CONCRETE Magazine, Nashville #33 by CONCRETE Magazine

6-10 ........................... Starlito 12-14 ...................... Fly Major 16 ............................. C-Good 18 ....................Finess da Boss 20 ........................ C.O. Cakes 28 ........................Whip Game 30 ..................... DVD Reviews 32-34 ............... Music Reviews 36 ............................ Lil Wyte 38 .....Producer Profile: Broadway 40 .......... DJ Profile: DJ Sir Swift 42 .......Barber Profile: Big T-Roy. 44-46 ............ The Nashville 10s It’s a new year, and our grind don’t stop. We continue to watch for the next crop of Nashville talent. This issue we got with many of that next wave. Artists like Finess and C.O. Cakes and promoters like Fly Major are taking that torch and running. Published by: CONCRETE Marketing Ad Executives: Bryan Deese, Capo Art Director: Rex2 Nash10 Photography: Tavell Brown Cover Photo: Tavell Brown

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CONCRETE: So we’ve been watching you continue to drop quality music, even songs that get radio play. What songs are you pushing right now? Starlito: The single “I Go H.A.M.” that’s produced by Mop Top. He’s a producer that I’m working out a production situation with. It’s just one of those songs. You put it out there, and it’s one of those ‘you build it they’ll come’ type of things. It just kind of caught on its own. I performed it out of town, down in Memphis over the holidays around my birthday, and it was crazy. A club with 2,000 people in it knowing it word for word, on a song that’s never been on the radio. Other than the tape I did with DJ Folk, it hasn’t been on too many mixtapes. It’s just something that catches. It really reminds me of what “Grey Goose” did in 2004-05. Cause “Grey Goose” picked itself as a single. It wasn’t something I went in (thinking hit single), I learned from that. For an artist like myself, I end up being my own worst enemy when I go in saying, ‘I’m gonna make a single today.’ So to combat that I work daily. I stay in the studio and whatever comes out, comes out. “I Go H.A.M.” that’s the move right now. I’ve got a few other songs that are bubbling and got the potential to be the same way. I’ve got a song with Mac Maine called “Say My Name.” Broadway produced it. And (I got) a few others. Me and Gotti got a ton of them, probably an album’s worth of music together. And quite a few of those are in that same vain of ‘radio ready,’ ‘audience friendly.’ Some of them are already well received. I’ve also been working on my group project. We’ve cranked out about three songs already that sound like singles. CONCRETE: You’re working on the next Starlito street album. When will we be seeing that? And what can we expect? Starlito: March 13, Starlito’s Way 3: Life Insurance. If you’re familiar with the last one, the last song on the second disc is called “Living Will.” I just gave a record as if I were to die today type of thing, cause that’s kind of where I was even in my life. The whole tone of that album was autobiographical continued on pg 8

and being introspective about things. Now on this one, the intro is called “Never Die.” So it’s like I made it through all those tough times, some of things I was rapping about. The ﬁrst line is ‘My hustle will never die.’ You can see that in the time between. I got SEA “Album of the Year” for Starlito’s Way 2. As grateful as I was for that, I only want to do it again. I only want to do it bigger. I only want to do more. In the two-and-a-half years in between I put out 8 or 9 exclusive tapes. You can do the math on how many songs that is. I’m just pushing. I haven’t gotten off the road since then. Things come and go with the economy, but I’m still viable. I’m still grateful that people are following what I got going on. So Starlito’s Way 3, I’m taking a lot of pride in it. I did the ﬁrst one and then I followed it up like a year later like most artists do with albums. I took a longer time period to come with the third. I’ve been working in threes, a lot of trilogies. I’m proud of it, the way it sounds. I wanted to take on new tone. Even the moral of it, by calling it Life Insurance, I lost even more of my friends in the time in between since you’ve heard a street album. I think a lot of people in the streets, it’s important to plan for tomorrow. The scariest notion for me being in the streets or watching people who are knee deep in it, the scariest thing to me is if something happens to me what happens to the people I care about. To loose a friend a they don’t have life insurance, and they got kids and people that depend o n them. It’s probably why they are living the lifestyle that has them in the streets. There’s a title track and I give you scenarios for needing life insurance. I’m detailing things that happen in the streets. So much of rap is “I feel this” or “I got this, I ride this, I got this much money.” But you know, with that attention comes envy and hate and violence. As much as records might glamorize it, I just tried to look from within, because I’ve been on the other side of it, to where I was grieving or trying to be a support system for someone that couldn’t support themselves. It’s not just a morbid, Gothic tone to the disc, but there is an undertone. I’m just aiming, or ‘controlling what I can’ is what I call it. CONCRETE: So you’ve formed a group, what’s it all about? Starlito: It’s called Trash Bag Gang. It’s leading me to a space where I can have fun again. It’s Mike J, Red Dot and me, but it’s kind of a bigger movement like ‘Wu-Tang–ish’ cause there’s quite a few artists who are directly involved. They’re all my homeboys. I’ve worked with artists and tried a straight up record label from a business sense, and the lines of business and personal get blurred, and that’s when the business goes bad. So in this case, I took what’s not going anywhere,

