here is a itw of Lake,he explains who he is and others interesting stuffs...
thaFormula.com - For the people that don't know, who is Lake?
Lake - Well I was incarcerated from 1992 to 1999 and I came out with The 41st Side album, which was a compilation and it had all the Queensbridge artists on there. Cormega, Mobb Deep, CNN, Nas, Nature, and Tragedy. That's pretty much how I made my intro to the game. The album came out in 2001.
thaFormula.com - How does someone who has never done an album make his intro into the game with so many well known artists?
Lake - That was just from who I am on the street. Growing up, I knew all of these artists. I went to jail real young as an adolescent. While I was in jail, everybody got their chance to blossom. When I came home, everybody was in position making albums, videos and all that. So they was happy to see me come home because I knew them when I went in. My reputation is what it is being on the street. It's not a fluke or nothing. I did what I did and alot of people know me for that and they respected me for what I was. Before Queensbridge got known on the rap tip, we didn't have nothing but the dude that was standing up in the hood. That was what I was. It was what I did in the streets to be known like that and they respected that. If you look at everybody's first album, all of them was shouting me out on there. So when I came home, everyone said whatever I wanted to do they was gonna do. I'm a business man first, so I said I'm gonna put an album together and put everybody on it and feature myself to get my weight up. This way I can see what opportunities I got after that. But before the album came out, I got locked back up. This was a month before the 41st album was dropping. It was dropping on Sept. 11th, 2001 and I had got locked up in August for 2 charges of attempted Murder on police. So I went down and nobody thought I was coming home. I had just did 7 years and I'm home for like 2 years, and now I'm locked up for this. That's life for them cases! For 1 attempted murder on police is 25 to life. I had 2 counts and I had just came home for doing attempted murder, so I was bleedin'. But I went to trial for the case and I beat it. So when I came back home, Nas wanted me to get down with him and do the Ill Will project. He was telling me he's gonna do the Ill Will label and wanted me to be on it. So I'm rollin' with it and thinking I'm gonna put everything into that. That stagnated me cause I said let's do it and get it poppin'. I'm behind him and I'm working with him and he's putting his albums out and doing what he's doing. But he's not pushing me or helping me put my album out. At the same time, I got a whole army of dudes behind me that's waiting for me to do what I got to do.
thaFormula.com - The 41st Side album sold pretty good right?
Lake - Yeah, it went hood platinum. It sold 100,000 and I wasn't even home for it. Also, it came out on September 11th, 2001. I had everything against me, but it still did good. When I came home, I still could have capitalized on that, but with Nas giving me the opportunity that he said he was giving me, I was like, let's do it. It was a no brainer.
thaFormula.com - Before you went in in 1992, were you rhymin' at all?
Lake - Nah, I wasn't rhymin' in 1992. I was just a regular street dude. I was just mashin' and being a street dude. Reputation is everything on the street, it's your credit card. People know I'm loyal and a man of my word. If I say something, that's what it is. If I say this is not gonna happen, then that's not gonna happen. If I say we gonna do this, then that's what we gonna do. I don't promise nobody nothing that I can't fulfill my obligations to. So when people tell me we gonna do this and that and give you all these false promises, I'm not with that. Before I let it get to a point where it gets physical or shit starts getting uncivilized, I rather just pull back. I don't wanna do that because I got enough blood on my hands already. I don't want to come into the game disrespectful and try to take something away from somebody that they earned already. I look at the game for what it is. I'm to mature in that standpoint that I don't have to go that way. If I go that way, it's gonna be serious. So I rather not do that because I got to much that I'm bringin' to the table now, and it's like a whole different side of me that people don't know and didn't get a chance to see yet. But it ain't just about me gettin' my little paper. I'm gettin' the money that I get to get dudes that I rock with out of jail. Dudes that I mess with is in jail facing life. Some of them already got life, plus time on top of that. Some of them right now just got locked up and is facing life and there is other dudes that are in there that I'm trying to get back home. This is where my loyalty lies at. So I'm trying to do what I got to do for other people and my family. If you standing there and your blocking what I'm trying to do, it's gonna be a problem. But if you not gonna do it and you not with none of that, just say that your not with that. Don't say that these are our people and you care about everybody. Nas knows these people. He'll be like, "yo these are our people and we got to do this." But when it comes down to it, I'm the one that's sitting there in the courtroom waiting for them. He's no there. I'm the one that's going to visit them in jail and doing all that. He's not there. So it's like where does your loyalty lie at. If your not gonna do it yourself, it's no problem. I'll do it. Just get me in the position so I can do it. Not where I'm telling you to come out your pocket and give me money or nothing like that, but yo there is people that wanna give me a deal. They tellin' me, just let Nas come down here and let us talk to him, and we will give you whatever budget you want. This is at Sony. So if they wanna give me the money, why wouldn't you take the meeting and get me the deal.
