Sha Money XL: Super-Size Me

Black Thought and Peedi Crakk rhymed, "There must be something in the water where I come from." Although perhaps true of Philadelphia, that line certainly suffices in describing Queens, New York. From Run-DMC to LL Cool J, to Nas and 50 Cent the borough that was clowned in Coming To America is serious in retaining Hip Hop's throne.

Sha Money XL used Queens to navigate his way into the Hip Hop industry that he dreamed of being in. Starting out as an intern for Steve Stoute, watching hometown heroes count money, Sha emulated Mobb Deep's Havoc in his production pursuits and started landing placements with Cormega and Onyx.

It was with another local guy, 50 Cent, that Sha Money went from industry to mainstream, in his would-be role in G-Unit. In a comprehensive discussion with HipHopDX, Sha brings the readers along for this journey, and explains why filling the scene with newjacks won't do, but that today's hit-makers need to better mentor tomorrow's. From Queens to becoming a king, Sha Money XL played the cards he was dealt to the fullest.

HipHopDX: I dont think enough people in Hip Hop understand the merits of your work as a producer. Going back to your first placement, which I consider to be Angel Dust for Cormega; what did that mean at the time for you?
Sha Money XL: At that point in my life, I was so heavily trying to get into the game that I was willing to do anything and everything. So I was part of Nas street team. I was one of the street team guys that you would see out and about, handing out flyers and promoting It Was Written. Thats how I met Cormega. Steve Stoute gave me the opportunity to intern and hand out these flyers and books. Thats what I did. I went up to Harlem and Cormega and Nas was performing on 125th [Street], and thats how it started.

DX: Were you coming home every night and making beats in the basement?
SM: Yup, I was making beats in the basement. I was on my [Akai MPC] 3000, heavily involved, trying to get that sound right, and make the best beats possible. Havoc was the best guy out there, so emulated a lot of the vibe to be what Mobb Deep was. I was a Queens head and Mobb Deep was the best shit out.

DX: You say you emulated Havoc, but did you have a mentor or were you self-taught?
SM: I was experimenting on my own. I looked up to [DJ Premier], Havoc and A Tribe Called Quest. That whole Queensbridge era did a lot for me, coming from Queens.

DX: How did Sha Self evolve into Sha Money XL?
SM: Sha Self is who I still am. Im a loner; I run by myself. In this industry, I move by myself from city to city. Im always gonna be Sha Self. What happened was there was another producer out by the name of Self (Ja Rule, Onyx, Diplomats) and he was starting to gain recognition, and he also was a friend of mine, who was from my neighborhood, who was locked up for a long time. So when he came home, he come back with his same godly attributes to name himself Self, and I was a youngster, 18 years old called Sha Self, so at a point, I realized it was time for me to make a switch because people would confuse us. He was working with affiliated people that I was working with, like Onyx. So I had to backpedal. I said, Im about the money, and Im gonna be as large as I can be. Thats when it became Sha Money XL; Im gonna get this money.

DX: Certainly, you did. With that money and extra large mentality, do you feel a connection today to Queens or its rappers?
SM: Right now everybody is about the south rappers. In Hip Hop, it was always about Queens. Queens was everything; it was New York. There are more successful Queens artists in Hip Hop than any other borough. Queens artists was the first ones to go platinum. Queens artists was the first ones to sell 10 million. Theres something about the water in Queens that just makes us some special dudes. Queensbridge had that whole get-up together, they had Mobb Deep, Nas, Tragedy Khadafi, Cormega, LL Cool J, Lost Boyz; we was all over the place.

DX: As time goes on, you really attached yourself to the 50 Cent movement; you were a major part of it. What is it like, as a guy from Queens, to first meet Dr. Dre?
SM: Its an amazing experience. Coming from that and meeting Dre, Dre blew me awayyouve been listening to his music, watching his videos, trying to be what Death Row was doing, and when I met him, I was in shock. I had to hold myself, hold my composure. It was definitely a serious blessing for me in Hip Hop, to meet Dre and on the terms that we were meeting him on.

DX: You segued from producer to mentor so early in your career. At what point and why did you do this?
SM: This is what made Fif completely understand that I was the truth. When we was in my basement, it was my studio, so normally, when youre in somebodys studio, all youre gonna be doing is rapping to their beats. I would be the advocate and say, Nah yo, Rob Reef, he got this ill beat right here; we need to listen to him. And Digga had this. This happened with other producers on the scene Megahertz, Rockwilder, guys that were already hot. It wasnt only about me. It was about these dudes too, cause they had some hot joints. Fif seen that and said, Yo, youre the first personeverybody I go to is all about me, me, me, they only want you to hear they joints, and that made him more comfortable knowing that I didnt conflict my ear. I was able to hear other talented peoples hot beats.

DX: How did you network with those other producers back then?
SM: I was in the industry, so when youre in the industry, you want to be in the loop. There was Industry Night Tuesdays; you wanna be where its poppin at and where you can meet these guys. Queens had that formula. Rockwilder was from my hood. All these other guys around me was comin up. All the producers, they kick it. Also, I was interning at Def Jam from 96 to 98; I met a lot of people through that.

