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Dubcnn Exclusive – LikeBlood
By: Jonathan Hay
www.myspace.com/jonathanhay ..........................................................................................

Dubcnn: Your single “Money Over Here” featuring Bobby Valentino is your album’s first single and is already on its way to becoming an airwave smash hit with support from MTV Jams and many other places; how did this song come about and what is the meaning behind it?

[Dre Strong] This record is the first single off our upcoming album, “#DaBiness,” dropping in May. It’s a “grind and get money” anthem; going through a recession isn’t just about saving or being broke, it’s also about appreciating the times -- maybe only a few times (laughs) -- when you can ball. That’s what the song it about, in a way.

[Mbea Da 1] We’re motivating people to grind hard and get money and we want people to feel like they can relate and participate with it.


Dubcnn: What was it like working with Bobby Valentino in the studio?  

[Yung E] It was cool. He is really laid back. And when he came up to the video shoot, it was crazy. There were a lot of ladies there (laughs). He tweeted that he had too much fun at the shoot.  


Dubcnn: You just came off a tour with Raekwon for Only Built 4 Cuban Linx… Pt. II in which you served as his opening act; tell us about that experience…

[Dre Strong] It was crazy for our first tour to be for a Wu-Tang fan base. They have a tough crowd – real hardcore hip-hop fans. They were there throwing up the “W” ready for Wu-Tang but we went out on stage and they listened to us and threw up an “L” with us and showed us so much love. They showed us that we could rock those crowds.

[Yung E] Doing the tour was like an artist boot camp. We did the House of Blues in LA, the Fillmore in New York, the 9:30 Club in D.C., a ton of venues all over the country, back to back. You learn a lot about performing and bringing your A-game every time because it happens so fast and you just develop.

[Mbea Da 1] Rae [kwon] showed us a lot of love. He would check out our set, give us advice, just support our movement and embrace us as artists. Support coming from a legend like that inspires you.  


Dubcnn: What was your favorite memory from being on the road?

[Dre Strong] I would say the best moment was when we rocked the House of Blues. The whole shit was crazy. We had our own dressing room. It had all these signatures all over the walls of people that had been there before. Wood [Harris] stopped through to chill with us. Raekwon came through. It was just crazy to perform at such a historic venue.


Dubcnn: What are your personal thoughts on the album “Only Built 4 Cuban Linx Pt. II”?

[Yung E] I personally think “Cuban Linx 1” is undeniably a classic. However, I think “Cuban Linx 2” is a better album. I said that to Rae [kwon] when we were at a strip club in Cincinnati while we were touring, and he agreed with me. He said lyrically he smashed the first one (laughs).


Dubcnn: You performed at the House of Blues in L.A. What was that experience like, especially considering all the legends that have performed there in the past? What thoughts were going through your mind as you stepped onto the stage?

[Dre Strong] Bob Marley, Etta James, James Brown -- so many big artists. The fact that this is the last place Tupac performed, and now we are about to rock that same stage. It was dope. I saw Phil Collins’ picture up there. Sade. The list goes on.


Dubcnn: You’ve also opened for Drake, Nicki Minaj, LaToya Luckett, Rich Girl, New Boyz, Lil Scrappy and Bun B. What's the best live show experience you've had to-date and why?

[Dre Strong] The best live show we ever had was back in 2007 when we did a show with Lil Scrappy. We had just put out our first EP under Soblu, “Came From Nothin”, and we were doin’ the release party. The energy was crazy. It was packed. People were jumpin’ off the walls. We had the show start with this skit from “Kings of New York” and then we came out individually. The whole thing just went down real smooth and it felt like we came out of there with a stronger fan base.


Dubcnn: You were featured in Hip-Hop weekly and URB Magazine’s “Next 1000 to Blow” and also had the #2 most added urban record. What was the grind like on the way up? What personal sacrifices have you each had to make in order to achieve this kind of success? 

[Yung E] The success we are having definitely doesn’t come overnight. You have to sacrifice a lot of your time, a lot of money, even relationships. But if you’re going to do it, you have to put everything into it. And all the sacrifices we’ve made are really starting to pay off.


Dubcnn: Yung E - - give us some introspect into your life growing up…

[Yung E] I was born at George Washington Hospital in DC. I lived on 1st and S Street NW in LeDriot Park until my folks divorced. My Pops moved to Shepherd Park in NW and my mom move to Hawaii Ave in NE and I just ended up going back and forth a lot. I traveled around the city a lot because I didn't go to my neighborhood schools. I fell into the street and found there was an easier way to make money rather than the honest way. I would come around the way, dudes would have new cars and fresh clothes, and we were all like fourteen, fifteen years old. I kinda fell into that life. But then it turned into a way to support my passion, which was music. We could get our own studio, started really making music and it took off from there.

I went to Duke Ellington for high school with Dre and Mbea and I did a year at Columbia College of Art in Chicago, for sound recording. But I saw going to school as a setback as far as years I could be putting into music. So I came home and put my all into recording.  


Dubcnn: Dre Strong - - give us some introspect into your life growing up…

[Dre Strong] I call myself the Gypsy because I grew up in so many different areas; moved around a lot, especially within DC. Always traveled a lot, living with my Pops and Moms. I have been acting since I was in the 7th grade. I’ve been to twelve different schools. Didn’t finish college because I got kicked out. I came home after that and didn’t stop grindin’. I started acting in the city and working on music with the group. I’ve moved around a lot and my college company was made up of people from all over the world, so I learned a lot and met a lot of people from everywhere. My whole life was literally the Gypsy life. 


Dubcnn: Mbea Da I - - give us some introspect into your life growing up…

[Mbea Da 1] My life growing up was complicated. My mother died when I was seven so I was raised by my father until I was twelve. Then he went jail and I had to be in foster care. I really learned about the streets just trying to survive, but then I found music and it made me want to be better. I really developed my music when I was fifteen, in high school at Duke Ellington with Dre and E. We were all in school together. My street life eventually led me to prison, but while I was locked up, I changed my perspective on life and really focused in on music and bettering myself. I got my G.E.D and went to college when I was in prison. When I got out, I went right back into music.


Dubcnn: What’s your take on the west coast hip-hop situation right now? 

[Mbea Da 1] I think the West Coast is pulling together. I like Jay Rock, Nipsey Hussle, Glasses Malone. And Snoop is just a continuous presence. I also like The Game, too.

[Yung E] I like the new artists that are coming out and I think they are starting a new generation. It’s really the gangsta rap that is trying to get back from the West Coast because the “jerk” culture -- I guess that's what it’s called -- is more prominent right now. But I feel like Nipsey Hussle and other types of artists like that are bringing the gangsta rap back, and that’s the type of music, me personally, that I want to hear. I like Pac Div too.


Dubcnn: Anyone in particular you’re feeling and/or would aspire to work with on the west coast right now?

[Yung E] All the OG’s – Snoop, Too Short, Ice Cube, Yukmouth, Crooked I, the list goes on. But as far as new artists: Nipsey Hussle and Jay Rock.


Dubcnn: How can fans keep up with Likeblood?

[Yung E] The best way to keep up with us is to follow us on Twitter (@Likeblood). You can also check us out on our website (www.likeblood.com), join our mailing list, or you can find us on Facebook.

[Dre Strong] Also, make sure you check out our videos on youtube.com/likebloodsworld. We have a web series that we are doing in promotion for our album called “#DaBiness TV”. You can catch all the episodes there. Season 2 is us on the Raekwon tour. We are putting out now.

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