December 15, 2003 @ 2:26 pm

Memphis Bleek: The Roc's Next Hope

by: Tiffany McGee

With an album due out (set for release Dec. 16) that’s already generating solid buzz, Memphis Bleek is ready to reemerge and flood radiowaves. After taking a three-year hiatus from the game, the Roc’s first-signed MC is back to reclaim his position in

What's the first single going to be? Can you describe the track? We changed it up so many times. But now it's "Round Here" with me, Trick Daddy and T.I. The record basically represents everybody. Everybody's ghetto. You can live in the trailer park or you can live in the penthouse. It doesn't matter. It's all about how you act, how you look, how you dress, how your people are around your way. You gotta' represent your neighborhood. That's why I thought about doing it with two different people from down South. Trick Daddy's from Miami and T.I.'s from Atlanta and I'm from New York so it's just showing people that all around the world, it's the same song. Describe the concept of the video. We shot it in three locations last a few weeks ago-Brooklyn, Atlanta and Miami. The song is representing everybody's neighborhood. And it's like, ever since I did my first record "Coming of Age" with Jay, I've always been working for him. So the the concept of the video is building off that, from an old mafia movie and how they would drive through the projects in a black Bentley or Rolls Royce, tinted out, and Jay-Z is giving me orders to take back over the neighborhood. So then I get up and take over, do whatever I do in my neighborhood and then we go to Trick Daddy's neighborhood in Liberty City, Miami and then to T.I.'s neighborhood in Atlanta. Everyone's running their neighborhood. So how does it feel to return after your break and finally get back to the music? It feels great. Once I get the video out and the original first single out on the radio, then I can really go out and show people how it feels to be back. What were your initial thoughts when you got back in the studio after being away for so long? The main thing going through my mind when I first started recording was that I had to talk about a whole bunch of different things. On the first album, I talked about growing up and life in the projects. On the second album, I was basically talking about a person coming from the projects who ran into a little bit of money. I've been away for a long time since then, so I didn't wanna' come back and tell everyone that I be in the club, poppin' bottles or that I be in the club with 10 models and I got eight cars out front. That just sounds funny and you would know I'm lying. So I knew I had to come back with real stories. So you went back into the studio and started recording your third album - what can fans expect on the album this time? I'm talking about a lot of family topics on the album. I talk about the situation where I almost lost my brother and about how I just had a son. I just got real songs about situations I've been going through, like "My Life" and "Understand Me Still." I did a song called "War" for all the beef we were going through before. I talked about a lot of different topics. It's not an album that's gonna' go out soon as the style goes out. It's not a fad. It's something that could be around for a long time. You titled the album M.A.D.E. - an acronym for Money, Attitude, Direction and Education. What's the significance of that title? Yeah. M.A.D.E. There are four keys in life that I always live by. You wanna' have money. Your attitude gotta' be right for you to even talk to certain people you talk to. And then you gotta' know what direction you have. If you don't know what you want, then you're never gonna' achieve anything. And you have to be educated. Education is really first, but it's just the fourth letter in the title. Education is the number one key to success in life. I've never seen a stupid person ever be successful. What was the recording process like? How long did it take to record? I was working on this album for about a year or two years, just doing songs. I'm not saying I was working on the actual album, but I was just doing songs. And when the time came and they gave me a date, we just picked the hottest songs. What are your favoring songs on the album? Every record I make is my favorite. I put my all into my records. I don't just go out there and talk about a whole bunch of nothing. What producers did you work with this time around? Just Blaze is my partner. He's one of the best. He understands what I want and I understand him. We're partners. If you sat us down in a room, we could create a whole album together. And I worked with Scott Scorcher - he's a great producer. My man T.T., Jigga, Kanye West. You cited a lot of personal reasons for choosing to take your three-year break, and earlier you mentioned your brother getting into an accident. Can you talk about your reasons when you chose to step back from the game? Yeah. It's not like I took a break. Life chose that path. My brother got into a motorcycle accident and had a brain injury. He could have passed away. That's my partner. He showed me everything. He's older so he showed me the streets, how to be a man, how to stand on my own two. So he was my whole agenda before I could even think about making a record. I couldn't even focus on a record at the time. How's he doing now? He's doing a whole lot better. He's not at 100%, but he's a lot better. You also had a son during that time. Yeah. I'm happy. I grew up without my father, so my brother showed me the ropes. Now it's like I got a chance to be there and show somebody else the ropes, especially my little man, . So he can follow in my path, but do better than what I did. How old is he? He's 17 months old now. He's still a young player, but he's terrible. On "Understand Me Still," a track on the album, you talk about your new role as a dad. You say, "I thought I had it all but the best gift was life/the third gem/I'm a brand new father/of a healthy baby boy/and it's making me work harder." How did you prepare yourself to be a father? I don't think you can be prepared. Nobody's prepared to be a father. They're lying if they saying, "I'm prepared; I'm ready." You're never ready. You learn new things every day. A baby learns new things from you every day and you're learning new things from him every day, not even noticing that. Trust me, I ain't never know how to change a pamper. But I'm a pro now! You were the first artist signed to Roc-A-Fella,- so in a sense, you're a veteran. Do you feel that you have a lot to prove to everyone since you're still around? Naw, I have nothing to prove. I just have to do what I do and let people accept it for what it is. I don't go out and say this is gonna be the one that's gonna make everybody believe I'm this guy. You're gonna believe what you want. As long as you understand that I'm here trying to make good music. How much pressure do you feel as an artist on the Roc-A-Fella label? The only time I felt any pressure was on the first album. Now it's like, people know my name. I don't have to impress nobody. All I have to do is make a good record and shoot a video. People already know who Memphis Bleek is. Considering all that you've been through since you first came into the game at the age of 16, you must have changed a lot. You're 25, you almost lost your brother, you had a sonÂ….how would you describe yourself now? Humble. I'm way more humble now than I was when I first came out. I appreciate every day of life because now I see how short it is, like in the situation with my brother. Every day we were just partying. It's like, 7:30 and we're partying. 