continued on pg 10

which is the bond I have with these people that comes before the music. So doing the music is fun. You know a rapper dealing with a rapper, inevitably you’re going to get in a space where it’s competitive, no matter what the bond is. It happens. It’s easier to stay away from that with these guys, because our bond naturally comes from something else. So we’re doing music with no consequences. I’ve been getting calls for distribution deals and whatever. We’re going to control our own situation the best we can and let the money come. I did that as a solo artist. On my ﬁrst four mixtapes I was having fun, being able to have fun ended up being lucrative. And one person that I never fell out with was myself. So dealing with these guys, it’s easier. It’s kind of self-explanatory. We’re rough around the edges, we’re street. We represent where we come from. It’s genuine, so even if it’s not your walk of life, just our ability to give it to you straight up will be well received. I think that’s the best genre, no matter what genre or what your niche is in music. The artists who are giving it to you straight up, I think produce the best music. That’s what I’m on. I don’t have any doubts about credibility, even with it being street music, because I know these dudes. I know them from outside the booth. It’s not just they’re good rappers or good artists and we’re trying to make a good business move with the music. These are people that if we didn’t make another song, we’re going to have the same bond. So the music comes natural, comes easy. Cause we hang, we kick it, we do the things we are rapping about. It’s just a natural thing, Trash Bag Gang. We got a street single called “Got a Plug.” It was on my last mixtape. We got another single that’s a little more of a club record called “When We Come Around.” I think the ladies will really like it. Its got the bigger sound to it. But “Got a Plug” is gaining its own momentum. It’s me, Red Dot, Mike J and Yo Gotti is going to be featured on the ﬁnal version of it. Trash Bag Gang, it’s what I’m supporting. I do foresee going down the road loosing sleep over the business I’m doing with these guys cause it’s like an extension of myself. It allows me to enjoy what I’m doing, and that’s wen I’m at my best. I’m just returning to that even with my solo stuff. The way I put out music in 2009, I was trying to match what I did in 2004, right before everything started taking off for me.

When it comes to Fly Major the sum really is greater than the whole of its parts. Each of the young hustlers behind Fly Major brings a unique skill set to the table. And in 2007 while all students at TSU, they decided to combine talents and companies and create a new, heavy-weight promotional team. From that simple, dorm room meeting, they scraped up some money from their parents and college refund checks and quickly hosted their ﬁrst event together. Soon they were throwing some of Nashville’s biggest and best parties. In 2009 the squad threw the 1st Annual All White Beach Affair at Nashville Shores, Back for the First Time (a three day back to college weekend), The N Crowd weekly at Bar Flys, the Expensive Taste weekly at The Martini Bar, and multiple party themes. The fellas must have thrown a hundred or so parties in one year! Their parties mix NFL players and local celebrities with college

kids and young adult professionals. And every Fly Major function is a spirited mix. The trio consists of Black Rob, DJ Crisis and Tez Burks. Black Rob is CEO, and with his school boy hustle, makes the impossible possible. DJ Crisis is Nashville’s hardest working young DJ, putting out mixtapes, rocking clubs on a weekly basis and touring with Young Buck. And, he is a successful business man in his own right. And, Tez Burks is an author whose ﬁrst book Memoirs of a Gentleman is set to release this spring. Beyond that, Tez is a TSU grad, who is now studying to become a clinical psychiatrist. Put them all together and it’s a recipe for success. continued on pg 14

