“The Tuff Love Of Royce”

 An Interview with ROYCE: Justus Roe / DJ White Lightning and Jamie from Royce

 (Sept 2006)
 Interview by Todd E. Jones (aka The New Jeru Poet)
toddejones@yahoo.com
         
     Music is one of the most commanding and influential forms of love. In every metropolitan area, love comes in a myriad of forms. For the Chicago band, Royce, bittersweet love has prevailed throughout the many years. They have a love for Chicago. They have a love for each other. Most of all, they have a tough love for music. Do not confuse Royce with Detroit emcee, Royce Da 5’9”. The Chicago band, Royce is actually a complete group that creates more than just hip-hop music. Jamie Clemmons handles the vocals and guitars. Conor Klaus keeps the rhythm with the drums. Two of the members inhabit one human body. Justus Roe (bass player) is also known as DJ White Lightning, creator of the beats.
               Signed to the hip-hop label Galapagos 4, Royce offers more than “hip-hop” music. Although they create thick grooves and rhythms for emcees, their influences of European disco and indie rock shine through their music. “Subtleties Of The Game” (released on Galapagos 4) was Royce’s debut album. Although a majority of the album consisted of instrumentals, Jamie did provide his melodic vocals along with the emcee, Qwel. Recently, Royce released their 2006 sophomore album, “Tuff Love” on Galapagos 4. Their musical maturity is undeniable due to the various themes and styles. Vocally, more Galapagos 4 emcees contribute to the album. Mestizo & Offwhyte rhyme on “Ebbs and Flows”. Robust adds a verse on the song, “Girls on Bikes” (an ode to women who ride their bicycles). Dreas is featured on “Ocean Summer Mist”. The album’s most brilliant track, “City Heat” features Qwel and Meaty Ogre on the microphone.

      Royce is one of those rare, real indie bands. They are not constricted to an image or a fleeting trend. They are not a get rich quick scheme or an activist slogan on a t-shirt. They are not a gimmicky rock/hip-hop band. Instead, Royce consists of simply middle-class musicians from Chicago, who create thick grooves with some hip-hop and dance music.
 

        
TODD E. JONES: “What goes on?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING:  “Last night, we opened for Kool Keith. I’m hurting right now, but it was really cool to hang out with him for the brief time we did. He was touring the new Dr. Octagon CD. He was real cool. He’s a freak, man. What goes on? I’m working actually. If I told you where I was working, you wouldn’t believe me. I’ve got the best city job in Chicago. I’m sitting in a trailer, in a park, in air conditioning.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “You’re a park ranger?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING:  “Nah, I work for the city of Chicago, for this program. I sit in a trailer all day for the summer. I pass out government lunches to kids. That’s how I can afford to do Royce.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “The new Royce album, ‘Tuff Love’ was just released. Tell us about it.”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Basically, we did an album before that called ‘Subtleties Of The Game’. That was our little debut. It was kind of awkward because we are on Galapagos 4, which is a label with mainly hip-hop and we’re a live band. We were tough in the waters. It did pretty well. We got a good response. We toured that a little bit and we were just playing shows with all of the Galapagos 4 people. We thought we should do an album together and started to collaborate with the people there. We were getting out little electro-psychedelic pop thing in and combining them with the beats. We were getting into this new hip-hop pop, I guess.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “How was this album different from your debut album?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “There were a couple of songs done in Portuguese and Italian. On this album, our songs are in English. On this one, we have four or five duos from Galapagos 4. They either contribute beats or rhyming. I actually got Qwel to sing instead of rap. That was pretty cool. That was different.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “What was the recording process like for the new album? How was it different from other times?”
JAMIE: “‘Tuff Love’ was the first album we recorded at the Gentriphied Studio, which in itself, was a big change for us. The concept of the album also went through a number of changes, leaving behind some of the more light-hearted songs that were recorded in favor of a more somber, even dark feel that I still feel represents the experience of growing up in Chicago accurately. A lot of heart and soul went into making ‘Tuff Love’, making it reflect our youth, heartbreak through a full flavored sonic experience.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “I love the song, ‘Vladimir’.”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Yeah, it’s our ode to European discotheque.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “The song actually reminds me of Trisomie 21. Did you ever hear of them?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Oh, yeah. I think so.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “What inspired the song, ‘Vladimir’?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “For doing live shows, that was one of the easiest pre-set sounds on Micro Chord. It just sounded like every bad disco in Europe that we went to. We wanted to tweak it to make it good and add live Chicago house style disco music over it.”
 

