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9/5/2005 HipHopGame sits down with the legendary Steele to discuss everything from their new album "Reloaded" to their classic "Dah Shinin,'" as well as Sizzla, reggaeton, and Henney! What's good man? I'm doing good man. Just came back from Switzerland. Just did a show at BB King's with Sizzla, I fucking love Sizzla. The albums about to come out in two weeks, I'm ready to go on the road. And I'm a little sober now, but that's cool. What's Steele drinking these days? Hennessey, and some Guinness. What was your state of mind recording "Reloaded?" High (laughs). I sound so refreshed because I'm going through so many problems on a personal level. But I'm in a good position because I'm mentally fit. When you get problems in your life that you can handle, it makes you feel confident about what you're doing. I feel my business is in a good position. I'm working out every day, and I feel that anything that comes in my way, I'm ready to bash that shit down. When we recorded the album, I think the state of mind for both me and Tek was that it's just an honor to be able to go in the booth and be able to record music. It's an honor and a privilege, and it's a blessing to put it out there and have people say "you know what, I like that." It's an extension of yourself, so if you're able to do that shit, you have to handle that shit with good gloves and hold it like it's very rare. Most rappers say "I spit hot bars." Great! I've heard hot rappers spit and never put anything out. To be successful in what you do, it's a great feeling. So when something comes along, bong, hit that shit out. I love being in the studio, even when there's no Hennessey around! Do you think a lot of rappers are taking it for granted? Definitely. I think the way a lot of artists have been successful in this game, it would appear that it's easy to some people. But the beauty of it all is that if you're one of those motherfuckers that think it's easy, you will be weeded out. And we may not have a platinum plaque, but we're still here. We're still consistent. We're still Boot Camp, we're still Duck Down, and that right there is a powerful statement. A lot of cats do take rap for granted. A lot of our family isn't around anymore, and for whatever reason, whether it's financial or personal. I think whenever you know what you have, you just channel it and treat it like it's yours. The motherfuckers that take it for granted, they don't last. What's your favorite track off "Reloaded?" Aw man, that's hard man. I don't know. Right now, my favorite track, shit! I got a couple, but I would say "The Truth" because me and my PNC is going back and forth, the beat is by Roc Raida, and we're answering certain questions like where we've been at and what's our name. How do you and Tek work together? Me and Tek is like night and day. It's a natural flow with us. We've been friends for so long. We've been friends since high school. We've been friends way before rapping. And we've done dirt together, it's a special bond. When we go to the studio, sometimes we don't even talk, I'll write in my corner and Tek will write in his, and this is what we call the "shining," because we communicate mentally, through our spirit, through our soul. Sometimes he'll have an idea and I will have already wrote it down, or vice versa. It's a special relationship we got. I don't know what to call it, but it's great. How do you guys deal with creative differences? We iron them out. We know there's going to be times when we disagree, but that's the beauty of it. If we agreed all the time, it would be too fabricated. When we overcome those shits, we come to the right answer. Do you guys still have the name problem with the gun company? We're known as Smif-N-Wessun. We still got the name problem, but we're using it anyway. For everyone that hasn't heard, can you talk about what happened? The gun company sent us a cease-and-desist and told us that they were going to sue us for an undisclosed amount. And they also said they would sue every publication that prints our name. They basically wanted to put a black hole on everything we were dealing with. At the same time, we were going through negotiations with Nervous, trying to get more bread from those motherfuckers. We didn't have no attorneys, I had never heard of Johnnie Cochran before. We had to make a decision real fast, so we came out as Cocoa Bravoz. We were also coming out on a new label, so we were also going through label problems. If you're from where I'm from, you don't mess with the courts. We never felt that they had the right to come at us, but they did, and we weren't sure how to handle it, so we just came out as Cocoa Bravoz. Plus we all got pseudonyms for each other in Boot Camp, so we tried to use that because we didn't want to give anyone Tek-N-Steele, because once