Bad Azz Interview (New Album/Compilation Album/Group Album/Drake/More)

[Lunatic]

http://raptalk.net/website/content/view/1949/54/

Raptalk.Net hooked up with the president of California, Bad Azz for an exclusive interview. You will instantly read about the new solo album Bad Azz is preparing and which west coast producer will be behind the boards for the entire project

Speaking of other compilations and group albums in the works, Bad Azz lets us know what his label situation and distribution deal for all of his upcoming projects.

As usual, Bad Azz speaks the real and talks about his thoughts on the hip-hop game and newcomers such as Drake and how Lil Wayne has blown up.

And much more in this long interview, so enjoy...

[Lunatic]

Raptalk.Net: We have Bad Azz in the house! How you feeling right now?

Bad Azz: I’m just chilling; up early with my son playing some little toys.

Raptalk.Net: Being a good father I see. The last time we spoke to you, you weren’t even working on a solo album. Has that changed?

Bad Azz: I got a solo going. I’m working with Blaqthoven on my solo project. We’re probably going to release that next year though. We have a couple little compilations we’re gonna’ put out. He is gonna’ produce the whole album. I might have one or two other producers on there, but right now it’s not even looking like it. It’s all Blaqthoven; he’s done every beat which is like 13 songs. Depending on when we get towards the end because I haven’t wrote to all of them, we might throw a Jelly Roll on there or something. It just depends on how we feel when we get done with all the ones that we’re doing.

Raptalk.Net: How did you and Blaqthoven get the idea to do an entire album together?

Bad Azz: Blaqthoven is basically one of my favorite producers. Honestly, it was a convenience thing. We both had the time and there are not too many people I would do a solo project with. That’s how it came about. That’s when you spoke to me last time, I wasn’t really thinking about it. Blaqthoven had some time freed up and these last couple of weeks, we’ve been working almost everyday and it’s been a good vibe.

Raptalk.Net: How much percent of the album would you say is done at this time?

Bad Azz: He produced 13-14 tracks for me and I’ve done 2-3 songs so far. As far as that, I’m only about done 30% of it.

Raptalk.Net: Are you looking to get any guest appearances on there or is it all Bad Azz?

Bad Azz: It’s looking like it’s gonna’ be me. What I’ll do is I’ll do everything by convenience. If somebody conveniently gets on it, then I will collab with them. I’m not looking to get anybody. Whoever gets on the album will be a surprise to me. Right now, it’s me and Blaqthoven. Like I said, any other features or any other, even if I have a female sing a hook; it’s all a surprise right now. I have no idea who will be there. I’m just vibing with the songs and whatever concepts I come with. I feel like I need somebody on it, then I’ll reach out to them. As of right now, it’s must me and Blaqthoven. We’re jamming and the music is coming out amazing. I’m very happy with the stuff we got. And we did some other stuff for some other projects that will be released a little sooner. Y’all will be hearing that stuff first. And then later on next year will drop the solo record.

Raptalk.Net: Will get into that in a second. What’s the label situation for the solo?

Bad Azz: That’s not even something that’s guaranteed because I have a deal with EMI where I’m dropping this Bad Azz & Lowlifes album, so we may run it through them. There are so many avenues and opportunities so we’re not feeling stuck on it like we won’t have anywhere to put it out. I definitely feel like any label will release this project once it’s done. Will just go see who gives us the best deal as far as putting it where we need it to be and giving us the best percentage as far as making our money on the backend. As long as it’s a good deal, will definitely roll with it. We don’t have anybody specific that we’re thinking about. There are a lot of good labels and a lot of people that can give us what we’re trying to get as far as the success of the record. We just wanna’ get with the best people that have the most interest and will go from there.

Raptalk.Net: You mentioned doing some stuff on some other projects that will be heard first. What projects are you talking about?

Bad Azz: We have one project called “Spaceship Music” and another project that is untitled that we’re doing some stuff for. Like the solo record, I have a title for it but don’t really wanna’ release it right now. As far as the other stuff, we just have a few little projects that we’re putting out. Most of the projects that I’m dropping, Blaqthoven has some music on there, so it’s gonna’ be nice.