 TODD E. JONES: “What is the meaning behind the title, ‘Tuff Love’?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “‘Tuff Love’ is that neighborhood mentality. There’s a history. People were harsh on you but that was because they were someone you love. We all grew up in Chicago. It’s kind of like reminiscing of growing up in Chicago, but also the longer perspective of how the city is going, and how most of the country is going. The gentrification! America, the superpower is taking over the world. Things that you thought would be forever are wiped out. Me and the lead singer grew up in this one neighborhood. Both of our families got financially forced out of it. The rent and taxes and all of that sh*t. We kept on moving further and further away from, at the time, was a beautiful environment to grow up in. We kept on thinking, ‘Why is that gone? Why aren’t we living on the block we grew up on with the families we grew up around?’ Now, we drive past the streets and there are these million dollar mansions. You can’t even touch it. There’s a lot to do with that. That’s just a middle class blanket. Think of that on a grander scale in Chicago with people who have no control over how their lives are dictated by the city. That’s the tough love, the toughness dictated by the neighborhood. That situation and that pressure.”
 

 TODD E. JONES: “Do you think that the middle class is dissolving?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “I don’t know. I don’t think it is dissolving, but it is definitely reached a point where we have to choose a side. You either have to be working in the financial industry to live in Chicago or you will be further out. There was this big flight to Chicago and it is re-landing now. All of these people are coming back into the city, pushing the local yokels out.”
 

 TODD E. JONES: “What’s the meaning behind the name, DJ White Lighting?”
JAMIE: “It’s Native American. It means, he who gives alligators back rubs.”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “DJ-ing many house parties growing up, I would go from hip-hop into funk into disco into house and at the peak of the house portion. When the entire party would be in the zone, I would drastically blend in classic rock hits as in Steely Dan, or the Cars or Fleetwood Mac. Hence forth, I was dubbed White Lightning. It may have also been my affinity for big bear malt liquor. Who knows?”
 

TODD E. JONES: “What is the main thing that every good DJ needs?”
JAMIE: “Good records.”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “A reason to make people celebrate.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “Favorite song on the ‘Tuff Love’?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “I think the one of the ones I listen to most is ‘Vladimir’. That’s up there. I also like ‘Milwaukee’. It was my favorite one to work on and the most lasting one. It’s tough to say.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “On the new album, which song took you the longest to do from conception to completion? Why?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “‘Milwaukee’ took a really long time. I felt like Brian Wilson long to get it done.”
  
TODD E. JONES: “What is the meaning behind the name Royce?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Well, the band grew up together. We were always friends. I got a bass and the drummer, Conor Klaus looked in a local paper for a drum set. He went and bought the cheapest drum kit possible, which was a Royce kit. We got to f*cking around. When it got time to figuring out a name, I was like, ‘It says Royce on the kit already. It will save us some time.’ As a joke, we called the band Royce and it just kind of stuck. It was a high school move. We were going to call it Nakatomi Plaza or Die Hard.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “How did you meet everyone in the group and decide to form Royce? Was there a philosophy behind the group?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Me and the lead singer grew up together. The band and I all went to the same high school. That’s basically when we came together and started doing music. I was already into music. I was way into recording”
 

TODD E. JONES: “How have your parents influenced your music?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “My dad was kind of a rock star in the 70’s a little bit. His story is real interesting. He was in a band, The Messengers, which was going to be the first white band signed to Motown. He was so young and he needed his parents to sign the contract. My grandfather read over it and he was like, ‘No. We’re not going to sign this’. It was basically a raw deal. My dad went from that. He did an album in L.A. on Asylum. This was before it became Elektra/Asylum. He played with a lot of people. He moved to Chicago, did a couple projects. He’s basically a singer/songwriter. He does music a little bit. It’s pretty crazy. He was always ahead of the game. He was trading in all of his instruments and analog stuff to go digital, before anyone went digital. He had one of the first digital converters. There were always drum machines around. That’s how I started doing music. I definitely got my hands on drum machines pretty early in life. He was always pushing me to do live music too.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “Do you have a favorite instrument?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Not really. I love playing the bass, but I like to play a little bit of everything, definitely. I’m playing more guitar these days. I do like the MPC.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “When creating a track, do you have a set theme or idea first or the music first?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “It will usually come out of us just trying different rhythms.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “So, the music of Royce is based on improvisation?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Yeah. We’ll come up with a little hook here and there. We’ll overwork it and reform it so many times that we will come up with different sections and grooves. I bought this cheap Hammond organ and a lot of the tracks, like the backing tracks, came from that.”
 

