Phonte of Little Brother: Is Little Brother Breaking Up?
If you know Phonte, you know he speaks his mind. Whether riding solo or with a crew, hes never minced his words. Knowing this, we set up shop to discuss new projects, including recent releases and future projects, including the new LB LP.
As promised, he didnt bite his tongue as we hit topics ranging from getting no love at Summer Jam to the Stop Snitchin Movement. Needless to say, theres a lot more in between. Keeping it as real as can be, he kicked knowledge, dropped exclusive information and got some things off his chest.
Read on. You might learn something.
HipHopDX: Well start it off by discussing the new projects that just came out. What can fans expect?
Phonte: They can just expect the tradition of dope music. The HOJ compilation is a compilation of our extended family, artists weve been working with closely over the years. That album and the Darien Brockington album is just an extension of us as a team and another brick in our foundation of dope records.
HipHopDX: Lets talk about the BET situation, where people were saying BET claimed Little Brother was too intelligent to be played on the network.
Phonte: We really honestly dont know where it came from. We dont know if it came from BET or whatever there. But anyway, the word got around that supposedly BET said our shit was too intelligent for them to play. We took it as a slap in the face. But I would be more [offended] if I was a viewer of BET like Damn, what are yall sayin about me? You feel me? But you just gotta realize what the game has become. Its constantly being peddled to the lowest common denominator. You just keep dropping lower and lower and thats what you get. Thats why were in the state were in now.
HipHopDX: There was recently a Summer Jam performance that you and other people wrote about, where the audience just stood stillWhat did you take away from that?
Phonte: What I took away from it was that basically, people who religiously listen to the radio dont want much out of music. Its not to say that their taste in music is necessarily better than mine or whatever. I just think they dont want much. The people like us, the music nerds, the people who are into music, were the cats that are looking online for new shit and spending money on crazy records and shit because were just into music. Music is the love of our life so were constantly looking for new shit and searching deeper for it. To the average person, they dont care. Music for them is just a means of entertainment or a means of partying, dancing or whatever. Whenever youre a group like Little Brother or Rhymefest orhell, anybody that tries to use music as more than just a form of just dancing and tries to use it as a means of provocation or stimulation of thought of any kind, then its always going to be an uphill battle in todays market. So, I just looked at it for what it is and I know next time. I know what Im up against.
HipHopDX: I have talked to a lot of artists that share those sentiments. What do you think is going to take to change all of that?
Phonte: I honestly dont think its going to change. I think were at a point in the music business now where it can go one of two ways. I think A) Its going to take some kind of market to be built for the 25-35 year olds because a lot of the cats from that era are gone or are finding out they dont have a place. Or its going to take the record industry straight crashing and burning and rebuilding itself into something new. Which I dont think is far off at all because record sales are continuously going down and its at a steady decline. I think its going to take the music industry to crash, burn and just bomb the fuck out. Then it will eventually rebuild itself to a brand new business model that will work out for everybody.
HipHopDX: Whats the current label situation looking like for you guys?
Phonte: Well, were still with Atlantic. The new record is scheduled to drop in Spring and the new album is called Getback. Were working on it now. The shit is coming along dope, man. I actually feel less pressure working on it than I did with The Minstrel Show.
HipHopDX: I cant let you get away with it, because like a million other people, I read your blog where you said you feel like a step child with Atlantic. What made you feel that way? Do you see that changing?
Phonte: We had a meeting a couple of weeks ago and I told them straight up, weve been treated like step children the whole time weve been here. I told them A lot of the reasons The Minstrel Show didnt do as well as we expected it to, as much as we hate to admit it, yall didnt treat it like a priority. Yall didnt treat it like a big deal. And in the eyes of most people, just being real, if they dont see the label treating it like a big deal, they think Well, maybe it aint a big deal or Maybe its not that good.So, we came to yall, we got signed and it was like Whatever. It was like Yeah, we signed them and here comes the album. So, now the current situationWe had a meeting with them and we looked back and examined the mistakes that we made from both ends on Minstrel Show, both from our end and the labels end. And we kind of reassessed it and its looking like were going into it with a clear head and with a clear goal. Right now, its looking like people are on board. Im still preparing for the shit storm regardless. I got my umbrella out this time. So, if it does start raining turds, Ill be prepared for it. So far its looking good, but its the music business-it can change tomorrow. Thats all I can say.
