Busta Rhymes: The AllHipHop Interview, Pt. 1AllHipHop.com: How much of  Blessed is going to be carried over to B.O.M.B.?

 

Busta Rhymes: Probably about 20% ,when I got my

new situation with Sylvia, the queen, I was so inspired to make new heat for

her, and for myself because I was just so inspired. The new situation was sexy,

the deal was sexy, the money was sexy.  The whole spirit of the situation felt

good I was living in that studio like I had no family to come home to. And a

lot of great things came out of that energy and there was no reason to not

display it on this project.  Especially if she is the one responsible for this project being

able to happen.  So I wanted

to make sure that I put my best foot forward for Sylvia Rhone cause she was the

one who was making this all become a reality.

 

AllHipHop.com: Now “Arab Money” is becoming another big Busta Rhymes hit but it’s not the most politically correct

title. Have you felt any type of backlash from that at all?

 

Busta Rhymes: Nah I mean I been hearing little salt and pepper sprinkles

about concern for some people.  But

obviously that concern is not stopping the growth of the record.  And I really only respect the concern

of the Arab culture.  You know I ain’t really trying to pay no

attention to people in these positions of political positions, and executive

positions that ain’t Arab culture oriented

people.  Because, a lot of the

times you know, What are you really showing all this

concern for? Is it concern for the people or concern for your job? A lot of

people feel like, something, things that may be risqué in their opinion, is in

these times not the thing to be doing. Because the most

irrelevant thing can be justified as a reason to fire somebody nowadays.

Nobody is safe, this recession has f**ked the whole game up and everybody is on

they eggshells when they walk around. So I just feel like that’s really more so

what it’s about than anything  and until I get some direct  awareness of the Arab culture having an issue, we’re going

to continue to move forward with our campaign.

 Busta Rhymes “I Got Bass” Video

AllHipHop.com: There aren’t many top notch

producers that you haven’t worked with. Are there any two or three that you

wish you have or are looking forward to work with?

 

Busta Rhymes: Premo, never worked with him. Always

wanted to work with Primo.  I just recently

got some beats from Premo that I’m starting to really

feel after waiting for years to just get a beat from Premo

‘cause Premo’s book was always so locked in with

projects that he was working on that he would schedule you months down the

line.  And by the time he’s ready

for you if you ain’t sitting

around and waiting your project is done by the time he’s available. So that has

happened with me and him for like the last four albums.

I never worked with Kanye he never produced a track

for me I always liked Kanye’s production. I think

that’s it, for right now.

 

AllHipHop.com: Of those you have worked with who

were the most special?

 

Busta Rhymes: J Dilla, Dr. Dre,

Nottz, Dj Scratch, Pharrell, Cool & Dre.

 

AllHipHop.com: What was working with Dilla

like?

 

Busta Rhymes: Dilla was just…perfection to me

cause he always made s**t that you knew you needed without telling him what you

needed. He knew what I needed and he just knew how to do it.  And then if he ever asked me what I

needed I couldn’t tell him cause the words couldn’t describe what he gave me. I

wish I could tell somebody what he gave me so I could try to get it from

somebody else. But I couldn’t even tell him and he still knew what I needed;

gave it to me every time. That’s why he’s been on every solo album I’ve ever

made from day one.  I never

finished an album without Dilla.  So you know, he’s “one” on my list of

favorite producers of all time.

AllHipHop.com: Now looking at the Busta

Rhymes catalogue and looking at the discography of what you’ve done, whenever

there is a top five discussion your name should be in there. But at times your

name doesn’t come up. How do you feel about that?

 

Busta Rhymes: I don’t feel anything about it. I never really concerned

myself with s**t like that cause, what you gonna do? 

All I know how to do is what I been doing, and at the end of the day,

that’s smashing mothaf**kas

in every way across the board. A n***a could never

really say he bust my ass on a record. 

N***a can never say you bust my ass in a stage show.  So as far as I’m concerned I don’t need

to say anything about any of these things when the fact of the truth is

undisputed. ‘Cause people may not put me in they top five but whenever you ask

them who’s nicer than me? 

