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5/23/2006 What's up? I'm feeling good, man. I'm feeling real good. Are you excited The Great Migration is finally dropping? Definitely, man. It's years in the making. Some of the material may be new, but it's all about living and experiencing life. They say an artist has his whole life to make his first album, that's what it feels like. It's been years in the making. Are you happy with how the album came together? Definitely. As far as I could say, I'm definitely happy with it. There is always a little bit of extra stuff that comes in the way when you deal with a label, but I feel like this is pretty close. I'm carrying the weight on this album as far as rapping as well. I got into producing so I could make stuff for myself. Over the years, you get better and now I'm at the point where I'm happy with my flow, delivery, and lyrics. Did you get everything you wanted for it? Pretty much. I could have put maybe one or two more songs on there, but we're going to save them for the future. They'll still get heard. It can be hard for rappers known primarily as producers to be taken seriously as rappers. Are you experiencing that? Not really, because I've always had words. I've always had words. I was always a writer, so the production and the emceeing go hand-in-hand to me. I was looking for something to spread my words on that was my own. Once I started producing, I started seeing where my words should go. It was pretty plain to me it all fit. Do you communicate better with your words or beats? It really depends who you talk to. I know a lot of fans like the beats better, but I think it's my words. I think it's harder to come across with something you're writing as opposed to a beat. The notes are already on the keyboard, but you have to start from scratch with writing. Were the songs with Timbo King and Killa Sin recorded in studio? I have my Black Day in July studio in Detroit. I just keep working and keep working in here. I don't like to sit down and say, "I need a song about the ladies." Whatever I'm feeling that day, I like to get it out. I'm more of a natural person. Whatever I sat down and felt like writing, that's what came out. I turned in thirty songs and we whittled it down, figured out who we wanted, and went about it. Dreddy was a big key in getting people on it. "The Bronzemen" is crazy. How is it working with Killa Sin? I worked with Killa Sin for Cilvaringz' album. We vibed back then. He's a real cool dude nad very skillful. I wasn't there when he recorded his verse on this one, but I've worked with Sin before. It's a pleasure. Why did you title your album The Great Migration? There was the Great Migration where blacks from the South came North to industrial areas looking for work. My family is from Virginia. I parallel that to my life. I've been through a lot of obstacles and struggles, so that's my great migration, especially to get to this point. How important has Dreddy Kruger been to your career? He got me right here. I got into Wu through Cilvaringz. He helped me connect with RZA. At that point, you go around searching for people to take your beats. I'd be up in 36 and I ended up running into Dreddy and Masta Killa in there. We sat down and listened to beats and when the Think Differently album came out, he reached out to me for that. That got a lot of sunlight for me. People were reaching out after that. I was putting out singles consistently because I was trying to make it through school. When Dreddy came through, it was a blessing. Dreddy was key. He got me in stores and he really helped me on the business side. Didn't you meet Cilvaringz on the internet? Yeah. I think it was like '96 or '97. I had an album out back then with me and my brother, it was called The Unknown. I've always been into hip-hop. We created that album and I was shopping it around on the internet. I saw Cilvaringz email and Wu-Tang was my favorite group. I emailed him. He checked out my snippets on the site and we started communicating back-and-forth. He helped me get in contact with RZA and from there it was on. How was your first meeting with RZA? I was actually in 36 Chambers because I had gone out there to see if I could get some work. A couple Wu individuals were there recording. I went in there and they were playing my beats. People were coming in and people were going out. RZA, GZA, and Masta Killa came in. I was like, "Oh shit!" As an unsigned, hungry artist, that's your opportunity. They came in and were playing my beats over the speakers. RZA was nodding his head, so I was like, "He's feeling it." He was busy the whole night doing this, that, and the other. I was just waiting for my chance to holler at him. I waited until 4am. They were about to go to the club. I had to take my chance with him there because I might not see him again. We went in a room and I played him "Blow Gun," and he said, "I want you to join the Wu-Elements." It was definitely a dream come true. What did you do when you were asked that? It was definitely crazy. After talking to RZA, I walked back to the YMCA where I was staying. I was just going crazy. I was excited. I couldn't believe it. After you get signed, you don't even get work right away. I was signed, but what's next? It was about patience waiting for work to come along. I went out for the summer for Birth of a Prince. That was my first shit. It felt like completion. How did it feel seeing your credits in RZA's Birth of a Prince? It was crazy. I got this thing where I don't like a lot of early copies. I like to go in the store and see it. I was excited when I saw it. I felt like I had finally gotten to the point I needed to get to. What was the craziest experience you had recording this album? Hmm, before my album, I didn't have a label and I was going to just knock the whole thing out and start approaching labels. Then Dreddy came in with the Think Differently situation. After years and years of hard work, the label situation came easy for me. I'm not saying it was an overnight success, but I thought it would be harder to obtain that. Through the years, I was working and thinking about how I would get a label to put it out. I have the production deal with Wu-Tang, but I didn't know how I would get the album heard. Babygrande came through and I saw that as