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EDITOR-IN-CHIEF:
Julia Beverly (JB)
ASSISTANT EDITOR:
Noel Malcolm
MUSIC EDITORS:
ADG & CL Mecca
CONTRIBUTORS:
AJ Woodson, Big Earl, Bogan,
Brian O’Hare, Charlie Braxton,
Chris Imani, Cynthia Coutard,
Dain Burroughs, Darnella
Dunham, Dave Goodson, Felita
Knight, Hasan Brown, Iisha
Hillmon, Jeska Manrique, Jesse
Jazz, Jessica Koslow, J Lash,
Katerina Perez, Keith Kennedy,
K.G. Mosley, Malik “Copafeel”
Abdul, Mercedes, Mikhale Rich-
ards, Natalia Gomez, Raandu
Avion, Rayfield Warren, Rohit
Loomba, Swift, Wally Sparks
SALES CONSULTANT:
Che’ Johnson
LEGAL AFFAIRS:
Kyle P. King, P.A.
ACCOUNTING:
Nikki Kancey
CIRCULATION:
Mercedes (Strictly S.T.reets)
Buggah D. Govanah (On Point)
Efren Mauricio (Direct Promo)
Main office:
1516 E. Colonial Dr. Suite 205
Orlando, FL 32803
Phone: 407-447-6063
Fax: 407-447-6064
Web: www.ozonemag.com
Miami office:
555 NE 15th St. Suite 7731
Miami, FL 33132
Atlanta office:
131 Walker St. Suite B
Atlanta, GA 30313
Cover credits: Question photo by
Cheda; Lil’ Jon photo by Julia Beverly.
OZONE Magazine is published eleven
times annually by OZONE Magazine,
Inc. OZONE does not take responsi-
bility for unsolicited materials, mis-
information, typographical errors,
or misprints. The views contained
herein do not necessarily reflect
those of the publisher or its advertis-
ers. Ads appearing in this magazine
are not an endorsement or validation
by OZONE Magazine for products
or services offered. All photos and
illustrations are copyrighted by their
respective artists. All other content
is copyright 2003 OZONE Magazine,
all rights reserved. No portion of this
magazine may be reproduced in any
way without the written consent of
the publisher. Printed in the USA.
It’s so funny how people think this music game is for real. They’re always like, “Wow! You’re
so much nicer than you are in your articles.” It’s just a magazine. It’s artistic expression, it’s
venting. It’s not reality. Lil’ Jon doesn’t just bounce around all day flashing his grill, watch-
ing strippers and screaming “I don’t give a fuck!” He’s usually more tired than crunk. David
Banner isn’t drenched in Hennessy 24/7. The Ying Yang Twins don’t just run around erratically
screaming “HANH?” all the time, they also - oh wait. Uh, that’s a bad example. Anyway, the
point is, Trick Daddy might be a thug, but he still buys ice cream for all the kiddies when the
ice cream man comes around. Rappers are just people, not superheroes. Most of them don’t
deserve to be placed on pedestals. Neither do I. So stop kissing my ass, it’s irritating.
I almost died last week. Headed to Tampa in heavy rain, I had to slam on the brakes coming
around a curve on the freeway and the brakes locked. So my truck goes spinning backwards in
circles into oncoming traffic. My life flashes before my eyes and all I can think is “pump the
brakes, pump the brakes” and I land safely on the right shoulder of the road. Lately I’ve also
developed this habit of waking up in my truck in really odd locations without any recollection
of how I got there. For example, when I drove from Miami to Jacksonville to Atlanta overnight
after two days without sleep for the Ying Yang Twins’ video shoot (see how much I love y’all?),
I woke up at a random Chevron. Then there was the marathon Tampa > Gainesville > Orlando >
Miami > Belle Glade > Orlando trip. And the Orlando > Jacksonville > Tampa > Tallahassee trip.
I don’t remember either one of those very clearly. But, there’s still room for improvement.
I haven’t been hospitalized yet like certain people, so I must not be working hard enough. I
need to step my game up.
There won’t be any publicist bashing in this issue. I said my piece last month. I promised
Wendy I would be nice, so... I love publicists! Publicists are my friends.
