AHH: In the past week, all Hell has broken loose
in the media and the Internet, just tell me what your reaction is to the way
everyone responded to you specifically?
Royce: It was bound to happen. Those brothers
obviously doing what they gotta do to get they attention. It’s just a situation
where I’m defending myself. What the people expect? From the way people
responded, from what I hear, the overall opinion is just…I smashed them. It
don’t surprise me.
AHH: “Malcolm X” is getting crazy airplay
in the streets. It’s kind of a shame that you’re record gets overlooked
to
the hype of a diss track.
Royce: Know what? The diss is fresh and new.
My album, what people don’t understand is that my album is years
old. It got pushed back so much and it was already old material. The diss is
like catch up to everybody. It’s like
something I just did. If you hear the new stuff I’m doing, you’ll
be like, oh it’s crazy. I came along so far. I been
developing. Let me clarify, “Malcolm X” is a response. It’s not
just a record thrown at them, it’s a response to a
record that they did. It just so happens that the record they did, nobody cares
about. I didn’t start this sh*t.
AHH: When I spoke with Proof, he acted like it
was all you who initiated it.
Royce: He gonna make it look like that. The reality
of it was, I look up and I was getting phone calls on this record about me.
I heard it, and actually they made a whole CD about me, Ja Rule and Benzino.
So it was a whole CD that they was passing out a 50’s release party. I
didn’t even know where it was from. I just responded. This is whatever.
All kinds of death threats and all kinds of stupid sh*t.
AHH: From your letter, I gathered that this was
from a journalist, the comment of “D-12 is the worst Rap group
out there” or whatever, and that got out. That probably didn’t need
to get out there.
Royce: Exactly. Well, I’m a man, I’m
human. Even I get emotional and say sh*t that I don’t necessarily mean
or
that I shouldn’t say. I’m a man. I can admit when I say something.
But it’s a two way street. I said things, D-12
said things, when it boils down to it, if I got personal relationships with
certain people in that camp, and it’s just
like mixed signals when I’m saying sh*t and they’re saying sh*t. It
ain’t nothing we can’t get on the phone and talk
about or meet up and talk about, squash. I didn’t know I was being recorded.
It just came off as some sh*t as when Bizzarre was trying to play me. It really
boils down to me and Bizarre.
AHH: So it’s more-so Bizarre than Proof?
Royce: Hell nah! Cuz [Proof] the one runnin’
his mouth. Proof won’t shut up. If he’d shut up, I’d leave him
alone.
He figure he gotta be the one to say everything, and he supposed to be my man.
And it just make more angry
because I feel like n#### done turned his back on me. It’s like whatever.
I feel like I’m in a world of my own. I’m
gonna ride for myself. Everything I do is in defense. I’m not just gonna
pick on them dudes.
AHH: You mentioned in your letter that you and
Proof go back…
Royce: Proof was my man. I’m loyal. Once
I decide I’ll ride for you, I’ll ride for you. All of this sh*t just
popped up
out of nowhere. Back in the day, when I wrote that record about Bizarre, I called
Proof at the studio like I said in
the letter. Because that’s my man. I had been 2-waying him while they was
making the CD. And he didn’t say
nothing. He could’ve called me and been like, “These n*ggas are writing
a record about you”, like I did him. Send
me the same courtesy. He didn’t do that. I was 2-waying him and I was getting
dry responses from him. Next thing you know, a CD is out. He [was] at every
studio session, because some of the n*ggas talking on the CD like, “I send
some more gangsta sh*t but Proof sent me back in the booth to change it.”
He was in the studio while they was doing it, and just ain’t say nothing.
I get 2-ways from him sayin’, “Be careful out here, it’s trying
times,” sh*t like that. What the f*ck you thinking of n####! Now that the
sh*t is hitting the fan, he writes records talking bout, “Royce wanna ride
on me and kill me.” I don’t wanna kill Proof. I don’t even feel
like Proof is a threat. This sh*t is stupid to me. The respect that I showed
him back in the day, I’m not getting that in return.
AHH: He made several comments, and I’ll
pass them on to you….comment if you like. He said the original diss
record was three years old…you talking about D-12 or whatever.
Royce: Yeah. I wrote a record about Bizarre.
I called Proof at the studio. He heard the whole record. He said,
“Royce man, I love you dog. I appreciate you showing enough respect to
call me at the studio. Slim need to hear
this.” He didn’t sh*t about Bizarre. He was like, “Slim need
to hear this.” He didn’t care if it came out. Slim was
like, “Nah man, you can’t beef with Bizarre. That’s my man. That’s
my crew. You gotta ride with him.” So we
squashed it. And I’m a man of my word so nobody ever heard the record for
three years to show how real I am. So when they did this record, they sayin’
I’m trying to gain attention or whatever. But they did a whole CD, passed
it out at the 50 release party, and the next day they world premiered it on
the biggest radio station here. So who the f*ck trying to get attention? All
this stuff came out of nowhere. So the next day I felt like I had to go to the
radio with something. And all I had was that diss record that was three years
old. So I took that up there, wrote a new record, they played that on the air.
