Kidz In The Hall: Double-O (The Producer) & Naledge (The MC)

Gowhere Hip Hop is proud to present another EXCLUSIVE interview as I was privileged enough to talk to both members of Kidz In The Hall - Double-O & Chicago’s own, Naledge! Both members had some very interesting things to say about the creative process behind their work, influences in hip hop and elsewhere, the success of “Drivin’ Down The Block”, & their endorsement of likely Democratic presidential candidate, Barack Obama! It is definitely a MUST-READ for all you hip hop fans so check out the transcript of our conversation below! And be sure 2 scroll down for an all-NEW track by Kidz In The Hall, along with a couple more goodies! Enjoy!

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GWHH: Well, the first question I have for you guys is: What is the story behind the formation of Kidz In The Hall? And how did you guys meet and eventually collaborate to form the duo?

Double-O: Well, we met at school at the University of Pennsylvania and we started working together and basically there was nobody else in our crew. We were trying to make it in the industry and basically we were the only ones so, you know, we decided that we would rely on each other to make that happen.

GWHH: Nice, so I guess moving on, how does the creative process work between you two when developing a track? For instance, does Naledge come up with some lyrics and come to you for a beat, or vice versa, or is it something in between?

Naledge: All of the above. Yeah, all of those ways. I think more now than ever, he [Double-O] just comes up with stuff that I would probably like because he already knows what I probably would want to get on. And I might come up with somethin’ that day or if the track speaks to me right away.

GWHH: Alright, cool. Any input from you, Double-O?

Double-O: Yeah, yeah! I mean, it’s one of those things that we’ve been working together since 2000 so we know kinda where we wanna go so we can speak without speaking most of the times when it comes to the music.

GWHH: Ok, cool. Yeah, that’s interesting. I’m always curious as to how that process works behind the scenes, in the studio, especially with another person.

Double-O: Yeah, I mean it depends. I mean, if we’re together, then, you know, there’s always be a lot of back and forth in terms of tweaking things here and there and otherwise, it might take a little longer, but we can go back and forth, you know, trying something, going back, trying it again, kinda thing that would take a little longer when we’re not together.

GWHH: So yeah, going along with that, can you guys talk about how each of your styles play off each other to make each other better? For instance, Naledge, how does Double-O’s production style affected your growth as a rapper, and vice versa?

Naledge: Well, I mean, obviously.. [..breaks up..] he has to inspire me to do what I do. It’s not like.. he can make a song, and to write a rap, but to create a song, there has to be inspiration. The beauty of it is that, you know, while he knows my comfort zone, he sometimes pushes me outside of it. If I go on a beat that I normally wouldn’t get on, then I see a reaction, it’s like, ‘Wow! He was right!’. When a lot of times, I’m stubborn and I hear people saying go over this beat over and over versus the type of record I want to make. You know, going foreign, and going a lot of places has opened my eyes to a lot of things. Like I was straight hip hop, R&B, jazz, just the coolest black music. And then travelin’ and goin’ around the world, like I’m gettin’ into different things… like a Daft Punk record, or a Justin record, or, you know what I mean? Like even tho they’re big, like a Duran Duran, or a Pink Floyd. Like that shit I haven’t really thought about. And going to Europe and seeing how it is now, its stuff that Double-O can incorporate into the music and probably knowing that that’s what’s up outside of the backpack realm. And now I listen to it and understand it and am more comfortable with it.

GWHH: So Double-O, have you felt that Naledge has contributed to your growth as a producer as well?

Double-O: Yeah, oh definitely! Because the reality is, like.. as a producer sometimes, the hardest thing is to be able to make a record that still allows the MC to shine, you know? Like, you still have to make a record that the people can get into and listen to. So that the whole song is not just one dope beat and a few dope lines; it’s everything put together. So I think that, you know, a lot of just workin’ with him is learning his nuances, and knowing when to go in and out and really just build off his style and then building the records around him. So when they start as a [..breaks up..] and then it builds out into the whole song, once it’s recorded, then I can go back in and say, ‘Ok, this line is crazy’ or ‘This whole part is crazy’ and then I can make sure that it’s really shown.

GWHH: Yeah, so the beat can enhance it, you know? So, cool, yeah. I can definitely see that. So, obviously with the big record, “Drivin’ The Block”, that was a huge hit for you guys. Did you guys imagine just how big the success of that record would be in hip hop and in the mainstream?

Double-O: We knew it was going to be good, cuz it was one of those things where you know you have that type of record that could definitely work. You know, until.. what I think we didn’t plan on, was people really taking to it like in terms of radio DJs and people like that.. Like DJ Enuff, and those types of people, and rocking it without even really having that little push that major labels give it sometimes. They just played it cuz they loved the record. So I think that caught us by surprise, but we knew it was going to get a positive reaction.

GWHH: So along with that, how do you feel its success is in the progression of underground hip hop?

Double-O: Well, I mean.. I don’t know. I’m not underground.

GWHH: Well what I mean by that - kinda like the more conscious hip hop style that is becoming more prevalent now, transitioning now from that gangster type rap and ringtone type rap, like do you guys just feel like this can pave the way for artists like yourselves?

Double-O: Well, I think that there’s an entire shift that’s happening right now that incorporates us at the forefront of it, which is like, the shit is not necessarily from gangster rap to an alternative form of rap, as much as it is old to new. There’s a lot of older heads that are graduating to that next level, where not to say that they’re not going to put albums out, but they’re going to cater to a much older audience, whereas we can now cater to the mainstream, current audience. And I think you can see a lot of the other groups, The Cool Kids, and people like that, coming out and breaking new ground, and becoming the leaders of the New School. Like, that is the biggest shift to me.

GWHH: Oh, I see, I see. I like that approach, yeah. Naledge, do you have anything to add?

