Willie D of The Geto Boys speaks on the passing of his dear friend Pimp C and greater perspective.While the world of Hip-Hop continues to struggle with the recent death of Pimp C—funeral services will be held today (Dec. 13) at the Robert A. Bowers Civic Center in Port Arthur, Texas—the loss has affected people in many different ways. Some lost their favorite artist, others lost a friend. Willie D has lost a brother. Being a member of the Geto Boys who are arguably one of the most controversial groups of all time, and Texas Hip-Hop pioneer, Willie D understands the significance of Pimp C’s death from an intimate perspective. The outspoken and often misunderstood rapper can relate to the recent controversy surrounding Pimp C and how that may have affected the perception of his character. While he is still searching for answers to this unfortunate tragedy, he also chooses to focus on the strength and growth of his “little brother.”AllHipHop.com: How’s the mood been?Willie D: As we speak , I’m just trying to help Mama get through this situation, just the funeral and everything with Pimp C. AllHipHop.com: How have you been affected personally?Willie D: I lost a little brother you know? It’s tough man. Me and Pimp used to speak a lot in confidence. And he would call me out of the blue and tell me what was going on or just asking for advice or just really wanting to vent sometimes. We always talked about the music, always. Dude was real, real, passionate about the music. Every time we’d hook up, he had a Willie D quote. He knew my music better than I knew it. AllHipHop.com: How did you find out the news about his passing?Willie D: A friend of mine called me and asked me about it and I was like “What?” So I called J Prince, and he was like, “Yeah, they just found him.” You know bad news travels fast man. From the time that he was discovered the whole Houston probably knew it within five minutes.AllHipHop.com: Have you heard anything else in regards to the circumstances surrounding his death?Willie D: No, nobody really knows anything. But, regardless of how the autopsy and toxicology reports come back, it’s not going to do anything to lesson our grief. It’s not going to do anything to lesson his reputation in our eyes. You know Pimp was a larger than life figure, he put a smile on a lot of people’s faces. He was a real dude and that’s very rare in this society and world that we live in. For better or worse, he was real. If he loved you , he loved you hard and if he hated you, he hated you hard. But overall, he wanted to see people be the best that they could be. So that’s why even people that he didn’t necessarily have a good relationship with, they still respected him because he said whatever he said from the heart. He never said anything just to be malicious. He would say certain things that might light a spark underneath you so that you could get right, but it didn’t always come out right. It’s crazy because I come across the same way.AllHipHop.com: I think people in general are looking for a reason why because he was so young. Is there anything that went through your mind in terms of any foul play or anything of that nature?Willie D: When you get blindsided like that with the death of a loved one speculation is going to run the gambit. If it’s some foul play involved, I can guarantee you that we gon’ figure it out. I can guarantee you it ain’t gonna be no Biggie or Pac situation. We gonna find out, and we gonna serve. I can guarantee you that, that’s automatic, that’s on auto pilot. If he died of natural causes then that is what it is. If it was something that was self-inflicted, then it is what it is. But like I say, at the end of the day, regardless of how he died, in terms of his reputation, that remains in tact with us. It ain’t gonna make no difference one way or the other.AllHipHop.com: In your career you’ve said some things to other rapers, to the government or whoever. But Hip-Hop has changed a lot since then. Speaking of the foul play aspect, did you ever think anything could happen to you earlier in your career?Willie D: Oh yea of course, I ain’t stupid. You got people out here that will kill people for nothing. All day every day. Look what just happened in Colorado. You got clowns that will just run up to churches and malls and schools and just start spraying people for no reason. There is no place on earth that is a sanctuary. Not even in your own home. People kick in the door and start blasting. You’re not even safe in your own home. So if you step on somebody’s toes and somebody takes offense to what you’re saying, you’re definitely on the radar to be a target. But I walk with my guns up 24/7 anyway, even though I live in a high rise and got a house overseas and properties. I live in a nice neighborhood but people still die, people still get killed, people still get jacked. My job is to protect my life by all means, against any conceivable threats on my life. My job is to protect it by any means and take it seriously, and deal with it accordingly.AllHipHop.com: In terms of his comments towards the city of Atlanta, he offended a lot of peoople. How do you feel about him being found alone?Willie D: I wasn’t in agreement with Pimp being by himself all the way out there without any of our people out there. I was not in agreement with that anyway. But hindsight is 20/20 you know? So nobody could have predicted that would happen. Tupac was driving down a crowded avenue in Vegas with hundreds of people from fans to bodyguards, and he got killed. Biggie had an entourage with him when he was killed. So, Pimp was by himself and he died. Having a entourage with you doesn’t guarantee your safety. But when I found out Pimp was out there by himself, yeah I was uncomfortable with that. I didn’t know until afterwards, but that did make me angry that he was out there by himself without any of our people around. AllHipHop.com: How will you remember Pimp C.?Willie D: You know losing Pimp was like losing a little brother. I told Pimp a few months ago when we shared a stage in Austin, how proud I was of him in his growth as a man and as an artist . He made the comment that at some point the pupil got to be the teacher and that was in reference to him growing up on my music and being influenced by me, and respecting what I do. That statement was so poignant because I eventually became a fan of Pimp C and UGK and that’s really a testament to their strength and their influence as artists.ALLHIPHOP.COM’s PIMP C DEDICATION
