Flo Rida is stressed out, but he won’t admit it. He’s been on the road pretty much non-stop since his 2008 hit “Low” topped the charts on 3 different continents and countless countries (in the US, the ubiquitous hit nestled at number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and stayed there for 10 weeks). And while his record rapidly traveled across the world, Flo Rida was moving even faster. “It’s one thing to travel nationally, but I’ve been travelling internationally,” explains the Miami rapper. “When I wake up, [people in America] might just be going to sleep or vice-versa, so it’s hard to have the same level of communication that I used to have. There’s only 24 hours in a day, and it’s more important for me to get my rest than to be worried about whether or not people back home think I’m changing just because I can’t talk to them all the time anymore.” Flo-Rida may not have changed all that much, but his life certainly has. In the last 12 months Poe Boy’s pop star has toured cities he’s never even heard of, places like Taipei City, Taiwan. “The only time I had ever heard of Taiwan was when I looked at products that said, ‘Made in Taiwan.’ I was like, ‘They listen to music over there?’” Flo remembers. “We got there and my hotel was across the street from the club. Prior to [my] show, I was getting a massage and decided to walk outside, [but] I had to go back in because the line was around the entire block.” The mayhem and feverish fans extended far beyond just Taiwan. In Malaysia, Flo was warned that he would face the death penalty for inciting the raucous crowd if he took off his shirt. Later, he caused a traffic jam in Paris when a taxi driver noticed him walking down the street and abandoned his cab in the middle of the boulevard just to run over and say, “What’s up?” The soft spoken rapper has gone club-hopping in places like Japan with Mariah Carey, Paris Hilton and Fergie, and he even opened the Canadian MTV Awards by flying onto the stage from the top of a five-story building. But today, Flo-Rida is at home in Florida - Orlando, to be exact. Although he’s still a three hour drive away from his Carol City origins, just being in his home state is good enough for him. Though his current single, “Right Round” has spent three consecutive weeks atop the Billboard charts, many of his longtime peers in the States have attempted to write him off as a substance-acking pop star, questioning his transformation as an artist. But Flo Rida doesn’t pay attention to the naysayers. He’s finally eating his cake every day, and he could care less what the haters say. The last time you to spoke to OZONE, you were telling us about the “10 Craziest Places You’ve Ever Performed.” Where have you been lately? I just went to Abuja, Nigeria for the African MTV Awards. I opened up the show, closed it, and presented an award. I hear a lot of entertainers saying women from Africa are the finest women in the world, but on the Discovery channel they don’t look that good. Honestly, how do African women compare to women in America? Aw man, [African women] really are pretty. Not all of them are, but when we did the pre-taping of the show, the dress rehearsal and stuff, there were all types of models and they were beautiful. During the show there were definitely some hot girls in the audience. Did you drink the water over there? Oh no, I didn’t drink the water. I had to get all kinds of shots before I went over there, and took all kinds of pills for stuff like malaria. We were touring for a long time; we went straight from Germany and London to Africa.
