Harry-O Interview 2007

Wir sprachen mit Harry-O über sein Werdegang von Bad Boy zu Murder Inc. und sein Debütalbum. Außerdem kam auch Ashantis Situation zur Sprache und die Beziehung zu Chris Gotti...

What projects are you currently working on at the moment have you a mix tape in the works or just working on your album ?

H-O: Right now we in the middle of doing a bunch of things, Buck is putting together a mix tape a Murder Inc./Inc. MPire Mixtape with all the artists I'm not doing any solo mix tapes at the minute. IN the process of doing that also we will be working on my project Harry O project when that projects going to come out is another subject. (listen to it again see if that's what he says) We finishing up Rule's album and after that everybody else.

Do you expect to be on Rule's album ?

H-O: Me and Rule we did two great songs but I'm not sure exactly if they going to make the album or not we did one song called 'Miss Me' and we did another song with Me, Rule, Irv, Ashanti and Seven, that's kinda hot allot of people like that song but I'm not really sure as far the direction Rule's going to go with the album so that's a question you really got to ask him.

In our last interview you labelled yourself 'The Smooth Criminal' Gotti told you to 'holla at the ladies' do find yourself doing what Rule did with those type tracks or do you plan on going a different route ?

H-O: Well I always get this question because im coming from Murder Inc so if I make any tracks that's aimed at females they always want to ask me the question as far as me and Rule in comparison but its something totally different from what I do what Rule do is what he does and I would be doing what I do if i was under Murder Inc./MPire or not. The reason why I would make records intended for females is because I know the fan base....you know the greater market females and I cant help that I have a light voice over certain tracks so my voice is not going to sound to....your voice is an instrument and my instrument sometimes doesn't sound well over dark, dark, dark beats so usually it sound better over beats that are not too dark, usually those beats are the beats that are intended for females but you know don't get me wrong I can get on one of those hard tracks and smack somebody's head off if that's what I wanted to do but you know I'm just trying to make some money.

What was your situation with Bad Boy were you apart of the label at some stage, were you working with them ?

H-O: I worked with them, let me see I was down with Bad Boy I'm still down with Bad Boy those my homies over there you know, I met Puff awhile back I did some writing for him he took me on tour with him. I lived with him out on the road for almost two months and I learned from him I learned how to perform, I learned how to be an entertainer an all round entertainer they have a well oiled machine working over there and yea you could say I was down with them those still my home boys just that you know this is the label that pays me over here those are just my boys over there.

Speaking of ghost writing have you done any writing for any other artists that we'd know of ?

H-O: I don't want to just blow anybody out but I always....I wouldn't say like writing straight up for people but I have influenced allot of records you know I have influenced allot of records ideas and ideas for hooks and direction people should go in you know a couple of artists I don't really want to put their business out there. You know but im going to sit here and say I wrote hit records for anybody nah I just influenced allot of records, I influenced records in here but you know we all influence each other in here you know that's why we a team that's what we suppose to do.

Supreme Team is that a group that Gotti is putting together or just a compilation album ?

H-O: That's a question that Gotti and Rule got to answer because Supreme Team is something based from....it started out in Queens you know I'm not a Queens person I'm from uptown Bronx a Bronx guy but I hear something in the making about it I didn't hear too much about it but em its suppose to be some type of movement and you know I'm all for my boys but I don't know too much about that.

How does it feel to labelled the future of Murder Inc. ?

H-O: The future of Murder Inc. ? I'm on board a bright future we have a hot roster we have allot of talent over here on the label allot of talent allot of energy and you know everybody has a promising carer to do their thing through the grace of God with me over here we have a very bright future I plan on doing allot of big things over here because I feel like you know allot of people look at Murder Inc. coming from a struggling position trying to get back to greatness that's peoples opinion I cant you know put them in a different direction on how they feel but I look at it like this: there's plenty of people that say 'why do you stay with Murder Inc. why don't you go other places you know a team that's not coming from a fighting position ?' I'm looking at basketball, I don't want to come from college and go to the championship team that's already winning what can I do for a team that's already winning ? I want to do something for a team that's in a fighting position so I can help them more and I'm used to coming from a fighting position so this is my comfort zone right here.

