taken from Sohh.com
Pressure. There's a lot of it floating around Roc-A-Fella's offices nowadays. With their top MC, Jay-Z, calling it a career, the weight quickly shifts to the whole camp, in particular its two veterans, Memphis Bleek and Beanie Sigel. Bleek's been ready for the inevitable since Vol. 2 Hard Knock Life, where he was formally introduced as "the new improved Jay-Z." Now, it's all up to Bleek and Beans to lead the Roc into a new era. M. Easy's third solo effort, M.A.D.E., will serve as a barometer as how far Bleek can take the Roc. Pressure? Just a little bit.
How was the vibe amongst the Roc family at Jay-Z's farewell concert at Madison Square Garden?
The vibe was there. The whole team was there. Beans was there, Free, The Young Gunz, me, like everybody was there. The dynasty was on once again. It's the Garden, man. I'm from New York so you grow up wishing you could always rock the Garden. To be in there you got to give it your all.
Where would you be without Jay?
I don't know. I've never tried to make a demo tape and try to get a label deal. I can't even tell what I've been doing. I live everyday at a time. I don't plan out. I don't say two years from now I'ma have a record deal. I never lived like that. It either happened it or it didn't.
When it did happen, what was your first reaction? Did you know how to go about it?
Definitely not...I was only 16. I ain't know nothing. I learned everything I know in this business from Jay and what my two eyes have seen.
What's the craziest sh!t your eyes have seen? Industry-wise and street-wise.
Ain't nothing topping the Garden, that's the craziest sight I've ever seen as far as industry. Rocking your whole town, the whole Brooklyn in there, the whole NY in there. The craziest sh!t I've ever seen in my life is this ni99a's head come off his shoulders in the projects (laughs). It was someone I knew. It's the 'hood. You grow up killing each other. That's the way they train us.
Is there any training in putting an album out?
Nah, I just sit there and think about all the problems I'm going through. All the good things that are happening at the time and just put it down. That's how I feel. Every song there's a feeling. That's the mood I'm in. All I got do is be in the zone and it's a go.
Are you in the zone on your new joint?
Yeah, I'm on a whole other zone on this one. This zone or this one, I'm in a grown-man zone. Apparently I ain't no child. I ain't gonna lie to you and tell you I'm the richest man because everyone goes through problems. It's real music. I look at it like, Jay's leaving, and that's the last of real music from this NY side. I mean who else could tell you a real story from his life and be as interesting as Jay's. I decided to give my life a try. I'ma tell 'em about my struggle.
Do you think the public is behind you?
The public is more behind me than anything. I'm one of the artists who don't get 1,000 spins. I get the underhand from everybody. If Jay don't do the radio show they don't play my record. It's that real.
So payola does exist in urban radio?
It's the gift and the curse. It's the business. You gotta roll with the punches and come back stronger.
Did you see the punches flown to get to Jay's hat at MSG?
(Laughs) Yeah man, that was two dudes fighting over Jay's hat.
Did he notice?
I don't know if he noticed but he didn't let them throw him out of his zone.
Did that ever happen at one of your concerts?
Yeah definitely...I'm in the club. It's more frequent where I'm at. The Tunnel is [always crazy].
Can you remember a situation?
I can't even explain it in words. You have to be there. 5,000 people jammed in one little room and everybody going crazy...you can't explain that.
So what can you explain?
My album! December 16th, M.A.D.E.
You kept on promoting your album on MTV's freestyle contest.
Definitely that's all I'm worried about.
Did you agree with who won that battle?
Nope. I wanted the blind guy to win. He was nice. Everybody else was just jokers, laughing making funny jokes not real rapping.
What's real rap?
Real life sh!t. Struggle. How a blind man can spit a rhyme about someone he can't see. That's real rapping. If you can talk about something that makes sense, it don't gotta be funny.
What's funny to you?
sh!t hey a joke. Not when you're rapping.
Who's the funniest comedian?
Chris Tucker. You see, you don't have to do movies back to back when your first movie grosses over a hundred or something. It's like a rapper. You ain't gonna see Eminem drop an album the same year if his album just sold 10 million.
DMX put out two albums in one year.