destiny. Was RZA involved in the making of The Great Migration? Oh yeah, over the years I've talked to RZA and consulted with him. Back in the day when I got put on Wu-Elements, he heard my song "Blow Gun." I remember sitting down talking to him at 36 and he said a lot of the lyrics on there, he understands them, but he didn't know how it would reach the public. I tried to take a different approach as to how I wrote my lyrics. They were more basic, but they had deeper meanings. It wouldn't be too complex, but it was also deep. I got that from RZA. You also have Masta Killa's "Bells" single. Are you happy with how that song is doing right now? Oh yeah. It's beautiful. It's a pleasure. Before I even started, Wu-Tang was my favorite. My first plan was I just wanted to do one song with the brothers from Wu. It went further than that. (laughs) How is it working with Masta Killa? It's cool. When I first met Masta Killa, he has a peaceful aura about him. He gives you a peaceful feeling. Working with Masta Killa is lovely. We've been talking about doing a whole album together. Hopefully we can just get in the studio and build. What are the chances of that album happening? I mean, I hope it happens. I'll definitely reach out to him once I get everything in order. I'm cool with Devin at Nature Sounds as well, so it will pop off hopefully. We'll see. Have you been doing any work for the Wu-Tang album? I haven't done anything on it. I think RZA's going to take care of that album. Do you see that album happening soon? I have no idea. I know the brothers are always working. It might take a little while, but we should see it. I don't know a lot about it yet. What equipment are you using right now? I stick with my old shit, the ASR-10. I started with that and I still fuck with it. With the ASR, I've also gotten on some of the computer programs like Adobe Audition. My man from Canada put me on to Reason. I mess with Reason a little bit, but Pro Tools is my shit. I might rent a Triton and keep it moving. I stick with the ASR. I like the gritty sound it has. Do you ever worry about people saying your sound is "too Wu"? It's happened. I take it a couple different ways. RZA's a legend, so if you compare me to him, that's a blessing right off the bat. I do have a lot of Wu-sounding stuff, but if someone was to sit down and listen to a CD of fifty of my beats, they would hear a lot of stuff that doesn't sound like Wu. It will come out as I drop more projects. I have a diverse sound. People are going to see it and they'll respect that. I'm throwing a lot of things in the pot, but I'm Wu, so I might have a Wu sound. Did RZA improve your sound? I never sat down and made beats with him. For Birth of a Prince, he showed me some new sounds and techniques. I really just cut up samples. The thing I picked up from RZA and listening to him is the way he manipulates them and how he speeds them up. I've never heard people speed up samples, but all in all, it makes sense to speed up a sample when you're trying to make a hip-hop song. That's what I got from RZA as well as help with the lyrics and coming to an understanding of saying something and people understanding what you're saying. What's up with the 7 Wisemen today? We're good. We have about three or four more songs to do for the album. This album is crazy. We've been getting a real good response with it. Everybody is loving it. I'm excited about this album. We're close to being done. It's definitely got some classics on there. It's going to hit hard. Everybody's working and staying busy. There's really four of us on the Wisemen album. Illadayz got in a car accident, so he's trying to recuperate so he'll be on the next album. The Wisemen album is sick, period. They're also on The Great Migration. Are you going to do more work with Afu-Ra in the future? Nah, man. He still owes me money for a beat I gave him. I've been trying to contact him and I haven't heard back. If you're reading this, you owe me a little cream, homie. Can fans find your first album The Unknown today? That's kind of hard to find. Of course we still have the master, but we haven't pressed any copies. You might be able to download it. Me and Kevlaar thought about doing a new version and update it, but that's maybe for later on down the line to throw out as something extra. We'll see what happens. How do you feel hearing that album today? I appreciate what we were trying to do, I appreciate the sound, but the delivery is fucked up. I feel like we were still in training. It doesn't excite me, but it's a piece of our history. It's like preseason. Are you ready for the majors now? Yeah, man. I'm ready. I'm ready for whatever happens. I would love to take care of my family off of the music. I've done shows and I've been out there before. I like to make sure my fans know I love them. Do you see yourself in competition with other Wu producers like Mathematics? No. We're all family, so I don't compete with nobody. I'm the last Wu-Element who's been signed on. My respect to 4th Disciple, Tru Master, RZA, and Mathematics, if it wasn't for them, there's no me. That's family. We're competing with all these other producers out here that we're going to take care of. That's family. What's next for Bronze Nazareth? I'm hoping to get the 7 Wisemen album out, stay working with my Wu brothers, and just stay working. I just want to stay busy. I made a couple of songs for my next album already. The beats are crazy for that. Any plans of dropping a producer album? I would love to do that. If the right opportunity comes across, I would love to do that. The one thing is, though, with my beats, is that I'm a picky cat. What do you want to say to everyone? I know that in the past people have appreciated my beats more than my lyrics, but on this album, some of my lyrics might go past you, but if you rewind my lyrics, you'll see that I'm lyrically-crazy. I'm not a conceited cat, but I'm confident. I have some deep shit on there. I've lived a life where I've been through things and seen things. I just want people to respect the lyrics on this. The beats are going to be there. The beats are crazy already. Pay attention to the lyrics. I love y'all for supporting. Contact Bronze Nazareth at halfentity@yahoo.com

By Brian Kayser

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