Rick Rock: Putting Paint Where It Ain't
Monday - March 13, 2006
— by Zio
While you may not recognize his name, or the classic cuts he has created for Bay Area emcees -- like Keak Da Sneak's "T-shirts, Blue Jeans & Nike's," E-40's "Gas, Break, Dip," or Turf Talk's "Slumper" -- Rick Rock has kept your head nodding since '96 with Tupac's "Trading War Stories" to Jay-Z's "Change the Game," Fabolous' "I Can't Deny It," and Busta Rhymes' "Make It Clap," to name a few.
In between creating platinum hits, Rick Rock has managed to capture Bay culture, take it to the lab, and concoct the current hyphy movement that is beginning to garner mainstream attention (see "E-40 Shoots First Video For New Album; Taking Hyphy To Next Level").
BallerStatus.net caught up with the Bay beatsmith to discuss why he lacks recognition, how a major label left his group the Federation between Rock and a hard place, and how he's keeping it moving with his hyphy movement.
BallerStatus.net: The list of artists you've produced for reads like a who's who of rap, and proves that you are one of the most prolific producers in the game. Yet, you are still relatively unknown in comparison to other producers of your caliber. Why do you think that is?
Rick Rock: Because those guys get on songs and they might say their name, and I've never been like that. I've always been in the background; it's always just been about the music. And, I'm not a rapper -- and a lot of the high, prolific producers also rap. I rap, but I don't feel like I'm good enough to be in the mix yet. [Other producers] might rap, or they might have a lot of character to them, like Pharell -- he sings and raps and sh--, so he's going to be more in the forefront.
BallerStatus.net: Do you think it has to do with the fact that, while you have produced for household names like 2pac and Jay-Z, you have done the majority of work with Bay Area artists?
Rick Rock: No, because all of the Bay Area stuff, no one outside of the Bay really knows about. I've done a lot of Bay Area local groups, but nobody knows about that.
BallerStatus.net: Speaking of which, you produced the Federation's The Album, which was a Bay Area classic. When that album hit the streets, I couldn't go out my house without seeing some dude rocking a black and white Fed's shirt, but that success didn't translate on a national level. why do you think that it is?
Rick Rock: I think what it was, was that we put paint where it ain't -- that's my new slogan: "We put paint where it ain't." And whenever you do that, and you don't have a situation that really understands you and backs you, you will always get received by the public, but you get received within a longer time span. For everybody to love you, it might take a year. It's always gonna catch on, like it's crackin' now, but we did that like two years ago. We did something different and [Virgin Records] didn't understand the culture. The labels are always trying to do what is hot now, and we were trying to put paint where it wasn't, and that's basically what it was. It wasn't received because we didn't have the label push, we didn't have a video...we didn't have sh--. They didn't understand this -- it's not South, it's not Houston -- they didn't know what to do with this sh--.
BallerStatus.net: With that being said, are you going to go the independent route on the next album?
Rick Rock: I'm working it like we're doing it independent, but so many majors are coming at me that most likely it will be major. But, I'm keeping it moving like it's independent and then whatever label we get on, we gonna move it like it's independent. I think that's what happened with the last situation, we thought we was on a major and we was good. That ain't the case, you got to keep it moving.
BallerStatus.net: But you do have your own imprint, Southwest Federation?
Rick Rock: Yes, Southwest Federation, that's the label. There will be a major push, but I'm a subsidiary, it's always my label. I got Battle Loc, West Coast Rollin' 30 Crip, El Dorado Red, Kinsmoke, Federation and Ridezilla. That's my whole roster, right there.
BallerStatus.net: You pretty much coined the term "hyphy" and also turned it into a distinctive sound that had a huge effect on Bay Area culture. For those who don't know what it is, can you explain hyphy and the style of music or lifestyle that has sprung up since then?
Rick Rock: Just energy -- that's all it is. Any type of energy you want to give -- if it's energy in the street, or hyper energy in the club, or getting your dance on -- it's just the culture bottled up into a sound, and that sound is energy. It's an up tempo and high energy that makes you feel like you just blowing up. You might do 115 in a 60 mile per hour zone, it's just like that, that's the hyphy sh--. That's the music; the music reflects the culture.