But what’s up with all these artists refusing to do interviews unless they get the cover? Kanye
West, Cassidy, etc? Negro please. Are white people allowed to say that? Speaking of “Negro
Please,” OZONE got quoted in XXL this month. We’re an official magazine now. That makes
me very, very dangerous.
Guilty pleasures: Cassidy f/ R Kelly “Hotel” This month’s bullshitter award goes to aspiring
& G-Unit f/ Joe “Wanna Get to Know You” rapper Platinum Boy FCJ (AOL: DreamerVisionRds).
His “HOT” single features Lil’ Jon - well, actually,
Pitbull “Freek-A-Leek” freestyle Outkast “Roses” it features Lil’ Jon vocals jacked straight from
Blood Raw f/ Pastor Troy & Grandaddy Souf “Block Burn” Eamon “Fuck It” “Yeah.” As if that wasn’t bad enough, he promotes
Lil’ Rock Dogs f/ Coco & Moses “Thug Life After All” Usher “Let it Burn” the track online by IMing random DJs, claiming that
Question f/ David Banner, Mad Preacher “Streets All Mine” Lil’ Flip “Game Over” he is a DJ from Orlando’s WJHM with a “hot exclu-
R Kelly f/ Wyclef “Ghetto Religion” Pitbull “Hustler’s Withdrawal” sive.” When all else fails, he begs, “Platinum Boy,
Kanye West f/ Syleena Johnson “All Falls Down” Alicia Keys “Your Secrets” he’s a kid. He’s homeless. Now what if this kid kills
himself [because you won’t play his record]?” LOL.
#2,5,7,8,10,14,20 Julia Beverly; #1,4,12,16 Felita Knight; #9,13,17 Iisha Hillmon; #11,15,19 DJ Quest; #6,18 KG Mosley
14
01 - Doug E. Fresh, Fat Joe, and Slick Rick @ Nikki Beach (Miami, FL) 02 - Kanye West and Freeway @ Club Bermuda’s (Miami, FL)
03 - Teddy T @ Rain for Jay-Z’s party (Miami, FL) 04 - Bone Thugs N Harmony with DJ Tom LaRock @ Opium Garden (Miami, FL) 05
- Butterfly co-owner Peter Thomas with Slick Salt’s James Jackson and Cognito (Miami, FL) 06 - Jacki-O and Wyclef on the set of
“Take Me As I Am” (Miami, FL) 07 - Michael Madd’s OZONE debut @ Club Bed (Miami, FL) 08 - DJ Khaled reppin’ Bacardi @ Opium
(Miami, FL) 09 - Hasan and Wyclef’s cousin rockin’ Haitian gear on the set of Wyclef’s video shoot (Miami, FL) 10 - Supa Cindy and
JB @ Level (Miami, FL) 11 - Sabai and models @ Akademiks fitting room during WMC (Miami, FL) 12 - Rick Ross and Duece Poppi
@ Krave (Miami, FL) 13 - Field Mob and DTP @ the Rolexx (Miami, FL) 14 - The Game and Daed Jeweler on the set of “Wanna Get
to Know You” 15 - Sean Paul and Max Pierre @ Opium Gardens (Miami, FL) 16 - Lil’ Jon and comedian Larry Dogg @ the AA Arena
(Miami, FL) 17 - Pitbull, Funkmaster Olly, and Teach @ ZNo’s (Miami, FL) 18 - Pitbull and Buggah reppin’ On Point @ Wyclef’s video
shoot 19 - Gorilla Tek reppin’ 305 (Miami, FL) 20 - Young Buck gets a handful of Taneshia on the set of “Wanna Get to Know You”
#1,4,6,7,8,11,12,15,18 Julia Beverly; #2,3,5,10,13,17,19,20 J Lash; #9,16 Felita Knight; #14 Mighty Samson
16
01 - Fiend and Yung Wun on the set of “Tear it Up” (Atlanta, GA) 02 - Big Wil tribute @ Tabu (Orlando, FL) 03 - Southpaw, Marcus.,
and Sweetz with a “z” (Atlanta, GA) 04 - DJ Demp pimpin’ (Atlanta, GA) 05 - Trick Daddy and the ice cream man (Atlanta, GA)
06 - Oscar, Adept, and Noel @ La Messa Studios (Orlando, FL) 07 - Yung Wun, David Banner, and Lil’ Flip on the set of “Tear it Up”
(Atlanta, GA) 08 - Big Oomp and DJ Jelly (Atlanta, GA) 09 - Big Mel and TJ reppin’ Headgear (Atlanta, GA) 10 - See? OZONE loves
the Ying Yang Twins and their management (Atlanta, GA) 11 - Kaspa the Don, Greg Street, and the Legion of Doom DJs on the set of
“What’s Happenin’” (Atlanta, GA) 12 - 8Ball & MJG @ Daddy’s House studios (NYC) 13 - Trillville and the Superfriends on the set of
