So this mixtape was sent to me a while ago from my dude Three-1-Zero, and we just caught up on some new stuff as well as his infatuation with the Lakers. After the jump, our convo + mixtape download.
Download Mixtape Here.illRoots.com:First off thanks for sitting down with me today on such short notice. Define Yourself?
Three-1-Zero: Yeah man its all good, well my name is Three-1-Zero rapper out of Inglewood, Cali. The way I define myself and my music is basically bringing the styles, flows and ideas from all the great eras of hip-hop and bridging them together with todays scene. And when I say ideas I mean as far as the topics that I rap about, the way I present myself and the way I connect with all my listeners.
illRoots.com: Being from Cali..and obviously a Lakers fan...just taking a wild guess..Why the LP explain the choice of titles?
Three-1-Zero: Man its a LONG story...Basically I'm a real THINKER so when I get ideas I think about every possible outcome to that idea. So one night I'm at this open mic hip hop show and this rapper spits the line "I been rappin since the Lakers had Corie Blount" and I went crazy because only a true Lakers fan knows who Corie Blount is. So the next day I'm in the studio and I recorded this track over a Black Milk beat and didn't have a title, so I said eff it and called it "Corie Blount", you know just to be "random". So then the next song I did was with my boy C-San and it was about a house party and the chorus went "Its a party tonight!!!" So I was like we should name this shit "Travis Knight" ANOTHER whack ass vintage Lakers bench warmer. So I was thinking damn I kinda got something here. At first I was going to do a mixtape named after a whole bunch of whack ass NBA players then I realized these niggas was all on that 1999 Lakers team. So I peeped the roster and some old youtube videos and I was like man I can do a whole project based around this team and link it to hip hop.
Like if you think about that season it was insane. First of all the season was cut in half due to the NBA strike so the support of basketball was at an all time low. (Kind of how the music industry is now). We had two different coaches that didn't know what the fuck they were doing (A&R's). We had crazy ass Denis Rodman and this was also the year that Kobe and Shaq first started to "feud". Most importantly it was their last season @ The Forum in Inglewood, California (my home town). The next season they packed up moved out the Forum, got a new coach, upgraded their uniforms, made a few changes and revived the Laker dynasty (My goal is to revive hip hop but more specifically the west coast). I have elements that are proven to be good like Kobe and Shaq and Glen Rice. But I also have certain elements holding me back like Corie Blount, Elden Campbell and Travis Knight, not having the right coach (management) and basically the pressure of trying to prove that this team is a championship winning team. (Prove the westcoast isn't dead) So like this project is my 1999 season I'm taking chances and just throwing out different shit different ideas with nothing to lose, because I know that next year (next project) will be the begining of a new dynasty.
illRoots.com: So besides the long ass craziness of a story that you just wrote..give me your favorite Laker of all time and why?
Three-1-Zero:Kobe Bryant, because I've seen his progression from day 1 literally and I've grown up on him. I used to live across the street from The Forum and my dad used to work there so I used to go to ALL the games, and I honestly remember seeing Kobe play his first game @ The Forum I remember everyone calling him "the kid". It wasn't until his afro days I that I would be come a big fan but its like man there is not one player that has done some of the things he's done. Hes a beast Kobe over Jordan all day and its thats partly because I didn't watch Jordan during his prime, you know. All I see when I see Jordan are his highlights. With Kobe I've been a fan through the ups and downs, thje scandals all that shit. Remember when that nigga used to wear the purple glove? [Laughs]
illRoots.com: Who did you grow up listening too?
Three-1-Zero: Growing up I listened to A LOT of jazz because my dad plays trumpet, but as far as hip hop I started off listening to like Snoop, Da Brat and Shaquielle O'Neal. My first rap album I bought with my own money was Shaq's "Respect" album that shit was soo dope to me. It had that Peter Gunz track on there that was killin the radio in 98'. Then when Napster came into play I started listening to Eminem through all his freestyles and shit and thats when I started to look at rap as an art form you know, like listening to actual lyrics. So thats when I found out there was a such thing as bad rappers. So that turned me own to rappers like Jay-Z, Kanye, Talib, Mos Def, Murs, Little Brother, etc. and ultimately lead me to making that kind of music.
illRoots.com: Word, so what projects are you looking forward to hearing this year, I think the Common joint is going to be okay.
