Back to Artist Profiles

1/23/2006 How are you doing? I'm chilling as usual. I'm on the grind right now. Listening to your new songs, it sounds like you have a new hunger. Definitely. After being in the game so long, there's some new stuff happening. I'm in my own zone right now. What did it take for you to find that zone? I had to observe the game and see what everyone was doing, and do the opposite. A lot of people like to follow trends, but I like to do the opposite. I was never an MC that followed anybody. I always had my own style. Did you feel unmotivated the last couple of years? Nah, I was just sitting back observing the game, seeing how things sounded. I've been in the studio. Everything coming out was too commercial for me. That's not the type of emceeing I come from. Everyone's trying to appeal to everyone. I appeal to myself and real Hip Hop heads that feel this shit. After observing the game, is it still something you want to be in? Yeah. I love the challenge. I'm a gladiator, a warrior. I love the challenge of doing something different. That's what excites people. I don't do the same old thing that everyone else is doing. I like to come in like Maximus. I got my sword and I'm ready to be the people's champ. Fuck all that commercial shit. I do this shit for the people. Your freestyles have been crazy lately, how do you write those? The freestyles? Those are just one-take tracks. I don't even think about it too much. I just throw on the beat. I write down a word here and there, and say the first things that come in my head. I'm just playing with dudes before I come with the crazy shit. My freestyles are better than dude's songs. As long as it has truth in it, it's good to me. I have to spit some truth in it and put the passion in. I've been getting good responses off of it. You sound mad angry on "The Abyssinian Sword" freestyle. Yeah! It was time to shut niggas down because a lot of cats were talking. I had to let MC's know that Priest is nice and I've always been nice. I've always been emceeing and I know I have skills. It's time for me to put it on them like I did in the '90's. These cats are scared to go at cats. I'm not scared to battle or to go at any MC. It amuses me! All these cats are so scared to go at dudes, but rap is competition. It's no problem for me. Any MC out there that wants it, I'm here and I love it. At the end of the day, I want to make good music, but I also have a dark side and love the battling too. Where do you find yourself doing your best writing? Recently, I've been writing a lot in the studio. Sometimes I just zone out and it comes to me. I do a lot of good writing at the crib. Sometimes I write it in pieces. Maybe I'll write a thought and it really cultivates itself once we get to the studio. I'll listen to a lot of beats too, and sometimes the beat brings it out of me. I love when I'm by myself and just zoning. I love new notepads too. There's something about a clean canvas that just brings it out in me. How's "The Offering" coming? "The Offering' is coming out incredible. It's incredible. I'm throwing out a lot of freestyles to get everyone ready for "The Offering." I can't wait for people to hear this album. I put a lot of time and work into it. It became crazy. There are so many songs that I have right now, I don't even know if I can put them all on there. I may have to split some of the up and put them on something else. It's going to be different from a lot of what you're hearing right now. It's back to business. On "The Offering," I'm giving you total Priest. You want science, it's in there. You want streets, it's in there. You want esoteric, it's in there. There are a lot of things for a lot of people. Who's come through on it so far? Nas is on it, he came through. That's a beautiful brother right there. He showed me love. Immortal Technique came through and blessed it. That's another cool, revolutionary brother to sit down and kick it with. I also have my Horsemen, Canibus and Ras Kass. The Maccabeez are also on there, Hell Razah and Timbo. Are you working with RZA today? No. I would love to. I saw RZA out in Cali and he told me to just come through. It's about getting up with him. It'll be cool to take it back and do some hard work with him and really put something down. I've been meaning to work with RZA. I want cats to know where I stand. I'm not just a young kid running around anymore. I'm focused and right now, you put me on the mic over a RZA track and watch what I do to it. I'm hungry right now. What about GZA? I'm around GZA most of the time. A lot of dudes don't know that GZA brought me in and he's the head of the clan. If you understand that, you can understand the level that I have in here. I didn't come through on no humble shit, even though I was just chilling and observing the game. I never really said a lot, I just observed it. I watched what Justice and Ra were going through and I was just figuring out how to