With his latest single, “Crush Tonight” from the forthcoming release Loyalty, receiving heavy airplay on the radio and in the clubs, along with a Benny Boom directed video on the way, Fat Joe looks to be following in the footsteps of success that his previous album brought him. The Bronx Don, however, won’t let the success get to his head as he reflects on how he manages his newfound fame now that his mic has been turned up and more people are listening.
“All of a sudden, I’m this radio MTV guy, but my true roots are to hip-hop,” Joe said to AllHipHop.com. “I’m trying to please everybody. I come from the streets; I come from hardcore hip-hop, and it’s touchy for me. I try to do a little bit of both, so the streets feel they got what they wanted and all my new fans can appreciate the music.”
The next single to test the rapper’s penchant for balancing the streets and MTV will be “All I Need,” a recording that deals with relationships and commitment. The rapper said he felt he needed to make a song with a strong positive message toward women.
“Too many times, I’ve been calling women b###### and hoes—not like I stopped—but I just felt we needed to make a song, because we know all women are not b###### and hoes.
“A lot of times women complain about men in general, about a guy with a regular job and he don’t make enough or whatever the case. And they get a guy that’s rich and works his ass off and they complain that he ain’t ever home. So, I’m telling them to appreciate your man. Love your man.”
Along with speaking to the ladies, Joe will continue to voice the narratives of the Bronx blocks that raised him. “Born in the ghetto, I’m speaking for the cats who can’t speak. You don’t ever hear what they got to say,” he said. “A lot of celebrities, they get to a certain point where they get rich and famous and they forget what goes on in the ‘hood. I have to represent the cats that are going through the struggle in the ‘hood. Being that I got a bigger platform, I try to do that. Nothing has changed. It’s real. I’ve never been about hiding the truth.”
Loyalty, Fat Joe’s fifth album, is scheduled to hit shelves on November 12 through the rapper’s Terror Squad imprint via Atlantic Records. The album will feature production from Cool & Dre, The Alchemist, Teflon, Ron Browz, Ty Fyffe and Terror Squad member Armageddon. Aside from resident Terror Squad members, Scarface and Cam’ron are the only ones sharing time on the mic with Joey Crack. Joe said he consciously made the decision to stick with those who have been loyal to him through the years. “I really rock with the Terror Squad artists and give them a platform so they can shine. Loyalty is dedicated to everybody in my crew for being loyal to me, for sticking by me. We been through rocky times and they’ve always been with me. I had no choice but to dedicate it to them.”