Ozone Magazine

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AFTER AN APPEALS COURT OVERTURNED HIS LIFE SENTENCE, INFAMOUS DRUG KINGPIN ‘FREEWAY’ RICKY ROSS HOPES TO REDEEM HIMSELF BY TEACHING THE YOUTH THE HARD LESSONS HE’S LEARNED AND SHOWING THEM A BETTER PATH

For anyone who isn’t familiar with “Freeway” Ricky Ross, what’s your claim to fame?
I’m from L.A. I’m known as a drug dealer. I became one of the biggest drug dealers in South Central. I was the guy that most of the guys who got big got their first drugs from. I was the one they modeled themselves after; guys like Harry O, Bo Bennett, Young Tommy, Pat, the list goes on and on. A lot of [well-known drug dealers] basically modeled their drug dealing pattern after me or copied my format. Some of them got bigger than I was. (laughs)

When you see what the drug game has evolved into today, do you approve or disapprove?
I mean, I can’t knock anyone for what they do, because I did so much wrong myself. It’d be like Satan throwing rocks at somebody for doing something wrong; he can’t do that. So I can’t knock the game. It has evolved into what it was supposed to come to. But I do feel that my job now is to try to figure out other things for these young guys to do now. I’m trying to show them that there’s a different route and a different path, and I believe I can do that.

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For more, check out Issue #84 of OZONE Mag:

Stunnaman
Legendary
The Pack member Stunnaman has now released a solo project with a lot of quality songs. The Pack’s “Vans” days were nearly four years ago, and you can hear Stunnaman’s growth as an artist on several songs including “The Rain,” “Superman” and “Never Find Love.” His music isn’t legendary or ground-breaking, but at the same time, this street album shouldn’t be overlooked. – Randy Roper

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For those who might not be familiar with you, can you start off by telling us who YB is and where you’re from?
YB is short for Ya Boy. I come from the Bay Area, San Francisco. I started when I was 17 under San Quinn and Done Deal Entertainment. I’ve got two cousins that are pioneers in the Bay Area rap scene – San Quinn and Messy Marv. I’m just that young wild nigga.

Your first record “16’s With Me” was a hit. How did it feel to be sitting in the room with all those DJs as a youngin’ tryin’ to get on and you played your record and they just went wild?
It was a good feeling. I really didn’t expect it to blow up how it did. Everything that happens in my life, to me, is a surprise. The results always end up ten times better than expected, and that’s a good thing, because I’m always surprising myself. When I was trying to get myself heard there were a million other people trying to get heard, but the people chose me. I remember when they first played the song on the radio and played it like eight times in a row. Big Von played it back to back and people kept calling me saying, “You’re on the radio!” It was the best feeling ever. That was my first taste of stardom back then.

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Everybody knows you’re a West Coast dude, but you’ve been moving around a lot lately. Did you just need a change of scenery?
As a whole, [artists] in the Bay Area are just content with where we are. That’s just my opinion. I fuck with a lot of different people around the world, and I’m out networking and trying to build my brand.

Do you think living in different places affects your style of music?
I don’t feel like I have a particular sound. You’re gonna hear a little South, a little Midwest, a little East, and you’re definitely going to hear the West cause that’s where I’m from. That’s the problem, man, everybody’s caught up in how you’re “supposed” to sound. I ain’t caught up in none of that shit, man. I’m me. I ain’t got nothing to prove. Every time I drop, I sell a substantial amount of units, so I’m good.

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Unlike most of his peers, Kendrick Lamar did not succumb to the gang bangin’ and violence that has plagued his community for generations. When asked how he managed to stay clear of the crime in Compton, California, the 22-year-old up-and-coming MC’s answer was simple: his father. “Out of all my peers, the thing that separated me from them, is that they don’t have no fathers,” he begins. “I had a father, and that’s why I stayed on the right road. And that’s the reason behind the gangs that’s out here. Cause a lot of cats out here have broken homes.”

His pop’s guidance was enough to steer Kendrick away from the streets. And at age 13, instead of Bloods and Crips, rappers and emcees were his heroes. Enticed by artists like Tupac and DMX, a young Kendrick started to pen his own rhymes. “I remember looking in the mirror and saying, ‘I wanna rap just like Tupac,’” he recalls, of his childhood icon. “I liked ‘Pac when I was coming up. ‘Pac passed and after that I can remember it being kinda commercial, but when DMX dropped I was like… a nigga got inspired.”

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For the last four years, this West Coast rhymer has been a staple in the Bay Area rap scene. “I just feel like it’s time for me to expand,” he explains. “We’ve done everything we can in the Bay Area so far. I feel like we’ve reached that top level where there’s nothing else to do but expand.”

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Hip Hop is not dead! I’ve seen three incredible shows lately that prove Hip Hop is alive. First, I saw my first Paid Dues concert, which was their fifth annual. Good work, Murs! I love me some underground Hip Hop, I just don’t always make it a point to cover those events. When I do go, it’s mostly to enjoy myself and the surroundings. This time I went and did what I do!