DJ CRISIS: Sound Track

BLACK ROB: The Host

TEZ: Relationship Expert 14

DJ Crisis has been making a lot of noise in the music industry, not just for Fly Major’s party presence, but also through his mixtape series Shut Up and Listen. His latest, Volume 9, was co-hosted by himself and Aphilliate front man DJ Drama. Volume 10 will be dropping this March and has some big surprises to watch for. Besides hosting college driven events, Fly Major gives back to the college crowd in the form of the Fly Major Above All Odds Scholarship. The scholarship is awarded to three students each semester and is based on financial need, g.p.a. and a 300 word essay. It’s just one way the company plans to give back to the local community. Their website FlyMajor.com shows the complete story. It houses photos and videos from many of their past events. You can download the latest mix from DJ Crisis. Patrons can purchase advance tickets for the next Fly Major party. They even have Fly Major merchandise for sale, including t-shirts, towels and license plate covers. Fly Major has definitely caught the eye of Nashville’s night life. But they only make it look easy. Throwing successful, popular events is hard work. Not only do they put in the work, but Fly Major has consistently created innovative new formulas for the party goer. So if you find yourself out in Nashville at a really good event, look around, you’re probably at a Fly Major event.

CONCRETE: You’ve got a new album. Can you tell us about that? Lil Wyte: I have a new album out called The Bad Influence which has “Oxycontin part 2” on it. There’s no singles. It’s pretty much as raw as Lil Wyte can get. CONCRETE: Did Paul and Juicy do the production? Lil Wtye: Yeah they did all the production as far as my last three albums. They did all the production on all four. The next album I’m fixing to start working on I think we are going to reach out for some outside production, just cause that’s where the game is going. But as far as the last album we did all the production in house. CONCRETE: The song “Oxycontin” really blew up. You perform that with a live band also. Can you tell us about that? Lil Wyte: On the new album I have “Oxycontin Part 2.” And to pump that we did “Roxycontin” which is the rock version with a live rock band, Tako and the Mofos which is my band under Wyte Music. It’s actually good because it brings a different energy to the stage. When you’re riding around listening to it it’s cool, but when you’re actually at the show there’s so much energy in the song, because “Oxycontin” alone has so much energy, and adding those live instruments just takes it over the top. CONCRETE: Do you have plans to perform more things that way? Lil Wyte: Definitely. The genre I’m in, I guess I’m a “drug abusive gangster rapper” (laughs) that’s pretty much the genre my fans put me in. I can rap about whatever I want to rap about. I just know what my fans want. I also know how to gain extra fans by stepping outside the box every now and then. The “Oxycontin” song really grabbed most of my fans. Most of my fans are from “Oxycontin” alone, because I was the first person to ever write a song about Oxycontin. That’s why when we did the follow-up “Oxycontin {art 2” I pretty much flipped the song around to where Juicy J took the Oxycontin. And I was trying to tell him in the song that he didn’t know what he was getting into, because I’ve been there done that, but he didn’t want to listen. And in the song he takes it anyway, and finds out the hard way that it’s some hard shit to deal with. That Oxycontin ain’t no joke! I took one Oxycontin got fucked up, went to the studio the next day, told Juicy and Paul about the night I’d had before, and they were like, “Let’s write a song about it.” We wrote the song and the rest is history. It wasn’t no planned attack or anything. It was an accident. “Oxycontin” was an accident, we didn’t know it would take off like it did. i guess neither did the pharmacists who made the mother fuckers.

