02/06/06: Dope New Interview With Aftermath's Busta Rhymes

[Rebel]

Artist: Busta Rhymes
Interviewer: Alexander Fruchter

It’s been quite some time since Busta Rhymes first “busted” onto the Hip Hop scene. His appearance on A Tribe Called Quest’s “Scenario” record is a standout verse on a standout track. It was definitely a sign of things to come. His delivery style, and flow patterns are recognizable to even the casual Hip Hop listener, and his famous dreadlocks make his face just as familiar as his voice. Yet, after firmly establishing his identity as a Hip Hop artist, Busta Rhymes is now charting a new course. Gone are his trademark dreadlocks, and in is a new look, new sound, and who can forget about his new deal with Aftermath.

It has been over three years since Busta last released an album, which is the longest break between records in his storied career. And while the wait wasn’t easy, it definitely proved the old adage that patience is a virtue. Rhymes calls this record his best yet, and the buzz is building about what exactly he will release to the public. One thing is for sure, the track-listing will read like a who’s-who’s of the recording business. Guests on the album include Stevie Wonder, Rick James, Ol’ Dirty Bastard, and even the Dr. himself, to name a few. In this exclusive interview, Busta talks to SoundSlam.com about working with Dr. Dre, the importance of the Native Tongues Movement, and what was going through his mind when he cut his hair. And this is only part I….Bang!

SoundSlam: You’re album’s been cooking for a while. You took about three years off to make this one…Were there ever times when you knew you were sitting on so much material and you got impatient, maybe saw other groups coming out and thought, ‘man I really need to get this out now’?

Busta Rhymes: I went to through that s**t a million times for this album. But when you’re working with Dre, timing is extremely important. But the right timing is the most important. So, patience ended up becoming my best weapon even though I wasn’t too cool with the patience game after I saw the first year pass by. Then I saw the second year pass by I was like, ‘this s**t is getting a little crazy,’ cause I ain’t used to that. But, when I started to see the kind of weaponry that I was ending up possessing just being patience, the type of s**t that I was able to get from Dre just from us fine tuning our frequencies just knowing that we are now in business together and understanding each other was the best part. And it was able to bring about the best s**t. It just took a little time to be able to lock in and have s**t that we was both gonna feel flawless and satisfied with. In addition to that, other people that came through and delivered for me on this album, when the buzz about the album started to really circulate, at that point it started to acquire interest from other major credible people, an unbelievably high caliber, significant type of people man. I guess it took that year and a half for that buzz to start circulating, two years passing by for people to really get a unanimous general consensus from everybody that might of heard something here or there just spreading the word and the buzz just organically being created from word of mouth that this is the best and most unbelievable album. We started to pull people out like Stevie Wonder, after he heard Rick James blessed the album before he passed, Stevie Wonder came to the table. Eminem, Nas, Q-Tip from A Tribe Called Quest, Raekwon the Chef, the late great ODB, the late great, Notorious B.I.G., I had stuff from him sitting around that I never released. In addition to that, Dre even came to the table and started to see how sick the project was developing and what kind of a milestone, monumental classic was just coming to fruition, and he ended up spitting on the album too. He don’t rhyme on nobody’s s**t. The patience ended up working in my favor.

SoundSlam: The time became a positive weapon for you.

Busta Rhymes: Absolutely. Yeah.

SoundSlam: A lot of your album titles in the past dealt with apocalyptical type of themes. And this one’s called The Big Bang, which made me think of creation a bit…Were you thinking at all about that when naming this album in relation to your other ones?

Busta Rhymes: Yeah. I got the name of this album from taking my kids to the science museum. My kids wanted to go to the science museum real bad and I think my oldest son went on a school trip so he was excited about his experience there. He came home one day talking about the science museum a lot. So, I just brought him and the kids through. I went through to check it out. We saw this film about the Big Bang that was on this circular, it was like this old, like the ceiling…It was a film that was shown on a ceiling in this building that’s a section in the science museum. The ceiling had like a curve in it that looked like, when the lights was off and they were showing the whole film in it, you was looking into space for real. Tom Hanks is hosting it. It was crazy to me cause I ain’t never seen the whole philosophy from a scientific standpoint, what the Big Bang was all about. Not so much from the apocalyptic standpoint, but more just from the powerful energy that surrounded that name. When I saw it and it just felt like the most appropriate title for the situation. Dre, Flipmode, and Aftermath, that’s a Big Bang. Busta Rhymes and Aftermath, that’s a Big Bang. Busta Rhymes and Dr. Dre in the studio for three years, that’s gonna be an unbelievable Big Bang. I just felt like everything going on for me man, was just a new beginning. It was the beginning of everything that probably has never even happened for me. I got a whole new beginning. New money, new label, new cars, new crib, new support system of staff to promote my new s**t, new album, new look, new everything, it just felt like the most appropriate s**t. I just needed that. You know what I mean?