“Tear it Up” (Atlanta, GA) 14 - Fat Joe checkin’ out the newest OZONE @ Universal Records (NYC) 15 - Huddycombs and Ump rep-
pin’ OZONE @ Bermuda’s (Miami, FL) 16 - Carlito and Arty @ Daddy’s House studios (NYC) 17 - Greg Street and Bubby Love reppin’
OZONE (Atlanta, GA) 18 - Lil’ Flip and Gil Green (Atlanta, GA) 19 - 8Ball & MJG reppin’ OZONE @ Daddy’s House (NYC) 20 - Trick
Daddy and Rasheeda (Atlanta, GA) 21 - Disco Rick @ Bermuda’s (Miami, FL) 22 - DTP’s I-20 reppin’ OZONE (Philadelphia, PA)
#1,3,4,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19,20 Julia Beverly; #2 Rayfield Warren; #5 Mighty Samson; #21 Iisha Hillmon
19
01 - Loon with Bad Boy’s Harve Pierre and Conrad Dimanche @ Daddy’s House (NYC) 02 - Slim and Baby @ Universal Records with
publicists Wendy Washington and Vickie Charles (NYC) 03 - Reppin’ OZONE @ Choppa’s “Hot Piece” video shoot (Pensacola, FL) 04
- R.L. Williams, Yung Wun, and Gil Green on the set of “Tear it Up” (Atlanta, GA) 05 - Roy Jones on the set of “Hot Piece” (Pen-
sacola, FL) 06 - Tigger reppin’ OZONE on the set of “Hot Piece” (Pensacola, FL) 07 - David Banner, Swizz Beatz, and Lil’ Flip on the
set of “Tear it Up” (Atlanta, GA) 08 - A Fat Cat with Killer Mike (Atlanta, GA) 09 - Sky pimpin’ (Atlanta, GA) 10 - Video director
Phenomenon on the set of Choppa’s “Hot Piece” (Pensacoola, FL) 11 - TVT’s Bryan Leach thinks this is a multi-million dollar photo
(Atlanta, GA) 12 - DMX, Yung Wun, David Banner, and Lil’ Flip on the set of “Tear it Up” (Atlanta, GA) 13 - Tigger and Choppa
between takes on the set of “Hot Piece” (Pensacola, FL) 14 - Erick Sermon @ Unique Auto (NYC) 15 - Denise and Wynter reppin’
OZONE (Pensacola, FL) 16 - Reppin’ OZONE (Pensacola, FL) 17 - Bruce Bruce and D-Roc (Atlanta, GA) 18 - Kaboom reppin’ OZONE
(Philadelphia, PA) 19 - Scotty J’s OZONE debut (Atlanta, GA) 20 - DJ Scorpio (Atlanta, GA) 21 - Marcus gets a whiff (NYC)
#1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,11,12,14,16,17,18 Julia Beverly; #9,15 Image Records; #10 Swift; #13 KG Mosley; #20 William Majors
20
Central Florida is betting on a new
star to be born from Orlando. Hom
this rap act seems like less of an e of Mickey Mouse and Smilez & Sout
act than the aforementioned and hstar,
found lyricists to come from Orla more like rap in action. One of the
ndo so far, Adept, represents the most pro-
from his work on various mixtapes La Messa camp. Most likely you’
in the O, or maybe you even hear ll know him
compilation album last summer. d him spitting fire on “Bang” off
Wherever you’ve heard him, you the DOA
aren’t typical for most new rapp shou ld have figured out by now that his
ers. You won’t hear the same regu lyrics
and bitches in abundance like catt rgitated lines about ice trays arou
le. Adept takes the road less trav nd necks
of the pain that’s tormented his eled, he comes at you with stories,
own soul. Adept has been busy real tales
scheduled for summer 2004. Even preparing for his album release,
though it may seem a bit early to tentatively
doesn’t stop the fact that right call anything on his new album a singl
now his catalogue is over fifty song e, that
it’s safe to say that with the help s deep. After hearing some samp
of Orlando’s own multi-platinum les myself,
has a nice beat selection to work production team, Nasty Beatmak
with, taking his music to another ers, Adept
his rhymes that separate him from level. At the end of the day, how
the pack. Somewhat reminiscent ever, it’s
rappers who actually has a mess of Nas and Biggie, Adept is one of
