So being as though you are running your own independent spot down south, especially where music is really hot right now. How do you feel about everything that’s coming out? How do you feel that the label can make a difference? Is it coming at a different angle than everyone else? You know give us your little perspective on all this.

B: Well, first off, when we started the company we realized that everything that we put out is going to have some artistic technique behind it. You know what I’m saying?

Right

B: I’m not one of those cats that’s like in order for it to be real or in order for it to be good, it’s gotta be conscious. I don’t think that way. To me an artist likes to communicate, communicate everything about the human condition. The good, the bad, the pretty, the ugly, you know what I am saying? The pain, the love, and the joy and all of that. Folks like Pac. So you listen to a couple of Pac’s albums and you can see that. You know you see the conscious, graceful, intelligent organizer. You see that ignorance though out there, who gets a little mad and wants to fire at somebody. You see the players, the pimps, you see the artist in them and that’s real. That’s Pac. If that’s him… that’s him. You know what I’m saying? I don’t even judge that. And people say you are contradicting yourself. Well, show me some human that doesn’t have contradictions in they mind, in their heart.

So, when I started the company and my partner started the company it was so like whatever we put out, it was going to be real. And so we tried to stick to that. I’m not gonna put out a crunk record just because crunk is hot right now. We not gonna put out a so-called conscious song, just cause they like “ok, we need a conscious song.” Our artist are artist that spit from their perspective in life. You know from whatever they grew up in. Because they grew up with no money, having to hustle, sold everything under the sun. You’d have a much different perspective than what I would have if I was a rapper. So, I look at it as long as they are staying true to themselves I have no reason to put them down.

As far as the industry in general right now It’s so much money involved in it that you start to get people outside the culture, from outside of the whole movement try to pull the string and control the button. And so what’s happened is that these dudes that don’t understand it they go strictly on numbers. So, it’s like Houston’s hot right now, Mike Jones, Slim Thug, Paul Wall, you know them dudes hot right now.? Next it’ll be another city. In St. Louis you had Nelly, then they said ok we need another one, here’s Chingy. So they are always gonna be a step behind a bit because the trends are still made in the streets. And they are only going off major sales numbers. What the suburbs are buying. And so, they spend all this money on Chingy, so that he won’t flop. But Chingy’s lost in the streets. Chingy didn’t have any hood validation any more at that point. So, that’s the one problem in the industry and a lot of the independents and those who don’t have the benefit of being with a major can’t compete in marketing, promotion, and distribution wise Sony’s. I can’t put a record out internationally right now. I just don’t have the money for it. Continued on page 6 »