BallerStatus.net: Hyphy is often compared to the South's crunk sound because of that up tempo, high energy feel, but how are the two different?
Rick Rock: It's real similar in energy. But as far as my hyphy sound goes, it's a little more up tempo and it's not as 808 driven. It has 808 in it, but we West Coastm so we got a lot of bottom in the sense of baselines. And the wording is different, too. We say sh-- that is reflecting the neighborhood of where we're at.
BallerStatus.net: You've played a big part in taking Bay music from a local level to a national level. Do you worry that the industry will exploit the Bay?
Rick Rock: They always gonna do that, 'cause everyone's trying to find the new, next thing to make them hot. But we the new, next thing, so we just got to make sure that we have a nice label situation for the artists out here that can put out the artists in a big way, and then we gonna be straight making it. There's gonna be vultures that are gonna come around and take what we do, that's why you hear "pop your collar" and other local Bay sh-- from different artists. So, like 40 told me, "They want to hear our spit from everybody else's lips," They want to hear Jay-Z say it, they want to hear some South n---- say it, but right now, they want to hear it from us.
BallerStatus.net: What can we expect to see from you in the future?
Rick Rock: Look out for the Extreme Hyphy energy drink, coming out the beginning of March. I also got supplements called Xyence, for when you're working out, to gain weight. I got the testosterone, I got the creatine, the fat burn, and I got sex pills. I got everything you can find in your GNC stores. Also, look out for my Ultimate Fighters -- Chuck Liddel and Matt Hughes -- that I sponsor. I'm also working on my own artists, and other than that, I'm still doing some things for Busta Rhymes, Xzibit, Snoop, and Fabolus. Lil' John and I just finished up E-40's new album and that's crazy. The Federation, look for us, we coming with the hyphy movement. I'm the architect and the Federation is the ones. This hyphy movement is coming! Look out for the Bay Area!
Monday - March 13, 2006
— by Zio
While you may not recognize his name, or the classic cuts he has created for Bay Area emcees -- like Keak Da Sneak's "T-shirts, Blue Jeans & Nike's," E-40's "Gas, Break, Dip," or Turf Talk's "Slumper" -- Rick Rock has kept your head nodding since '96 with Tupac's "Trading War Stories" to Jay-Z's "Change the Game," Fabolous' "I Can't Deny It," and Busta Rhymes' "Make It Clap," to name a few.
In between creating platinum hits, Rick Rock has managed to capture Bay culture, take it to the lab, and concoct the current hyphy movement that is beginning to garner mainstream attention (see "E-40 Shoots First Video For New Album; Taking Hyphy To Next Level").
BallerStatus.net caught up with the Bay beatsmith to discuss why he lacks recognition, how a major label left his group the Federation between Rock and a hard place, and how he's keeping it moving with his hyphy movement.
BallerStatus.net: The list of artists you've produced for reads like a who's who of rap, and proves that you are one of the most prolific producers in the game. Yet, you are still relatively unknown in comparison to other producers of your caliber. Why do you think that is?
Rick Rock: Because those guys get on songs and they might say their name, and I've never been like that. I've always been in the background; it's always just been about the music. And, I'm not a rapper -- and a lot of the high, prolific producers also rap. I rap, but I don't feel like I'm good enough to be in the mix yet. [Other producers] might rap, or they might have a lot of character to them, like Pharell -- he sings and raps and sh--, so he's going to be more in the forefront.
BallerStatus.net: Do you think it has to do with the fact that, while you have produced for household names like 2pac and Jay-Z, you have done the majority of work with Bay Area artists?
Rick Rock: No, because all of the Bay Area stuff, no one outside of the Bay really knows about. I've done a lot of Bay Area local groups, but nobody knows about that.
