Illterviews - Quelle Chris Interview

Quelle Chris

Illterviews – Quelle Chris

Quelle Chris is a dope MC from Detroit, who's been putting the work in. We catch up with him to talk about his thoughts on UK Hip Hop, his past work, who he's worked with and much more!

Quelle Chris, introduce yourself; How did you get your name, how long have you been rapping

Howdy. I’m Quelle Chris. I’m from Detroit but live everywhere. My name came from school and is the end result of 4 years of ever-changing rap names and I started around 15 years ago. That’s a lot of questions in one question. Haha!

What projects have you put out in the past? How have they been received?

Yeesh. That’s a toughie. The most recent major releases were ‘Shotgun & Sleek Rifle’ and ‘2Dirt4TV’ which was completely produced by legend Dibia$e. I’m at around 13 releases so far. Some solo and others with my two groups. Crown Nation, which is Denmark Vessey, Mosel and I and the other group is a minimal wave/synth group called Awesome in Outer Space. All, of course, are received like a king returning from war. Parades and so on. I like to keep myself busy. I’ve also been in couple basement bands, drum circles, drunk people singing on the corner groups, etc. The only thing I’ve never done was join a church choir. Renegade shit.

You're from Detroit, which has a really dope hip hop scene, people like Phat Kat, Slum Village, Black Milk etc, and it has a really distinct scene. What do you think the best thing about rap music in Detroit is?

It's good!

Are you are of the hip hop scene over here in the UK? If so, what's your opinion of it?

Shits dope. I wish cats could get more play over here. Especially the Grime type shit. I was telling my homie from over that way, singer Fatima, that I just think it’s gonna take the right cat, with the right look and most important, a die hard allegiance to his/her sound. I think them grime cats could come over here and MURDER but I find that when someone does “crossover” they start assimilating sound wise rather than keeping it true to their sound. But yes, of course, yall got some beasts on that side. I’m looking forward to rockin with some of the cats over there. Not gonna drop any names though. Ha.

Where do you want to be in 5 years time?

 Somewhere in the world doing the same time for more people. A nice house and some good land I can farm. This is my drug. Naturally in five years I’ll need a larger fix to stay sane. At this point I feel I work with or know most of the cats I looked up to and/or would even want to work with. Blessed. So between now and then it’s simply make more music, more money, more places.

What other artists have you worked with in the scene?

Ahh. I see I have been forced to name drop, haha. I don’t wanna give away to much of whats coming on the next album but a lot of people know my work with Danny Brown from Detroit. I’ve worked with Roc Marciano, Guilty Simpson, Sean P, Oh No...really I hate name dropping. Can I stop there? Ha.

Who would you like to work with in the future?

 That’s hard to say. I meet so many great artists everyday that never get there propers so mostly the underdogs. Outkast or Goodie Mobb, specifically Khujo Goodie. I think he’s one the greatest of all time. Style wise I think Ab-Soul is pretty slick with it. Anyone from the Wu. Pharrell would be dope. Heard he has a mean work ethic but more than anything I wanna find out how he still looks 17. I’ve always been a D Double E fan. Wiley or Dot Rotten ( I know I cant choose sides. Ha) JME (mostly because of him police video collection. Fucking genius) I fuck with Big Narstie hard too. But yall gotta let me know who’s killer on the underground out there. Get at me.

What are you working on at the moment, any mixtapes or EPs etc? When can we expect them to come out?

 I have A TON on deck. Collabs with every fucking body I love musically. A new “full length” album on the way. Maybe drop another Memories (collections of unreleased songs) mixtape and another JockSin 6 beat tape in the between time. I don’t want to spoil any surprises but shits about to go crazy. For now just do to catch up work at thehttp://quellechris.bandcamp.com/

Any shout outs?

My fans, my brothers, my sisters, my mothers, my fathers, my cousins, my lady and music. Love y'all.

Let us know where to get in touch with you, and any links you want to promote!

