Ozone Magazine

In case you haven’t noticed, Bryan “Birdman/Baby” Williams has been in this rap game since ’92…look at all the bullshit he’s been through. His biggest star at the time, Juvenile, left his Cash Money label at its height with his other star B.G. leaving soon after. His in-house producer and fellow Big Tymer Mannie Fresh departed years later. He’s caught plenty of flack for his relationship with his megastar, whom he also calls his son, Lil Wayne.

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In music, royalties are how an artist gets paid; in the strip club, Royalty is where those checks get spent.

Meet Royalty, a vivacious 26-year-old from Orlando, Florida who is quite proud of her pole prowess and uses her head to get whatever she wants in life—literally.

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TRINA: Hey Tiger. What are you doing boo?

TIGER: Look, Katrina. Please, leave me alone. I can’t talk right now. My wife and I are in counseling.

TRINA: Ok, just text me when yall done.

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Hood Deeds
Words by Eric Perrin
Photo by Annette Brown/Getty

Sean “Diddy” Combs isn’t the kind of guy you would expect to see riding around in a cab, but last year he spent close to a million dollars on cab rides—in one night alone.

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We put former DTP crooner and Patiently Waiting alum Steph Jones to the test to determine if the Texas-born model/R&B singer is G’ or just as soft as the stereotype.

A. Have you ever been to jail?
Yes, I was in prison for 2 years actually. When I was in France I ran into some people that I knew from L.A., but I didn’t know they were being investigated by the authorities. As soon as I got home, when I got off the plane, the authorities demanded I give them the real names of like 9 different people who I was hanging out with. They said if I didn’t give them the names they would send me to jail. So I ended up taking one for the team because the people I was with weren’t the type that you snitch on; I love my life and my family so I didn’t say anything. I ended up spending 25 months in a French prison.
Not snitching keeps you and your family safe, and it also earns you extra credit on OZONE’s “Are You a G’” scale.

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2 LIVE RU
As Nasty As He Wanna Be
Words by Eric Perrin
Photo by Hannibal Matthews

You only get one chance to make a first impression. So while the world may have been introduced to Ridgeway, South Carolina’s Lil Ru as the scruffy voice behind the once ubiquitous “Nasty Song” and the multitude of amateur music videos the song spawned, Ru re-iterates he’s more than just nasty.

“‘The Nasty Song’ was great for my career,” says Ru. “But I’ve got so much more to my music. If people pick up my album I think they’ll be surprised.”

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TAKE OFF
Tity Boi and Dolla Boy say they’ve always been “fly,” so when the apartment complex the two childhood friends grew up in was bulldozed and turned into a runway it only made sense. in fact, it’s the premise of their long awaited follow-up to 2007’s Supply and Demand, a 16-track offering entitled Flight 360: The Takeoff.
Words by Eric Perrin
Photos by Hannibal Matthews

With the income generated from the “Duffle Bag Boys” phenomenon, the group not only bought jewelry, chains, cars, rims, property, but they also invested, says Tity.

“Since ‘Duffle Bag Boys’ was the last thing people really know us from, we invested the money from that—which was a great deal—into things that will help promote, market, and move this new project, Flight 360,” he explains. “So the plane chain on my neck symbolizes me being fly. It symbolizes the takeoff; it symbolizes the Southside. We grew up right around the corner from the airport, so I’m like a Delta mascot.”

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LONE STAR:
Bonecide Entertainment artist and CEO is determined to prove Dallas does more than dance.
Words by Eric N. Perrin
Photo by Brian Guilliaux

While a vast majority of emcees believe they’re better than their competition, most up and coming rappers wouldn’t have the audacity to plainly profess their superiority over the more established artists from their city. However, Bone of Bonecide Entertainment isn’t the average aspiring emcee. He isn’t looking for help, he isn’t asking for acceptance—Bone just wants respect.

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Tyme waits for no man, but occasionally she will dance for one.

Hailing from Calgary, Alberta, 20-year-old Tyme moved from her native Canada to America at age 13. Eventually, she made her way to Atlanta where she currently works as a dancer, but her ultimate goal was to pursue a career in music. It’s been her desire since childhood, and the main reason she moved to the city.

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PITBULL: Como estas Papi?

PLIES: No hablo espanol

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Hood Deeds
Words by Eric Perrin

Over the years, Ludacris and T.I. have surely spent thousands to “make it rain” in Atlanta. But this fall, they used their money to fight the rain instead. As the city they call home was plagued with 8 days of persistent downpour resulting in massive flooding, multiple deaths and over $250 million in damages, the actor/activist rappers contributed more than what was expected of them.

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Are You a G?
7 Questions to find out if R&B star Sean Kingston is the 7th letter of the alphabet.

We put the baby-faced Jamaican singer to the test to determine if Sean Kingston is truly a G’. Make sure to check out Sean’s sophomore album, Tomorrow, in stores now.

A. In the song “Take You There,” you sang, “We can go to the slums, where killers come from.” What’s the most murderous thing you’ve seen back home in Jamaica?
I saw somebody get chopped in half wit’ a machete. [The fight] was over a parking spot. It was crazy; some guy took this dude’s parking spot, and he started arguing with him, so the next thing I know, the dude went in his trunk and got a machete. I was like, “Wooowww!” Blood was just shootin’ everywhere.
Not much commentary on this one. We don’t need any indictments. 

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Whether he and his Clientell Family are donating 1,000 turkeys for Thanksgiving or orchestrating the some of the hottest events in Central Florida, Dawgman is the embodiment of the Florida Muscle Movement. This multi-faceted Orlando icon declares the Florida Classic as his domain, and he dares anyone who denies this claim to come forward.

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Last weekend JD Style showed OZONE some Northern hospitality by bringing us up to Minnesota to celebrate  DJ Enferno’s inclusion in our annual DJ Issue. It was definitely a raucous event as we kicked it with a capacity crowd at Club New York.  Click here for the pics and when you’re done check out one of Minnesota’s nicest emcees.

Chances are you’ve been singing along to Kevin Cossom songs for years, you just never knew it until now. Meet KC, a Philly-born, Orlando product who until recently has been the man behind the melody. He has penned a plethora of songs for artists ranging FROM R. Kelly to Ace Hood, and scored his first Billboard number 1 single last summer with Keri Hilson’s “Knock You Down” featuring Kanye West and Ne-Yo.

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