Are you working with any artists from outside The Inc. at the moment be it artists or producers?

H-O: I'm working with allot of different people, I have a record with this RnB singer that was on Bad Boy called (insert name here) we have a couple records together, I was suppose to get this record done with me Jeulz Santana and Fat Joe called 'Uptown'. I spoke to both of the artists they ready to do the record but due to lack of tracks we couldn't get the record done yet but that's in the making that's going to be real hot. You know all the new artists we try to work together I'm not going to say any names I'm not going to give them no promotion, I work with anybody I got respect for I gotta like you as a person sometimes it may sound weird cause its the music business but I just cant do a record with just anybody I don't care how hot you are if I cant identify with you as a person I don't care to do a record with you.

I got a hot record my man Slim(Arizona Slim producer of Ashanti's 'Still On It') Slim is hot he down in Miami right now he need to get his ass up here I need some beats, Slim did the record and I have Chink Santana rhyming on it, its me, Chink Santana and Rule, Rule is just talking on the beginning of it its called 'When I Get A Bitch' and allot of people who heard the song thought Chink did the beat cause he's rhyming on it but he's just rapping on it I like that one that joint is hot.

Do you work allot with Chink or is it hard cause he's based in Washington?

H-O: Nah its not really hard me and Chink we have a great relationship like he's one of the people that I could say that if i can identify with personally we can do....I identify with him on a level as a person more then as business because Chink makes beats that's real dark you know and sometimes I don't really sound too well over Chink's beats like he have to really shuffle up something for me and it be hot it be good for me not hot cause all his joints he be doing are hot they may not be for me but I identify with him as a dude me and him is cool and I talk to him all the time.

H-O: I need one of those t-shirts (talking about the MIO shirts you can purchase in our shop).

The younger producers Arizona Slim and Problem Child we don't know very much about them are they working much with The Inc ?

H-O: Problem Child just came around he came around with Jody Mack that's Jody Mack's peoples and P you know he's a young producer he got some good work I didn't get any work from him yet but he did a track with Rule called 'Get Up' so I respect Problem Child we just haven't gotten a chance to get in the lab together and work something out.

Have you worked with 7 at all ?

H-O: 7 is cool you know Sev is Sev that's the best I can say about 7, 7 is very very very talented and I did some work with him on his project, on his album I did some work with him and that's really about it he hasn't worked on my project yet because sometimes you can have a hot producer, a big name producer and you know you can do shit but its all about marriage artists and the producer is like husband and wife and they make a baby when they make a hot ass track. If you have a hot ass producer and hot ass artist that don't mean their marriage is going to jell you gotta find that connection.

Is there any artists or producers out there that you would like to work with that we wouldn't you expect to see you working with them ?

H-O: I want to do a song with Madonna.

Madonna ?

H-O: Called 'The Sex Toy' I want to do something with Madonna (laughs). I'm not big on names like producers I don't care if your shit is hot then its hot like you can find a dude from the corner if the beat is hot its hot but I got allot of respect for those down south artists like I said I just gotta see who I gel with I think me and The Clipse could make a hot street record....usually when people do collaborations you expect them to do hot street shit and you know I could see me and T.I doing a record about chicks I like those dudes. Right now I'm real conceded about my shit right now its all about me right now I want to do some records by my fucking self that's what I want to do till its hot and popping then I'll holla at everyone else.

Maino and Newz you worked with allot a few years ago you were on allot of tracks with them do you still work with each other or what's the situation ?

H-O: Yea me and Maino just did this song a little while ago called 'It Aint Hard To Find Me' a street joint. What's the last record me and Newz did ? I don't remember the last one me and Newz did but he just came the studio the other day to lay a verse for something. You know those are my Brooklyn buddies they a phone call away I call them if we need to do a song together they can call me, there's allot of buzz on the internet people was thinking that us three was going to a album together or something like that but I mean anything is possible but right now that's just internet talk.

Will you be on Merc's album ?

H-O: Of course I'll be on Merc's album he got some hot shit too he got this song called 'Top Down' I really like I'll be on Merc's album but like I said I feel like this music has to make sense I'm not going to be on the album just to be on the album the record has to make sense you know if the record don't make sense then its not going to be on the album. There's certain collaborations sometimes that have to go like say me and Blackchild we are like night and day as far as styles you know what I'm saying ? Our styles are totally different so it would be rare that we would do songs together so for a song like that to get played somewhere it just gotta make sense.