HipHopDX: You say you made mistakes like they made mistakes. What mistakes do you think you made that youre going to change?
Phonte: I think with Minstrel Show, I think we could haveI dont know, man. We should have done more to get ourselves out visually. I mean, the musics the music. The musics going to stand the test and its going to be what its going to be. But if people dont see you, then they cant relate. But with the video not being played like that, maybe we should have taken some money and pressed up a DVD just to get ourselves out there visually. Thats 1 of the things we could have done.
HipHopDX: I know you guys want to keep the guest stars a secret, but you gotta give us something. Who can we expect to see on Get Back?
Phonte: Well, of course we got 9th doing tracks (as of today there is only one 9th beat). But this will be the album where were going to reach out to more producers than usual because were going for expanding the palate. You know what Im saying. This time we reached out to Just Blaze so [Were] probably going to do something with him. Primo surprisingly reached out to us. That was crazy! UmRight now were looking at Denaun Porter from D12 doing some shit. UmNottz from Virginia. Still keeping it Hip-Hop and still doing us. You aint gonna hear us rapping over Snap Music or whatever(Laughs) Were still doing us but just expanding and adding a little more color to the palate this time around.
HipHopDX: Now, you know when OutKast dropped Idlewild, everybody was talking about their supposed break up. So, now that you mention 9th will take a back seat to let other producers rock on LBs albums, you know the medias going to go nuts with Little Brother break up rumors. Well let you dispel those rumors before they even start
Phonte: Yeah, yeahLittle Brothers still a group. Its still us, but its just for this record-we wanted to branch out and try out some new stuff. 9th understands that and hes going to bring in something new to the table with his production, hopefully. Everybody grows and expands but its still a unit. But I know the internets going to be running wild with Them n-ggas breakin up. 9th dont tour with them. Cats going to be sayin whatever they wanna say. Thats cool with me. Just keep tuning the fuck in..(Laughs)
I think Getback is gonna be the litmus test for who our true supporters are. This record is gonna separate those who truly love Little Brother's music from those who are in love with the IDEA of what they think Little Brother is and judging from the little I've been reading on various message boards and chat rooms, there's already some people ready to write us off without hearing one note of the new music. So much for a 'devoted fanbase,' eh?
To dispel the rumors, no, Little Brother is not breaking up. When one member leaves a duo, that's called a breakup. When one member leaves a trio, that's called an evolution. But no one has officially left the group. We're still here, and we're still moving forward.
HipHopDX: Foreign Exchange did pretty well. When can we expect the next installment?
Phonte: Me and Nic are gonna start the Foreign Exchange when I finish the Little Brother record up. We kind of did some preplanning for it and we mapped out the guests that we want. We already have a few tracks set aside and I got song ideas in my head and choruses and verses for it. But we havent started recording yet. Im just focusing full time on the new Little Brother record. I would say, look for Foreign Exchange possibly Summer 07. I could be totally off base but summer or fall in 07 but definitely sometime in 07.
HipHopDX: We know youre very opinionated, poignant and open. I wanted to allow you to sound off on various topics. So, Ill shoot out some topics and you can give me your take on it.
Phonte: Thats cool.
HipHopDX: You may have already answered this butRadio!
Phonte: HmRadioSuckers never play me. (Laughs) Naw
HipHopDX: Man, when I was writing that, I knew you were going to say that!
Phonte: (Laughs) Yeah, manSuckers never play me Naw, radio, man? I dont listen to it. It has no place in my life. I just dont listen to it. I stay as far away from it as I possibly can.
HipHopDX: Fair enough. Next Topic: The stop snitching movement.
Phonte: That shit is ignorant. I think people really got a misunderstanding of what that really means. Back in the day, in the 60s and 70s and Civil Rights or whatever, Stop Snitchin kind of referred to cats running to the police and snitching on what we was doing with the Black Panthers. You didnt want a snitch in your crew telling the feds what we were doing. It was kind of like a thing of empowerment. We were trying to pull ourselves up. But now, its kind of taken on a different meaning. That shit is kind of stupid. I look at it, as bottom line-Dont fuck with mine and I wont fuck with yours. If I live in the hood or whatever, and I see a dude selling crackas fucked up as it sounds, aint shit I could do about that. You selling to your loyal customers. Them n-ggas is gonna buy from you anyway. It hurts but its like Fuck it. What can I do?