 TODD E. JONES: “On the song, ‘Power, Money And Influence’ from Guru’s ‘Version 7.0: The Street Scriptures’ album, Talib Kweli remarks that Pro-Tools made producers lazy. Do you agree?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Yeah, I abstain from Pro-Tools. I don’t use it ever. It’s kind of changed now, but I don’t know. For a while, I’ve worked with many engineers. Did you ever hear a really great record that you want to hear forever that was done on Pro-Tools? A lot of people will say, ‘No.’ If you ask someone their favorite rap album or rock album or whatever, the album was usually done on some really simple equipment and done on tape. That forces you to look at it in a different way. Pro-Tools is like cut and paste. You can do great things. I’ve heard great things from that style of recording, but there’s something about analog that forces decision making.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “There have been actual scientific experiments between the analog and digital recording.”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Oh yeah! In digital recording, you lose a lot of the frequencies. For digital, it’s not the same thing. It’s not the same warmth. There is something to be said for digital recording. You can do a lot of cool shit. It’s making it acceptable. I’m waiting for people to do something really cool with it.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “Who are some artists or producers you would like to collaborate with in the future?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Geez. I don’t even know. I want to work with The Zombies. I’d love to do a beat for MF Doom some day. I want to work with Stereolab!”
 

TODD E. JONES: “I also love the collaboration between Common and Stereolab called, ‘New Wave’.”

JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Yeah. Awesome! That guy’s the sh*t. I’d love to get in their studio for the day.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “Galapagos 4 is mainly a hip-hop label. Royce has hip-hop roots, but there is a strong electronic and pop element. How has this been an obstacle?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “It hasn’t been an obstacle at all. It’s been a great vehicle to get us out to the world. Especially, the Galapagos 4 fan base is pretty open to everything out. I don’t think they are pigeonholed into just hip-hop. Occasionally, we’ll do hip-hop shows where people don’t know Galapagos 4. They don’t know how to react to us. They think that they are going to a hip-hop show and it is implied, but when they get something different, it’s kind of hard to accept it right away. If you go to a total Galapagos 4 show which includes all of the DJ’s and different groups, it will all make sense. Then, they will be like, ‘Oh! I get it!’ Then, they can recognize that Royce is doing fresh music.”

