"Space Invaders" is produced by Molotov and will be available on Redstar's free upcoming project "Les Mains Sales" ("The Dirty Hands"). Stay tuned, and do not forget to check the boy Jace Abstract too, he does know how to spit.
Sketch of KNUX by yours truly. Sorry, the resolution sucks...
Rapper, singer, songwriter, producer... KNUX seems to be as efficient as his groupmate Cherry Brown when it's about mastering multiples talent fields. At only 23 years old, the young "hafu" releases his 1st solo project "System CRUNK" plus so many participations and side projects we can't even count. Well, Mr.Austin has something to say and you should pay some attention.
Interview by Tuân
Tuân: So KNUX, can you introduce yourself and tell us what you do?
KNUX: I'ma lover not a player (laughs)!! I'ma artist who lives in Japan now, I make beats and I rap. I'm half American half Japanese, part of the groups called Jack Rabbitz and Z-Block. And I'm also in a band called KOUNT:DOWN. I rhyme in Japanese and English. When I do solo and CRUNK shit, most of the time I rhyme in English
T: Like Cherry Brown, you have a couple of different aliases. What's the difference between "KNUX" and "Mr. Austin"? And how did you choose such names?
K: Back in the days I use to tote a brass knuckle for a percussion (laughs), so my homes called me "knuckles". I figured I could use that as a MC name cuz I didn't have one. Just took the letter L off from Knuckles, then I became KNUX. My dad was a magician and his performer name was Eddie Austin, so I got my a.k.a from my dad's performing name. For me that a.k.a is like a last name, so people don't get confused with some other artists or names.
Just like your groupmates Richee and Cherry B, I suppose you been living in a military base in Yokosuka right?
Nope. I live in Fujisawa and my second home is Wood Haven, Queens, NY.
I was wondering how's the childhood of a half American, half Japanese youth in Japan...
Not well... Especially in Elementary School you get bullied because of the color of your skin. I hate when people call me Gaijin (NB: which means "foreigner" in Japanese but in a pejorative way). That's how they get Uppercut by saying racist shit.
Your last release was "System CRUNK", is it your 1st solo project?
I guess you could say that (laughs) ! It's about my agony and anger cuz there are a lot of obstacles in that game: hate, love, whole bunch of shit. But you learn from it and you absorb a knowledge from it. Increase a motive and I expressed it with "System CRUNK". Plus my mixtape is to let people know what I really like to do and what I'm good at. Cuz you can't hear "System CRUNK" type of joints in JRZ or Z-Block. It's all from KNUX a.k.a Mr.Austin.
You can rap on some hardcore CRUNK joints, jump to Rock music and also sing some romantic ballads. Did you start to rap or sing at 1st ?
Rap of course.
Which style do you prefer?
Rap (CRUNK).
Aren't you afraid the public got lost a little bit since you can literally modify your musical style?
I'm just doing my thing son. Some day when the South CRUNK boom comes back, I'll get people's attention cuz I've been doing the CRUNK shit for so long (laughs).
Speaking about different musical genres, you said you were part of several different bands like KOUNT:DOWN, Z-Block and Jack Rabbitz. Please tell us more about them.
KOUNT:DOWN is like a Rap Metal, Screamo type of band.
Z-Block is me, Steek, DK who are my best friends. Those two guys influenced me doing rap when I was 14. We usually write about political stuffs that nobody else does. By the way, we only rhyme in Japanese.
Jack Rabbitz makes the type of music for the people who like to go to the club and PARTY!! I call it International music (laughs) !!
Isn't it too difficult to work with all these people at the same time?
Sometime it's a pain in the ass, but every group has different tastes so I enjoy what I do with them.
You do music with your brother in KOUNT:DOWN and were a member of Trill Grillz with your sister Christy. Is it difficult mixing family and music?
It's actually easier and better cuz you could say shit and say what's on your mind straight up.
Your song "You & I" was featured on "Big Ron presents: Next Starz" and "Jack Rabbitz". You wrote and produced it. How come did the boys band W-inds covered it and "Chillin' in the Daydream"?...
I guess they liked it (laughs) !!!
And how do you feel about it? Would you like to be like a ghostwriter?
It's another step to elevate as an artist, so I thought it was a good experience. I don't mind being a ghostwriter, as long as I get the credit (laughs).
