September 11, 2004 @ 8:57 pm

VIBE.com Interview: Young Buck - King of Cashville

Damien Lemon

Don't make the mistake of calling Young Buck the King of the South. Unlike the other MCs below the Mason Dixon Line, the Nashville native believes the title belongs exclusively to Scarface. The 23-year-old G-Unit rapper, whose album Straight Outta Ca$h

You're the only child? Nah, got a little sister. How old is she? She's 18. Is it crazy for her to see you doing your thing? It's wild for her to see me on TV doing my thing. She used to me doing for her. I was in the streets, but we transition from doing how I used to get down to doing music, she loving it. So how did you start rapping? I don't know if I was born into it, but I was just a part of it from day one since I was a child. I always used to like it as a child, I found myself beat boxing as a young child. Then I started repeating what I saw on TV. Then I started understanding Tupac and caught his era -"Brenda's Got a Baby" and "When My Homies call." Pretty much I started learning from them. I just started hustling. It was always Mom's, there wasn't a Father. My father is a crack feign. Day one I had to be the man in my situation, it wasn't a game. I started off pumping gas at a fucking gas station at 10-or-11-years-old. To going down the streets to pump down a little crack to handle my business. You were holding down your mom and sister? Yeah So when was the exact moment that you knew rap could hold you, if you stopped hustling. When I saw my first checkÂ… When was that? Everything changed when I met 50 cent. I was never cool with everything until I got with 50. Who are your influences? Tupac and Big. Tupac played a bigger part. I had no choice but to get into Biggie. But Tupac was a part of me before I even caught on to Biggie. You can hear a lil Pac in your style, it's not overt. It's more of an everyman quality. What are the unique strengths of the G-Unit members? I think we all have real life stories, which make us stand out. Beside us all being shot before, we all come from the hood. We all got real life situations that we are in and we all overcame it. What is it about each member that makes them unique from the rest? 50 really don't give a fuck. We all don't give a fuck basically. 50 more so than the rest of us. I handle my business on sight, and 50 gonna' handle his business on sight whenever, wherever. I am just gonna' chill and get at you, 50 gonna' let it be known "fuck you nigga." He is gonna' do him and handle his business. How is the competition amongst you all? It's friendly competition. Everyone knows when they go into that booth they gotta' show up. I think everybody go in with their own mind frame and come through on this track. But there isn't any verbal competition. How does it feel to be the lone southerner in G-Unit? Feels good, I think I am doing alright by representing the dirty south. I think we more respected by our slang like "Right Thurr." And when you put the lyrics and that together and that's when you get Young Buck. How do you feel about this King of the South thing? Aww man I feel like the real King is Scarface. Being the King requires longevity and consistency. That is what you judge a King by. If you ask me I would say it is Scarface. Everyone is trying to be King of the South, How come no one has decided to be the King of the Game? When you say that you compare yourself with the rest of the artists. That is what I would say if I was going to give myself a title. But I would say the true King of the South is Scarface. "Stomp" with T.I., how did Ludacris get on the end of that? Man I respect both of them, I reached out to T.I. to get on the track. When he sent it he had a line on it that said, "me getting beat, nigga that's Ludacris." I didn't know if that was a dis or what. I had just done a song with Luda the week before, and Luda and I are cool, I knew him before I knew T.I. I was hearing through the streets that they had a situation. So I let Luda hear the record and he was like, "Yeah, Me and T.I. do have a situation Buck, I need to jump on the record." He jumped on the record, sent it back, and I was like "Damn.'" I had no other choice but to give it to him. That was a good look, from what I understand they squashed the beef. Sqaushed the situation. I holla'd at Ludacris, and I told him that T.I people said that if Luda doesn't change his verse the background people weren't gonna clear T.I.'s verse for my album. That was crazy for me, since T.I. initiated the whole line of, "me getting beat, nigga that's Ludacris." So I had no choice but to pull T.I's verse from off my album. So T.I.'s not gonna make the album? Nah Man, because he or his people tripped out at the end. They said if Luda don't change his verse and squash the beef, they weren't gonna' clear T.I's verse. Who is gonna' be the first member of G-Unit south, your label? Hasn't been decided. What's the motto you live by? Do unto others as you want others to do to you. Treat others how you want to be treated. Handle your business. How is Cashville? Cashville's wild. It's the 'hood from my point of view. It's a lot of different sides but all I got from it was the 'hood. Tell me about the album. The album is crazy. I didn't get a chance to work with Eminem and Dr. Dre. I said I would get my weight up a little bit and come back let them produce. To watch Young Buck's "Shorty Wanna Ride" video click here To watch Young Buck's "Let Me In" video featuring 50 Cent click here To read the VIBE Magazine review of Young Buck's Straight Outta Cashville click here To listen to selected tracks from Straight Outta Cashville click here

Article tags: VIBE.com, Interview, Young, Buck, King, Cashville 

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