 TODD E. JONES: “Many hip-hop groups, like Atmosphere, are working with live bands on stage.”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “There’s something about the energy of actually doing something live on stage. The emotion that it brings out? An iPod can’t hold that. Although an iPod can do great things.”
TODD E. JONES: “How did you get the deal with Galapagos 4?”
JAMIE: “Did you ever see ‘The Muppets Take Manhattan’? It was kind of like that. Just a lot of persistence, Tombstone pizzas, and falafel. Also, we raced Huffys together, which led to a deep bond never to be broken.”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Threatening phone calls, creditors, repo men, and everyone pulling together to make it happen.”
  TODD E. JONES: “What are some major misconceptions do you think people have of you?”
JAMIE: “That I can dunk.  Sure, I look like I should be able to stuff a fool 180 degrees from the base line, but I prefer to pop the 3 point.”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “That I like hip hop- when it is clearly rap that moves me.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “Has having white people in the group been an obstacle in hip-hop?”
JAMIE: “No.  Hip Hop isn’t about being a particular race.”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Not in hip hop, but there have been a few rap crowds that were tough to win over.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “Who are your biggest influences?”
JAMIE: “Nick Spizzirri, our newest member.  He’s got that wild style.”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Early Chicago house DJ’s, Prince Paul, Kool Keith, T-Rex, Brian Wilson, Brian Eno, acid house  and acid, Tropicalia Records, Zombies, Steve Albini, Medusas and Club Neo in Chicago, Yaz, Pet Shop Boys, Caetano Veloso, Marcos Valle, Vincent Gallo, Ween, and my dad.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “What are some of your favorite films?”
JAMIE: “‘Donny Darko’, ‘Pee Wee’s Big Adventure’, ‘Predator’, ‘Enter the Dragon’, ‘Amadeus’, ‘Amelie’, and anything with Clint Eastwood.”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “‘The Big Lebowski’.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “Where were you on the September 11th terrorist attack? How did you handle it?”
JAMIE: “I was working at a bookstore. At first, it wasn’t clear what had happened although I was sent home, which was nice.  I had made it to my friend’s house and was on the couch with a Old Style in hand when the buildings fell. It was surreal. I had only a month or two. Prior, I worked for a brokerage company that had asked me to do some training at the Towers. Instead of accepting their requests, I quit. Had I accepted, I’d have been in the towers. Instead, I was on my buddy’s couch, drinking a frosty one. Surreal”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Downtown Chicago. I made sure my mom was on her way out of downtown, went down to the lake, estimated the distance of the John Hancock building falling to the beach, and walked to the far north side to a friends coffee shop. I got drunk and met up with some people. In backyard, later that night, I watched the F-14s make square grids above Chicago. I talked to my cousin, who months earlier, had signed up for the national guard. He was called up immediately. He was then shortly sent to Iraq. He has returned and re-upped. I feel guilty that I had the time and the means to even work on music and not be in the army myself. Then, the next day, we threw a post-terrorist attack party in a friend’s high rise to get people together and overcome the paranoia. I also remember making a point to get out our multiple friends of Muslim heritage there to help combat against the pressure they were feeling. I also remember DJ-ing, having one of those religious DJ-ing sessions, mixing in Lil Louis French Kiss, seeing how it was a longer 12″, and deciding to go to the bathroom while it was playing. Being in the bathroom, I heard some one take the needle off. Then, I remember belligerently slapping my homie, Jash One, who did the Royce album cover,  in the face and sort of wrestling / boxing.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “These days, what is a typical day like for you?”
JAMIE: “There is no typical day for me, each day is absurd.”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Record music till I’m too tired then read Harry Potter, obsessively check e-mail, watch and constantly check the BBC news, make lists of projects, and  try to set up bocce ball tournaments.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “Are you in a romantic relationship these days? Has touring, recording, and the lifestyle affected relationships?”
JAMIE: “I’m a very loving person. ‘Tuff Love’ explains quite a bit actually.”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Yes, no. Although Heather B is, I think, did, with hanging out at hip hop shows.”
TODD E. JONES: “Do you think success and credibility are mutually exclusive?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “I don’t think so. I don’t know. I guess my expectations are a little lower.”

TODD E. JONES: “What LPs have you been listening to in the last 3 days?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Well, in the last few days, I did just get a f*cking iPod. For some reason, all the music that I got is shuffling between 50 Cent and Joy Division. It goes from The Smiths, Joy Division, and New Order to 50 Cent and Count Bassie and MF Doom. Then, there’s a little bit of Elliot Smith too.”
  TODD E. JONES: “Ah! Joy Division! Ian Curtis! ’24 Hour Party People’ is an incredible movie.”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Yeah, I love that movie.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “Did you ever go to Wax Trax Records in Chicago?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “I used to go to Wax Trax all the time when I was little. It was the sh*t. It was one of the funniest places to go.
 

TODD E. JONES: “What is your favorite part of your live show?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Being able to do the sign of the devil to the hip-hop crowd to get them into it. For me, that’s it. Also, when it is clicking and everything is sounding right. I like when you have a good atmosphere and the crowd is sounding hype. I like it when I’m hitting it hard and syncing up with the whole group.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “How has Royce evolved?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “We were very jammy, not like a jam band, but we would just try to improvise live house music for hours. That’s all we would do. We were basically an instrumental band at first. Our first couple of shows were all instrumental. Then, Jamie, the lead singer, actually tried to sing more and write more songs. We went from just jamming to actual songwriting. That’s not an easy thing to do. Well, it’s evolving towards that more. We’re also spending more time in the studio and learning how to record.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “Word association. When I say a name of a name, you say the first word that pops into your head. So, if I said, ‘Flava Flav’, you may say ‘Clock’, ‘Crack’, or ‘The Surreal Life’. Okay?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Okay. Do it slow.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “Happy Mondays.”

JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Ecstasy.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “Dead Prez.”

JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “George Washington.”
TODD E. JONES: “Public Enemy.”

JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Sonic Youth.”

