Big ups to my man BALANCE for grindin' and gettin his name out there.
AllHipHop.com
http://www.allhiphop.com/BreedingGround/
Balance: The New Bay
By Gooch
The Bay Area has produced some fine hip hop artists. Rappers such as Too Short and E-40 make it a point to rep the Bay Area with every chance they get. But there’s a new breed of emcees coming out of the Bay, and Balance, a witty, true-school artist who champions the days of real hip-hop lyricism and trunk rattling beats, now leads the pack. Armed with his new mixtape, The Day Kali Died, Balance shows us that this new breed is all about new ways of doing business, new ways of making music, and new ways of getting on. Frustrated with being turned away by A&Rs looking for carbon copy Ja Rules and Kanye Wests, Balance has taken to the streets like his Bay Area predecessors did. The results thus far have been positive, but as Balance tells us, there is much more to come.
Allhiphop: How old are you?
Balance: I’m 24
Allhiphop:How many years have you been into hip hop?
Balance: Shit man, ever since I was like…I been rapping since I was in elementary school like freestyling and shit but first time I ever recorded was like a freshman in high school so I guess like 15. So I been doing it for like hella years, but like 10, for like real real, like actually getting behind a mic in a booth.
Allhiphop: Where are you originally from and where are you representing right now?
Balance: I’m from Oakland, California. I’m from the Bay, was born in the Bay, rep the Bay, West Coast, reppin the West Coast and the Bay.
Allhiphop: The Bay Area is known for its underground scene. How do you feel about the scene right now out there?
Balance: I feel like it’s still hard though. It’s still hard to get out. Because the independent scene is so big out here. It’s like if you don’t got no name and you a new cat, no matter how hot you are, it’s kind of hard to get put on. I sort of did the same thing that cats was doing in New York. It’s like, I love New York. I love New York rap. I love how they do the mix cds and stuff. I kind of followed that. Like, I hit up all the mix cds out here in the Bay Area. I ain’t got my name up, so it’s no different. The only difference from here and other places is that there’s so many artists with labels and shit trying to make cds and music. The independent game out here is so huge. Damn near ain’t nobody on no major labels out here.
Allhiphop: Are you planning to stay with the mixtapes, or do you have a label that you’re trying to create?
Balance: I created a label for myself just in order to put my own cd out. I feel like you gotta be self contained. You gotta be able to do it on your own if you got to. I actually started my own label just because I was gonna be releasing things like my mix cd and all this other stuff. So it’s like I wanted to have my business straight on that end.
Allhiphop: What’s the name of the label?
Balance: AYINDE music. Basically it’s just my middle name. I kept it simple. I ain’t really trying to be no super mogul. I ain’t really trying to be Dame Dash but I understand if I’ma be putting out something I may be the one who has to out it out myself. Dame Dash and all them, I just came from LA at a hip hop summit and they said it’s like “man you gotta put this stuff out yourself.” Jay-z got turned down by every label.
Allhiphop: Who are some of the artists, not just limited to the Bay Area, but in general, that you look up to and that you have looked up before?
Balance: Man, Rakim! Like, Rakim was probably the first dude. He was gangsta too. West coast dudes was really trippin off Rakim cause Rakim was so advanced lyrically, but at the same time when you seen him he looked gangsta. Of course NWA, Too Short, and even like, a lot of cats didn’t know, but like a lot of cats in the Bay were feelin Nas when he first came out. We was knocking Nas.
Allhiphop: You were on Sway and Tech’s “Wakeup Show.” How did your appearance come about and how long ago was it?
Balance: For me, as a rapper growing up it was certain things that I wanted to be on, and the “Wakeup Show” was one of them. It was like the “Wakeup Show” was where Nas, Ras Kass, all the dudes came from, Chino. I hooked up with them because I was in the Bay one day and cause Sway and Tech is from the Bay, so I met up with them and I was like, “Man, I wanna get on ya’ll show.” They was like, “cool.” I gave em a song. They listened to it. They was like, “Come out to LA.” So me and my boy Locksmith, we just drove out to LA and got down. That was like 2 years ago. But then I just went back during the all-star break. I hit em up again.
Allhiphop: How long have you had the new mixtape out?
Balance: For like 3 weeks man. And it’s like out here man, it’s selling out of all the little mom and pop stores. I don’t have no major distribution. So it’s pretty much me going and hustling myself.
