Q: Where are you from?
A: I was born and raised in Kassel a city wit 195.000 Inhabitants in the heart of Germany...This place I'm callin home even if most of ma friends n' fam left the city...n I'm absent from there for about 8 years...
Q: How were you introduced to Hip-Hop?
A: Since I was a little kid, I recorded shit out of the tv wit a cassette recorder, i loved it to create my own dialogues out of movies n' TV-Shows...later I bought turntables n' a shitty mixer, began to buy n collect records n of course scratch n' mix them. At the same time I started to beatbox for a friend that started to rap must be around 1998 and of course i tagged at night out on the streets wit a can, but neva were good at it...I was active in 4 elements out of 5 except breakdancin cuz I always was so lazy...lets say Hip-Hop introduced me to itself!
Q: When did you start writing Rhymes?
A: It was around 2002, i started as a DJ in a rockband and then I get involved in writin lyrics n to perform ma first track together wit the band live on the gigs we played together allover germany. At the same time I recorded a 4-Track EP wit a friend of mine who sang the "Hooks" known to few as the Love&Hate EP. I realized that wit the band I couldn't realize whus in ma mind. So after the Break in 2003, I started to focus on jus writin tracks.
A friend of mine Terra-P started to make beats n the rest is history "Amajination Vol.1" was build in 2007 originally n' a lil bit modified for the 2009 release on Strange Gibberish...
Q: Who are some of your main musical influences?
A: In the beginning I think it were the guys on the first records I had: The Infamous n Hell on Earth of Mobb Deep and the Goin Off LP of Biz Markie...I bought Tapes of Tape-Kingz in those Days like the LS-One, was fire fo the new York Shit n' bought every Single of Royce, MastaAce, Pharohe Monch, Common, Onyx n a few others i could get in hand, I was really addicted to 12 Inches at that Time...But I always had people around me who listened to different genres of music, so i was neva afraid of Rage aginst the Machine, Godsmack or Aphex Twin...I think i didn't have that typical Rap-History wit this Funk/Jazz/Soul-Socialization straight before, it were Punk, Rock, Electronica n' Rap since Day One
At the Moment I listen to lots of old italian soundtracks, Camu Tao's last LP, Ninjasonik, Omega Jackson's n Black-Tokyo's Beats, Gypsy Records out of Yugoslavia...nuff said!
Q: What else inspires you to create/write/perform etc.?
A: I get inspired by that whole life process wit all its ups n' downs! I definitly listen to tons of music mos def if it's raw! By records, those old Marvel-Comics, animes n of course by movies of which I built a really large collection over the last few years...And I play too much videogames, I think all this shit you can hear outta ma music
Q: Do you perform live?
A: Not anymore...I did often wit ma band back in the days...but here in Germany I think ma music got not that platform cuz of the language-barrier...for most of the people here it stays a mystery what I want to express wit ma lyrics/music.
Q: Do you work with people in person mostly or through the internet? Please talk a bit about how you hooked up with the folks you worked with on your album.
A: All the guys featured wit beats on ma tape, I never met in real life! I phoned a few Times wit Drumboy who lives near me in cologne but we neva met...Formica Jones once was a S/G labelmate who was really openminded from the beginning n' sent me a bunch of beats. SomeGuy I met through myspace, he was down wit ma shit since day one n offered me way-too-cool beats and last but not least Bold Little Airwave: I bought his Tape around 2009 from Sassbologna n loved his Music n one day he offered me to remix one of ma Tracks "Mr.-Hard-to-handle" and his remix made it to the final and only Version which is on Tape.
IZ-Real ma only feature-guest i met through our Label S/G and was impressed since day one, he's pure fire, so I asked him to jump in...
All covers n' artworx were made by Niko, who I , guess what, know in real life, he's a friend of mine since years.
I work wit a bunch of others too like Chris C, Det the Bomb, Weez1, Omega Jackson, Skyscraper, NinePlanets, Ko:Ke and a few others
Q: What releases do you have under your belt besides the upcoming cassette on sassbologna?
A: I got the "Rest in Pieces Vol.1" mixtape on ma Bandcamp Page downloadable for free.
I'm in recording/mixing process of "Rest in Pieces Vol.2" mixtape of ma alter ego "The Incredible Tall" which features Det, Chris C, Weez1, IZ-Real, Icky Slick and a few TBAs...
I plan to make n' release a few T-Shirts wit some of ma Friends here. I'm just on the lookout at the moment bout production details...