TODD E. JONES: “Joy Division.”

JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “That snare sound they got.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “My Bloody Valentine.”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Elliot Smith slowly stabbing himself to death.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “Cee-Lo.”

JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Success.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “Curtis Mayfield.”

JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Chicago.” 
 

TODD E. JONES: “Atmosphere.”

JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Our buddies to the Northwest.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “The Roots.”

JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Yes.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “Phife Dawg.”

JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “1992.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “Mayor Daley.”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “My boss’s husband.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “George Bush.”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING “Mr. Blank. A waste of time.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “What is the biggest lesson you have learned in your career so far?”

JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “It’s good to be nice, but it’s nice to be good.”
 
TODD E. JONES: “What is it about girls on bikes?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “I don’t know. You know what it is? It was me and Mestizo and Jaime from Royce walking around in Zurich. We were in the Red Light District. We were flabbergasted about the amount of beautiful girls riding their bikes around the city. We concluded that the bikes and a steady diet of yogurt made those girls so extra fresh. Every time a girl rides past me on a bike, I can’t do anything but watch that sh*t. If I didn’t, humans wouldn’t be on earth. It’s evolution.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “What’s the best thing about living in Chicago?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “It’s affordable and an insane amount of good food.”
 TODD E. JONES: “What’s the worst thing about living in Chicago?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Heroin. Crack?”

TODD E. JONES: “Have you done heroin?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “No. I abstain. Me and a couple of good friends did a no shoot and no sniff pact. They all fell off. I’m not going to get tattoos either. No tattoos. No shoot. No sniff. I don’t smoke anymore. I do drink like a maniac.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “How do you balance the band with a job? Especially with touring?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “I save those vacation days. I make it count when I can. I have a pretty amazing job that lets me go. Everybody in Royce is in that same boat. We have our day gig. We have our night gig. When it is time, we call people. It’s going to happen. When it comes, we’ll do it. So, I’m not going out a lot. I’m staying in the studio.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “Have some people mistake Royce the band for Royce Da 5’9”?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Yeah. We got a couple of calls. People are like, ‘Hey! Your sound check starts in an hour! Where are you?’ Honestly, besides it being his real name, I think our band had the name ‘Royce’ labeled before him. I don’t know. That’s just me. He’s awesome! He’s the sh*t. It hasn’t been a horrible conflict yet. People know the difference.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “When you die, would you like to be buried or cremated?”
JAMIE: “Just throw my body into ditch outside DeKalb. No need for theatrics. I suppose, if something must go down, I’d prefer a Viking funeral on Lake Michigan.”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “I plan on multiplying. But if death gets me, I think I would like to be chopped up and have all of the major pieces sent around the world to someday be reformed like Voltron.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “What would you want on your epitaph?”
JAMIE: “‘No, you da man’.”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “‘www.roycelove.com’. Maybe, on the back corner, ‘http://www.myspace.com/royce’ or ‘myspace.com/djwl’. ‘If loving you is wrong, I don’t want to be white. Free album at djwhitelightning.net or djwhitelightning.org’.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “Any collaborations fans should look out for?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “I, as DJ White Lightning, am working with this young rapper named, Skech 185. He’s slaying people right now. He’s in his battle stage. We’re working on a couple of albums together. Royce? We’re going to try and do a whole album ourselves. We are going to try and do some production for Qwazaar and Typical Cats, and some other people from Galapagos 4. Keep it in the family.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “What’s next?”
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “This ‘Tuff Love’ thing. Somebody at Macintosh must have loved us because they picked our album to be the single of the week for iTunes. That sparked me to push it hard. I’ve been doing that since. We’re trying to set up tours. We’re definitely trying to go to Europe. Then, we are working on different Galapagos 4 tours for the Midwest.”
 

TODD E. JONES: “Final words?”   
JUSTUS ROE / DJ WHITE LIGHTNING: “Word! Much love to everybody! Keep supporting independent good music.”

THANK YOU ROYCE ! ! !

  Interview by Todd E. Jones aka New Jeru Poet
toddejones@yahoo.com
  NOTICE: This interview is property of Todd E. Jones and cannot be duplicated or posted without written permission.
 