7:32 and he's in the hospital. I appreciate everything that goes around and comes around me. On another track, "Do It All Again," you say that you wouldn't take anything back in your life, and that you would do it all again - despite all the struggles. Is that the truth? Yeah. I have no regrets. The only thing I regret is the ones that I've lost. You never get the chance to say you love them or how much you really cared. They're gone and you can never tell that person you didn't mean it, or it was a mistake. Everything else, I'd do it all again. It made me what I am today, so why would I wanna' change it? How has hip hop changed since you left and came back? It's gonna' always be what it is. There are positive and negative artists out. It's music. The only thing that I think is wrong wit music is that everyone is caught up with doing one thing. Everybody wanna' sound exactly alike and look exactly alike. If you look at TV today, everybody wears their hat the same way, do rag with the jersey. Eeverybody does the exact same thing. That's the only thing I can say is wrong wit hop hop. Are you going to try to change that image? Yeah. That's why my boy [Jay-Z] made a song called "Change Clothes." We're gonna change it. What region do you think is holding it down right now? The South. Everybody knows that! Right now that's so blatant. Turn on 106 & Park - they're the top five. I read that you used to do gymnastics when you were younger. Is that true? Yeah. I did everything. That's why I'm happy I got a little soldier because he's gonna' do it all too. So can you do a handstand and the splits? Yeah, I can still do it, but you won't see me walking down the block doing it. But if I thought about it, yeah I could definitely still do that stuff. Since you wanna' change up the game, is there a chance you might break us off with the splits in your next video? Nobody else has done that yet. Naw, never that! You mentioned Jay Z earlier, and basically he gave you your first break on "Coming of Age" when you were only 16 by putting you on the track with him. What's your relationship like with him now? That's my partner. He's my brother from another mother. A lot of people think that he just comes to see me, we make a record and then I leave. But we hang after the studio and all that. I ask him his opinion on anything that ever goes on, not just because he's Jay Z, but because I have that much respect for him. I trust his opinion. How much do you think his retirement is going to affect Roc-A-Fella? It's only gonna affect Roc-A-Fella if no artist comes out and is gonna sell 5 million. It's just that real. What does his retirement mean for you? His retirement made me understand what I have to do. He put the mic down, and I'm gonna' pick it up. He always told me I'm supposed to be in that spot anyway so it's about that time now that I step it up. So Jay Z's retirement is going to give you more freedom? Yeah, definitely. I don't have to censor myself because I'm under the role model of Jay. I do what I want now. It's a respect thing. I have this book called 33 Codes of Life and they say respect is the most important prized possession to a man. You gotta' guard it with your life. And it's like, the moment you do something silly, everybody can lose respect for you. You don't want that black cloud over you. I never wanted to do anything to embarrass my boy because that's my partner. So me looking bad makes him look bad. I don't wanna' get arrested and be on the news and be crazy because that makes him look bad. But now? He ain't gonna' look bad. He's gonna' be in the Mediterranean Sea while I'm in Manhattan causing problems. How hard has that transition been for you to establish your own separate identity as opposed to being known as Jay's right hand man? It's always been hard but I take it every day at a time. I always deal with the pressure of being Jay's right hand man. Whoever Jay doesn't do a song with, I can't get a beat from that producer. It's that's real. Whatever he doesn't do, I can't do. If he didn't do an interview on a radio station, they gonna' take my record down by a spin. How do you get around that? I can't. It's the gift and the curse. I just gotta' roll with it. It's life. I can't be bitter about it. But once I know when and if I ever do reach that point where I wanna' be, I'm gonna' have a lot of people kissing my ass. Recently people have been talking about all of the new artists that seem to be getting signed to Roc-A-Fella. What was your reaction to Damon Dash signing Victoria Beckham, formerly known as Posh Spice of the Spice Girls? Who? Getting signed to who? I don't know what's going on with all those new artists up thereÂ…all I'm worried about is Memphis Bleek. That's it What are your personal goals with the release of this album? To do better than "The Understanding." Each album I do is a step up. You wanna' do better than what the last album did. That's why I'm happy I never came out with the first album and sold 10 million because it's like, what are you gonna 'do after that? It's hard. In my career, I always say I have that challenge of wanting to do better. I don't say, 'hey I made, so let me just keep doing what I was doing.' I want to better myself all the time. I feel every rhyme I write is better than the last. What do you want all the Memphis Bleek fans to know? The same old Memphis Bleek is back to be a problem to all the assholes in the game. I ain't biting my tongue for nobody. My boss is retiring so now I got the green light to do whatever I want. And he's gonna' back it up. Read the VIBE Magazine review of Memphis Bleek's M.A.D.E. here

Article tags: Memphis, Bleek, Roc's, Next, Hope 

del.icio.us digg Furl Reddit YahooMyWeb

Page printed from:
http://www.vibe.com/news/online_exclusives/2003/12/memphis_bleek_rocs_next_hope/

Return to previous page