Raptalk.Net: What type of projects are they? Compilation projects?

Bad Azz: Yeah, most definitely. It’s just projects with most of the people on the label that I’m trying to work with and a lot of The Lowlifes. I’m just trying to get everybody’s name back buzzing. I haven’t been dropping a lot of stuff so I just wanna’ let people know we’re still alive and doing it. It’s just about waiting for the right time. A lot of stuff has been wasted recently. I hear a lot of artists doing weekly things with a lot of different projects. I’m on the email list for Top Dawg Entertainment which is Jay Rock and them. I really like Jay Rock a lot, he’s a great artist. I was just going through emails seeing how many songs of his I have that I haven’t even listened to, and it’s not trying to be rude or anything. It’s just honestly from the stuff he has and how many emails I get from Top Dawg with a new Jay Rock single or song. It’s just too many for me to listen to. At that point I feel like maybe for the fans, it may be a little over saturated. What I wanna’ do is have exclusivity to my stuff; have something that’s sought after. I don’t wanna’ have something that is just everywhere and everyone can get it. Once everyone can get it, it creates a higher demand for it and people will like it.

I look at Drake and he’s one of my favorite essences right now. I don’t mean artist, I said essence. I just heard his music and people gravitated to it to the point where that’s the kind of vibe I’ve been looking for. He reminds me of not of 2Pac by his swagger, but of 2Pac by his essence and how people gravitate to him. People love Drake right now. Artists think he’s a great rapper and I think he’s a great rapper. People want to buy into his brand and that’s good. He said “buzz so big, I could probably sell a blank disc.” Those kind of lines fits him and shows that he knows he’s so attractive and entertaining right now that people want to buy into it; even people that haven’t bought his stuff. I never bought a Drake project, I didn’t buy his mixtape but I hear so many people playing it that I feel like it’s only a matter of time before I get it because I’m gonna’ be tired of hearing it from other people and waiting for someone else to play a song that all I gotta’ do is get the CD and play it myself.

I’m trying to bring back that essence where in the 90s when we dropped records, people bought it. We barely promoted it. We put it out and people knew it was out. People told their friends and people went to get it. That’s the vibe we’re lacking right now on the west coast. Lil Wayne sold one million records in a week and it’s not because he was just a great artist in that week or time, he was kicking out some of the best music regardless if people liked it or not, where people wanted to buy into his brand. They wanted the new Mr. Carter record. They wanted it in their ear. Even after three days after people said “Lil Wayne’s album is dope, I bought it”, or even if they said it was wack, people still went to get it to hear for themselves. That’s where you know the gravitation of music is still alive. People say that hip-hop is dead and CD’s aren’t selling and there right but the key word is CD’s, compact discs – there old. The new CD is the Mp3. If you’re really worried about selling CD’s, get off of it. Cry a river, build a bridge and get over it. CD’s aren’t selling like they used to. There are more downloads and purchases through MP3’s. There is more swapping CD’s and sharing files because it’s easier to get than a CD.

We can’t be mad, we just need to make gravitational music that people want to buy. That’s how I feel about the Jay-Z album. I didn’t buy it, I got a downloaded copy from one of my friends; he had it and gave me a copy. I love Jay-Z, he is my favorite artist. People say doesn’t that mess up record sales? No it doesn’t. Somebody gave me the Jay-Z album and I still gotta’ go buy it for the classic album cover, I gotta’ have the credits because I need to know who produced every song because the version that I have is just Mp3 songs without any album information or pictures. If the album is good and people really feel it and like your brand, they’re gonna’ wanna’ buy into it and feel like they need a copy of that for their CD collection.  Those are the reasons I’m gonna’ go buy the Jay-Z record. Let’s bring good music back like Drake is doing, like Lil Wayne did recently and like Jay-Z is doing. All of these cats are different ages and have been in the game for different periods of time. Lil Wayne has been in the game almost as long as me. Everything that he is getting right now, me not being a big fan of Lil Wayne and that isn’t to diss, I’m just saying that Lil Wayne is about 7-8 years younger than me and some of the stuff he’s kicking is really good, and some of the stuff he’s kicking I wouldn’t even put on my radio. It’s good for him because he’s appealing to a wide range.