Naledge: Oh, I mean, honestly.. inspiration is what you do in life. I feel like, how do you become conscious? Like is everybody dead? Like whatever your reality is, you want to be at the forefront, you want to be as the main guy as possible. Like, who as an artist wants to be confined to a small realm? I think what happens is that artists get comfortable in the realm they can be in and it’s easier to get comfortable then come with an edge. Oh, because these are the people that have always done somethin’ for them and for them, and so then they learn the specific type of record that that person wants and they just sit in that zone. But a true artist always wants to bring more people and break new boundaries, so it’s not really about.. it’s just about reaching as many people as possible. It’s not like we’re, you know, going to make the same record next time around. It’s just a snapshot; it’s almost like an art collection. Picasso is not going to give you the same fuckin’ collection of pieces every time around, you know what I mean?

GWHH: Cool. Yeah, I see that. So another question that we have, that we pretty much ask every artist we interview is, how do you guys feel about the state of hip hop today and how do you see the genre progressing into the future? And I know you guys have already touched on that a lil’ bit…

Double-O: Yeah, we already started answering that question, but I think the evolution right now is a lot of, you know, it’s breaking into the ground where you just have… Hip hop needs to split up into two generations and I think that’s starting to happen. Like, the older generation is starting to get comfortable with the fact that they don’t need to love Soulja Boy. They don’t have to love what’s on the radio because they have other options to listen to like artists they grew up on who are still making good records. So it’s kind of like, just listen to them. There’s nothing wrong with just listening to that. So I think that is the big progression now. And hip hop has to get to that point where you can have the Easy Rock listening station. And you know, the Easy Hip Hop listening station, the Adult Contemporary Hip Hop, and you can still have the stuff currently right now - 3rd level of hip hop that is definitely a certain level of that as well. So it has to bridge that gap that rock has as well.

GWHH: Hmm I see, ok. Naledge, anything else you wanna weigh in?

Naledge: I think the game is just moving to a place where people are free. You know, I think rap being a more.. ever since day one, it’s been viewed as a comedy, you know what I’m saying? Now it’s viewed as a true art form. People today in hip hop - they use the perspective of their constraints that they were born out of. Now we’re at a point where it’s a global thing. The language of you. It’s not just the language of blacks in the ghetto. Now you have everybody weighing in with their perspectives, so it it’s diversifying and at the same time, it’s a lovely thing. With the money, and the fact that it is a business and all this money is being generated from it, you can’t take the artist’s dream, you can’t make some of the things more formulated. Just see on MySpace, you can see that there’s a rapper from every place with every story and every style that you can even think of and that’s a beautiful thing. You know, we can go all the way to Ireland, somebody walks and freestyles for us. Take it even further, going to Germany, they have rappers and they have their own style, their own culture, their own streetwear apparel, their own brand. That’s how far this has gone; to see how this is progressing, it’s a beautiful thing.

GWHH: Yeah, and being in the States, I don’t have much exposure to artists out there and I know you guys just came from out there and were able to see that. And that’s somethin’ the whole world has to offer in hip hop..

Naledge: Yeah, and even just black and white people in America. For a long time, in the 90s, you only saw a certain type of person. It was very two-dimensional. Now you’re seeing artists that are able to make a good ol’ record and then turn around and make a record about politics and then turn around and make a record about the (gun trade?). It’s something now where you’re not rapping at yourself. It’s really an art form. It’s really about skill at this point and that’s a beautiful thing. Being able to explore the artistry of it. With jazz, or rock groups, with blues groups, or all those art forms.. we’re at the point also where anybody can have access to the art form. And that could be a good thing or it could be a bad thing and that’s where it’s going. The bad thing is that you’re going to have an influence from artists and rappers - rap music with different styles. And that could be a good thing as well. The problem that I have is people that don’t take it seriously and are in it more for other things, but throughout all of that I find people that are pushing boundaries and are going to be the next superstars and trying to push it forward and that’s what we’re trying to do.

GWHH: Yeah, I can see that going both ways, exactly. I was wondering if there are any specific artists in hip hop or outside of hip hop that you enjoy and that influence your style?

Naledge: I mean, it’s been well documented that I kinda came up on Common, but also Q-Tip. I felt like he’s very slept on, very underrated. I feel like when people mention the top MCs, a lot of times they leave him out and I feel like, I was just explaining to somebody, that he’s the master of a certain type of flow. Like he’s able to get a lot of confidence with only a few words. Nowadays, and the type of rap that we do, your verses can get so criticized, and when he was doin’ it, his style was so different that I think people would sleep on him lyrically.

Double-O: For me, it’s more of everything. Like it can be a small element of somebody else’s record, a small element of somebody else’s song, that really inspires me to do, you know, everything, a little detail anywhere.

GWHH: Cool, yeah, I can see that approach. Another thing I noticed in The In Crowd, Naledge, was a lot of references to the NBA, and being a big NBA fan, it drew me closer to your record. I was just wondering how outside influences like the NBA or other interest make an impact in your lyrics?

Naledge: We’re social commentators. We’re all social commentators at the end of the day. You know, everything that you soak up, everything that is a part of popular culture, I’m very aware. I’m always, you know, watching television, reading the paper, on the internet. Sports was a big part of my life. I was an athlete all the way up through college. ESPN is one of my favorite webpages, SportsCenter is one of my favorite TV shows, so you know what I’m sayin? I collect baseball cards. Like, there’s a lot of things. I was a big sports fan, I watch sports all day everyday. You know, anything that I do or see, movies that I’ll watch, everything like that will pop up every now and then in the rhymes. I reference movies all the time, I reference a lot of different things. The WWF, I’ll reference that every now and then.

GWHH: With Double-O, is there anything like that, not necessarily sports, but maybe like art or something like that maybe kinda has an influence on your style?

Double-O: Honestly, like I literally, you can just soak up a conversation and it’ll make you kinda wanna do something a different way. Like I said, it’s just paying attention and being mindful of what the hell is going on around you. Like it could be a random, you know, ability or instrument on a TV commercial that makes you want to go and make a beat, you know what I’m sayin?

GWHH: Well, lastly, I got one last question for ya. In 2007, you guys became the first hip hop group to publicly endorse likely Democratic presidential candidate, Barack Obama. I was wondering if you guys can both weigh in on what makes Obama the right leader for the country in the future, and also why do you feel it’s important for artists like yourselves to support him publicly?