OFFICIAL WEBSITES:
ROYCE: http://www.roycelove.com/
ROYCE (MySpace page): http://www.myspace.com/royce
DJ White Lightning. (MySpace page): http://www.myspace.com/djwl
JUSTUS ROE: http://www.justusroe.com
GALAPAGOS 4: http://www.galapagos4.com/
   ROYCE: ROYCE (MySpace page): DJ White Lightning. (MySpace page): JUSTUS ROE: GALAPAGOS 4:  
MP3:
   ROYCE: ROYCE (MySpace page): DJ White Lightning. (MySpace page): JUSTUS ROE: GALAPAGOS 4:   “Ebbs and Flows” – ROYCE (feat. Mestizo & Offwhyte)
http://www.galapagos4.com/sounds/royce/ebbssnip.mp3
 

  ROYCE: ROYCE (MySpace page): DJ White Lightning. (MySpace page): JUSTUS ROE: GALAPAGOS 4:   “Ebbs and Flows” – (feat. Mestizo & Offwhyte) “Milwaukee”- ROYCE
http://www.galapagos4.com/sounds/royce/milwaukeesnip.mp3
 

free album at http://www.djwhitelightning.net/ or http://www.djwhitelightning.org
 

VIDEO:
 ”The Knife Fight” (featuring Don’t Go) – ROYCE
http://www.roycelove.com/the%20knife%20fight.mov

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DEF JAM QUIETLY DROPS METHOD MAN’S BEST ALBUM IN YEARS, “4:21… THE DAY AFTER”

By Khalid J. Strickland a.k.a. Dirty Angel

Haters, he’s not trying to be your friend this time around.

     In an effort to appease the MTV-bred generation of fickle rap fans, most of whom have the attention span of a goldfish, even the best record labels are prone to monumental lapses in judgment.  One glaring example is the mishandling of Wu-Tang noble Method Man’s latest album, “4:21… The Day After”, a tight piece of work covertly released by Def Jam on August 29^th, 2006.
     Engulfed by the avalanche of SoundScan numbers and multi-platinum plaques generated by rap artists from the Southern states, cynics have dismissed the music of many deserving artists in other parts of America, especially New York. One would think a rapper of Method Man’s pedigree, a respected and beloved artist with a platinum-paved track record, would have his record label roll out the proverbial red carpet with each release.  After all, Def Jam benefited greatly from Method Man’s phenomenal success over the course of his 13-year career.  After standout performances on Wu-Tang Clan’s groundbreaking 1994 debut album, “Enter the 36 Chambers”, Method Man signed a historic solo deal with the powerhouse record label, a union that culminated four best-selling albums.  One of those LPs was a collaborative effort between Method Man and his close friend and label mate, the ever-popular Redman. The pair went on to star in the 2001 stoner-movie “How High” and the now-defunct television series, “Meth and Red”.  Meth’s acting resume has been beefed-up by appearances in films that range from Hype Williams’ 1998 gangster flick “Belly” to the 2004 comedy “My Baby’s Daddy”.  Needless to say, after classic collaborations with a diverse slew of artists such as Mary J. Blige, LL Cool J, Notorious B.I.G. and Limp Bizkit, a proven winner like Method Man should have no problem rallying his record label’s support.
     Not to mention the fact that “4:21…The Day After” is an exceptional album featuring an inspired Method Man, who sounds just as hungry and driven on this gem as he did in his “36 Chamber” debut.  As always, members of the deep Wu-Tang Clan contribute verses, including a posthumous cameo by the incomparable Ol’ Dirty Bastard on the bangin’ “Dirty Mef”.  Raekwon the Chef and Wu-Tang abbot RZA appear on the menacing “Presidential MC”, one of the albums tightest and grittiest cuts.    Empowered with beats by seasoned veterans like Erick Sermon, Scott Storch and the aforementioned RZA, “4:21” is Method Man’s best offering in years, a divine addition to an outstanding discography. 
     With that being said, Def Jam has clandestinely released the album without a lead-off video or a single.  Promotions have been meager, if any.  Taken at face value, Def Jam’s actions (or lack thereof) could be viewed as a sign that the misguided label is trying to succinctly usher Method Man to the door as it focuses attention on its Southern roster. 

     Justifiably angry at some confused pessimists in the media, who decided to pile-on in an attempt to literally (and prematurely) write him off, Method Man has had to bark on a few journalists as of late.  But despite this friction, the artist also known as Johnny Blaze graciously took a moment to answer a few questions for Insomniac Magazine regarding his new album, his lack of label support and rap from The Rotten Apple.
 