Chris Gotti brought you to The Inc what's Chris's involvement in your carer would he push you more then other artists ?

H-O: Chris was in a situation where you know he was trying to help he seen Murder Inc. being in a fighting position and I tell this story over and over and I'm going to keep telling it cause Chris is one of the realist people Iv met in the industry you know I met him in a night club and I was just say 'getting out of the traps' I had one foot in the street and one foot in studio no I had two feet in the street and nothing was in the studio my mind was no were near studio doing music. At the time I was going trough in my life where I seen I had to make a change and I was in a club and Chris was in one part of the club and we caught eye contact and I rubbed my fingers together looking at him, he thought I was throwing gang signs at him while I was rubbing my fingers at him he was like 'Hey what's that ?' and I'm yelling out 'money' so he like 'come here' so we meet in the middle of the floor so when I'm walking towards the middle of the floor I got people walking with me and he got people walking with him cause they think its going to be a problem we get to the middle of the floor he like 'what's going on' and I said 'yo you want to make some money some new money?' he was like 'yea hell yea we want to make some new money' and he said 'how can I get some new money' I said 'me mother fucker me I'm your new money' so we exchanged numbers and he heard a mix CD I did told me to go to the studio and that's how its been. He doesn't have hands on what's going on with the projects because Chris is not the producer he knows music and he can pick a hit record but he cant produce a record that's not his thing but he can pick a hit and you know he's real he's going to tell what it is he's going to tell you if its 'nee' or 'yee'. Everybody over here has a part in every artist but Chris is my dude cause he brought me here.

Going back to your album when do expect to see a release ? Very few rappers only Rule is the only rapper that has got a release on Murder Inc so far its been two RnB singers and one rapper but yet the label is 99% rappers with Black and Caddy struggling to get out in the last seven years do you think you will be in a similar situation being pushed back constantly ?

H-O: Not at all cause...that's a real good question...me I cant discredit them dudes at all (Black and Caddy) I wasn't here I didn't know what was going on why their projects didn't come out. My projects coming out one way or another my project will be out I just....you got to understand something allot of people look at, allot of fans they don't understand the mechanics of the music business so they sit back and say 'damn why these albums are not coming out' every year its getting harder and harder for new artists to come out especially a New York based artist because of politics cause of hatred its because of the people...its called a circle of success the people that are in the circle of success they want to stay in the circle and they do not want to pull anyone else up because if you pull the wrong person up that person has the power to erase you if I get pulled up into certain circumstances allot of people that's in power now are going to have a serious problem. This may sound superficial it may sound crazy but i know these dudes when you get into a certain circle they scared you going to take the girls, you going to take the shine form them, take their money so they going to keep at a level where they can control you and that's what happens to allot of new artists they don't get to see the light of day because of the mechanics of the business.

Now as far as Murder Inc I cant see the future but my album will come out one way or another like I'm not in a rush to put my album out right now cause I see how the music business is i have to have the right look its all about having the right look you don't want to be a artist like....I don't want to say no names and disrespect some of my boys, I know people lets say out of Bad Boy I know dudes that drop albums off of Bad Boy you know you thinking 'yea they on Bad Boy, Bad Boy Universal they got Puff behind them' a year after they album come out they broke like what we getting in this business for? to be broke ? So if I got to drop a album just to say I dropped a album and a year after that I gotta go back to selling crack Id rather not drop a album right now. I want to drop a album when I know right cool I'm off to the next level I don't have to say 'damn album didn't do well or somebody didn't market it promote it now I got to go sell crack' that's going backwards I want to hit it in the sweep. I'm not in the quest to put out a album just to say 'yea I got my album out' that don't mean shit you could be broke cause allot of these new artists that you hear on the radio or whatever they will never come out with an album, they will never come with a commercial album pushed world wide because of the records that they are making and what's going on in the game records are not getting pushed like that so there is artists out there that drop four or five records a month and none of them will spark like you look at...I dunno if I'm promoting a guy by saying a name...but I'm going to say what it is like if you look at a artist like Papoose who drop a bunch of records have a big buzz no anticipation for an album dude is cool I like the cat but there is no anticipation to hear his album. Its like I don't want to be in that position I don't want to be all over the place but no anticipation for an album I want people to say 'damn when is this guys album coming we want him' cause after awhile there is such thing as over saturation, hear you all the time but nothing ever breaks trough its like aight cool. But all of a sudden a guy comes from the south with one record and he's the biggest fucking star its a funny situation. Shouts to Papoose but whatever.

