I-20 Interview!

[Lunatic]

not my work:
http://www.wordofsouth.com/online/?p=1348#comment-20990














WordofSouth.com: When DTP started to make noise you were in the forefront along with Luda, Shawnna, and Lil Fate and over the years you’ve fell back behind the scenes while others have been spotlighted. Any particular reason behind that??

I-20: Man, perfecting my craft, that’s what I like to tell people. I definitely had four years off due to the business of this business, you know how that goes. I took that time to work on my craft to try to become a better artist as well as a better person. Work on my music and regain my focus and be able to become a better business man because you have to be a businessman in this game if you want to have any kind of financial security.

WordofSouth.com: It’s been four years since your last solo. When you look at yourself as an artist then and look at yourself now, what are some of the biggest changes?

I-20: I think its maturation. When you have a better understanding of the business and what is expected of you, what it takes to succeed, what it takes to make a quality album, and be a better artist, you present a better product. I’ve taken my time and these four years to mature and to grow and I think my music is going to reflect that. so I think the significant difference is that I have a better understanding of the business, a better understanding of what people want to hear from me, what I think I can do, what’s significant about me, what my good qualities are, what my bad qualities are, and therefore I can present a better product this time around.

WordofSouth.com: So what would you say are some of your good as well as bad qualities?

I-20: I think I can sum it up on one thing. I think when coming into the game I was just an emcee and I come from the whole battle rapping circuit and being detrimental on lyrics and that’s it. I think that one thing that I got to learn that once you sign on that dotted line that it’s not about being am emcee or rapping no more, it’s about being a rap artist. It’s about learning how to make songs and make songs that can crossover to other audiences that will appeal to the masses.

WordofSouth.com: Times have changed a whole lot. You got blog sites, YouTube, MySpace. How beneficial is the internet technology for you?

I-20: Huge! Because it helped regain my relevancy.  I’ve been on since 2000. The internet was popular, but nothing huge as far as music. It was still big to get on MTV and BET and get your video spun a million times. That’s was how people would recognize people. With the influx of MySpace, Facebook, Black Planet, and all of the different websites that cater to Hip-Hop. There are also situations where the artists can directly be informed with their fans via blogging and releasing music that maybe a label wouldn’t release. It gives the opportunity for the fans to really familiarize themselves and for the artists to really identify with them even if they don’t have mainstream success. So I definitely made advantage to that. I got like four or five videos on YouTube right now that spin constantly and I plan to do more and more. I think this (internet) perfect for an artist like me who isn’t readily accepted by the mainstream.

WordofSouth.com: I know that a lot of artists talk down on the internet or are slow to adapt. Were you one of those artists at all?

I-20: I don’t think that people talk down on the internet. The internet gives artists something a chance that they didn’t get to see. Any artist that tells you that they aren’t sensitive is a lie. Erykah Badu said it best when she said that “I’m an artist and I’m sensitive about my shit.” I think what usually happens is they never get to directly see how people feel about your music. The internet gave everybody an opportunity to comment and see directly how the general public feels about you or your music. I think that a lot of the people that looked down on it initially was because of the simple fact that they was getting conflicted opinions and they didn’t happen to see what people directly thought about their music. You know the sales and numbers can fool you. I readily accepted it because I think that I take all comments, good or bad, all press, good or bad because I think everybody is entitled to their opinion. I’m the type of artist that wants to hear everything because I think it makes me a better person and a better man. I was always readily to be accepted to it.

WordofSouth.com: So were you quick to adapt to the change?

I-20: Yeah that’s true. As times change and as the world changes you have to change with it just to survive and that’s just the nature of business that we live in at this particular time. It’s all internet and all about the internet, YouTube views, and getting your songs placed on various Hip-Hop websites. I think if they (artists) want to survive and be successful in this game that they have to be prepared to make the transition on that. Let’s be honest, BET has eliminated Rap City, a major vehicle for a Hip-Hop artist. So I think if you want to survive in this game with any form of success, you have to be prepared to transform into the internet.

WordofSouth.com: It’s kind of fitting to me that you’re coming back out because you have one of the most recognizable voices in the game and it will make a change for Atlanta music definitely since over the past year or so all we have heard is Jeezy, T.I., and Soulja Boy clones. Do you feel like you you’re coming back out at the right time?