you give labels your name, they have the right to use it however they want. Tek, that's his birth-name. I've been Steele for over 20 years! We just go with the packaged deal. You're either going to get Smif-N-Wessun or Cocoa B's, but each time you're going to get Tek and Steele. But the reason why we're Smif-N-Wessun is because we have nothing to lose. You want to sue us, sue us, who gives a fuck. Fucking sue us! If a person can't tell that Smif-N-Wessun the rap group is different from the gun company, then fucking sue that person. We've been doing music for over 10 years, and we're going to continue doing music. People remember on first impression of us as Smif-N-Wessun, and that's what they should always remember us as, Smif-N-Wessun, period! This is a statement to all companies. They way we spell it, the message that we're bringing, fuck it, we're ride or die right now. You and Tek have gotten down with Talib Kweli a couple times, how was it working with him? I love that motherfucker man! He's a great guy, he's incredibly professional. His message, how he delivers that shit, he's dope. I want to do more with him. How was it recording "Crystal Stair" with him? It was crazy! He had his shit ready to go. He came to the spot ready. It was an honor. I'm glad we got that shit popped off. That's my PNC, my brother from another mother. What did you want to give people with that song? That was a poem written by Maya Angelou, and we wanted to say that life isn't a crystal stair. There's going to be struggle, but you have to rise above the bullshit and do what you need to do to be successful in life. How is it working with Tony Touch? Tony Touch is dope. We've been working with Tony Touch when he was making tapes. I still have one of the first cassettes in my collection. I think that with him, he's a down to earth guy, and it helps having him there. We don't work together all the time, but when you have people who appreciate what you bring to the art, it helps a lot. I like Tony, I've been to his crib. We're one of the first artists to rhyme on his cassettes when it was actually mixtapes. It's just pure love man, and respect. How do you feel listening to "Dah Shinin'" today? Oh man, it gives me goosebumps. I'll listen to that shit and I'm like "we did that shit?" There's no adlibs, no guest appearances, no special producers. People love that shit! Listening to that album makes me spiritual, it makes me religious! We didn't put that shit together to get rich, we were just hungry for it. We had spent years watching rappers and listening to the radio, and when we did it, it was just a natural flow of things. Do you still see the impact of "Dah Shinin'" on today's MC's? Hell yeah! Hell yeah! Most definitely! "Dah Shinin'" influenced every rapper out right now. It's like how "It Takes a Nation of Millions" influenced me, and Rakim influenced me. That's the great thing about Hip Hop, is that we all influence each other. When I see people rocking camouflage, and I see people rocking their boots, I feel like I influenced that shit, and it's a beautiful thing. How have you grown since you first came out? Steele is still the beast that they let out the cage! I'm a monster. I'm a monster on the mic, I'm a monster period. I'm a good monster, and I'm a good motherfucker to have on your team. And I love this game, and nothing can take that away. Smif-N-Wessun has always been known for having that reggae vibe. How did that start? I think living in Brooklyn, that shit is natural. It's hard not to do it, it's everywhere. It's part of our heritage. We didn't say "let's make a reggae tune," it just came out like that. We knew that we wanted to have different sounds, and different vibes on the album, but we just rocked on it. All our tracks came from Da Beatminerz, and they're not known for making reggae tracks, but they have a soulful sound to their music, and we just went to the vibe that we got. Sometimes we'll write something that sounds different, and we'll just go with that vibe. How do you feel about the reggaeton movement? (laughs) Reggaeton? Aw man. I have a friend who's from the Dominican Republic. He can't stand reggaeton. He don't like that shit. He thinks it's popcorn. He calls it bubble gum. But I think, without saying anything bad about it, because I think that if you gives things certain room to breathe, then you will understand what it comes from. I can't do what some of those guys can do, and I think that they have the opportunity to come out with that type of music, I think that's good. But as the industry gets their hands on every little thing, they want to put it in a box. And with us, you can't even really say what kind of music we really make. It's underground, but it has it's own slot. We almost make music that no one else makes. We don't have punchlines. We don't have these incredible, dynamic beats. The