would start getting in my ear and getting in his ear. When I’m hearing stuff like that, I can’t be quiet. Eventually I’m gonna have to get mad. It is what it is. There’s a lot of stuff I know about the whole Swishahouse situation that I don’t even talk about. There’s stuff I could say in the interview right now, and people would be like “Whoa.” Just to prove I’m right. But I’m not gonna do that. It’s not for the media. The media would love that, but I don’t get down like that. So now there’s Revenge. Well, The Sound of Revenge album title is not directed at anyone personally. It could be anybody. People just doubt you, and revenge is success. I love this position that I’m in right now, because I’m so confident. I know my music, I know the market and what it needs, and I feel like I’m about to bridge that gap. If I fail and fall flat on my face, oh well. But I love this position I’m in right now. The Sound of Revenge, just watch me. I’m gonna create a hell of a story when I’m successful. There are a lot of fans out there that you can’t count on Soundscan or BDS. These people aren’t with me when I’m going through the streets and hearing what people are saying. I’m doing shows in towns that ain’t even got no radio station, with two thousand people in there screaming my underground lyrics. It’s crazy right now. Slim Thug just sold 125,000 on his first week out. I just won a bet. Somebody bet me that he wouldn’t crack a hundred. We’ve got big fan bases in the Texas area. Let’s say, hypothetically speaking, Mike Jones’ album outsells yours. Would you feel like you lost if that happened? Remember, I dissed Mike because I had to get it off my chest. A lot of times the label will try to push it on. I’ve got footage with two thousand fans screaming “Dyke Jones.” How come I never put it out? Do you know what a label would love to do with that? Honestly, I just wanted him to stop talking about me. Now, when they ask him about Chamillionaire in the interviews, he says, “Next question.” That’s all I wanted him to do. That has nothing to do with the success of his album. He left it alone and didn’t say anything, so if his album does whatever, I mean, I don’t need to get caught up in that. Of course the fans are gonna be keeping count, because they take this stuff a lot more seriously than probably the artists do. Me, I know what my deal looks like from the inside. I don’t know what a lot of other people’s deals look like from the inside. I might not be able to tell the fans that I’m making more money than somebody else, but who cares? Like B.G., now that he’s on Koch, he might be making more money than when he was at Cash Money. Who knows? As long as he feels comfortable that’s cool. I’m gonna get in this game, make as much money as I can, open up a whole bunch of businesses, and fall back. If somebody else wants to analyze who sold more, that’s on them. Who are some of the artists featured on The Sound of Revenge? We’ve got Krayzie Bone on there, rapping fast, and a song with Bun B. Bun B’s my favorite rapper. I got Scarface and Lil Wayne on there. The Lil Wayne track is produced by Mannie Fresh. Cool & Dre went in the studio and did like three tracks for me, and one went on my album. Basically, I remember when me and Paul first came out with Get Ya Mind Correct. It was different than everything else that was coming out of Texas, and it was successful because it was different. That’s what I’m trying to do for Texas. I’m trying to do something that’s lyrically tight, Southern, and the whole world can appreciate it. I don’t run with the trends. At the end of the day, it’s just good music. A24
OZONE AUGUST 2005
“THERE’S A LOT OF STUFF I KNOW ABOUT THE WHOLE SWISHAHOUSE SITUATION THAT I DON’T EVEN TALK ABOUT.”