CONCRETE: How long have you been rapping? Finess: Well I had been playing with rap since college, but I didn’t get serious until I moved down here. That was 2007. This mixtape I just put out is the first mixtape is my first real mixtape, so I’m kind of new to it. CONCRETE: What can people expect on Connected & Respected Respected? Finess: What you can expect is a variety of beats. I wanted to use Connect & Respected to show my connections so I went to the UK (England) with DJ Ames and DJ Whitey is in Nashville. So it’s showing how far across the spectrum we can really take it. With the producers, on the tracks, they are all different. I didn’t want one sound on the mixtape. I didn’t want to be fit into one box. Of course we got the Fate (Eastwood) track. That’s the single, that’s the one we’re pushing. So you’re probably going to hear that on many of the Connected and Respecteds. But all the songs are to show the lyrical side of me. I feel like “iHustle” was for the streets, for the people that weren’t going to sit down and really listen to what you are saying. It’s just a message, “I hustle.” Everybody can say that. So that’s the movement, but I wanted to back it up with, “OK, she can really rap.” That’s what I did with the Connected & Respected Respected. CONCRETE: “iHustle” has a serious buzz out there. How did that song come about? Finess: It came out of nowhere really. I got a chance to get in the studio with Fate. He made the beat. And while he was making it “I Hustle” just came into my head. So once we got the hook out of the way. It was just pretty much natural. We let one person hear it, and with their reaction I was like, “OK, maybe we should run with this one.” Cause I had the promo mix that I did with DJ Bryant-D. That was three songs produced by Nyse and was just a taste of what I could do. Those three songs are on the mixtape too. But “iHustle” just came about out of nowhere. So we leaked it on Twitter and in one day it had a lot retweets and 200 plays the first day. It was the first time people were really paying attention. So we figured we should run with that. Now it’s a whole movement. I guess my name is synanimis with “iHustle” now. That’s what people know me for.

CONCRETE: So the album Caked Up is coming soon. What can you tell us about that project? C.O. Cakes: Caked Up is still for release March 1st. I just shot the video to “I Got Money” with Champ Jones which is going to be huge. Its got a Jeremiah sample on the hook. I’m dropping that single February 1st and that will be the main single that I promote the project with. Just ﬁtting into the whole Caked Up theme. I got Champ Jones on it, Lil Vac, Young Steezy, Charlie P will be on it, Dice is on it. I’m trying to get Tiko on it, if he can stay out of jail and I can catch up with him. I’m trying to get Fate Eastwood. A lot of the go hard artists from Nashville, I’m really trying to link up with them. People that really go hard and put on everybody else at the same time. The project is going to be huge. Me and Cheezy did a song called sick love it’s ridiculous. We’re talking about being in love with the money so much to the point where it’s sickening. That will be another single. It’s got about eight singles on it. I don’t know how many I’ll have time to release, but I’m going to push it strong like an album, cause it really has that album feel. It will probably have about twenty-two tracks. It’s going to be ridiculous man. It’s a real personal project. You’re going to get a lot of personal songs. There’s a song called “Angels” where I go off for 72 bars straight. I’m just expressing the fact that I know I have angels out here looking over me or I wouldn’t be here. It dips into a lot of my personal situations that could have been ugly, and somebody had to have been watching over me to still be out here. You’ll hear a lot with those 72 bars. You’re really getting about ﬁve songs with that one song. It’s really more lyrical, cause I want to separate myself lyrically from others. Nashville is not known to be real, real lyrical. But that song is lyrical to the point where it’s ridiculous. I’m trying to jump out the box and let the fans see what’s special about me, and why I’m not the average Nashville rapper. It’s going to be crazy man.

