So for anyone out there that doesnt know who you are, introduce yourself
House Shoes, resident DJ of Detroit. Ive pretty much been at the help of all the hip-hop, since about 94, in the D. From St. Andrews, ground zero for Hip Hop in the D since 92, its still poppin now, but its real commercial, but yeah, resident DJ in St. Andrews from 94-2005. Also down with Northern Lights and Buddah House the go to home for good Hip Hop in the D.
Tell me a little about St. Andrews, I know that that spot is real important to the D
Basically its been my platform, I got hired in June of 94, so its been my platform to put whatever I wanted to on the ears of the people of the club. I introduced the whole Slum movement, the Dilla movement, I used to have a tape deck there, to get fresh joints from them, then I moved to a portable DAT player so I got the joints fresh out of the studio. I played Players like, 3 hours after they made it.
Oh snap. What was the response like when you played it?
People was like DAMN! What the fuck is this!?! From the first time I heard Dillas shit, I wanted to have other people be inspired by it. Like I said, I had the portable DAT player, so they brought me the joints and wed just get it crackin, then it started bubbling and a large percentage of my set would be Dillas shit. Tell me some about Detroit, because I feel like its such an important city to Hip Hop but it doesnt get recognized when people talk about major cities in Hip Hop
I always tell people, that D sound that is so heralded all around the world, its not the Detroit sound, its a small family of maybe 50 peeps, that listen to it, the rest of Detroit, they listen to Jeezy and Pac and all that other radio shit. Let me give you the perfect description of this, when Jay passed 98WJLB the so-called Home of Hip Hop, played a tribute to Dilla, and they played three Slum joints, Tainted, Ez Up and Selfish, none of which are produced by Dilla.
What!? For real?
Yeah man. The most imitated sound in music in the last 15-20 years, and we dont get credit for it in the industry. What really fucked me up was the grammys, when they put Jays face up, I was like just his face? Thats the first and last time well hear about Dilla at the grammys. Another good example of all this, when I was out in L.A. for the funeral, the week after that they did a quote unquote, whats next on the menu feature, that my man DDT hosts, and he was playing Dilla all night and the fuckin program director, while theyre playin the Badu shit, and the Janet shit, and the program director is all like Oh shit, I didnt know he did that joint. I didnt know he produced that.
It seems like more people are getting onto Dilla and that whole aspect of the city, is there more awareness of that in Detroit?
Yeah, but its still just a fraction, people on the larger scale are not concerned with something new, they just want to listen to whatever is quote unquote hot, regardless of the fact that the greatest producer of all time is from the D, they dont give a fuck. They want to hear This is why Im Hot. I feel like I touched everyone I could while I was there, aint nobody else listening.
What do you think about Dillas move to L.A. later in his life?
L.A. man, they took my man in and they held him down. Cats like him are never recognized in the D, but outside of the D, theyre superstars. Dilla would go into a 7-11 or Mickey Ds in L.A. and people would be trippin out.
What about the kind of things Dilla was talking about on Hold Tight, like as far as cats coming over to his crib all unannounced?
Some cats, like the dudes in the hip hop circles would know about him, but overall the city was sleeping on Dilla.
When did you first meet Jay Dee?
I first met Dilla working at a record shop called Street Corner Music in like 94. He was up there digging and we started chopping it up, we went to his whip and he played me some shit, I was loving it. Then we went digging out at Car City, over on the east side, after that I just started going over his crib and he would lace me with beat tapes and new joints he produced for cats likeBusta Rhymes, Pharcyde and A Tribe Called Quest, and he once gave me a tape of remixes that had been fronted on by the labels. That became the Jay Dee Unreleased EP I put out in 96-97.
How was Dilla as a person?
Dilla was a good cat. He looked out for me, showing me how to work the SP1200, the (MPC) 3000, he used to set me up in his basement, and leave me there all night, while he went out the bar or to mess with some chicks. He was real open-hearted, but he could get on some wild shit. We fell out for a minute, but we mended it and it was all good. He just wanted people to hear the music, but I seen him snap off on cats, he was good people though. He just wanted to make music and do his thing. What do you think about the shine Jay is getting now, after he passed?
Its like a double-edged sword, better late than never on one page, but then I wanna be like, you motherfuckers are late to the party on this one. What was yall listening to when his joints were out, why werent you fucking with him then? So what have you been up to since your move to L.A.?
Just continuing to be that vessel for good music. People watch you and pay attention to you more when they think youre doing something. So a lot of shits been popping off. Im working on the solo album, and just reppin Detroit and Dilla to the fullest.
What about on the production tip, have you been working on your beats any?