The 'Alone' record allot of fans considered that to be you guys going at Ashanti because you took her record and all the rumours going around that she wants to leave the label and she's not working with any in-house producers she's doing her own thing....

H-O: 'I aint leaving you alone bitch I'm just putting you on pause for a minute cause she love the dick and got addicted to it she goes through it like my bitch I met in Saint Louis told her she aint exclusive she spazzed a little now she loosing it, bitches be on some stupid shit nah that's a stupid bitch' i had to recite a couple of lines from that, that was real fun recording that song and I'm telling you exactly like this MurderInc Online that song was written by me and Ja Rule that song had no intentions on disrespecting Ashanti what so ever. She heard the record and she felt the way....listen I cant even speak for her I just heard she felt a certain way about the record we being real raunchy on the record like we took it back to NWA talk but me and Ja Rule sat in the studio right here and we wrote that record. I don't have a problem with Ashanti you know Rule don't have a problem with Ashanti so you know I don't know if Irv has a problem with Ashanti but that record was made out of fun we was bugging out....Gotti called me called Rule and said 'get to the studio I have an idea, I want y'all to talk, act like we having a conversation about chicks.

Its sort of like its a difference between like when I heard the R.Kelly and Usher song 'Same Girl' I aint love that song t'ill I saw the video cause I thought they was being real soft about things like two messing with the same girl don't handle it like that, like if you listen to our record there's a part where we all talking about the same, we are making up about a girl that we had sex with, Rule say 'I used to mess with this one' 'o word ?' Gotti say 'yo I used to mess with her to man the bitch was wack yes she was wack we handled it like dudes handle it like fuck that bitch that shit wasn't about nobody in particular that was dudes having fun and I like that record put that shit on the ringtone. Bring it back to the beginning 'I aint leaving you alone bitch' rewind it 'I aint leaving you alone bitch' that shit is hot(laughs). We had allot of fun doing that record that record was made with no thought we didn't think at all we just sat here, we had some liquor some weed flowing and we were just talking shit, talking shit but rhyming words.

Do you work allot with rule ?

H-O: Yea me and Rule do allot of work together, we did allot of remixes together we did the Cassie 'Me & You' Remix that's how that shit went down these bastards even I got to go back on my word calling these dudes my boys but let me tell you how the record went down. Cassie record I heard in L.A before it really really hit New York we was in L.A like this shit is crazy so I get to New York and I'm talking to Buck, Buck is like my co-pilot in doing remixes in doing all records more then my co-pilot sometimes he's flying the plane and I'm the co-pilot but whatever it is we on board together he said 'we need to do a remix to that Cassie joint' and I'm like 'aight me and Rule going to do it' he said 'cool lets call Rule' I call Rule at the crib and say 'listen tomorrow come to the studio we going to do a remix to that Cassie joint' he like 'aight'. Get to the studio he lay his verse for the Cassie joint and I lay my verse, cool we put it out its spinning on the air doing real good like people are fucking with it at the same time Rule drops the 'Get Up' record so now 'Get Up' and Cassie remix is out its getting a good response and people at Bad Boy are like 'yo this remix is crazy we need to figure this out we want to keep it like that' but I figured Puff said 'aight cool Harry O is my man but he's not my artist so I have to take him off that record to put Young Joc on the record' so there was two remixes they put out one which i didn't understand one with Ja Rule and Young Joc and another remix with Diddy and Young Joc so I'm figuring if y'all was going to do a Diddy and Young Joc remix then you should of left the Rule and H-O remix alone but that goes back to what I was saying about the politics of the game how its designed to keep whoever is in, in whoever is out, out cause once I get in everybody has a problem, Puff is my man but he has a problem once I get in he probably be fucking with me fucking old and shit but you what I'm saying that's my homie but when i get there he's going to have a problem nobody's safe. 33:30

I'm going to hit the lotto tomorrow 55million they have a fucking problem I played today too watch I'ma show you you think I'm playing right let me show you them (opens up his wallet and picks out a couple of lotto tickets) these rap a lottery...

