G.O.O.D. Music recording artist GLC is determined to make his own way in the rap world. You might know GLC and then you might not. Gangsta L. Crisis is a neophyte in the Hip-Hop game that has been fortunate enough to flow on tracks with some of the most notable names in the business. Yet, he has yet to release his own album. GLC prides himself on being a man of honor and being real, thus you won’t hear in his lyrics are lines about making it rain when he is experiencing a drought. What you might hear from the Chicago native are lyrics reflecting his life. A life where at times he may be broke, getting groupie love or mulling over his darker days on the block. When asked is he nervous about the success of his upcoming debut album, Love, Life, Loyalty, GLC can give you an honest answer; “No”. You could assume that the unwavering confidence comes from his alliance with Kanye West. However, according to GLC, Kanye has already done his part. Now it’s his time to do his work.AllHipHop.com: Where did you get the name Gangsta L. Crisis?GLC: The name Gangsta came from the organization I was a part of and crisis came from my life. It was what was considered a crisis. Crisis is critical. I managed to get a lot of positivity from it. I did not let it break me down.AllHipHop.com: Let’s take it back a little. Back when you had that 8-Track recorder and you were trying to get on, doing your two or three songs a day.GLC: (laughs) You snapped knowing that! You must know me. AllHipHop.com: How did you originally get involved with rap?GLC: My brother and sisters use to listen to rap and soulful music all the time. I couldn’t sing either. The singers get a whole lot of girls. What influenced me was people like Ice T. The ladies on there looking real pretty. I was like, “Hey.” I looked at dudes like Big Daddy Kane, Snoop Dog, Spice 1, and Outkast. They all played a big role but more than that it was Psycho Drama, Crucial Conflict. They showed me that I can just do me and get on. I don’t have to act like I’m from somewhere else to get on. I can change the lives of the people I love. My sisters and my nephew. This is a stepping stone. You never know what God has in store for me. Plus it gets me girls. (laughs)AllHipHop : How did you meet Kanye?GLC: We had a mutual friend by the name of Andre. He went to elementary school with Kanye and him and I went to high school together. He knew I rapped. He was like you should meet my guy Kanye. I went over there and Kanye was making beats. We just bonded from day one. We have been friends a long time now. People always ask me why Kanye hasn’t put me on. But he has. He helped me get two Grammy’s. I have got to do the work for myself now. GLC is doing really good for himself. AllHipHop.com: You have a relatable flow. You are rapping about working in the mall folding jeans on “Spaceship.” What made you decide to go that route instead of doing the typical flashy, braggadocios type rap?GLC: What made me go that way with my rhyming is that it’s easy, it’s the way I am. Some rappers build a façade. They build a character. That character that they show when they get on the mic is not the same person as them when they are off. With me, I’m the same way regardless. AllHipHop.com: While we are on the subject of getting on, most of the people who you are affiliated with are very successful. Kanye, Common, John Legend. Is there any pressure to meet their level of success on your album?[GLC “Honor Me” Video]GLC: Aww no I don’t have any pressure. What they do, they do it to the fullest. What I do, I do it to the fullest. I give you pieces of me. The pieces I give you have a whole. I can’t give you the whole in one because if I do that then why would you listen to my second album or third. Through the grace of God I’m developing and I’m also staying true. It is because of principles that I have and embraced along the way. I change constantly. AllHipHop.com: In the same token, you already have managed to earn two Grammy’s without even dropping an album. Is there any pressure for you to have that same level of success on your own album?GLC: Nah. That don’t put no pressure on me that just get me more girls.AllHipHop.com: (laughs)GLC: They be like man he got a Grammy! You know how that is. It just gets me a lot of action.AllHipHop.com: How is the groupie love?GLC: (laughs) I think they are some of the best people in the world. They are very passionate about what you do. Almost as passionate as you are. They will go to any means to show you just how passionate they are. If you decide to mess with a groupie then you have to deal with the risk that this groupie might just be on a come up. They might just be trying to have a baby by you. Or they might just wanna tell all your girls she slept with you. You never know. But, I think God really snapped when he made women. I tell him that too. When I pray I tell him that he snapped when he made women. AllHipHop.com: What is the album going to be titled?GLC: Love, Life and Loyalty. I want people to be loyal to life and loyal to love. You can find love in a lot of places. Some people might find love in shooting people. Whatever it is that you love, you have to put loyalty to it. Besides that I want people to be loyal to life. I’m very honored to say that the murder rate in Chicago is at an all time low. A lot of us are waking up and seeing that its genocide. We are all Black. I just want to make amends for it through my music. Not to say my music is peaches and cream I just want to expose things to people. As a grown man that gang banging s### is played out. AllHipHop.com: Who are some of the producers you are working with on the album?GLC: I’m working with Kanye West of course, Three Six Mafia, Wildstyle from Crucial Conflict, Dude and Em’. They are from the Westside of Chicago. Excel. He is so amazing. He did my record “I Ain’t Even On Yet”. I want my status in Chicago to be like six rings Mike. I want to leave a legacy.[GLC “I Ain’t Even On Yet”]AllHipHop.com: When is the album dropping?GLC: We are shooting for this summer between July and August. The momentum is in my favor. AllHipHop.com: Why Hip-Hop?GLC: I love it. I would be doing it if I wasn’t getting paid to do it. I would just be getting paid doing other things.