So life as a pop star is treating you good. I know that title comes along with [the music I do], but I just feel like I’m regular ol’ Tramar from the hood. In terms of my music, it’s just me doing something I love to do. When I did the song “Birthday” talking about how everybody’s gotta eat, that’s what it was at that time. Some people love it and some people don’t love it, but you’ve just gotta deal with that. I’m having great, great success with the music I’m doing now. You’ve had so much success on the billboard charts, but it seems like the more you achieve from a pop standpoint, the less respect you get from Hip Hop enthusiasts. People always ask, “How did this guy from making hood songs to making pop songs?” Does that bother you at all? Not at all, because a lot of times people who say something like that are less fortunate, or they’re just trying to come in the door themselves. There’s going to be haters and people who love you wherever you go. I just thank God that I can go back to my hood and show love, and get love back. What lane would you say your music follows, if any? I really think I’m unorthodox, truthfully. I could do any record right now, and people aren’t gonna say I sold out. My new album R.O.O.T.S., which is in stores March 31st, is definitely a well-rounded album. “Right Round,” and a few other records on the album are definitely gonna broaden my horizons and show people that I’m well-rounded. A few of my records have that “if you believe it, you can achieve it” theme. Those records are gonna make people from the hood reevaluate their thoughts if they felt I don’t have what it takes to be hood. I’m speaking from the roots: everything I’ve been through, everything I’ve accomplished, and definitely some words of encouragement to hopefully inspire someone else who doesn’t have nothing. What’s the worst part about the success you’re currently having? I can’t say there is a worst part. I wouldn’t change anything about where I’m at now, but certain situations can be difficult. Some people think you can give everybody a job, you know, family members. You’ve gotta deal with people gettin’ jealous because they feel like you’re leaving them behind. Everybody wants to know what’s going on with you at all times. What was it like watching Tom Cruise dance to your song during that scene in Tropic Thunder? That was everybody’s favorite part of the movie. Watching Tom Cruise do his thing was like, “Wow!” It just let me know that one day it will definitely be possible to do acting, because every step counts and it was a major step having a song in that movie. Who do you have featured on your new album, R.O.O.T.S.? It stands for Route Of Overcoming The Struggle. I’ve got my boy Wyclef on there, Ne-Yo, Pleasure P, Nelly Furtado, and Akon, just to name a few. Damn, that’s a wide range of artists. You’ve been able to create a formula that’s like a melting pot of different sounds. Regardless, you make hits. What’s the secret? I just work a lot. I’m in the studio all the time. If I’m not in the studio, I’m on the road, and when I’m overseas I might go in one of the bathrooms and just spit it in the air to get the acoustic sound. Really, I think people are intrigued with just having a little more of that melodic sound mixed with different flows. I’m very picky about choosing records, so instead of just me sitting back and picking the records, I consult with the entire Poe Boy family and the Atlantic family, and I take a lot of criticism. Sometimes I might spin one record nonstop for a week, maybe two weeks and no matter how mad people around me may get, I just make sure it’s the right record.
You used to be homeless, right? Actually when I was out in L.A. [I was homeless]. I took a Greyhound from Miami to L.A., like a three-day trip, with $300. I went out there thinking that I’d run into somebody, but I wound up living on the streets for a couple of days. It taught me a lot, though.
With any type of success criticism inevitably follows, but since you’ve been in the mainstream has there been anything someone said about you or your music that particularly bothered you? There’s nothing really that upset me. I just feel that in this industry you can be up and you can be down. I don’t get into nobody’s business and I don’t expect them to get in mine. I’m not here to promote anybody except myself. I don’t even get into that negativity because I feel that’s the first thing that can really stall your career, hurt it, or kill it. I’m all for positivity.
How did those few homeless nights affect your mentality towards your current triumphs? Right now it’s just like, “Wow!” I’m living a dream. I went from dealing with the trials and tribulations of not knowing where my next meal was going to come from to this. I’m blessed, and it’s just from having faith and putting God first. Now I’m blessed with a situation that can take care of [me] for the rest of [my] life. Every time I receive an award, every time I’m nominated, every time I gain a new fan, whether it be in the States or out of country, I just thank God, because I come from nothing. To have just about everything I want in my grasp is unbelievable.
Okay, but I’ve gotta ask, what are your thoughts on the whole 50/Ross beef? I know Ross, that’s my boy. I met 50; he’s cool. I think people should just continue to make hot music and put the negativity aside because you see what happened with Biggie and ‘Pac. It’s one thing when you’re exchanging words back and forth, but when there’s a funeral involved, trust me, everybody will change their mind. I recall going to a funeral the other day and regardless of the differences I had with [him], just to see one of my homeboys in a casket is an experience that makes it hard to sleep. Both Ross and 50 are hot artists and I pray that everything works out.
OZONE MAG // 69