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3/13/2006 What's good Domino? I'm good, man. I'm up in the Hiero office getting things together. How's the new Hiero album coming? We haven't started it officially. We're just working on getting beats together. We're not all here since Casual is on the road right now. I'm just trying to get some things together for it. Does the game need a new Hiero album right now? I think so, because I think anyone who knows Hiero knows that we try to bring something new and creative to the table with each release. We want people to like it, but at the very least we want people to recognize that we're bringing something new to the table. I don't think that you can ever have enough people pushing the envelope in Hip Hop. I think a new Hiero album is needed. How do you think the new album will turn out? It's hard to tell at this point. It's still too early. We haven't even come together and came up with a title yet. We usually have a title early on. Hopefully it will be a progression from our last record. I always like to do something different and grow from where we were. It will definitely be on some next shit. What kind of beats are you trying to make right now? I'm really just trying to do something different. I've been very stagnant for awhile. I'm just trying to find things that are different and unique. I've been trying to find different styles of sounds. I haven't even pinpointed it yet. It usually just comes. What's your inspiration for making beats today? Just to be creative and trying to bring something different. I think there are a certain amount of people that want to hear us come out with more records, and my inspiration is to be productive and to leave a legacy. That's been my inspiration from day one. It's trying to leave your legacy. Once you make something and people hear it and like it, your legacy is set and you can die tomorrow, and you have left your mark on the world. That may sound corny or whatever, but that's really what it's about. It's about leaving a mark on the world, whether you're doing music or something else. I love that people can still pull up our record years later like Marvin Gaye and know that we were on Earth. If you stopped making music today, would you be satisfied with what you accomplished? That's a tough question. I think to a certain extent, I would. I think we accomplished a lot more than others. I don't think I'm satisfied. I'm satisfied that we've left a legacy already. If I couldn't do it anymore, I think that I will always think that I could have done better, but I've done enough to make it worth it. It's a tough question. I definitely think I have left my mark. Do the Hieroglyphics get the respect due for everything they've accomplished? Not really. I think that it happens a lot of times. There are a lot of people who have gotten successful based on the styles that we've kicked or what we've stood for, especially with the freestyling. When people mention trailblazers, I don't think they mention us. I think we were successful to a degree, but I think that because of the fact that our "major label" career wasn't three or four really big records, I think that damages our legacy to a lot of people. People who really know, know. Look at the influence that we had on the West Coast style of rap that wasn't just talking about gangster or pimp stuff. Look at the impact we've had on the internet and putting out indie records. Look at our style. I think we have definitely influenced a lot of people. I don't know if we got our due, but I don't think that's why we do it anyway. How good does it feel to be independent and drop a project whenever you want? That's a good thing. I think it definitely allows us to have control over it and not get frustrated where you make something and someone at a label tells us that we need to get with someone big to make a "hit." It's good to believe in yourself and put it out. At the same time, because we're indie, we have a lack of resources. The trouble comes when you're trying to market and promote and you're trying to get a video played and you have to compete with the majors. Can an artist ever have too much creative control? I think so. It's hard to have perspective when you're just by yourself. If you're going to have control, you can't just have a lot of yes-men around. You need to have people around that you can bounce ideas off. You can't be in a vacuum and have no perspective on what's hot. You have to be a different type of artist to be on your own and have everything that you do be amazing. A lot of people are like that, but I think a lot of individuals need people around them. I think the reason the Hiero albums are so great is because it's eight different opinions and it allows us to balance each other. The different elements of Hiero going against each other are what make those albums strong. A lot of the solo albums were recorded that way as well, with everyone in the studio, and I think that had a good effect. You guys are doing a lot of Podcasting now where no one else really is. How important is that? We've always been at the forefront of the internet stuff. I think with the Podcasting, it's another way to get your music heard. It's hard for us to get our music on the radio, so we have to find other ways to get our music heard. Podcasting is another way for us to balance ourselves against the majors and maybe people will purchase our music after hearing it. It's important to do it now before the majors come in and take all the slots. We're one of the first to do this and it's allowed a lot of us to get heard. When we first got on the internet, it wasn't oversaturated like it is now. Now that everyone has a site, a MySpace, and a Soundclick, how do you still manage to get seen on the 'net? It's hard. It's definitely difficult. You just have to keep chipping away. We have a lot of good fans that are spreading the word. I think the cream eventually rises to the top. People find out about it and they'll definitely spread it. People want to share the shit that they think is dope. Some kid may listen to 100 MySpace pages, but if he thinks the Hiero page is dope, he's going to tell a lot of people. You just have to come with it. That's how you burst through the crowd. Even when we first got on the internet, if we weren't dope, no one would have fucked with us anyway. In the end, you have to have something interesting as well. Where do you see Hip Hop on the internet going in the future? I don't know. I think that obviously as the digital music thing gets more prevalent, I think that some will do records that are only available online. We've always had our unreleased tapes that we'd sell when we first went indie that you could only get online or at shows. They were separate from our releases. Because the internet is becoming such a strong presence, I said, "Let's do some stuff that's catered to that. Let's make it so you can't go to Tower or Best Buy to get it." I think the more exclusive shit that you offer that way, the more people you'll get coming to your site. What are your day-to-day responsibilities in the Hiero office? I run the company. I oversee everything from the marketing and promotions of records to the online merchandising to bookings to interviews to paying the bills. What do you like better, the business side or working on beats? Music is what I'm about, so that's what I like best. I also like the business side because it's challenging, but music is definitely my heart. Are you happy with how the Casual album is doing? I wouldn't say that I'm happy. It's been a slow trek. We switched distribution in the middle of it so it froze. We're about to do a new push on it. People aren't up on it yet. I think the aim for him and O.C. is to get the second run on the marketing. Is the O.C. album doing well? It's doing well. It could be doing better. We're about to put out the second single to it. It's just a matter of exposing people to it in the next couple of months. Do you have plans to sign more artists? There are plans to, but there is nobody in the works at the moment. That's definitely something that we want to do. Will you be adding any new members to Hiero? No. that's not what we do. It is what it is. There won't be any new members added to Hiero. If we're not going to be in tact as a crew doing it, then we won't do it. Do you see yourself making any music for the Hyphy movement? No. I'm down to work with whoever I think is talented, but I try to avoid getting down with a scene. Hyphy is a hot trend right now. I try to do good music. I'm not trying to get down with Hyphy or the club. I'm just trying to get down with Hip Hop, and that encompasses everything. I would still get down with any artist in the Hyphy movement, but I would do me. To me, it's about doing the music and not putting a tag on it before it's even made. What's going on with Barry Bonds right now? I'm worried…it looks like he got a lot bigger. It looks like he can still swing the bat. What about Jerry Rice becoming a reality-TV star? Is he dancing away his legacy? Nah. The man holds like 30 receiving records. He can never dance away his legacy. He's still Jerry Rice and he's still going to be number one in most catches, most receiving years, most playoff yards...nobody's going to touch those. He can't dance away his legacy. I think he just wanted another challenge. Are the 49ers going to be better next year? This isn't saying much, but I think they'll be better. I like their coach. What's great about the NFL is that you never know. Anybody can go to the playoffs. If Alex Smith develops, then I think they'll be all right. What's your main priority every day? Just trying to get us ready for this year. We finally got our distribution deal done. I'm just trying to stay focused and make beats. What do you want to say to everyone? Look for new stuff from us. It'll definitely be on some next-level stuff. Hopefully we'll be coming to your town and you can come check us out.

By Brian Kayser

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