Double-O: Well, I mean for me, moreso than the artist, as a man, like, if I want to make a statement or back somebody, I’m going to do it. I think that we need to not always see ourselves as artists as much as we are people that have a certain level influence. For me, why I like Obama, because it took me a few seconds to get behind him, was just like inspiration. He can do a lot in a simple speech that people have been trying to do for 30 years and hasn’t been able to. I think that’s going to be important in office because it becomes now a situation where, you’re going to have to work in conjunction with him to get anything popped off. Like, you’re not going to be able to just, think that and everything’s going to be better. You’re going to have to work as hard in your area to change the things around you, and you can through [Obama] in office. Just the other day, it’s run by the people man and if we wanted change, then we have to do so as well. So for me, that was the biggest thing is that he actually convinced to an audience that hasn’t had anyone talk to them in a long time.

Naledge: I mean, he covered all bases and for me, coming from Chicago, that’s a natural thing. But, to show support for Barack Obama, just seeing what he did to help the country. I think that, and what he’s thinking about and being able to take that to a national level. No one has been able to inspire Chicago since Harold Washington died. And you know, as a young kid.. as an organizer, he would not take no for answer. And Chicago is not one of those cities that’s easy to crack, especially if you’re not somebody who’s born and raised there or not part of the old guard. So, for him, with immersing himself in the community, a lot of people look at it as a weird thing and they thought the importance of, why don’t you just go out and get yourself a corporate job and stay outta the community and not function. And work in a way, so diligent and when it comes to the people, and he learned how to motivate. And he’s a fighter! He lost 2 elections before he ever won, he considered leaving politics altogether. You know, he’s a fighter! He’s what we need, running our country. He’s the type of model that we need to follow. I’d rather have that than what we have already.

GWHH: Right, yeah. Cool…well, that’s pretty much all I got. I hope we covered a lot, if you got any shout-outs 2 say, feel free…

Naledge: The In Crowd is in stores now! Everybody gotta go get that. Visit us on kidzinthehall.com or visit us on MySpace or visit us on Facebook. Last but not least, I wanna make sure that people understand that backpack rap is in. We are not hipsters, we are a team. And we the best new group in hip hop today. Put us up against anybody you want, we’re better than them. It doesn’t matter. Beats, lines, hooks. We can battle in the streets, if you want, whatever. We’re better. 2008, everything. Hip hop. There ya go.

Interview conducted by Sgt. Tibs

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Kidz In The Hall “Drivin’ Down The Block (West Coast RMX)” f/ Pac Div, Tyga, Glasses Malone, & Mistah F.A.B.

***NEW*** - FULL, CDQ *Tibs Fav.™

Kidz In The Hall “Work To Do (Change) RMX” f/ Bun B & Talib Kweli

Producer: Double-O - FULL, CDQ, Ode 2 Obama *Tibs Fav.™

Kidz In The Hall “Let Your Hair Down” f/ Skyzoo & Lil’ Eddie

Producer: Double-O - Track from 2008 album, The In Crowd *Tibs Fav.™

Above is an all-new track by the Kidz - the West Coast RMX of “Drivin’ Down The Block” that is hot! It features some up and coming West Coast rappers and incorporates some old school Dr. Dre into the original “Drivin’ Down The Block” beat! The two trax below that are old, but good ones if you don’t have them already. The first track is the RMX to the Kidz’ song supporting Obama featuring Bun B & Talib Kweli and the second is from the album, The In Crowd, and features some of the NBA references that I mentioned in one question (NBA nuts will marvel at the lines name-dropping Shane Battier & Ahmad Rashad… listen up!). Lastly, GWHH would like to thank Kidz In The Hall for their time, input, and cooperation with the interview and Wes for making it all possible! Be sure 2 check out a couple, related GWHH links below! Enjoy!

Kidz In The Hall @ GWHH

Previous Exclusive Interviews With GWHH

~ Sgt. Tibs

Lupe Fiasco (left) & GemStones (right)

Back again with Part TWO of our EXCLUSIVE Interview with 1st & 15th’s GemStones! In order to save you some scrolling, and in case ya just missed it or want to refresh your memory, CLICK HERE FOR PART 1, where GemStones describes how he met Lupe Fiasco, the state of hip hop today and in the future, his musical and outside inspirations, AND MORE! Without further adieu, check out the rest of the interview below!

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GWHH: Well you also touched on this a little earlier about the influence Chicago has had on hip hop, but how has living and growing up in Chicago influenced your work specifically, and can you really see that influence in not only your music but in the music of your fellow Chicago artists as well?

GS: Umm, because it’s real man. With my experience coming up in Chicago, I wasn’t handed anything. So it kind of makes it like, you can’t enjoy the sweet without the bitter, you got to take the bitter with the sweet. The sweet wouldn’t feel so good, wouldn’t taste so good, if it wasn’t for the bitter. You know what I’m sayin? Like, the joy wouldn’t feel so good if it wasn’t for the pain. So I do what I do and take the bitter with the sweet, and mix it all up, like lemonade. So, it’s like that right? If you come up in Chicago, you got the skills. Maybe it’s like this in every other city, I don’t know cuz I’m not from the other cities, but in Chicago, it was hard coming up. Nothing was given to you. You had to go get it. So, now that I got it, it’s like.. I put it in my music. I couldn’t fake it when I put my album together, I couldn’t get on wax and lie about things I didn’t have and things that I didn’t do. I gotta tell my story; I have to influence the people. I know I’m a role model. So I have to play that role. I know kids in the younger generations is looking up to me and I couldn’t lie man. This is my testimony. This is my testimony. I gotta testify. I gotta tell it man. That’s why my album is named Troubles Of The World because of Chicago - what Chicago did to me. Chicago created a monster. I don’t mean it in a bad way though. Like a machine, Chicago, built like me? It’s crazy. I thank Chicago though for not giving it to me because I probably wouldn’t have known what to do with it if I had had it. Like, I’m glad I’m not rich yet. I think if I got rich tomorrow, I would know what to do with my money. But had I got rich at 21, there’s no tellin’ where I’d be right now. Like what would I do with 10 million right now? Like, I’m glad I was not rich because I woulda been a monster. I didn’t know. I came up and I didn’t have, so when I got it I woulda just blew it. But now that I went through the hurt, I went through the pain, I know what it feels like not to have, so when I do get, I’m going to treat it like it’s my last. Treat my last like my first and treat my first like my last. You know what I’m sayin? And Chicago did that to me. So that’s the impact Chicago had on me, like Chicago and the streets period. Everything from the museum to the walk to the park, just growing up in Chicago. It is still embedded in me and it molded me into the beast I am today. And when you guys hear my album, that is due to drop this year - Troubles Of The World - cuz they’re my troubles, they’re your troubles. At the end of the day, we all equal. We all go through the same problems. We all hurt, we all see, we feel, touch, sense them. The 5 senses, like all that. We do the same thing, we just at different parts of the world, just all walks of life, but we all share the same experiences and that’s why I named it Troubles Of The World. Because everybody can relate to it - whether you’re white, black, purple, orange, green, I don’t care what your race is. You can relate to it if you’re human. And it’s like we all go through these troubles. And it’s just real. It’s talking about issues with your mother, with your son, with your niece, your nephew, just the birds and the bees, talking about sex, just everything. And when you hear it, they’re going to be like, they know this guy personally, how does this guy know my life? This is real.