age to deliver. His rhymes stay rawe the few
own emotions, you would think he’s r than fish markets. Never holding
throwing chairs in the booth. Adep back his
picks in a long time. Next time you t is one of Orlando’s most promising
plan your Disney vacation, make draft
La Messa studios. – Noel Malcolm, sure you ask your travel agent for
noel@ozonemag.com (Photo: Rayfi a tour of
eld Warren)
Triple J has a gift for making bad shit sound real good. From Riviera
Beach, Florida, otherwise known as “The
Raw,” Triple J dropped out of school with a vision to come up. “I
paint a picture with words. It’s real – you feel
it or you don’t,” he explains. Dedicated to the hip-hop game, he
left school to pursue his passion for rhyming,
incorporating nothing but life experience. Hustlin’ his way though
several local projects, including the most re-
cent “Gladiator,” he independently moved over 12,000 units. In 1996,
Triple J lined with producer Tone Capone
of Da Luniz fame, fusing Oakland pimp style into the track “Nationa
l Players” for a complilation CD, “Dollars
& Spence Family Tree,” which enjoyed solid distribution througho
ut the South, Midwest, and California. While
working with Triple J, Tone Capone was also deep into Scarface
’s “Untouchable” (“Mary Jane” and “Smile”).
Scarface took note of Triple J’s distinctive flow, plugging him to Def
Jam South as “Bumpy Johnson.” He was on
his way – or so it seemed. After signing with Def Jam South in July
2002, Triple J’s project was shelved. He re-
turned to hometown love, releasing his fifth project, “My Addictio
ns,” under Black Market (not to be confused
with Lil’ Jon’s BME) in March 2004. “I’m at my peak now,” he says
confidently. “My Addictions” is a distinctive
blend of influences and collaborations. He teams up with produce
r Jim Jonsin (Trick Daddy, Trina, Pitbull) on
“Point ‘Em Out” and links with South Florida’s Suave Smooth on
“Ridin’ Wit’ Us.” Triple J has enjoyed play on
mainstream radio such as West Palm Beach’s WMBX and has various
tracks on steady rotation on the under-
ground stations. But making local noise is just a springboard for
bigger and better thing. “I’m the most lyrical
rapper comin’ up. If you think otherwise, I’m ready to see you!”
– Katerina Perez for Fresh Entertainment
R O
ussell Simmons’ OneWorld Magazine has shut its doors. Although h my God, someone do something! “Are the bars downtown let-
it was not widely read, it had been around for almost ten years. ting the taps flow for our children?” That was the question posed
Things weren’t looking good: the former editor-in-chief quit by a local anchor on the late night news a few weeks ago. The
when Russell wanted to force her to put his wife on the cover of the “Problem Solvers” are at it again. This week found our heroes inves-
magazine, and ad sales were drying up. But even worse, it had become tigating the downtown bars and clubs. It seems a “concerned father”
known as a gay-friendly look at hip-hop, which is funny because Russell complained because his 19-year-old daughter, one of “our children,”
had put the brakes on investing in VIBE Magazine when it first launced got popped for under-age drinking at a downtown nightclub. And so the
because its first editor was an openly gay man. This is an excerpt of “Problem Solvers” sprang into action.
the email Russell sent to everyone in the industry regarding the future
of OneWorld: Images of the lighted signs on a few downtown clubs, which I will
respectfully not name, flashed across the TV screen. Hell! Brimstone!
