Genau das habe ich gemeint. Vielleicht war er Müde oder Knülle?

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bissle älteres interview

March 2006

Few rappers have the resume Ghostface boasts. From being a part of the core nine Wu-Tang Clan members, and coming up from the "36 Chambers," Ghostface has done nothing but wow his listeners. Often extremely abstract and arguably avant-guarde, Ghost has consistently pushed boundaries even to the point of setting a trend rhyming over old soul records without removing the vocals from the original song.

After moving from Sony to Def Jam, Ghost has just released his fifth studio album entitled "Fishscale." Featuring guests including Ne-Yo, the whole Wu-Tang Clan and MF Doom, Ghost is trying to further solidify his position as one of New York's most creative.

MVRemix: What's the biggest mis-conception people have of Ghostface?

Ghostface: I don't know. I can't even really, really tell ya man.

MVRemix: Is there anything you think people think differently of you than you're used to thinking of yourself?

Ghostface: Nah, some people be thinkin' that I was wild and shit - whatever they got it from was back in the days though. I'm a cool person, I'm down to earth. I'm a humble person.

MVRemix: What's the plan for tomorrow? (March 28th when "Fishscale" is released)

Ghostface: I mean nothin', just take it day by day. It's not even a plan, God's got all the plans. I just live it out.

MVRemix: So no particular celebration parties or anything like that?

Ghostface: Nah, just do what I do. I got a show, I think tomorrow... Got a show and that's it. I'm keepin' it movin'. That's it.

MVRemix: Do you find focusing on being creative a challenge because of your time constraints with touring, interviews etc.?

Ghostface: Nah, I'm thinkin' all the time. I'm always thinkin' of new stuff and music really makes me go ahead and think of stuff, if I've got the right music. That's it man, I'm always creating in my head.

MVRemix: Do you write down a lot of it or just keep it up there?

Ghostface: Nah, a lot of the time I keep the thought and lose it a lot because I don't write it down, but it always comes back to me.

MVRemix: How does the Ghost of the "Ironman" era compare to the Ghost of today? What sort of things were going on back then?

Ghostface: The "Ironman" era; I was just coming out of "Cuban Linx." I was wildin' out on "Cuban Linx" in the streets and all that. Nowadays I'm not on the streets like I was back then in the "Cuban Linx" days and "Ironman" days. I mean I was with a bunch of my friends, just doin' a lot of stuff and things wasn't really that cool, you know what I mean? I found out I was a diabetic and losin' a lot of weight here and there. So times was stressful, a lot of other things was goin' on that I mentioned. It was real. Today things are still real, it's just what I was goin' through in different time zones.

MVRemix: "Three Bricks" is an excellent track, but would it have happened if B.I.G. were still alive. Did you make things good before he passed, because I know there were some problems around '95...

Ghostface: I think so... I think so.

[phone rings]

Hold on, hold on...

Yeah, yo Rae. Yeah, I'm on the phone with these interviews with the magazines. Doin' a bunch of interviews on the phone.

Raekwon: Okay... Page me then.

Ghostface: Alright, in a minute then. Aight, peace.

[interview resumes] It would have been happened before that. I mean it would have been happened before that because we would've gotten over that little bullshit and talked with whatever was goin' on and we would have moved on. Right before he passed I was tryin' to connect dots with him anyway in time, like, "Yo, come on, lets get this splashed out. Lets call this shit today man."

MVRemix: How did that track come about? Was it your idea? Was it a label idea?

Ghostface: No, it was we had this song for Puffy and he doin' the Biggie "Duets," and it didn't make "Duets," and we just took it. We just used it.

MVRemix: How involved were you in "The Broiled Salmon Mixtape" with Mick Boogie?

Ghostface: How what?

MVRemix: Do you as an artist see much or any profits from the mixes?

Ghostface: When I did the Mick Boogie mixtape, the "Broiled Salmon" joint?

MVRemix: Yeah...

Ghostface: What about it, what you wanna know about it?

MVRemix: Did you play a hand in deciding the tracks, or was it more so him and you just hosting, or...

Ghostface: Nah, it was just me in a hosting thing. I just hosted it for him.

MVRemix: There have been some issues with U-God over the years with him saying things about the Clan, what's the current situation overall with that?

Ghostface: I don't know... That's my buddy. I don't know about him and anybody else, but that's my man. That's my buddy.

MVRemix: What's the current status with the collaborative project we've heard you're doing with MF Doom?

Ghostface: Yeah, we got the album that he got... We gotta finish off the Doom album.

[phone rings three times]

And um... Hold on for one second, hold on...

Yo, yo.

Male voice: Yo, I got the pen here right now. [Interference] What you lookin' for?

Ghostface: Just tell me a few things 'cause I'm on the phone with some magazine people.

Male voice: You can eat chicken, right?

Ghostface: Yeah, I eat chicken, what else they got?

Male voice: Yeah, that's it, it's a chicken house! It's a chicken place.

Ghostface: Just get me some chicken wings. Some chicken wings and... that's it.

Male Voice: Chicken wings, alright...

Ghostface: Chicken wings, but just chicken wings though. No thighs, no legs - just wings.

Male Voice: Do you want some eggs? They got the fries and three chicken wings.

[Ghostface chuckles]

Ghostface: Aight so yeah, whatever, it's all cool, it's all cool. Put some cheese on the eggs. Some real cheese; American.

Male Voice: [laughs] Alright, I got you.

Ghostface: Alright, that's it, that's it. Aight, peace.

Male Voice: Peace.

Ghostface: [interview resumes] Yeah, sorry...

MVRemix: We were just talking about MF Doom - the collaborative project.

Ghostface: Yeah that's my man. I gave him five or six songs, I gotta do another five or six songs.

MVRemix: How was it working with Rae, on "Cuban Linx 2"? Doing that whole thing over again...

Ghostface: I wasn't with Rae, he sent me the music. It's like nowadays everybody movin' so much and it's easy to MP3 somebody the music, you can get the music, write to it and then just lay it down and send it back to 'em.

MVRemix: What about the forthcoming Wu album? You said during a recent interview that you didn't like the last two projects - why was that?

Ghostface: I didn't like 'em, they was wack and y'all know it was wack. So I'm not tryin' to hide nothin' from nobody and shit. The last couple of Wu albums wasn't nothin' to me. I didn't like 'em, I'll tell RZA - I tell everybody that. It was 'cause I know our capabilities and I know where we can take it.

MVRemix: Are there any non-musical plans in the works? Tell me a little about the Ghostface Doll and how that came about...

Ghostface: Nah, just some people who wanted to do a doll from California. I flew in, I checked 'em. I seen the doll to see what they was talkin' about, and we just agreed on it. You know what I mean? It was nothin' and pretty soon they should have a doll out.

MVRemix: Aside from the album, what else have you been working on? Guest appearances and whatnot? I heard rumours about you working with Swollen Members...

Ghostface: [phone rings] I did Swollen Members, I did that. [phone continues ringing] There's a bunch of little side artist things.

MVRemix: Are there any further plans to collaborate with AZ and Cormega?

Ghostface: I mean listen, everything is in God's hands. I don't know what's goin' on - whatever God guides me or brings my path into who's hands or brings to me. Whatever the case may be, he's the soul controller. I'm just here as a student in life and a servant for him just waiting, and that's that.

MVRemix: A la "Fight Club," "If you could fight any celebrity, who would you fight?"

Ghostface: I don't know. I'd probably fight my alter ego.

MVRemix: And which alter ego would that be?

Ghostface: I don't know, I got a lot of 'em. I got Ghostface, I got Paisley Fontaine. I got Tony Starks, [phone rings] Ironman - either one. I'm not into that celebrity stuff like that.

MVRemix: What are your feelings on the reconciling of Nas & Jay-Z. Is that a good look for New York and Hip Hop overall?

Ghostface: Yeah, yeah, I mean in the sense that you ain't gotta kill each other man. Anything that's better than killing each other is a good look.

MVRemix: What about follow ups to "Fishscale," anything in the works there?

Ghostface: Nah, I got a lot of stuff that was left over. A lot of stuff that I'm writing to. I'm just keepin' it movin' man, there's no stoppin' me now. It's on, you're gonna see me on the come up.

thx @mvremix
source @ http://www.mvremix.com/urban/interviews/...killah_06.shtml

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bissle älteres interview ONE MONTH LATER

April 2006

These are the transcripts of an interview with Ghostface aired April 2nd, 2006 on DJ Hyphen & J. Moore's "Sunday Night Sound Session" on Seattle's KUBE 93.3 FM. For more info. on DJ Hyphen click here.


MVRemix: You guys kind of started that whole a.k.a stuff back in the day...

Ghostface: Yeah, '94, '95...

MVRemix: How did that happen?

Ghostface: It started with a shirt; an ill Toney Starks shirt. I put the shirt on and felt like a different man when that shirt came on. Told Rae like, "Yo, this is my Toney Starks shirt. After that it’s been Toney Starks, you know what I mean? Ironman. He came with the Lex Diamonds and then one thing lead to another.

MVRemix: And then the whole Clan had different names...

Ghostface: Exactly; Rebel INS and Golden Arms...

MVRemix: Speaking of INS, real quick, I heard a crazy rumour that I need you to set straight. Someone said he's losing his voice and there's thoughts of retirement or something...

Ghostface: Nah, INS is gettin' older. So sometimes when you get older your voice be changin'. I don't think he retirin' or nothin' like that though. He's still workin' and doin' projects.

