappers on your album and you talked a little bit about it before? I don?t remember really?
I?ve been going to New York since 1990. I used to hang out with Nas and Gangstarr? Guru, Busta Rhymes and a lot of cats in New York. I?ve been all over New York. Never once did I see blood killa on the wall or crip killa on no wall. Never did I see anybody wear blue or red rags. Really, they used to laugh at us because they thought it was funny that we was banging over colours. I used to have discussions about this. Ya know ?ya?ll made the movie colours? because they thought that?s all there was. I was tryin to tell n*ggaz that it?s more than just colours. Colours is just what symbolizes where you?re from. It?s not about the colours. It?s about the politics of the neighbourhood and going way back? who killed who over what and how that shit started. People are trying to protect their neighbourhood from other people coming in and just robbing and stealing and all that shit. That?s what it?s about.
Ok.
Because the police ain?t gonna do it. The police ain?t gonna sit there every day trying to protect n*ggaz from driving through trying to shoot up and car jack and shit like that. They?re only gonna come after the aftermath, so that?s how that shit was started. People trying to protect their neighbourhood and trying to come together because shit was going on. It was a way tor people to come together and associate. It wasn?t about ?Oh we like red so we gonna kill. We like blue so we gonna kill?? so them n*ggaz thought it was funny but it?s open season right now. And out of all places: New York. Not Compton, not Tenessee, not mothafuckin? Texas. It?s in New York of all places. The place where they swore that they would never do anything like that. Now you got n*ggaz claiming blood. You got rappers? Cam?ron and the Diplomats all on TV throwing up red rags doing B signs talking about how they certified gangstas. Cam?ron was rapping about pussy and booty and with Mase. He wasn?t gang banging. The Diplomats weren?t even thought of back then. Nowdays they come to Compton and get with Game because he?s supposed to be the new n*gga from Compton and he represents the blood? So now they come to Compton and remake my n*ggaz songs and talk about how they certified gangstas throwing up blood signs. That is a disgrace and to my homies who are true bloods, that?s a disgrace. To bloods who have lost their lives over this shit, that is a disgrace. Ya?ll didn?t start gangbangning until you heard N.W.A and Eazy and started watching TV? Or a n*gga who got on a plane getting out the pen and couldn?t come back to LA so he moved to ya?ll neighbourhood and starts wearing red saying he a blood. Next thing you know, ya?ll wanna copycat. And then for ya?ll to get on TV and say ya?ll are real with it? Ya?ll need to be ashamed.
Ok?
I?ve got to address shit like that. I don?t give a fuck what nobody say. If n*ggaz wanna say I?m dissing them then whatever. If you wearing a red rag and your leader?s wearing a pink rag? that?s not gangster. I don?t care what kind of trend ya?ll trying to set. N*ggaz over here don?t wear pink rags and say they gangsta. You don?t see me step up in no mothafuckin? fashion show in no pink bandana and pink chaki suit. N*ggaz would look at me like I?m a fool. I mean you?ve got to be real about what you?re real about. He can be a gangsta and make a fashion statement for the females if that?s what you?re doing, but wearing pink ain?t no fashion statement and then your homies are saying ya?ll are certified gangstas and bloods? So you know there?s a lot of fakers in the game and that gangbanging shit and what they?re doing is just killing me. Don?t be fake. Ya?ll hard n*ggaz. Slice somebody up with a razor in yo mouth up in the club. Buck wild project ass n*ggaz. I know real New York n*ggaz. That ain?t it. So that?s what my record is about. My record is about being real and not being fake. If you wanna hear gangsta shit and shit about the streets, let a veteran do it. That?s why I named it Veterans Day. Let a real veteran stand up and show you how it?s done instead of trying to let everybody mimic what?s been done. I represent bloods AND crips on the album. If you look at the album cover it?s got skeletons and blue AND red rags on they heard. It?s not just about being a crip. It?s about being a real gangsta from where it?s originated. It?s originated in LA. South Central L.A. California. Don?t get it twisted.
Ok. You mentioned a few albums that you?re working on? Can you tell us a little bit about that and your other plans for the future?
I started doing a few albums and I?ll release a couple of projects? Just work my angles in the music business and trying to go help a couple of other brothers who?s struggeling? Who?s got labels and trying to get their foot in the door. Maybe open up a few record stores where they got recording booths in em so that people who ain?t got that much money can come in and choose a little beat and let em record. Just trying to keep my head stuck in the rap world. God gave me the talent to do it so I?m gonna share that with people who?s really following the footsteps of what n*ggaz like Eazy and Tupac tried to represent for the West Coast. Not to be prejudice against other music but just try to kepe West music going cuz ain?t nobody gonna do it better than we do it so I gotta keep that legacy going.
Ok cool. And help out the ones that doesn?t have the money to record themselves and all that?
Definitely. Gotta do that.
Cool. Are you planning on dropping any more solo albums after this one?
I?mma do an other solo album and probably drop it around march next year. I ain?t gonna stop doing records until somebody?s telling me I shouldn?t record no more. When people say ?Ok Eiht you?ve done enough? and I get some kind of pioneer award, you know lifetime hiphop award, then maybe I?ll resign. Until then, people don?t recognize and they ain?t recognize yet so I got to put it in their face so they recognize. It ain?t about getting no 20 million contract or living in a big mansion. It?s about people recognizing that this n*gga?s been doing records since 1988 and he put out a record every year and stuck to his class and never fell off? And he?s been able to have a long relation with the fans. That?s what people need to recognize and they ain?t recognized that yet so I gotta keep putting it in their face.
Ok. And Veterans day was released last Tuesday, right?