 

When it comes to the records

that be rhymed on together if you hear me on “Flava

in Ya Ear (Remix),”  or “Scenario” or whatever

records you want to pull up and see me collaborate with mothaf**kas.  How many

times you hearing a mothaf**ka really saying, “Yo Bust got his ass whooped on this record.”? I don’t think you ever heard that in your life.  And when it comes to these stage shows

whoever you gonna hear say, “Yo

this n***a bust Busta Rhymes and them n****s on the

stage.”  I don’t think you ever heard

that neither.

 

I really think at the end of

the day, a lot of the peoples top five are the people that they are told on a

regular basis are top five.  It’s

kind of like a symptom out of sight of mind. So if you hearing Jay-Z, Nas, Biggie all the time, that’s what’s going to come out

of everybody’s mouth just like you hear a record on the radio all the time, it

don’t matter if it’s not hot, it becomes a hit. So it becomes

conditioning.  How your train of

thought has been conditioned to function and over the years that’s what you

hear. 

 

Even nowadays, as hard as

Wayne has been going in for four or five years, how many times do you hear him

in n****s top 5’s?  That’s some

recent s**t now that you’re starting to hear him in n****s top 5’s.  I wasn’t hearing this three years ago and

he was going just as crazy three years ago.  For the last three years he’s actually been putting in more

work than anybody as far producing material from mixtapes

to cameos to features. But again it’s like you gotta condition these people. How you campaign, that

helps to change the dynamic of what you hear out of people’s mouths.  I never made it my business to campaign

being in n****s top 5’s.  I never

felt that I needed to and that’s just the kinda

cloth that I was cut from.  We

don’t’ self proclaim our hotness. 

You let the people do that. You put the work in and let the people do

that.  

Leaders of the New School “The International Zone Coaster” Video

AllHipHop.com:

You got your first deal at 17. You’re still here, an elder

statesmen doing his thing. If you wrote a manual how would

you explain to these up and coming MCs how not to fall off? 

Busta Rhymes: By having they concept,

lyrics, music, attitude and performance together, and that’s it in a

nutshell.  I was taught that by

Chuck D, the acronym is C.L.A.M.P. 

If you got a clamp on your package as a well-rounded artist you gon’ have a clamp and a lock on the game. So I always

applied that to my own s**t. Concepts,

that’s why from the first album with Leaders of The New School, you look at the

back [of the album] and you see the first couple tracks is “homeroom” and the

next couple songs is “lunchroom.” Lunchtime and the last couple songs was “afterschool.”

We had to draw the whole album package on notebook paper and come to the label

like, “This is what we want to do, Leaders of The New School is the name, and

we want to do this school s**t.” You know the afterschool fights so we would

have “Show Me a Hero” which is me beefing with a bully in school and songs like

that.  Lunchroom would be “Sounds

of the Zeekers” with of all of the f**kin’ n****s we

had on the record, because in the lunch room you and all your boys was in there

beat boxin’ and freestylin’

and snapping on each other and just bugging out. 

 

Lyrics

is always important because nothing was more important to garnish your

respect in being a MC. As a lyricist your attitude

got to be right because if you’re an a###### mothaf**kas won’t want to f**k with you.  Your appearance got to be right cause when you walk in a room

you got to light the room up without even talking.  You got to be able to look like a star and be the star when

you ain’t got the

microphone. Your music of course,

production always got to be the super dope hot s**t. And you performance at the end of the day is

the end all says all.  N****s come out  spending

they money to see you when they could be doing something else. You want to make

sure they getting their money’s worth. 

Leaders of the New School “Case of the P.T.A.” Video 

AllHipHop.com: Damn, that mantra you described

could be used by a gang of today’s newer artists. Even

some of the older ones.

 

Busta Rhymes: That was the grooming that we was

blessed to be around though. 

That’s the Public Enemy they was a direct, influence on everything we

did. They were our standard of approval. If we didn’t meet their standard of

approval it wasn’t gonna

happen.  So we had to work to

garnish our respect in the immediate circle before the people even had a chance

to be exposed to it.

 

AllHipHop.com:

So what’s good with the acting man?

