Kokoe (November 2010) | Interview By: Jose Ho-Guanipa

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Interview was conducted in November 2010
 

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Related Media & Links
Kokoe Official Myspace

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Kokoe // Exclusive Video Interview // Dubcnn

Press Play to stream footage (Fast Connections Recommended) 
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Kokoe: Stayin’ alive in the hood ya’ll. Yall already know.

Steve Lobel: Stayin’ alive. He just got shot. And that shirt represents that you gotta stay alive in the hood because everyday people die in the hood. It’s Kokoe, Steve Lobel, A2Z Entertainment, Dubcnn.

Kokoe: like Steve always say, Sean always say, everybody in my crew we all stay humble. And stay righteous all the time. Look out man. In this world, there’s not a lot of friends, every hanging shit, everybody thinkin’ wrong, but you know you just gotta stay positive at the same time.

Dubcnn: What’s up Dubcnn I’m in the studio here with Kokoe.

Kokoe: You already know what it is, keepin’ that Westside alive. Comin’ back from a little accident I had, but I’m still standin’, I’m here, workin’ with the homies Automatiks in the studio, Dubcnn. Just keepin’ all the fans updated on what’s goin’ in. We still workin’ movin’ I’m still here. Thanks to God, I’m on my second life. Y’all gonna have to watch out for me for real now. Y’all really gotta make way because I’m coming for sure. I’m blessed to be here. Shouts out to everybody that’s been workin’ for me from day one, that’s been helpin’ me throughout this career of mine that I been havin’, through these ups and downs. Through the hick and thin, standin’ tall for me, backin’ me up on everything. Dubcnn been there too man, they fuckin’ with me to the fullest. When I got shot they was the first website out here to put ya boy on blast, sendin’ me prayers, so that’s my respect to all of y’all out there. What else can I say, we workin’, being productive, stayin’ away from all that negativity. It’s kokoe stayin’ humble all day long. Keep that right, west la, much love for all of ya’ll keepin’ LA live. West West we gon’ keep pushin’ that, Royal Block, A2Z Entertainment. That’s what we fuckin’ with, that’s all we fuckin’ with. That’s basically what’s going on with me. Y’all just gotta look out for the hot mixtape that I’m bout to have. Y’all gonna love who’s gonna be putting that out. There’s a lot of shit cookin’ right now, we Buzzin’ like Mann. That’s how we doin' it right now.

Dubcnn: Can you tell us a little bit about that situation that just happened and how you dealt with it and what went through your mind?

Kokoe: I’m not takin’ it lightly. I’m from the hood and shit. One day somehow I knew it was going to come back to me eventually, just being on my circumstances, I’m out here, I’m bangin’ tough for the hood. I’m still stayin’ relevant sometimes I gotta stay lo pro because of my music situation, but I have a life to live outside of the booth. I’m out there in the hood, I just didn’t keep my guard on. When you out in the hood you always gotta keep your guard on. This year’s been so good to me, low key, and everything’s been going so good. It’s just that particular. Now I’m feelin’ better that I’m still here. but it still plays with your mind, I would’ve lost everything I had al my music would’ve been a wrap because of course you can’t rap no more. I would’ve been pretty hot if I would not be here but since I’m still here I get the opportunity to tell everybody Don’t let anybody fuck with your dream. Don’t let anything stop you from whatever. Being shot didn’t stop me at all. I’m still movin’ I’m still doing my thing. I’m blessed to be here. Now it’s time to really take it seriously. I was takin’ it seriously, but at the time I had something else to take seriously, that’ was the street. So now I’m takin’ one thing seriously at a time. I’m stickin’ to the music. Let y’all know I’m still bangin’ for the hood and everything’s still good. But I gotta do me, I gotta invest in my life, for my people, for my mom, for my dad, for my brothers, my sisters. Just keeping;’ it righteous, I’m still here, thank God.

Dubcnn: So tell us about your background and how you ended up here doing this music shit.

Kokoe: Well you know I’m Latin, my background – mom’s from Mexico, you know they all from that side. Me personally I was born here, in West LA, right on Kaiser, off the corner. Where the hood is at, Los Angeles California, 90034. 310 the area code. That’s where I was raised at, where I was brought up, where I lived at. Didn’t move around to different cities. And recently a couple years back I just touched down at South Central and seen how shit was out there. Me I’m from West LA 10 interstate. Y’all know how we do it, keepin’ it real good, everybody form West LA stand up represent.