GWHH: Yeah, I like that. I like that. I’m looking forward to it. So another thing to look forward to is your new mixtape, you mentioned it briefly earlier. Could you tell us a little bit about that?

GS: Oh yeah yeah! My new mixtape is entitled The Testimony Of GemStones that is about to drop in about 2 weeks. But I will I have that, FREE, downloadable on my myspace page which is www.myspace.com/fnfgemini and it will basically.. It’s like orientation. It like gives you a sample before the album. Like in school, they give you an orientation before you go to high school. Just what it’s like or whatever. So it’s like orientation before my album come - it’s like a sneak preview of the album, what your facing, what’s about to go on. It’s like a diluted version of the raw dope. It’s like I didn’t want to give you top ten crack. I kinda want to lean you on to it at first so you can understand it, you know what I’m sayin?

GWHH: Yeah, yeah, so it’ll kinda like build the buzz for it, right?

GS: Yeah yeah yeah. So when the album do come, you can understand me even more. Like ok, then you can go back like, ‘Oh, it’s his mixtape! I remember on his mixtape he was like, Oh! That explains a lot of this stuff’, you know what I’m sayin? The Testimony Of GemStones - basically I’m just testifyin’ on everything and then when the album come, these are the Troubles Of The World. This is what I gotta testify about. I’m talkin’ about anything that you wanna hear, for my FNF fans, who follow 1st & 15th since day one, like I’m speaking on these questions, I’m answering questions that you prolly never asked and I’m testifyin’ on everything and it’s real. It’s crack and oh, it’s ridiculous. And I’m not just sayin’ it cuz it’s mine. Lupe heard it and went crazy, like ‘Oh My G*d!’

GWHH: Hahaha, awesome. That’s awesome.

GS: Lupe been braggin’ to all his homies like, ‘Yo, GemStones’ mixtape, that’s where it’s at’ Like I didn’t tell those guys. Everything that’s coming back to me is off Lupe’s word. Like, ‘Yo man, we gotta hear this mixtape! Lupe’s going around tellin’ everybody..’ I just played a few songs for Lupe and he was like, ‘Whoa!’ Like, for real, like Lupe heard it and went back and then spread the word, like my artist about to bring something that’s so ugly. Lupe know! He know! It’ll be up on all the sites - all the sites that’s up on the internet where the mixtapes are - like I’m goin’ to have it on all the sites, whoever want it, they can get it. It’s gon’ be there.

GWHH: Alright, cool. Yeah, we’ll definitely post it up too. Yeah, now, more specifically, are the songs kinda like the songs you did for Untamed Beast? Or is it more like “Good Morning”?

GS: Oh yeah, I shoulda spoken that. Like Untamed Beast was like Gemini. Like my whole thing now is to show how I’ve evolved. Like I’ve evolved, how I’ve grown as an artist, as a person. Like that Gemini thing, that was rapper. It was talented, like beast, top 10, like ahhh! That was Gemini. That was that Gemini era. That was for the rappers. That was me as a rapper, but I’ve evolved from that. I did the braids, I did the heavyset. That’s why I lost the weight, I cut the braids off. And the name is gone now. There is no more Gemini. Gemini is dead. And I’m explaining that on the new mixtape. And it’s just showing my growth as an artist. How I can rap about something - turn the negative into a positive and still have the same impact on the same people. And when you can do that, you got it, you know what I’m sayin? Cuz if you can take a song like degrading the women and you got thousands goin’ crazy, cheerin’ you on about degrading the women. And you can turn around, and do the same song over the same, but this time you’re apologizing for doing that. So I’m just basically turning my negatives into positives. And showin’ that I’ve grown as a person. You do things when you was young, like, you do in your life when you was young that now that you was grown, you wouldn’t dare do cuz you were young then. It was your past. And like that Gemini mixtape was my past and I’m apologizing to my fans for certain things that I’ve said on there because I was just oblivious to certain things then. But now I’ve grown as a person and now I’m going to give it to you. Like “Good Morning”? “Good Morning” was the first jumpoff track. ‘Good morning. Wake up. Get off up your grandmomma’s sofa. Jobs is open, because they ain’t got no role models to coach them.’

GWHH: Alright, that’s cool. That’s cool. So I also read that there’s a DVD that comes out with the mixtape? Could you talk a little bit about that?