@QuelleChris (on Twitter)
quellechris.bandcamp.com/ (for all the Music)
picsofjesustupacandquelle.tumblr.com/ (for the Lifestyle)
youtube.com/user/CrownNAtionable  (for the Videos)

Interview By Precinct Phantom

@TheRealPP

Illterviews - Rame Interview

Rame

Illterviews – Rame

Rame is a dope MC, hailing from Nottingham. We catch up with him to talk about mixtape DJs, the Nottingham scene and much more!

Rame, introduce yourself; How did you get your name, how long have you been rapping?

If you don’t already know, I go by the musical name of Rame (Rhemah) & I’ve only actually been rapping for two years. A lot of people think it’s been longer but I originally started as a DJ in 2004 & then I started writing lyrics on a Grime level in April, 2006. The name Rhemah came from me looking into spiritual names & it was a tie between Messiah & Rhemah. Because Messiah came across to satanic, I decided to go with Rhemah which is a Greek mythology for god of power & I feel that lyrically, knowledge is definitely power.

What projects have you put out in the past? How have they been received?

I’ve got many projects that are out there but I only feel the need to mention the material I’ve worked on in the past two years. I put out my 1^st EP ‘The Secret Unfolded’ in early 2011 which included five tracks & the only features were the five different producers I worked with (Steel Banglez, Bully, Lokes, Big White & Seeker). On Christmas Day, I released my 2^nd EP ‘Rhain Check’ which again included five tracks & once again, only features with producers. The Secret Unfolded was originally available through my own link which received over 2,000 downloads but sadly, due to many hosting websites getting closed down I lost the link & it is only available via Youtube. Rhain Check has received over 5,000 downloads & is available on Dat Piff, Hoodtapes, Get Nottz, Zaskia, Immortal Technique’s Forum & many other websites.

You've done some work with DJ Ames. How did you link up with him?

I found out about DJ Ames through two musicians/entrepreneurs by the names of Rukus & Reggiimental. I originally submitted a track for one of Ames’s Mixtape series & I got accepted. Due to malfunctions, the mixtape didn’t go through but I & Ames got talking, I told him about my EP & Ames said he wanted to host it for me. I finished the EP, mailed the mastered version across & we both inputted how the hosting of the EP would happen.

What do you think about the role of the mixtape DJ, is it something that still has significant importance?

Most definitely, mixtape DJ’s will always have a massive part to play in the whole music industry & I feel that if you want to pursue your career properly, you always need to be involved with DJ’s to be able to step on a higher platform.

Tell us about the Nottingham scene, and how you feel about it in comparison the the scene in the capital.

I could sit here & talk about the Nottingham scene all day, but sadly, I don’t think many people would be generally interested so I will break it down like this. In my opinion, Nottingham has some of the best uprising talent in the country. You’ve got the likes of Scorzayzee, Juganaut, Micky Grim, Ms Tempz, Fazerelly, Benny Blanko, Matic, Mindz, Landlordz & many more on the Hip Hop/Rap side & for Grime, theres the likes of Wariko, Fangol, Shadow, Jay Eye, NSB, Marvin, Wipz & so much more. Personally, I don’t want to compare Nottingham to London but I will say this, cities including London, Nottingham, Birmingham, Wolvez, Manchester, Sheffield & Peterborough is where it’s really at.

What other artists have you worked with in the scene?

I’ve worked with plenty of artists over the years; I don’t want to drop names because no doubt I will leave someone out but big up everyone I have worked with!

Who would you like to work with in the future?

From UK; Ghetts, Mic Righteous, Juganaut, Micky Grim, Mindz, Vader & Dot Rotten.

From America, it’d be Saigon, Cassidy, Vinnie Paz, Immortal Technique, The Game, Chris Brown, Frank Ocean & Diabolic.

What are you working on at the moment, any mixtapes or EPs etc? When can we expect them to come out?

My team, Rhymes Galore, & I are working on an EP entitled ‘Occupy All Streets’ & we are hopeful that it will be out in August. I, Finchie, Rage & Keyz from Rhymes Galore went on the Ms Tempz Show through Kemet Radio & the footage from that will be out on www.youtube.com/undergroundexposure in the next week or so.

Any shout outs?

Big up all my Rhymes Galore bruddas, shout out to Wipz, N.A.T, Biz, UGX, Ms Tempz, Kidda, Spoze, Roadworks, NC, Vader, Lawless & everyone else i’m working with!