There's that song about rapers on "System CRUNK" called "Kill them Rapers". Cherry B and you seem to have a real problem with those guys, something I totally understand. But where does this hatred come from?
CB too?? I didn't know that. There is a lot of shit why I can't say, but Im rapping about it cuz people don't realize it's a big problem in society. Even the fucking ignorant medias hide some incidents from the public, cuz they say it's a bad influence for the citizen. Sometimes they dont litigate the case too. If the prosecutor don't do shit... I say kill the rapers!! Real talk people gotta know these stuffs so I gotta say what the fuck is going on.
What do you think about Cherry Brown's moustache?
Ugly!
Dunno why CB is always around (laughs)! Any plan for the future?
Try to do stuff in The States. And wanna make a lovely family.
If you want to say one last thing, thank someone, it's the right moment!
I would like to thank my mom for raising me, even if my dad passed away when I was 5. Keep it CRUNK baby!
Catchy hook, beat fresh out the box... Feels like Summer ain't it? La Kolok proves that Rap music isn't all about gangs, money and murder with their brand new video clip. Shout out to my men iSHAWN (on the hook) and DJ Prems (La Kolok's DJ).
The video is directed by Dan Koman who also worked with Rohff, one of the most famous French rapper.
What a surprise. I wasn't paying that much attention to current Vietnamese pop music (V-Pop) these last years, but I discovered on the Net some incredible joints! And of course I wanted to share them with you ;)
Young veteran and young legendary rapper, Shade Sheist is one of the few respected artists from US Westcoast to the Far East Side. Since I had the occasion to draw the art cover of his last single "Queen" featuring Latoiya Williams, I also wanted to ask him a couple of things about his career and his perspectives for the future. Enjoy, the West is speaking.
Tuân: Hi there Sheist, can you please introduce yourself?
Shade Sheist: For those not familiar I am Shade Sheist, a professional songwriter, recording artist and entertainer from Inglewood, California, USA.
T: Where does your nickname come from?
SS: Shade comes from "Shady," which in my case means 'Quiet,' a name given to me by my peers and Sheist is a description of the industry I work in.
You dropped your latest single "Queen" featuring Latoiya Williams a year ago. That supposedly announced the release of your new album "P.N.L.A. The Exit Strategy". When will it be available and what would the listeners expect about it?
In the summer it will be about a year since I dropped "Queen" and yes it was an official announcement of me producing a new album. I don't want to give away any details on a work-in-progress but I will say that you can expect that [Shade Sheist] I made you fall in love with in the past.
"Queen" art cover made by yours truly
You come from Inglewood, a famous neighborhood in LA. How was life over there as a teen?
Pretty much what you've seen in films like "Boyz N Da Hood" and "Menace II Society".. you got the good, the bad and the in-between. My hometown cities are deceptive, they look like great exteriors but the interiors contain (some) fu*ked up shxt. But a lot of good have also come from these streets and gone on to do some major things worldwide.. I'm an example, so it wasn't all bad.
And how did you start to rap?
Elementary School.. a bright idea developed by some very impressionable minds. I was never officially taught how to rap, I literally did it myself. I guess you just have it or you don't.. I must've had it.
I heard the rumor you layed some of your first verses on some Johnny J's productions that were later featured on 2Pac's "All Eyez On Me"...
Actually, Johnny J, an early musical mentor of mine, worked with me on demos and several of the tracks we used ended up being used on Pac's "All Eyez on Me" album. No lyrics of mine were used, it was simply a case of 2Pac getting all of the good shxt when he came home.. lol
You appeared in a couple of 2Pac's video clip. Which one? And have you ever had the chance to talk with him?
"So Many Tears" and the extended edit of "Dear Mama." I got a chance to speak to 2Pac briefly over the phone while shooting "So Many Tears." He called the video's director from prison and the phone was passed around to a lot of us cast members for him to say thank you for looking out for him while he was unable to be there. That was pretty much the convo, literally.
Sheist & Dr.Dre
You worked with several artists such as DJ Quik, Mariah Carey, Nate Dogg and Timbaland to name a few. Who had the deepest impact on you? Do you have any anecdot to tell us?
They all did, for their own reasons. Working with Quik was sentimental, his was the 1st gangsta rap music I had ever heard in my life. Working with Dre was an honor because.. that's Dr. Dre, the Legend. The same for Mariah. And Teddy Riley. I loved every last one of Nate Dogg's features coming up as a teen so being able to share all those hits with him was unbelievable. Working with all of these great musicians definitely made my life worthwhile.