GS: Oh yeah yeah. That’s why I pushed the mixtape back. Just so you can come into my life, so you can understand my world, from all I go to, the blocks I be on, catch me in the studio, how we record in the studio, just old footage of me and Lupe back before we had our mustaches. Back when I first met him in ‘01, back when we was young, that was almost ten years ago. Just a lot of footage, a lot of footage from tour. “The Cool” tour, I just got off “The Cool” tour with Lupe where we had a sold out tour all over the world. I got footage of “The Cool” tour. I got footage with MTV: The Diary. The “We On” video is going to be on my new mixtape. It’s crazy. We puttin’ this out worldwide. This mixtape is going to be out all over the world. We bout to push this, and then I got a Part 2! I just wanna keep my name buzzing, I wanna keep it fresh. You got some artists come out and you be like, ‘Whatever happened to him? Why did he stop?’ I’m going to keep pumping music, keep coming to these sites - these hip hop websites and I’ma keep givin’ ‘em verses and give them whatever they wanna hear. Throw it up on their boards, like keep the people talkin. I’ma finna make a big impression on the game. Watch. It’s time right now man, it’s time.

GWHH: Yeah, you mentioned about the tour. Could you talk about your experiences there on a sold-out tour? Prolly one of the biggest tours so far in ‘08.

GS: Ok man, “The Cool” tour was everything I thought it was that I saw comin’ up as a shorty on TV - like Michael Jackson, live on stage, lookin’ on BET, the Grammys - like it was that.. times 10! Like that times 10! Like actually living it. I’m on stage performing in front of 10,000 people chanting and they all chanting your name at one time. Like you was just somewhere in your mother’s basement chillin’ with nobody knowing your name, then you’re off in New Zealand - 5,000, 6, 7, 9, 10,000 people chanting your name that you don’t even know! They don’t even speak English, you know what I’m sayin? It’s crazy. It’s crazy. It’s a rush, like the first time I’ve ever been on a tour bus. We had like 2 big screen tvs, man the whole tour bus thing, planes everyday. No sleep, gettin’ like 3 hours of sleep, wakin’ up, leaving clothes behind in your hotel room, because you don’t wanna be over at the airport. Like they chargin’ you extra, buying clothes, food, gettin sick because you’re going to different climates. It’s crazy. Tour was crazy. House of Blues, sold out every night! I did Lollapalooza, I did the BET Awards. I used to sit at home and just dream of that. And for me to actually be on BET, walking on the red carpet and posin’, like it was crazy. And then you got a 6:30 flight in the morning, flying to Arizona somewhere! To rock it in front of 10,000 - they be screamin, ‘Lupe! Lupe! GemStones! GemStones!’ Signing autographs, women trying to get back to your hotel room with you, they grabbin’ you and screamin, like ‘Oh My G*d’ it was crazy. It was crazy.

GWHH: Heh, that’s awesome. And now that the Glow In The Dark Tour has started, are you going to be followin’ them a lil’ bit for a couple shows?

GS: Yeah, yeah. I’m goin’ out on certain dates on the Glow In The Dark Tour. Like Lupe’s time, on Lupe’s tour it was 2 hours, and now his time is cut to like 30 minutes. He sharin’ time now with Pharrell and Rihanna and Kanye - they all gotta share, so everybody got like 30 minutes and Lupe’s doin a whole nother selection of songs. And I’m goin to do certain songs on certain dates, but for the most part I’m just out here and recordin’ and gettin’ my mixtape ready cuz I’m stayin’ home and doin’ my homework. I could be out on tour, but I’ve experienced tour already, but I’ma go back out with them, but I wanna get my homework done so when it’s my time to step up to the bat, when it’s GemStones’ time, I got all my homework done and I’m not lackin’ because I’ve been out on tour havin’ fun and runnin’ and jumpin’, you know what I’m sayin? So, I do my homework and turn it in and get this A+ when the album come out.

GWHH: And yeah, yeah. I wanted to ask for the readers, uhh, any crazy, funny stories that you had throughout the experience of the tour? Just anything that may be a funny story for people to read, on tour, or anything really?

GS: Aw man. My manager. We flew to Australia for MTV: The Diary and we made a bet, like the dumbest bet in the world. We went to this cliff. Like, this cliff is so high. I’m talkin, that on the way up, you see signs that say ‘No Jumping, No Divin’ and there’s sharks in the water, it’s just Australia. You know, me and Lupe punk’d out though. Like we had a bet, like who would jump? Like this cliff, when I tell you this cliff was high, this cliff was so high! And it was cold outside, like 30 degrees outside and we pumped my manager up. We pumped him up and he jumped off the cliff into the cold water. And me and Lupe punk’d out and didn’t do it. Like, ‘Wow. Did he just do it? Did he just? Did he just? I’m not goin’ in that water!’ He swam tho. He did it. Like he jumped off the cliff. That was the wildest thing that happened on the tour.

GWHH: Hahah, wow. That’s crazy. So yeah, do you get a chance to take in the sights in every city you go to on tour?

GS: Yeah yeah. Everytime we get to a city, that’s one thing we do. We go find their clothing stores. We get there the day before or the day of at the venue. So we get there early. So me and Lupe and the rest of the crew like we would go out and sight, to the mall, just walk around, just walk and get lost so that night, when the show happen, we have a little history on their city and know what we sayin’ on stage, you know what I’m sayin? Ooh, I got another funny moment that did happen. My DJ Simon, I think we was in Boston and the curtains open up, and he says, ‘Detroit, make some mothafuckin’ noiiiiissssee!!’

GWHH: Hahah, did he get a lot of crickets?

GS: Yeah, oh yeah! That was funny as hell. So yeah, we go sight seeing and do our homework, so that night we get to the venue, talk to the crowd, and they wonder how we know this, but, we go sightseeing in every city. We go to the store and buy gym shoes and clothes. And we go to Portland. And it’s like the Jordan Headquarters is in Portland. They gave us so much stuff. Like we couldn’t even take it back on the road with us. Like it was so many pairs of shoes and shirts and socks and drawers, and it was crazy. We had to leave some of the stuff at the hotel. Like I would wear the shoes once and leave them at the hotel or give them to somebody. But yeah, it was fun it was fun. But we definitely go sightseeing. Last place I went was Canada and that was my first time ever going to Canada. We was in Toronto.

GWHH: Alright, well, that’s pretty much all I got. I guess the last question I got for ya, just any shoutouts for anyone? What’s the big plans for GemStones and 1st & 15th for 2008?

