Necro

Producer, emcee, business man, filmmaker. Necro has done just about everything while he’s been in the game. Already an underground vet, with the recent release of “I Need Drugs”, Necro is about to blow up. I had the chance to ask Necro about life with Ill Bill, filmmaking, getting paid and his future plans for Psycho+Logical-Records.

l-ementary: How pleased have you been with the whole process of “I Need Drugs”? Is it selling as much as you would have liked? Have you been happy with the way Landspeed has been pushing the album?

Necro: I’m not happy with Landspeed – they haven’t done correct by me. They are not distributing it correct and they are not putting the amount of money we agreed on into the advertising. Now I’ll make this clear for new jacks: if you have a product, advertising is everything in selling it cause if people don’t know they won’t cop it. My shit is still selling out in Tower Records with garbage promotion. My shit has still sold more than other cds that have come out with big advertising with big labels all on the strength of my buzz. I got people like Violet Brown who was number 23 on The Source power list, head of warehouse, loving my cd so people love the album, so there is some renegotiations going on with me and Landspeed to make this shit right and blow the album, if not I will part my ways cause “I Need Drugs” can move 100,000 copies at least. We have done 17,000 so far, which I’m not impressed with but it’s good considering the position I’m in, get me?

l: What’s your opinion on the way Matador has handled Non-Phixion’s “The Future is Now”? How many tracks did you produce, and why don’t you put it out on Psycho+Logical, considering it is highly anticipated in the underground?

n: Matador is not a hip hop label so they didn’t understand what to do. For the record, non-phixion dropped them and non-phixion wanna blow up major label style so they wouldn’t put their album out on my label. Plus, it’s not possible, I’m indie. They need money just to pay the producers they used. Plus, Matador had to be paid 100,000 bucks + to get the album from them. I’m not in that type of position. If I was blowing up now it might have happened. I did like 8 tracks on their album.

l: Talk about growing up with Ill Bill, and the way you guys have grown together as brothers and as artists? What do you think each of you brings to the game?

n: Well, we are ill. We are white kids that keep it real. We are the epitome of hardcore hip hop. We never fronted. We rep it our way with our style with our experiences. There is no one in hip hop that can do what I do. Everything I do is something new and ill to the game. I expand the shit, naw mean?

l: What got you into doing films and who do you respect in the film industry as far as actors, directors? What types of movies do you usually watch?

n: I just love flicks. I love “Scarface”, (Brian) De Palma, Oliver Stone, (Al) Pacino, (Robert) Deniro the ill cats like (Gary) Oldman, (Christopher) Walken. Whoever is ill I love it.

l: I own both “187 reasonz y” and “The devil made me do it”. Can you talk about what you learned as a filmmaker doing each of those films, and could you talk about the whole process: how much was the budget for each, how’d you cast them, where’d you get the equipment, what kind of equipment did you use, etc?

n: Those films were pains in the ass to make. I did everything from casting to costumes to editing to everything. I paid for everything. I did the cinematography, everything, and it was hard. I learned that I need money to do some ill shit. I need one million. Those flicks were dope but they were made on small money so my resources were small but I made shit happen, for a g to 3 g’s.

l: You don’t appear in either of the two videos, except for the freestyle skit at the end of “the devil made me do it”. Do you wanna get into acting (cause that scene is funny as hell), or stick with directing?

n: Well I couldn’t get in my movies cause I was the director and it’s hard getting in the movie if you don’t have any one with a brain to do what you did, so I had no way to be in my own films. But the cheap skits are easy to film. I mean both films are my shit so I didn’t need to be in the films, but yes I want to act, I’m just so repulsed with shit cause everything is about money and business and it’s like you need money to do art and so I wanna make loot. Once I’m sitting on some loot I can delve into art like I never have but till then its that struggling artist shit and I ain’t with that. I don’t wanna be no fucking struggling artist. I wanna be a paid artist that can concentrate on art and not worry about bills. I don’t care what people say, I have suffered my whole life.

l: What did you wanna show people with the “I need drugs” video? How much convincing did it take to get Uncle Howie to appear in it?

n: It was Uncle Howie’s idea to film him. All he needed was me to put up 50 bucks for some crack, that’s it, and drive him to the crack spot, then back to the crack hotel. Before we filmed that Howie and Mordechai were smoking for 6 hours already. They were gone. Kid, the point of the video is the reality of the track.

l: Any new films underway?

n: No films. I’m just concentrating on dropping music for cats, new shit. Films will come in the future. Films take so much work and don’t make as much money as music that it’s not worth it. I didn’t get the acclaim or respect I should have gotten from doing them. I didn’t make any real money off them so I basically wasted my fucking time, but I did fulfill a need I had inside me to do it. I know I did direct 3 videos, 2 films, and one music video so I know my capability, but it’s physically draining doing everything ya self. I was the whole fucking crew for them movies I did. Everything. Go watch the films again and imagine the work that went into that, from the props to the filming to the lighting to whatever. It’s mad work. When I got a million and a crew to work for me I will bang shit out. Till then it’s just music.

l: What emcees/groups are you listening to right now?

n: I don’t like much really. I like Mobb Deep shit, just thug shit, evil shit. I don’t listen to backpack rap.

l: Do you care to comment on the recent Everlast, Eminem, Evidence beef? As an emcee, who do you feel put out the best diss track?

n: I couldn’t fucking care less. I’m concerned with getting Necro to a level where I can drop music when I want and have a bank account filled with enough money that I am finally free to do what I want artistically with out sweating another human being for support. I could care less about other peoples beefs as long as that shit don’t swing my
way.

l: What’s the goal of psycho+logical-records?

n: To blow up big, a Cash Money or No Limit or Ruthless or Death Row or Roc-a-Fella or Hypnotize Minds or Aftermath. I just wanna be an indie with dope distribution that can drop albums that will sell 200,000 plus and more if it can do that. If not 200,000 every time is cool cause I will be sitting on cash dropping brutal shit to my fans and I will be having a ball.

l: When you gonna come up to Toronto and put on a show, cause that will be crazy! Are tour plans underway?

n: No one has booked me yet and I don’t have an agent now. A lot of people sleep on Necro but that’s fine. I’m building slowly but consistently.

l: Have you started working on a new album yet? Any new tracks that we should be keeping an ear open for?

n: yes, I recorded 15 new tracks but they feature different artists. Some are Necro solo and some are other solo artists and some are collabos, but that’s nothing. I’m recording every week. I’m getting
ready to drop a lot of shit. It’s all coming together. I don’t front, never did never will.

l: Any new artists coming out on psycho+logical that you wanna talk about?

n: Nothing I wanna talk about. Necro is the main artist of my label. When Necro blows up we can talk about others. For now let’s see Necro sell 200,000 plus first.

l: Anything else you wanna say to the fans?

n: Yeah support this shit, by going to my site, www.necrohiphop.com and buy cds, shirts, baby tees, videos, and vinyl. Or go to ya store, cop the shit or die. Help build this or get the fuck out my face. Rot.