DON'T MISS TODAY:

Back to Artist Profiles

5/23/2006 What's up? I'm feeling good, man. I'm feeling busy as a toothless beaver. I'm just busy with a lot of work. It's that March to September period where any artist worth a damn is really working hard. How do you want to introduce yourself to everyone not familiar with you? I'm Mr. Blakes and I do soulful Texas hip-hop. It's best experienced live. If you come through the Texas area, you're going to see a lot of shows and affiliations. You can't go too far in the Texas scene without seeing me. I'm trying to plant enough seeds to where you can't miss me. I'm one of the premier lyricists in Texas, at least that's what I'm supposed to say. I'm one of the MC's down here starting to get a little recognition. I'm grateful to get this interview with you. Your music doesn't have that Texas sound to it that we're all hearing now. For the most part, no. But I'm on a lot of the hot Texas mixtapes with those same artists you're probably thinking of. I've only had one song in commercial radio rotation, ever. I got something in rotation on community radio in Austin right now, KAZI 88.7. It's a song called "Stay Strong" featuring Fatal and Ter'ell Shahid. As you know, Texas is known for its independent grind until it becomes a business and they can't ignore you. I'm at the transition between a hustle and a business. I'm just trying to come up. I have a couple songs that are radio-friendly, but I'm focusing on my rhymes and I work on every kind of style and beat. The cool thing is, whatever artists I work with, they always let me be me. I think that's what's helping me get a little bit of notoriety in Texas. Have you ever thought of changing your style to get more spins? I don't really have another style. I don't really have that option to change. I've been rhyming since I was a little kid and it just keeps developing. My boy Deon calls me "the beathopper" because I always rap very specific to the track and topic and it stands out. The way I rap is an expression of who I am, but if you look around, no matter what your particular taste is in rap, I got something for you. If you want to listen to traditional underground hip-hop or some experimental type stuff, get Hydroponic Sound System. If you want hip-hop soul, pick up some Verbal Seed or Strange Fruit Project. If you want some regional underground, then get the latest Rapid Ric and Chalie Boy CD. I'm on all of 'em! It's good music and I think versatility is my strength and to change my style when I'm just starting to get recognition would be stupid. That'd be like suicide. I think people are appreciating me for exactly what I do. I think it would be real dumb of me to try something else when I'm just starting to get noticed. The D.O.C. said you're one of Texas' "brightest new stars." That had to feel good. Yeah. I always looked up to him. He was a local star before he was a national star. He was already a star before Ruthless. Tom Joyner did the morning show in Dallas when I was growing up, and they would play "I Hate to Go to Work." This was the Fila Fresh Crew when D.O.C. was still Doc T. He was always that dude in Dallas, so I always admired him. I did the song "Play the Role" a few years ago, and he heard it in the studio from the producer and he was really attracted to the lyrics. I was like a little kid when I heard that. D.O.C. is the man. How's your single "Nobody Leavin" doing? "Nobody Leavin" is charting on college radio right now. The label that put it out, Natural High, and made a mixtape of my single and the other 12-inches they put out. It's been charting well. It's been getting me a lot of new fans in pockets across the country to get people checking for me. If you just check the CD's that are dropping in Texas, like a Chalie Boy, a Gritboys CD, a Money Waters CD, basically there's not a week that goes by where I'm not featured on one of them. I was on one of DJ Bull's mixtapes a couple months ago. A lot of what I do is below the radar, so to speak. I even got a new 12" on a label in Sweden. I work with these producers Hydroponic Sound System. I got the lead single called "50K" on their 12" called "Choice Cuts Vol. 2". Hopefully that will keep me out there and people will know how much stuff I'm a part of. People in Texas know who I am, but hopefully I'll be more than local soon so I can drop this World Trade project. What was your inspiration for "Nobody Leavin"? It was the beat and a producer in Austin named Damar "D. Powers" Howard. He has a real strong Timbaland/Neptunes feel to what he does. He said he wanted to take me to the next level and make me a hit. When I heard that beat, I told him to play it again. I don't think he had it in mind for me. He said I was really known for my live show, so envision there's 3,000 people in the crowd waiting and to make a song about my mind-frame. That's where the song came from. I just rode the beat. That's what I'm known for, the flow and the vocal tone. It was a great session. The producer had his vision, and an hour later we were listening to the song. It seemed like it was reaching a wide variety of people so I made it a single. Are you happy with how your Blazing Saddles project did? Yes and no. I'm happy that it got strong feedback and it still sells a little, but to be honest with you, at the time I put that out, I wasn't in the mind-frame to really push it like I needed to. I was kind of worn out. People still look for it and people