Let us know where to get in touch with you, and any links you want to promote!

@RameRG – Twitter

www.rhemahofficial.co.uk

Rhemahofficial@hotmail.co.uk

www.facebook.com/rhemahrg

www.facebook.com/rhymesgalore

Interview By Precinct Phantom

@TheRealPP

Illterviews - Joe Snow Interview

Joe Snow

Illterviews – Joe Snow

Joe Snow is a dope MC from Leeds city. He's part of the rap group Defenders of Style. We catch up with him to talk about the battle culture, working with European artists, solo music and much more!

Joe Snow, introduce yourself; How did you get your name, how long have you been rapping?

Joe Snow is a name givin to me by a woman that I used to live inside of! Well, sort of. It's a shortened down version of my real name ‘Joe Snowden’

My other alias ‘LIP’ has a bit of better story behind it. When I was about 17 we were playing on a radio show in Newcastle. The night before we went out to a crazy rave put on by White Elephant Sounds. I had one of those blow your socks off ding dangs (that are quite hard to come by these days) and chewed my top lip until it inflated to 5 times its size. The next day on the radio the host ‘Drop Dead Fred’ asked us my name. I didn’t reply in time and the quick witted little fucker called us LIP, and it has stuck ever since.

I've been rapping since a young teenager, but the first time I played live was at a Foreign Beggers gig when I was about 17 in York. So I'd put that as the start of my ‘proffesional’ career.

What projects have you put out in the past? How have they been received?

I'm part of a crew called Defenders Of Style. Our first album was ‘Thoughts Of The Nameless’ which was an 18 track album that we released January 2009. This definately got us a lot of respect around our local scene but I'd say that it was our second album ‘Dolce Stil Nouvo’ that really started to push our name outside of Yorkshire. It's only after that we really started capitalising on the internet. With all these blogs and things like twitter and facebook it's a lot easier to push your music independently. So our most successful release so far has definately been our latest ‘Dirty Sterling’. We released it in January this year and it hits its max amount of downloads every month and has had a lot of good write ups.

They're all avalible at www.defendersofstyle.bandcamp.com and most are free of charge. So no exuses - go download them!!

You're from Leeds, which has a dope scene, and the whole WY movement is really making moves at the moment. What do you think has really set the ball rolling?

In one clichéd and horribly overused word Hunger, It's frustrating being an independent artist in the North. I mean the talent easily equals that of the South. Yet I bet most people outside of Yorkshire couldn't name more than 2 or 3 Yorkshire based MCs. It was quite clear that we all had to start promoting each other and sharing our contacts in order to progress as a scene.

Things like WY Cypher really pushed this. I mean as much as its about having a few beers, getting high and rapping frees about dog shit, It proper pushed everything to a next level in terms of collabs between crews and links within the scene.

You've also gotta remember that the heads on WY Cypher are still only the tip of the iceberg of WY talent and over the next few years I'd put money on a lot of fresh WY MCs coming out of the woodwork.

You also work with Defenders of Style. Let us know about that crew, who's in it etc! Also, do you intend to do any solo work?

Defenders Of Style is Me, Jack Danz, Prys, Disgust and DMC finalist DJ Sirplus (that he'll hopefully change to DMC champ after the 20^th)

Danz does all the production and is a boom bap DON - that’s said in the most modest way possible.

I am working on a solo album which I'll drop next year.It has beats from a lot of different producers on it and has some nice collabs thrown in there as well. So that’s one to watch for.

You've battled in Don't Flop a couple of times. What inspired you to get involved in the movement, and what's your opinion of the battle culture today?

This is a question that is getting asked a lot at the moment, and quite honestly, my opinion changed with every argument that I read. I enjoy battling, and I always have, so when I came back from travelling and all my mates were banging on about this new battle league, I knew it was something that I'd wanna have a crack at. It's pushed my music forward and i've had a lot of good weekends getting drunk, and listening to 2 guys rip the piss out of each other. It will always take a backseat to my music, but it is something that I enjoy doing, and it's good to keep you on your toes.

