Black Rob is most known for his platinum selling single “Woah!,” and
recently released his latest album Game Tested, Streets Approved after spending
several years in prison.
Album Review: 'Game Tested, Streets Approved' By Black Rob
Q: You got out of prison last May. When did you start recording Game Tested, Streets Approved?
A: Right away.
Same day [as I got out of prison].
Q: How did
being in jail affect the album?
A: It affected the
album because I had all this new material. It was all on cap, I didn’t even
have to pull out my book or anything like that. I knew what I was doing; I had
about thirty songs, so I just went in and just did them. They’d play a beat and
if I felt like something was good for that beat, I went right in on it.
Q: Did you
write some of the album while you were in prison?
A: I wrote all of
it while I was in prison. You’d think somebody would actually lose touch, being
that they’re not in the streets, involved. Everything is at a standstill in
jail, but having been to so many places in my life, I knew how to be fly at the
end of the day. I know how to be fly, I know what’s fly, so it was nothing
for me to sit down and write rhymes.
As
the years went on, I was still in tune to everything that was going on, it
wasn’t like I was out of touch. I had people coming to see me every week, so
that’s how I stayed in tune, that’s why the album doesn’t sound like it’s from
2007 or 2006, like I did it before I went to jail or some sh*t like that. I did
that as soon as I came home. The album’s been done.
Q: You mention
on the album that people say you’ve changed since you’ve been out of prison.
What do you think about that?
A: Hey man, we’re
always going to have haters. What they should do is bow down and congratulate
me for giving them this ill music right here. What they need to do is say,
‘Hey, BR, thank you for blessing us with this sh*t right here.’ Everybody’s
going to think that they know what [music] is the best. You don’t have to like
Black Rob, but you have to respect him, because he’s still here, doing it. I’d
like to see a lot of these people try to do what I do.
I’ve
always been hot, man. The media [are] talking their talk about me, about all
the sh*t I did. I don’t care what I did. There are [people] out there doing
worse sh*t than me that haven’t been caught yet. The media blew up, too. They
were acting like I was this menace to society, but nobody ever got hurt when I
committed any crimes.
Q: You mention
in the song “Made Me a Man” that you’re a role model, whether you like it or
not. How does that affect your mentality as an emcee?
A: You know, when
I’m sitting around with my kids and they say they want to be like me, I know
how it is. I know that there are a lot of children up here that look up to me,
and when they saw [my criminal activities] on the news and in the papers, I
didn’t really care at first, I thought I might lose my fan base, but I was
really thinking, ‘damn, will I be able to make records in four years?’ My kids
made me feel like no matter what I do, I’m on TV, I’ve got the stage and my
music, and I can use that to teach people.
The
stage is my forum to speak out and, you know what, whether I like it or not,
I’m a role model. Once I step on that stage, there are people looking up at me
that are younger than me, so whatever comes out of my mouth is what they’re
going to follow. Do I want them to follow some negative sh*t? No, I want them
to follow the righteous sh*t, because what I’m saying to you is righteous sh*t,
I’m just telling you that there are pitfalls in this game. You can be fly, but
at the end of the day, if you’re doing something negative, people are going to
take notice and call you on it. This is good music, and I want everybody [at
the show] to enjoy themselves. I’m New York, I’m Harlem, and I talk about where
I’m from. This is where I’m from, this is how I get down in my town.
Q: Speaking of
New York and Harlem, in the song “This is What It Is,” you say “Now you wonder
why New York ain’t about sh*t, it’s full of anti-social, narcissistics kickin’
bullsh*t instead of kickin’ ballistics.” Can you explain that a little more?
A: You can see how
New York rappers right now don’t want to deal with each other. In the 80s and
the 90s, everybody was making records together. It was like New York was
together. All these dudes were making records with each other. Now, with this
new generation, nobody wants to talk to anybody else; when they see another
rapper, they’re like, “f*ck that n*gga.” People are setting up to take over,
you know? At the end of the day, it’s every man for himself out here in New
York as far as that rap deal is concerned. If you’re with a family, you’re with
a family. If not, you’ve got to fend for yourself—It’s going to be you against
a million. Keep that real sh*t, let’s come back together and see New York take
off again.
Follow JT Langley on Twitter: JTL_ologyMusic
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