SoundSlam: You were talking about a new look, new staff, a lot of new things happening. And in a recent move you cut off your dreads…Is that symbolic of some sort of inner change as well?..What did your dreads represent for you?

Busta Rhymes: For me man, at the time when I started growing dreads man, it was just symbolism of me taking control of my destiny. I finally did a deal. I was seventeen when I signed my deal. I thought I was a rich boy. I’m in business with corporate letterheads coming to me, like with Warner Bros.’ logo on my contracts. Elektra Records, all these big corporations, and I’m still in school. I’m bringing home six-figure checks, and I’m like, ‘this s**t is crazy. I ain’t gotta work for nobody no more. I ain’t gotta comb my hair, I ain’t gotta do none of that society stipulated bulls**t no more.’ When I grew my dreads then, that was basically representing that completely in itself. I’m doing me and I’m doing me the way I wanna do it. Time went on and I started to get the understanding of the Rastafarian cultural significance, it played so much more of a significant role from a spiritual standpoint. But when I was growing the dreads, in the process of growing it over the years with my career growth, as my growth transpired from becoming a teenager into a young man, into a man, into a grown man, it was like, a lot of bulls**t was transpiring. You go through your rollercoaster rides, your obstacle courses, and your ups and downs and s**t. And for me, I was dealing with so much s**t that I just felt like the hair was just reminding me of a lot of the s**t that I was dealing with. If I got passed so many of these things, and not only got passed them, coming out of them as a victor, I was able to look back at them situations and laugh at them s**t. So I was like, ‘damn.’ In the heat of the moment you don’t really want to talk about certain s**t because sometimes when s**t is hot, you talk about it, you might add fuel to the fire and confuse the situation much more. So now that I got passed them situations I was able to look back at them and like, ‘yeah. You can cut the hair off now. Let it go. I’m gonna shed all of it completely. I’m letting all of the negative go.’ Because now I’m in a great space. If I’ma grow my s**t back, let me grow it back with all this positive s**t, feel good energy happening for me. So that’s pretty much what that was.

Continued...

[Rebel]

SoundSlam: You had just mentioned Q-Tip being on your album…Do you still feel a part of the Native Tongues Movement, and is that still alive and well in your eyes?

Busta Rhymes: Well we was never really a part of the Native Tongue Movement. We was always thoroughly embraced by the Native Tongue Movement. I think that the essence of it will never go away. I don’t know if it still exists the way it did in its original form, or in its core element that it existed in at one point in time. I do know that the essence of it is gonna always be here, because we still hold a valuable place in this rap s**t, and we’re still relevant. Tribe is always still relevant even though they’re not as active as they used to be. Q-Tip, he’s still here holding it down. De La Soul is still getting busy. You see Latifah putting it down in ways that’s just super-ceded everybody’s type of level of expectations. She’s got a star on Hollywood Boulevard in LA for being such a tremendous and a phenomenal contributor to the art form on many levels. Not just in music, but in film. And of course, I’m still here doing me. For the most part, I just think the balance that was necessary in Hip Hop is what the Native Tongue was bringing. Even though there was a lot of the tough s**t, that always is gonna exist, which is a good thing because that’s what built the edginess. That’s what created the edginess, and always gave Hip Hop its edginess. But the balance that’s necessary, sometimes, like especially right now, got a little outweighed by the tough guy s**t. We missing out on that balance. We got the Commons, and Kanye Wests, and Talib Kwelis, and Mos Defs, and they’re helping re-establish that. Me, I like to bring back that feel good energy, that party s**t. Of course I’m gonna have my tough talk, and my street s**t, I understand the importance of the balance. Which is the reason why I put out the ‘Touch It’ record. Because, it’s a party record, it’s a feel good record. It’s a record where you could go in the clubs, and when it comes on, be at the bar, throw your drinks around, have fun, get hot and sweaty, and not have to stress looking behind your back about some s**t because that’s what the song is beating into everybody’s head to do. Plus man, I just feel like, probably part of the reason why New York ain’t dictating the way we used to be dictating it. There’s not enough balance with the party and the feel good s**t. People want to bust the same gun and sell the same brick of coke, stick up the same n***gas, and run up in the same drug spots, we ain’t got enough s**t to bounce around to in the club. That’s why the South came through like a f**king Hurricane Katrina flood and just blanketed the streets with a lot of s**t, cause they made a lot of s**t that was for the clubs, and for the feel good energy.