GS: Aw man, 2008. Yeah, first for 1st & 15th. Every artist on the label, put every artist’s album out that’s on the label. We want to get every artist out there - it’s their time to shine and we want to put all they albums out this year. Matthew Santos, Shayla G, Sarah Green, Soundtrakk, uhh, get this GemStones project Troubles Of The World - it’s going to be big! I wanna say Free Chilly! My homie Chilly, he’s locked up right now. And thank God for everything. Thank God for everything, I thank God for everything that’s going on right now, and keep it movin’ man, just much success and just hope and just pray that we all stay together as a family man, and can keep giving ya’ll beautiful music and stay in love with everything that’s going on right now, and not follow and not play monkey see, monkey do with the rest of the game, you know what I’m sayin’? Keep the music fresh!

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Yeah, yeah yeah! I hope you enjoyed Part 2 of our EXCLUSIVE Interview with GemStones! Another special thank you to GemStones for all his time and cooperation throughout the interview process for making this all possible! Big ups to you GemStones and we wish ya nothing but success in your bright future.

And again, in case you missed Part 1 (which you may have since our site is still transferring to the new layout you see before you now) simply…

CLICK HERE!

Don’t forget to check out GemStones on his MySpace at http://www.myspace.com/fnfgemini and keep it locked 2 GWHH for the upcoming mixtape, The Testimony Of GemStones! To hold you over until then, here are a couple of NEW tracks featuring GemStones! You read what he had to say, now hear what he had to say! DL the trax below (and leave us some comments!) Enjoy!

GemStones “Everything’s Okay” f/ Bishop G

FULL, CLEAN, Track off upcoming mixtape, The Testimony Of GemStones (Wow @ GS’ ending!) *Tibs Fav.

DP Da Phranchise “The City” f/ GemStones

FULL, CDQ, Mite actually be old, but a great ode 2 Chicago track w/ GemStones on the hook! *Tibs Fav.

Interview conducted by Sgt. Tibs

GemStones a.k.a. Gemini from 1st & 15th

Coinciding with our new facelift, we bring all you GWHH fans another EXCLUSIVE interview - this time with FNF’s GemStones! For those who don’t know, GemStones is a talented rapper AND singer, currently emerging out of 1st & 15th and the shadow of labelmate boss and frequent collaborator Lupe Fiasco as the next big thing to come out of Chicago! Below, you can read the full transcript of part 1 of my conversation with GemStones (we will find some way to upload audio/video per request) where the rapper tackles many issues regarding the state of hip hop and what the ‘Go means to hip hop, meeting and working with Lupe Fiasco, and his inspirations musically and personally! GemStones has some real intriguing thoughts on the topics above and it is a great insight into the mind of the next big thing to come out of Chicago! Don’t forget to peep our little GemStones goodies throughout the interview as well! Enjoy!

***Part 1 of the interview is below. Part 2 of the interview is coming sometime Wednesday so stay tuned!***

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GWHH: One thing that we wanted to know, and one that I’m rather curious about myself, what is the story behind you and Lupe meeting and getting together to work in music now?

GS: I actually met Lupe on a music tip. I actually met Lupe in ‘01. In 2001, it was actually a studio session with a friend who I had just met and who knew Lupe. This was before Lupe was Lupe. We was doin’ a session and we gettin’ ready to record and we couldn’t record until Lupe came. He’s like, “My friend Lupe gon’ to come and jump on the track.” Lupe took like 3 hours to get there; he was with Stack Bundles. Rest in peace Stack Bundles, God bless his soul. Stack Bundles, at the time, was Lupe’s first artist off 1st & 15th at the time. After we started rapping, I liked his sound, he liked my sound and from then on it was history. I took his number, we exchange numbers and we became working then and later that year, they [1st & 15th] signed me.

GWHH: So building off that, how has your friendship and partnership with Lupe contributed to the growth of GemStones, and conversely, how has GemStones contributed to the growth of Lupe Fiasco?

GS: We compliment each other. To be great, you have to play with the greats, you know what I’m sayin? So we’re on the same team and in order for Lupe to get better, he has to play ball with guys that’s good players. I compliment his style, Lupe listens to me, to GemStones, it’s like, “Oh, I got to step it up.” So I got to come with it because GemStones is comin’ with it. So that’s going to make him have to come with it. So when I listen to Lupe, I’m like, “Oh, I got to step it up, I got to come with it.” So that’s what I contribute to Lupe and what Lupe contributes to me, and that’s just greatness, you know what I’m sayin? He’s been a good friend to me and me being a good friend to him, and workin’ and grindin’ out like that. It’s like complimenting each other’s styles.

GWHH: Oh yeah, and it’s been really nice seeing all the collaborations you guys have done, on Lupe’s albums, “We On” … “We On” is one of my favorite tracks..

GS: Oh yeah yeah yeah. “We On” is actually crazy. Like we all.. umm..

GWHH: Yeah, yeah. So how did the record “We On” actually come about?

GS: Oh ok. We was finishing up my album, but I need that record. I still didn’t have that record, you know what I’m sayin? And we said, and I had came at him [Lupe] with several different records, you know, put yourself on this, put yourself on this.. but we just came to the conclusion that the record that you jump on is going to be special. It’s not going to be no ‘any old record’. Not like there’s ‘any old records’ on the album, but this record has got to be special. And we wanted to do something that was fun, something that sounded differently than everything that was out. So when we heard the track, Lupe like, “Yo I got the beat for ya. I got the beat. I heard the beat.” He came at me with the beat, we wasn’t in studio, like, we didn’t even write on the record. “We On” was going to be the first single off my debut album, Troubles Of The World, featuring Lupe Fiasco and Pooh Bear. Unfortunately, the video we shot leaked all over YouTube, you know what I’m sayin?

GWHH: Yeah, yeah. I watched it again recently and posted it up when it did first leak on YouTube.

GS: Yeah, thanks. Thanks for that. So its like all over again, or whatever. But we basically had fun. The song is going on the album. You can find the “We On” song on my upcoming mixtape, going to drop in 2 weeks - The Testimony Of GemStones. It’s a fun song, it’s a feel good song, you know? “We On” - ridin’ down Lake Shore Dr. or whatever, just throw that in your car, do your thang. Just a feel good, party song. Jaguar Skills did the beat.