MVRemix: Speaking of projects, your project "Fishscale" is the new album. What makes this album different from the old? Although I guess if it ain't broke. Don't fix it.

Ghostface: That's what I tell cats. I just told 'em that not too long ago. I'm just doin' me. There's not really a difference man. Difference is with this new album I've got the whole Clan on this record. And my son is rhymin' on it, you know, Trife Da God and I got Ne-Yo on this project. I been with a lot of underground producers; J-Dilla, MF Doom, Pete Rock. Ain't too much of them high class dudes [out right now]. I just went into what is my feel for right now. The next album might be a little different.

MVRemix: Have you got any plans on the next one?

Ghostface: Nah, I'ma go through a bunch of material... I heard some other beats that I like, I forgot what producer though. But I know where I'm goin' should I say. There's gonna be a different vibe than this album right here. It'll be somethin' else.

MVRemix: Speaking of producers, in a lot of your tracks you're kind of sadly known for having a ton of dope material that can't get cleared, and maybe has to be changed up. Anything that didn't make this officially that could be released down the line? I heard about some Madlib joints...

Ghostface: I recorded some Madlib joints towards the end of the project but we didn't submit them or nothin' like that. We was just like, "Alright, we gonna hold fast for a second." So I still got those in the stash. Probably a few joints on this album that we had to play over that didn't make the joint; "Family Affair," the original Just Blaze track - that is murder.

MVRemix: The Just Blaze one, "The Champ," is the beat on the CD different to the original one?

Ghostface: Yeah, yeah, it's a play over.

MVRemix: That's crazy, 'cause the beat now is insane.

Ghostface: It's murder, yeah, it's murder. It's like the same thing but it's a play over. [ponders] And what else? "Charlie Brown" track, you know what I mean?

MVRemix: That was my favourite one that didn't quite make the cut.

Ghostface: Right, right, samples'll get you. They wildin', it's just crazy. The fans don't really know what you've gotta go through tryin' to get things cleared and how much it takes for you to get it played over. And it don't really sound the same to me because I made it. So the people don't know the original, they just hear what they hear.

MVRemix: What's your favourite unreleased one? I think for me it had to be the "Good Times" joint.

Ghostface: You got "The Watch."

MVRemix: The Barry White joint?

Ghostface: Yeah, I love how that comes off. "The Sun," that's beautiful.

MVRemix: There were like four joints off "Bulletproof Wallets" that had to switch up.

Ghostface: Yeah, "Bulletproof Wallets" would've been murder if all that was on there.

MVRemix: It was still pretty hot.

Ghostface: It was still hot, but still takin' off one... That's what I'm tryin' to tell my manager - takin' one joint off. That means a difference. It's like losin' a pinky [finger]. It's like you need that man, everything... When you tryin' to create somethin' and make it right. Regardless if the fans didn't hear it or not. I'm like that Shakespeare/Beethoven cat that knows it needs to be there like that. I'm that Picasso; I know the painting and what leaf should be on that tree and where it should be at. 'Cause I had the vision.

MVRemix: To make it kind of a complete, cohesive project...

Ghostface: Yeah - so you can kind of see my mind. So everything is important.

MVRemix: You were the first person that I heard just rhyme over an old soul track for the "Holla" joint. You've got another one, "Big Girl," on this album - how did that idea come?

Ghostface: Nah, it's just songs like that... We love old music. My whole bus, my whole team, we like to listen to a lot of old music. When I was young and desperate I just came up off. So I like that music better than I like rap and rock and house or whatever you wanna call it... disco. When I hear music like that and I can feel I can get in the groove of it and be like, "Yo, I wish somebody would make that beat for me..." I know how to just go in. Instead of writing about love I could take it on something else... Whatever I feel like. I don't really hear the words when I'm doin' it, it's not really nothin' - I just go ahead and do it.

MVRemix: Are there any plans to kind of do more of that stuff in the future? Maybe...

Ghostface: [interrupting] Nah, I got records like that. I just never released 'em, I never laid it down like that. But I do got books and rhymes over Jackson 5 and Moments and stuff like that. I never been laid down yet.

MVRemix: If you had to pick one old school soul album like that, what would you say is kind of one of your favourites?

Ghostface: It's a lot... Blue Magic, probably one of those dudes... The Delphonics is ill - it's too many. Curtis Mayfield is ill. It's too much though. If I were to pick one right real quick, I probably would go with Blue Magic, real quick.

MVRemix: How about on the current side of things - do you listen to things outside of Hip Hop these days?

Ghostface: Nah, not really. I just listen to... Unless it's old Hip Hop man or old classic soul. And that's it... The game is the game right now. It's really not poppin'.

MVRemix: Give me your overall feelings on the state of the industry, both in terms of yourself as an artist within this industry and then as far as what you see on MTV, listening to it... That kind of stuff.

Ghostface: It's just boring. Back when we was comin' through the door man, you had to have some type of skill. Some type of talent. Nowadays you don't need talent. It's not about what you say no more or your emcee skills. Back then you had to fight for that. Now we goin' crazy over snap music and sayin' stuff that really, you know... I guess people just wanna have fun. I know things evolve and the game is weighed to that right now... And I don't knock nobody's Hip Hop - it's universal, it's all cool though. But it's just from where I came from and to see what's going on today. It's sad. It's like that old commercial when the Indian looked at his land and he dropped that one tear. Yeah, it was real. That's how sad it is right now. But to each his own and hopefully it'll make its circle back, 'cause what goes around do come back around... Regardless of what. Where's the game at? It was meant for whoever got the game to have it.

MVRemix: I think a lot of people, a lot fans, maybe from that late '90's era are kind of pinning their hopes on the Wu bringing it back. I know you're doing your part coming out with consistent albums. Are there any upcoming Wu projects you can speak on?

Ghostface: You got Raekwon comin' in with the "Cuban Linx [2]," Meth is come with him, GZa come with him. Wu ain't comin' 'till like next year sometime. And even when we do that, we gotta be careful. 'Cause I didn't like the last two projects. They gotta be really, really, really right and there's gonna be a lot of arguing going down there 'cause there's gonna be so many brothers tryin' to keep it real. If my name is on it, I can't be on it unless it's to how I like to see it, or else I'll pass.

MVRemix: That's real man, you've got to keep that quality control.

Ghostface: You've got to do that man, or it's like, "Yo, what you gon' do?" I ain't with puttin' out duds. You feel me?

thx @mvremix
source @ http://www.mvremix.com/urban/interviews/...killah_06.shtml

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Hast du da mal nen Link zu Dj Hyphen?

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Danke

Hier mal ein kleine Interview von ner Holländischen Seite.

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands - The rap group Wu-Tang Clan may record together again if its members can resolve their personal differences, member Ghostface Killah said.

Some in the clan are not productive when they meet as a group, the rapper said Wednesday night after performing at the club Escape in Amsterdam. He recorded an improvised single on the spot as part of a major technology and media conference.
"Certain members is comfortable, and certain members is not comfortable" with the group dynamic, he said.
The group has not put out an album of new material since 2001, as its nine members have been busy with solo projects. But Killah said a reunion was possible, even after the 2004 death by drug overdose of one of the founding members, Ol' Dirty Bastard.
"If we can really come together and ... put aside all the differences that we had, then we could make a Wu-Tang album," he said. "We gotta square up a lot."
Born Dennis Coles, Ghostface Killah's stage name comes from a Kung-Fu movie, and because in the early days of the group, he performed wearing a white mask. But on Wednesday he said that period of his life was behind him. A new action figure of him does not portray him with a mask, though it does feature real 14-carat gold chains.
"The reason I quit the mask thing, is, it was like, when I was doing shows with the mask on, people couldn't really hear what I was saying, you know what I mean?"
Killah was briefly known just as "Ghostface," a move he said was suggested by some of his producers at Def Jam, but the nickname was dropped with this year's release of his album "Fishscale."
"It always (really) was Ghostface Killah," he said.
Asked what he thought about people downloading his music without paying, he said that as an artist, he backs the recording industry line.
"I don't really like it. You know they're going to take away from my album sales, but you know you can't stop it so."
But he said that if people did not have money to buy his songs, then it would be all right. "I mean, if you're poor, yeah."

Thanx @ Art Vandelay from Wu Corp Forum

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Und hier mal ein kleines Interview von ner Irischen Seite vermutlich.

He may have stopped smoking superhuman amounts of weed, but otherwise it’s business as usual for Ghostface Killah as he continues to spread the Wu-Tang gospel.

The Wu-Tang Clan are one of the most popular, influential and seminal bands of the hip-hop generation, most notably through their 1993 LP Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers). All the members – Method Man, Ol’ Dirty Bastard, GZA et al – have gone on to enjoy successful solo careers, with Ghostface Killah recently releasing his sixth studio album, Fish Scale, to much acclaim.

“I miss my brothers,” Ghostface, aka Iron Man, aka Tony Starks, aka Dennis Coles says when asked about the Wu. “Every time we go on tour we have fun. We played together last month, and the bond between us was as strong as ever. I made my first record with them, so the relationship will always be special.”

Fish Scale finds the MC teaming up with such celebrated producers as MF Doom, Pete Rock, J Dilla and Madlib who all put their stamp on the record.

“It’s not easy writing rhymes because I don’t think as fast as I used to and I don’t see the same pictures in my mind as when I was younger,” he confesses in his thick New York drawl. “It takes a while because sometimes I start second guessing myself. Usually I get the beat from the producer and I take it with me. I live with it for a minute to see how I want to carry it on. You might write two or three rhymes to see which approach is better.”