SoundSlam: I think it’s Chicago’s time personally.

Busta Rhymes: You think it’s Chicago’s time?

SoundSlam: Yeah. Definitely.

Busta Rhymes: I fully agree with you. Because with Kanye and Common having the success that they have, with Twista having his success, it’s definitely showing that the Chi-town is definitely showing some s**t. But I can’t front, it’s still feeling like it’s the Dirty South’s time. Chi-town will definitely be making an impression that they’ve never made the way they’re making it now, before in Hip Hop. Even though they’ve always sprinkled contribution throughout the years. It’s just now, the Chi is on the map in an uncompromising manner. I definitely gotta give it up to the Chi and s**t. New York definitely has been taking the back seat on dictating the way the bounce, and the way the game, and the way the music is supposed to feel. I think that’s just something that needs to be re-established so across the board Hip Hop feels good. It just ain’t that it’s on one side of the country, or another side of the country, it’s cool because everybody has their time. It was a time when the West Coast was killing s**t with the Death Row movement. Then it came back to the East Coast with Big, Jay-Z, Nas, Wu-Tang, myself. Now the South got it, Chi-Town got it. And that s**t is good, because it helps motherf***kas, it forces n***as to improve. It forces n***gs to improve. That’s one of the things I’m always grateful for, when I see another n***a shine. It’s like, ‘shine homie.’ Cause if you don’t shine, you don’t give another n***a a reason to get better at what he do.’ I’m real congratulatory to the ones that’s contributing greatness to the game right now.

SoundSlam: What you were talking about with that balance, I totally see what you’re talking about…When I was a kid the Native Tongues movement was bigger. It just seemed like it was more accessible to everybody, and now some of those artists aren’t as big. So I totally see what you’re talking about…Do you know of a way that some of those artists can mix in with the artists that are capturing kids’ imaginations right now?...They don’t necessarily see the Busta Rhymes video all the time, or A Tribe Called Quest, or De La Soul.

Busta Rhymes: Well, for one, Tribe and De La aren’t as active as they used to be on a mainstream level. And Busta Rhymes ain’t put out an album in three years. That’s gonna change though, cause I’m dropping my s**t the second week of April. I done sat out the game long enough. I just think artists need to stop d**k riding their own f**king s**t so much, and not be as scared to rock with other emcees regardless of what cities they’re from. A lot of the times man, dudes are so caught up in being the king of the city, that they scared to put on new motherf***as, and rock with new dudes, and show new dudes that there’s an opportunity for them to come through and shine too. They just choose the ones that are already successful. I just think dudes are just real scared of losing their spot, especially from these new motherf***as. So, you ain’t getting as much multiple city collaborations unless it’s somebody’s already hot. You feel like you could benefit from being down with them cause they’re already on fire. I miss the days of when we were really thinking about breaking artists, trying to just help somebody that you thought was dope, even if they wasn’t in our clique, just because they contribute greatness to the game. Right now it’s so cliquey that if you aint’ down with me, I ain’t putting you on. If you don’t sign the contract being in my crew and being down with my production, or being down with my label, I ain’t putting you on. Me, I’m a different type of dude. I got so much s**t in the streets with artists that got a local buzz that I think is dope, because I want to help break muthf***as. I want to help show, and lead by example, that we need to be coming together a lot more collectively to represent that unified front that the game ain’t been representing in a long time. You ain’t getting a “Self Destruction” record, where you got emcees from every part of the planet getting down only one video, only one record.

SoundSlam: It seems like people forget in the end it’s music. And music is art, and art is expression, and meant to inspire.

Busta Rhymes: Absolutely. And I agree with you 100%. That was part of the example I was trying to make in telling you that I thought the balance wasn’t there the way it used to be. People are forgetting the fact that the music got to feel good. The music got to inspire some s**t a little more than the glorification of the tough talk. The tough talk is cool. Please don’t misconstrue what I’m saying. I do it myself. I love the street and the hard s**t. I’m a product of that. But at the same time, I know that I can’t try to slap somebody’s s**t in every time I’m out with my girl. So when I’m out with my woman, I’m trying to take her to environments where she can enjoy the environment and have a good time when she’s out with me. And even if she ain’t with me, she could go out with her people’s and not worried about n***as in there trying to stick her up for a little fur or a diamond ring I might of got her for the holiday. Because everybody’s on some tough guy s**t. I’m in total agreement with you man. I think the way to get it back is dudes coming together and representing that’s**t that comes off unanimously as a unified front.

