Revolving Around The Sun Cycle Emcee

MVRemix: How is Definitive Jux different from other labels?

C-Rayz Walz: They are not scared to let the artists be 100% apart of the project. They get behind the project fully. They have Caroline distribution, which is a great distributor. They are fond of me and I thank Caroline for digging my music. As far as Def Jux as a company, the owner of the company is an artist. I don�t know another good label where the owner is another artist. He knows about the whole struggle of being an artist. All of my label mates, they don�t give a f*ck about what society wants them to do. They just do their music from the heart. That�s what I do. I go with mine. If you end up liking it, that�s a plus.

MVRemix: Since you are an accomplished battle emcee, would you say that the movie �8 Mile� with Eminem was a realistic portrayal of emcee battles at that time?

C-Rayz Walz: No doubt. No question. Full frequency. Word to Breez Evaflowin! That�s our story right there. I give Eminem love because he was in our circle during the old hip-hop days and religion.

MVRemix: You did some touring with Atmosphere too. You were on the �Sad Clown Bad Dub 4� DVD. How did you get involved with that and what was that like?

C-Rayz Walz: Me and Slug were cool before I knew what his music was about. Every time I saw homey on the scene in New York, we were cool. We were just kicking it. I didn�t know that this motherf*cker was Slug. The few times I saw Slug perform, I dug it. He was definitely a dope performer. I never heard any of his music and they asked me to host some shows. That�s some real life hip-hop sh*t.

MVRemix: Did you ever slap Mr. Dibbs for 20 bucks?

C-Rayz Walz: Huh? Oh! I roundhouse kicked him! (laughs).

MVRemix: You are a very lyrical emcee. Do you go into the studio with pre-written rhymes and themes or do you hear the beat first and write then and there? Do you hear the beat first or write the lyrics first?

C-Rayz Walz: There�s no set formula. I see music like women. With each one, I have a different approach. Some, I may want to have sex with. Some, I may just want to walk and talk with them. Some, I may just want to spend a night with them and cuddle when I�m stressed out. Each beat has its own personality. Sometimes a beat is just so hot, I may just hear it in the booth and just jump in there. That would be the song right there. I did that with 2 songs on �Ravipops�. I�m not going to say which ones but you can notice something different about those 2 songs. I just went in the booth and straight freestyled those 2 songs and they came off spectacular. Then, there�s a song like �86�. I heard that beat and I just walked with that beat for about a week. I wrote 6 bars here. Maybe, one day, I just wrote one line. By the end, it was a culmination of all those thoughts. At the end of the day, when cats say dumb sh*t like �C Rayz Walz is a much better emcee than the beats he picks�, I feel misunderstood. A lot of cats rhyme over dope beats and they are wack as f*ck. There aren�t many cats who actually make the beat come alive and have the beat complement them as an emcee. Style and expression. I do that with every beat I rock over. I heard it before I laid the rhyme down. �Dead Buffalos� is screaming �Dead Buffalos�. The beat for �Floe� is screaming �Floe�. �Bang this in your whip while you ride through 125th with a sidekick of Hennessey slick.� Say this sh*t on Hot 97.

MVRemix: If you could choose one producer for an entire album, which producer would it be?

C-Rayz Walz: Actually, I�m not a f*cking groupie so I can�t rock with strangers. I can�t rock with dudes who just want to rhyme with me just because I�m C Rayz Walz and they have dope beats. Hip-hop is not a common denominator. We have to share common interests, have a personal experience or at least have a great conversation before we even talk about music. I would do an album with my man, 4th Pyramid right now.

MVRemix: What producer would you like to collaborate with in the future?

C-Rayz Walz: Working with producers can be real funny, man. I really can�t say man. Dudes like Premier are dope. I guess I can say Premier. Cats are sleeping on him right now. Cats definitely have spiked heals on their f*cking head on Premier right now. He�s one of the classic boom-bap straight up hip-hop cats. I think that if Premier and I did a whole album together, we could capture the vibe.

MVRemix: What emcee/group would you like to collaborate with in the future?

C-Rayz Walz: That could be a real challenge to my style. I worked with Rise already. That�s my favorite emcee. Damn, C Rayz and Redman over a Premo track! Bang that sh*t in the club in Afghanistan! Word up! That would be fabulous. Me and Redman could vibe and make some crazy banana boat sh*t.

MVRemix: Some people have said that you and Last Emperor would make a good collaboration

C-Rayz Walz: That would be bananas. I would like to do a whole EP with son. I know Emp is a deep thinker. We would have to be on some food deprivation sh*t with like $10 in our pockets for weeks and just make it happen. We would come out with some real hard heartfelt dope sh*t, say word!

MVRemix: Are you going to do any producing? Will you produce your own beats?

C-Rayz Walz: Yeah, I am actually going to produce an EP that will follow up the next album. The next album is called �The Sun Cycle (Epiphany)� After �The Sun Cycle (Epiphany)�, I�m going to produce all of the beats for the following EP that is called �Organics (The Dysfunctional Paralysis Of Emotional Burden)�.

MVRemix: What was the last incident of racism that you encountered?

C-Rayz Walz: I don�t know. A lot of times in Midtown. It�s kind of inadvertent. I guess, women in downtown Manhattan. If I give them a glance or something they look at me like I am looking at them as if I want to have sex with them. I�m like �Come on! You�re not even that hot! Chill! Don�t even trip like that! I have groupies that look better than you that I turned down. Be easy, ma�.