Although ‘fish scale’ is the street slang for high quality crack cocaine, Ghostface has been off drugs, weed included, for two years now and feels all the better for it.

“It’s high quality music instead,” he observes. “When you get older you lose a lot of things. I done a lot of drugs and they burn your brain cells, so that’s why I don’t do that no more. They say your brain cells don’t come back for seven years and I’m a diabetic, so that right there messes up your memory. So it be hard. It’s even twice as hard for me, and that’s what’s changed since the Wu-Tang days ‘cause I didn’t know I was diabetic back then.”

Do the new kids on the hip-hop block put the same effort into their music as Wu-Tang did when they were starting out?

“People are gonna do what they do, I just got to do what I do,” he reflects. “Times change, nothing remains the same. You’ve got to try and keep a twist of your own self in what’s coming at you. At the end of the day, it’s still got to be whoever’s got poetic skills. Right now nobody’s saying nothing, they just having fun. Which is all good, but I remember when I first came in the game you had to be saying something. You wasn’t just rhyming about parties, so I’m still practising so I can sound better on the mic.”

Killah’s future plans include lauching his own action figure and sneakers, releasing an album with his Theadore Unit crew and doing a Hollywood movie. Bring da ruckus!

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Whoop whoop hab hier mal nen Audio Interview!! Ist zwar vom Dezember aber entsgeil. Ghost war da zu Gast bei Shade 45 dem Radiosender.

Büdde

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Hier ist mal ein Interview vom 13.10.06 von ner UK Hip Hop Seite.

Ghostface Interview

interview 0482 added 13.10.06 words: Rish technical Spoon

Ghostface Killah first came to the world’s attention as one ninth of the Wu-Tang Clan, the now legendary New York Hip Hop super group. Unlike some of his fellow clansmen, he’s been able to embark on a solo career and achieve greatness of his own accord. While other members such as Raekwon have managed similar feats, Ghostface has repeated the achievement, from his solo debut ‘Ironman’ which entered the Billboard charts at #2, all the way up to his latest effort ‘Fishscale’ which many a purist has heralded as the finest release of the year.

With more aliases than Jennifer Garner, Ghostface is one of the true personalities left in the game. Not only is he known for donning robes, extravagant colours and flamboyant jewellery, but other than whoever invented hologram velcros, he’s one of the few people that have managed to make Clarks cool. When you add to this his animated flows, an easily identifiable voice, abstract lyricism and astute storytelling, it’s easy to see why some people view him almost as a modern day Slick Rick.

I’m going to try to avoid the “like wine” cliché, but Ghost is one of the few emcees who’ve gotten better with age. He’s managed to create a hybrid of mature rhymes coupled with gangster chronicles, where he still vividly depicts the gritty streets that raised him and which he still walks. Despite treading just short of forty, on track he remains filled with youthful vigour and an abundance of energy. This is shown on the RZA produced ‘Run’, where Ghost outshines his five years junior Jadakiss with his powerful and fast paced delivery.

As well as his solo and Wu-tang endeavours, Ghostface hasn’t forgotten about his crew, the Theodore Unit. Unlike many others who hit the big time and disregard those they came up with, or at best do a track or two to help bring them through, Ghost has recorded entire albums with Theodore Unit. It’s this selflessness that may be one of the reasons for how far he’s come.

I interviewed Ghost after a show and was pleasantly surprised to see my neighbour in Ghost’s dressing room with all of his work colleagues. They’d all served him at T.G.I. Friday’s so he hooked them up with VIP passes. This benevolence wasn’t a one off. During the day Ghost had been doing in stores, signing autographs and taking pictures; then he had another queue of people waiting to meet him in his dressing room. He did all of this not to further his career or to satisfy his ego, but to please his fans. He was extremely tired so didn’t appear to be overly enthusiastic, but that’s what made it all the more noble; he purely does it because he knows his fans will cherish the experience and look back on it for years to come. In the interview he said when he dies, he “would like to be respected at the end of the day”. This past Tuesday night, he definitely earned mine.

The in store, show and meeting fans had left him somewhat subdued, so some brief answers were given in places, but like Clive Owen in Spike Lee’s ‘Inside Man’, gems were still dropped. Read on to find out what Ghostface had to say about his new album, J-Dilla, the return of the East Coast, the prospect of a new Wu album and much more….

You’ve been in the game for a long time and have a deep history, so we’re not going to delve too far into the past otherwise we’d be here all day. On that note, I think Fischscale’s a good place to start – On ‘The Champ’ there’s a voice that says, “you ain’t been hungry since Supreme Clientele”. Were you lacking hunger when working on ‘Bullet Proof Wallets’ and ‘The Pretty Toney Album’?

Nah, that wasn’t me losing no hunger, it’s just how the song went. Don’t get lost inside what he said. I mean that’s just something that he just said ya know what I mean?

So you’re happy with how ‘Bullet Proof Wallets’ and ‘The Pretty Toney Album’ came out? ‘Cause they were still two dope releases to me…

Yeah, ya know what I mean, of course man…


"... I’m a universal MC. I do opera, ya feel me? I do country music, ya feel me? ..."

On Fishscale you worked with a lot of different producers, one of them that’s of particular interest to our UK readers is our very own Lewis Parker. How did you two hook up?

I did an in store one day at Raw Deal or Deal Real…

Deal Real off Carnaby Street…

Yeah. He gave me a CD and I listened to the CD and I liked the beats. Then we hooked up in New York…

Yeah, he lives in Queens now…

Yeah, we hooked up and we did good.

He said that you’ve done eight tracks together last time I saw him, including one with Method Man. Is that correct?

Yeah. I’ve recorded… I wrote to a lot of his shit.

Will any of the other tracks ever be released anywhere?

Yeah, most likely. Who knows on what though?

You also worked with Dilla on ‘Whip You With A Strap’ and ‘Beauty Jackson’. Did you know him on a personal level before he passed away?

Nah. I heard his beats and I liked him and he was good.

Just respected the music…

Yeah yeah yeah, I liked his shit. He knew I was gunna do a song. That song. And ya know, he passed away by the time I was finished with it and everything and it was all wrapped up.

Another underground favourite that you worked with on the album was MF Doom. What prompted you to work with him?

With Doom?

Yeah.

Doom… I was on Projekt Revolution with Linkin Park, Korn, Snoop Dogg and ‘em. Somebody passed me a CD. I didn’t know who he was. It was ‘Metal Fingers’ on there, but I had to do research ‘cause there was no number on there, and find out at the end of the day it was Doom. And I liked his beats.

You two supposedly have an album together in the pipeline. Is that right?

Yeah.

When will that be coming out?

We don’t know yet.

Will Doom just be on the beats, or will he be rapping as well?

I think he’ll be rapping as well.


"... once we disappear all that away, there will be another Wu-Tang album ..."

Okay, we’ve chatted about a few producers, so now I have a few questions about some tracks. One of the standout tracks on the album for me is R.A.G.U. Will you be featuring on Only Built 4 Cuban Linx 2?

Yeah, yeah I will. Me and Raekwon. Rae and Ghost United!

I quite like ‘Back Like That’, but a few people say that for the typical Ghost it’s a bit soft. That’s something that I wouldn’t really agree with ‘cause you’ve always done RnB influenced stuff. So what would you say to the haters?

Nah, they’re not hating ya nah mean? That’s just their opinion. But it’s all good ya know? I’m a universal MC. I do opera, ya feel me? I do country music, ya feel me? Just because you heard me doing this all my life that don’t mean ya know it ain’t other things. It’s like my mind is universal. Knowledge is infinite. So I do a lot of things ya know what I mean? I might come from fucking Mars on you, ya know what I mean? Ya never know.

Then you’ve got the bonus track on the album – ‘Three Bricks’ with Biggie. If you were to be taken away early, what would you like to happen to your catalogue? Would you like it to be left as you intended or to be remixed to stay fresh for future generations?

Whatever. Whatever how God allows us to do, it’s whatever, ya nah mean? As long as people remember me, by me and what I did, and loving other people and respecting other people. I would like to be respected at the end of the day. Whatever way that turns out to be, then that’s what it is.

Fishscale was a step towards bringing New York back to it’s once prominence. What do you think of the current state of Hip Hop with the current trends of Hyphy and Crunk?

I don’t know, New York is trying to do it’s thing, we’re trying to come back ya know what I’m saying? But until that time comes, ya know, it’s gunna be what it’s gunna be. I’m only one man, but we’re trying, but we gotta get the whole Tri-States and everybody involved. Even on the east coast, not just New York…

Yeah, Philly and Boston….

Yeah.


"... that wasn’t me losing no hunger, it’s just how the song went ..."

On the subject of southern music, I heard you dissed D4L. What was that all about?

That wasn’t really no diss man. I just did something and people blew it up. It wasn’t all that, it was just the way I felt; I wasn’t trying to diss ‘em.

I read that Jay wants another album from you sooner rather than later, so he must have been a fan of Fishscale. When does he want the new album?

I gave it to him right now.

It’s in already!?

Yeah. But they might hold it ‘cause they got a lot of artists coming out this summer. They might hold it ‘til January or February.

Is there anything you can tell us about the new album? Collaborations or producers or anything?

No no no, just all of my Theodore Unit niggas, ya know what I mean? Ya know, Redman, my man Sheek Louch from D-Block, my son Sun God ya know…

What about producers?