 At some point to the day, Lil Wayne gained a fan in me and in some point to the day, some of his stuff is for someone else. I feel like as long as your touching people at a certain point then people are gonna’ gravitate to you. As long as people are dropping those good records and people are coming with the Raekwon “Only Built for Cuban Linx II” which I only hear good stuff about that record; Slaughterhouse was a great album that I bumped and everyone likes it. I bumped it the first couple weeks it came out. It’s not in my CD changer right now because I wore it out; I bumped every song and they lyrically went in. I appreciate those dudes as a group because it’s been a long time since we had four dope dudes in a group like that. Hip-Hop is always alive and will be alive. It’s only dead if you feel like that. As long as we keep it alive over here, no matter how dry the west coast is and how much they don’t play our own music on the radio here. I’m not worrying about it because there will be a time where will be a force to be reckoned with and that time is coming soon.

Raptalk.Net: You mentioned still having the deal through Phase One Communications and EMI. What’s going on with the Bad Azz and Lowlifes record we spoke about last time?

Bad Azz: The album is just late. There are no technical difficulties besides that. There is no big reason why it’s late. I had a couple crazy years these last two years; I lost my grandmother last year. It’s just a couple of little things. With them being in New York and me being on the west coast, it’s hard to keep a everyday communication. I just went and spoke with them last week in New York. Everything is good and there still excited about the record. The record is done. I’m in the phase of getting everything signed off. I have a couple of signatures if you guys know the business side of making a record. I have to get all of the songs with features; I need to get everybody signed off. I’m in the middle of that right now. As soon as that’s done and that should be in less than two weeks, I’ll be turning the album in and they’ll be giving me the release date which I will send to you guys. All of the times I felt it was coming out was because I was planning to give the record to the label and they were planning to receive it and giving me the roundabout about when it was coming out.

I was planning to release it top of this year I remember, January. We had to push it back and they wanted to go in March but I thought that was too soon and said let’s go for summer. It was gonna’ be summer and I really tried to make the summer honestly. I did a few records and a lot of little projects and I did an album with Bizzy Bone that dropped; just a couple little things to keep some bread on my table. All of those little things were beneficial to me as far as keeping my boat afloat. Those things were good but they held up other things. I’ve been really anxious to do a solo project but you have to understand with the way the west coast is in it’s current state honestly, I’m not gonna’ be stupid and do a solo record that is fucking classic and it doesn’t sell anything because I don’t have Snoop [Dogg] and [Dr.] Dre behind me.

And if you pay attention to the west coast a little bit, you’ll know like me that the last west coast rapper to go platinum was [The] Game about 5-6 years ago. It doesn’t have a lot of hope to platinum or sell a big record. It’s not impossible but you really have to have a “Chronic” or “Doggystyle” like record, “Personal Business” or a D.O.C. “No One Can Do It Better” type record. And don’t get me wrong, it’s not hard to make a classic record when you’re a great MC or a great producer, but it’s really hard to get in that zone when the environment your at and your atmosphere is not a platinum atmosphere. Even Slaughterhouse, I said this and kind of meant it because I don’t know what there record sales are and that’s not to diss them, but I felt it wasn’t gonna’ go platinum when it came out. I wouldn’t doubt if it sold 100-200,000 copies, or it might be Gold. I wouldn’t be surprised if it was Gold but I doubt it.

Raptalk.Net: They sold like 25,000 in the first week.

 Bad Azz: No, that’s perfect though. At the time of how stuff is, I bet you know it’s probably under 100,000, you feel me?

Raptalk.Net: Oh yeah, I think it’s between 40 and 50 K.

Bad Azz: And to me what people don’t understand is, that’s one of the best records from a group that we’ve had in a while, regardless of how small it is. Do you understand the whole concept of what I’m getting at?

Raptalk.Net: I see what you’re saying.

Bad Azz: We want Slaughterhouse to go platinum and be one of the biggest records, but what record honestly sold 50,000 in the last two months?