AllHipHop.com
http://www.allhiphop.com/BreedingGround/
Balance: The New Bay
By Gooch
The Bay Area has produced some fine hip hop artists. Rappers such as Too Short and E-40 make it a point to rep the Bay Area with every chance they get. But there’s a new breed of emcees coming out of the Bay, and Balance, a witty, true-school artist who champions the days of real hip-hop lyricism and trunk rattling beats, now leads the pack. Armed with his new mixtape, The Day Kali Died, Balance shows us that this new breed is all about new ways of doing business, new ways of making music, and new ways of getting on. Frustrated with being turned away by A&Rs looking for carbon copy Ja Rules and Kanye Wests, Balance has taken to the streets like his Bay Area predecessors did. The results thus far have been positive, but as Balance tells us, there is much more to come.
Allhiphop: How old are you?
Balance: I’m 24
Allhiphop:How many years have you been into hip hop?
Balance: Shit man, ever since I was like…I been rapping since I was in elementary school like freestyling and shit but first time I ever recorded was like a freshman in high school so I guess like 15. So I been doing it for like hella years, but like 10, for like real real, like actually getting behind a mic in a booth.
Allhiphop: Where are you originally from and where are you representing right now?
Balance: I’m from Oakland, California. I’m from the Bay, was born in the Bay, rep the Bay, West Coast, reppin the West Coast and the Bay.
Allhiphop: The Bay Area is known for its underground scene. How do you feel about the scene right now out there?
Balance: I feel like it’s still hard though. It’s still hard to get out. Because the independent scene is so big out here. It’s like if you don’t got no name and you a new cat, no matter how hot you are, it’s kind of hard to get put on. I sort of did the same thing that cats was doing in New York. It’s like, I love New York. I love New York rap. I love how they do the mix cds and stuff. I kind of followed that. Like, I hit up all the mix cds out here in the Bay Area. I ain’t got my name up, so it’s no different. The only difference from here and other places is that there’s so many artists with labels and shit trying to make cds and music. The independent game out here is so huge. Damn near ain’t nobody on no major labels out here.
Allhiphop: Are you planning to stay with the mixtapes, or do you have a label that you’re trying to create?
Balance: I created a label for myself just in order to put my own cd out. I feel like you gotta be self contained. You gotta be able to do it on your own if you got to. I actually started my own label just because I was gonna be releasing things like my mix cd and all this other stuff. So it’s like I wanted to have my business straight on that end.
Allhiphop: What’s the name of the label?
Balance: AYINDE music. Basically it’s just my middle name. I kept it simple. I ain’t really trying to be no super mogul. I ain’t really trying to be Dame Dash but I understand if I’ma be putting out something I may be the one who has to out it out myself. Dame Dash and all them, I just came from LA at a hip hop summit and they said it’s like “man you gotta put this stuff out yourself.” Jay-z got turned down by every label.
Allhiphop: Who are some of the artists, not just limited to the Bay Area, but in general, that you look up to and that you have looked up before?
Balance: Man, Rakim! Like, Rakim was probably the first dude. He was gangsta too. West coast dudes was really trippin off Rakim cause Rakim was so advanced lyrically, but at the same time when you seen him he looked gangsta. Of course NWA, Too Short, and even like, a lot of cats didn’t know, but like a lot of cats in the Bay were feelin Nas when he first came out. We was knocking Nas.
Allhiphop: You were on Sway and Tech’s “Wakeup Show.” How did your appearance come about and how long ago was it?
Balance: For me, as a rapper growing up it was certain things that I wanted to be on, and the “Wakeup Show” was one of them. It was like the “Wakeup Show” was where Nas, Ras Kass, all the dudes came from, Chino. I hooked up with them because I was in the Bay one day and cause Sway and Tech is from the Bay, so I met up with them and I was like, “Man, I wanna get on ya’ll show.” They was like, “cool.” I gave em a song. They listened to it. They was like, “Come out to LA.” So me and my boy Locksmith, we just drove out to LA and got down. That was like 2 years ago. But then I just went back during the all-star break. I hit em up again.
Allhiphop: How long have you had the new mixtape out?
Balance: For like 3 weeks man. And it’s like out here man, it’s selling out of all the little mom and pop stores. I don’t have no major distribution. So it’s pretty much me going and hustling myself.