BallerStatus.net: Speaking of which, you produced the Federation's The Album, which was a Bay Area classic. When that album hit the streets, I couldn't go out my house without seeing some dude rocking a black and white Fed's shirt, but that success didn't translate on a national level. why do you think that it is?
Rick Rock: I think what it was, was that we put paint where it ain't -- that's my new slogan: "We put paint where it ain't." And whenever you do that, and you don't have a situation that really understands you and backs you, you will always get received by the public, but you get received within a longer time span. For everybody to love you, it might take a year. It's always gonna catch on, like it's crackin' now, but we did that like two years ago. We did something different and [Virgin Records] didn't understand the culture. The labels are always trying to do what is hot now, and we were trying to put paint where it wasn't, and that's basically what it was. It wasn't received because we didn't have the label push, we didn't have a video...we didn't have sh--. They didn't understand this -- it's not South, it's not Houston -- they didn't know what to do with this sh--.
BallerStatus.net: With that being said, are you going to go the independent route on the next album?
Rick Rock: I'm working it like we're doing it independent, but so many majors are coming at me that most likely it will be major. But, I'm keeping it moving like it's independent and then whatever label we get on, we gonna move it like it's independent. I think that's what happened with the last situation, we thought we was on a major and we was good. That ain't the case, you got to keep it moving.
BallerStatus.net: But you do have your own imprint, Southwest Federation?
Rick Rock: Yes, Southwest Federation, that's the label. There will be a major push, but I'm a subsidiary, it's always my label. I got Battle Loc, West Coast Rollin' 30 Crip, El Dorado Red, Kinsmoke, Federation and Ridezilla. That's my whole roster, right there.
BallerStatus.net: You pretty much coined the term "hyphy" and also turned it into a distinctive sound that had a huge effect on Bay Area culture. For those who don't know what it is, can you explain hyphy and the style of music or lifestyle that has sprung up since then?
Rick Rock: Just energy -- that's all it is. Any type of energy you want to give -- if it's energy in the street, or hyper energy in the club, or getting your dance on -- it's just the culture bottled up into a sound, and that sound is energy. It's an up tempo and high energy that makes you feel like you just blowing up. You might do 115 in a 60 mile per hour zone, it's just like that, that's the hyphy sh--. That's the music; the music reflects the culture.
BallerStatus.net: Hyphy is often compared to the South's crunk sound because of that up tempo, high energy feel, but how are the two different?
Rick Rock: It's real similar in energy. But as far as my hyphy sound goes, it's a little more up tempo and it's not as 808 driven. It has 808 in it, but we West Coastm so we got a lot of bottom in the sense of baselines. And the wording is different, too. We say sh-- that is reflecting the neighborhood of where we're at.
BallerStatus.net: You've played a big part in taking Bay music from a local level to a national level. Do you worry that the industry will exploit the Bay?
Rick Rock: They always gonna do that, 'cause everyone's trying to find the new, next thing to make them hot. But we the new, next thing, so we just got to make sure that we have a nice label situation for the artists out here that can put out the artists in a big way, and then we gonna be straight making it. There's gonna be vultures that are gonna come around and take what we do, that's why you hear "pop your collar" and other local Bay sh-- from different artists. So, like 40 told me, "They want to hear our spit from everybody else's lips," They want to hear Jay-Z say it, they want to hear some South n---- say it, but right now, they want to hear it from us.
BallerStatus.net: What can we expect to see from you in the future?
Rick Rock: Look out for the Extreme Hyphy energy drink, coming out the beginning of March. I also got supplements called Xyence, for when you're working out, to gain weight. I got the testosterone, I got the creatine, the fat burn, and I got sex pills. I got everything you can find in your GNC stores. Also, look out for my Ultimate Fighters -- Chuck Liddel and Matt Hughes -- that I sponsor. I'm also working on my own artists, and other than that, I'm still doing some things for Busta Rhymes, Xzibit, Snoop, and Fabolus. Lil' John and I just finished up E-40's new album and that's crazy. The Federation, look for us, we coming with the hyphy movement. I'm the architect and the Federation is the ones. This hyphy movement is coming! Look out for the Bay Area!