Hey that was him. He was fresh out the 'hood and hungry.
Are you hungry on your new album?
Definitely, I want to get into that - that's what I thought this was about. Yeah, yeah, the album December 16th M.A.D.E., the realest thing to happen to hip-hop ya heard me.
What does it take to be a made man on the ROC?
It ain't nothing to do with Roc-A-Fella. Made men is knowing who you are to yourself. I ain't down with no gang. I'm my own gang. I'm the killer, the nice man, I'm everything in one. That's what it takes to get made -- money, attitude, direction, education. Ain't nothing to do with the mob or no gang. You know when you're made. You know when you're a man and you know who you are. Some people still don't know who they are.
Talking about education, last year Brooklyn College banned you from performing on their campus.
Hey it's cool with me.
So you didn't care.
Nah, why I care for they gonna put me in the club. I didn't ask to go there.
Getting back to the Roc's situation, with Jay leaving does that leave the responsibility on you?
It's on everybody. If they ever wanna see a crowd like Madison Square Garden they better be thinking like me.
It's basically you, Beans, Kanye (cutoff in mid sentence)
Damn! I didn't know a new artist that got down with us can be mentioned in the same sentence as me and Beans so quick. I thought you had to put in work. Kanye didn't put in no work. He dropped one record. He's an ill producer but damn! Me and Beans, we're the veterans of this, nobody else is. Nobody! If you can think of any rapper on this label, I don't care who the hell they are, if it's not Bleek, Beans or Jay it don't register to me. They're not the veterans. It's up to me and Beans to step up, takeover and lead our crew.
Are you up for the challenge?
I've always been up to the challenge. You'll see. I don't like to talk. Let my music talk for itself. Straight up.
Sounds like Bleek has a lil hate in em at Kanye being mentioned. I do kinda agree though. Dudes been down since '96 and has always been overlooked and all of a sudden Kanye comes out with fire and everybody loves him. Im a Kanye fan 2 so dont think Im hating, just saying I would kinda amped 2 if a nigga just got in and they peeps was already talkin about him leading the way.
FIT
Pressure. There's a lot of it floating around Roc-A-Fella's offices nowadays. With their top MC, Jay-Z, calling it a career, the weight quickly shifts to the whole camp, in particular its two veterans, Memphis Bleek and Beanie Sigel. Bleek's been ready for the inevitable since Vol. 2 Hard Knock Life, where he was formally introduced as "the new improved Jay-Z." Now, it's all up to Bleek and Beans to lead the Roc into a new era. M. Easy's third solo effort, M.A.D.E., will serve as a barometer as how far Bleek can take the Roc. Pressure? Just a little bit.
How was the vibe amongst the Roc family at Jay-Z's farewell concert at Madison Square Garden?
The vibe was there. The whole team was there. Beans was there, Free, The Young Gunz, me, like everybody was there. The dynasty was on once again. It's the Garden, man. I'm from New York so you grow up wishing you could always rock the Garden. To be in there you got to give it your all.
Where would you be without Jay?
I don't know. I've never tried to make a demo tape and try to get a label deal. I can't even tell what I've been doing. I live everyday at a time. I don't plan out. I don't say two years from now I'ma have a record deal. I never lived like that. It either happened it or it didn't.
When it did happen, what was your first reaction? Did you know how to go about it?
Definitely not...I was only 16. I ain't know nothing. I learned everything I know in this business from Jay and what my two eyes have seen.
What's the craziest sh!t your eyes have seen? Industry-wise and street-wise.
Ain't nothing topping the Garden, that's the craziest sight I've ever seen as far as industry. Rocking your whole town, the whole Brooklyn in there, the whole NY in there. The craziest sh!t I've ever seen in my life is this ni99a's head come off his shoulders in the projects (laughs). It was someone I knew. It's the 'hood. You grow up killing each other. That's the way they train us.
Is there any training in putting an album out?
Nah, I just sit there and think about all the problems I'm going through. All the good things that are happening at the time and just put it down. That's how I feel. Every song there's a feeling. That's the mood I'm in. All I got do is be in the zone and it's a go.
Are you in the zone on your new joint?
