First of all I'd like to congratulate you on your last few albums. I really enjoyed them especially Ghetto Politics, which remains a favorite of mine. Can you start off by telling our readers a bit about yourself?

Well I'm native of Tacoma, Washington by way of Houston, Texas. I've been rapping as a professional now for 6 years. I've opened for many big acts and I own my own label. I have appeared in several hip hop magazines throughout the U.S. and I've networked globally through the internet to get my music to countries such as Canada, Sweden, and the U.K.

How did you hook up with Ras Kass and E-40?

Well I had already met and did shows with E-40 before we did our song together. We actually hooked up on the song after we both were trying to buy the same beat from my playa-partna, FunkDaddy. We got on the phone, and chopped it up and the rest was history. As far as Ras, I was introduced to him by my Portland partna, Cool Nutz. I brought him up to Tacoma for a show and next thing you know, we were doing a song together.

Can you tell us a bit about the scene in the North West.

Well the NW is still a pretty untampered area as far as the industry. Most people only know of Sir Mix-A-Lot for his grammy winning booty shaking track, "Baby Got Back". That's not to say that we don't have alot of important people in the business up here. Most of our people are just behind the scenes. We have gold producer, FunkDaddy who has made beats for E-40, the Click, Sir Mix-A-Lot, C-Bo, Eminem's group D-12, and a host of others. Platinum producer Bosko is originally from Portland and he has worked with countless stars like Junior Mafia, WC, Kurupt, and he has done over 45% of the production on the last 3 E-40 albums. We also have Cool Nutz, Portland's HIp Hop conissuer, who has now signed with Universal Records under the group D.B.A. and of course, you have me. But there are other talented artist as well.

What do you hate most about this industry?

The shadiness. Noone wants to put you up on game and everyone else wants to try and use you for what they can get. You get insulted alot by other upcoming groups who feel they are bigger than you and magazine, radio, and television don't support you unless you already going gold.

How many albums have you released and what releases do you have planned for the future?

To this date, I've released 2 singles and 2 albums. I have another single that will be out April 10th entitled, "Take It Off" and my compilation, "NW Ridin" will drop May 8th. I will appear on the "All or Nothing" soundtrack which comes out late April. I'm also wrapping up my label mate, Mac Money's debut album which is entitled "Tales of a G". It is scheduled to come out on Halloween. Plus, I'm working on my other label mate, Squeeze's album titled, "the Senator" and my 3rd album entitled, "Diabolical Deeds & Street Luv."

Any artists you'd like to work with?

Yeah, there are quite a few. But to keep it short, the main ones I would like to work with are Snoop Dogg, Jay-Z, the Doggpound, Redman, Eminem, Juvenile, Scarface, Too Short and R. Kelly.

Onto your unique style of rapping, how did that develop?

Oh, my underwater flow as I call it. Well that came from listening to alot of West Coast music and just being myself. I talk fast, so I rap fast. I didn't want to be like anyone else when I deliver my rhymes, so I began inventing my own slang. It quickly caught on, and ever since then I just been doing what I feel comfortable doing.

What is the purpose of your albums? What message are you trying to make?

From the business aspect, the purpose of my album is to get paid so that I can eat and have enough bread left over to put out another one. From the artist aspect, the purpose is to translate my feelings, knowledge, beliefs, and slang to hungry minds who want to see the reality I live in, as well as to keep people entertained.

Do you have any wize wordz for people coming out in this industry?

No doubt. Basically do your homework before you jump in. The door isn't as wide open as it was 10 yrs. ago. If you don't have the $ to compete with your competitors it might not be worth your hard earned chips. And if you already in the biz, don't ever think that there is nothing else you can do or accomplish. There is always something you can do to elevate your character.

I read that you were working on a movie, can you tell us a bit about that and when will it be available?

We are working on a documentary of NW hip hop. It will include interviews with the biggest names in the NW as well as videos, and live performances from E-40, Money B, Sir Mix-A-Lot, myself, Cool Nutz, E-Dawg, FunkDaddy, and more. Plus, behind the scenes footage. It promises to be very entertaining. We don't have a release date for it just yet, but we expect it to be out by January 2002.

Thanks for taking the time to talk to us, any last words?

Yeah, thanks for spending the time to cover me. Shots out to all my piranhas in them NW waters. If you don't have that Ghetto Politics, cop that! And wet ya spongue to some good listening. The compilation comes out May 8th. Both of these items plus my 1st release are available through CDBABY.COM. I need all the support I can get! One.

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