Raptalk.Net: There have been a few like Kid CuDi, Drake Jay-Z and Raekwon.

Bad Azz: I meant not mainstream.

Raptalk.Net: Oh yeah there has been a few mainstream ones but in terms of independent, not many if any at all actually.

Bad Azz: Probably not. And there probably haven’t been even a lot of mainstream hip-hop albums that sold that much. Don’t get me wrong, when you said mainstream albums, if you are considering Mariah Carey then of course you have mainstream albums that have sold, but I’m saying just hip-hop. Even Raekwon being a classic artist dropping his album, I guarantee that hasn’t sold 100,000 yet.

Raptalk.Net; Nope, it did like 70,000 which was surprisingly a lot higher than people expected.

Bad Azz: And that’s always good but what we have to understand about hip-hop right now, it’s almost back to a level where guys like Raekwon and even fools like me, when I drop my solo record and no matter how bad I wanna’ sell a million copies, if I sell 150,000, that would be one of the best west coast hip-hop records to come out in a few years.

Raptalk.Net: That’s the truth.

Bad Azz: So what we’re trying to do is numbers like that. We’re trying to take it back to doing good numbers period so fools can say, “You know what? Bad Azz’ album only sold 100,000 but wait, what album on the west coast has sold 100,000 in the last few years that wasn’t mainstream or have a super big push?” they’ll say nothing. Even right now, I’m trying to make my compilation sell 30,000. I feel like that’s enough money to put in the bank and enough buzz to know that we’re out. Even Slaughterhouse, I feel like everyone has Slaughterhouse and it only sold 50,000 or something close to that? Everyone on the west coast was bumping that shit. Times, record sales and other things have changed on a great level to where the hottest records that we like…unless it’s a Lil Wayne mainstream album, no matter what we think, they’re not selling a lot of copies. Even digitally, I bet you more of those albums were sold digitally. Of the 40-50,000 of those albums that were sold, I bet you more sold digitally than physically.

Raptalk.Net: That is a possibility.

Bad Azz: I’d be willing to bet that, even if it was just 3-5,000 more or even if the numbers were almost even, I guarantee that more of those 40,000 were digitally and that’s just how times are. The only reason I’m saying that is because I know it’s more of a digital age. I know people are downloading albums instead of walking into stores to buy a CD, period. That’s just where the times are. We have to understand when we have fools like Soulja Boy who is selling a lot of records on the internet, and I love Soulja Boy as far as his presence; I keep up with him. I don’t like his music and he’s a kid to me; something my son might like. I have a 15 year old son; Soulja Boy is like 18-19, so he’s closer to my son’s age than my age. My point is I respect Soulja Boy so much as an artist. He’s getting the kind of money I wanna’ get right now. If you can’t respect that, I don’t know what to say. I don’t even know where your respect level is.

Raptalk.Net: You’re speaking on budgets and everything, talk to us about going from doing big budget albums to now on a smaller scale? How does that affect the promo of your project?

Bad Azz: That’s probably all it affects.  If you have talent, it doesn’t take a million albums for me to make a “Personal Business” classic type album. What it takes is to have a good vibe and the right people around you. You can’t be depressed while making an album. You can’t have baby mama drama or be going to court everyday when trying to make a classic record. It doesn’t go hand in hand. As long as you have a great situation as far as your life and you have people that love you. Me personally, I’m having a great time and everything is falling in place for me. That is why it’s easy for me to make a good record right now. What it does affect is the promotion because people like us, no matter how much money we really have, nobody has ever spent our own millions, our own money, our own hundreds of thousands of dollars to promote a record.