ASIS - Escobar Season Has Returned

Shabazz the owner, producer, writer and narrator of ASIS DVD Magazine takes a gripping looking at Columbian, cocaine king pin Pablo Escobar and his violent tactics. There is a lot of past footage of Pablo Escobar and news footage of his bloody reign of terror. There’s also a lot of great, original shots of modern day Medellin, Columbia (Pablo’s hometown). The ﬁlm maker basically puts it that Pablo got rich and powerful but tried to enter politics, and when that was stopped, he unleashed hell. And that if Pablo had just “stayed in his lane” he would not have been a target. An interesting angle to follow, but somewhere along the way Shabazz brings in a rapper calling himself Pablo Escobar Jr. From there it’s a debate of whether he is really Pablo Escobar’s son, and is right or wrong for rappers to take a former drug dealer’s name (ie. Rick Ross, 50-Cent). Then it has interviews with Charles Cosby (Coacaine Cowboys 2), the Real Rick Ross and Manny and Chi Chi from Scarface. The ﬁlm gets lost. This documentary is decent, but National Geographic’s Killing Pablo: The Hunt for the World’s Greatest Outlaw by Mark Bowden is maybe a more detailed look at Pablo himself.

Lil Wayne, The Carter DVD

One of the realest looks into an artist’s day-to-day life ever. The film crew followed Wayne around for 6th months, and were granted unlimited access. What comes across the most in the film is how hard he works at his craft. He is a true artist. He is constantly recording while on the road. It shows the mobile studio set-up that he uses on his bus, in hotel rooms and just about any room with an electric outlet. The film also shows his writing/recording method. He doesn’t write things down but he is not freestyling. He thinks of things of things in his head, then hits record and spits a bar or two or more. He makes a point to correct someone who asks if it is freestyling. Cortez Bryant, Wayne’s Manager and childhood friend talks candidly about numerous subjects including the leak of The Carter III, childhood memories and Mr. Carter’s syrup sippin’. The movie does focus a lot on his drinking syrup. More than a guy strung out on cough syrup, his vice is that of a work-a-holic. This is reflected in the answer he gives about his sex life, “I don’t have time for that shit. I work too much. It’s music, music , music and money with me.” The movie closes with a song that uses a War sample for the hook. “Oh Lord, please don’t let me be misunderstood.” Fitting end to a great documentary.

Starlito - I Still Love You, Live from the Back of the Class

Starlito drops the last of his I Love You Too Trilogy. He brings that typical Allstar swag with nice lyrics and punch lines. Stand-out track “Got a Plug” shows just what to expect from his new group. “Dope Boy DogieE” (cause he’s so fresh) is the hustle and swag anthem. “Out Here” is his proclamation to his enemies that he’s battle ready and not budging. “Paranormal Activity” ﬂips a psychedelic guitar sample from Pink Floyd and creates a slap-in-the-face anthem for a few of his ex-girl friends. In one interlude, he denounces the monicker “Cashville’s Prince” and declares he now wears the crown. He also puts a lot of shine on his crew Trash Bag Gang. A crew that goes beyond the music. He really does this man. Vagabonds!

Rio - As I See It

The all-around artist Rio drops his ﬁrst mixtape in anticipation to his ﬁrst solo album release. Rio has been behind the scenes in Nashville for a minute, writing and producer for other artists. This guy can sing his ass off! He runs some original production along with jacked beats. His original “Diamond” is a crazy r&b banger. While “Video Girl” is an up-tempo disco tune. You may have heard his laid-back, auto-tune track “Wristband” popping at Bar Flys last summer. He does a Fate Eastwood beat justice too. It’s 19 tracks of mostly Rio, but it also has JC, Sheri Hauck, Leah, Nyse, Bezzled Gang Stix Izza and others. It’s an impressive introduction to what Rio is all about.

Da Hero - I Signed Myself

Big things are popping out of Clarksville via Da Hero and Lane Boy Entertainment. In house producer Greedy keeps bringing the nice production and did most of the tracks. Da Hero jumps on original and jacked beats equally hard. The stand out song though has got to be “Y’all Don’t Feel Me” featuring Yo Gotti and Allstar and produced by Fate Eastwood. It’s a Tennessee classic! The track “So Special” is a heartfelt talk with his hustle as if it were a chick he had on the side. It’s a real interesting way to break down his love for the game. Da Hero always keeps it 100.

