New Saigon article from Newsweek's "Who's next 2006"

[UKnowWhatItIs: welcome to my traps....game over]

No thuggery? No misogyny? What kind of rapper is this? Stay tuned.


By Lorraine Ali
Newsweek
Dec. 26, 2005 - Jan 2, 2006 issue - Saigon is hip-hop's great new hope—and one of its most unlikely. He's unimpressed by bling, actually likes women and cringes at the idea of becoming a video thug. "If I hear one more person say 'I'm a hustler,' I think I'm gonna die," says Saigon (a.k.a. Brian Carenard), 28, who adopted his moniker after reading about black soldiers in Vietnam. "There's only so many ways you can rap about killing someone or having a million girlfriends or being a pimp. Boooring."

That doesn't mean he can't hold his own in MC battles with the likes of 50 Cent. (An early mix tape finds him outwitting Mr. 50 two to one.) Saigon's distinctive, documentarylike style and his sharp sense of humor made him an ultrarespected force in the underground rap world. Now he's poised to crack the mainstream, thanks to massive buzz for his major-label debut, "The Greatest Story Never Told" (out in March), and a recurring role as an up-and-coming rapper on HBO's "Entourage." "I can't believe so many people know who I am and I don't even have a single out yet," he says. "But because of 'Entourage,' some of them think I'm an actor who's trying to be a rapper—and we all know there's nothing worse than that."

Saigon was raised in Brooklyn's tough Brownsville neighborhood, joined a gang at 13, and at 15 was charged with two different shootings (everyone survived); he served six years in prison. But though he's well qualified to rap about the realities of thug life, he's not interested. "Why would I want to romanticize something that I know isn't romantic?" Instead he raps about such subjects as deadbeat dads and the hypocrisy of churches he attended, while heavy-duty producers—Kanye West, Just Blaze—back him with the best beats in the business.

Saigon's debut will likely sell millions of copies, and could be the artistic-breakthrough record of 2006. Yet here he is, laughing and cracking jokes. After all, this isn't the worst pressure he's faced. "I used to play prison talent shows," he recalls. "That's the toughest audience ever. They're just looking for a reason to boo you. I always thought, 'If I can make them clap, the rest is gonna be easy'." And he gets to leave the venue after the show.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10510260/site/newsweek/

[$do11a biLL$]

dope, i used to think this guy was fake as hell but now i think he shits on alot of rappers from the east especially

you think his album will actually sell millions though?

[UKnowWhatItIs: welcome to my traps....game over]

I highly doubt he's gonna sell millions,I'd say million at most & gold at minimum.But there's 1 fact everyone knows about this album:Greatest Story Never Told is gonna be classic,even haters can admit that.

[eKardz]

I highly doubt he's gonna sell millions,I'd say million at most & gold at minimum.But there's 1 fact everyone knows about this album:Greatest Story Never Told is gonna be classic,even haters can admit that.

preach