Three-1-Zero: This has been a dope year as far as music, I think Carter 3 and Untitled are at the top. I'm lookin foward to Games joint as well as Commons joint. And Blueprint 3, Kanye on 90% of production. EEEKKK!!!
illRoots.com: Weapons of Choice, What do you need in the lab?
Three-1-Zero: Keepin it simple my laptop and my engineer Philly , THE BEST engineer in Cali hands down. As far as writing thats another story, I can write under any circumstances, but my best bars come from smokin blunts witht the homies while playing XBOX or listening to ILLMATIC, thee best hip hop album of all time.
illRoots.com: Word..you really think thats the best? I can make an argument for It was Written.
Three-1-Zero: You know when I first started getting into "real HipHop" I went back and listened to all the so called classics like Reasonable Doubt, all the Tribe stuff and Nas' shit and "It Was Written Didn't Do It For Me" honestly I haven't listened to it a lot to judge it but its because Illmatic is perfect IMO, and lets not even get into AZ's verse on Lifes A Bitch. Top 3 verses ever.
illRoots.com: I'm a fan of resurrection by Common myself the entire album.
Three-1-Zero: Yeah thats when Com was hungry! I love hungry rappers.
illRoots.com: Well honestly I'm starving right now, a hoagie would be like heaven to me.
Three-1-Zero: Whats a hoagie [laughs]?
illRoots.com: A sub, a hero, all the same.
Three-1-Zero: Wow, out here in Cali we just call them sandwiches. [Laugh]
illRoots.com: The Left Coast is pretty strong these days you guys are stepping it up I must say, Whats your favorite East Coast Rapper right now?
Three-1-Zero: Hmm. Well east coast particulaly Nas and Phonte. But I love alot of rappers in Detroit, Black Milk, Royce, ELZHI!
illRoots.com: Black Milk - Popular Demand was really underrated.
Three-1-Zero: That was my top album of 07 behind Kanye.
illRoots.com: I can see that. The production was insane. So why do you think we, being in hip-hop, regionalize and rep our areas so hard?
Three-1-Zero: To me hip hop is a form of expressing yourself through music, and part of who we are is where we're from. Like niggas in NY are completely different than LA niggas. Hip hop has always been an art form based around pride and showing off. I don't mind it at all another thing is to me the definition of rapper is someone that tells the stories for the people they represent. Like if it wasn't for Jay I wouldn't know shit about Marcy Projects and I bet NY wouldn't know shit about Compton if it wasn't for NWA. So its like through hip hop we all come together and share stories on how it is on our side of town you know. And thats another element I try to bring back into hip hop because pride of our surroundings is so obsolete from the game. Niggas is rappin about luxury islands they aint even been to yet instead of talking about their backyard, hip hop has lost it sense of community.
illRoots.com: I can see the lost sense of community. Yet where do we make a case that people have given up on Hip-Hop as a whole?
Three-1-Zero: I think the general direction is too business oriented as far as the labels go. They only want what makes money rather than whats good. You know its like just because violent movies make the most money doesn't mean they should be the only type of movies made, you know. But honestly I don't blame the labels at the end of the day they are a business. I blame the fans for accepting the shit labels put out. Like the average listener doesn't really care and the die hard fans download shit off the internet before it comes out so its fucked up either way. And its probably due to the internet making everything sooo easy to do. But yeah thats just the way it is. Us rappers gotta try to be innovative or just deal with it.
illRoots.com: So lastly if Kobe leaves the Lakers for Europe what will happen in LA?
Three-1-Zero: Remember the Riots in 92?
illRoots.com: Yeah.
Three-1-Zero: That.
