Hello and thanks for giving us also the possibility to ask yourself something about your official solo debut. There are not too many interviews out there this time, so we are glad that we were allowed to promote you here in Germany exclusively. Everybody knows you from Sunz of Man, so we can cut the introduction.
- Renaissance Child is your first official solo album on a bigger label, in this case Nature Sounds. What does Renaissance Child distinguish from your present releases?
First of all I wanna say thanks for tha support. I really appreciate it. And yes I consider this too be my official first solo. With this Album here you can tell I put my heart and soul into this here. The other releases wasn’t done right and wasn’t in my total control as this album.
- Why do you see 'All Hell breaks loose' not as your solo debut and why it came out twice?
I don’t see it as my release, because it was incomplete and unfinished work on there. And thas funny i never knew it came out twice. But that just let tha fans know I got music sitting and still recording more.
- Many titles of present albums like "Hip Hop Is Dead", "Jesus Price Supastar" and just "Renaissance Child" promise to call out a new era, or the end of an old one. What does Renaissance Child distinguish from the other titles?
Renaissance Child was a title I had before ‘Hip Hop is dead’ or ‘Jesus Price Superstar’, so it must be tha signs of time if it all fall in place now. I’m basically a child of tha Renaissance and calling on all the other people out there that fell tha same way I do. It’s time for Hip Hop to be reborn and I’m the child born to do so. Listen to the music and see for ya self.
- “Renaissance" is French for resurrection and calls a revolutionary age of art. Do you see yourself as a "child" of this era whom animates it now anew or are you a pioneer in this area?
Renaissance also means rebirth. This age of Hip Hop lost it’s respect for tha pioneers of Hip Hop and they need to be reeducated before the whole culture gets stolen tha same way the old ancient paintings got whitewashed from it’s original art.
- Nevertheless, you already had the track with RA the Rugged Man and Timbo King which was called 'Renaissance' as well. Has the track influenced you for the name of your CD, or immediately the whole concept?
Nah. Actually I had tha album title first. Tha song was originally called ‘I am Hip Hop’ and the version wit R.A. is tha remix. A lot of influence from this album came from going thru a decade of tha music business and life period.
- You call Renaissance Child even already a Classic. What exactly puts out a Classic for you and what you have done to do your album such like a Classic?
I say it’s a classic, because I’m a fan of Hip Hop as well and I have a good ear for music. It has good beats, lyrically content, originality, concepts and everything else a classic has.
- What is your personal favorite track on the album and why?
My personal favorite is "Nativity", because it’s no gimmicks to that at all and it introduces me to tha world as who I really am, without illusions. Krohme produced that song also and it has that sound that you gotta keep bringing that one back. And that’s just the first song.
- If we take a look at the feature list of your album in such a way, we sees the usual suspicious ones, like Priest, Timbo but also Ra or Tragedy. Why are Prodigal Sunn and 60 Second Assassin not on your album?
I wanted the features to be real lyrically respected MC’s in tha game who fit within what I’m saying. So it can make all sense. There is no specific reason why Prodigal and 60 is not on it. Priest and Timbo was there during the recording and we was working on Priest album and Maccabeez at tha same time.
- What’s up actually with them? 60 wanted to do a solo album as well. Do you have still contact?
I just recently got back in touch with my brothers 60 and Prodigal and yeah ya’ll can look for a 60sec album. That was something we spoke on recently. And Prodigal been getting his film grind on but he also is working on another project. So keep ya shades on cause the Sunz gonna keep shining.
- If we are already with the both, how does it looks about the Sunz of One? Who belongs to the official Line-Up at the moment and when will there be new material of you?
Yeah we even planning a Sunz of Man 10th year anniversary album of new songs, so get ready for that in 2008. The Sunz of Man still tha ones on ‘5 Arch Angels’…
- I have heard that there is still unreleased material. Why are on albums like ‘The old Testament’ or ‘Elements’ then only been the old tracks over and over again?
