DON'T MISS TODAY:

Back to Artist Profiles

6/11/2007 Yung Texxus Interview  HHG catches up with Green City member Yung Texxus to discuss the group, his solo material, coming up in Killeen, TX and more.  What’s up?    Man, I’m doing good. The sun is shining, the birds are singing and the money’s coming. I’m living, so it’s all good.    You’re from Killeen, Texas. What was it like growing up there?  Growing up in Killeen, there were enough good things for you to be involved in and enough bad things for you to be involved in. It was a good mix. It’s a military town and there were people from all different ethnicities. I had fun growing up there. It was cool.  How did the group Green City form?    We all grew up together in Killeen. We went to middle school and elementary school together. We started rapping together and the group was formed. We all had an interest in rapping and we used to meet up at Big Tex’s crib. He had a karaoke machine and we used to go in there and freestyle for hours. Sparkdawg wasn’t in the group then. He didn’t come into the group until after he came back from Atlanta. He used to fuck with Lil’ Scrappy and his group G’z Up. He didn’t come into the picture until after 2004, which is after we graduated from high school.   Scarface has already cosigned Green City. What does the Scarface cosign mean to you?   It’s a big deal because he’s a big influence in hip-hop in general. It helps make our movement even more monumental when he says we’re the next niggas coming out of Texas. It’s a huge honor.  There’s a lot of acts out there and there’s a lot of disposable music out there. There’s a lot of older acts out there just hanging around and I think people are waiting for the next generation to hold it down for the next 10 years. Out of the new crop of artists that’s emerging, I feel there’s a lot of good acts coming out and it helps us that Scarface is telling people to listen to us.  Are you happy with how Green City’s single “Like A Pornstar” did?    To tell you the truth, a lot of people don’t know how the song came about. Basically we had the beat and originally it had a sample of Lil’ Jon on the beat saying, “Party like a rockstar, fuck like a pornstar.” This is before we even heard “Party Like A Rockstar.” We thought it was a dope-ass sample so we laid the track down. The verse that I had laid originally, I would say it was a more lyrical verse and it was more up-tempo. ‘Face heard it and told me to slow it down so people could understand it. I’m a spitter. I guess ‘Face wanted something else. So I went in and changed my verse.  Then Mannie Fresh came into the studio and heard it and said it was fly, so he got on the hook. Then two or three minutes later, Mike Jones walks into the room and wants to lay down a verse. No one’s heard Mike Jones’ verse on it. I think they had some people on the mixing that weren’t that experienced. I can’t say I’m too happy with how that song did because I had to change my verse, but when Scarface tells you to do something, you respect it because he has so much knowledge in the game. But as far as me being happy about how that song came out, we didn’t really get the push on the song and having Mike Jones on it would have propelled it to greater heights.  Mind you, we did the album with ‘Face in two weeks. There were five or six songs that we did and we had six or seven songs that were already done. I feel that we didn’t get enough time to spend on the project, but it’s still great because we’re great artists. We came together and got the job done, but I feel that it was rushed though. To make a long story short, I can’t say that I’m happy with the way the single turned out, but fuck it.  Did the album come out the way you wanted to even with the time crunch?    The time pressure was crazy. We had 12 hours a day in the studio nonstop. I don’t think we had a lot of creative control over the album which I wasn’t too fond about, but we got some good songs. The song I did with Scarface, that song came out crazy. Scarface heard the beat and concept and wanted to hop on it, so that let me know that I was doing something right. We have some powerful songs on there and some great production. I am happy with how the album turned out. I think it’s going to be a great album.  What’s going on with your other group State City?  I’ll break that down for you. Basically in 2000, my father was released from prison. He did a 10-year prison bid. I was a baby when he went in and I never really knew him. In 2000, I left Killeen and I moved out to the East Coast to reunite with my father. I started my own group on my own label, State City Music. I have six artists on there, including myself. That’s basically what it is.  With two groups as well as a solo career, is it ever difficult balancing everything?  It’s crazy because a lot of people don’t know that I’m a co-CEO of Green City and the CEO of State City. I have some great things going on with my solo music. I was in The Source’s Unsigned Hype in October of 2005 with Lil’ Kim on the cover. I have great accomplishments and I’ve been doing it for awhile. I’m like the longshot that nobody ever bets on. Then my number comes up and people are kicking themselves in the ass for not betting on me because they could have won $1 million. I enjoy being the underdog because it gives people the element of surprise and it allows you to come from the bottom and it makes what you achieve so great. I’m a solo artist and a group artist and I ride with my niggas regardless.  It does get difficult balancing everything though. Sometimes I just want to quit and say, “Fuck this.” I’ve been doing this for five years seriously, since I was 18. Juggling the business aspect and trying to do the artist thing, it gets tough at times. That’s why I’m building my team up. I just acquired a road manager and I’m working on building up the marketing and promotions team. If I can delegate the business responsibilities, I can focus on being an artist.    Your new single is “Buss It Open.” Are you happy with how that song is doing for you so far?    I’m very pleased. It’s just a good-ass club record. It’s a banging-ass club record. A couple of stations on XM Radio picked it up. Check for it on 66 Raw. It’s doing well and we’re looking to do the remix with Tum Tum and Project Pat.  How’s your solo album coming?  The album is like my life. I’m the Underground Prince so the album is called UGP. The album is going to come out sometime this year. I have a couple of major labels looking at me but we have to get our stats up. I have a couple of mixtapes I’m looking to put out and we have to get our BDS and Soundscans up. By the end of the year, we’ll know who we’re going to fuck with and how we’re going to push The Underground Prince album.  You don’t come from a major city in Texas. What is your place in Texas hip-hop?  On the real, I don’t even place myself as a Texas hip-hop artist. I’m a worldwide artist with universal appeal. I spit that shit. Me coming from Killeen is not a Houston or Dallas. We’re the last place that gets looked at. I just want to bring to attention that you don’t have to be one-dimensional and have one type of flow to succeed. I’m the nigga that’s going to come and get lyrical on the tracks. I’m going to spit that crack.  Where do you want to be next year at this time?    Currently right now with State City, we just acquired a building in Delaware. I’m opening up a store and a recording studio. I’m looking to expand my business and to become a household name. I hope to release The Underground Prince album either in late 2007 or sometime in 2008. I think when people hear “Like A Pornstar” or “Buss It Open,” they’re going to think I’m a club dude. I’m really a street dude if you do your research on me. I have all types of records. I just want to get my just due. I’m one of the last people that gets checked for out of Texas. They talk about Sparkdawg, Chingo Bling and Kiotti, who are all great friends, but I just want to get my just due.   What are your plans for this summer?    I just want to tour. We’re setting that up. I’m going to be on the road and working on the album The Underground Prince. I’ll be sending you some exclusives off the album. It’s going to be crazy.  What do you want to say to everybody?  Really, I know there’s a lot of underground artists out there and you may be wondering how I get this publicity. You have to grind 24/7 and never give up on your dream. Really, my career jumped off when I got in The Source. I never did a campaign. I sent my CD into The Source, they liked it and they published it. There’s outlets out there and you have to take advantage of them and make the most of the opportunities you got and don’t give up on this shit. Look at me. I’m a shining example.  http://myspace.com/yungtexxusakamistagreen

By Brian Kayser

[27] REACT TO THIS INTERVIEW