Way back in 1995 (think back youngins) the Luniz exploded on the national hip-hop scene like no Bay area group since, with their hit smokers anthem "I Got 5 On It." Three years after that initial commercial success, Yukmouth, one-half of the group, decided to embark on a solo career and introduced the world to the Thug Lord from the Bay. While Yuk has been puttin' it down in the underground for the past few years, many outside of Cali may not know just how big of an impact this Oakland Raider has had on the independent game and on a couple of major players in the game as well. No, Yuk has never regained the initial acclaim that he garnered with his partner in crime Numskull, but he has become one of the most powerful artists under the national radar, and arguably the most complete artist to represent from the Golden State since 2Pac.
Allhiphop: So let's just get right to it, what's goin' on with you and Scarface?
Yukmouth: To me it ain't no real beef. Beef is when you pullin' out guns, when n***as get beat up, and sh*t like that. I see 'Face to this day and it ain't no punches thrown, it's just respect. So, I think it's just some lyrical competition sh*t, on that thing. It's like, the man came at me first. Him and Too $hort got on a song on one of Too $hort's albums, a couple of albums ago, called "Longevity," and they went bad on me. They didn't say my name, but they went bad on me. From then I had to defend myself. And 'Face, he one of my favorite artists. It hurt me to have to go write lyrics against this n***a, but f*ck it, I'm a man, I ain't gonna let nobody just step on a n***a and bully a n***a. I ain't got super millions or nothin'. Why even diss me? I mean I'm on your label too. That's crazy, that's on some jealous sh*t I think. Probably because I came to Rap-A-Lot and he feel the young blood. I don't know, but 'Face is legendary; I could never take that from him or take the credibility that he helped build the foundation of Rap-A-Lot. That ain't no real beef to me.
Allhiphop: So you said you don't wanna see 'Face somewhere and like go toe to toe, but I mean realistically where do you want this thing to go?
Yukmouth: I want this sh*t to end. I hope me doin' my reply, and I hope they'll respect it and let it end right there, cuz I'm tired of the little diss songs with them n***as, especially Too $hort. Too $hort is a legend from Oakland. I mean we had made a song on the Luniz' Lunitik Musik called "Funkin' Over Nuthin'." Then this n***a come back with 'Face dissin' me, so $hort really kicked that sh*t all up. I really hate feudin' against him too, and that's really over some who "King of Oakland," who the best rapper in Oakland type sh*t. I could never take what he's done for Oakland, the legendary sh*t he's done by puttin' us on the map; I could never take that credit from him. So, he need to cut it out too. Them n***as on some sh*t. I'm cool though, I don't got no problems with them dudes.
Allhiphop: Has airing this publicly hurt your working relationship at all with J. Prince?
Yukmouth: Nah! Hell Nah! I got a distribution deal with J. Me and J is partners; partners in this music business. He believe in me. He know about the beef. It ain't nothin' new.
Allhiphop: Yeah, but Scarface is like his boy, so…
Yukmouth: And I'm his boy too. It's nothin'. That's what I'm sayin', it's not real beef! If it was real beef, n***as gettin' shot up, n***as gettin' beat up, n***as f*ckin' each other wives or whateva the f*ck, then I assume it'd be issues. But this ain't no beef, this ain't no B.I.G. and 'Pac sh*t. This is just lyrical. The beef is with Master P. I got beef wit that ni**a, cuz he bit my sh*t. That's the only person I got beef with. Everybody else I'm just defendin' myself.
Allhiphop: What's the situation with you and Master P? I'm still a little confused on what that beef is even all about.
Yukmouth: That's the only m*thaf*cka I got beef wit, and that's cuz he bit everybody's sh*t to get where he's at. He borrowed from everybody, but I was the first n***a he borrowed from. He took the "Ice Cream Man" from me, and that was his first album to go gold, and from there it went on and on and on and on. So I feel sorta responsible for this n***a comin' in the game. He came in the game off of one of my hits, bitin' my sh*t, and bitin' our image way back in '95/'94. My sh*t is I'ma diss this n***a until he retire, cuz I felt like I put him in the game by him bitin' my sh*t.
Allhiphop: Ok, I wanna switch gears and talk about something that I know is more important to you than all this beef sh*t, and that's the Bay. What's the music scene like right now in Oaktown?
Yukmouth: Man, it's on fire, everybody still puttin' they sh*t down. We just tryin' to unify it again and get it back on fire. Really the whole Cali, cuz Cali is bein' kinda quiet right now. It's only a few rappers, when m*thaf*ckas look at Cali, they only see like L.A. right now. It used to be you see Oakland and L.A., but right now it's mainly L.A. So we just focusin' on puttin' the Bay back on the map, that's all.
Allhiphop: Do you think Bay area artists, and Cali artists in general are maybe too focused on the independent game, and maybe not focused enough on regaining some national exposure?