 

Busta Rhymes: I just did a movie called Order of Redemption with Tom Beringer and Armand Asante. It’s coming out next year like

April/May. I ain’t

playin’ with [acting]. I mean I stopped doing that

for a second trying to focus on this music while I was over at Aftermath trying

to get a whole other level success acquired.  That didn’t happen based on the way things played out.  But we nose diving headfirst into the

movie world and getting it poppin’.  We just knocked down Order of Redemption and we got two more

lined up.

 

AllHipHop.com: Who is your greatest MC, and who is your favorite MC?

 

Busta Rhymes: Hmm…greatest MC and favorite MC…

 

AllHipHop.com: Got you on that one huh?

 

Busta Rhymes: Yeah that’s a hard one, my greatest MC I would have to say

it’s several of them, it’s not one.

[Big Daddy] Kane was one of ‘em,

Rakim was another one of ‘em.  Nas, BIG,

Eminem, those are my favorite MCs. 

 

Greatest MC, I would probably

have to say, between Nas and BIG.  LL Cool Jwas one of favorites too.  But I say Nas and BIG because they

was lyrically crazy…wait, I can’t forget Sick Rick yo. Slick Rick is in the favorite MC category too.  I mean greatest MC category too.  Because, he did s**t

with words and told stories at the same time. Because sometimes a mothaf**ka be a dope story teller

but it would compromise how ill they were lyrically.  Then it’ll be a ill lyrical mothaf**ka but wasn’t as crazy with the stories, but to

have the dynamic of both. I would say [it] is Nas and

Big and Slick Rick.  

 

AllHipHop.com: When listen to a Busta

Rhymes record it kind of reminds me of KRS-1 always harping on real MCs having

many styles. The way you deliver on one record may be complete different from

the flow on the next one. What you you attribute that

too?

 

Busta Rhymes: That just came about as a result of trying to marry with

whatever the beat was that I rhymed on. I never felt that it would make sense

to try and sound the same on beats. Unless you rhyming on the same type of

beat, beats vary sonically in so many ways that if you can marry with whatever

direction the beat is going sonically it’s gonna

automatically bring about just the many different styles that ultimately are

brought about.  I don’t really

think about how I’m gonna

get on a beat I just let the beat dictate it. Following the music usually is

the best way to allow the style to transition or to change or to give birth to themselves. Following the beat just helps make the rhyme

sound iller to me.  You know it’s like you play dodgeball

with the kicks and the snares and, you find pockets in the beat that your

regular cliché flow rhyme pattern ain’t gon’ maximize if you rhymes the same way on every beat. So

why won’t you adjust your s**t to fit with what the beat is doing so that you

can maximize the way your going to sound on this beat?  That’s what I always thought was the

smartest thing to do.

 Busta Rhymes “Gimme Some More” Video

AllHipHop.com: Do you always have the beat first or do you ever

have concepts for songs beforehand?

 

Busta Rhymes: I have concepts for songs before the beat, but I won’t

write to it until I get the right beat to go with the concept.  You feel what I’m saying? If I write a

certain joint or one to a beat prior to getting the beat, the way it might come

across could compromise you appreciating the concept if it ain’t being said right. If the flow ain’t right, if the way you

articulating your s**t at certain parts of what the beat is doing it’ll

compromise how you appreciate the concept. Like the grave digging joint

[“Legend of the Fall Offs”] on Big Bang,

I couldn’t rhyme how I did on “Touch It” on that beat because you wouldn’t

appreciate it in the same way. Just like with “Touch it”.  You see how the beat changes?  I had to write my rhyme to the way the

beat was changing so you could appreciate the… “TURN IT UP!!!!” and then the

drums change and s**t “GET LOW BUST!!!” (beatboxes

the track). All of that is just following what the beat is doing.  It helps you appreciate the concept

better if you going with the beat and marrying that beat the way you should.

 

AllHipHop.com: Are

you still doing business at all with Papoose and Kay Slay?

 

Busta Rhymes: Nah we’re not in business

together but you know me and Slay we’re always gonna

be peoples cause we just got a respect level with each other. Slay is a good

dude and smart dude and we just always been cool.  And like every relationship everybody go through they little

differences, and you know we wasn’t able to really get it poppin’

on the whole business level together but outside of that, we good. 