“OneWorld is an enduring brand with a solid future and broad appeal The signs of Satan! I saw the face of the Devil himself in one of those
in the media and entertainment space. We remain committed to the nightclub signs! Thank our fuckin’ lucky stars we have the “Problem
brand, and we plan to relaunch OneWorld in the near future. Stay Solvers,” who sent an underage girl into those fiery pits to see which
tuned for the next act.” ones would serve her.
The editor-in-chief’s email, however, didn’t hide behind lawyer-type As I fought to restrain myself from putting my size 10 through the TV
bullshit and told the real story: screen, I watched an interview of our “concerned father,” a faceless
citizen who didn’t want to be identified. Of course, the public had to
“I would like to thank you all for your help, hard work, and profes- hear about how wholesome and academic the 19-year-old daughter in
sionalism in the recent weeks since I’ve been senior editor at Russell question was. One would think the evil club owner pointed a gun at her
Simmons’ OneWorld Magazine. But due to financial burdens that could innocent head and forced a mixed drink down her throat. Give me a
not be overcome, OneWorld Magazine will cease operations effective fuckin’ break! Daddy’s little angel is probably flashing her tits, er, uh,
immediately. For all writers who would like to know when and how excuse me, having a “wardrobe malfunction” at the beach during spring
much you will be paid for submitted work, please direct all inquiries break as I type this.
to our publisher. For all publicists, please accept my apologies, but the
decision to fold was beyond my control.” Our children! It never ceases to amaze me how the general public falls
for those two magic words—hook, line and sinker—time and time again.
T
he Source Magazine has slowly been falling off. It’s hard to be- I’m sorry, but a 19-year-old is hardly a child. An 18, 19 or 20-year-old
lieve the former number one hip-hop magazine has so much trou- is an adult who is old enough to come home from a war in a body bag,
ble when hip-hop music is bigger than ever. The Source has lost missing limbs, and/or mentally scarred for life, but not old enough to
both their TV shows. Even though their awards show is now aired on have a drink. By the time “our children” reach their teenage years,
BET, we all know that BET doesn’t pay shit. The Source has also been if they don’t know what’s right or wrong and have some concept of
firing people left and right. They even fired their online department. the idea that there are consequences to be suffered for making bad
Who is running their website now? It hasn’t been updated since Janu- choices, some parents clearly haven’t done their job.
ary, and the message boards are overrun with the KKK, gay rappers,
and ads for unsigned artists. They better act quickly before someone Back to our undercover, underage girl. She got served in one bar,
eats their food. probably because she smiled at a male bartender or had a “wardrobe
malfunction.” “Our children” are in danger! Somebody close those evil
E
rykah Badu has got another bun in the oven. places down! We have to protect “our children!” Of course, our under-
The Grammy superstar of the neo-soul set is age heroine didn’t consume the witches’ brew, but dumped it instead.
trading in her Afro wigs for a maternity smock. Whatever.
It appears she is trying to drop a baby by a differ-
ent rapper for each album she puts out. But that’s Ever notice how the “Problem Solvers” never investigate any businesses
not all she puts out. After kicking rapper Common that buy advertising from the station? It seems the “Problem Solvers”
to the curb for being too nice and failing to spawn always “investigate” the smaller businesses that don’t have the money
a new progeny, she turned to virile Death Row gangsta rapper D.O.C. to sue the station. Let’s see the “Problem Solvers” send someone pos-
to knock her up. The D.O.C. used to be down with Dr. Dre, but he ing as a buyer to one of those new car dealerships that advertise on the
hasn’t put out a record since last century. Erykah’s first baby daddy, station, and report on how people get ass-raped on new car deals. Let’s
Andre 3000, has gone onto international multi-platinum fame with his see the “Problem Solvers” send someone posing as an accident victim
group Outkast. He snubbed her at the Grammys by thanking everyone to one of those law firms, and report on how those attorneys take one-
on earth except her as she was sitting in the front row. Now, I admit, third of the victim’s settlement for their services. Will this ever happen?