Basically the same producers: Madlib, Doom and all them niggas ya know? Shit like that. Phantom of the Opera, Stan of the Beats, a few other niggas…

So what do you think about Jay-Z being the President of Def Jam, but also arguably the biggest artist on the label? Do you think there’s a conflict of interest, or is it all working out alright?

I mean, I don’t know yet, we’re going to see you know what I mean? We gotta give Jay-Z a chance. Ya know, he’s new, ya nah mean and he’s just trying to work his hand right now.

Now the one thing that everyone wants to know – will there be another Wu-Tang album?

Yeah…when we all get our shit together. When we come back and agree on everything all the times. And a lot of shit that went on before the albums… ya nah mean… a couple of albums, once we disappear all that away, there will be another Wu-Tang album.

You don’t have to answer this if it’s a bit personal, but on the subject of Wu-Tang, how did the death of ODB affect you?

I mean, ya know… that’s my brother. It effected me because I love him and he’s not gunna be here and I’m not gunna see him no longer.

Right… something a little more light hearted after that. You were on MTV Made with that guy Nile. C-Rayz Walz took him down to your studio and he spat in your booth. How did you manage to keep a straight face?

Because I see rappers like that a lot, ya know what I mean?

In Stapleton?

Yeah haha. I see rappers like that. But ya know, first of all he’s not a rapper ya nah mean? He’s just someone that was trying to rap, so you know, that’s what he be.

Okay, some more light hearted stuff... A little competition. You and Raekwon are quite infamous for your slang. So, you and Raekwon versus NORE. Who’s been the most influential in terms of Hip Hop slang?

Me and Raekwon versus who?

NORE

Who?

Noreaga…

Noreaga… What Noreaga?

From CNN [you know, that guy on your label]?

What you say that for?

‘Cause he’s known for his slang as well. Like off the yellsobob and stuff.

Yeah, he’s good. That’s my man and shit. Everybody got slang and their own shit. Ya nah mean? Ya know, we got stuff you ain’t heard of that’s probably crazy and shit. But you know, it’s all good. I can’t say who’s the best…


"... [Dilla] passed away by the time I was finished with it and everything and it was all wrapped up ..."

Okay… You used to always wear an eagle bracelet, but you’ve had that melted down haven’t you?

Yeah

Why’d you have it melted down?

‘Cause I wanted to change up... I wanted to change up.

Just before we get to the end – you’ve got a Ghostface doll out. I heard it was $300 or something?

Five hundred dollars.

What do you get for your $500 dollars?

You get some real gold, somebody that looks like me ya nah mean? It’s an exclusive, there ain’t gunna be that many. They might make a thousand or five hundred and that’s it, no more. It’s a collector’s item.

Just before we wrap it up, is there anybody you’d like to shout out or anything you’d like to plug?

Nah, just watch out for me man. Theodore Unit. Ghostface is on the rise. Gotta grace to God…. Amen.

Brief in parts, but some big news revealed nonetheless! Ghost’s one of the best doing it right now on a major scale, so I’m happy to hear that a new album’s already been submitted. Plus, it shouldn’t be too long until the joint with Doom comes out. It’s all about new Wu-Tang though. RZA’s been saying it’ll be the last album as the fans need closure, so hopefully they’ll go out with a bang.

Before I go, I just have to say big up to my people Kaizsar, Karizma and the big bro MistaJam who both tore up the show, and a special thank you to Frost.

Hopefully Ghost managed to get a good night’s sleep after all of his hard work and with any luck ended up relaxing in a nice restaurant later in the week, where he’d finally be able to say, “Thank God it’s Friday”.

Thanx @ ukhh.com

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Fish Fry: Ghostface Killah

Posted: 11/13/2006 by: Aaron Frank



If you're still stuck on Ghostface Killah's last album, like me, then you will be shocked to know that Ghostface is already hitting us in the head with his second solo album on Def Jam, entitled More Fish. More Fish drops on December 12th and is said to be just as good as Fishscale or better. That seems like it would be pretty difficult to accomplish, considering his last album garnered him both critical and commercial success internationally. But, all of the fans know that this is probably true. There's no question that most of his albums have either matched or eclipsed the previous album's success and quality.

Ghostface is one of the only artists to date that has been able to maintain an interesting niche, where you can have a song on the radio and still be able maintain one of the strongest underground fanbases in hip-hop history. He is able to keep an unusual balance, pleasing the most die hard of hip-hop fans and the ladies dancing in the club at the same time. This is almost unprecedented, yet Ghost seems to do it with ease, consistently putting out hit solo records and contributing to efforts with the Wu-Tang for more than a decade. HHNLive.COM caught up with Ghostface Killah to discuss the new album, More Fish, as well as the state of the Wu-Tang Clan and Ghostface's own crew, Theodore Unit.

AF: You've already got your second album on Def Jam coming out next month. Could you tell us a little bit about More Fish and what the feel of this album is going to be?

GK: Yeah, it's coming out December 12th. This is really just a whole different vibe than Fishscale, but it's still Ghostface music. If you know my music and you're familiar with what I do, then you probably already know. The thing about this album is there are a few joints that I didn't get to put on Fishscale. They got taken off, but I took some of those and then went back and recorded some more songs for More Fish.

AF: Is "Good" with Trife Da God going to be the single or have you picked one out yet?

GK: Yeah, that's definitely going to be one of them. There's another one out right now called "Ghost Is Back." "Good" is one of the singles off of the album though.

AF: You had a big success with the video for "Back Like That" featuring Ne-Yo. Are you all going to go that route again and try to make a video for More Fish?

GK: Yeah, we might make a video for "Good." That's just to try and get ahead of everyone else and appeal to a wider audience though. You have to act like you coming out with a Grammy song, but it really depends on how the people grab it. It's a lot easier to sell records, if you're out like that where the people can see you.

AF: I remember before Fishscale, you put out a mixtape with Mick Boogie called Broiled Salmon. You got any plans to put out a mixtape to promote this album?

GK: Nah, we're just going straight in on this one. We didn't really have time do anything like that.

AF: You've been working with a great combination of a lot of different producers recently. Who did you get to come in and work with you on this one?

GK: I'm with a lot of the same producers. We've got Madlib, MF Doom, Pete Rock, Hi-Tek, Phantom of the Beat. Kool-Aid & Peanut did the beat for "Good"

AF: Who are some of the lesser known or underground producers that you've been working with?

GK: My man Phantom of the Beat is really doin his thing right now. He did a couple songs on my album. He also did the beat for "P.I.M.P." and that old Busta Rhymes' song, "Woo-Ha."

AF: You've done a lot of work with people like MF Doom and one of Dilla's last beats was actually on Fishscale. Do you kind of feel like the underground artists are the ones keeping that real hip-hop alive right now?

GK: The underground is doing real well right now. They definitely still doing they thing. It's just a vibe that they have. It's a different vibe that people respond to. That's why I always like to go and work with those people to try and get that in to my music.

AF: So what's up with the features on this album? Are we going to hear some more from Theodore on this one or more Wu-Tang?

GK: You're going to hear a lot more Theodore Unit on this one. Redman and Sheek Louch are also on the album. I also got Killa Sin on there, who used to rhyme with the Killarmy.

AF: You've still got your Theodore Unit going on. What is the next project in the works for Theodore?

GK: Everything is moving in place. We're just taking it slow and making sure that everything works out right.

AF: What's the status on Trife Da God? Is he still working on an album?

GK: I think Trife should definitely have a good look through this album. He's on a few songs. I've also got my son on the album, SG. He was on "Family Affair" on Fishscale.

AF: You've done a lot of work with Raekwon over the years. Is he going to be on More Fish?

GK: Nah, he didn't make it on the album, because this was just so fast. When we started the Wu-Tang tour, I put it together real quick. I didn't really have the time to take brothers out of they schedule to record. And Raekwon isn't really in town a lot. He's always out or on the road. So it wasn't like that this time.

AF: He's also got Only Built 4 Cuban Linx II coming out. You going to be up on his album as well?

GK: Yeah, I'm definitely going to be on a few joints on there.

AF: Congratulations on the VH1 Hip-Hop Honors. I saw Wu-Tang up there doing their thing. They tried to cut you all, but y'all weren't having it.

GK: Yeah, I wasn't in town. I was in Europe, but they always try to do that sh*t to us.

AF: If you could've played any of your solo joints up there, which one would you have performed?

GK: "All I Got Is You"

AF: You all have been doing a lot of appearances and concerts together, but everybody still wants to know if you all are planning to get back in the studio together for another Wu album?

GK: Yeah. We still gonna do that. We still here rocking. We just gotta get a clear understanding amongst the whole group. They recorded a couple of songs already, while I was out in Japan.

AF: I read somewhere that you were going out on tour with Jeezy, Jay-Z, and Nas. Is there any truth to that? Are you going to tour at all for this album?