Now, the minute you come to my little boy like Hey, little man, you want to run this across the street for me? Oh, fuck that! Then naw, Im tellin. Yeah, n-gga. It was that n-gga right there. I saw him. He had on a red shirt. He had on some white A1s. Fuck that! You know what Im sayin? You have the right to do your dirt, but it stops with my family. So, as far as the Stop Snitching movementOn the whole its some ignorant shit. But I think that has a lot to do with cats misconstruing the meaning.
Like if Me and you rob a bank and we have the mentality before we rob the bank like Yeah, me and you about to do this. If anyone of us gets caught: shut the fuck up. Do your time and your money will be waiting for you when you get out. But if we rob the bank and I get pinched and Im like Yeah, dog it was his idea. It was him. He was the mastermind behind the whole shit. Thats snitching! You know what Im saying? If you knew you was doing the dirt, so if you get caughtYo, you gotta handle that. Dont be no snitch. Dont rat your man out. Thats snitching! But for it to mean, now, to turn a blind eye and let ignorant stuff go byI think thats kind of foul.
HipHopDX: The term Backpack
Phonte: Once againAnother term thats gone through several changes over the years. Pretty much, nowadays backpack is used to refer to anybody that aintIf you aint pimpin or you aint selling crack or on some dopeboy shit or whateverThen mother fuckers will automatically call you backpack. And thats just a lot of ignorance on the part of the listening audience and the media just wanting to put that label on you. People always feel the need to put a label on you to make themselves feel comfortable. So, thats all it is
HipHopDX: J Dilla
Phonte: J Dilla is unquestionably one of the greatest producers and arguably the greatest producer to ever do it. Just his range and his influence in such a short period of time brought in a whole movement and really ignited a new way of thinking as far as Hip-Hop production. I can honestly say if it wasnt for J Dilla, if it wasnt for Slum Village, there would be no Little Brother. If it wasnt for him redefining a genre, Id probably still be rapping but I probably wouldnt be doing it the way I do it now. His production really gave voice to a lot of people.
HipHopDX: The current hate for Southern mainstream acts.
Phonte: Mmm Me and Rhymefest talk about this a lot. Well, I feel where cats are coming from because they kind of feel like its some inmates running the asylum type shit. Like Man, them n-ggas cant even rap like that man. Them n-ggas is wack. They doin that snap bullshit! I feel where its coming from but the thing they got to understand is this: The reason why the South is winning and will continue to win, for awhile, I think, is because the South is a family oriented place. The South is big on family, just on a cultural level. An unspoken rule in the South is Dont go against your family. Dont dis your family. Stick by your family. Whether theyre right, wrong or indifferent, stick by your family. I know Cousin Leroy is about to go to jail for the 5th time, but thats family. Stick by your cousin. So, in music, its the same shit. So, when D4L, Dem Franchise Boys and cats like that come out, the South stands up for them. They feel like Yo, were supporting one of our own. Like plenty of cats were beefing in Houston, but they realized like Yo, if we stick together, we can make a whole lot more money pumpin each other up than we can by beefing. And thats something New York still aint realized yet. And thats why the South is winning. So instead of cats focusing on the South and saying Theyre messing up music I think its more important to understand why theyre winning and then adapt that to your own situation. Now, the big thing with New York is The Bring New York Back Movement. Thats cool but the problem is everybody wants to be the one n-gga to bring New York back. If all the New York cats got together on one trackIf you could get 50, Nas, Fat Joe, Jay, Cam, a Dipset n-ggaif you could all them n-ggas on one track and for them to bond together like Yo, we doin this. Its the birthplace of Hip-Hop and no disrespect to the South but were trying to bring some music like yall fellas in the South is doing. If them n-ggas can do that, manYou have no idea what that would set off. But, everybody wants to be the King of New York! And because everybody wants to be King, all them n-ggas is lookin like pawns right now.