I think it's good in moderation. If you spend your whole time battling, and ain't putting out good music, I personally think you're missing the point, and if you think you're above battling because your music is dope and you don't need the promotion that it brings, then one of these days a young 17 or 18 year old might just jump up and make a fool out of you on your own stage.

It's definitely earnt its place in the scene, and doesn't look like it's going anywhere, so my main ambition is to make these battle fans buy my music, and turn up at my shows! So far, it's going good!

What other artists have you worked with in the scene?

We've mainly been working within the WY scene at the moment, so recently i've been working with heads like Chief Wigz and Fly Tippers, Jack Flash, Matter, Lego, JND & Teknico.

Who would you like to work with in the future?

There are a lot of people that i'm meant to be hitting the studio with over the rest of the year. Granville Sessions, Res, Blizzard, BTR Fam. They're all in the pipeline, but i'm looking to collab with some European artists. We've had a lot of good feedback from Europe, and are looking to plan a tour there for next year. I'm quite a fan of French Hip Hop, and heard some crazy flows while hitting a few stages in Paris, so that would be live!

What are you working on at the moment, any mixtapes or EPs etc? When can we expect them to come out?

Well this last week i've been finishing off my bars for my battle in Glasgow against Physiks.

As far as albums, we're going to have a new Defenders Of Style album out towards the end of the year, and then my solo album next year sometime. Oh and I'm costantly writing Lego's freestyles for the cyphers. You're gonna have to start paying us one of these days lad.

Any shout outs?

DS. WY. BTR. DF

Let us know where to get in touch with you, and any links you want to promote!

DOWNLOAD ALL THE MUSIC AT WWW.DEFENDERSOFSTYLE.BANDCAMP.COM

Follow us on twitter @joesnowds

@dsfam

Interview By Precinct Phantom

@TheRealPP

Illterviews - OYG redruM781 Interview

OYG redruM781

Illterviews – OYG redruM781

OYG redruM781 is a veteran of the West Coast rap scene. We catch up with him to talk about his work ethic, mainstream rappers, his international collaborations and much more!

OYG redruM781, introduce yourself; How did you get your name, how long have you been rapping?

What's up? I'm OYG redruM781 the one and only! Bloody Mary gave me my name, and I gave her hers! I've been at this since 1986!

What projects have you put out in the past? How have they been received?

Banging On Wax – This is damn near platinum worldwide, since 1993!

Damu Riders 2

Murder Was The Case

Rep Yo Set

Flamin 2

All of these are gangsta records, received very well!

The west coast has long had a dope hip hop scene, with lots of diverse music being made. Tell us about the scene over there, and who should our UK readers check out?

The music pretty much describes the scene over here, although it has mellowed down drastically, but it's still violent nonetheless. I really can't say who to check out due to the fact that I don't really listen to anybody! I'm not really interested!

Are you aware of the UK hip hop scene? If so, what do you think about international hip hop?

Um yeah, I am. I actually have 2 songs with S.A.S.. I also have a project i'm working on called 'No Passport'. This allows me to travel the world lyrically and never have left America. I have Asian, German, Dutch, Russian, Italian, English & French artists on there so far, and i'm still looking for a few more! Hip Hop Let's Go!

Coming from the underground scene, and really respresenting the street life, do you feel like mainstream hip hop artists fabricate certain aspects to sell records? What's your take on this?

I feel Mainstream artists are doing as much damage as the record companies themselves. For real though! They do the ethnic dirty work for the companies, while putting themselves in position. At the end of the day their motive was for self and that's it. I could go on and on!

What other artists have you worked with in the scene?

I work with up and coming artists rather than Industry artists. There are extremely few people in the industry that I have worked with.

Who would you like to work with in the future?

I wanna throw bars with the best in the industry. I wanna show y'all what I can do, and not just on Gangsta tracks!

What are you working on at the moment, any mixtapes or EPs etc? When can we expect them to come out?

Actually, i've been working on my catalogue. My work ethic won't let me work on 1 thing, so I multi task. It does get congested but I work through it. I have no release dates yet, but i've gotta lot of music and bars for yo ass!

Any shout outs?