this girl must have some magnetic shit going, but she really dug deep What do YOU think?
in the barrel for this one. I wonder who will be the next rapper to run
up in this piece, Kwame? Better yet, why don’t the “Problem Solvers” investigate what ever
happened to those “highway funds” that the federal government used
to pressure the states into raising the legal drinking age to 21? Funny
how not too long ago, there was a half-cent tax on the [Orange County]
ballot to solve our traffic problems, as if we aren’t being taxed enough
already. In these days of state “budget deficits,” why don’t the “Prob-
lem Solvers” investigate how the state could lower the legal drinking
age back down to 18 (at least for beer and wine) to generate more state
tax revenues and greatly reduce the bureaucracy needed to enforce the
current senseless law?
Oh, we have to protect “our children” by putting them in jail for some-
thing they’re going to do anyway, regardless of the drinking age law?
And how do we keep our bureaucrats employed? There’s plenty of trash
to be picked up on the highways.
Hey club, bar and venue owners! You’re under attack once again! You
should rally together to bring the legal drinking age back down, which
would solve the problem in the first place. Local and regional bands and
artists should play benefits to gather enough signatures to get such a
proposal on the ballot. The only thing “our children” need protection
from is the politicians and bureaucrats. – David Himes
Who is Question?
Question is a young Arab-American who was
born in Egypt and grew up in Jersey City. I
grew up North til I was eleven and I moved
down in Orlando.
WHEN 9/11 crew back then for a What do you mean by that?
Y
ou probably envision Lil’ Jon as a caricature, a cartoon figure who top. “We’ve stepped up the production for this new album, ‘Kings of
pops up all over the Top 10 list sporting sunglasses, a platinum Crunk’,” he assured me back then, “I think we just put so much en-
grill, and an ever-present pimp cup. Even if some hip-hop purists ergy into the music that you can’t deny the record.”
don’t fully appreciate the crunk revolution Jon has spearheaded, you
really can’t hate on a man who pulls in five figures to scream patented Several years and two million records later, Lil’ Jon is one of the most
phrases like “Okaaaay!” and “Yeaaaah!” Now, that’s a pimp! But who sought-after producers in the game. Poor concert attendance is no
would’ve guessed that Jonathan actually scours the health food stores longer a problem. Strolling through the streets of Little Havana for
for quality multi-vitamins, loves to cook, and spends his days off curled Miami’s Calle Ocho festival amongst a posse of bodyguards, he attracts
up on the couch with his family? fans of all ages and races begging for autographs or photos. After a few
hours of screaming “Yeahhh!” underneath the Miami sun with Pitbull,
The music industry is a hoax; a façade; an image. It’s all about percep- Jon slides into a limo waiting on the back streets. He fields a few calls
tion, and Jon knows this well. Your favorite rapper isn’t ballin’ as hard from celeb friends like Usher (“What up, my nigga?!?”) en route to
as you think he is, and in the same way, Lil’ Jon, contrary to popular the Hit Factory, where he perfects a “sexy” beat for Christina Milian
belief, isn’t crunk all the time. After years of watching and learning the before heading back to his South Beach mansion to continue work on
game, first as a DJ and later as an A&R for Jermaine Dupri’s So So Def, Lil’ Jon & the East Side Boyz’ third album. Later that night, Jon rolls
Jon successfully created himself as a brand. The recent Dave Chappelle through Club Deep to finish filming for Pitbull’s “Culo” video. All in a
skits, “A Day in the Life of Lil’ Jon,” are further proof that Jon has se- day’s work. Like a true workaholic, even at the peak of his career, he’s
cured his place in pop culture. He’s recognized by mainstream America still focused and driven. We dragged Jon out of a recording session in
on a level that few rappers besides Snoop Dogg have reached. But it Atlanta’s Stankonia Studios to figure out what makes this workaholic
didn’t happen overnight. tick.