Allot of people are still hating on Rule and Murder Inc. despite the fact he's been jumping on remixes throwing out solo tracks that are solid tracks but he doesn't feel are strong enough to make his album. What's your opinion on people not giving him a second chance ?

H-O: This is the second interview I'v done this week right and Rule comes up.....sometimes i try to refrain from answering questions for Rule because I'm H-O you know what I'm saying Harry O not Ja Rule but only reason I do answer questions for him because subtract the artist me being an artist he being an artist that's my dude I fuck with him that's my nigga so I answer questions him being my homie. As far as an artist I cant talk for him being an artist like I know who I am he know who he is but to speak for him sometimes they say hate is stronger then love because it takes so much to hate somebody....it takes so much energy to hate somebody, Rule's talent never diminished he always made great music his talent never diminished now for what ever happened you know people feel how they feel about him hot music is hot music that's it and that's all cause I don't give a fuck how much you dislike a person if a record is hot when they in that club and people are drunk and they chilling and singing and dancing they don't give a fuck who made that record as long as a record is hot as long as he continue to make hot records he's fine.

When 'New York' came out with him Jadakiss and Fat Joe nobody gave a fuck that Ja Rule brought them 'New York' they just want to scream new York when he came with 'Wonderful' they didn't give a fuck it was Ja Rule it was hot now he has this record out with Lil Wayne and they don't give a fuck its Ja Rule they say that shit is hot so hot music is always going to prevail no matter who you are like if you look at the game and people were like where the fuck is so and so they never come back this person will never come back. Al right lets say Ll Cool J right I always say this LL been gone for five years nobody don't really care bout him he come out of no where with a record for the chicks and sell a million records and chill again like his last record that I like with the dude singing nobody was thinking about LL, you come out of nowhere with a record and you back in the game you know its like that for anybody music has no prejudice, there's no barriers on it as long as a record is hot people are going to fuck with it cause now a days we in a era where we from where the source of the music lives inside the club it don't live on the corner no more.

Usually back in the days we all be on the corner with our walkmans, our CD players doing what we doing on the block. There be Nas in the CD player Jay Z's first album in the player you know we on the block doing what we doing you in the car you doing what you suppose to be doing those are the albums you be listening to. Now that's not where the music is at the music lives in the club like people want to go the club and hear that shit sometimes the potency of the music may not be as strong as it used to be but I'm not here to argue bout that the music don't live on the corner no more it lives in the club, so as long as you got these mother fuckers bouncing nobody going to think bout your ass they think with you later that deep shit they think with when they in the house but when they outside drinking and chilling with girls, the homies they want to just have some fucking fun....

Do you have a title for your album ?

H-O: Not yet I go through different names in my brain all the time like it all depends on where I'm at in my life and what I'm doing I know one mix CD I did I got people still hitting me up about it sometimes I feel like I don't want to drop mix tape after mix tape cause I don't want to over saturate myself and end up being most other artists that's got everything out but nothing impacts I don't want to be that person sometimes that can also hurt but that's the way I am. I did a mix CD called 'Soon You'll Understand' and allot of people loved that mix CD allot of people told me when that came out it was better then some albums and the title was self explanatory 'Soon You'll Understand' it came from at that time what i was doing in my life wasn't really music wasn't really what i was doing I was doing something totally different but my boys used to always say 'listen lets get to the studio and all that shit we going do all that shit you talking about'....if you listen to 'Soon You'll Understand' honestly the music i was doing then and I'm doing now is totally different because 'Soon You'll Understand' is straight what I was doing in the street and put on CD just what everybody else say but that shit was actually going on in my life and 'Soon You'll Understand' came from my boys telling me 'yo soon they will understand how nice you are' cause people didn't understand how the lyrical talent that I may posses or how deep I can get on 'Soon You'll Understand' its track after track where I displayed that displayed flow, deepness there's allot of shit on there 'Soon You'll Understand' how ill Harry O is and that title always stuck in my head and it was right for that time. So for me to do an album now I don't know what will be the title I have to see where I'm at a comfort zone in my life and my financial state where I'm at....