I had just seen Tech N9ne in Petaluma a few days before and he encouraged me to go to the Paid Dues show. So I headed to L.A. and linked up with my fam Strong Arm Steady and Planet Asia. It turned out to be a long day, but I was having fun so it flew by. It was more like a festival than a concert. There were indoor and outdoor stages and people everywhere. I got to see some of my all-time favorite artists, Tech N9ne, Strange Music, Freeway, The Jacka, Strong Arm Steady, and The Dogg Pound, and shutting the show down was a vet in the game, Ice Cube. There was so much excitement and energy in the building!

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For more, check out Issue #84 of OZONE Mag:

1. DJ Black Bill Gates “Black Diamond Radio” Blackbillgates.podomatic.com
2. DJ 5150 & Dre “NO To The BR 2” Twitter.com/dj5150br
3. DJ Chuck T “Down South Slangin’ 67” Djchuckt.com

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DJ Khaled/Victory
If you heard Khaled’s 2008 album We Global or his 2007 album We The Best, you should already know what his latest album, Victory, sounds like. But this time around Khaled’s formula of A-list collaborations (well, B-list and C-list, too), mostly over Runners’ beats, sounds staler than ever. Songs like “All I Do Is Win,” “Put Your Hands Up” and “Fed Up” should sound better than they do considering they feature the likes of Rick Ross, T-Pain, Young Jeezy, Lil Wayne and Drake. Plus, as the album plays, the features get weaker and much more skippable. Victory isn’t completely trash, but Khaled may want to consider switching it up on the next one if he plans to continue winning. – Randy Roper

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With music fans increasingly changing their music video viewing habits from the television to the computer, many artists are scaling back on trying to make extravagant videos like the ones Busta Rhymes and Missy Elliot used to splurge on. While technology has opened up the door for virtually everyone with the money to afford a nice camera to call themselves a “director,” Motion Family is setting the standard on how to make potent music videos in today’s climate.

The three-man team consisting of photographer Diwang Valdez (right), videographer Sebastian “C Bass” Urrea (left) and graphic designer David KA (center) are emerging as the go-to team for music videos and overall artist imaging. After shooting career-altering videos for the likes of Lil Boosie and Pill, Mo Fam are set to revolutionize music videos. OZONE caught up with the team at their Atlanta headquarters to find out how it all started and where it’s going.

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Just weeks before the release of his latest album, Suite #420, and the start of his 420 Tour, Devin “The Dude” Copeland is in a good mood. And why shouldn’t he be? While most rap careers are about as stable as Greg Oden’s knees, Devin The Dude has spent damn near 20 years eating good and smoking even better off the music business. Devin talks to OZONE about this year’s monumental international Cannabis holiday.

For people that don’t know, can you explain what 4/20 is?
4/20 is like a smoke time and it turned out to be an international smoker holiday, April 20th. It started off, at 4:20 PM, some college guys out in California used to take a smoke break everyday at this particular time. It turned into a trend and became worldwide. So, Suite #420 is a special occasion. It’s a blessing for me to come out with another album, man. It’s been quite a minute since my first album. It’s kinda sweet for me to be still in it and putting out records. Suite #420 is like having a hotel suite with your friends and people over there that smoke, to just chill. Everybody’s letting the weed break the ice, and ain’t nobody trippin’ on color or race or whatever. It’s just coming together, sharing ideas and passing the weed over. We want the album to portray that. Just smoke, chill, have fun and enjoy what’s here.

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DJ Burn One
Hometown: Atlanta, GA
Website: Blvdst.com, Twitter.com/djburnone
DJ Affiliation: Coalition DJs
Artist Affiliations: Gucci Mane, Pill, Yelawolf
Mixtapes: Gucci Mane’s Chicken Talk, Pill’s Prescription 4180, Yelawolf’s Trunk Muzik
3 Songs In Current Rotation: Pill “In They Eyes,” Freddie Gibbs “Crushin’ Feelings,” Yelawolf “My Box Chevy Pt. 3”

He started out selling mixtapes in high school, and after playing his part in breaking artists like Gucci Mane, OJ Da Juiceman and Pill, this sought-after ATL mixtape DJ tells how he plans to make the transition into sought-after ATL producer:

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In April, Wiz Khalifa released his Kush & Orange Juice mixtape on the internet. With the phrase “#kushandorangejuice” making its way to the top of Twitter’s trending topics and “kush and orange juice download” appearing at No. 1 on Google’s search trends, without a doubt there were quite a few people looking at their computer screens thinking, “What the fuck is a Wiz Khalifa?” But for thousands of others already familiar with this former Warner Bros. artist, Kush & Orange Juice was just the latest free offering in a long line of Wiz Khalifa projects.

After a 2009 independent album Deal or No Deal that landed at #1 on iTunes Rap albums, followed by a Deal or No Deal tour through 40-plus US cities and the success of Kush & Orange Juice, we figured now is as good a time as any to introduce OZONE readers to Pittsburgh’s Wiz Khalifa.

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