vibe that we have is a soulful vibe. We bring the normalcy to Hip Hop. Cats like to talk about keeping it real and shit, but then they have $30,000 worth of fake jewelry on when they go out. That's not keeping it real, because on your natural day, that's not how you rock. If you're doing that, you're actually looking for attention from somebody. If you look at most of these people that actually have money, they don't do that shit. When's the last time you've seen Jay-Z with a chain on? He's become so involved with himself and what he does business-wise and how people see him, he's shaped up his shit and he looks like a straight assassin. We bring the normalcy to the game, and that's important. Smif-N-Wessun is the final part of Duck Down's 2005 comeback, do you feel any pressure with that? Nah. It's been long overdue. Me and Tek, we sat back and waited for our time, then we get on the court and we play hard. That's what makes Boot Camp. We have a great respect for each other, and we wait our turn. If Ruck puts out an album, and has a show in Germany, we might go with him. And at the same time, we're promoting our album and ourselves. There's no pressure. Smif-N-Wessun is one of the greatest duos to ever grace the mic, and it's an honor and a privilege to be a part of the triple threat. The other two albums (Sean Price and Buckshot) are super-duper. The Sean Price album is one of my favorite albums right now. What's the hardest thing about coming back in 2005? The hardest thing right now is getting to the youth. All they know is what's being presented to them through mass media, and we're not the type of artists to be in mass media. How do you stay relevant to today's fans? By staying in the street, staying in the hood, and keeping your ear to the concrete. And by not putting ourselves in a box, not thinking that what you did is the ultimate. Always trying to learn, always trying to experience different things. What's up with O.G.C. today? O.G.C.? I think those niggas retired man. Word up. What do you think of the scene in Brooklyn right now? Brooklyn is off the chain! I don't know man, it's almost like it's a renaissance going on in Brooklyn right now. There's a lot of artists that are trying to crush the mixtape market right now, and it's kind of cool, even though some of those rappers sound like what I call "microwave" rappers, meaning that they just pop them in and pop them right out. They're underdeveloped so they rhyme like everyone else. And you have some of the greatest artists coming out of Brooklyn, the whole Boot Camp, Biggie, Lil' Kim, Jay-Z…when you come out of Brooklyn, you have a responsibility to rep it a certain way. Brooklyn is good man, Brooklyn is beautiful man. Do you get more love overseas or in the states? At show, I would say it varies because overseas, there's not a lot of forums for artists to perform, so when you perform, it's like the whole fucking town comes to that shit. But in New York, the clubs are open every night, and because of all the rappers in New York, you might go to 40/40 and see Jay, or Club Exit and see Tek or Buckshot, so you're not really drawn to the show vibe because everything is a show in New York City. You go to the club in New York and everyone's got their jewelry on, girls are in their skimpy clothes, and all of that shit is so exciting. We just performed at BB King's with Sizzla, and we've never performed in front of a crowd that sees Sizzla. They wanted to hear pure reggae vibes, but Smif-N-Wessun was able to introduce themselves to people who had never seen them in their own town. In New York, there's just so many people who may not know about you, and they may not take the extra step to find out. If you're good, you can slide into the spot and show them, so they can say "Smif-N-Wessun, they were all right." For us, we just try to be the best that we can in whatever forum. And because we're from New York City, we can walk anywhere. I would hate to be such a superstar that I couldn't walk to go get me a hot dog or pizza or a sandwich from Subway. The hood loves us, the neighborhoods love us, and when we go overseas, the reception is phenomenal. What do you want to say to all your fans out there? I love you guys man. My fans are some of the best fans in the world. I don't even want to call them my fans, I want to call them my fam. My fans is my fam. We're going to take the "n" off and add the "m." If you're a fan of Smif-N-Wessun, then that means a whole lot to me because Smif-N-Wessun is a fan of Hip Hop and good vibes, and we're a fan of people on good vibes. For our fans who have stuck with us from the beginning who loves our family and gives us constructive criticism, I love y'all motherfuckers man. And that's real talk, not for buying my album, just for sticking around.

By Brian Kayser

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