Hustle 365 - Hustler’s Anthem

Yung Red, Franchise and Young T are Hustle 365. The group of young cats repping for North Nashville give you their ﬁrst mixtape Hustler’s Anthem. The original beats are simple, but they ﬂow nice on top of them. The crew sings a nice hook on “Ride or Die Chick.” This group is all about the grind, and they explain this on “I Don’t Cuddle” and “I Be Hustlin.” They save the best for last. “Sold Out” is about staying in until all the work is done. This mix is full of Hustlers Anthems.

Fluid Outrage - Posted Up Grindin’

Fluid Outrage and the Bang Out squad are right back at ya with a mix full of heaters and features about half of the Nashville’s South Side. Production and sound quality are always on point with these guys, and tis mix is no different. It’s a lot of trap music made for the streets. There’s a lot of great beats (mostly original) and catchy hooks. Some of the featured artists are Fluid Outrage (obviously) Diablo, Lil Murda, Foul Play, Cents Da Weed Head, Finess Da Boss, Dolla E, Da Union, DunDil, LeJuan and others. This is like the best of South Nashville from late 2009 - early 2010. Make sure you check this one out.

DJ Crisis - Shut Up and Listen, Vol. 9

Young go-getter, DJ Crisis goes big on volume 9 of his Shut Up and Listen series. He got DJ Drama to host, and co-sign for the DJ Crisis/Fly Major movement. From there, Crisis drops Southern hit after hit, with a heavy dose of Atlanta artists. The new crop of ATL featured includes Swazy Baby, Waka Flocka and Travis Porter. It opens with Shawty Lo’s newest “Atlanta, GA” which features The Dream on the hook and Ludacris and Gucci Mane. Other artists he gets new material from is Drake, Plies, Yo Gotti, Young Buck, Allstar and Lil Wayne. And, Crisis even drops a verse. Crisis is killing it right now!

D-Legal - 25 to Life

This guy is on some next level shit! His rhyme patterns and cadence show Jamacian dance hall, MF Doom/Cool Keith outer space type rap and Southern rap inﬂuences. The result is a very original sound. This is highlighted on tracks “Hyper Cypher,” “A Million” and “Hero.” He has other, more familiar styles too, like on “The Hood” and “I’m Icy,” but always with twist. After all ... “What’s a goon to goblin?” This guy is in the ozone, or is it the Matrix.

Finess Da Boss - Connected & Respected, Vol. 1

Talk about a buzz, this female MC has got it. It comes mainly from here hit “iHustle” which is the opening song after the intro. There’s plenty of other bangers on here like “Where Dey At,” Gettin It In” and “I.H.S.” She also has a whole East Coast feel on “Speechless” and “Forever.” She teamed up with DJ Whitey and DJ Ames from England (Finess lived in England) to give this mix a world wide feel. There’s original production from Fate, Nyse and others. Finess can really spit and her presence on the mic is already polished. It’s exciting to see a new artist like her emerge from Cashville.

Yung Thuggz - Everybody’s A Victim, Vol. 2

Flip and Breezy are the Yung Thuggz, and they go hard on Everybody’s a Victim Vol. 2. The ﬁrst thing you recognize with them is Flip’s voice. It’s deep and ferocious on the hooks for “Get Down” and “Make Money”. The energy goes sky high on the instant classic “Turn Me Up.” The focus stays on the artists and the tracks never get too big. This mix has dark, d-boy raps like “Yeah,” and “Times Up,” but “U Got a Thug” and “Shakin’ Shit” (a Breezy solo) break them out of that mold. The guys are a good combo and motivate each other. They are offering a free download, so check them out.

Pettidee - Race 2 Nowhere

Pettidee is back with another classic record. This dude is a legend in gospel hip-hop. He opens up with a car starting, and then it and the album takes off! He has totally switched his production style up to a rock-rap flow, and rips it on “The Ghetto.” His lyrics are as real as ever, and the energy the guitars bring meshes flawlessly with his crunk flows. “Hydro” is car about his car’s bounce, and “My Truck’s Bangin” is about his truck’s thump. “Dirty Duval” is an anthem for his Florida hometown. “On The Run” and its Spanish guitar sample is a Slick Rick type of rhyme story. Drink an energy drink before you pop this one in. It’s crunk-rock to the fullest.