O
nce upon a time, the Palladium had earned its reputation as the What do your parents do for a living?
grimiest club in Central Florida. Every time someone got shot, the My dad is deceased, and my mom is in the Army. She works at a hospital
club changed its name and reopened. Backstage activities were also as a supervisor in the operating room. Right now she’s been called
always off-the-record, and cameras were strictly prohibited. Name any into active duty, so she’s away with the Army.
rapper and they’d probably performed there at least once. A bizarre
group which most assumed was a one-hit fluke, the Ying Yang Twins, What other side gigs do you have besides being an artist and pro-
came through and performed their take on a Disney classic, “Whistle ducer?
While you Twerk.” At that time, Lil’ Jon and the East Side Boyz (Lil’ Bo We’ve got BME the label through Warner Bros with Trillville, Lil’ Scrappy,
and Big Sam) were just names without a face. Their show was canceled and Bohagon, and we got the label through TVT with Lil’ Jon, Chyna
when about fifteen people showed up. I reluctantly pulled up to their Whyte, and Oobie. Then we’ve got the Crunk energy drink, and we got
tour bus parked at a nearby hotel for our scheduled interview. Based the porn, Lil Jon & the East Side Boyz “American Sex Series.”
on their singles, “Bia Bia” and “Who You Wit,” I was prepared for the
worst, envisioning a mass of gold-grilled thugs hovering around my tape Are you starring in the porno?
recorder in clouds of weed smoke, mumbling something unintelligible. Nah, I’m just wildin’ out, talkin’ shit. Hypin’ shit up, so to speak.
Inside the tour bus, however, I was shocked to meet three polite grown-
ass men who spoke clearly, didn’t smell, and even remembered me at What’s the function of the East Side Boyz?
their video shoot a month later. Most rappers would be discouraged if (laughing) What’s the function? Well, we all write the stuff together. We
their concert only drew fifteen people, but Jon didn’t seem phased. do everything together. I’m like the Quincy Jones of the group, I produce
During the interview, it was clear that Jon and the Boyz understood and coordinate everything. I’m the one that ties everything together.
the game inside and out and knew what they’d have to do to get to the
What’s a typical day like in the life of Lil’ Jon?
Well, today I got up around 2 or 3, ate breakfast, came straight to the
studio, and I’ll probably be here til 6am. I’m in the studio finishing
up Trillville & Scrappy’s album, so I’m mixing as well as doing new
tracks. Then, I’m also on the phone handling other things at the
same time. When I’m on the road, I’m usually doing shows, doing
TV, hosting parties, networking, stuff like that.
Can you explain what exactly is a riddim? I saw you do a number of songs over
A riddim is basically a beat that’s built in Ja- hip-hop beats at your show. Is there
maica. When it’s hot, a lot of artists try to get anything like that on the album?
on the same beat. But it’s the most outstand- Well, I’ve got a joint with Foxy Brown.
ing song, the best idea, the best melody, the But nah, that’s really just for the show,
best hook that really crosses over. Like “Heads to give the crowd that hip-hop flavor.
High.” There were other songs on that beat. The album is dancehall.
Are you planning on suing Pitbull? Do you plan on working with any other
I’m not doing shit about it. It’s the label, and hip-hop artists besides Foxy Brown?
their lawyers. It’s not me. I tried to kick this Well, just on remixes when the chance
before it happened. I was like, “Yeah, man, you comes around. But for now it’s basically
know we’re artists, we need to kick this shit just Mr. Vegas and my artist Wayne An-
before it happens.” I hollered at them. But I thony, ‘cause I’m always trying to break
told them, the only way this is gonna be done younger artists. He’s independent, but
is on my track. It has to benefit me and benefit he’s talented. I’m trying to help him
him. What’s happening now is that some radio make a name for himself. That’s im-
stations are adding his record, and when my re- portant to me. He’s one of those art-
cord pops up they’re like, “No, we’ve got that.” ists that could be around in ten, twenty
That’s not cool. years. I’m trying to show him how to