Dirty Angel:  What do you hope to accomplish with this new album?
 

Method Man:  Nothin’.  I listen to the fans and I’m letting them critique this one.  F**k a critic, man.
 

Angel: There was a time when Wu-Tang could do no wrong whatsoever, now certain areas of the press rip you and talk s**t about you.  How did you feel when you were reading these things that people were saying, the falsities and what not?
 

Meth: I felt f****d up, but then it was like, “Could it be true?”  So I went outside and walked the streets and everybody had mad love for me.  But you know, they get programmed after a while too and then that s**t starts affecting my motherf*****g pockets, then n****s got problems.
 

Angel: A lot artists are bypassing the so-called “major” route and going the so-called “indie” route.  From what I see and read, I know you’ve been going through a lot of bulls**t over there at Def Jam.  Is indie ever going to be a viable option for you?
 

Meth: Right now in my career… I don’t know, man, because I’m not built like that.  My s**t is in the media arts, like behind cameras and s**t like that, man.  This rap s**t is too fickle, B, na’mean? These n****s try and tear you apart.  Before I do something that will put myself in jail… and I’m not talking like no tough guy, I’m just talking like an emotional f*****g artist that’s sensitive about his s**t… I’m not going to let nobody just say any f*****g thing about me. So before I see these n****s face-to-face and do them some physical harm, I’mma move on, B.
 

Angel: How do you feel about certain magazines that are real cozy with major artists and corporations? ‘Cause you know, some of these magazines are in bed with these labels.
 

Meth: Well, I wish they was f*****g Def Jam right now because they ain’t giving me no love over there.  But it’s all good, man, I didn’t expect it.
 

Angel: In other parts of the world, do you feel that people have more love for Hip-Hop in general? You’ve been everywhere.
 

Meth: They’ve got a lot of love for it here, but we take it for granted.  Whereas overseas they rarely get the exclusive s**t so they eat it up like M & M’s.  So I think they show a lot of appreciation for it but the love is the same everywhere.
 

Angel: Do you feel that this new album, “4:21”, is different from your other albums?
 

Meth:  Yeah, it’s different because it’s more aggressive.  I ain’t trying to be nobody’s f*****g friend on this one.
 

Angel: People always ask when that new Wu album is gonna drop.  But aren’t all of you guys’ albums Wu-Tang albums because everybody shows up to support and do cameos.
 

Meth: Well I’m glad you said it, brother, ‘cause I’m tired of saying it, ya’heard me? I mean, it is what it is.  We did put out a Wu-Tang album called “Iron Flag” that nobody really went to go get.  It went gold and s**t, but whatever, whatever.  Wu Tang is still forever.
 

Angel: Do you feel New York even has to be brought back, and if so, why do you feel it fell off in the first place?
 

Meth: I don’t think New York has to be brought back, but since they’re saying it… I spoke to 50 (Cent) myself; I don’t know if he thought I was blowing smoke up his a** ‘cause we were at the MTV music awards.  I don’t care how anybody takes this, but right now the top-selling n***a out of New York is 50.  It’s gonna take this ni**a to start showing some New York love, start breaking bread with certain artists and s**t like that, doing songs with n****s and put us right back in the forefront.  ‘Cause we’re in the background.  We ain’t fell off, we’re just in the background.  A lot of that has to do with the politics of the industry trying to keep up with the Down South movement.  They don’t know that Hip-Hop is a culture first and foremost, and everybody’s way of life is a little bit different.  Down South, they’ve got their own sound… they’ve got their own way of doing things.  Same as West Coast, same as Midwest.  The East Coast, we’ve got our own sound, baby.  We can’t do what they do, man.  So when our radio playing most of their shit Down South and all that, so be it, that’s all gravy.  But know that there’s a difference.  And when our record labels are trying to get B.D.S.’s over credibility and SoundScans over an artist’s substance, that’s when s**t gets misconstrued and it makes it look like we’re trying to keep up with these n****s when we don’t have to.

 To hear some straight heaters from Method Man’s latest album, “4:21… The Day After”, visit www.myspace.com/methodman .
 

To read, hear and see more work by Khalid J. Strickland a.k.a. Dirty Angel, visit www.supremearsenal.com and www.myspace.com/blackpacino
                         

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WHEN IT COMES TO HIS GRIND, KAY SLAY DEFINITELY DOES NOT PLAY

By Khalid J. Strickland a.k.a. Dirty Angel

He’ll slap you’re favorite DJ.