Oh yeah, definetly. As far as Detroit goes, Ive produced everyone in Detroit, but again, the thing thats frustrating is that none of it gets out. This cat Magnetic, one of my close friends, hes and engineer, he roasted me before I left, and one thing he said was that he got the front row seat for the best show youve never seen. I swear in Detroit its like the blind leading the dumb, cats dont know how to get distribution. What kind of shit have you produced in the D?
Elzhis Outta Focus EP, I got joints on that, Proof, I did like 5 or 6 joints with him but only 1 came to fruition on the 12 off Electric Kool Aid Acid Test. Guilty Simpson, I got new shit with Elzhi, Guilty has a new joint over my shit. Its just been a hassle going through the economics of it, finding investors and shit like that, but Im still here, keeping that shit moving, keeping Detroit on the forefront.
You touched a little bit on the politics of Hip Hop as a business, how do you feel about them?
Man, its fucking awful. Me, personally, Im not a business man, I just wanna make music, I dont wanna concern myself with that shit. I put out a double CD, The House Shoes Collection Vol.1, the most accurate selection of Detroit shit, I did 1500 of those, I coulda probably gotten distribution, and with that maybe done some 40000. Its like you dont wanna but you gotta, you gotta learn the balance, and you gotta maintain the balance. Do the minimal business or find a good manager or team or whatever and get your shit straight.
Has there been anyone out in LA that helped you up your shit as far as business, or anything for that matter?
Honestly, Im a real, whats the wordIm kinda like a sole entity. I fuck with alotta crews, but Im never a member, because Im not sinking with the ship. Im not trying to ride unless someones fucking with someone extremely close to myself. Im not pursuing the business until my shits done, right now my shits at 50%, my solo album. But man, I fucking hate that shit [the business], I hate that shit. The business is fucked up; Im a real motherfucker so Im being completely honest.
Why is it that people dont know how to go about getting their business straight?
The powers that be arent trying to make motherfuckers any smarter; they want to get the dumbest fuckin record on the radio, to keep the masses as stupidly as humanly possibly. This is why Im sceptical that shit is gonna get better, if it is, its gonna get worse before it gets better. I dont have faith in the business, because its all about commerce first, then maybe the album will be hot.
What about the Internet though? A lot of different artists and music is being given a chance to be seen by audiences who wouldnt otherwise be able to access it
The thing to me is honestly, the Internet can be such a great tool, but the Internet destroyed the shit. I remember being the first cat to get a record of something, these days you get a record and the mp3s were up last month. These fuckin fanboys who feel they have the right to have the music, I feel like I dont have to pay a penny for any music Thats fucking retarded, how can cats eat when youre doing this? How can they make a beat or a rhyme? If you really enjoy this music, its like Im on some shit that if an album comes out that Im feeling, I used to cop the vinyl, CD and cassette, just so cats could have a few dollars in their pockets. These fuckers, throwing up Dillas beat CDs on the Internet, while theyre still on the market, that shit isnt public domain, Ma Dukes, Johnny and his kids gotta get fed. If it aint ready for the public, hold tight, listen to his old shit. I relish the fact that the new Sean P album, I fuck with Sean P, I promised myself that I wouldnt listen to it until release day. I remember back in the day, it was a joy; I remember the anticipation, like Imma cop Resurrection. You touched on this a little, whats your take on the whole posting of Dillas beat tapes online, specifically on the OkayPlayer forums?
This is a board dedicated to James Yancey, how can you not understand the violation youre doing, Jay had the biggest problem with biting to. I mean, I hear shit to inspire myself, but its going to inspire me to do what I do, not to jack. Anyone can be a clone, anyone can study shit to a T and duplicate it at the end of the day though, its about originality.
What were some of Dillas reactions to the more blatant bites, like the 2pac and the Janet Jackson joints?
He was just like, can you fuckin believe this shit. They took biting to a whole new level, making beats outta his beats and shit.
All right, switching gears for a minute, youre real active on MySpace, what are some of the pros and cons of it to you?
Pros, before MySpace, cats needed websites, and you had to have some kind of capital or know someone to hook you up and run your shit, where now everybody has that shit. I have like 15000 motherfuckers I could reach out and tap on that motherfucker, if I get on the MPC after I get off the phone with you, and I cook up some heat, I can upload it and the shit will be accessible to anyone, well depending on how long that shit takes to upload. The consthat shit is a fucking trap. We call that shit The Carter, remember New Jack City? Its like I get outta bed and get on that shit and next thing I know three hours have passed.
So you admit, youre a MySpace addict?
Allllll the way man, allll the way.
Do a lot of people hit you up on there to check out their music?