GWHH: Yeah, Jaguar Skills. Yeah, loved the video. All the Chicago landmarks in the video were real cool, real cool.

GS: Yeah, only thing about the video now. It’s like from then and now. I don’t have the braids anymore and I lost that weight. So it’s like, wow. I also like the look of the video, how we did the split screen. Lupe on his side, and my side - South Side, West Side, whatever. We out there, we just had fun man. Like I said, I didn’t have that record, record. So we found that record, went in and put in our creative juices together. Like me and Lupe worked together. We work really good when we work together. Like when we go in the studio, you see “We On”, you know, it’s dope. And with “The Die”, track 16 [off Lupe Fiasco’s The Cool] it’s just me and Lupe. Our chemistry is crazy together.

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GemStones “We On” f/ Lupe Fiasco VIDEO

(DL the mp3 below if you don’t have it already!)

GemStones “We On” f/ Lupe Fiasco

Producer: Jaguar Skills - FULL, CLEAN, Track off upcoming mixtape, The Testimony Of GemStones AND upcoming album, Troubles Of The World *Tibs Fav.

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GWHH: Yeah, and you can really tell. It shows in the music, it really does. So I guess we can just go into my next question. We kind of ask this to everyone we interview and it’s: how do you feel about the state of hip hop today and how does it look going into the future? And another question off that is how do you think yourself, Lupe, and the FNF crew can contribute to the genre.

GS: Ok, my whole outlook on this.. Hip hop right now.. hip hop was, at one point in time in a crisis. Like hip hop was in trouble. I don’t ever think hip hop was dead like Nas said. But I don’t think hip hop was ever dead, but I do think it was really really really really really in trouble at one point in time, like what’s going on. But now, things are starting to look on the up and up in hip hop. I see it. Like the rappers that’s out now, they’re not talking nothing no different than the rappers back then was talkin’. For instance, they say the kings of rap back then was 2Pac and Biggie. What was 2Pac talking about? Usually he talked about, just the revolution, he talked about everything. But what I’m trying to say is, like they were talking about guns, shooting, rims. Like Biggie Smalls talked about duct taping your mother, rims, money - all this money you can make. You know what I’m sayin? It was always talking about flashing, that’s all they’re talking about now is cars and rims. The difference from now and then. It’s like, these cats from nowadays is that there’s no substance. There’s no substance in their craft. Like back then, it was more substance. They [old school rappers] talked about the same stuff, but they was just on a higher level with it. They talked about rims, they talked about rims and guns and on a scale from 1 to 10, it was a 20. And like it was more creative back then. And now they follow the leader. Just like they motto - if it’s not broke, then don’t fix it. I’ve seen them doin’ it, it worked for them, I’m doin it. It made him a million. I’ma do the same thing. At one point in time, it was workin’. Everyone was makin’ a million on whatever they was doing. But now it’s starting to play out. Everyone is starting to see through it. It’s like, ok, where’s the substance? What are you talking about? I’m tired of hearing the same thing. And at one point in time, hip hop just became wow. You start finding kids who have substance and their flow back then was really doin’ their own thing. It’s like they lost an art, they lost the love and they start doin’ what these new cats are doin. And they feel it too. And it was like, hip hop is in trouble. But thanks to cats like Kanye and Common, they stuck to their guns. They didn’t fold under pressure. They kept that influence of our people. Me personally, I believe Chicago helped, is a big part… When hip hop was on life support, I believe Chicago is the reason the plug didn’t get pulled. Cuz you got Lupe, Kanye, Common, and Common had these cats like Talib Kweli, Mos Def, and influence on those guys and those guys influenced on him. They stuck to their guns, you see what I’m sayin? Now it’s going back to the lyrics now. It’s not just about my big rims. You got cats still doin it, but it’s dying out. Hip hop you’re startin’ to see there’s life in it. It wasn’t dead, but it was like ‘Oh My G*d’ it was in trouble. But now, it’s like ok, it’s not on life support no more. You see what I’m sayin? Hip hop was in intensive care. Hip hop is out of intensive care now.

GWHH: Yeah, wow. I like that analogy a lot. That’s an interesting way to think about it, I like that. So I guess we can move on to my next question. A lot of people don’t actually know that not only do you rap, but you also sing. And I think that sets you apart from a lot of artists; it’s a nice breath of fresh air. But I was curious to know, if you came up first as a rapper and then moved on to singing? Or was it singing first that brought you some attention?

GS: Well, singing is a gift. Like, anyone can hold a note, but singing is like a God-given talent, you know what I’m saying? So like, singing was always in my blood, like I didn’t know I knew how to sing tho. Like my mother sung, her mother sung. My uncles, all my aunties sung. Like, I come from a musical background. I got a big family, my grandmother had like 12 kids, 6 boys and 6 girls and they all go out and sing. So I started rapping in 3rd grade, there was this guy named Jelani (sp?) and he was one of the older guys on the block. When I heard him rap, he just did something to me. I always wanted to rap. I didn’t know I wanted to be a rapper but I always wanted to rap and I started rapping because of Jelani. And as I grew up out of 3rd grade, 4th grade, 5th grade, 6th grade, high school, all the way up, I was always rapping. But when I got to my junior year of high school, I started singing. Playing around with it and the girls was like, “Oh my G*d, he could sing!” I started doin’ it more, I didn’t know I can sing, I was just singing songs that I heard. But the melody that was comin’ out, they was lovin’ it. There was a rumor comin’ out that “he can sing! he can sing! he can sing!” And it was like, “he knows how to sing”. But I stopped rapping before I kinda start singing. I crafted that hard, then I forgot, like “Oh, sh*t, I rap too!” So I went back on rap, cuz I started slackin’. I just had to weigh them both out. I didn’t know how I was going to do it cuz I couldn’t be on the left here singing R&B then on the right here I’m doin’ hardcore rap. I haven’t figured myself out at the time, rapping because coming up rapping, you know, as long as you talking about the block, sellin’ drugs, and that’s when I was puttin’ words together because they matched. I didn’t know. And I couldn’t figure how to make my rapping and singing make a marriage together. When all the time I had to be myself and really just rap about my life and what was really going on. And sing about my life and rap about it and it coincides and it makes a marriage, you know what I’m sayin’? Like that R. Kelly do Best Of Both Worlds, like I’m that, in one.