HipHopDX: Your Hip-Hop Pet Peeve
Phonte: UmShitAw, man! Shit, man. Where do I start? I guess my Hip-Hop pet peeve is nowadays, it being focused too much on the youth. Its always been youth driven. Back in the day, when Kool Herc and Bambaataa did it, it was a youth driven culture. Youth being like 18-25. Like Herc and them, when they started, they werent young dudes. They were young but they werent 16. They were in their 20s. So, it always seemed to be a voice for the youth. But now, as we move deeper it seems to be more and more a voice for kids. So now, you have kids dictating what adults are doing. You have cats making singles trying to get the 106 crowd and TRL crowd and you got grown ass men in their 30s trying to write some shit thats going to appeal to a 13 year old. Thats ass backwards to me.
Thats why so many people were pissed off at the "Chicken Noodle Soup" shit. Everybody else was mad, but I thought it was poetic justice. Once I found out the girl was 13 who did the song, I was like Word up. Thats fucking great. After all this time, all these n-ggas 35 years old, damn near 40 been making songs for 13 year olds, I feel its only right a 13 year old makes a track and makes money too. Shit, all these n-ggas making songs for kids anyway. Why not let kids make a song? Everybody else is f*cking raping her, trying to get all they can out of her generation anyway. Let her get some.
I guess thats my biggest problem. Its too focused on catering and pandering to the taste of the youth just because theyre the generation with the most disposable income. I understand it on another sense but when that happens, you gotta look at the turnover. You were 13 once, Im sure your taste, just like mine, changed every other week. So, theres no longevity trying to market to that crowd.
HipHopDX: Family
Phonte: Family is very important. Family is one of the few things that I would die foror kill for.
HipHopDX: Favorite Book.
Phonte: Ah, man. I would say The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison. The issues of race and self hatred within the black communityIt just touches on a lot of things. When I read it as a teenager, I didnt fully understand. But now, as a man, you look back like Damn! Thats still one of my favorite books.
HipHopDX: AlrightWhen its all said and done, what does Phonte want to be remembered as?
Phonte: I just want to be remembered as a cat that made some dope music and inspired people to do something positive. Thats my main shit. I dont really see myself to be a teacher of sorts, or a dictator standing in front of people like Okay, this is the way to go. I dont really look at myself in that light. I just see myself as an everyday person who has his faults and has problems just like everybody else. But hopefully people can see me working through my shit on record and making good records, trying to be the best person I can be. Hopefully it will inspire other people to do the same.
As promised, he didnt bite his tongue as we hit topics ranging from getting no love at Summer Jam to the Stop Snitchin Movement. Needless to say, theres a lot more in between. Keeping it as real as can be, he kicked knowledge, dropped exclusive information and got some things off his chest.
Read on. You might learn something.
HipHopDX: Well start it off by discussing the new projects that just came out. What can fans expect?
Phonte: They can just expect the tradition of dope music. The HOJ compilation is a compilation of our extended family, artists weve been working with closely over the years. That album and the Darien Brockington album is just an extension of us as a team and another brick in our foundation of dope records.
HipHopDX: Lets talk about the BET situation, where people were saying BET claimed Little Brother was too intelligent to be played on the network.
Phonte: We really honestly dont know where it came from. We dont know if it came from BET or whatever there. But anyway, the word got around that supposedly BET said our shit was too intelligent for them to play. We took it as a slap in the face. But I would be more [offended] if I was a viewer of BET like Damn, what are yall sayin about me? You feel me? But you just gotta realize what the game has become. Its constantly being peddled to the lowest common denominator. You just keep dropping lower and lower and thats what you get. Thats why were in the state were in now.
HipHopDX: There was recently a Summer Jam performance that you and other people wrote about, where the audience just stood stillWhat did you take away from that?
Phonte: What I took away from it was that basically, people who religiously listen to the radio dont want much out of music. Its not to say that their taste in music is necessarily better than mine or whatever. I just think they dont want much. The people like us, the music nerds, the people who are into music, were the cats that are looking online for new shit and spending money on crazy records and shit because were just into music. Music is the love of our life so were constantly looking for new shit and searching deeper for it. To the average person, they dont care. Music for them is just a means of entertainment or a means of partying, dancing or whatever. Whenever youre a group like Little Brother or Rhymefest orhell, anybody that tries to use music as more than just a form of just dancing and tries to use it as a means of provocation or stimulation of thought of any kind, then its always going to be an uphill battle in todays market. So, I just looked at it for what it is and I know next time. I know what Im up against.