All day, pretty much about 30-40 messages a day like check my shit out. When I 1st got on, the way I got crackin, I changed my music every 2-3 days, tried to find cats overseas, build my own little community whose just trying to make good music and appreciate it. It can be a very positive thing for Hip Hop, shiiit when I first got it; I was on that bitch like 8 hours a day, on some crazy shit. The first cat I really fucked with on there was this cat named Dela, from Paris, he had a Stakes Is High remix that was just bananas, and it just clicked for me, like damn this motherfucker is in Paris, let me see who else has heat and build that family up.
Tell me a little bit about Shoes House out in L.A.
Its my weekly event out here in LA, but for the immediate moment its on hold because the spot we were doing it at, The Room, a real underground spot, dope place, they went into renovation last October, and some shit got fucked up with that so they wont be open till June. We moved it to another spot, but the owner was real dry and he wouldnt let us turn the shit up enough.
I heard you were actually having it at your own place for a minute?
Yeah, I was doing it like that. That was great, we will probably do that from time to time, the only thing is last time we did it, the cops came through at like 2:30 in the morning, were all smoking weed, drunk as hell and the cops come up, see people coming in and out, and they just come up to my roommate and "turn the music down, and turn the marijuana off."
Thats it?
Yeah, we could have all left this bitch in bracelets, but as soon as they left, I put on the Dilla joint, Fuck The Police.
Thats some crazy shit. How has LA been to you overall since you came?
I love this city, but I definitely miss home. Its the difference between going up in a spot and not knowing anyone, while in the D it was all fam. Back at the Detroit version of Shoes House, I was making up to $1000 a night, off 3 dollar cover charge, now I gotta get my grind up. Ive been doing my shit out here though; the beatjunkies have a monthly all Dilla, all night joint. Im still scouting locations for the new Shoes House though, still looking. Ive been having beat block for a minute. I was just gonna ask you, when did you start making beats?
In 94 on a 4 track, with a blue Rock nPlay shit that ran off a 9volt, a 16 second sampler. Then I started fucking with Dilla, he showed me a lot of shit. DJ Dez took me over to Amp Fiddlers crib and they showed me how to work the MPC 60. Also, Jeru J Star, he taught El Da Sensei, I would go over to his crib and work all night, the good thing about them too is that they wouldnt help me, unless I really really got stuck. Thats the best way you learn though, doing shit by yourself, it sticks in your memory a lot better.
Whats your take on the rise of software versus hardware as far as beatmaking?
To me, what you work with is what you work with, going back to a MySpace post I made a minute ago, if you cant chop some drums up, then youre not a fucking producer, you dont just sample a drum break, have a program chop it up for you. With all this computer shit, the older generation, me at least, were used to physicality, but its not about you gotta use an MPC, you just gotta put in the work. Find your own way to do it, but put in the work.
Who are you checking for currently?
Let me seeBlack Milk of course, his stock is rising fast, myself gotdammit! Sam I Am from Ann Harbour, Oh No, Madlib of course, Kev Brown, I like his shit, Pete Rock. Let me see, who elseIllmind, Oddisee from Justus League has some ill shit, Khrysis has been switching his shit up a little bit, Nick Speed, another dude outta the D, getting work with G Unit and shit.
What do you want to have accomplished by the end of 2007?
My solo album finished, definitely. Loungin, you heard that shit?
Yeah you had that up on your MySpace for a minute.
Well Im working on Vol. 2, Vol.2 of House Shoes collection also. Im trying to get a Dilla tribute mix, but fucking J Roccs blend is so tight, I gotta work on that a little more. Ive been cracking his head though; I fucked him up one night when I hit him with the OG for Wild, he got pissed. If you make J Rocc mad about a record, youre doing something right; he turned off the music and everything that night. You got the actual record or the mp3? Cuz I know the file is out there, but Ive never seen the actual record.
Nah I got the record. Digging for mp3s is so homo, for real. You aint taking a fucking shovel and going through your hard drive. Go through session musicians; learn about time period, record labels and that kind of that shit. The Internet done fucked up the world bro, for reals. One thing I was gonna say, Serrato, before I was all like fuck that shit, but the thing is I never really travelled a lot till maybe last year, and on some real shit, Im about to get me a laptop and Serrato and all that bullshit. One thing though, I will not play breaks off Serrato, I might email that shit to people, but I wont burn it and play it on a given night, that shit is gay, I gotta find that shit at the record store.
So you still dig?
Yeah, yeah, definitely. Gotta keep up.
Do you go with people, I know Dilla used to go with the Stones Throw family.
Sometimes by myself, sometimes cats go out and call me up, come through and scoop. I like people getting up on new shit, like cats that get to fighting with their records.
Any last comments before we wrap this up?
Shit, just stay tuned and cop that Black Milk, cop that Phat Kat, itll be out in April, with Dedication to the Suckers on there for the first time, first time ever released. Well no, actually, Jazzy Jeff put that on Hip Hop Forever III.
Hey thanks for taking the time, always good to talk to you.