GWHH: Cool. Well, another question I have is about your musical inspirations. I know in one track you said Biggie is your favorite rapper.

GS: Aw, that is the greatest rapper of all time.

GWHH: And yeah, I just wanted to know if there was any rappers, any singers that inspired you throughout your career?

GS: Yeah, yeah. I just came up listenin to Jodeci - the R&B group back in the 90s. Puff Daddy was their A&R I believe? Actually Puff Daddy Combs they was on MCA Records - those 4 guys. They were like the kings of R&B to me - they was like my Elvis. Jodeci was. On the rap side, I grew up.. ok, R&B side, Jodeci was always number 1, but my inspirations on the R&B side were Dave Hollister, Jodeci, Carl Thomas, Brian McKnight, umm, Anthony Hamilton. I love Anthony Hamilton. He’s ridiculous. That was my musical inspirations on the R&B side. And on rap, I came up listening to Spice One, Bone Thugz-N-Harmony in my early days, umm, as I got old, it was 2Pac at one point in time. I would sleep on Biggie then, when I heard about Nas, heard about Biggie, it was Jay-Z too. But when I heard about Biggie and learned about Biggie and started listenin’ to Biggie’s music and listenin’ to his flow, it was like ‘Oh My G*d’. The Notorious B.I.G. is the reason I rap at the level I do. And I give a lot of thanks to God first, but I mean shouts to Biggie man. Cuz I studied him, I studied Biggie’s flow, I studied his flow back and forth, from front to back and I just took him, mixed it in with me, mixed it with, you know what I’m sayin? I came out just craftin’ man. And you got Lupe over here, who rapped at a level he rapped, like I was sayin’ earlier and I had no choice but to come with it. To be great, you got to play with the greats. You know what I’m sayin? So, and that’s how it happened man.

GWHH: That’s cool. That’s cool. And to go along with that, are there any inspirations outside of music that may influence your work? You know, like a lot of artists could look at art or architecture or somethin’ like that, is there anythin’ that does for you?

GS: Umm, outside of that, not really, but like, my mother. My family, man. In high school, I was in a small school of performing arts. I took theatrics when I was in high school. I used to act. It was for kids with some talents. And my teacher, her name was Erlean Gill. (Gemstones later says about Ms. Gill, “She died right after then [graduation]. I never got a chance to tell her thank you tho. After I graduated, I never seen her again… If she can see me now, I’m on MTV and BET and the BET Awards walkin’ on the red carpet, and it was because of her - she never gave.. wow. I can go all day man.”) And she would never let me give up, like when I was in high school, when I was going through my confused stage in life, didn’t know if I wanted to cut class, hang with the bad boys, or go to class and dance in school, like do the African dances. Like, Ms. Gill didn’t let me give up, no matter what. I mean like, I was failing in class and she would go to my teachers and make them give me a grade, like you’re not going to fail this kid, he’s too talented to see him get lost. And like, I didn’t understand it then but like now that I’m out of high school and I’m grown now… she passed away after I graduated though, but now I look back, like Ms. Gill - she saved my life in a way. So, she was like a big influence, like Ms. Gill - my English teacher which was over at the visual and performing arts program. She got us all scholarships to go to college after we graduated from high school. I never used it cuz I wanted to pursue music. I knew school was somethin’ that I didn’t even want to do no more. I was ready to sign to Bad Boy, cuz Bad Boy was what was happenin’ back then. Biggie, Ma$e, 112… I was hoping to run into Puff Daddy somewhere, but that never happened, but you know, I ran into Chilly, Free Chill!, and it happened and I signed my first deal back in 2001. And I’ve been rockin’ hard ever ever since and my album, about to drop this year, you know..

GWHH: Hmm mmm, it’ll be the reflection of that. I bet it’ll be the reflection of that - of all that hard work.

GS: Aww yeah yeah yeah. That’s why I named it.. [Troubles Of The World] I coulda named my album Sittin’ On 24s, I coulda named my album Pimpin’ In The Hood, you know what I’m sayin? Like, I coulda went the route that all these other guys is goin’ and I coulda did it and talkin’ about nothin’ and sold a million records and had the number one song on the Billboard charts, like I coulda did that, you know what I’m sayin? But I didn’t want to cheat myself. I worked too hard to get where I’m at. So I named it Troubles Of The World. Because it’s real, like, once I understood how I grown as a person and an artist, like I don’t consider myself a rapper no more, I consider myself an entertainer. Cuz that’s what I do, I entertain. A rapper just puts words together cuz they match and I was once a rapper; I did that. But I crafted it, I got it all in one. If you ever see me live at the show, you’ll see that that guy’s an entertainer.

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That’s it for Part 1 of our EXCLUSIVE Interview with 1st & 15th’s upcoming artist - GemStones! Be sure 2 peep “We On” above as well because GemStones is going 2 be the next big thing, for real. Stay tuned on Wednesday for Part 2 of our EXCLUSIVE Interview with GemStones where he talks about the experiences of growing up in Chicago and how it has affected his music today, more details about his upcoming projects - the mixtape The Testimony Of GemStones (coming within the next 2 weeks) and his debut album Troubles Of The World hitting stores this year - AND Gem shares a funny story about a tour experience where something spooked him and Lupe so much, they just couldn’t do it! Haha. Be sure to also check out GemStones on his MySpace at http://www.myspace.com/fnfgemini b/c if you have recently, you would’ve noticed the NEW “Good Morning Freestyle” that GemStones had up there. Well, the downloadable mp3 is now available below! I hope you enjoyed Part 1!

**NEW** GemStones “Good Morning Freestyle” **NEW**

Producer: Kanye West - FULL, CLEAN, Track off upcoming mixtape, The Testimony Of GemStones *Tibs Fav.

Interview conducted by Sgt. Tibs