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3/29/2006 What's good? I'm feeling good. I'm just chilling. I've been real busy lately. Right now I'm trying to maintain mentally. How do you want to introduce yourself to HipHopGame? I want to let cats know, first and foremost, that I'm a dude out here on his grind doing his thing. I'm from Chicago and I rep my city 100%. I'm taking my steps and I'm not trying to be funny-style in this industry. I'm just trying to do it right and make the proper moves. That's how I want people to see me as. I'm trying to get respect the right way. What do you want to tell people about your album "Figured it Out"? I want them to go cop it. I put a lot of effort into it. That's me expressing myself to the fullest. I just want people to know the deal about it. It's me to the utmost. What were some of the challenges you faced putting it together? Trying to balance everything, from the time and my regular life, trying to get paper, and spending time with my family. I wanted to do it right. Time was really my main challenge. Everybody needs time. As far as the music goes, it's something that I love and feel passionate about. Music has never been a challenge, but trying to balance time can be. Are you happy with how the album came out? Of course. I put everything I had into it. I feel that I moved the right way into it. I put my time into it and I got what I wanted out of it. I got some people to help me with the production and to get some guest appearances. Panik, my brother, dropped the beat for the song I did with Juice. Some people came in and sang hooks for me. I'm happy with it. I feel that I earned my spot. I put it out myself on my own label. I executive-produced it…I'm extremely happy with how it came out. It feels good. What was your inspiration for "Everything"? To be real, it's a couple of different things. I think right now, society, Hip Hop, and the world in general is either too scared of something or they're too tough-guy about something. If you're driving, there's a guy that wants to cut you off all day, he wants to swerve in front of you, and then there's a guy at the "stop" sign that's too scared to go. That's what inspired this. It made me think of everything. I'm able to see how people react to things. It's also where I'm from. Chicago has all kinds of shit out here. You can go a couple of blocks in any direction and see something completely different. We have ghettos right next to big houses. The shit that we're on out here and the levels that I've been able to reach, it makes me feel like I'm "everything controversial/underground, gangster rap, slash commercial." That's how that shit made me feel. How was it working with Juice? Working with Juice was great. That dude is a true professional. He knocks his shit out, he knows what he's doing, and he's just good. He's precise with it. He's a veteran and a pro, and it's undeniable. I wish that dude a lot of luck with the route he's trying to take. It's great to work with him. It's inspiring to work with him to see him doing his thing. He's real good to work with. He's a humble dude. He does his thing and he's just on point. That's what I can say about that dude. The album has a lot of different flavors. It goes along with everything. I'm here from Chicago and we just touch all kinds of things. Chicago has been very segregated ever since I can remember. I came from Lotus Square on the Northwest side and everybody is there. That is so inspiring to me. Look at my song "OC," that's Chicago. Then other songs have some West Coast or New York flavors. That's all from my upbringing from being into all Hip Hop and being a Chicagoan. "Loyalty" is a personal-experience song about how things switch up in your life and people change. "The Only Way" is me breaking it down. I didn't really want to switch up my album to be on the bandwagon or follow any trends. That's the type of expressing-myself dude that I am. How is it working with the Molemen? It's always good. Panik is family so it's always good to be working with him. I don't think we've done enough, but we've been doing more recently. That's always good. They have a good work ethic and their beats are always off the hook. Does having the name "Visual" add any pressure to you? I don't think so. The name speaks for itself. I take my steps and I'm just trying to do my thing. I'm trying to bring a different flavor to this shit. Everybody does one thing way too much or not enough. I'm just trying to have balance and do my thing. It goes along with a lot of cats claiming they're the king or the prince of the city. I'm not stuck on that. I see things, break it down, and let you know my opinion. How do you feel about the way Chicago is being represented? I like it. We have a lot of flavors. I think slowly but surely it's getting more exposure. I'm not really a fan of people seeing one dude as a representation of a city. It might work for New York, the South, or Cali, but it won't work for us. We're not that type of city. None of us around here are for one man representing Chicago. If anyone says it, it's a joke. Twista could have always said he was the king of the city, but he never did because he knows what's up. Same with Common. Kanye, as cocky as he is, has never said that. Lupe Fiasco has never said anything like that. Where do you see yourself in the Chicago scene? I see myself as someone who has been grinding for a long time and I'm finally starting to get the right exposure. I've been at it for awhile. I was playing around for a couple years and been really serious for a couple years. I feel like I'm right where I should be. What's meant for me is right around the corner. Hopefully the right people notice me. I don't want any fame, but I do want to be recognized as someone who is doing his thing. I'm trying to say something and do it differently than most people. What's up with Community Service? That's an idea that I had. It's a group of people that all work together. That's the type of mind-state I take into the music. I help other dudes out and they help me out, from recording, promoting, getting on mixtapes…We get down like that and in time I turned it into a label to where I can put out my own music. It's the face of what I'm trying to do, and that's representing my city and my people that have helped me to get to where I'm at. What are your goals for "Figured it Out"? To keep it moving. I've picked up a couple of distributors here and there. Hopefully I can squeeze out a 12". If I could do that, I'd be really happy. I'm trying to get some more shows also. I've been doing shows around Chicago and soon hopefully out in Cali and Canada. I'm just trying to get the music out there. What's next for you? Next for me is a new album I'm working on. I'm just starting with that. I have a mixtape titled "The Resume" that will be out before the next album. "Figured it Out" is out now, and I'm getting in the studio next month to work on the next project. The production is definitely going to be off the hook because it's going to be handled by the Molemen. What do you want to say to everyone? Peace to everybody that's been supporting. I just want to get my name out there and let people know what's up. I'm out here trying to do what I'm doing . I'm not trying to thug it up or be too jazzy and "bring Hip Hop back." I'm that dude that's just like you. That's how I get down. I'm not trying to have anybody listen to my music and be like, "That dude's going to kill me. He has a million guns." That's not me and that's not what I represent. For more information, visit www.myspace.com/visualcs

By Brian Kayser

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