Yeah, I'm on a whole other zone on this one. This zone or this one, I'm in a grown-man zone. Apparently I ain't no child. I ain't gonna lie to you and tell you I'm the richest man because everyone goes through problems. It's real music. I look at it like, Jay's leaving, and that's the last of real music from this NY side. I mean who else could tell you a real story from his life and be as interesting as Jay's. I decided to give my life a try. I'ma tell 'em about my struggle.
Do you think the public is behind you?
The public is more behind me than anything. I'm one of the artists who don't get 1,000 spins. I get the underhand from everybody. If Jay don't do the radio show they don't play my record. It's that real.
So payola does exist in urban radio?
It's the gift and the curse. It's the business. You gotta roll with the punches and come back stronger.
Did you see the punches flown to get to Jay's hat at MSG?
(Laughs) Yeah man, that was two dudes fighting over Jay's hat.
Did he notice?
I don't know if he noticed but he didn't let them throw him out of his zone.
Did that ever happen at one of your concerts?
Yeah definitely...I'm in the club. It's more frequent where I'm at. The Tunnel is [always crazy].
Can you remember a situation?
I can't even explain it in words. You have to be there. 5,000 people jammed in one little room and everybody going crazy...you can't explain that.
So what can you explain?
My album! December 16th, M.A.D.E.
You kept on promoting your album on MTV's freestyle contest.
Definitely that's all I'm worried about.
Did you agree with who won that battle?
Nope. I wanted the blind guy to win. He was nice. Everybody else was just jokers, laughing making funny jokes not real rapping.
What's real rap?
Real life sh!t. Struggle. How a blind man can spit a rhyme about someone he can't see. That's real rapping. If you can talk about something that makes sense, it don't gotta be funny.
What's funny to you?
sh!t hey a joke. Not when you're rapping.
Who's the funniest comedian?
Chris Tucker. You see, you don't have to do movies back to back when your first movie grosses over a hundred or something. It's like a rapper. You ain't gonna see Eminem drop an album the same year if his album just sold 10 million.
DMX put out two albums in one year.
Hey that was him. He was fresh out the 'hood and hungry.
Are you hungry on your new album?
Definitely, I want to get into that - that's what I thought this was about. Yeah, yeah, the album December 16th M.A.D.E., the realest thing to happen to hip-hop ya heard me.
What does it take to be a made man on the ROC?
It ain't nothing to do with Roc-A-Fella. Made men is knowing who you are to yourself. I ain't down with no gang. I'm my own gang. I'm the killer, the nice man, I'm everything in one. That's what it takes to get made -- money, attitude, direction, education. Ain't nothing to do with the mob or no gang. You know when you're made. You know when you're a man and you know who you are. Some people still don't know who they are.
Talking about education, last year Brooklyn College banned you from performing on their campus.
Hey it's cool with me.
So you didn't care.
Nah, why I care for they gonna put me in the club. I didn't ask to go there.
Getting back to the Roc's situation, with Jay leaving does that leave the responsibility on you?
It's on everybody. If they ever wanna see a crowd like Madison Square Garden they better be thinking like me.
It's basically you, Beans, Kanye (cutoff in mid sentence)
Damn! I didn't know a new artist that got down with us can be mentioned in the same sentence as me and Beans so quick. I thought you had to put in work. Kanye didn't put in no work. He dropped one record. He's an ill producer but damn! Me and Beans, we're the veterans of this, nobody else is. Nobody! If you can think of any rapper on this label, I don't care who the hell they are, if it's not Bleek, Beans or Jay it don't register to me. They're not the veterans. It's up to me and Beans to step up, takeover and lead our crew.
Are you up for the challenge?
I've always been up to the challenge. You'll see. I don't like to talk. Let my music talk for itself. Straight up.
Sounds like Bleek has a lil hate in em at Kanye being mentioned. I do kinda agree though. Dudes been down since '96 and has always been overlooked and all of a sudden Kanye comes out with fire and everybody loves him. Im a Kanye fan 2 so dont think Im hating, just saying I would kinda amped 2 if a nigga just got in and they peeps was already talkin about him leading the way.
FIT