You did work with rapper/producer Damizza for quite some times then split. What happened?
We reached our peak together at that time and decided it was best to continue exploring the industry using separate avenues. We continue to consult each other to this day, however.
Do you guys have future common projects?
Stay Tuned...
Another person you work with for many years is N.U.N.E. How did you meet him?
I met Nune through a mutual friend, we became homies and it's been on ever since. He was introduced to me as an artist but he soon showed me that he did way more than make dope records. I helped him facilitate a lot of his great ideas and he's had my back ever since.
Shade Sheist x N.U.N.E.
You were previously signed to a major label then created your indie structure called Put Yourself Out Entertainment (PYO) with N.U.N.E. Since you saw both sides of the music industry, what are their advantages and disadvantages to you?
The advantages of being with a Major is really just the budget you get to work with and the promotional vehicle they can afford to drive. Then there are all of the industry connections they have. On the flip, you have to pay for all of that.. so unless you're selling Millions, you are seeing nothing for all of that hard work and effort. That's the advantage of being Independent and putting yourself out, you can and do see all of that hard work pay off.
You were close to Murder Inc. when Ja Rule was on top of the game, wrote for Vita and were featured on The Fast & Furious OST. What was the nature of your relationship with Irv Gotti's team?
They loved the West Coast sound and Damizza and I just were who they wanted to roll with at that time. Gotti really enjoyed the style of my records and suggested I write records with The Inc, so I did. He heard a song of mine called "If You Were My Bitch" and the next thing I know I'm on a Gold release. One day he came to the studio and said he needed a record with me and Nate for "The Fast and The Furious".. the next thing I know I'm on a hit movie and Double Platinum soundtrack. I also got to write and record with Ja Rule and we did major damage on a Triple Platinum release. I loved writing for Vita, she's ill.. same with Cadillac Tah and Black Child. Those were the days.
People know you (or don't know you) for your ghostwriting skills. Can you tell us for who you wrote?
I can't actually. Confidentiality Agreements. But I have definitely put in my work for the West's Best, a few East Coast and Southern Greats and several R&B artists.. some great, some elite. Some of my work ended up releasing and becoming Billboard hit singles. Writing has always been closely tied to the respect I receive in this industry. That's because a lot of my peers know who have hired me at one point or another.
Radios nowadays play crap music and the Westcoast scene seems to have been a bit forgotten. What's your point of view about Westcoast current state?
Exactly what you said.. it's crap. We get a "West Coast Wednesday" and we live on the West. I'm so confused by this. I don't even like to talk about it, it's a sore subject because I know where we were not so many years ago. Where we are is very disheartening.
Asia has a lot of love for Westcoast music. You did perform in Taiwan, Japan, you even have a deal with a japanese label... How do you explain that success over there and what do you appreciate about Asian mentalities?
They just know that good shxt.. lol. I can't explain my success in Asian territories, I can only say that they LOVE me and I love them back. When I release, they pick it up, they download it.. when I come out to perform, they show up every time. I got nothing but love for [that] type of mentality.
Talking about Asian stuffs, how did my artworks catch your attention? What did you appreciate about them?
It's great work! I saw what you did for some of my peers and I was highly impressed. The colors are vivid and the character representations are really on-point. I was blown away with the "Queen" finished product. It really looks like me.. in a Manga way. LoL
Do you like anime and manga?
Love It! Believe it or not, I used to draw (or at least attempt to) Anime in high school. One of my Japanese classmates taught me a few techniques and I was getting pretty good at it. I couldn't do it to save my life these days though. I used to watch a lot of Anime cartoons as well. One I distinctly remember watching often was called "Project A-Ko."
Well, anything else to say? Projects for the future?
Much Luv 2 all of my supporters.. Look out for Me This Year!
Il est jeune, il fait parler de lui sur Genève et par extension en Suisse romande. C'est DJ Vidy, vous savez, le p'tit jeune de 16 piges qui mixe dont je vous avais déjà parlés. Il passe à la casserole de repreZent.ch et il faut avouer qu'il s'en sort pas trop mal. Accepter toutes ces critiques en fait quelqu'un de bien plus mature que la majorité des acteurs du Rap suisse...
En tout cas, ça fait plaisir qu'un média Hip-Hop suisse ose lancer des piques. Enfin.