GK: Yeah, I heard about that. It sounds like a good look, so you'll probably see us go out and do something like that around the beginning of the year.

http://www.hhnlive.com/features/more/150

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Ghostface: The Game Is Fishy
December 11th, 2006 | Author: B. Love

There’s never been a group like Wu-Tang Clan before, in hip-hop or any other musical genre, and chances are there never will be again. I can still the remember the day back in 1993 when I was working as a marketing rep at BMG (which at the time distributed the group’s label, Loud Records), and we first heard the group’s debut single, "C.R.E.A.M.", on full blast in the company conference room. The energy in the air was palpable, as typically jaded industry types gave in to the colorful charisma of this electric Staten Island ensemble, everyone breaking into smiles at the unmistakable sound of a guaranteed hit in the making.
Thirteen years later the group’s debut album, Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), stands tall as a bona-fide classic, blazing the trail for the resurgence in hardcore New York hip-hop that gave birth to legends like Biggie, Jay-Z and Nas. Though that album’s creative and commercial success was never duplicated, the group produced more eatraordinary MCs than any other act in hip-hop history, with Ghostface Killah, Method Man, Ol’ Dirty Bastard, Raekwon and RZA all going on to achieve various levels of solo success.
Of course, nothing lasts forever in the here today, gone tomorrow world of hip-hop, and in 2006 Wu-Tang Clan’s relevance seems largely relegated to the history books. Since ODB’s untimely death in 2004, RZA and Method Man have been busier making movies (the former as a soundtrack producer, the latter as an actor), while Raekwon has been largely AWOL since 2003’s The Lex Diamond Story. All of which leaves Ghost to carry the group’s legacy on his shoulders. His last album, Fishscale, was a stunning return-to-form and a critical success, but failed to even reach Gold status. Now, just nine months later, he’s back with More Fish, hungry to prove that he’s just as vital to the game now, at the age of 36, as Wu-Tang ever was.

Let’s start off talking about longevity. You’ve been in the game almost 15 years now. Why do you think you’ve been able to stay relevant for so long?

Just being around young people and keeping my ear to the streets, ya know? I still try to study my craft, listening, practicing my flows, seeing what shit other niggas ain’t doin’, hangin’ around the youth and listening to what’s hot.
There’s a lot of people who were hot when the Wu first hit– De La, Tribe, Public Enemy– who were very talented, but weren’t able to stick it out over the years like you have.

Right. It’s hard for certain people. It’s not an easy thing cuz your mind’s gotta stay young and your imagination’s gotta stay strong. When you get older that tends to leave you. I don’t have the same imagination I had when I was younger and my mind was more vivid. Now, it takes me more time.

So it’s kinda like an athlete, working harder to exercise those muscles as you get older?

Yeah.
How has the industry changed since you first started coming up in the game?

You don’t gotta have talent no more. Back in the day, you had to have talent. Now, you can just get on a record, sound like somebody else and win. If you wanna sound like the South and make a good record like that, whether it’s a one-hit wonder or not, [you can sell records].
Who do you think is to blame for that, slack listeners who don’t insist on better quality or the radio stations who spoonfeed the masses with the same ol’ same ol’?

All that. The record companies and the radio stations for playing the same ol’ stuff, the DJs that’s getting paid to play certain shit... If somebody gives you $20,000 to play a song, and the song is wack, it takes away [airtime] from the authentic shit. Now this nigga comin’ in and gettin’ into my spins with that bullshit! It’s just fucked up.
So do you think that makes it harder for artists with an original sound to stand out, because you gotta fight to get airplay amongst 20 other artists who all sound alike?

It definitely makes it harder! All that comes into play. Like I said, it’s not about talent no more, it’s about politics.
You mentioned the need to stay young in order to stay relevant. When you first start out, you got something to prove, but a lot of artists grow complacent once they get their spot. Does having to battle to keep your spot like that keep you hungry on some ol’ “Eye of the Tiger” shit?

Yeah, and I’m still trying to battle for that spot. But I can’t go out of my element and try to change up. I gotta keep doin’ what I been doin’ until it comes back around.
Genres like rock ‘n’ roll, punk and R&B all have so much respect for the innovators who originally made them group. Why do you think that hip-hop has so little respect for its elder statesmen?

Because right now hip-hop is violent, and people don’t respect each other no more. They don’t give a fuck about what came before and they not worried about tomorrow; they just worried about right now. If a nigga don’t respect himself, how’s he gonna have respect for the pioneers who were doin’ it back then? Motherfuckas don’t give a fuck about this group or that group, because that group ain’t here no more. They tryin’ to go for what’s new right now. They don’t even give a fuck about the future.
There’s never been a group like Wu-Tang clan before, and certainly nothing like it has come along since. What made you guys so special?

Our creativity. The things we rhymed about. Everybody was different, and we were just saying the right shit that needed to be said at that time.

When you’re working with a group that has so many talented individuals, is it a struggle to get your time to shine?

It was like a battle, cuz you gotta make sure you rep. Everybody just tried their best to make whatever sound good, ya know?
It’s been two years since ODB passed. How did losing him affect the dynamic of the group?

That shit was like losing an arm or a leg, man, and the group is like a body. If you lost your leg, it’s hard to get around. With his presence, ODB was an important, if not THE most important, piece. With that piece not there no more, it’s gonna fuck shit up cuz your body is used to having that leg. Now your legs can’t depend on each other no more, and it’s crazy, man. That’s how it is with ODB. He taught me a lot of things. He taught me how to have the soul that I have. I learned a lot from him. With him not being here, it’s like a major chess piece is missing. We’re all important pieces, but a lot of motherfuckas knew him and respected him for what he did. He mighta had more motherfuckas on his dick than mine, ya know what I mean? When you got that type of foundation and movement going, for a nigga to lose you is fucked up, yo.
You’ve had more consistent critical and commercial success than most of the other Wu members. Is it tough watching your fam struggle like that?

We all struggling, but we help each other out. I’m not a platinum or gold artist now. It’s hard to sell records right now the way the game is structured, and with sales down all around the board, it’s kinda crazy. We all go through what we go through. That’s why I’m putting out two albums in one year, and still gonna try and come with another new one in seven or eight months, just so I can stay out there. But the game is hard now that we’re older. Meth hasn’t been around for a minute cuz he been doin’ his movies and all that shit, and once you away from the game for a minute, it be changing. You gotta stay in people’s face, cuz motherfuckas forget about you unless you a R&B singer that’s real hot, like Usher or something.
What’s the status of Wu-Tang now? There was a lotta buzz on the Internet that there might be some beef after you failed to perform with the group at the VH-1 Hip Hop Honors.

Nah, there’s never no beef. What it was, the VH-1 Honors was supposed to have took place in August, so I switched my European tour dates to October. So when October came we had to start that tour, and when they changed their date to October it just didn’t work, ya know what I mean? But when everybody gets situated, we’re gonna do another album. Even if it’s our last album, the world will know, yo, this is it and we’re hanging it up. But whatever we do, it’s just gotta be monster.

Thanx @ hiphopdx.com

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Hiphopsite-Interview

Hier ein Ghost-Interview mit HipHopSite:
http://www.hiphopsite.com/NEWS/interviews.hhs

danke an cm

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thaFormula.com-Interview

thaFormula.com hat Ghost interviewt:

	thaFormula.com - Now that you went through the label situation with Jay-Z with the "Fish Scale" and "More Fish" albums, how has it been and how do you feel about it now? Ghostface - Jay's doing what he got to do and I'm doing what I got to do. I'm learning more as the years go on as far as what I got to do for myself to make things work. It's not really what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country. It ain't how it was 10 years ago when Def jam was in its prime. thaFormula.com - So what do you say about all the artists that complain about their label not doing this or that? Ghostface - You got to do what you got to do. It's a whole new day and time. I don't know about any other label. I know about my brothers that's on my label, like Meth. He was used to the way certain things used to run at Def Jam. The people that ran that are at Atlantic somewhere or Warner. Same thing with LL, it's crazy now. I came to Def Jam from Sony 'cause I wanted to win there. But when I got there they broke out. So I was stranded and had to do what I had to do. So right about now I ain't even worrying about the numbers man. All I'm worrying about is putting out good music and the people accepting my shit. thaFormula.com - Do most people at the labels even care about Hip-Hop nowadays? Ghostface - It's politics now. Personally I don't think they care about Hip-Hop. It's more politics now then it was back then. thaFormula.com - How hard is it for an artist to make good music on a major label or what they want to make instead of what the label wants them to make? Ghostface - It ain't hard for me. I got my lane already so it's not hard for me. The only thing hard for me is getting my samples cleared and running out of money to pay for samples. Other than that, I can make good music all day. thaFormula.com - How do you think Hip-Hop would be right now if we were still able to sample anything without any problems? Ghostface - Shit would be off the meat rack 'cause you could do a lot of shit with samples and shit. thaFormula.com - Is the "More Fish" album that dropped last week just tracks that were left over from "Fish Scale?" Ghostface - Nah, a lot of that stuff is brand new. Probably like 3 or 4 cuts were left over from "Fish Scale," the rest is all new stuff. thaFormula.com - What made you give UK producer Lewis Parker a track on the album, as that is something that we rarely see? Ghostface - I don't give a fuck if you from Alaska, I will give you a chance G if you got something that I like. thaFormula.com - Why do you think more major artists don't give these young up and coming Hip-Hop producers a shot like that? Ghostface - They might not be in what I am caught up in. Their sound might not be like mine. Everybody got different flavors. Beats is like women man. Everybody likes different types of women. Just like there is a certain way how I like my beats. thaFormula.com - Did you feel you had a good radio single in "Back Like That?" Ghostface - I had a good single, but you know it's how God makes it. You can wake up one day and be big as fucking Oprah, but that's how God makes it. What it is is what it is. I gave people good albums almost all my life, but it is what it is. You might get a clown nigga that could just blow up way more than me. Not to call him a clown, but God just opened his way up. I'm just here man and maybe this might not be my destiny, maybe this is a stepping stone and it's meant for me to do something else but it's gonna have to start through here to lead to something else. So "Back like That" could have been bigger, but God said it's not time yet. So even if I get tired, I got to do what I got to do. thaFormula.com - When you look back at your catalog man, does it get frustrating for you seeing as how you have dropped so many dope albums? Ghostface - I used to get frustrated, but now that I'm more spiritual now, it don't bother me because I know everything happens for a reason and that God deals with people that are patient. So I know I'm gonna struggle before I get to where he needs me to be. I used to get frustrated and say, "damn, why is these muthafuckas like that and I'm here?" But everything happens on God's time and I understand now. So I don't get frustrated no more. Even if this album sold 2,000 copies, I got to walk with that. I still got to go ahead and make more albums until it pops. thaFormula.com - Were you happy with how "Fish Scale" was received by the people? Ghostface - Yeah, in a sense. 'Cause you know a lot of people gave it a good review, especially the magazines. So that means more to me than somebody sitting there talking shit about me even if I didn't sell whatever, whatever. I don't care what I sold. If everybody loved it more then those that hated it, then I'm good man. thaFormula.com - Now I know everybody is asking about the new Wu-Tang album, but what's the main reason holding back that album from being done? Ghostface - Agreements. Where brothers can't agree upon certain things. There is no beef. It's just more or less brothers saying, "I don't like this or that contract or how this is being ran." It's more or less everybody putting the past behind and moving on or we would still be stuck. thaFormula.com - Can Wu-Tang still be big on a mainstream level? Ghostface - I'm not sure. It depends because we got a lot of Wu fans still. If we come with the good music like how we did on our first couple of albums, then I think that we can make some noise. thaFormula.com - Even without ODB? I mean he was a very big part of those Wu-Tang albums... Ghostface - Yeah he was a big part of it. But for the sake of his legacy and the people who love Wu, he's still with us even if he's not there physically. I don't think because Dirt is gone, people are not gonna buy the album. I think they are gonna cop it to see what is going on and what their favorite rap group has got to say in these days and times. thaFormula.com - How hard is the grind on a major and what does it take to promote a new album? Ghostface - It's rough because you have to constantly be moving and you know that you have to do this to try and sell a unit or two. It's also harder because I'm a diabetic at the same time. Sometimes they book all your shit back to back when you can't really get no rest or nothing like that. Then you got to wake up early in the morning to catch a flight to go do this, then you got to be at a club just to show your face and shake hands with muthafuckas. But this is what I do to make a living. So if you are really into it this way and you wanna become a rapper or whatever, you got to really get on your grind. Until you start getting your name out there and getting rich where you can fall back for a second, then this is what you got to do man. So I treat every album like it was my first album. For me or Wu-Tang, I got to stay on my grind. That's how come I am accepted in a lot of places like Nebraska, Oregon, etc. Weird towns like that where they will accept me 'cause I give them my all. For 50 people, I'll fuck around and stand on stage for 2 hours until my shirt is wet, then sign autographs and be the last one leaving the club. That's what gives me the power to come back. They got to feel me and touch my hands. Where other muthafuckas will give them 2 songs, leave and have the muthafuckas mad. I'd rather have them happy. thaFormula.com - What's the most important person to hire as an artist when getting into this industry? Ghostface - You got to have a lawyer. A manager too. Everybody counts man 'cause lawyers is shiesty too. Everybody is not faithful to you. You can't really trust nobody. You might need another lawyer just to look over that lawyer, but it's just like that. This is the game and you can't trust nobody son. You need it all. Your lawyer, your manager, your accountant, etc. thaFormula.com - Many of the artists today are either dickheads or arrogant muthafuckas but some of the legends like yourself or Rakim that have been through it all are some of the coolest brothas we have ever spoken to, why is that man? Ghostface - I'm a down to earth brother. I understand that this is just rap and the things that we do inside rap is an illusion man. This is not the real world man. The hereafter is where the real shits really gonna go down. This is a trial for me. I don't gotta frown my face and talk greasy in every interview. I was a wild nigga coming up. If you hear "Cuban Linx" and all that shit, we was really doing some shit. I was really fucking a lot of niggaz up and doing a lot of bullshit. But when you get more spiritual and get more closer to the Father, things change. 'Cause you ain't livin' just to be livin' son. There is a reason for your purpose of being here. Not just to be here just to act like a dick all your life or act like you are a straight killer. Anybody can get killed. I'm not here to waste my blood and my sperm and let my seeds go to waste. You can't mix pork with beef. Some day you are gonna have to humble yourself to the ways of the world. Everything has law and everything humbles and submits to the will of God. So that's what we have to do and I understand that. We are all brothers at the end of the day so why would I wanna fuck around and be greasy or cut your throat or smoke you? What did you do to me? I never broke bread with you. That's people that are uncivilized and living the savage way of life. But they not gonna get it now because God only gives the awareness to those he wants to give it to. So if they don't got it now, it might come to them in the future some other time. It's just not time for them yet. God opened my mind and my eyes up a lot earlier than certain other people. I used to do the same thing them other muthafuckas used to do. But I know now. There are those that don't know and they are not held responsible for what they don't know. I know. So if I punch you in the face and I know that it is wrong, my penalty is gonna come back double. So that's why I am the way I am right now. I got families man. I got people I feed every month. I got to do this. If I don't show my appreciation in what God has done for me, he can take all this away from me. I don't need that to happen 'cause I came too far for this shit. So I got to humble my way out. I'm a grown man so that's why I am the way I am. thaFormula.com - You being someone that is in good with Nas, why do you think people in the South are taking the whole "Hip-Hop Is Dead" thing the wrong way or are they taking it the wrong way? Ghostface - Because they are poppin' right now. So when he says that, they get a funny feelin' like he's talking about them. But I didn't fall into that. It's just in the hands of the South now, but it was their turn. Also, as far as us getting creative and making good music, it is dead. I'm talking about how we make music on the East Coast. I'm not saying it's dead for the South and all that. But what I do get upset at is that everybody supports the South movement, but don't support what we doing. I don't get played in the South. No East Coast rappers gets played in the South. But it was destined to be this way. They had to have it G because it's God's plan. thaFormula.com - With so many legends just completely falling off, how have you managed to stay sharp all these years? Ghostface - Times change man. I realized for me to stay relevant is that I have got to be around young muthafuckas. I need to be around my young family because they keep me young. So I got to be around them and I got to keep my ear to the street. Mainly though, I got to do me. I pray to God everytime I do an album that the people accept this album the way that it was supposed to be accepted. So I pray a lot and God knows that this music means a lot to me because it's my reputation on the line. I don't wanna be an old rapper where I lose my flow. I seen that happen to a lot of rappers and I don't wanna go like that so fast. I believe I can still do this until I die and that's my plan. It don't have to be over a Hip-Hop track. It could be over some grown man Hip-Hop shit because things do evolve into other things. thaFormula.com - Finally, what's the most important thing you have learned throughout your journey in this industry man? Ghostface - I keep God first man. I try my best to keep the Devil off my planet because there are snakes everywhere. I don't have too many friends. I try to stay with the immediate friends I got because I don't feel like making no more because it's hard to trust a muthafucka. In the end I'm just grateful to be here man.

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Und auch ein dankeschön an dich

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danke fürs dankeschön!

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Neues Ghostface Interview. Er spricht von 2 weiteren Alben über Def Jam usw.

Ghostface Killah, otherwise known as Wally Don or Tony Starks, visited North Philadelphia to promote his new album, "More Fish." For his sixth solo album, Ghostface, formerly of the Wu-Tang Clan, opened up the mike to his whole crew, Theodore Unit. He stopped by "The Temple News" office Dec. 5 to kick back and talk hip-hop.

The Temple News: So what brings you to Philly?

Ghostface Killah.: We promotin' the new album, "More Fish." We always love coming through Philly. We got a lot of love here.

TTN: What's good with the new album, "More Fish"? Tell me a little about the new joint.

GK: We had a lot of pieces of fish left over from "Fishscale" - so we fried that up. I got the call from Def Jam while I was on tour with Wu-Tang Clan and they wanted to see if a brother could put another piece. We got Theodore Unit coming back in a big way on this joint. We put our material together and we just got busy.

TTN: Your son is emerging as a talented emcee. Touch on your son, Sun God, a little bit. How's he developing as an emcee in your footsteps?

GK: I mean, you know, he do what he do. He and Trife got this track called Miguel Sanchez that's gonna be hot. He's still new, he's still fresh, but he's improving every time he goes into the booth. He's 18 now.

TTN: You had a great range of beats on "Fishscale," from Just Blaze, to Pete Rock and J-Dilla. What producers are featured on "Mad Fish?"

GK: We got DJ Hi-Tek on this one, Phantom of the Beats, Mark Ronson, Peanut, Kool Aid. But a lot of the same ones from the "Fishscale."

TTN: Is there any reason you didn't have any RZA beats on the new one or "Fishscale?"

GK: We had to do this fast. Whatever I had in the vault, we went from there. There wasn't really any time to call out to no one like that.

TTN: You say more in one bar than a lot of cats fit into entire albums. Is there any track that you consider your crowning achievement?

GK: Nah, I just do what I do. I don't even think I touched my best on nothing yet.

TTN: What's your NFL team?

GK: I'm going to go with the Jets right now.

TTN: Could you touch on the state of Wu Tang right now?

GK: It's good, man. Wu Tang is good. But, we're going to do another album though, but I don't want to focus on no Wu s--t right now. It's all about Theodore.