 Busta Rhymes “Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Can See” Video

AllHipHop.com: From what you told me, and correct me if I’m wrong,

but it seems like your time with Aftermath slowed you up and affected all your

other ventures, no?

 

Busta Rhymes: Indirectly, because that was a choice thing. It wasn’t

really like Aftermath caused that. I personally wanted to give my undivided

attention to the Aftermath situation so I chose to not be as active in the

films. Which probably wasn’t the smartest choice at the time but that’s just

where my heart was.  I wanted to

make sure that the dedication that I needed meet the standard, in that establishment;

it had to be focus one. I made choice and that was my choice.  Like, “Just put your all into this

album over here.” In the house with the big doctor and when he come to the

table with his s**t that’s gon’ be crazy, you want to

be able to come to the table with your s**t that’s gon

be crazy.  I didn’t want anybody to

get in the way of me being able to deliver the crazy that was expected of

me. 

 

AllHipHop.com: Last question. B.O.M.B.,

what can people expect?

 

Busta Rhymes: The most phenomenal body of work that you’ve ever gotten

from Busta Rhymes. The beauty about Busta Rhymes is I’m as great as my latest.  And if this is my latest project it got

to supersede everything that’s been done prior so you’re gonna get the most phenomenal body of work to date

that you can get from me.  And last

but not least it’s gon be that vintage Busta Rhymes feeling that people have always known to grow

and love without us trying to re-create that sonically.  So we aint

going to got try and re-create “Put Ya Hands (Where

my Eyes Can See),” and we aint trying to re-create

“Woo Haa.” 

There’s so much new s**t with the music going on with this project that people

need to be introduced to because I constantly like to grow and take to another

standard level sonically. But I definitely made sure that even thought there’s a newness with the sound, the element that you’ve known to

grow and love me for is at an abundance as far as the feeling in this album. Busta Rhymes “Don’t Touch Me (Throw Da Water On ‘Em)” Video

“I never really concerned myself with s**t like that cause, what you gonna do?,” says Busta Rhymes when asked at his inconspicuous absence whenever Top 5 rapper lists are tallied. He continues, “All I know how to do is what I been doing, and at the end of the day that’s smashing mothaf**kas in every way across the board.”Busta insists there’s no chip on his shoulder, though if he did the claim would be legit. Since his debut to the rap world as a boisterous Leader of the New School, Busta has embarked on a hit laden solo career (“Woo-Hah! (Got You All In Check),” “Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Can See”) that coupled with a full clip of show stealing guest verses (“Flava In Ya Ear (Remix),” “Scenario”) and combustible stage shows has indisputably made Bussa Bus one of Hip-Hop’s top tier artists. In 2004 Busta signed on with Aftermath Records. Surely working with Dr. Dre would mean a turbo boost in stardom, and sales, right? However, the album was slow to arrive, and despite a huge hit (“Touch It”), his first #1 chart debut, and critical kudos, 2007’s The Big Bang didn’t live up to expectations in the marketplace. Simultaneously issues surrounding the death of his bodyguard, Ismael Ramirez, at the “Touch It” video shoot and various ensuing legal troubles didn’t help matters. Nevertheless, Busta presses on. In July 2008 he left Interscope and Dr. Dre’s care, eventually landing at Universal/Motown. The label is headed by Sylvia Rhone, who signed Leaders of the New School in 1990. “I’m just back in my comfort zone again,” says Busta of he and Rhone’s reunion. With the success of his controversial hit “Arab Money” he is comfortably back on the charts as well. With his eighth album, B.O.M.B. (Back On My B.S.), due in March 2009, we asked Busta just about everything. From his legal trouble to what really occurred during his convo with Jimmy Iovine, on to who his favorite producers and MCs are, he answered everything candidly and sincerely. No B.S.AllHipHop.com: So, now you’re signed to Universal/Motown, it’s

almost like you’re coming full circle since Sylvia Rhone is here and your solo

career really jumped off at Elektra with her. So what’s that like?

 

Busta Rhymes: Back on my

bulls**t.  You know what I’m

saying? We back to getting back to what we used to do, to what we’ve always

been able to do together. I’ve never loved any one that I’ve been in business

with more than I love this woman. 