move, especially with so many snakes in this game. Why did you want to get back with 4th Disciple on "The Offering"? That's the beauty of the offering because I went and got most of the producers I've worked with before on "Heavy Mental." I went and got 4th Disciple and he laid down four cuts for me that sound incredible. Ras Kass and Canibus got on his tracks. I did "Through the Looking Glass" that was the first deep joint I did for "The Offering." Then he ended up producing the joint with me and Nas. 4th is responsible for "Basic Instructions." It was good working with 4th and getting back in the studio. We hadn't done music in a long time. To me, I think me and 4th should have been partners. We could have been like Rakim and Eric B. except we would have been Killah Priest and 4th Disciple. We came in under umbrellas, so we couldn't just become a team like that, like Batman and Robin of this Hip Hop shit. Now that we're much older, we can do it. How do you guys work together? 4th is like a Beethoven type of dude. He'll come in the studio, he won't say anything, I'll be there joking and shit, he'll come in and throw on a crazy-ass beat, and then he'll switch the CD real quick. I'll have to tell him to go back. He won't even have an expression on his face. You have to listen real good because 4th will switch the beats fast and he has so many beats. If a joint sounds different, I'll tell him to go back and we have to lay it then so I don't have to worry about someone else getting it. How does "The Offering" compare to your other albums? I put it up that at the top. I have all of my elements and I advanced my style. It's up there with "Heavy Mental" and "Priesthood." I like "View From Mesada" also. That was the first time me and Just Blaze worked together. There was a song "Fall of Solomon" that didn't make it. That was one of Just Blaze's favorite tracks. I like "Black August: Revisited" too. I'm going to get "The Offering" tattooed on me. A tattoo? I have to put "The Offering" on me. I've been talking about it so much, I have to back my shit up. Everybody knows I'm not a fronter. I love Hip Hop. I'm a fan and I listen to a lot of albums. I'm very happy with what's in "The Offering." I love this album. I'm not being cocky, but I love how different it is. Who did you make "The Offering" for? I made the album for Hip Hop heads. I made it for straight up Hip Hop niggas. It's for everybody to get into, but it's not what you're going to hear every day on the radio. It's definitely not that. Don't expect to get up and dance and shit, or expect me to just shoot niggas when I'm feeling depressed…there's no bullshit in my music and it's not for the radio. My music is not fabricated. Have you found a home for "The Offering"? I'm right there. I have three deals on the table. Right now, I'm talking to these cats at IMG at Universal. That sounds real good. I'm also going to see what's up with Babygrande, Nature Sounds, and Sureshot. Nature Sounds is my peoples. Did I sign a contract with anybody yet? No. You have a lot of dope unreleased material. What are you plans for that? I want to put all of that stuff out. I want to put the joints out in time periods, like the joints that were made around the time "Heavy Mental" came out, joints that were made around the time "View From Mesada" came out…At the time, the labels felt it was too much for the consumer. I have the original "Fall of Solomon" with Just Blaze that's crazy. I want to put a "Best Of" out too because I feel that everyone would feel the stuff I have coming. How did you and Nas get together? That's a blessing right there. I met son out in Miami. We used to bump heads way back when he used to come over to RZA's crib way back. They were playing "B.I.B.L.E." and he was really digging that. He was feeling that joint. We kicked it in Miami. I was in his video and shit. We were kicking it and we were like, "We need to do a song together." As soon as I let him hear the joint for my album, he got on it. It's a blessing. I kick it with him and Mike Brinkley a lot. We're talking about forming a group to shut niggas down. He talks on some revolutionary shit that's different from the game. When we talk, we can talk about revolutionary shit, spiritual shit…What we have planned in store, I'm not even going to spew it out. We're talking about some shit though. So we can expect more than "The Saints" and the album cut? Yeah. "The Saints" is crazy and that's not even the one. We've gotten a good response off of that. When I did "The Saints," I actually did two verses for it. "The Saints" came out real beautiful. It was just supposed to be on his mixtape, but it got leaked and it was time. Somebody got their hands on it and threw it out there. The response on there was great. I didn't even think my verse was that great but people were like, "Yo Priest, that verse is crazy." I didn't think it would come out good because I did the verse to another beat before. We