J-Zone is a rare character in hip-hop, an emcee who still likes to have fun, when everyone else is trying to out gangsta each other he is locked away making dope music without a thought on how the fans want him to sound. This year saw the latest evolution of his sound forming the Bo$$ Hog Barbarian$ with Celph Titled and dropping a futuristic look at pimping. Production wise J-Zone is constantly evolving yet always fresh, and with rumours of an Australian tour in the not to distant future I jumped at the chance to interview a true hip-hop star.
So you have been around for a long ass time now, give us a brief breakdown of your back catalogue?
Shit, I forget about half of my music, haha. Lemme see. Damn, I’m an old ass man. My first time on record was a beat for a rapper named Preacher Earl back in 1995 when I was 18, but my first solo J-Zone record was Music For Tu Madre in 1998-99. I followed that up with A Bottle Of Whup Ass EP/short album in 2000, Pimps Don’t Pay Taxes in 2001, $ick Of Bein Rich in 2003, A Job Ain’t Nuthin But Work in 2004, Gimme Dat Beat Fool Remix Project in 2005 and Bo$$ Hog Barbarian$ group project with Celph Titled in 2006. I released some instrumental vinyl for those albums as well, plus I had some limited edition side projects like Go-Rilla Pimp$ with Dick $tallion, The Hogs Sing The Hits Parodies and two Ign’ant Mix CD’s. I worked with people like Masta Ace, Devin the Dude, King Tee and J-Ro for my albums and I did a lot of outside production and guest verses for people like Biz Markie, Casual, Del, A Plus, Tha Alkoholiks, Prince Po, Cage, Louis Logic, Danger Mouse & Jemini, Akinyele, Tame 1, MF Grimm, Prince Po and RA The Rugged Man to name a few. I’m trying, man!
The thing I love about your work is production wise there is a new flavour each and every release, from the gangsta funk of say Eatadiccup, to the guitars riffing all over A Job Aint Nuthing But Work and the Pimp Funk of the Bo$$ Hog album, Why the changes? You get bored easily?
Thanks, and yeah, you hit the nail on the head. I get bored very easily, especially as a producer. I get the urge to try new things, but I like the challenge of keeping my trademark sound while still changing and being versatile. That’s hard to do. To do some circus type beats like on Pimps Don’t Pay Taxes to doing some straight pimp funk beats like on Bo$$ Hog Barbarian$, and making them sound like I still did them…that’s fun and challenging. I always say the day you get bored and don’t challenge yourself to try new shit, give it up man. Some of your fans may not always like the direction you go in, and that’s definitely happened to me, but if you don’t take the risk, you’re not a true musician.
You have said on wax Pimp Don’t Pay Taxes beats were garbage, do you really cringe when you hear joints from your past?
Yeah I do, but I still have love for all my albums because at the time I made them, I felt they were my best work to date. In that song I said “in retrospect the beats was trash”, but I obviously loved the beats when I did them and that’s really all that matters. But as you grow and mature as a producer you can see your flaws and that will keep happening as long as you make music. Like I felt A Bottle Of Whup Ass and Pimps Don’t Pay Taxes’ beats sounded exactly the same, that’s why I said that. The other albums kind of have their own sound identity, but those two records kind of felt like the same album to me, even though Whup Ass was technically the warm up EP for Pimps… I used the same types of samples, drum sounds, skits, eq’s…where as the other albums had things about them that made them stand out in my catalogue. Tu Madre was the jazzier, skit heavy J-Zone, $ick Of Bein Rich was the video game beat erratic J-Zone, A Job and Gimme Dat Beat were the funk/prog rock J-Zone but they were still different from each other and I chilled out on the skits at that point. Bo$$ Hog was mostly the 80’s funk/pimp J-Zone, but it was the most versatile cause it had my other styles too. From Whup Ass to Pimps… I didn’t feel there was much growth on the beat side of things between the two albums, but me, Hug and Shid grew as rappers. Pimps is a fan favourite and I think conceptually and structure wise it may be my best album. I’m still proud of it, but I just can’t listen to some of the beats, haha.