And I just think that Sylvia is just an extremely loyal person.  She loves really hard and she’s an

extremely passionate individual.  She’s

always been the type of person where, if you in her good graces she will walk

through any storm and any fire with you.

 

I think this one of the greatest

ways to actually press the restart button. I pressed my start button to my solo

career with her.  And I went

through phases with other situations and I can see the difference in the way

things are manifested now as opposed to what they were in my last

situation.  We put one record out

[“Arab Money”], s**t is on frenzy level everywhere now

that I’m back with the person that knows how the do business with the Busta Rhymes brand better than anybody in the game. I’m

just back in my comfort zone again, and I’ve always tried to acquire a comfort

zone like this for the last five years. 

I just wasn’t able to do it. 

Busta Rhymes f/ Ron Browz “Arab Money” Video

AllHipHop.com: That said what made you leave Elektra to J Records.  What was the situation behind that?

 

Busta Rhymes: Back then, I was in a different

space mentally. I felt like the things that me and Sylvia

had done together had outgrown that situation. We was a monster that couldn’t

fit in the building no more.  Video

started off being $600,000 then ended up becoming $2.4 million videos.  Like, where else was there left for us to

go? What, we going to start spending three, four million dollars on videos, you

know, to outdo [the previous one]? 

Everything we did just got so much bigger than the last s**t and that’s

what we was about. Me and Sylvia, we just was so dope

together that nothing outside of ourselves [was] our competition, you know what

I’m saying?  So we was competing with ourselves.

 Busta Rhymes “Woo-Hah!” Video

AllHipHop.com: It was definitely crazy video after even crazier

video for a while.

 

Busta Rhymes: It was crazy like nothing couldn’t top what we was doing.  And

it just got to a point where we couldn’t top our own s**t. It was time for us

to try something else.  And you

know it was almost like a defense mech. We had to leave ourselves or we was gonna kill ourselves. Because what

we started doing no longer was conducive to proper business practice.  The profit margin started lessening the

more we spent. 

 

It started to cost us more to

acquire greater success because we just was creating those movies every time we

came back around with a new project. Think about it, first album was with Zhane [“It’s A Party”]. And then When Disaster Strikes had Erykah Badu on “One,”

then Janet [Jackson] was Extinction Level

Event [“What’s It Gonna Be?”]. It just got bigger

and bigger and bigger and s**t was just…it just became too much.  So we had to let each other breathe a

little bit, and let somebody else share the burden of trying to maintain the Busta Rhymes success. 

Busta Rhymes “Pass the Courvoisier Part 2” Video

AllHipHop.com: You said you’re in a comfortable situation now. The

Aftermath situation started off with great potential and expectations, of

course.  What happened?

 

Busta Rhymes:  Just ummm…the patience that Dr. Dre

had was a little difficult for me. 

I respect patience, your circumstance can only allow you to have the

kind of patience he has.  You know

what I’m saying? His circumstances were very different than a lot of us because

he’s been successful on an astronomical level for a very long time. As a

producer Dre can generate significant amount of

revenue without having to be on the front line as an artist.  You know me,

my primary revenue stream is being on the front line as an artist. 

 

So at the end of the day while

Dre is perfecting perfection itself, you know, at

that level he does things in every way when it comes to music, you sitting

around three, four years trying to put an album together. Because

nothing is good enough for Dre.  Which was actually a blessing because

it ended up making The Big Bang one

of my most incredible albums. 

 

“’I Love My Chick,’ that wasn’t a single choice that was made by Busta or

Dr. Dre. So when you see the difference, Busta Rhymes put out ‘Touch It,’ it was a movie. The single that I chose to

go with, which Dre was in agreement with was ‘Get You

Some,’ which was a Dr. Dre produced record.”

 Touch It – Busta Rhymes

AllHipHop.com: Looking at your discography through the years you

were good for a year, year and a half between albums, not to mention all the

remixes and guest features.

 

Busta Rhymes: That’s the pace that I was used to.  That’s how Busta

Rhymes does things when Busta Rhymes is in the driver’s

seat.  But when I went to his

situation you play by different rules because you’re moving into someone’s

house who’s had success that superseded your success;

doing it his way.  There ain’t been a project that Dre put out that aint do five

million, four million, three million. So it’s hard to tell him to do it

different, when his way has always worked for him.  And which it probably would have, with my album, if we

didn’t compromise what we knew was best for the project.

