Although Jim Jones
once said the Dip Set makes powerful music, he probably would have been more accurate
in saying his Uptown team was a powerful movement.
And the next in
line to carry out the vision is Hell Rell, whose debut For the Hell of It,
is scheduled to be release this summer on Diplomat/Koch Records.
“The street
buzz is crazy,” the Bronx native told AllHipHop.com about his upcoming
album. “And I haven’t [even] put out that much music since I came
home.”
Rell, of course,
is referring to the two-year stint he did in Clinton Correctional Facility for
selling drugs to an undercover cop in early 2002.
But instead of
reveling in his raucous ways, the twenty-five-year old turned to music and,
more specifically, the Dip Set Capo Jim Jones to help him realize his calling
as a rapper.
“We was traveling
through the same circles in The Bronx and Jim didn’t know I could rap,”
said Rell. “Once they got the deal, he snatched me up and I started running
around with Killa [Cam’ron] and we did the Diplomats album, but in the
process I had to turn myself in.”
Now free from his
legal entanglements, Rell is set to deliver a DVD and book, along with his album,
all of which chronicle his time behind bars in an effort to persuade teens to
avoid making the same mistakes he made.
“I’m
just creating a visual to the audio,” he said of his documentary. “I’m
putting you in situations where you could be placed in life and death scenarios
that I’m talking about on my album. Not only will a black dude from my
neighborhood [feel it], but a white boy from Sunset Boulevard could relate to
it, ‘Cause it’s dealing with life situations.”
In addition to
his trilogy of treats, Rell recently started the “Stay Out Program”
in hopes of mimicking the methods of stay out of prison programs such as “Scared
Straight.”
The rapper’s
ventures may seem ambitious to some, but ultimately Rell said he’s keeping
in line with The Diplomats previous forays into the streets.
“It’s
not like the people are seeing us,” he explained. “We don’t
get heavy TV and radio play, the love we get is from us grinding and interacting
with the fans.
“You gotta
become a people person,” Rell continued. “We keep it so ‘hood
with them the love is felt in the music. It’s real love.”
Hell Rell’s
For the Hell of It is tentatively slated to hit shelves this August.
The album will feature B.G., Mya, Styles P, as well as appearances from The
Diplomats.