still ask for it. It's probably being bootlegged in some places which is cool. We put so much energy into making it, and then I was too tired to push it last summer. It only moved a couple thousand units. The cool part about that CD was working with Baby G. I always admired him growing up and then I got to work with him, which was cool. I just wasn't ready to push it. I hope that doesn't sound crazy, but that's just honestly what happened. What's next for you? I'm working on my second album, it's called Too Selfish. Hydroponic Sound System just dropped an album called Mixtape Mentality and I'm featured on say half the album. I'm doing a whole lot of work with DJ Rapid Ric and the Whut it Dew family which includes Chalie Boy, Da Ryno, Magno, Gerald G, Black Meezy, and some more folks in Austin. I'm doing some stuff with Symbolyc One, Strange Fruit Project, Verbal Seed and Deloach. We just did a show with them in Dallas. The Strange Fruit Project is dropping a project on OM, the Bay Area indie label. They had Erykah Badu show up and perform their song together off the new album. There's a group from San Antonio called Mojos. They just signed with Music World, which is Beyonce's daddy's label. There's a lot of seeds being planted, basically. Whut it Dew 4 is coming soon. I'm just trying to build up the artists around me. People are looking at me like I'm about to do something, but I'm just working. Right now I'm just trying to beat up the state and region doing shows and all that. I'm also moving this Spring '06 exclusive CD and trying to get more fans. I come from a real humble perspective. I try to make fans and keep track of the people who like it. My goal is 50,000 fans. I wish I could talk about "major deal this and major deal that" but that's not really what I'm doing. I just try to keep making music and then I get lucky and get an interview like this. It just keeps on snowballing. I don't even contact major labels or send out stuff. I just work. How would you describe your show to people who haven't seen it? It's a whole lot of energy. It varies a lot too, because if I'm doing a show with a soul group or a more organic-type hip-hop group, then I can do the live band. I do this thing with D-Madness, he's a one-man band. Then we do this thing called "The Livest Texas Rap Tour." It's me, Money Waters, and Mojoe, with some supporting acts, going out with a full band. At the same time, if you caught me at South by Southwest, then you might just catch me with a DJ like Rapid Ric. There's a Whut it Dew family show. I have a lot of different show formats, and I think that's something my fans really like. Depending on what show they catch me at, they know I'm going to do a different thing. You never get the same show twice. You get a real personal energy and a real personal feel for what the song is about. If you listen to my music on CD, sometimes it comes out heavier than the average. I don't have booty music. But if people come to the show and they feel the actual energy behind the song, it makes more sense to them. When people come to the shows, they realize that it can be fun. I put a whole lot of energy into my shows even though I'm real laid-back in person. Is the live show dying out? It is and it ain't. I have to wonder if the people who can't do good live shows are going to be around much longer. I know the majors sign their four or five acts a year and push them out, but there's a million other acts trying to get out there. It's a good thing if you can link up with your fans and they can see you live and buy your CD to take you home. Radio only plays twenty to twenty-five acts, so the DJ's have become important again like they used to be from my understanding. The live show is the best way to connect with your fans, and a lot of people suck at them. They'll rap over their vocals or perform their full songs when people have never heard the song before. There's a reward for doing a good live show. There's groups that may not sell a million records, but they can keep their deal because they can tour. How do you want your next album Too Selfish to come out? I want it to sound like the South mixed with the West mixed with the soulful hip-hop sound which is all me. I want it to be real versatile, which is what I bring to the table. Hopefully the album will play to my strengths. I got about a dozen keepers. The title track is ridiculous. It's produced by DJ Domo from Coughee Brothaz, best known for his work with Devin and DJ'ing for Scarface and Geto Boys. The production is sick. I have a few songs I think could be singles, but I have to keep working. I hope it's something people feel is refreshing and worth their time. At the end of the day, I hope people like it and burn it and play it and I sell enough copies so I can recoup. What do you want to say to everyone? I appreciate everyone jumping on Texas right now. There's a lot of artists like me who are eating off of that and being exposed off of that. And to artists, don't be afraid to be yourself. There's only so many artists that will get a deal for being a cookie-cutter. Look at why Chamillionaire is succeeding. He built up his movement from a grass-roots level and had a plan. If you believe in yourself, just keep working and everything will be alright. And thanks very much to HipHopGame for the interview and exposing me to the nobody who knows… somebody go Google "Bavu Blakes."

By Brian Kayser

[11] REACT TO THIS INTERVIEW