Even if you look at Daz [Dillinger]. Daz puts out the most independent albums of Tha Dogg Pound and if you notice, I look at Daz and he asks me “why don’t you do more records?” I tell Daz if I do as many records as him and had the same type of money we’re having, it doesn’t make sense. I rather put out the less amount of records and make the most amount of money, not the most amount of records and the less amount of money. Therefore, if we do have an opportunity to put some money behind our projects, and right now we’re not gonna’ put out a lot but what we do have to do, is find a niche or that way that is going to be able to put a little amount of money behind it. Honestly, I see what Daz does and I know what he does to promote, but I honestly think there is more promotion you can do for free. Free promotion is cool and I feel you can really sell a record like that. What fools don’t do is, every DJ whether they have a name or not…if my name is DJ Lunatic, I well get his number and save it in my phone. I have DJ’s in my phone. I don’t care if you are a no name or DJ Run. When you look at Run’s number in my phone, I have DJ Run because I know he’s a DJ. Basically when I go to my phone, I go to ‘D’ and see DJ and have over 200 DJ’s in my phone. I probably have a good 500 that I’ve talked to in my email in addition to that. Those fools have email lists where they have 5-10,000 emails on there list.

Some of those fools I’m cool with, I throw them a few bucks to send every DJ on their list for me. This is stuff that I honestly haven’t done yet, only because when I do blast one of these songs out, I wanna’ make sure a million people got it before I just go to the next song. And that’s not hard to make sure a million people got it in their email box. The million people that listened to it don’t mean a million people bought it. It means that I know from the people I sent it to and from there confirmation, we got this to a million people. Once that happens, I guarantee you that you will hear the song out in the club in New York or somewhere I didn’t expect to hear it because I got out there. If a song is not out there, there is no way it can be played. If you haven’t specifically sent it to Wyoming and there are people who listen to hip-hop there, it’s not playing probably. You have to make sure a DJ or radio station is South Dakota has it. You make to make sure a DJ or someone who does mixtapes has it so he can throw it on his mixtape because a lot of people only listen to local stuff.

I went to D.C. recently and they love mainstream music; everyone does. But there is only so much mainstream music that everyone hears. Like that Mario dude…do you pay attention to the game period? I try to listen to everything that is mainstream; If you listen Dorrough “Ice Cream Paint Job”, that shit went everywhere. It’s probably not in every single place but everywhere I went, I went to Maryland and heard it. New York played it and you know L.A. and New York is picky and they play it here. When a kid from Dallas with a song like that which isn’t guaranteed to blow up everywhere is on L.A. and New York radio, you know you have a hit. I ask fools like Jelly Roll or Blaqthoven who are great producers, I ask them if they like it and they both told me that song bangs. I’m a rapper and I don’t think Dorrough is the most lyrical rapper. It’s corny as fuck! But at the same time I‘m not criticizing the song for it’s lyrical content, because every time his song comes on in the club, you have to set your drink down and dance; all of the chicks run to the dance floor like “this my song.”

You want to make a song that has that vibe. I don’t care if it was made for the ghetto, club, or your hood, there feeling it right now. Everywhere I went, I heard that song so far. I heard Dorrough and those are the only two songs I can say right now that I heard everywhere. If you look at the whole demographic of everything, those are two good songs. One is a really good club, rap song and the other is a real good, R&B song with Gucci [Mane] rapping on it. Like the “Breaking Up” song is cool, I love that song. It has a different sounding beat but has that R&B and hip-hop on it. I said I wanted to rap on the beat the first time I heard but I still haven’t done that. That beat is nuts and the concept is cool. The whole cadence of the beat is dope. For people to understand where music is going, it’s not really in a direction. Where do you see west coast hip-hop going? Fools call me all the time and say “Yo Bad Azz, you want a beat? You want me to send you something west coast?”

 I tell them if you send me something west coast, I’m not gonna’ rap on it. Don’t genre categorize my music. Of course the shit we rapped on in the 90s sounded so west coast, honestly in 1995 when they first heard me; I had not been anywhere else on earth. Now, I’ve been to 60 different countries. I’ve been to New York 50 times whereas when you first heard “Beware of my Crew” or “Krazy”, I had never went to New York. You broaden your horizons and sound different. Listen to Jay-Z’s first record and listen to his new record – it just sounds different. It doesn’t sound like different like it doesn’t sound like Jay-Z, he’s just rapping about different content. He isn’t rapping about fucking all these bitches now and honestly he has a wife, why would he? It would sound corny because you don’t life that lifestyle. Your not gonna’ hear me robbing people on songs right now because that is something I did years ago and don’t anymore. Why would I rap about robbing people on my new record when I haven’t robbed anyone in a long time, nor have I thought that was cool in a long time. I grew outta’ that mentality. It’s the way you want to be mature enough and have people respect you for who you are, not who you used to be.