HipHopDX: I have talked to a lot of artists that share those sentiments. What do you think is going to take to change all of that?
Phonte: I honestly dont think its going to change. I think were at a point in the music business now where it can go one of two ways. I think A) Its going to take some kind of market to be built for the 25-35 year olds because a lot of the cats from that era are gone or are finding out they dont have a place. Or its going to take the record industry straight crashing and burning and rebuilding itself into something new. Which I dont think is far off at all because record sales are continuously going down and its at a steady decline. I think its going to take the music industry to crash, burn and just bomb the fuck out. Then it will eventually rebuild itself to a brand new business model that will work out for everybody.
HipHopDX: Whats the current label situation looking like for you guys?
Phonte: Well, were still with Atlantic. The new record is scheduled to drop in Spring and the new album is called Getback. Were working on it now. The shit is coming along dope, man. I actually feel less pressure working on it than I did with The Minstrel Show.
HipHopDX: I cant let you get away with it, because like a million other people, I read your blog where you said you feel like a step child with Atlantic. What made you feel that way? Do you see that changing?
Phonte: We had a meeting a couple of weeks ago and I told them straight up, weve been treated like step children the whole time weve been here. I told them A lot of the reasons The Minstrel Show didnt do as well as we expected it to, as much as we hate to admit it, yall didnt treat it like a priority. Yall didnt treat it like a big deal. And in the eyes of most people, just being real, if they dont see the label treating it like a big deal, they think Well, maybe it aint a big deal or Maybe its not that good.So, we came to yall, we got signed and it was like Whatever. It was like Yeah, we signed them and here comes the album. So, now the current situationWe had a meeting with them and we looked back and examined the mistakes that we made from both ends on Minstrel Show, both from our end and the labels end. And we kind of reassessed it and its looking like were going into it with a clear head and with a clear goal. Right now, its looking like people are on board. Im still preparing for the shit storm regardless. I got my umbrella out this time. So, if it does start raining turds, Ill be prepared for it. So far its looking good, but its the music business-it can change tomorrow. Thats all I can say.
HipHopDX: You say you made mistakes like they made mistakes. What mistakes do you think you made that youre going to change?
Phonte: I think with Minstrel Show, I think we could haveI dont know, man. We should have done more to get ourselves out visually. I mean, the musics the music. The musics going to stand the test and its going to be what its going to be. But if people dont see you, then they cant relate. But with the video not being played like that, maybe we should have taken some money and pressed up a DVD just to get ourselves out there visually. Thats 1 of the things we could have done.
HipHopDX: I know you guys want to keep the guest stars a secret, but you gotta give us something. Who can we expect to see on Get Back?
Phonte: Well, of course we got 9th doing tracks (as of today there is only one 9th beat). But this will be the album where were going to reach out to more producers than usual because were going for expanding the palate. You know what Im saying. This time we reached out to Just Blaze so [Were] probably going to do something with him. Primo surprisingly reached out to us. That was crazy! UmRight now were looking at Denaun Porter from D12 doing some shit. UmNottz from Virginia. Still keeping it Hip-Hop and still doing us. You aint gonna hear us rapping over Snap Music or whatever(Laughs) Were still doing us but just expanding and adding a little more color to the palate this time around.
HipHopDX: Now, you know when OutKast dropped Idlewild, everybody was talking about their supposed break up. So, now that you mention 9th will take a back seat to let other producers rock on LBs albums, you know the medias going to go nuts with Little Brother break up rumors. Well let you dispel those rumors before they even start
Phonte: Yeah, yeahLittle Brothers still a group. Its still us, but its just for this record-we wanted to branch out and try out some new stuff. 9th understands that and hes going to bring in something new to the table with his production, hopefully. Everybody grows and expands but its still a unit. But I know the internets going to be running wild with Them n-ggas breakin up. 9th dont tour with them. Cats going to be sayin whatever they wanna say. Thats cool with me. Just keep tuning the fuck in..(Laughs)
I think Getback is gonna be the litmus test for who our true supporters are. This record is gonna separate those who truly love Little Brother's music from those who are in love with the IDEA of what they think Little Brother is and judging from the little I've been reading on various message boards and chat rooms, there's already some people ready to write us off without hearing one note of the new music. So much for a 'devoted fanbase,' eh?