[D-12] got all upset. Before I could even get to the club, they went to the
club and jumped on one of my mans who didn’t know what was going on, didn’t
even know I was at the radio station. This is why I’m saying f*ck a truce.
You already done put your hands on somebody. The sober you is responsible for
the drunk you. That’s my motto. Proof runnin’ around saying I started
everything. Number one, I didn’t put my hands on nobody. I ain’t did
nothing to nobody. If they just wanted to go back and forth with me on records,
we could’ve did that. Proof done already took it to the streets so now
it is what it is.
AHH: Proof mentioned that he didn’t need
any help getting signed. But he said you depended on Emimem for all
three of your deals.
Royce: I put it like this: Number one, Proof
can’t even rhyme. I like him more as a person than I like him on the
mic. He can freestyle, but when he get on a track, he sound like garbage. Without
Eminem, he’s nothing. I’m
running through deals right now. I might get three more. I don’t even know
what my future holds. But I keep
getting them, ‘cuz at the end of the day, I can rhyme. Em can do anything
he can do to prevent me from going
forward and I’m still gonna make it. I be around after he retire. I’m
twenty five years old. Them motherf*ckas is
knocking on thirty’s door. So I don’t give a f*ck what Proof talking
about. Who is Proof? Soon as Em decide he
gonna retire, [Proof] gonna retire. The hype-man sh*t is up. What you gonna
make a solo record? The Dogmatik
record? Look at the sh*t he done tried to do on his own. He can’t get Em
on a record. What did I tell you? Least I
got [Em] for a hook.
AHH: In our last interview we were talking about
your brother, Tre Little who appears on the Malcolm track. How
is he dealing with this. I mean to debut on a diss track.
Royce: This is not like a publicity stunt for
us. ‘Cuz if it was, my whole crew would be making records. Records
would be flying all over the place. The only reason Tre appears on the record
is because they mention Tre on their
record. Why you putting Tre up? What the f*ck he got to do with anything? So
of course he gonna get on the track and defend himself. If they had mentioned
anybody else in my crew, they would have been on the record too. We just givin’
it to them like they tryin’ to give it to us. We know that they gonna try
to make it look like this is Royce trying to fuel everything. But if you look
at it dog, what the f*ck do I stand to gain by that? What can I gain by going
against Shady Records? The game is Shady Records right now. Why would I go against
them? I think Em is the illest motherf*cker rhyming. Why would I go against
Em? It just don’t add up.
AHH: You said earlier, “f*ck a truce,”
but in the letter you hinted a resolution. Is that possible?
Royce: I would like for the street sh*t to end
because I see where it’s going. People gonna hurt, some people might even
get killed. But as far as I’m concerned, I don’t want to see nothing
happen to no D-12 member. Because I don’t hate none of them. I don’t
hate nobody in the streets right now. Proof, I definitely don’t want to
see nothing happen to because there will always be a place in my heart for DeShawn
Hope. But when this motherf*cker turn into Dirty Hary, he turns into somebody
else. After a couple drinks, he becomes somebody else. They already put their
hands on somebody. The n#### that they put they hands on, he don’t rhyme.
So he can’t control what he do. So as far as Royce. I’m gonna continue
my music. If I see Proof and I feel like smacking him, I’m might smack
him. But I don’t want it to get serious like that. The cards is gonna fall
where they will. I know if they twelve deep and they see me, they gonna do something.
If I see Proof, all that tough sh*t he talkin’, when I look in his face,
when we eye to eye. all that changes, trust me.
AHH: The last thing Proof told me, he wanted
me to repeat to you directly, “Only a fool chooses war over peace.
Because in war, fathers bury sons. And in peace, sons bury fathers.”
Royce: Well you tell Proof that’s real deep
and mythological and all that, and if you talk to him again, tell him
[that] he knows me. I ain’t itching for war. Who the f*ck want to go war?
I ain’t George Bush. You tell him I’ll
defend myself. He talkin’ peace now, but when he with his n*ggas, he talking
war too. I‘m built for whatever he
want to do. Ain’t nobody looking for Proof. If I was looking for Proof,
I would have been at his doorstep. He
over-dramatize sh*t, it ain’t sh*t. Lyrically, they can’t f*ck with
me. And in the streets, they can’t f*ck with me.
Proof will have an Electric Koolaide Acid
Test mixtape hitting the streets this week. Royce’s double CD mix is
out now. Also, expect a Proof LP this Summer, D-12 in Fall. Koch Records will
be releasing a Royce mix CD soon as well.