Dubcnn: What kind of music are you coming with? You got the Latino style. Not a lot of artists are putting it down for that population, so tell us about that.

Kokoe: A lot of people ain’t puttin’ it down, but the scene is crowded with a lot of people that don’t got that whole swag and they detail sis fucked up. Me personally, I come from a rare breed, my instincts to all this shit goin’ on with all these people not puttin’ it down. I don’t feel like they speakin’ they mind, their swag or they attitude is not really theirs. Me personally, I came from a neighborhood where it was only blacks and Mexicans. And around the way I was meeting a lot of people professionally wise that put me on my game. Off that I just learned from all different cultures, not just one. That’s what makes me different and special from a lot of artists that come out today, because as you can tell if you look through everything, there’s a lot of Mexican rappers, but there’s not a rapper that has surfaced as much as maybe big pun, to hit mainstream and do commercial music, radio music, hood music and the hood still love you and they don’t give a fuck that you rappin’ about girls because you getting’ your money. In my situation right now I’m in a blessed situation right now to make music for everybody. Even the kids, the kids love Kokoe, everybody love me. Ain’t nobody hatin’ on me. You got haters sometimes in this world that you gotta live with. But we makin’ music for everybody, for the UK, the USA, California, wherever you at, no matter where you at you gonna love this music. It introduces something new to the game. And we representing La Raza the right way. So support it, Latinos, even if you don’t listen to English music you gotta pick up my shit. It’s gonna make us better in this world. Together we ball, and together we shall fall.

Dubcnn: So you’re in the studio working on some stuff. Tell us what you got going on.

Kokoe: Shit we on this record, “Still Standin’” produced by the Automatics. Introduce y’all self, let ‘em know what’s going on.

Sam: It’s Sam & Alex, Space Camp Music, 2011, with my man Kokoe.

Kokoe: They in here with Kokoe, choppin’ it up. They all in the background but trust me they put in as much work as the artist does. Without them there’s no music chopped up so y’all gotta understand y’all gotta give lots of shouts outs to these guys. Y’all know where y’all can get checked out, before we wrap this up?

Alex: pmpworldwide.com check out the Automatiks.

Kokoe: y’all stay tuned, check me out on myspace.com/westwestent on a-2-zentertainment .com. Also on Facebook. Just type in that Kokoe, and everything will come up. Y’all just stay tuned and focused with everything we doing. Thank you to all the fans that been standing there and supporting me. Everybody from black yellow white, it don’t matter what you are, I appreciate y’all just standin’ tall for me, and that’s why I’m doin’ for y’all. I’m still standing, Dubcnn.

Dubcnn: Can you tell us about the track that you’re doing today?

Kokoe: This track came from the Automatiks, to me being through this situation. I can’t say I’ve been through it all, but at the age that I am, I’ve experienced a whole lot of bullshit. Some of bullshit’s good sometimes and some of the bullshit’s just bullshit. This song came out of my life to all the shit that I’ve put into this rap game, this music, to this whole situation that I’m in right now. I’m trying to make this track as much relevant as everything that I’m going through right now, everything that I’ve been through and that I’m about to go through. As being in the future as how that tax bracket is going to be real big with it and the situation that I’m in is gonna make me a superstar. This is where this song stands, me being shot, me staying alive, me still in the hood, me still grindin’, me still survivin’ still breathin’, still takin’ still movin’, all that good shit. That’s what this shit stand for. And to better my life and make me a better man, because I’m gonna evolve form what I was to what I am. I’m not gonna change I’m just gonna change in a way that y’all not gonna like it, ‘cause y’all not gonna like it ‘cause y’all know y’all hate to see me do my thing. And I’m gonna keep makin’ hits with people like this that got the production. We on some HD type of situation so y’all step y’all game up those 808s the drum shits, ‘all step all game up, the producers step y’all game up, just like artists gotta step they game up on the Westside. Everybody gotta keep on showin’ ‘em how. So keep doing this shit. That’s why this song is “I Still Stand”. To all my fans, thanks for supporting me. Shouts out to the Automatiks for hookin’ it up.