 

When I say that I mean sometimes

when an exec from a parent company wants you to go in a direction that they

want you to go in, and they promise to deliver on those levels where you make

that choice and support what they suggest is the decision that you should

support. Then if you fight against that and it doesn’t go the way that you want

it to go… A lot of the times you may not get the support that you might

need.  On The Big Bang album, “I Love My Chick,” that wasn’t a single choice

that was made by Busta or Dr. Dre.

So when you see the difference, Busta Rhymes put out

“Touch It,” it was a movie.  Then

we put out the remix, bigger movie. 

The single that I chose to go with, which Dre

was in agreement with, was “Get You Some,” which was a Dr. Dre

produced record with Marsha and Q-Tip. 

First song on my album, now after three years of sitting around, there

is no possible way that the people are going to want to see an album come out

and you not have a Dr. Dre produced record, if you’re

on Aftermath with Dr. Dre. 

 

We’ve already seen what a Dr. Dre produced single with Busta

Rhymes on it can do with “Break Ya Neck” when I was

on J records.  We put it out and

the Genesis album ended up selling

1.9 million albums and that was my first single. So for me to have been at

Aftermath/Interscope and not have a Dre single, it just made no sense. But obviously, that

wouldn’t be a choice that we would make. 

We rolled with the choice of Jimmy Iovine at

the time because that’s what he felt we should have done.  And that directly contributed to the

change of the momentum of the project. That single wasn’t the right single and I

chose to never let a situation like that transpire again.  But you know, we could have also stood

our ground and said, Nah we not doing that regardless of what the end result

would have been.  But that was then,

this is now.

 

AllHipHop.com: It’s like a double edge sword. You stand your ground

and…

 

Busta Rhymes: You don’t get the support you want.

 

AllHipHop.com: Right.

 

Busta Rhymes: And then if you do go with it, you get all the support you

want and then you still don’t get it because you know it ain’t the right single, you’re damned either

way.  Again, that was then this is

now.  And I’m not making those kind of mistakes anymore. But with that being said, I don’t

want people to think that there’s any disgruntledness

because, I’m not mad at my experience over there.  S**t happens the way they happen because that’s just how it

happened.

 

There was a lot of other s**t that

went down in my two years over there that shouldn’t have happened that

contributed to a lot of the difficulties of the way things was going on.  The s**t that

happened at the video shoot. 

You know, just a lot of the negative press with the court cases and the

constant getting arrested and it was just…a lot of s**t was going haywire at

the time too that was hurting what we was trying to do with the music.  It was just a major anti-Busta Rhymes campaign for a while. 

Busta Rhymes f/ Swizz Beatz “New York S**t” Video

AllHipHop.com: You dropped The Big Bang which

received plenty of critical acclaim but then in the months after its

release it seemed like every time your name came up in the press it was about

anything but music.

 

Busta Rhymes: You stopped thinking about me having an album, you started

thinking about me being a criminal and s**t. In a timeframe when they was

putting every one of our Black entertainers in jail, if my charges were that

serious I would have been doing some kind of time too.  But none of my charges were serious

because, I’m not no criminal, number one.  Number two, situations, more or less

were manifesting not as a result of me doing wrong things but as a result of me

being dealt with in an unjust manner and being harassed by law enforcement

because of the situation that transpired at the video shoot.  Because as you can see for the 16, 17

year career at that time , I never had no problems

with nobody.

 

AllHipHop.com: You can’t say there was a pattern or anything  like

that.

 

Busta Rhymes: Nothing.  And

once that situation transpired it was an onslaught of s**t that just started to

play out back to back for the last two years, and I’m still dealing with some

of it now. But the difference is, you my cases are closed so it ain’t too much they can do with me

right now. As far as trying to get me in trouble I don’t have any pending cases,

I don’t have no legal issues with nobody. I’m in a new

space with a new deal, new album coming, I’m a new person and I’m extremely

happy. 

 

AllHipHop.com: Is there anything final you want to say about the

situation at the video and with your late friend Ismael

Ramirez? There’s always been a ton of speculation but mostly from people not

really familiar with what happened, so is there anything final you want to say

about it?