West Upper to my family, to everybody that knows me personally, that I know personally, that respects me and my music, those that still believe in me and what i'm doing. And a Whoooop to all y'all that's riding with me to get this shit back right.

Let us know where to get in touch with you, and any links you want to promote!

Http://www.OYGredruM781.com

Http://www.reverbnation/OYGredruM781

Http://www.youtube.com/theREALredruM781

Http://www.facebook.com/O.Y.G.redruM781

Http://www.myspace.com/OYG_redruM781

Http://www.soundcloud.com/O-Y-G-redruM781

Http://www.twitter.com/OYG_redruM781

Thanks for the interview, thanks for reading it, and listening to my music!

Interview By Precinct Phantom

@TheRealPP

Illterviews - Ill Mill Interview

Ill Mill

Illterviews - Ill Mill

Ill Mill is a veteran of the UK rap scene. We catch up with him to talk about what he's working on at the moment, the differences between when he started making music and now, what projects he's put out in the past and much more!

Ill Mill, introduce yourself; How did you get your name, how long have you been rapping?

What's good people, it's your boy Ill Mill, the name came about from a family name before rap, I've been rapping since 2001 but took it seriously from 2003 and i've always been writing lyrics since school.

What projects have you put out in the past? How have they been received?

By August I will have put out 6 solo projects. These include the Salute Me When I Pass trilogy, Mack Millie and Slim Face Baby Gangster which will be out in august, plus multiple other group projects with Vigorous Productions. They all received a good response and feed back from the fans!

You're one of the veterans of the UK rap game. There are more artists around now than there ever has been. Do you think this is 100% a positive thing?

I think the game growing is a good thing and it provides chances for other artists, producers, camera men and even websites etc etc. But there needs to be some kind of quality control.

The Black Album was a piece of history in terms of UK Rap. You've been putting out quality music since then as well. Where do you think the music you put out now compares with the first album and the early mixtapes?

Nothing can compare with the past 'cos the past is the past, but i've grown and I'm a much better artist now, simple … practise makes better.

Tell us about the SMS movement. Who's involved in it, and what projects have come out from the artists in the camp?

SMS was formed in 2001. We officially put out our first album in 2003 called The Black Album, the movement is a street based organisation; every member at some point in his life was on the streets doing what he had to do to survive and this is the life style we express through our music. SMS is a part of Vigorous Productions which includes: Spoon, Bennett, Fee Fee, Big Simz, Tokes, Jah Yout, D.D and Stinks. They've released: Stinks- One Of A Kind, Big Simz - Another Day Another Pound, Big Simz and Hardoe - Got It In A Drought, Fee Fee- Me Myself, Fee Fee - Pay Attention & Fee Fee - Then There Was Fee.

What other artists have you worked with in the scene?

Everyone who i've needed to work with in the uk scene

Who would you like to work with in the future?

James Blunt, Coldplay, Alicia Keys, Mary J Blige, Jay-Z, Joe, Dr. Dre & a few more names of that calibre that I grew up listening to!

What are you working on at the moment, any mixtapes or EPs etc? When can we expect them to come out?

Right now im working on S.F.B.G: Slim Face Baby Gangsta. It should be out on itunes from the 20^th August 2012! It should be very epic; most of the production on that mixtape / street album is from California so its got a nice feel to it with banging slapping beats but with a UK artist which makes it a great thing and something that ain't been done before over here!

Any shout outs?

Shout out to the whole of Vigorous Productions, SMS, Spoon, Roblo, Bandit, AK47, 3 Stinks, 3 Simz, Loonatic Beats, Antwill, Preston Play, English, Fe Fee, all the people that support me, and all the fans most definitely!

Let us know where to get in touch with you, and any links you want to promote!

@IllMillSMS1

Interview By Precinct Phantom

@TheRealPP

Illterview - FlipG Interview

FlipG

Illterviews – FlipG

FlipG is a rapper from Nashville. We catch up with him to talk about the scene in his hometown, what projects he's put out, who he'd like to work with and more!

Flip G, introduce yourself; How did you get your name, how long have you been rapping?

What's good..It's FlipG straight outta Nashville, Tn. My original nickname is Flip, the G was added to avoid any confusion of who I am. I've been making music for 12 years!