did "The Saints" and we have another one we did, and a joint for my album. "The Saints" isn't going to be on my album, but I like the title. Nas came up with the title. What's up with The Maccabeez today? Right now, everybody is just doing their thing. Everybody's trying to knock out their joints. Razah's working on his joint and Timbo's doing his thing. They're both on my album. It's about getting your team together and being on the same page. There were so many problems with The Maccabeez. Look at Daddy Rose, he's locked up because of snitches. Flames, from Queens, they tried to lock him up too, but they didn't get him.He was going through some shit…when the Maccabeez drop, it's going to be some shit. I've been telling people about The Maccabeez ever since "Heavy Mental." I'm trying to put this together and get everybody on point. That's what it's about. The Black Market was an extension of Maccabeez. The only extended fam we brought in was Tragedy and William Cooper. We also have Star Blaze and them coming in. The Maccabeez album is going to be incredible. Putting that together is going to be a treat. I put The Black Market together. That was another one of my ideas. Right now, it's all about making classics. I'm not trying to make hits for the radio. I don't go in the studio trying to make hits for the radio. It's about making classic material that niggas are going to love. Too many people waste time making songs for the radio. This is my fucking music. If you don't like it, fuck you. Is there going to be another Black Market Militia project? Definitely. We're working on that right now. That's definitely going to be in the works. It's for the fans. Y'all keep me doing this shit. Is Sunz of Man any closer to a reunion? Yeah. I saw P-Sunn out in Cali, he's doing his thing out there. I went out there to a show with RZA. We're going to do that. I just have to knock out some other stuff first. I'm looking for 60-Second anyway. I wanted him on "The Offering." What about The Horsemen? It's definitely being worked on. Ras Kass is one of my best friends. Canibus is out in Las Vegas. He hit me with a, I don't even know what to call it, it's like 48 bars. He hit me with some shit that's going to be on "The Offering" that's going to be bananas. Kurupt's out there with D.P.G. He always calls here and there. Happy New Year to all the Horsemen! With all of your groups, do you ever feel like you're spreading yourself too thin? Not really. If it's in you, you can do it. Dr. Dre is an artist in his own right and he has a lot of people that he produces. This Hip Hop shit is in me. I'm real with myself. If I run out of ideas, I'm through. I'm finished. Ideas are just hitting me from the universe. It's like lightning bolts striking me and I strike the pen. There's a lot of shit going on surrounding "The Offering," and everybody is going to find out. There's a lot of motherfuckers out there that know it's going to be some shit when it drops. For the cats who see it and see where I'm going, because I have a lot of offers and investors, that shit makes me feel good. I feel good doing this shit myself. It's fun running to the studio and all that. Do you see the quality of Hip Hop music improving? I try to always keep my ear to the street. You have dudes like Saigon spitting some real shit. As a matter of fact, I'm trying to get him on "The Offering." I like Saigon, and anybody that works with Just Blaze is my peoples. You have a lot of cats that are doing their thing. I think the radio is fucking shit up. I'm going to put this in a rhyme: "Turn your radio off, put down your Vibe and The Source/That old commercial shit already took it's course." Now it's back to real emceeing. Y'all niggas used to be nice. What happened? Some niggas like 50 are getting money, but you can't forget about the real shit. This started in the streets. That's what I'm about. I'm not scared to say this to anybody. This goes out to 50 Cent and everybody else: keep your shit real. Keep your shit hard, the same way you came up. All of this singing and dancing, nah. I'm about the real shit. Killah Priest said this, and I don't give a fuck. Should age matter in Hip Hop? No. If you got it, you got it. They say entertainment is a young man's game. Right now, I'm writing like I'm 16. My fountain of youth is my fountain pen. I think that the young dudes coming up, seeing their movements, they're not even aware of me. It makes me feel good when they recognize that Priest has some shit. I've studied. I've sat down in the school of thought to do this. This doesn't just come overnight. Not everybody is cut out to be an MC. Some people need to be managers and all that. There's a lot of other things that people could be doing other than sitting down and grabbing a microphone. When you grab a microphone and turn that power on, that means something. When those lights come on and that microphone is powered and the electricity from the wall goes into