 

Busta Rhymes:  Nah, there’s

really nothing else that I do want to say. I don’t really want to say anything

because the bottom line is, you know, I don’t have anything to do with anything

concerning that situation other than trying to provide an opportunity for all

of us to work and make money ‘cause we were shooting a video.  And again, I just wish for the people

that have so much to say about me in the situation…it would serve a greater

purpose to not only get the facts and know what you talking about before you

talk, but invest the energy that you are putting in in

trying to disrespect the situation by continuing to talk based on information

that you don’t really have the facts on [and] do something to help the man’s

family.

 

If you really want to do

something do something to help the brother’s family; he got three kids, three

mother’s of his children and it could be more useful putting whatever energy

that you have into being productive, moving forward for the situation. And

that’s pretty much it.  And God

bless all the loved ones and all those that have been affected directly and

indirectly.  I’ve been affected

directly and indirectly since the day that it happened more than people

realize, and I’m still dealing with those effects, and so is my family so I

just kind of want to move forward.

 

“[Jimmy Iovine] supported me in a way that I never seen

before—he let me leave with my album. What more could you ask for? There

was no beef whatsoever and that’s not a politically correct

answer neither.”

 

AllHipHop.com: Blessed was originally the title of your

next album and you had dropped some songs to prep its

release. But is it true that there was an argument between you and Jimmy Iovine that lead to you leaving Interscope

and then landing at Universal/Motown?

 

Busta Rhymes: Nah. That’s another thing that wasn’t accurate. I never

had any beef with Jimmy Iovine. We sat down and we

communicated our concerns and I communicated not only my concerns but what I would like to do moving forward as far as wanting

to make some changes.  And the

beautiful thing about Jimmy Iovine that I respect is

the fact that he respected my judgment call as far as what my choices were and

he also respected the hard work that went into creating the legacy that I have;

he didn’t want to do nothing to soil that or stain that.

 

[Jimmy Iovine]

supported me in a way that I never seen before—he let me leave with my

album. What more could you ask for? That’s a blessing because a lot of these

labels when they give you money to spend on a project, they want they money

back in some kind of way.  They

want to override or they want you to pay that money back in its entirety. I

didn’t have none of that to deal with and I guess it’s

because the discussion was dealt with in a respectful manner.

 

There was no beef whatsoever

and that’s not a politically correct answer neither.  We don’t got no problem in getting in somebody’s

ass who ain’t doing they

job. That’s a M.O. of Hip-Hop artists. A lot of the

time the artists beef so much with labels that ain’t doin’ they job that a

lot of time you start to think that that’s their mothaf**kin’

excuse for s**t they do sometimes that’s just wack. I

ain’t wanna

use that as an excuse in this situation because my success wasn’t the greatest

over there so I got every reason to pop s**t.  If it was just based on and being about the success of the

records, but that’s not really the nature of my situation I really don’t have

nothing to be mad about with that experience over there. 

 

I do wish things could have

popped a little crazier as far the success but I would not have changed The Big Bang album for the world.  It’s still one of my

if not the favorite album of mine from a lyrical standpoint, a

conceptual standpoint, and a musical standpoint.  You know? 

“Legends of The Fall Offs”, gravediggin’ beat

with the shovel in the dirt, that s### is conceptually…it’s just unbelievable.

“You Can’t Hold a Torch,” me and Q-Tip over the J-Dilla beat. 

“Don’t Get Carried Away,” me and Nas over the Dre beat. You know

“Gold Mine” me and Raekwon over the

Erick Sermon beat with the Dre production;

Rick James, Stevie Wonder.

Legend Of The Fall Offs – Busta Rhymes

AllHipHop.com: It definitely felt like the album should have lasted

in the marketplace much longer than it did.  

 

Busta

Rhymes: Yeah. We had a 60-piece orchestra at the end of the Stevie Wonder song.

You know it’s like there were movies made on that album and I wouldn’t change

it for the world.   The only

thing I probably would have changed is “I Love My Chick” would not have been on

that album.  I probably would have put “I Love My Chick” on another album

that it would have been more appropriate for. 

 Busta Rhymes: The AllHipHop Interview, Pt. 2