Raptalk.Net: NO doubt. We have Bad Azz right here on www.raptalk.net. As always, he’s speaking the real and telling the truth about the mainstream and independent game. He’s talking about the 90s to what’s going on right now. Look out for his new records coming out through EMI very soon, first off with The Lowlifes until he hits us with a few compilations, leading up to a new Bad Azz solo album entirely produced by Blaqthoven. I really appreciate your time Bad Azz, thanks for taking the time to speak with us. Do you have any last words before I let you go?

Bad Azz: $$ Records is for real. I guarantee you it will be the new west coast version of The Roc, the new west coast version of Murder Inc., the new west coast version of So So Def…and the only reason I name those labels is because I love them and love what they did for hip-hop. Last but not least, we will be the new west coast version of G-Unit Records. And everybody who understands that knows with no disrespect to Aftermath or Shady because they did it a little bit early, but I respect all those labels that I named because it’s something that they did with the artists and something they did with the crews. Eminem kept it a little more personal because he put out D12 and Obie [Trice] and 50 [Cent] and those were his friends. G-Unit, when I saw 50 [Cent} sign M.O.P., it made a big difference to me because I knew these were groups from New York that had been around like Mobb Deep. For him to reach back and sign them and give them a shot at new light in their career, that was dope and the kinds of things that $$ Records is gonna’ do. You will see some west coast classic talent sign with us. I can’t mention any names because nothing is guaranteed but I know there are a few cats that are out here to where when I get my label to where it needs to be, will put them on with us. I’ll also have half of the new fresh niggas with me. Even if there not signed with me, will definitely make sure we’re an influence on everybody’s career out here.

I want to give a big shout out to www.raptalk.net for having me, thank you my homie Lunatic. Thanks to everyone supporting this hip-hop and not just west coast, down south or mid-west, I’m talking everything and everywhere that has to do with hip-hop, all corners of the globe. Peace and much love to everybody. It may benefit you just like it benefits everyone else. Much love, Bad Azz out, the president of California, $$ Records, for sure!

[Okka]

Hell muthafuckin yeah, this is what i've been waitin' for.

[Elano]

props 
its a motherfuckin long interview,looks like he was in a good mood 

[RhyanG]

bout time! BAD IZ BK!

[Lunatic]

Hell muthafuckin yeah, this is what i've been waitin' for.

I know U wanted it!

[Blood$]

real talk from Bad Azz

[Portugoal]

can someone summarize this interview? i'm not gonna read all that.

[Hoodlum204]

Dope Interview!!

[MarshColin]

Dope interview. But how is he gonna throw his Personal Business album in the same league as The Chronic, Doggystyle, and Nobody Can Do It Better. I mean it was a good album that I definitely liked, but let's get serious here, it wasn't on that level.

[Elano]

can someone summarize this interview? i'm not gonna read all that.

* He's about to drop a couple of albums with Blaqthoven,his solo album (with all the tracks produced by Blaqthoven),
a few compilations and a record called "Spaceship Music"

* The Bad Azz & Lowlifes album will be out soon via EMI

* His $$ Records will sign some west coast classic talents

[kuruptDPG]

great interview,was hoping he would talk about the album with bizzy but im assuming you done this interview b4 it leaked

[MistaNova]

Is anybody from the DPG clique still working with Bad Azz anymore? This interview sounds like he lost contact with them years ago.
But damn, this interview got me thinking of a Jay Rock and Bad Azz collabo.

[Elano]

Is anybody from the DPG clique still working with Bad Azz anymore? This interview sounds like he lost contact with them years ago.
But damn, this interview got me thinking of a Jay Rock and Bad Azz collabo.

I prefer a nipsey/bad azz colabo over some songs with jay rock.
abd about the dpg,looks like now is something different compared to the good old days even if i think there's no beef between "them" and bad azz...

[Jungleboy]

Yeah Blaqthoven is on the map!! this album will sound like an westcoast album!