I-20: Man, you know what? If I told you that I always felt like that, I’d be lying. I think like any artist, once you put out that first album you want that chance to be consistent with your fan base and come right back out with the second one. The game is now catered ironically for an artist more like me. It’s more about the underground; it’s more about being able to connect with your fan base, not about getting a ridiculous amount of spins or getting a ridiculous amount of spins for a record. I find it really coincidental, but I’m definitely gonna take full advantage of it.

WordofSouth.com: Let’s talk about your single “Really Like Her.”

I-20: In my opinion I have two singles bubbling out there. I have the single called “Down South” that I leaked out on the street level. I paid for a video that was on the underground and it’s doing real well on YouTube and some of the other Hip-Hop sites right now. That’s kind of like the street single.

WordofSouth.com: How did the track come together and why the decision to use this as a single out of all the tracks you recorded.

I-20: “Really Like Her” with Luda is like I said when you come around on that second album you begin to think more about broadening your audience and being able to touch more people and have a more significant fan base. That’s why we went with that record because of the simple fact that people were already familiar with the chorus. They already knew the Rocko song, so we thought it would make more sense. The beat was kind of self explanatory with the Rocko sample on the hook. A lot of times as an artist you kind of let the beat tell you what you want to talk about. The hook was something that was readily recognized by a lot of people because it was a song that was very big out here and popular, so me and Ludacris really just sticked to the whole theme of the chorus and let the song build with the track.

WordofSouth.com: When did you begin the recording process for “Blood In The Water”?

I-20: I started recording this album when I was recording “Self Explanatory” because from  the time I was started recording “Self Explanatory” I already was picking records to leave for part two and to be easier to follow-up. So I think in a sense, I’ve been recording this album for four years in terms of songs and getting that meaningful ambition towards music. I was very blessed and fortunate that I met Salaam Remi who did a couple of tracks on my first album. He took a significant interest in me as a person and he got me with his younger cousin Stay Bent who is an up and coming talented producer. He flew me out to Miami and I was out there for almost a year just recording records and taking in both of their advice and their understanding of what to do with my music and so forth. After that I went up to New York and I was with the Heatmakerz. Arsonist (Heatmakerz producer) is a good friend of mine and I did the same thing. I like to say that I’m not through recording it until it hits the shelf, and I’m through recording. Right now I am always going to be recording and always trying to improve.

WordofSouth.com: What artists are featured on the album?

I-20: I got Devin the Dude who was on my first album, I really like Devin, I think he’s a talented guy, so I had to get at him the second time around. I got Lil Keke; he’s my partner out of Houston. I love his music. Of course I got Luda and I got Playaz Circle and that’s it. I think on my first album I had a lot of features and I didn’t take it into consideration that a lot times when you have a lot of features, especially a lot of features from big artists that are more established that you get lost in the shuffle on your own album. This time around I really made myself the focal point on this album.

WordofSouth.com: In this day and age with E-Mail, a lot of artists and producers don’t even work together in the studio anymore. I think that they should work in the studio more. What do you prefer?

I-20: A little bit of both to be honest with you man. I think that sometimes you and the producer may have a picture of the music, but y’all may not be able to occupy the same personal space. Me personally, it works better when I can sit down and I can work with the producer and he and I can go over ideas and concepts, but then again unlike a lot of artists, I’m very open to input and criticism, so it makes it easier for me to do that. It makes the best possible product for me. Some artists don’t like to do that and I can’t knock them for that. I think that both formulas could possibly be successful; it just depends on the artist.

WordofSouth.com: What are you favorite tracks on the album?

I-20: It’s a tie between “Air It Out” and “I Apologize.” The reason why is because to me they both sum up the entire album of the things that I was going through, the emotions that I was feeling, and the anticipation that I felt in terms of my release. For this particular album I think that they both just hit on everything that I wanted to express on this album.

WordofSouth.com: I think with the economy the way that it is and sales just on a constant decline that it’s even harder to release an album. When meeting with the labels is the economy and declining sales a concern?