TTN: Outside hip-hop, what music you guys get down to?

GK: We love a lot of R&B - old classic soul music. That's the best music. We just had a long drive from Boston the other day and we kept it on the slow jams the whole time.

TTN: What are your thoughts on the state of the hip-hop game right now? Where do you all think it's lacking?

Theodore Unit: It's lacking in creativity. Too many brothers are talking about the same things, using the same rhymes, using the same beats. They ain't trying to use words that no one's heard before. So sometimes it's good to look in the dictionary, catch up on those SAT words. It needs to be taken right now. That's why we here.

TTN: How did Theodore Unit form?

GK: Basically, we all from the same island - Staten [Island]. Me and Trife from the same project. He was loyal. After that, my manager's brother put me on to Wigs. We just bonded. Staten Island is a small place, so if you're hot, you can rise to the top and we all met at the top.

TTN: This is your sixth solo album on top of all the Wu Tang classics. What's next for Ghost?

GK: The thing right now is to focus on Trife, Wigs and my son - put them out. Get out of my contract with Def Jam, I got two more albums to put out with them. Then we can renegotiate with them or go independent. Lot of touring, that's coming out right now, a few movies. Just keep on feeding these babies, you know. Conquer.

TTN: Touch on your sense of fashion a little bit.

GK: I got the slick style, man. It's like the Tony Starks mode is like the Wallabee slick cat. Sometimes I'll throw on the robe, it depends on the occasion. You know I like the big jewelry and all that. I like to just get heavy sometimes if I'm on stage or around some important heads. It's really no name to it, but I like nice s--t. The way I wear my s--t is always been different than other cats. We Staten Island cats, we always been different.

TTN: How do you think Staten Island has influenced your style?

TU: It's different than any other place on Earth. I think we unique because they slept on us for so long, we had to struggle to get above Bronx and Queens. We got our own lingo - the world had already heard the stuff from the other boroughs, when we came out it was fresh to them. A lot of people can relate to us.

TTN: What do you do when you're not on tour or recording?

GK: It's just thinking a lot. Trying to always stay writing something. Spend a lot of time by myself, trying to get my thoughts right because time is flying right now - brothers is getting older so I'm always trying to think about how to make the next million dollars. But I love water, to be near a lot of water, listening to old music and messing with my kids and stuff. Sometimes we go to the gym and release some steam.

TTN: How many kids do you have?

GK: (Laughs) I got enough.

TTN: Explain your relationship with Raekwon. Within the Wu, you two always seemed to be the tightest and always did side-projects together.

GK: Me and Raek was boys because our styles were sort of the same. When we came in on the street level, we identified with the same s--t. When we wrote "Cuban Links" it was on some street s--t, what we were seeing everyday. He saw it from his side of town and I saw it from mine. Raek's a fly cat, I'm the same way. We mixed real well from the start. When we get together, we sound real good together. The chemistry is good.

TTN: When did Theodore Unit come together?

GK: Around 2001, around the times we dropped "Bulletproof Wallets."

TTN: What aspect of the game do you enjoy most?

GK: I love to perform for people, better than being in the booth.

TTN: Are you all touring as Theodore Unit?

GK: Yeah, we're gonna tour as a whole, hopefully start sometime in February. We might be touring with Jay-Z for a while, but do some shows beforehand to warm up.

TTN: Are you coming through Philly?

GK: Of course. No doubt. Philly is right there. We gotta get them cheesesteaks.

TTN: What do you want to tell all the Temple students who are backing you all in your corners?

GK: Keep rockin.' Stay in school, get that education. It's rough out there if you don't have no degree under your belt. But you know, thanks for supporting. Put God first.

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HHC-Interview

Ghost Interview auf HiphopCanada.com vom Januar:

	Staten Island, NY - Just when you thought the pots, pans and all the dishes were cleaned-up and put away, Ghostface Killah has been cooking up seconds for everybody. Since you didn’t have enough, here’s MORE FISH, the follow-up to the already classic FISHSCALES. Ghost delivers another strong reminder to what hip-hop music is really all about. By pushing the envelope of creativity, along with a masterful flow and hooking up some of the culture’s best producers, it is not hard to understand why Ghost consistently keeps putting out bombs. While releasing two albums in one year is somewhat of an anomaly for Ghost, I can assure you this is not one of those weak, rush-jobs that are common to so many artists. Features from Theodore Unit’s: Trife, Wigs and Ghostface’s son: Sun God, teamed up with production from Pete Rock, Madlib, MF Doom and Hi-Tek creates a true formula to remedy the “blahs” of whack hip-hop. Add Redman and Sheek Louch in there and you’re good to go. Look for the track “GOOD”, featuring Trife, an up beat soul and street mix that has become somewhat of a signature of Ghost. When the cook asks you what you want? Tell ‘em MORE FISH. Ghostface KillahHHC: Who are some of the new artists that you are developing? I have to get people to know about what’s going on with the Theodore Unit. This is what I’m putting my energy and my time into and I feel everything is precious right now. I’ve got to talk about Trife, my son, Sun God, who’s on MORE FISH and Wigs. HHC: Is there confusion between artists and the industry as to what hip-hop really is? Of Course! A lot of these cats don’t know who started what and where it came from, so once you don’t know that, you are being blinded and lead down a road that’s false. The hip-hop that we know as far as brothers on the East coast, is dead! But to other brothers that are holding it down in other places, it’s fresh to them. I’ve been telling people, you got brothers that’s leaning with it and rocking with it and having fun with it. So is hip-hop fun? For us, we took hip-hop somewhere else; it was too angry. We ran ourselves out of it. Along with the bullshit DJ’s that were getting paid to spin shit. People have got to definitely understand what hip-hop is really about. It’s about true talent, creativity, and having fun. This is our culture, how we walk, dress, everything. For the moment it’s kind of twisted and hopefully we can unloose that knot. HHC: A lot of artists that are out today are not challenging each other lyrically, would you agree? That’s because brothers don’t really know how to write lyrics. Anybody can write about guns and cars and drugs and women and all that stuff. Lyrically you really, really got to get into it. You got to study the old catalogs of the greats, Kool G Rap, Kane, Rakim, all the greats, and see how it was. HHC: What are some of the elements these new emcees are lacking? The shit is creativity, niggas don’t know how to use their mind. HHC: How did you hook-up with Dilla? I just heard his tracks and I liked them. I never hooked up with him, I just heard his tracks… Fell in love with a couple of them. I had my people get in touch with him and I just recorded his tracks and sent it to him and that was it. Me and him never really got to talk. HHC: How does your faith influence your music? I don’t really say a lot of stuff I used to say. I’m more cautious now; I got babies now. I’m on a righteous path. I don’t really like to talk about too many drugs, killing and all that stuff. I pray and ask the Father to forgive me because this is what I do to feed my kids right now. My mind is open spiritually. I understand my reason why I’m here on earth and I understand what’s going on. I know this is the last days and it’s only going to get rougher, not any easier. You got to watch out for the devil because the devil is always lurking. I’m not talking about a devil that’s underground with a pitchfork. I’m talking about negative people and things in your life. I just feel like I’ve got to be more cautious. Ghostface Killah HHC: What is it about the 5% Nation that has allowed it to leave a legacy in hip-hop? It’s the truth, and the truth is like a magnetic field that people become attracted to. When we came in spitting that righteousness over wax, and our righteousness stories like C.R.E.A.M. and all that other stuff like that it was the truth. So people become accustomed to that. They are drawn in. They don’t have to know mathematics or any lessons or all that stuff like that. That’s why Wu-Tang is so big because the people were drawn into the truth. It was like a spark, it was like a light, we just shined over everybody’s heads. We just turned it on and people were just like OH SHIT! That’s just what it is! HHC: Was there anyone in Wu-Tang that could have predicted the influence over such a large mass of people? No! We didn’t know we were going to do that. I knew we were going to come in and tear niggas down. I didn’t know that we were going to go through what we went through and had so many people that loved what we did. I knew that there was going to be people loving what we did but I didn’t know that it was going to be as big as it is. From here to Germany and all through Europe to China… it has been crazy. I knew we were going to come in and FUCK these rappers up. That’s what I thought we were going to do. Ghostface KillahHHC: What were the factors that brought Wu-Tang and Ghostface together? Were you chosen, did you choose Wu-Tang, how did it all work? No, I came with the name. I kind of created the name, but Rza put it into a music form. We come from two different projects, Rza is originally from Brooklyn and I’m from Staten Island. At that time he was living in another project on Staten Island that was like a few minutes away from me. He used to come down and sell velour suits and all that stuff and he used to rhyme and shit. I met him through one of my cousins. We seen each other and I know what he did and I was hearing his tapes and he had some fly shit. So we connected and we started grinding and hustling together. Back in his own projects, he was making music with other guys up there like Islord, Raekwon, Method Man, U-God, Inspectah Deck, his cousin Genius, and his cousin Dirty; he already had a team of niggas. While he was in the other project doing that, I was with my niggas. Me and Rza watched karate flicks together, so I showed him Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang. He moved to my project after a while and that’s when we really got into some real other shit. He wanted to take the name Wu-Tang and put it into rap form. It took us around four year later for things to pop off like that. We put our money together and got the label Wu Tang Records. We went back to the hood to go get brothers that he was messing with before, and I went to my hood asked a few brothers if they want to come. Some brothers said no because there were too many members already. That’s what it was, and that’s what you got right now. HHC: Is there a specific criterion that was necessary to be part of Wu-Tang? You had to be nice… you had to be real nice on the mic. HHC: Can you tell us about the doll that you have coming out? I had to send them back because they didn’t look like me at first. The dolls are going to be worth $500, real gold on them, a robe, Wallabee Clarks and some jewelry. HHC: Sounds nice. Well thank you for your time. No problem. Thanks. Editor's note: For more information on Ghostface Killah check out http://www.myspace.com/ghostface.