SoundSlam: I read a quote from you a little bit ago. You said, “I think there’s been a lack of delivery on promises from home, all the way down to religion and society. Kids nowadays are looking forward to s**t that they aren’t getting. The spiritual and mental letdown is tremendous, that’s why they rebel.’ I’m just wondering if what you’re talking about right now, and the lack of balance in Hip Hop is contributing to some of those feelings? At least by kids seeing a lot of things that they really can’t get right now…Do you feel Hip Hop can fill that void, and at the same time is contributing to that letdown?

Busta Rhymes: I mean Hip Hop contributes to everything good and bad. That’s the one thing that I love about Hip Hop, it’s the rawest form of the truth that we’re gonna get. Our information isn’t as controlled as the news channel, or the magazine, or the radio. Even though we get censored from cursing, we can still put some science or some deep s**t in our records. I definitely think that there could be a conscious effort to do a little more of that, give people a more reachable goal. Instead of the far-fetched fantasies that will never come, cause for most artists s**ts ain’t coming for them neither. They borrow a lot of s**t so they could look a certain way in they video, knowing they still ain’t reaching that goal neither. Because the s**t is just so far-fetched that certain things are just impossible to get B. So, we should definitely deal with a more realistic plane of energy and try to muthaf***ing make people see that the more realistic approach is this. I gotta agree with you, we sometimes do get a little carried away with contributing to the negative side of people striving to get s**t that they just ain’t gonna get. Cause it’s just not as easy as we may present it to be to get it. But at the same time, if you don’t shoot for the stars, if you don’t shoot for the moon, you ain’t gonna land on the stars. That’s the balance that’s necessary that I was telling you. Being positive don’t mean telling people about good s**t all the time.

SoundSlam: It’s almost like a negative connotation comes along with emcees, or artists in general that are trying to be positive. Oh that’s corny, but you don’t have to be corny to be saying good things.

Busta Rhymes: You definitely don’t. That’s why sometimes it might seem ill when you see the muthaf**ka that’s talking about having the baddest b****es, he got a million b****es in the video and you see him smooching on all of them or whatever. And he got a million cars in his driveway, and three million dollars around his neck, of course it may be a mission impossible to get it for certain muthaf***as. But it’s also a real reality, a real possible reality for certain muthf***as that can get that. And it don’t necessarily gotta be through rap. You can get that s**t doing something completely different. You could be a brain-child with technology and have an interest in Microsoft at the age of 20. You get what I’m saying?

SoundSlam: I do. That’s what I’m saying all the time.

Busta Rhymes: There’s so many different ways to approach…Hold on one second I just got a delivery brutha.

To Be Continued…..Look Out For Part II Real Soon!

[Rebel]

Also... Billboard.com is reporting that "The Big Bang" is currently scheduled for an April 2nd release:

"As previously reported, the artist's new album, "The Big Bang," is due April 2 via Aftermarth/Interscope. It features guest appearances by Eminem, Stevie Wonder, the late Rick James and the late Ol' Dirty Bastard, as well as production from Dr. Dre, Timbaland, the Neptunes and Scott Storch, among others."

[The Predator]

Well looks like 3 years at the Math and he finally gonna release an album that Dre's satisfied with.

Should have some highlights on there.

[Meho]

Well looks like 3 years at the Math and he finally gonna release an album that Dre's satisfied with.

Should have some highlights on there.

Cant wait.

[wcsoldier]

Also... Billboard.com is reporting that "The Big Bang" is currently scheduled for an April 2nd release:

"As previously reported, the artist's new album, "The Big Bang," is due April 2 via Aftermarth/Interscope. It features guest appearances by Eminem, Stevie Wonder, the late Rick James and the late Ol' Dirty Bastard, as well as production from Dr. Dre, Timbaland, the Neptunes and Scott Storch, among others."

April 2nd ? It's a Sunday, maybe the 4th but if Mobb comes March 21st I don't think so

[Meho]

Also... Billboard.com is reporting that "The Big Bang" is currently scheduled for an April 2nd release:

"As previously reported, the artist's new album, "The Big Bang," is due April 2 via Aftermarth/Interscope. It features guest appearances by Eminem, Stevie Wonder, the late Rick James and the late Ol' Dirty Bastard, as well as production from Dr. Dre, Timbaland, the Neptunes and Scott Storch, among others."

April 2nd ? It's a Sunday, maybe the 4th but if Mobb comes March 21st I don't think so

Yeah Mobb Deep will come out March 21(you can read all the press and promotion has begun).That means at least 1 month space between them and Busta.It will come out in May.

[wcsoldier]

Well looks like 3 years at the Math and he finally gonna release an album that Dre's satisfied with.