Yeah we got more unreleased material but for now on it will be new and improved music coming out. No more material like that. We had songs over 10 yeas old that’s better than stuff rappers is doin now. It just happen them songs got leaked out, cause cats was starving that bad for more music from us.
- In your texts citations and metaphors have often struck me concerning the Bible how does the name "Hell Razah" fit to it?
Tha name Hell-Razah fits in, because it’s about raising hell against tha wicked Government or raising my people from being mentally and spiritually dead. Tha same way Christ rose up Lazarus.
- You have done a track with Krohme and you also have 2 tracks on your album which have been produced by him. How have you met him and will come there even more? He does a lot of noise in every Wu forum last time because of his many Wu Affiliates features. But especially I recogniced the German producer Shuko of course. How did the contact happened and what is the difference, in price as well as quality, to an American producer?
Me n Krohme did a few songs actually and he did "Nativity" and "Lost Ark" on this album. We met thru Dj Cityrich and the rest is history. We got more songs. We did thas gonna be on some of my other projects. So check for those if u like the ones on this album. Also I worked with a german producer by tha name of Shuko, who met his manager first my man Double J who gave me a beat CD and when I met Shuko in germany, we talked and knocked out a few songs. It’s just that one made tha album. We still got more we did to lookout for. It’s not a price thing for me wit production. I listen for hunger and for tha beat to conversate to me. Regardless if you a alien producer from mars.
- How do you select your beats in general? Does it also happened that you found a sample by yourself and then you go to a producer to let him create a beat from it?
I select my beats real carefully and look for it to standout. I can hear a sample or want something played I can marry wit lyrics either way. It’s all in the vibe.
- How did you get to your new label "Nature Sounds" and how does your average day look like? Do the the artists get enough liberties?
I got with Nature Sound since we did tha Black Market album. My average day is crazy. I gotta write songs, taking phene calls all day, doin interviews, shipping out material, re hearsing for shows, in tha studio, doin photos shoots, at tha Barber shop, all type of crazy nuts. Tha list goes on… I can’t tell you that artists get as much liberty as they sign for in they deal.
- In the booklet of your new album you're announcing lots of new projects and releases. Ain't it kind of dangerous to tease the fans and delaying the album over and over again - like raekwon did with Cuban Linx 2. Which project will appear next on the agenda? Are there already any informations you could tell us?
The projects I said that will be coming out, will be coming out. You just gotta stay in tune with the movement. I hot sec tha Killah Priest Offering is bout to drop and really drive yall crazy. So do think we playing. We gotta movement about to pop off… Maccabeez is 75% done and I’m working on Article 2 with 4th Disciple.
- The Heaven Razah project is supposed to contain rather spiritual lyrics again. Is it comparable to the old sunz of man stuff or is it going to be a whole new style?
Heaven Razah is dam near finished already. Thas gonna ba a on some next level nuts. It’s like tha old Sunz of Man stuff, but on a higher level. I’m just gonna make good music. That’s all I know how to do.
- Just a few people saw your Hood Love video, why was that so? Nevertheless it was already discovered on youtube. Are also you getting airplay on other channels like e.g. MTV?
Tha Hood Love video was a bonus on my DVD, it was never released yet. It got leaked to youtube also. Mtv is to scared to play my music, even though it’s good music.
- Because of the fact that a lot of your music is hardly or not at all available in Europe or especially in Germany, your fans would love to have you touring here in Europe. What's up with that?
I been working hard to make sure my music get out internationally for now. On so for all my overseas supporters, who been there since day one, get ready, cause The Renaissance is coming to ghetto near you. Any promoters wanna get at me about booking some shows, contact us at Nature Sound or my website
www.Hell-Razahonline.com or myspace/Razahrubies.com and we can make it happen..
Is there anything you would like to tell your european fans? For the rest we wish you much success and that we can support you again for your upcoming projects.
I wanna say thanks and I made a song on tha album for all my heads, who been holding me down and showing love to the movement. Lookout for more good music coming your way. And never give up your dreams, but make thema reality. The Offering is next and stay in tune with movement.
Peace
Peace
Props: wu-famnatic.com