thaFormula.com - So that 41st Side compilation opened alot of doors for you?
Lake - Yeah. I had alot of buzz. People just wanted to mess with me on the strength of the 41st side. That album showed alot of power and ability to be able to do that. It served it's purpose for what I needed the album to do. It was like alright, I got other options so I'm trying to figure my options out. But if Nas is saying that he's gonna get a deal and were gonna work over there and get it poppin' by dropping my album out first, then I'm like let's do it. But that wasn't the case. You would say one thing, then disappear. You would change your number and not call me back. I got a meeting at Sony and they waiting for you to come to the meeting and you not calling them or even showin' up! It's plain disrespectful man. You don't want me to prosper. It ain't even about you doing it. Your not getting a Ill Will deal, their not giving you no money and then you don't want me to get my own deal.
thaFormula.com - So you had an opportunity to get a deal with Sony?
Lake - Yeah. I had an opportunity with Sony and I had an opportunity with Universal, and he didn't take neither one of the meetings. Universal wanted to do the deal, but they wanted Nas to come in, so all of us can sit down in the meeting together. But Nas don't go. Later he goes and takes a meeting without me there and brings Dirty Mouth in there and tries to shop him. But he couldn't go in for my meeting, when I'm the one that told him about it. Universal didn't want Dirty Mouth. They wanted to sign me, but he didn't even go in there and do that. They said, nah we don't want Dirty Mouth and then he never even went back for my meeting. So it's like, enough is enough!
thaFormula.com - For the people that don't know, who is Lake?
Lake - Well I was incarcerated from 1992 to 1999 and I came out with The 41st Side album, which was a compilation and it had all the Queensbridge artists on there. Cormega, Mobb Deep, CNN, Nas, Nature, and Tragedy. That's pretty much how I made my intro to the game. The album came out in 2001.
thaFormula.com - How does someone who has never done an album make his intro into the game with so many well known artists?
Lake - That was just from who I am on the street. Growing up, I knew all of these artists. I went to jail real young as an adolescent. While I was in jail, everybody got their chance to blossom. When I came home, everybody was in position making albums, videos and all that. So they was happy to see me come home because I knew them when I went in. My reputation is what it is being on the street. It's not a fluke or nothing. I did what I did and alot of people know me for that and they respected me for what I was. Before Queensbridge got known on the rap tip, we didn't have nothing but the dude that was standing up in the hood. That was what I was. It was what I did in the streets to be known like that and they respected that. If you look at everybody's first album, all of them was shouting me out on there. So when I came home, everyone said whatever I wanted to do they was gonna do. I'm a business man first, so I said I'm gonna put an album together and put everybody on it and feature myself to get my weight up. This way I can see what opportunities I got after that. But before the album came out, I got locked back up. This was a month before the 41st album was dropping. It was dropping on Sept. 11th, 2001 and I had got locked up in August for 2 charges of attempted Murder on police. So I went down and nobody thought I was coming home. I had just did 7 years and I'm home for like 2 years, and now I'm locked up for this. That's life for them cases! For 1 attempted murder on police is 25 to life. I had 2 counts and I had just came home for doing attempted murder, so I was bleedin'. But I went to trial for the case and I beat it. So when I came back home, Nas wanted me to get down with him and do the Ill Will project. He was telling me he's gonna do the Ill Will label and wanted me to be on it. So I'm rollin' with it and thinking I'm gonna put everything into that. That stagnated me cause I said let's do it and get it poppin'. I'm behind him and I'm working with him and he's putting his albums out and doing what he's doing. But he's not pushing me or helping me put my album out. At the same time, I got a whole army of dudes behind me that's waiting for me to do what I got to do.
thaFormula.com - The 41st Side album sold pretty good right?