To dispel the rumors, no, Little Brother is not breaking up. When one member leaves a duo, that's called a breakup. When one member leaves a trio, that's called an evolution. But no one has officially left the group. We're still here, and we're still moving forward.
HipHopDX: Foreign Exchange did pretty well. When can we expect the next installment?
Phonte: Me and Nic are gonna start the Foreign Exchange when I finish the Little Brother record up. We kind of did some preplanning for it and we mapped out the guests that we want. We already have a few tracks set aside and I got song ideas in my head and choruses and verses for it. But we havent started recording yet. Im just focusing full time on the new Little Brother record. I would say, look for Foreign Exchange possibly Summer 07. I could be totally off base but summer or fall in 07 but definitely sometime in 07.
HipHopDX: We know youre very opinionated, poignant and open. I wanted to allow you to sound off on various topics. So, Ill shoot out some topics and you can give me your take on it.
Phonte: Thats cool.
HipHopDX: You may have already answered this butRadio!
Phonte: HmRadioSuckers never play me. (Laughs) Naw
HipHopDX: Man, when I was writing that, I knew you were going to say that!
Phonte: (Laughs) Yeah, manSuckers never play me Naw, radio, man? I dont listen to it. It has no place in my life. I just dont listen to it. I stay as far away from it as I possibly can.
HipHopDX: Fair enough. Next Topic: The stop snitching movement.
Phonte: That shit is ignorant. I think people really got a misunderstanding of what that really means. Back in the day, in the 60s and 70s and Civil Rights or whatever, Stop Snitchin kind of referred to cats running to the police and snitching on what we was doing with the Black Panthers. You didnt want a snitch in your crew telling the feds what we were doing. It was kind of like a thing of empowerment. We were trying to pull ourselves up. But now, its kind of taken on a different meaning. That shit is kind of stupid. I look at it, as bottom line-Dont fuck with mine and I wont fuck with yours. If I live in the hood or whatever, and I see a dude selling crackas fucked up as it sounds, aint shit I could do about that. You selling to your loyal customers. Them n-ggas is gonna buy from you anyway. It hurts but its like Fuck it. What can I do?
Now, the minute you come to my little boy like Hey, little man, you want to run this across the street for me? Oh, fuck that! Then naw, Im tellin. Yeah, n-gga. It was that n-gga right there. I saw him. He had on a red shirt. He had on some white A1s. Fuck that! You know what Im sayin? You have the right to do your dirt, but it stops with my family. So, as far as the Stop Snitching movementOn the whole its some ignorant shit. But I think that has a lot to do with cats misconstruing the meaning.
Like if Me and you rob a bank and we have the mentality before we rob the bank like Yeah, me and you about to do this. If anyone of us gets caught: shut the fuck up. Do your time and your money will be waiting for you when you get out. But if we rob the bank and I get pinched and Im like Yeah, dog it was his idea. It was him. He was the mastermind behind the whole shit. Thats snitching! You know what Im saying? If you knew you was doing the dirt, so if you get caughtYo, you gotta handle that. Dont be no snitch. Dont rat your man out. Thats snitching! But for it to mean, now, to turn a blind eye and let ignorant stuff go byI think thats kind of foul.
HipHopDX: The term Backpack
Phonte: Once againAnother term thats gone through several changes over the years. Pretty much, nowadays backpack is used to refer to anybody that aintIf you aint pimpin or you aint selling crack or on some dopeboy shit or whateverThen mother fuckers will automatically call you backpack. And thats just a lot of ignorance on the part of the listening audience and the media just wanting to put that label on you. People always feel the need to put a label on you to make themselves feel comfortable. So, thats all it is
HipHopDX: J Dilla
Phonte: J Dilla is unquestionably one of the greatest producers and arguably the greatest producer to ever do it. Just his range and his influence in such a short period of time brought in a whole movement and really ignited a new way of thinking as far as Hip-Hop production. I can honestly say if it wasnt for J Dilla, if it wasnt for Slum Village, there would be no Little Brother. If it wasnt for him redefining a genre, Id probably still be rapping but I probably wouldnt be doing it the way I do it now. His production really gave voice to a lot of people.
HipHopDX: The current hate for Southern mainstream acts.