CONCRETE: Describe your style for someone who has never heard your music? C-Good: My swag is pretty much about my life. If you hear me you’re going to know, you’re going to believe it right from the rip. It’s that real truth. What I go through, what I’ve been through, how far I’ve done made it in life. I hear a lot of artists, they talk, but you don’t believe it, because they really ain’t out here doing it. When you hear me what will really separate me from them is the truth. The key to life is truth, honesty in whatever you do. CONCRETE: Where are you from? C-Good: I’m originally from Nashville, born and raised. I went to high school at Whites Creek and Hillsboro, but I grew up at Haynes Manner born and raised. I’m from that area. CONCRETE: How did you ﬁrst get into rapping? C-Good: I was young. I was in the 4th grade. The cafeteria lady would let us come and rock the mic. Back then we were on DJ Quick, NWA. So I’d get up there and rap. I really couldn’t rap, but just to have that feeling of trying. That got me into rapping, and it came from there. I just stuck with it, dedication. CONCRETE: How have you evolved as an artist? C-Good: To keep it real, I’ve come a long way. It started with a guy named D-Low and all us. He had a deal with Universal back then. And we were all a group. Then he ran into some trouble with the hip-hop police. They took everything down here. So, I wasn’t really doing anything for a while. But these last couple of years I’ve got back dedicated to it. I dropped a project called Watch Me Get It, and I got a little buzz off that. People were telling me stick with it. And now I’m ﬁxing to take off from there. CONCRETE: How did Watch Me Get It come about? C-Good: Well I sat down with Broadway (producer) one day, and he gave me this track. It was a hit, a money song. So when I recorded it and I felt it. It was like, “OK this is it.” I’m out here in these streets doing this and that, and that’s what took a while for the whole album to develop. cause when you’re out here trappin and doing this, you’re not really focused on music. It takes a lot away. So I had to just sit down and put my mind on that and the stuff I was going through. And it all came and gelled together, just the perfect album.

CONCRETE: What are some of the songs you’ve produced that you’re most proud of and that people may be familiar with? Give us a bit of a resume. Coop: I’ve done a lot of stuff for Allstar. I did the “Grind Hard for the Money” which was pretty big with Yo Gotti and Young Buck. We can go for days on Star. I got a lot of stuff on him, like “I Get Blunted.” I did Paper’s single “Lil Secret” the last song from Nashville that’s gotten steady radio play. Young Buck’s new stuff “Hit ‘Em Up” and “If I Have To.” We’ve been working together. Nappy Roots got a new one called “Home Town.” CONCRETE: What’s your process when you go into making a beat? Coop: It really just depends. I’ve been watching TV before and a commercial will come on and I’ll hear something. And I’ll be like, “Man that’s a cool little sample.” And I found a way to record down, not giving away the secrets, but I’ll do my thing to where it sounds like a Coop sample. I’ll freak it, put my normal drums to it. Sometimes I’ll be laying in bed and have a dream about a beat and have to get up and make it. When you do it, inspiration doesn’t come easy and you’ve got to find little stuff here and there that gets you to do what you want to do. CONCRETE: So what’s some of the equipment you use. Coop: Just the standards, you’ve got to have an (Akai) MPC. All these new kids go with the Fruity Loops and Reason and stuff like that. There cool and they got their own niche, and you can find certain instruments that you possibly couldn’t find on a keyboard and tweak it a lot better inside a computer program. (Akai) MPC is my staple. I use that and a lot of VST instruments. I got a Motif and a Roland Phantom. That’s my core box right there. CONCRETE: What are some projects from you that we’ll be seeing in the near future? Coop: Yo Gotti’s Cocaine Music 4 just dropped. There’s a song on there called “Pill Over” with Zed Zilla, Star and Gotti. It’s a Zed Zilla song. Star has a song out called “Got a Plug” that’s getting a lot of radio play right now. The remix has Yo Gotti on it. The Nappy Roots are getting ready to drop their new mixtape and it has “Home Town” on it. There so much stuff that I have in peoples’ hands I’m finding out new stuff that’s coming out at the same time as a lot of people are.

