Celebrity Report Magazine met up with Jaz-0 at Jamboree on Myrtle Ave in Brooklyn
where we discussed the past, present and future for this scholar at hip hop. Jaz
0's first album dropped in 1990 called word to the Jaz including his first single,
Hawaiian Sophie which featured Jay-Z. Now 20+ years later, he is still in the game
and is better than ever. Not only did he birth some of today's well known hip hop
artist back in the day, he is still in it to win it and that's what's up.
CRM - You started out over 2O yrs ago and there are a lot of people that's still
in the industry now that you opened the door for. How do you feel about these individuals
not thanking you or showing you the love that you deserve?
Jaz-O- We can mention these people's names. Fist of all, Jay Z, Source Money, Memphis
Bleek, Chad Elliott, Irv Gotti, P. Diddy and the list goes on. I have been very instrumental
in the Lox's career when they were the War Lox before they got there deal with Bad
Boy. I am not incorporating the Lox with the ungrateful people because I get love
from them. I feel some way about it but not to sound big headed my greatness speaks
for itself. One thing about a lie is that you can sweep it under a rug but the truth
always comes out.
CRM - Can you name some of the people under the label?
Jaz O - Sonny Carson, my Marcy native Top Gunner, and O Granzer.
CRM - When you hear rapper Nas say Hip Hop is dead and with all of the beef going
back and forth with
some of these rappers, how do what make you think or feel?
Jaz 0 - Hip hop is not going anywhere. It is in a transitional stage. It depends
on your perspectives, if you
think of hip hop for what it is in the mainstream, you are misconceived. You have
106 and park and a lot of
these radio stations that are not going to show you all of hip hop. They are going
to show you their top 10 because money was dished out for these songs or videos.
For the most part, hip hop is not dead because you can go on the Internet and hear
all types of hip hop. I don't think a lot of stuff that you might hear is hip hop
because you hear it over a beat.
CRM - So do you think saying hip hop is dead was like a message being sent to artist
to step their game up?
Jaz 0 - That is my thoughts of it. I wouldn't put it that he had a plan like that,
but recent acts show that these cats main motivation is to get money. It is crazy
when you already have money and you are constantly doing things that is motivated
by money and not from the heart.
CRM - I'm seeing a lot of the music we hear is geared towards the teenagers and young
adults. It's mostly bling bling, women and cars. Do you have something different
to offer that gears towards all age groups?
Jaz O - I cover the full spectrum about real life situations. Cars, women, bling,
education and the clubs are what my music is about because it is a part of life.
I make it balance out because I shouldn't just have to talk about one particular
situation. I can rap about a tree but make it interesting. Anybody that is an advocate
of hip hop will never say its dead. It really confused me when someone as respected
as Nas would say its dead unless he was saying it to trigger something in people
to say no it's not dead. That is how Bush got his second term in office because they
ran a campaign for people to hate Bush. That negative energy made him more popular.
He was more popular as a bad guy than as a good guy and that helped him get back
into the office.