One thing that is constant is your lyrics, you are happy to the rudest, cockiest, self depreciating mother fucker out, do you ever think you will change or is that just who J-Zone is?
Haha, funny you ask that. I’m in the process of finishing up two concept/theme based instrumental albums and there isn’t much humour on them at all. My character as J-Zone is a part of me, but not all of me. Whenever I go through some dumb shit, I write a funny song about it and it winds up being a record. That’s the only reason I rap. It’s therapy for me, to get shit off my chest and have a laugh about it. It’s entertainment, that’s it. When I rap, that’s what’s gonna come out 90% of the time. But I think that has helped and hurt me. It’s helped me deal with everyday life and bring humour back to music, which I feel is lacking. But because of the J-Zone character, I feel a lot of people overlook the fact that I take making music very seriously and I think because people love/hate my rap persona so much, the beats, the execution and the musicianship get overlooked. They can’t get past the jokes and the “bitch” and “ho” rhymes and see that I take making records very seriously in terms of detail and quality. That’s why I’m doing instrumental shit now, so you can see another side of J-Zone.
A lot of more mainstream critics just don’t seem to get you, I have read reviews of Bo$$ Hog Barbarians criticizing the lyrical content as over the top, when thats the point, do you think journalists as a whole need to find their sense of humour?
Humour hasn’t been big in rap since the late 80’s-90’s and even then it was just Biz, 2 Live Crew, Bobby Jimmy, Prince Paul and a few others. All of the funny over the top music that influenced me to take this approach weren’t well received either, so I’m not surprised. We’re dealing with the war, politics, money problems… So people I guess don’t like 2 dudes talking about fat girls and fur coats. Some people even called Bo$$ Hog a parody album. That’s retarded. In rap you’re either a revolutionary political rapper, a street dude, a scientifical big word rapper, a battle/freestyler or a pop star. There’s no room for us, so we just make music for ourselves and people who like us. I don’t care about critics; as long as I have fun I’m happy.
For me there are far to few in hip-hop willing to have fun of wax, when do you think it became wack to have fun as an emcee?
It’s always been wack to have fun as far as I can remember. Biz was the clown prince so he got away with it. Even Biz, people loved him, but looked at him as novelty. People say I’m novelty and my albums have no replay value. That’s bullshit. We all need to laugh man. The world is too fucked up a place to not have time to laugh. Everybody wants to be a tough guy or so fuckin intellectual. But there’s nobody just having fun, that’s wack. I’ve had rappers want beats from me, then they see my stage show with the fur coat and shit, and they kinda back off. Like being associated with me is a joke. Fuck that. I don’t discuss my political views, I don’t battle or freestyle, I’m not gonna be a tough guy…so I guess that means I have no place. I’m focusin strictly on beats now and put rappin on hold just cause I think if the masses don’t get it after 7 albums, they never will. I’m just rappin for myself and people who like what I do at this point. Any plans of me gettin mainstream love as a rapper are dead.
You do have a damn loyal fan base though, does this vindicate your stance of just being you?
Like I said, I make music for myself and people that like what I do. That’s why I always appreciate my fans. Cause I know they’re a rare breed of listener and we appreciate the same shit.
The Bo$$ hog album has some crazy production and you and Celph bounce of each other like fat people in a lift, is it something the two of you have wanted to do for a while?
Hahaha. Yeah man. We always had conversations about doin songs like “You Got Mail”, but we didn’t decide to make an actual album as a group until summer 2004. The feedback from “Eatadiccup” the previous year and ”$poiled Rotten” was crazy, so we decided to give it a go. The chemistry we got is natural.
I haven’t heard so much self assured Pimp talk since Too Short was a star, except lyrically with punches and wordplay you leave him for dead, was it artists like him you were listening to back in the day?