What projects have you put out in the past? How have they been received?

I started in a duo with my cousin Breezy, we were known as Yung Thuggz. Together we released 1 album (Open Minded) and 2 mixtapes (Everbody's A Victim vol.1 and 2) which all was released locally. Now we're with Breed Nation Ent. We have released 2 mixtapes (Tsu homecoming and UKWII 2) available at www.breednation.com. I just released my first solo Album "What It G"(BREED NATION ENT)

Tell us about the Nashville hip hop scene!

The scene here is starting to build. There are a lot of talented artists here that are finally getting some recognition!

Are you aware of the UK hip hop scene? If so, what do you think about international hip hop, and would you want to work with artists outside of the States?

I've only heard about the UK scene but from I've heard its a great scene. I would love to work and create music with all different types of artists, so yeah I would work outside the U.S.!

Where do you want to be in 5 years time?

5 years from now I want to be a very successful Independent artist

What other artists have you worked with in the scene?

YdotGperiod, Michael MF Breed,.Winkz Rippa, Kenny P, Milli,Awol And Six, and all of these are apart of Breed Nation Ent

Who would you like to work with in the future?

I would like to work with any artist that has a good work ethic as well as talent!

What are you working on at the moment, any mixtapes or EPs etc? When can we expect them to come out?

I'm always recording music but my main focus is to push the What It G album..available for free download at http://www.datpiff.com/FlipG-What-It-G-mixtape.369158.html

Any shout outs?

Shout to Nashville I love my city..pay attention to us because we coming!!! And also BREED NATION ENT..WE HERE!!!!! And to you homie!

Let us know where to get in touch with you, and any links you want to promote!

Twitter @flipg615

Facebook mac flip

breednation.com

Flipg.fg@gmail.com

Interview By Precinct Phantom

@TheRealPP

Illterviews - Wizard Interview

Wizard

Illterviews – Wizard

Wizard is a Producer and Rapper who has worked with many of the UK's top Hip Hop artists. We catch up with him to talk about diversity, sampling, who he's worked with and much more!

Wizard, introduce yourself; How did you get your name, how long have you been producing & rapping?

Wizard aka Big Wiz got my name from my magic wand disappearing down girls throats, been making beats for around 5 years, rapping longer but i’m semi retired now from that!

What projects have you put out in the past? How have they been received?

I've put out loads of instrumental projects including the chill pill series (1, 2, 3), dutty gash face music, 808’s and protein shakes, lobster music vol.1 (with my dude scizzahz) also albums featuring artists from the uk and us ‘ear to the beat’ and‘ that work’ plus my collaboration album with jack flash called ‘progression’ all been received very very well...obviously!

You're beats are very diverse, personally I wouldn't say there is just one strict sound to your instrumentals. Is this something you're conscious of, and do you think it benefits you?

Yeah, cheers! I don't have a certain sound at all i make the chilled stuff to the smack your nans face with a carp type beats and yeah it benefits me a lot!

Which producers have influenced you and why?

There are too many to mention, but the main ones are Madlib and DJ Khalil!

Do you think sampling is still of extremely high importance in Hip Hop today? Is it something you incorporate yourself?

It ain't important at all, i do it sometimes whenever i feel it, if you can do both non sample and sample you’re good!

What other artists have you worked with in the scene?

Sonnyjim, Foreign Beggars, Ill Bill, Ramson Badbonez, Lunar C, Pace Won, Oh No, Jack Flash, Stig Of The Dump, Tex Kidd, Wordsworth & tons more!

Who would you like to work with in the future?

50 Cent & MMG!

What are you working on at the moment, any mixtapes or EPs etc? When can we expect them to come out?

Yeah, a new album with Jack Flash (out later in the year), EP with Sonnyjim (out later in the year), Chill Pill 4 (august time) and Lobster Music 2 with Scizzahz (later in the year).

Any shout outs?

KFC

Let us know where to get in touch with you, and any links you want to promote!

twitter.com/wizardbeats

wizardbeats.bandcamp.com

wizardbeats@gmail.com  (to purchase beats from me)

Interview By Precinct Phantom

@TheRealPP