Phonte: Mmm Me and Rhymefest talk about this a lot. Well, I feel where cats are coming from because they kind of feel like its some inmates running the asylum type shit. Like Man, them n-ggas cant even rap like that man. Them n-ggas is wack. They doin that snap bullshit! I feel where its coming from but the thing they got to understand is this: The reason why the South is winning and will continue to win, for awhile, I think, is because the South is a family oriented place. The South is big on family, just on a cultural level. An unspoken rule in the South is Dont go against your family. Dont dis your family. Stick by your family. Whether theyre right, wrong or indifferent, stick by your family. I know Cousin Leroy is about to go to jail for the 5th time, but thats family. Stick by your cousin. So, in music, its the same shit. So, when D4L, Dem Franchise Boys and cats like that come out, the South stands up for them. They feel like Yo, were supporting one of our own. Like plenty of cats were beefing in Houston, but they realized like Yo, if we stick together, we can make a whole lot more money pumpin each other up than we can by beefing. And thats something New York still aint realized yet. And thats why the South is winning. So instead of cats focusing on the South and saying Theyre messing up music I think its more important to understand why theyre winning and then adapt that to your own situation. Now, the big thing with New York is The Bring New York Back Movement. Thats cool but the problem is everybody wants to be the one n-gga to bring New York back. If all the New York cats got together on one trackIf you could get 50, Nas, Fat Joe, Jay, Cam, a Dipset n-ggaif you could all them n-ggas on one track and for them to bond together like Yo, we doin this. Its the birthplace of Hip-Hop and no disrespect to the South but were trying to bring some music like yall fellas in the South is doing. If them n-ggas can do that, manYou have no idea what that would set off. But, everybody wants to be the King of New York! And because everybody wants to be King, all them n-ggas is lookin like pawns right now.
HipHopDX: Your Hip-Hop Pet Peeve
Phonte: UmShitAw, man! Shit, man. Where do I start? I guess my Hip-Hop pet peeve is nowadays, it being focused too much on the youth. Its always been youth driven. Back in the day, when Kool Herc and Bambaataa did it, it was a youth driven culture. Youth being like 18-25. Like Herc and them, when they started, they werent young dudes. They were young but they werent 16. They were in their 20s. So, it always seemed to be a voice for the youth. But now, as we move deeper it seems to be more and more a voice for kids. So now, you have kids dictating what adults are doing. You have cats making singles trying to get the 106 crowd and TRL crowd and you got grown ass men in their 30s trying to write some shit thats going to appeal to a 13 year old. Thats ass backwards to me.
Thats why so many people were pissed off at the "Chicken Noodle Soup" shit. Everybody else was mad, but I thought it was poetic justice. Once I found out the girl was 13 who did the song, I was like Word up. Thats fucking great. After all this time, all these n-ggas 35 years old, damn near 40 been making songs for 13 year olds, I feel its only right a 13 year old makes a track and makes money too. Shit, all these n-ggas making songs for kids anyway. Why not let kids make a song? Everybody else is f*cking raping her, trying to get all they can out of her generation anyway. Let her get some.
I guess thats my biggest problem. Its too focused on catering and pandering to the taste of the youth just because theyre the generation with the most disposable income. I understand it on another sense but when that happens, you gotta look at the turnover. You were 13 once, Im sure your taste, just like mine, changed every other week. So, theres no longevity trying to market to that crowd.
HipHopDX: Family
Phonte: Family is very important. Family is one of the few things that I would die foror kill for.
HipHopDX: Favorite Book.
Phonte: Ah, man. I would say The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison. The issues of race and self hatred within the black communityIt just touches on a lot of things. When I read it as a teenager, I didnt fully understand. But now, as a man, you look back like Damn! Thats still one of my favorite books.
HipHopDX: AlrightWhen its all said and done, what does Phonte want to be remembered as?
Phonte: I just want to be remembered as a cat that made some dope music and inspired people to do something positive. Thats my main shit. I dont really see myself to be a teacher of sorts, or a dictator standing in front of people like Okay, this is the way to go. I dont really look at myself in that light. I just see myself as an everyday person who has his faults and has problems just like everybody else. But hopefully people can see me working through my shit on record and making good records, trying to be the best person I can be. Hopefully it will inspire other people to do the same.
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