Yukmouth: I'm not mad at people who in the independent game, cuz if they gettin' that million dollars off of that hundred thousand every time they put it out, much love to you, more power. That's the best way to do it, instead of gettin' raped by these b*tch a** labels, only makin' 80 cent a album, and not even that. The independent game is cool in the Bay. I think the Cali problem is our big tycoon people are not unifying with the underground hot m*thaf*ckas. Like, if Dr. Dre would open his doors, if Snoop would open his doors to m*thaf*ckas like C-Bo, Richie Rich, Yukmouth, E-40, it'd be in a better position, like we unified. New York n***as, they probably be competin' against each other right now, but they will unify and get on them songs with each other and keep this sh*t hot
Allhiphop: So let's just get right to it, what's goin' on with you and Scarface?
Yukmouth: To me it ain't no real beef. Beef is when you pullin' out guns, when n***as get beat up, and sh*t like that. I see 'Face to this day and it ain't no punches thrown, it's just respect. So, I think it's just some lyrical competition sh*t, on that thing. It's like, the man came at me first. Him and Too $hort got on a song on one of Too $hort's albums, a couple of albums ago, called "Longevity," and they went bad on me. They didn't say my name, but they went bad on me. From then I had to defend myself. And 'Face, he one of my favorite artists. It hurt me to have to go write lyrics against this n***a, but f*ck it, I'm a man, I ain't gonna let nobody just step on a n***a and bully a n***a. I ain't got super millions or nothin'. Why even diss me? I mean I'm on your label too. That's crazy, that's on some jealous sh*t I think. Probably because I came to Rap-A-Lot and he feel the young blood. I don't know, but 'Face is legendary; I could never take that from him or take the credibility that he helped build the foundation of Rap-A-Lot. That ain't no real beef to me.
Allhiphop: So you said you don't wanna see 'Face somewhere and like go toe to toe, but I mean realistically where do you want this thing to go?
Yukmouth: I want this sh*t to end. I hope me doin' my reply, and I hope they'll respect it and let it end right there, cuz I'm tired of the little diss songs with them n***as, especially Too $hort. Too $hort is a legend from Oakland. I mean we had made a song on the Luniz' Lunitik Musik called "Funkin' Over Nuthin'." Then this n***a come back with 'Face dissin' me, so $hort really kicked that sh*t all up. I really hate feudin' against him too, and that's really over some who "King of Oakland," who the best rapper in Oakland type sh*t. I could never take what he's done for Oakland, the legendary sh*t he's done by puttin' us on the map; I could never take that credit from him. So, he need to cut it out too. Them n***as on some sh*t. I'm cool though, I don't got no problems with them dudes.
Allhiphop: Has airing this publicly hurt your working relationship at all with J. Prince?
Yukmouth: Nah! Hell Nah! I got a distribution deal with J. Me and J is partners; partners in this music business. He believe in me. He know about the beef. It ain't nothin' new.
Allhiphop: Yeah, but Scarface is like his boy, so…
Yukmouth: And I'm his boy too. It's nothin'. That's what I'm sayin', it's not real beef! If it was real beef, n***as gettin' shot up, n***as gettin' beat up, n***as f*ckin' each other wives or whateva the f*ck, then I assume it'd be issues. But this ain't no beef, this ain't no B.I.G. and 'Pac sh*t. This is just lyrical. The beef is with Master P. I got beef wit that ni**a, cuz he bit my sh*t. That's the only person I got beef with. Everybody else I'm just defendin' myself.
Allhiphop: What's the situation with you and Master P? I'm still a little confused on what that beef is even all about.
Yukmouth: That's the only m*thaf*cka I got beef wit, and that's cuz he bit everybody's sh*t to get where he's at. He borrowed from everybody, but I was the first n***a he borrowed from. He took the "Ice Cream Man" from me, and that was his first album to go gold, and from there it went on and on and on and on. So I feel sorta responsible for this n***a comin' in the game. He came in the game off of one of my hits, bitin' my sh*t, and bitin' our image way back in '95/'94. My sh*t is I'ma diss this n***a until he retire, cuz I felt like I put him in the game by him bitin' my sh*t.
Allhiphop: Ok, I wanna switch gears and talk about something that I know is more important to you than all this beef sh*t, and that's the Bay. What's the music scene like right now in Oaktown?
Yukmouth: Man, it's on fire, everybody still puttin' they sh*t down. We just tryin' to unify it again and get it back on fire. Really the whole Cali, cuz Cali is bein' kinda quiet right now. It's only a few rappers, when m*thaf*ckas look at Cali, they only see like L.A. right now. It used to be you see Oakland and L.A., but right now it's mainly L.A. So we just focusin' on puttin' the Bay back on the map, that's all.
Allhiphop: Do you think Bay area artists, and Cali artists in general are maybe too focused on the independent game, and maybe not focused enough on regaining some national exposure?
Yukmouth: I'm not mad at people who in the independent game, cuz if they gettin' that million dollars off of that hundred thousand every time they put it out, much love to you, more power. That's the best way to do it, instead of gettin' raped by these b*tch a** labels, only makin' 80 cent a album, and not even that. The independent game is cool in the Bay. I think the Cali problem is our big tycoon people are not unifying with the underground hot m*thaf*ckas. Like, if Dr. Dre would open his doors, if Snoop would open his doors to m*thaf*ckas like C-Bo, Richie Rich, Yukmouth, E-40, it'd be in a better position, like we unified. New York n***as, they probably be competin' against each other right now, but they will unify and get on them songs with each other and keep this sh*t hot