     After conquering the streets of America with his hardcore yet groundbreaking mixtapes, Harlem’s own DJ Kay Slay continues to add new domains to his ever-expanding empire.  The man also known as The Drama King hosts high-profile radio shows on both NYC’s Hot-97 and Shade 45, a Sirius Satellite radio channel backed by rap megastar Eminem. 
     In addition, Kay Slay’s third studio album, “The Champions: North Meets South”, was released by NBA great Shaquille O’ Neal’s record label, Deja34, in August of 2006.  On “The Champions”, which is being distributed worldwide by Koch Records, Slay collaborates with prominent deejay/producer Greg Street of Atlanta.  The compilation album features exclusive songs by rap luminaries such as Fat Joe, Paul Wall, Ghostface, Raekwon, Three Six Mafia, Busta Rhymes, Mike Jones, Lil’ Jon and many others.  The album’s lead-off single, “Can’t Stop The Reign” features verses by Bun-B (of popular Houston duo UGK), Brooklyn’s hot up-and-comer Papoose (who is signed to Kay Slay’s Street Sweepers Entertainment) and Shaquille O’ Neal himself.
     In an interview with Insomniac Magazine, which took place at the office of Koch Records, DJ Kay Slay spoke at length about his latest album, which is straight fire by the way, amongst a variety of other topics.
     “For those who don’t know, Greg Street is one of the most powerful deejays in the Southern market,” The Drama King responded when asked why he chose to collaborate on his new album.  “We were always tight and we always said we would work on something together.  I figured I would grab somebody that I’m cool with in the South just to make the (album) bigger than if I did it myself.  So I reached out to Greg Street.”
     When queried on how he chooses what rappers to record with, Kay Slay explained, “When I get a beat, I can hear who I think goes good with it, that’s part of my talent. I’m good with 75 percent of the rappers (in the music industry).  I just reach out and make it happen.  According to what they do, there might be another artist that I think will sound good blended in with them.  It’s a building process.”
     Although he receives and reciprocates love to all regions of the hip-hop nation, including the Billboard-topping Southern states, The Drama King hasn’t jumped off of the New York bandwagon as many depreciators have been quick to do.  Asked if he agrees with the pundits who argue that Big Apple rap music is insignificant, Kay Slay responds frankly: “You can take five of the hottest rappers you love, combine their album sales and it (still) won’t be equivalent to five million records that (NYC native) 50 Cent just sold with his last album.  The biggest selling rapper in the game right now is 50 Cent.  (NYC native) Jay-Z runs Def Jam with L.A. Reid.  Rick Ross and Young Jeezy, two of the most liked rappers from the South, is under (Jay-Z’s) command.  Not to mention (what would happen) if Jay dropped an album.  Busta Rhymes just dropped an album that’s doing pretty good.”
     “The new artists that are coming up, these label A & R (people) are looking for a quick, fast buck.  So they’re not interested in lyricism or a good rapper now, they’re interested in a simple hook and one record they can try and sell a whole (messed) up album from.  So, it really ain’t New York that fell off.  It’s some of the confused fans and these (messed) up A & R (people).  They fell off.  We’re still here.  This is the Mecca.  This is where everything started; the whole hip-hop (movement), the break dancing and the graffiti.  If you want to get technical, civilization started in the Holy City of Mecca.  Everything revolves 360 degrees.  The West had their time.  The South is having their time.  It might go to the Midwest next but where’s it going to come back to? It’ll come back to the Mecca.”
     DJ Kay Slay and Greg Street’s “Champions”, featuring the beat-making proficiency of Three Six Mafia’s DJ Paul & Juicy J, The Streetrunners (Rick Ross’s “Hustlin”), talented newcomer J-Keys  and The Drama King himself, is a treat for listeners of all territories.  Although Kay Slay rules the airwaves and weighs lucrative record deals for the highly sought-after Papoose, don’t expect The Drama King to soften up for anyone.
     “I don’t compromise certain things.  If this is what got me to where I am and you want me (to work with you), then you have to let me be me.”    

For more stories and artwork by Khalid Strickland a.k.a. Dirty Angel, visit www.supremearsenal.com and www.myspace.com/blackpacino

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