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MVRemix: You were speaking about the golden era of NYC Hip-Hop - so what are your thoughts on the current state of NYC Hip-Hop? Because a lot of people feel NYC is jumped on the bandwagon of what's hot just to appeal to certain demographics, instead of staying true to the city's past.
O.C.: I mean, you just answered. You gave the question and the answer, because I call New York, New Atlanta right now. You have a handful of dudes who are keeping it gangsta and sticking to the roots of New York, but for the most part, a lot of cats are just trying to sell records, so they think bounce music is where it is. And there is nothing wrong with bounce records, but don't make it so obvious. Just don't hop on down South niggas dicks so quick and look at it like nothing its wrong. We used to pioneer shit and now a lot of cats may look at me like I'm old school and shit. But its like, damn, y'all motherfuckers ain't even progress lyrically and y'all calling me old school? The whole thing now is get on some pop shit, get on some 50 shit, get shot or stabbed and hopefully you live through it to tell a tale and get a record deal. And that shit ain't gangsta! I mention this in most of my interviews - people look at negative shit with 50, but they don't listen to what he says about getting shot. If you read interviews on him, he is like, "Man, if I could have avoided getting shot, I would have. I don't brag about getting shot, I talk about it." Its not a cool thing and when is it ever gangsta to get shot? Gangsters avoid trying to get shot - at least Al Capone and them motherfuckers did. Now you have cats who want to get shot just to get a record deal. That shit is corny man and New York is corny now, but that’s why I'm here.
MVRemix: Keeping on the topic - you touched on emcees creating characters for themselves to sell records. But after while, do you think these people get caught up in their own characters and eventually they can't differentiate between the two?
O.C.: Hell yeah! You have a lot of people with ego's right now for no reason. How can you have an ego and not be as nice as you say you really are? LL had an ego, but he had shit to back it up. Jigga has an ego. He is a arrogant dude, in the sense of Jay-z, but Sean Carter is a different person, and he can back it up. Nas - same thing. Nas has an ego when he is on the mic, but when you hear him talk, he always has something intelligent to say. But these cats nowadays ain't taking suit. They like, 'Fuck these niggas, I ain't listening to them.' When I was coming up, I would listen to everybody just so I could get a picture of what I wanted to be like and what I didn't want to be like. So a lot of these cats are wack and their bark is louder than their bite. Especially the younger cats, because you expect them to be on their job, but they ain't.
MVRemix: The thing that I've noticed that pisses me off is nowadays there is less focus on producing hot or classic albums. Artists such as yourself with Word, Life and Jewelz, or the emcees previously mentioned (Nas, Jay-z, LL) got respect for the albums they dropped. But nowadays its like, 'He's a good lyricist and kills the mixtapes,' but no one cares that they can't make an album.
O.C.: Yeah, I mean, Get Rich Or Die Tryin' was a dope record and I love 50, don't get me wrong. But was it a better record than Illmatic or It Was Written? No. It was a well put together record, but he had the machine behind him and people don't look at that. He had Eminem, Dre and Jimmy Iovine. And I really have to commend the dude for being the first NYC solo artist to ever sell records like that on their debut album. I ain't gonna front, I buy 50's records, but Nas' record should have sold 10 million as well. It’s a different game nowadays, but Nas' record, or Reasonable Doubt, or Jadakiss' album should have sold that much - it ain't no different from 50 did, as far as putting together the record. Lyrically, he's not nicer than these cats, but he makes great songs. He's not nicer than Jada, but he makes better records. He's part of the machine and he knows it too.
MVRemix: Throughout all your years in this game, what has been your happiest moment? Is there anything specific?
O.C.: Na, not in particular. I have been happy….like I said, in the industry's eyes, a lot of people look at me like, "Damn, you still here? You are supposed to be out of here." But that is not the case and I know a lot of cats are phony. There are one or two who are really genuine when they see me and show me love. But for the most part, niggas is phony and they on that bullshit. Niggas love to see you fucked up. They can't understand why me and my crew - me, Finesse, Show, Buck - is pulling up in 50 thousand dollar cars just like them and we ain't selling platinum records. They can't understand that. That is something we never glorified either. That is another thing I always tell people, because I can read peoples minds when they saw me roll up in Benzes and Rovers. I know they are like, "Damn, he never sold any records like that, how the fuck is he affording this shit?" And that shouldn't be the focus on me, but we gained genuine respect out of the music business. We didn't gain respect because of what we drove or what jewelry we wore - it came from our music. Like you said a minute ago, we dropped genuine records and good LP's - that's how we got out respect.
MVRemix: Let's say a younger Hip Hop fan is reading this interview now, if there was one song of yours you wanted them to hear, which represented everything you stand for, which one would it be?
O.C.: Probably "Going Nowhere," because there is a little braggadocios in it, as well as a little bit of my ego. And that is what Hip-Hop was based on in the early days. It was cool to have an ego and say you were better than the next man, but not to degrade the man to the point where you are talking about his mother or you are going to kill his family. Also, that song shows how I never folded for the music business. I always do what I do and I'm not going to bend over backwards. I ain't gonna get into homosexual tendencies or things of that nature. Because there is a lot of that going on in the music business, whether people want to admit it or not. Its kind of taboo to talk about for people. But I'm not bending over and giving my ass up for no million records sold. Its not happening.
MVRemix: What else do you have going on in the future?
O.C.: I'm working on my next album right now. They are talking about releasing it in June, but I'm probably gonna have it done by April or March. I'm about to hit the road with D.I.T.C., we are going overseas - me, Diamond, AG and Finesse. When I come back, I'm gonna hit the road again and promote this record. Domino is going to take a little trip with me to Japan. We are going to stay out there and chill for New Years. Then I'll come back home, get on the road again and start on some new D.I.T.C. music. I'm also looking for some up and coming cats. I never brought nobody to the table, so I feel its my duty to bring some cats out and give an opportunity to somebody else.
MVRemix: Any last words, shout outs or plugs?
O.C.: Peace to everybody who supported me and peace to all the new fans I've gained. Peace to you for even taking time out to holla at me, as I had to call you back because I was knocked out with a little hangover. (Laughter) Just peace to everybody representing real Hip-Hop.
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