**New D-12 interview**

[infinite59]

The Irony Of America
Prepare for the best but expect the worst is D12’s (a.k.a. The Dirty Dozen) mantra on the eve of the release of their debut album, Devil’s Night. This is the real deal, according to the group, not the normal bitches-and-hoes, where’-my-nigga-at shit. No, this is life on the streets, but not too serious. On Devil’s Night — from the jazzy harmonica-infused single “Purple Pills” to the soulful ballad (thug style) “Dirty Ass” — the rhymes are so smooth and quick they come at you like a rat-a-tat-tat, a bullet straight to the head. It will, obviously, please the Eminem crowd, but D12 is quick to take a piece of the hip-hop gangland territory for themselves, adding a more hardcore backbone that’s sure to get under conservative America’s skin. And while they hope their album tops the charts, after years of plugging away, these five men plus one superstar are completely realistic and humble. You would think, going into a meeting, that if you make one false move, you’ll be lying on the floor — dead or out cold. But ironically, in person, the group is not what they appear to be on record.

“Hip-hop is entertainment, and you have to entertain. Everything we say, we don’t do it. No hip-hop artist can say that. If you were really doing that, c’mon, you’d be locked up somewhere on death row. It’s all entertainment, and people take it too seriously sometimes,” Kon Artis said. Not that the group doesn’t expect far more controversy than the average hip-hop group that raps about bitches and fancy cars. While hip-hop might be considered entertainment to some, one can hardly deny the polemic disputes that encircle the likes of Puff Daddy, DMX, Ol’ Dirty Bastard and Eminem — and not just for their words, but their actions as well. Every time a rapper winds up behind the defense table in court or a young kid shoots another, a Tupac tape found in his Walkman, it ignites a debate so powerful it appears to be tearing our country to pieces, casualties littering the sidelines of the cultural war. And it’s an age-old battle — does art influence society or does society influence art? “We don’t say one thing that hasn’t happened. All the shit I may talk about or these guys talk about, there are motherf**kers who rape their own mothers. I think a lot of older adults don’t understand when we say things it doesn’t mean that we’re necessarily doing it. It just means we’re products of where we came from and products of America in general,” Eminem said.

The members (Rufus Johnson, a.k.a. Peter S. Bizarre a.k.a. Bizarre; O. Moore, a.k.a. Swifty McVay; Von Carlisle or Hannz G., a.k.a. Kuniva; DeShaun Holton, a.k.a. Proof a.k.a. Dirty Harry; and Slim Shady, a.k.a. Eminem a.k.a. Marshall Mathers), all between the ages of 23 and 25, met at the late Hip-Hop Shop’s open mic sessions. Founded by Bizarre and Proof in 1990, the group coalesced when Proof brought in a young, white MC named Eminem who used to hustle crowds in high school. It wasn’t long before the rest of the crew came together including Bugz, who was shot down in Belle Isle (his legacy lives on the arms of all members), and Swifty. And while Eminem was the first to break from the group and make it solo, all the members are known separately for their talents. Proof won The Source’s freestyling competition in 1990; Bizarre, as a member of The Outsidaz, has also appeared in The Source, and Kon Artis is a producer.

Devil’s Night is being kept heavily under wraps; it’s questionable whether anyone outside of the group’s inner circle has even heard the full-length version. It’s their first album, and they’re taking it seriously, as is their record label Interscope, who anticipates that the album will be their biggest release this summer. Featuring production work by Eminem, Dr. Dre, Rockwilder and Kon Artis, Devil’s Night submerges you deep into the underground of Detroit — where the sun don’t shine, God doesn’t exist and the city streets look like a mixture of Beirut and Siberia. Detroit has been dubbed Amityville because, as Bizarre pointed out, “You always got to watch your back because of stupid shit. Here, you can get shot because of eye-to-eye contact.” And this is the world these six men grew up in — the murder capital of the world, the ultimate Darwinian experiment where only the fittest, strongest and smartest survive. Have any of these men done some of the horrendous actions they rap about? We can never know; after all, we only have their word and they are being very careful, at least when it comes to certain subjects.

[infinite59]

And to those critics who say D12 has sold their soul to the devil to make it in the business, Devil’s Night should turn those words into empty shells falling to the ground. The talent possessed by the six rappers is enough to stop anyone dead in their tracks, including Detroit’s hardcore self-proclaimed superstar, Esham. And par for the hip-hop course, D12 has more than a few choice words for the shock-driven rapper. “That motherf**ker was in our dressing room at our hotel trying to get tickets to the after-party at MTV. We was trying to get him in there but we were busy,” said Kon Artis. “And then he started talking all this gang shit. Faggot ass. You can talk all that dumb shit you want, but when it gets real, it gets real.”

An earshot away, Eminem decided to throw in the next bullet. “While we’re on the subject, and I think Esham knows this, a year before he made them comments in that magazine, he was outside of my hotel room begging me for a f**king record deal. Begging me, you can put that in bold print. ‘Em, man, we starvin’ out there, what’s up with Shady Records? We need a deal.’ Next thing I know, he’s dissin’ me. I must have thrown his demo in the trash.”


Although Esham criticized Eminem for stealing his style, that is not the only jibe leveled at either Eminem or D12. Far too many have accused the band of solely being “Eminem’s Boys.” But one look at the other five members bopping their heads, drawing fake guns and mouthing their lyrics, and you know they’re serious about what they do and are fully aware of their own talent. They don’t need to ride the coattails of one who has gone before them. In hip-hop’s you-scratch-my-back-I’ll-scratch-yours fashion, Eminem has come back to aid his friends and groupmates in their effort to get their gospel out. “I don’t think nobody is expecting this album to be what it is,” Eminem said. “Word on the street is that D12 is just my boys that I put on because I got a record label. That’s not what it is. I think people will see that shit when it (Devil’s Night) comes out. It’s constructed like any of my albums — the same caliber, the same everything. Expect no less from this album than one of mine. But it’s good though. It’s good to catch motherf**kers by surprise.” And that’s what D12 is planning, to wait behind the corner to sling a gun of words at the likes of youth and their critics.

Bang. Bang.

[Sikotic™]

You wrote that? If you did nice article dawg.

After hearing the snippets I am looking forward to it. I just heard some of Fight Song and the beat is off the hezzy. Alot of people are anticipating this and I have a hint it will be a tight ass record.

[infinite59]

Nah, dogg, I didn't right any of that.  I got it from another website, and posted it here.  It couldn't fit in just one post so I had to post twice.  Sorry for the confusion.

[Jay ay Beee]

"on the eve of the release "
What that mean?
I thought it was out in June?

[Scribe]

According to www.D12world.com Devils Night will come with a limited edition bonus disc, outside of N. America.

[Sikotic™]

Ah that sucks. Why outside North America?

[Don Seer]

we got snoop a week early too

hehe coz america hates eminem =)

[AlerG]

the extra cd includes:
1. shit on you
2. words are weapons
3. these drugs
4. shit on you (video)
5, and i think a live performance

[Sikotic™]

I think your right about America hating on Em. The U.K. is where most of his fanbase is anyways.

Y'all got Tha Last Meal early but wasn't it missing things?

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

It's probably the same as "TheSlim Shady EP limited Edition"...It's proably so hard coire Eminem fans would bye 2 copy's...

[Sikotic™]

My uncle has the Limited Slim Shady EP. Some of the best shit Em has ever done.

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

I saw it at "Record Town" for 26 bux...But i wouldnt pick it up, because I have a bunch of other shit I need to pick up first...

[Sikotic™]

$26!!!! Well I guess its worth it since its a limited addition.

[Hittman]

I don't think it is worth it at all.