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bah echt mies das ich nicht so gut englisch spreche!

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Vertan, sprach der Hahn, und stieg von der Ente.

Scheint ja als ob er mit seiner Puppe net so ganz zufrieden gewesen ist.

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Neues Interview mit Ghost und Wigs über Poker!


Hip-Hop, Rap Interviews : Ghostface Killah & Shawn Wigs
For most MC’s “stacking chips” is just another expression in the broad encyclopedia of Hip-Hop jargon. However, when it comes to Wu-Tang Clan’s Ghostface Killah and his Theodore Unit prodigy Shawn Wigs, the phrase takes on a whole new much more literal meaning. Since joining forces on “Pokerface”, Hip-Hop’s first bona fide poker room anthem featured on Ghost’s critically acclaimed new LP More Fish, Ghost and Wigs have done more than just play their cards right. Far from a studio card shark, Wigs is a seasoned casino vet, recently taking first place at the FunkMaster Flex celebrity Poker Tournament, hosted by Diddy at Atlantic City’s Taj Mahal. With the worlds of poker and Hip-Hop drifting ever closer together as celebrities and fans alike jockey for an opportunity to get in on the action, Ghost is raising the stakes and blazing a trail for what is certain to be an exciting new outlet for the Hip-Hop community for many years to come. www.GFKPoker.com is the first and only online poker room designed specifically with Hip-Hop in mind. With his team of Shawn Wigs, DJ radio personality Angie Martinez and manager Caruso ready to take on all challengers, Ghostface brings the excitement of no-limit hold’em to fans around the globe as GFKPoker.com not only offers a unique interactive experience, but also opportunities for fans to win prizes, all expense paid VIP trips to shows and even a chance to kick it with Ghostface in Las Vegas. Want to know more? Read the interview.

R IOTSOUND.COM: The first thing many fans probably want to know is: how did you initially get involved with playing poker? How often do you play and how serious are you about sharpening your skills when it comes to the game?

GHOSTFACE KILLAH: Yo, first of all, I watched my mans and them play, they get busy, you know what I mean. Up in the studio we got like a little poker room in the back, so they be getting busy and shit and I see them niggas having a lot of fun and all that shit. And it’s like - yo, I tried that shit out. You know, it’s kinda hard, I ain’t no master at that shit, I’m still learning. But what happened was my man Wigs had wrote a poker song [Pokerface] and we put it on the album [More Fish]. A lot of motherfuckers liked that song, a lot of poker players and shit like that. We got the call from these poker dudes and they wanted to come in business with us. My man [Wigs] had won the Puff Daddy poker tournament up in Atlantic City, so the whole shit was just ringing. So niggas wanted to do business and one thing led to another and that’s how we got the www.GFKPoker.com website.

RIOTSOUND.COM: As far as the worlds of Hip-Hop and poker coming together on a single plane, what kind of synergy did you see there that really prompted you to go that route and launch the website?

GHOSTFACE KILLAH: I mean this shit is going to explode G. I’m glad that we caught it early because a lot of people they still not really really too far up on poker yet. Well actually, a lot of people is up on it but there is still a lot more that’s not so within the next couple of years it’s gonna be in it’s prime and we gonna be sitting right there taking off. Our synergy is getting bigger and bigger because we gonna make this shit so fucking big son; we ain’t even get to paint the pictures that we want to paint yet, you know what I mean? So it’s like – yo, this shit is just still growing G and we at the sea level right now.

RIOTSOUND.COM: Some younger fans might not remember this but when Wu-Tang first came out you actually wore a mask over your face so nobody could see who you really were, hence the name Ghostface Killah. In a sense, isn’t that exactly what you want to do when you’re playing poker, mask your true self from your opponents so nobody could tell what you’re really thinking?

GHOSTFACE KILLAH: Yea, we gonna do all that shit, I’m hot on that shit. I’ma be the fucking Don King of this shit, the motherfucking Ric Flair of this shit. When we come in we gonna make this shit excitement. You might be able to call me Mr. Excitement in a minute, you know I what mean, because it’s gonna be going down son. I can’t really explain it, I don’t wanna give out too much information because I don’t want nobody to steal my ideas and shit. You know niggas always do that shit, you know what I mean.

RIOTSOUND.COM: Without giving away any secrets, what do think are some of the most important factors in staying on top of your game and coming out ahead at the end of the day?

GHOSTFACE KILLAH: Its like – yo, you just gotta take off your pokerface and put on your Ghostface man, you feel me. And if you feel it in your gut, go all in man. That’s what it is G. This ain’t a game right now, we coming in with the swords son. You got chips nigga, we got chips. When we on that table son, it’s going down, you best believe we got the first deck, you heard.

RIOTSOUND.COM: Gza is known for his prowess at chess. Would you say his skills on a chess board would translate well into playing cards, or are those two different mindsets in terms of strategy?

GHOSTFACE KILLAH: Gza is a master at chess so Gza would do well because he strategizing and that’s what we dealing with in the poker hands. In these tournaments we strategizing, we thinking about our opponent or how he bluffing, or is he bluffing, you know what I mean? Sometimes we trying to hold off feelings. Because the best niggas is the ones that can hold their feelings and expressions, play with no emotions man, that’s what’s going to get us over.




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RIOTSOUND.COM: You are arguably the most dangerous player in the entire crew, when did you first start playing cards?

SHAWN WIGS: I started playing cards like six or seven years ago. First I joined a little home game and then I started shooting to the casinos and, you know, once you get involved in it, you just fall into.

RIOTSOUND.COM: I know a lot of times when you play with your friends and there’s a lot of money on the table, sometimes you can get into heated disputes.

SHAWN WIGS: Oh yea, we always do that, that’s every time we play.

RIOTSOUND.COM: Given that factor, would you recommend playing with your friends or just playing against people you don’t know?

SHAWN WIGS: It depends, if you wanna have fun, play with your friends. If you wanna be more professional play with people you don’t know. You know, ‘cause when you play with your friends that’s not sharpening your game up ‘cause people are just trying to call you just to beat you, it don’t matter if they have good hands or not.

RIOTSOUND.COM: There are many different variations of poker, what are some of your favorite games to play?

SHAWN WIGS: We pretty much just play no-limit hold’em. I don’t really like flat-limit or limit games, I don’t like Omaha or High Low; I don’t really like none of that. Five card stud is alright, we play that once in a while but pretty much it’s just no-limit hold’em.

RIOTSOUND.COM: What would you say is the biggest difference between a no-limit game and a game where there are various restrictions on betting?

SHAWN WIGS: I don’t particularly like limit games because it gives an opportunity for people to fish to see the next card for a cheap price, you know what I’m saying. Pot-limit is a little bit different because sometimes you can raise the pot which could raise them out but otherwise limit and pot-limit gives people an opportunity to see cards where in no-limit you could put their tournament life or all their money at stake on it. No-limit to me is more exciting.

RIOTSOUND.COM: As we move forward, do you see Hip-Hop becoming a big factor in the world of poker?

SHAWN WIGS: I could see poker being a big factor in the Hip-Hop world ‘cause poker is already big. When something becomes part of Hip-Hop it always does well, like clothing, jewelry and [other things]. Gambling is all about high stakes and being flashy and that’s all Hip-Hop’s about so it was destined to come together.

RIOTSOUN.COM: Personally, where do you prefer to play, Vegas or Atlantic City?

SHAWN WIGS: Personally I feel more comfortable in Atlantic City. Vegas is very big and it’s kind of intimidating if you haven’t played in a casino. ‘Cause you know the first time you go in a casino it could be intimidating so just being in Vegas is more intimidating in general. But just like everything else, once you get your shoes off under the table and you comfortable, your good man. You forget where you are, you just playing.

RIOTSOUD.COM: One thing I always wonder about in a poker game is people cheating and working together; how often does that happen?

SHAWN WIGS: Yea, that happens day in and day out.

RIOTSOUND.COM: What do you do when you see something like that going on?

SHAWN WIGS: The only way to stop that is, if you see that going on at your table, just rack your chips and head to another table. There’s not much you could really do about it, especially if you playing online. Who knows who got a computer and who’s talking to each other. If you just play your cards and play smart, that’s the best way to go about it, ‘cause you got cheaters out there no matter what goes on.

RIOTSOUND.COM: What would you say is the most you’ve ever won in a single sitting playing cards?

SHAWN WIGS: It was probably at that Diddy tournament. I took first prize in that little tournament there. It was like fifteen thousand and change.

RIOTSOND.COM: Besides poker, do you enjoy any other card games?

SHAWN WIGS: I don’t really play too much other cards. I mean, we roll dice too. There’s a game called Casino, so we play that too sometimes. As far as cards, it’s pretty much just poker and Casino and that’s it.

For more info stay tuned to www.GFKPoker.com - enter tournaments, win all expense paid VIP trips to the hottest shows, kick it with Ghost in Vegas and more.

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Wieder mal ein Audio Interview mit Ghost. Diesmal aus einer Schwedischen Radio Sendung namens P3 Soul.

http://www.zshare.net/download/ghostface-interview-mp3.html

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