DX: You interned for Nas and for Def Jam?
SM: Yup. Yup. Yup.

DX: So you get into this tremendous position of power. So many new money guys are all about new blood. What made you look out for New York veteran producers like Buckwild and B-Money too?
SM: Veterans are the ones that had the sound that had me looking up to them. Youre always gonna have the veterans in the industry that paved the way for you, that inspired you. Buckwild was one of them. Diggin In The Crates, you cant go past that. That was an early in Hip Hop where they had that whole game locked. With that said, you want to mix it up with the OGs, the veterans like Easy Mo Bee and Large Professor and all of them, and at the same time, sprinkle it with the new guys, the roses that grew out of concrete.

DX: You just used a 2Pac line. I really enjoyed and admired your work on Pacs Life, the album. How challenging was it to come in and handle a project that you know is going to get criticized for its lack of authenticity by hardcore fans?
SM: Mentally, for Pac, it was like, Yo, this is my chance. So many great guys I really want to work with, and Pac was one of them. I used to see him in my hood with Stretch [of The Live Squad] and they were so scary that you wouldnt approach these dudes. I was so young that I aint have no swagger to even holler at them dudes. Ive always been a fan of Pac and Big, and I didnt get to work with [either]. When I got that Pac opportunity, Ill tell you man, it was one of the best opportunities. Hes better than working with a live rapper, man. His work is just ridiculous. His vocals, it really just brings a lot out of me.

DX: Looking at that album, Dumpin is a classic moment. Youve got Carl Thomas and Papoose on there, but also Fatal. Its a powerful production, and contains that authenticity in Fatal. Tell me about producing it, and your vision and execution
SM: Certain sounds you know Pac has. The church bells, the organs, the strings, the piano those are sounds that you know are in Pac [records]. So what I did, so I just gathered up all the instruments from all my favorite Pac beats, and just had those thoughts. I just got into a ridah frame of mind, like I was from the west, and just knew that it had to be that live instrumentation. Pac always sounded good over live music, so I wanted to keep that all in place.

DX: Whether Dre, RZA or Showbiz, there have been other producers who mentored others. What makes this your calling, in regards to Money Management?
SM: I watched guys like DJ Clue and Steve Stoute make money, and I watched guys from my neighborhood even Irv Gotti, who rose to the top, and Im watching these guys. Ive got the talent; I wasnt just in the music industry cause I wanted to make money, I was in the music industry cause I wanted to be in the music industry. I love music. I knew there was some money there, and I knew I had to completely give my all to it. Everybody I seen give they all, they made it.

DX: Young Bucks Buck The World was an incredible album for gangsta rap. It was the best thing till summer. As a music industry person, why didnt it get pushed harder or as hard as his debut?
SM: I think the industrys attention-span is ADD completely. Everyone just keeps going; they dont sit still. The labels and the consumers. Theyre gonna keep going. I think with 50s album and T.I.s album coming, there were other main attractions that got peoples minds drifting and thinking of something else. Hands down though, Ill say this on the record, [Young Bucks] album was better than 50s, T.I.s and all of theirs'. Buck made an incredible album.

DX: As a businessman, do you think the absence of somebody like Kevin Black not being at Interscope anymore made the difference?
SM: No. I think this whole depression from the labelwe didnt get that belief. They made you scared. Everybody was just scared to make moves. It was a terrible sight, man. The vibe wasnt there. Everybody had different thoughts on what they wanted. We had to be careful, cause 50 was comin, so he was on our heels. We was worried that he would outshine us. There were a lot of things to think about.

DX: Is Young Bucks label compilation a hard thing to push through that system right now?
SM: Early next year. Im literally on my computer as I talk to you going through all my paperwork in sitting up the whole label. Im here running the label with Buck. Were going all out. This is gonna be a time of independence. Were gonna be signing anything new, talented and good. I dont only want guys thats been in the game, I want guys thats new and on the come up. Im gonna start doing talent showcases. At this point, all we can do is make the right marketing budget, where we dont spend ridiculous amounts of money but we get all the impressions we need to make sure everybody knows the records in stores. After that, the music should speak for itself.

DX: How do you still find the time to produce?
SM: Im at the point where I want to be a producer almost full-time, but my business is really important to run, so I cant. But I do take a lot of time out to make beats. I dont ever want to be an artist; I want to work alongside an artist. I can help them get they swagger in effect, cause some of these people just become turn-offs to the industry.

DX: I think of Ice Cube and Sir Jinx linking up with The Bomb Squad for Amerikkkas Most Wanted. Would you be open to the possibility of doing an established artists whole album?
SM: Absolutely. Im actually, Im working with somebody else thats in the game, that hit a mark, but I feel like hasnt been respected they way I feel they should respect this person.

DX: What else youve got in 2008?
SM: 2008 is gonna be great. This Red deal is in place, so were gonna be dropping records each quarter. Im looking to drop four records next year. March 8 and 9, Im holding my annual One Stop Shop Producers Conference. Over 600 producers attended last year. Swizz is doing a lot with me on this one. Thats my way of giving back. After Jam Master Jay died, I lost somebody who was there for me as far as mentorship. Coming up in this industry, you need someone who helps you, guides you, gives you advice.