Lake - Yeah, it went hood platinum. It sold 100,000 and I wasn't even home for it. Also, it came out on September 11th, 2001. I had everything against me, but it still did good. When I came home, I still could have capitalized on that, but with Nas giving me the opportunity that he said he was giving me, I was like, let's do it. It was a no brainer.
thaFormula.com - Before you went in in 1992, were you rhymin' at all?
Lake - Nah, I wasn't rhymin' in 1992. I was just a regular street dude. I was just mashin' and being a street dude. Reputation is everything on the street, it's your credit card. People know I'm loyal and a man of my word. If I say something, that's what it is. If I say this is not gonna happen, then that's not gonna happen. If I say we gonna do this, then that's what we gonna do. I don't promise nobody nothing that I can't fulfill my obligations to. So when people tell me we gonna do this and that and give you all these false promises, I'm not with that. Before I let it get to a point where it gets physical or shit starts getting uncivilized, I rather just pull back. I don't wanna do that because I got enough blood on my hands already. I don't want to come into the game disrespectful and try to take something away from somebody that they earned already. I look at the game for what it is. I'm to mature in that standpoint that I don't have to go that way. If I go that way, it's gonna be serious. So I rather not do that because I got to much that I'm bringin' to the table now, and it's like a whole different side of me that people don't know and didn't get a chance to see yet. But it ain't just about me gettin' my little paper. I'm gettin' the money that I get to get dudes that I rock with out of jail. Dudes that I mess with is in jail facing life. Some of them already got life, plus time on top of that. Some of them right now just got locked up and is facing life and there is other dudes that are in there that I'm trying to get back home. This is where my loyalty lies at. So I'm trying to do what I got to do for other people and my family. If you standing there and your blocking what I'm trying to do, it's gonna be a problem. But if you not gonna do it and you not with none of that, just say that your not with that. Don't say that these are our people and you care about everybody. Nas knows these people. He'll be like, "yo these are our people and we got to do this." But when it comes down to it, I'm the one that's sitting there in the courtroom waiting for them. He's no there. I'm the one that's going to visit them in jail and doing all that. He's not there. So it's like where does your loyalty lie at. If your not gonna do it yourself, it's no problem. I'll do it. Just get me in the position so I can do it. Not where I'm telling you to come out your pocket and give me money or nothing like that, but yo there is people that wanna give me a deal. They tellin' me, just let Nas come down here and let us talk to him, and we will give you whatever budget you want. This is at Sony. So if they wanna give me the money, why wouldn't you take the meeting and get me the deal.
thaFormula.com - So that 41st Side compilation opened alot of doors for you?
Lake - Yeah. I had alot of buzz. People just wanted to mess with me on the strength of the 41st side. That album showed alot of power and ability to be able to do that. It served it's purpose for what I needed the album to do. It was like alright, I got other options so I'm trying to figure my options out. But if Nas is saying that he's gonna get a deal and were gonna work over there and get it poppin' by dropping my album out first, then I'm like let's do it. But that wasn't the case. You would say one thing, then disappear. You would change your number and not call me back. I got a meeting at Sony and they waiting for you to come to the meeting and you not calling them or even showin' up! It's plain disrespectful man. You don't want me to prosper. It ain't even about you doing it. Your not getting a Ill Will deal, their not giving you no money and then you don't want me to get my own deal.
thaFormula.com - So you had an opportunity to get a deal with Sony?
Lake - Yeah. I had an opportunity with Sony and I had an opportunity with Universal, and he didn't take neither one of the meetings. Universal wanted to do the deal, but they wanted Nas to come in, so all of us can sit down in the meeting together. But Nas don't go. Later he goes and takes a meeting without me there and brings Dirty Mouth in there and tries to shop him. But he couldn't go in for my meeting, when I'm the one that told him about it. Universal didn't want Dirty Mouth. They wanted to sign me, but he didn't even go in there and do that. They said, nah we don't want Dirty Mouth and then he never even went back for my meeting. So it's like, enough is enough!
