ERICK SERMON REACTS
W
hen you envision a hip-hop recording studio, the first thing that comes to mind isn’t a conservative-looking home in upstate New York with a basketball court outside. And yet, nestled in this quiet neighborhood is Erick Sermon’s home and personal recording studio. Nearby is a rim shop that he also owns, which services vehicles for many of his celebrity friends. Lounging in an Escalade with mandatory double-digit rims, Erick breaks the silence about many of the rumors he’s endured. Is this where you’re most comfortable recording? I was born and raised three exits from here. Some of the best niggas came from Brentwood, which is where I’m at. Two towns over was Rakim, the next town was Babylon from De La Soul, Hempstead is where Busta Rhymes and Leaders of the New School are from, and Uniondale was Public Enemy. That’s how it is, it’s like suburbs out here. It’s like if you go to California and go to Watts or Compton, it’s like a suburb too. It ain’t where you’re from; it’s where you’re at. It’s so peaceful and calm out here, it just doesn’t seem like the typical hiphop recording studio. Well, this just happens to be my house. We have buildings in Manhattan that we work out of too. I just use my crib for personal, intimate sessions, whether it’s Macy Gray or LL Cool J. How often do you record here at home? I did my whole album here. But everyone who comes through wants to come to the house. Da Brat came through, 50 Cent used to come to my house when he was younger, before he signed with Aftermath. Having been in the game for such a long time, what do you think is the key to longevity? I been doing this for 16 years. I think the key to longevity is not being oversaturated. I’m behind the scenes more often than in front of the camera. I’m not the type that you’re going to see in all these videos. I’m not going to be flossin’ on TV about what I’ve got and all that. You’re not gonna get tired of hearing about Erick or seeing Erick. What do you enjoy more: production, or being an artist yourself? I like production. But before I came into the game, I didn’t know that the people I heard records from didn’t do their own music. I was already a producer and I didn’t even know it at the time. When I became a producer, that’s when I was able to sign some groups. Once I signed Redman, that’s when I got advanced into other things because of his character. Are there any artists in particular that people would be surprised to know you’ve worked with? I been a producer since I started in the game. I produce for half of the rap world, and some R&B music also. You’d never know this, because I’m not the type to have a publicist get the information out. This is the first time I’ve done interviews. People are shocked at what I’ve done because they don’t read or see much about me. A lot of people don’t know that I’ve worked with Jay-Z, Redman was my artist, Keith Murray was my artist, I put Red and Meth together. When I made “How High,” they just happened to be in the studio smoking so we decided to make a smoking record. You’re on Universal now. Why did you end up leaving J Records? Because they didn’t understand how to promote and market rap music. I think that’s why Busta left also and signed with Aftermath. It’s different when you’re doing hip-hop. It’s not all about radio play. That’s all Clive was doing, “radio songs.” We were on the radio, but just because you’ve got spins on the radio that doesn’t guarantee you’re going to sell. You must let people know that you’re on the radio and that you have an album in stores. What appealed to you about Universal? I was already signed to Interscope in 1995. It didn’t work out because of the switch with them and Warner Bros. I sat down with Tommy Mottola, he didn’t get it. I sat down with Sylvia [Rhone], she was going through some stuff because now there’s no Elektra. I sat down with Russell [Simmons] and Kevin [Liles], they were going through what they were going through. So I sat down with Kedar [Massenburg] and he was like, yeah. He got it, and I was like, let’s roll. Why do you think Universal will do a better job of marketing and promoting you than J Records? Because Universal is a bigger system, and you can talk to them because they’re younger and trying to reach the urban audience. Clive [Davis at J Records] had people that worked for him, but he never gave the opportunity for people to blossom, to show them how to make things work. Besides “radio songs,” what do you think is most important in breaking records?
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OZONE MAGAZINE JUNE 2004