What is your favourite track from 'Soon You'll Understand' ?

H-O: My fav track from 'Soon You'll Understand' I love that CD I got a couple, I did a record right there's a record called 'Fuck You Scared For', the first verse for 'Fuck You Scared For' is like a motion picture I don't remember the rap but that joint was one of my favourite joints on there I would say that one.

You dropped a video for a 'Freestyle' from 'Soon You'll Understand' are you planning on doing any more videos from tracks off the mixtape ?

H-O: I'm trying to do a video to this freestyle we called 'Get At Me' over the DMX 'Get At Me Dog' beat shit is kinda hot I went retarded on that joint its up there.... And we going to shoot the video like DMX did his video, black and white allot of energy and shit.

Is there anything you want to talk about that we haven't covered in the interview ?

H-O: I'm hoping this year/next year will be a real promising year for everybody under the Murder Inc/MPire umbrella and I hope it will be a good year for the music business and I know its a hard struggle in life its a hard, hard struggle like recently right we lost a underground artist named Stack Bundles to nonsense and I was thinking about situations like that and it hit me a little bit because we are all up and coming artists trying to break trough trying to make it happen and his life got taken from him in the midst of him making it happen, I'm trying to make it happen. I'm over here trying to break trough I got a situation and shit like that it fucks with me because what are we to do ?...I 'aint trying to get too political and too deep on it but it just kind of bugged me a little bit because any up and coming artist could be in that situation and its a sad thing and I'm just hoping I can see the fruits of my labour all this hard work I'm putting in all this shit I'm going trough I want to see it happen it aint about a big house cars and all that cause I can obtain that without music but you know you want to see twenty five thousand people rocking to your shit you want to see the love that people have for you you don't want to have to die to see the love...that's just something I be thinking about some of the time.

You went a bit deep there on us would you often record deep material or do you have a deep record recorded ?

H-O: I got this record talking to God called 'Hood Niggas' produced by Artie Green its a real deep record it was like a real transformation from what I was doing to what I'm doing now cause I'm a spiritual dude I'm not religious but I pray allot and believe Iv been touched by God just to be here just to be alive and not in jail. I have a family in jail I got an entire family that's you know incarcerated and its through the grace of God that I'm not there. But a really deep record is probably going to be the last record on my album just talking to God just talking about everything Iv been through. I can play it for y'all. (H-O turns to the boards and starts playing a track we know as 'Pray')

If you listen to the song it leads up to what's going on with me different lines I'm saying what people go through in the street and how can I feel like I'm a good person when instead of putting hope in peoples brain 'I'm putting dope in peoples vein', how can you tell somebody you love them and ask them to get an abortion its just backwards so all that leads up to me doing music.

Do you read what people are saying about you on message boards ?

H-O: Yea i read allot of shit when i get a chance to you know what one dude said about me ? Some dude said if he ever meets me he's going to spit in my face. I don't want to hurt nobody when i get a chance i read what people are saying.

Do you write your rhymes down and use a rhyme book or write your music in your head ?

H-O: I aint have a rhyme book since...I don't want to sound like its such an ill talent like 'you know I don't use a pen and a pad' I don't but I want anybody to think its so fucking great and its a magic trick that you don't use a pen and a pad its just when I write my music I'm more of a melodic person that digs into the beat and you know flow when you(me) have a pen and paper your music comes to the words and that the flow. I write all my music in my car basically it depends I get a instant vibe in the car as long as there is no traffic I cant write in traffic, I can be flying on the highway and thoughts are flowing, lines are coming to me and I'm putting it together but as soon as I hit traffic all that shit goes out the window I need to be in motion. I can write in the studio but when i get in the car and put a hot beat on and I drive from up here(Soho) to the Bronx I got the skeleton of a song done already. Every once in awhile I write thoughts down you don't want to loose your thoughts like on the way down here i said some crazy shit i said some real hot shit and i kept saying it to myself but if i had a pen and pad in the car and wrote it down I could of put it with something else and have all the thoughts together and hear the right song and be alright 'two days ago I said that'.