the mic, that means something. You're holding lightning. What are you going to do that? Are you going to spit some weak shit while you're holding lightning? You become a god when you hold a mic. Holding a mic, to me, is like becoming Zeus. It's like a lightning-bolt that you hold. That same power that lights up a mic can electrocute and kill you. You have to put forth that same type of energy in the words into something that will bring some real shit. If you can't do that, get another trade. Leave the rapping to the MC's. If you're a DJ, do that. That's what "The Offering" is about; being yourself and sticking to what you do. I'm just sticking to what I do. I wish everyone the utmost success in what they do I'm just going to continue to do what I do, and what I do is make songs. Do you find members of the younger generation sleeping on you? Yeah. It's all good. It's real that a lot of the younger generation might not have even heard of me. It's all good. I never waited for people to expose me. Everybody knows what me and the RZA went through because I wanted to get exposed. There's nothing wrong with that. There's nothing wrong with wanting to be out there, especially if you have talent. I think a lot of younger dudes are sleeping on me. If they're sleeping on me, it's because they haven't been exposed. When they see me, they know what I can do though. Some comments on the audio page said that your flow has deteriorated over the years. How do you respond to that? That's beautiful. That's the best part about that. Those are just freestyles. It's not me sitting down and concentrating on a song. Those are one-takers. If you listen to "Basic Instructions," that's an enlightening song about me rhyming about my life. If you hear my songs and really pay attention to me, you can see that my flow has actually gotten better. Plus, look at the freestyles I've done. They all have different flows. Look at the difference between "Rocket" and "Pain." I did the "Rocket" freestyle in one take. I'm not just one way. Whoever says my flow has deteriorated is going to get a rude awakening when my album comes out. You can't judge someone's flow on one song. My flow never deteriorated. It evolved. Keep looking. I'm glad that y'all are paying attention though. Do you still enjoy living in New York City? Yeah. I love it. I love all of it. Sometimes, I look at the radio, and I look at what everybody's playing, I'm going to be honest with you, I like a lot of the Down South beats, I'm from the South, I have family down there. I love everything about New York. I love the pizza, the pizza shops, the people walking…I also love every other place too. I love Cali, Chicago, Milwaukee, and Arkansas. Those are the places that I go to and have a good time. And Arizona. But living in New York is good. To be honest with you, I also go to Miami because I get a lot of love out there. What are your goals for 2006? 2006 is to give these motherfuckers the pain. Give these motherfuckers "The Offering." I'm going to do these mixtapes and I'm going to do a whole series for people. For cats that said my flow deteriorated, I'm going to show them a flow out of this world. I have a lot of projects that I'm working on right now, The Maccabeez, Black Market, Razah's joint "The Renaissance," Timbo King…basically I'm going to be working and I'm looking for people that want to be down with the team. Holler at me or someone on my squad. I'm trying to move forward. 2006 is about being focused, moving forward, and doing me. If cats want to be with me, they'll roll with me. If they don't want to roll with me, fuck it, Priest is still going to do his thing. What do you want to say to everyone? You just heard the words spoken straight from my heart. If you were offended, I'm sorry, this is real. For the cats that love it, this is your pain that I'm putting out there. This is our pain. We share this. Live life to the fullest and be prosperous, and never stop believing in yourself. "The Offering" is coming soon. For everybody who slept, I don't care who you are, you need to get this album. We have to put a new face on Hip Hop. To any MC's out there, take it how you want it. If I didn't name you in the elite group, take it how you want to. I love it when rappers step to me and try to say something smart. We can do it. One love to Kool G Rap, Rakim, Kane, Slick Rick, and KRS-One, the pioneers that held this shit down. To all the real pioneers that did this shit, big up to all of them. You heard the words from Priest. My name is Priesthood. I'm going to drop the "Killah." Too many people want to run with "Killer." Whatever. It's time to take that shit off. I'm evolving right now. One love to The Nation and one love to the Elohim team. Shalom to everybody in the universe across the board.

By Brian Kayser

[42] REACT TO THIS INTERVIEW

BEHIND THE SCIENCE KILLAH PRIEST 'HEAVY MENTAL' Killah Priest breaks down his album 'Heavy Mental' track by track.