Yeah. September 28th. It?s in the stores and hot off the presses so everybody need to get that and see what true West Coast music is about.
Yeah I heard the advance album?
Yeah so you know. It?s true West Coast.
Yeah.
It ain?t no flocculation from no other. It ain?t appealing to the females, the radio or nothing. It?s true West Coast in yo face and if you like that kind of music, hard core, raw, banging beats? Rhymes that you can hear a n*gga pronounce and word play and you can get a feel of what the n*gga?s saying, Veterans Day is your ticket.
WORD ASSOCIATION:
The Game
The rapper?
Yeah.
New comer? He?s allright. Skills is allright. I think he could do a little better with the word play? He has a lot of punch lines which is cool? Acceptable.
Yukmouth
Cool homie. Real gutter n*gga. Real about his business. Real street n*gga. I had the pleasure of working with Yukmouth. Real n*gga.
Did you hear about the beef between The Game and Yukmouth?
Nah I ain?t heard about that yet but that?s good. I like that.
Ok. It just started a few days back.
I like that.
Next word is DJ Slip.
Icon. Legendary DJ. Westcoast. First DJ and promoter to bring Eric B and Rakim to the West Coast. L.A sound control mob. He used to provide all the sounds for the big concerts, for the convention centres and sports arenas. DJ Slip is a legendary DJ and producer slash entertainer. Just Icon.
Ok. He?s got his label IV Life records now and people wanna know if you?re gonna work with them.
I?ve heard a little about IV Life records and their stuff but I hvaen?t really been focusing on it. I know Slip?s been working with them extensively but me and Slip just hooked back up. I?ve got a few tracks from Slip for my next project so me and Slip are trying to come back together and work on some stuff. So basically everything is hooking up. IV Life Records I don?t know too much about so I would say new? needs more exposure.
Ok. Next word is DJ Premier.
Classic. Lifetime friend. Lifetime homie. Mastermind with the tracks. Premier is just gifted. Gifted producer and a mastermind when it come to the tracks.
Cam?ron
Commercial.
Scarface
An other legendary icon. True gangsta n*gga. True word man. I?ve been knowing Scarface all my career. True friend and businessman. About his business and about his paper. True hustler. Scarface.
Cool. How about Eminem? Or the Eminem racist tapes?
Oh when he called them black girl bitches? Sometimes black girls is bitches. Some times white girls is bitches. Period. I don?t know what his situation was. They?re saying that a black girl he dated dumped him or whatever so he was hurt? but I don?t know. I think it?s kinda fucked up that that was his direction back then but everybody?s got skeletons. Eminem I would just have to say, you know, watch out what you say about shit because shit always come back to haunt us. So be real.
Ok. What do you think about him as a rapper tho?
As a rapper? I think he?s crafty. I think he?s gifted when it comes to putting words together. I don?t really view Eminem as a rapper since he?s dealing with so many different subjects as far as? I mean how can you look at him as a rapper when he performed with Elton John. I look at Eminem as an entertainer. I put Eminem in the category as like a Hammer or Will Smith. Fresh Prince. Just an entertainer. He had his problems? Young white kid, trailer park and all that shit but everybody got problems. He?s got a crafty wordplay tho you know. He?s a n*gga like Nas. Nas is so gifted with his wordplay and how he can put shit together and get that pointed to your brain. That?s Eminem.
Ok. What about The Source Magazine?
I?m 50/50. That?s all I?ve got to say about The Source. 50/50.
Ok. 2pac.
Classic. Legendary. Political. A rebel. A gangster. Humanitarian. Homie. Father. Just everything? 2pac was everything.
Yea he was gonna be in Menace 2 Society too right? And he beat up the directors or something?
He was on the set. I had the pleasure of doing a couple of shows with 2pac and working with 2pac in the studio. He was a guifted person. He was advanced for his time. That?s what I?ll say: Advanced.
Next word is MC Ren.
MC Ren is a pioneer. True Compton pioneer. Started this with Eazy E. I look at him as a legend. Famous group N.W.A. I just think that he needs to come back to the game and, like me, show these young n?ggaz what true gangsta rap is about and how we really did it. So to Ren I say: Come back.
Ok. The last word is yourself, MC Eiht.
Legendary. Representer. Underground hero. For the people. For the streets. For the underdog. The robin hood for the hood n*ggaz. So that?s MC Eiht: Underground hero.
Is there anything else you?d like to say before we wrap it up?
Pick up that true west coast record. Everybody will be able to enjoy it. Give me your feedback. Veterans day, go pick it up.
Do you have a website?
Umm? Yeah.
www.nativerecords.com.
Ok cool so people can check that out too.
Definitely.
Ok thanks a lot for the interview, man.
Thank you. Stay up.
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Krummer Hund
Dance With The Devil
Anmeldungsdatum: 02.06.2003
Beiträge: 3435
ach ja...meiner meinung nach liegt 8 da schon ganz richtig...
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) eigentlich soll ..aber Ich bin zu faul das jetzt alles wieder aufzurollen ..hab' Ich schon zu oft und jetzt bin ich mir zu schade dafür.Verkürzt gesagt ist's die Reflexion von Dingen die diejenigen geseh'n oder getan haben (ich red' von ernstzunehmenden Rappern).Eiht hat vielleicht noch nie jemanden erschossen aber er ist in einer Gegend aufgewachsen wo sowas an der Tagesordnung war und das verarbeitet er halt in seinen Texten ..ich bestreite aber nich' das's auch genug "Fake Snakes" gibt,aber nur weil's diejenigen gibt kann man nich' über alle urteilen das das alles nur Image sei.
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