I-20: Of course they do. It’s my job to crash to them and their job to crash to me consistently. I’m just a vehicle for them and they’re a vehicle for me and it’s kind of an investment like a give or take exchange, so of course we do. At the same time, I never lose sight of what’s really working and that’s why I feel like in my personal opinion that I know I was one of the first artists to shoot real quality videos directly for YouTube. There were a lot of people putting stuff up on there that was shot by their man or whatever, but I was shooting quality. The reason why I did that is because I seen the change coming. I know that the industry is suffering in terms of spins and stuff like that, but you still want to get your spins because the nature of being successful in business is not getting to the hardcore fans, it’s about getting to the casual fan. You still want spins in that aspect because of the casual fan because that’s what they are going to listen to when they are trying to figure out the next big thing in Hip-Hop. It’s not the end of the world anymore if you don’t get those types of spins.

WordofSouth.com: From the outside looking in people may seem as if there are or were problems with you and DTP because you aren’t seen as much as some of the other DTP artists. What is your relationship with DTP today?

I-20: I’m always gonna be with DTP and my relationship with DTP is fine; perfect. I think that what happened is when you have the type of success that Ludacris had and I was with him during that time of success, I think it really gives you the opportunity to see what type of artist that you wanna be. We got the full course of what it means to be a Hip-Hop star. You get a crash course. You gonna be around the world, on television every ten minutes, and touring. You really get a chance to say to yourself what type of artist that I wanna be. Do I wanna be in the limelight? Or do I wanna do what I do and go home at the end of the day? So I think that the people misconstrued the fact that I’m the type of artist that do what I gotta do, handle my business, and go home at the end of the day. I’m focused on getting my paper right, being my own man, and establishing myself. A lot of people are forgetting that Disturbing The Peace is a company, a brand where they need to sign more artists and get more artists that need more exposure to get them out there and get them their opportunity as well. So they have a whole new roster of artists that deserve the opportunity to be seen with Chris and be in videos and get their songs played as well. I’m kind of at a position where I can stand on my own.

WordofSouth.com: People don’t realize that music is a business first and grown men and women are in this business so there isn’t time for babysitting. Was there ever a point in your career where you felt like you needed Luda to do this and that to further your career? If so, when did that change for you?

I-20: I guess so, but you know what man, being in a competitive game and needing another man to solidify you and to get you out there, you in the wrong business. Don’t get it twisted, I definitely appreciated the benefits of rapping with him and the exposure and the opportunities that were presented with Ludacris and I will be forever grateful for that. I always see the gift as a curse because the gift is that you get a lot of exposure that you may not get as an up and coming artist. You make a sig amount of money and get placed in a lot of different places that a lot of people may not get the opportunity to get. The other half is that you forever get linked and sometimes the bad side is that as that artists grows older and matures and kind of moves past the music, then you kind of shut down and now forever trying to be your own man. Now your career is entirely tied to his. I definitely appreciate the benefits and exposure that came with Ludacris, but I was always determined to be my own artist.

WordofSouth.com: As I think right now, DTP might be one of the few artist ran labels that haven’t had backlash from artists that claim they’ve been “fucked over” since it’s been a running label. Artists have come out with albums, singles, been featured on Ludacris’ albums and really had the chance to shine on their own.

I-20: I think what happened with us that really helped is that we learned while he learned. I think what happens a lot of times is that artists that are already establish or gets established and then brings their crew in and they’re trying to learn on the fly where he is already maturing and growing past that. So I think the best part of Disturbing The Peace is that we all signed together and we all went through the growing pains together. We all had the opportunity to learn the business while he was learning. We learned to branch and learned to brand yourselves. It gave us all a level of self confidence to not completely rely on Chris and be able to stand on our own, do our own music, and try our own things. So to answer the question, we definitely benefited because we all got to learn together.

WordofSouth.com: So being that you have soaked up so much knowledge over the years, has branching out with your own company been a possibility?

I-20: Definitely, this particular album is starting up the subsidiary of my multimedia company that’s started by me and my cousin who also manages me, G. Dukor Entertainment which is the multi media company is preparing films for both scripts and television. We are gonna do artist management. Not necessarily a label, but we are going to place artists with deals and situations to get their careers going. I definitely learned a lot about DTP to be able to branch out and take full advantage of that.

WordofSouth.com: What’s next for I-20?

I-20: I want to use this album to springboard so many of my other things. I’m not looking for it, but I’m not blind to doing other things. I’m open to doing other things and I got a couple of other things in the works, but I got to make my focus at least right now on this album.

WordofSouth.com: Anything else that you would like to say?

I-20: Cop the album! If you an I-20 fan, this gonna make you I-20 obsessed. I worked diligently on it, its personal to me, and I think it’s a fantastic album. Go out and get it.