CONCRETE: So what are you up to these days? What projects are you doing? What clubs are you at? Sir Swift: I stepped back a lot from the mixtapes. I’m really trying to focus on the artist’s mixtapes now. I’m trying to get more into promoting events. I do “We Play Sundays,” it’s my event at Cumberland Lanes on Sunday Nights. Thursdays at Out of Bounds, Fridays at Fuel Night Club and after hours at Haze Night Club that same night and Out of Bounds on Sundays after the bowling alley. CONCRETE: So your getting more into hosting mixtapes. Who are some of the artists you’ve been working with on that front? Sir Swift: Well I just did one with Hi-C. I’m about to do one with C-Good and The Union. I’m about to do one with Lil Murda. I got a couple of other little projects that aren’t ﬁnalized but I’m in talks with Paper and a few people outside the city that are a little more known. CONCRETE: So you’re a taste maker with music. Who do you see out there for 2010 that may not be so well known yet? Sir Swift: There’s a guy named Alley Boy. He’s pretty hot right now. I don’t think a lot of people up here know about him yet. Wocka Flocka Flame is doing his thing right now. A lot of people here in Nashville know about him. CONCRETE: On the local tip, who are some of the artists from Nashville that you’re feeling? Sir Swift: Well there’s a new female rapper on the scene Finess Da Boss. She’s got a real, real mean grind to her, so I think she’s going to do something. And my man Paper, Paper’s got a real strong buzz right now. When I’m at the club they request “City Paper” like crazy, all the time. He’s got a crazy buzz. He just needs to put something out. I’m sure it’s coming. CONCRETE: You spin for a few different types of audiences. How do you approach rocking a crowd? Sir Swift: You’ve got to keep up with what’s going on out there. People can request songs. I don’t really take requests or anything, but I do see what people are requesting. If it’s something I haven’t heard before, I do go and check it out and see what’s going on. Cause sometimes the people be on it before the DJs. So you have to listen to the people out there also. And you have to get a good feel for your crowd. I’m lucky, I get to DJ at the same spots every week, so I get to feel the crowd out. By the second or third time I know the crowd down pat. I know exactly what to play the whole night and rock the hell out of those parties.

CONCRETE: So how long have you been cutting hair? T-Roy: Professionally I’ve been cutting for ten years, but I started cutting when I was 14 years old. I was cutting in the house on North 2nd. So I’ve been in it for over twenty years now. CONCRETE: What first got you into it? T-Roy: My brother started cutting hair at first. My thing was, I used to do the lines. My brother brought the first pair of clippers in the house. I used to cut my own hair. That’s what started me. He wasn’t too good at lining people up. He was left handed. So he would cut the hair, and I would line them up. So I tried it myself and it just went from there. CONCRETE: Do you own East Side Barber Shop? T-Roy: No I have a partner, Nathaniel Claybrooks. CONCRETE: How long has the barber shop been in business? T-Roy: We’ve been here since 2000. CONCRETE: What is it that you enjoy the most about running the barber shop? T-Roy: Just seeing people’s faces when they leave. I like to put smiles on peoples faces and make them look good. A cut can go a long way. It will make you feel good about yourself. That’s what I’m in it for. Pleasing people by doing good service. CONCRETE: What services do you specialize in at East Side Barber Shop? T-Roy: We do everything from arching eyebrows to regular basic cuts, fades, facials and all that. Everything that master barbers consist of. CONCRETE: What barber school did you go to? T-Roy: I went to World Class Barber College. It’s now called Nwani’s. Chin was my instructor. CONCRETE: Do you have any last words for our readers? T-Roy: I want to shout out East Nashville. I want to shout out Nashville as a whole, but especially East Nashville. First and foremost I want to thank my Lord and saviour Jesus Christ for giving me the talent and the gift to cut hair. Shout out to DL, Tony Fisher, Nathaniel Claybrooks and all my clients and all my friends and family who continue to help me grow as a person and as a barber.