Oh hell yeah. $hort is in my Top 10 to ever do it. He, E-40 and B-Legit are favourites of me and Celph. Celph is big into C-Bo, Spice 1, Lil Bruce…Suga Free is my favorite rapper currently. X-Raided, Mac Mall, all that shit. It’s all entertainment, just dudes talking shit, dissin broads and cursing a lot. I love that shit, it doesn’t always have to have a message to be good music. We love that just as much as we love EPMD, Rakim, Juice Crew and Gangstarr. Good music is good music, but nobody from the east coast showed how those west coast dudes influenced them, so we thought that would be cool.
You also recently scored some porn movies, I actually cant think of another producer better suited, can I assume it was years spent watching them that prepared you to do it?
Actually, no, haha. I never got into porn because there was always a dude in the porn and that turned me off. I need girl on girl action, but even then I’m surprisingly not into porn that much. I dont even own a porno flick except the one I did the music for. I always thought some of those pornos had crazy music though so I was always trying to do music for one.
Do you get a rider when you are working on them? Like, Ill take the blonde from scene 12 and those two brunettes from scene 28.
Naah man, I wish!
Now I also remember you dropped some hot shit on Jemini & Danger Mouses Ghetto Pop Life album, seeing how he has blown up now, do you ever wish he asked you to put on a weird mask so you could blow world wide? Also what type of freaky mask would Captain Backslap rock?
Haha, naah. Mouse is my homeboy and he deserves everything that comes to him. We’re actually working on some production stuff together now with a bunch of other producers. It’s like a production team. I don’t do masks, just the fur coat.
Whats up with your label Old Maid Entertainment? You got anything coming out this year, or new peeps signed that we should keep our eyes peeled for?
YES!! I have 2 concept/theme based instrumental albums dropping this year. One is limited edition and not on Old Maid, I may just put it up for download. It’s called Experienced! and it’s a tribute/collaboration album for/with my favourite pop musician. I wont say who it is, but it’s some different shit for J-Zone. It will appear sometime in June. Then in August or September I have an official Old Maid release. It’s an instrumental soundtrack to a movie that doesn’t exist! I did a treatment for a movie, scripted some scenes…but it never came to life. But I finished the whole soundtrack and it’s crazy cause its got a concept and a storyline…but no lyrics! Just a narrator in the intro, scenes in the liner notes and snippets from the “movie”. You’ll see, its hard to explain. I’m mixing that now. I’m focused on instrumental stuff for the moment because I want to get more shine as a producer and show some versatility that I cant show on J-Zone solo albums.
You have also supplied beats for pretty much the entire underground hip-hop scene, who are the artists out there that you are still to cross of your must work with list ?
MOP, Redman, Snoop & Project Pat (I remixed them but not officially), Too $hort, Suga Free (although I came very close), Milk D from Audio 2, Saigon, UGK…not that many people. I’m getting picker and pickier with rappers.
Perhaps most importantly when are you heading back to Australia? We had Celph & Apathy last year, you coming solo or looking to bring out Celph for a Bo$$ Hog tour anytime soon ?
I’m working on getting back there this year after my instrumental soundtrack album drops. Im talking with some people, so I’m praying things work out. I LOVED it there last time I went. It was my first tour and first time out of the US ever. I’ll never forget that trip. Australia has always supported me. Celph no longer tours. He’s focusing on behind the scenes work and production, so I’ll be by myself if I come back.
Finally give me five things every hip-hop head, fan of you or otherwise
needs to know about J-Zone.
1. Despite the Captain Back$lap character, I’m a cool dude in person. People bug out when they meet me and I’m humble and laid back. But I can become that wild ass dude in certain situations, especially drunk!
2. The Lucy Liu thing is over. Don’t ask me about her anymore
3. I don’t drink beer, so pass me some hard liquor instead. People always try to buy me beers when they meet me. Fuck that, I drink Bacardi.
4. Don’t take my lyrics too serious, I’m just having fun with it. No, I’m not a pimp, that album title just sounded good and that statement is true. If I was really a pimp I’d be selling pussy, not making records. Lighten up.
5. I’m not going to do another album just like A Bottle Of Whup Ass, so stop asking.
The Bo$$ hog Barbarians album is available now through Shogun Distribution.