Should have some highlights on there.

For me that "perfectionnist" shit is meaningless;

The real reasons are :

1) Dre is kinda lazy, he doesn't even show up in the studio with his new artists before a long ass time
2) Interscope is slow and doesn't rush to release artists albums unless you are 50 or Em. Therefore Dre doesn't use his power, influence (has he that much ?) unlike 50, and don't tell me coz he's the current top money maker coz it has been the same shit for the foundation of the Math  
 

[wcsoldier]

Also... Billboard.com is reporting that "The Big Bang" is currently scheduled for an April 2nd release:

"As previously reported, the artist's new album, "The Big Bang," is due April 2 via Aftermarth/Interscope. It features guest appearances by Eminem, Stevie Wonder, the late Rick James and the late Ol' Dirty Bastard, as well as production from Dr. Dre, Timbaland, the Neptunes and Scott Storch, among others."

April 2nd ? It's a Sunday, maybe the 4th but if Mobb comes March 21st I don't think so

Yeah Mobb Deep will come out March 21(you can read all the press and promotion has begun).That means at least 1 month space between them and Busta.It will come out in May.

yep Mobb, Busta, Banks, Buck and 50 that"s all for 2006

[Denial! Is Actively Joinin The Revolution]

Also... Billboard.com is reporting that "The Big Bang" is currently scheduled for an April 2nd release:

"As previously reported, the artist's new album, "The Big Bang," is due April 2 via Aftermarth/Interscope. It features guest appearances by Eminem, Stevie Wonder, the late Rick James and the late Ol' Dirty Bastard, as well as production from Dr. Dre, Timbaland, the Neptunes and Scott Storch, among others."

April 2nd ? It's a Sunday, maybe the 4th but if Mobb comes March 21st I don't think so

Yeah Mobb Deep will come out March 21(you can read all the press and promotion has begun).That means at least 1 month space between them and Busta.It will come out in May.

yep Mobb, Busta, Banks, Buck and 50 that"s all for 2006

as well as stat and dre

[wcsoldier]

Also... Billboard.com is reporting that "The Big Bang" is currently scheduled for an April 2nd release:

"As previously reported, the artist's new album, "The Big Bang," is due April 2 via Aftermarth/Interscope. It features guest appearances by Eminem, Stevie Wonder, the late Rick James and the late Ol' Dirty Bastard, as well as production from Dr. Dre, Timbaland, the Neptunes and Scott Storch, among others."

April 2nd ? It's a Sunday, maybe the 4th but if Mobb comes March 21st I don't think so

Yeah Mobb Deep will come out March 21(you can read all the press and promotion has begun).That means at least 1 month space between them and Busta.It will come out in May.

yep Mobb, Busta, Banks, Buck and 50 that"s all for 2006

as well as stat and dre

I wish you're right but I strongly doubt Detox will drop in 06, same goes for Stat

[LyRiCaL_G]

Well looks like 3 years at the Math and he finally gonna release an album that Dre's satisfied with.

Should have some highlights on there.

For me that "perfectionnist" shit is meaningless;

The real reasons are :

1) Dre is kinda lazy, he doesn't even show up in the studio with his new artists before a long ass time
2) Interscope is slow and doesn't rush to release artists albums unless you are 50 or Em. Therefore Dre doesn't use his power, influence (has he that much ?) unlike 50, and don't tell me coz he's the current top money maker coz it has been the same shit for the foundation of the Math  
 

word on some of that shit

1-dre easily has the most power out of dre,em and 50........but he doesnt use it, 1 his to lazy, 2 his to scared to drop anything he feels will flop on aftermath........3, he probably dont really give a fuck what people think, he done everything possible in the game


about busta though this shit better be sick, the longer they delay it the more pressure to release a sick album.....i'd be sick if this turns out to be wack after all the wait!

[T-Dogg]

Can't wait for this album, should be tight. Busta & Dre really clicked on Genesis, more of that on The Big Bang and you got yourself a cool record.

On the "Dre is lazy" tip - you don't know that. I don't know that, none of us do. All there is are assumptions. There's stories and interviews from people saying Dre is a workaholic, Dre stays in the studio for 24 hours straight easily, Dre tweaks EVERYTHING 'til it's perfect. Then there's the stories that say he's lazy, doesn't really do that much, uses a lot of other peoples work.

What's the truth? Don't know. All I know is this - if the name "Dr. Dre" is on something, it's most often some quality shit. He might be lazy or a workaholic, but when his name is on something, you can be almost sure it's some proper shit.

[mauzip]

Does he mention Dr. Dre? If not, I don't need to read it.