Devious is Brooklyn, he’s the streets. He’s aggressive. G.O.D. is a lyricist. He has the most experience out of all of us in the game, so he brings that to the table. He balances out our music. He’s the head of the group in the sense that he has the most experience and overall he’s a real lyricist. He’s the word doctor. Zakee is the kid from left field who’s going to say whatever is on his mind. He’s real intelligent, sometimes too intelligent for his own good. But there’s a message to his madness. D.G. is passion. He tells a lot of stories filled with details that are relevant to whatever’s going on at the time. He reflects the urban mentality, that everything we do is passionate because we’re oppressed people. Our emotions reflect what’s going on in our neighborhoods. He has a very unorthodox flow. Fa$t is money, cash, cars, hoes. A true hustler. When you think of money and cash, you think of Fa$t.
Since you’re such a diverse group and you’re from New York, some people have compared you to Wu-Tang. Do you think that’s an accurate comparison?
D.G.: It’s an honor to be compared to Wu-Tang. It’s a true complement to be compared to Wu-Tang because they had an impact on hip-hop which was so rare.
G.O.D.: In a way, the comparison is real. When Wu-Tang came out they were nine deep with nine different styles. We’re not as deep, but the concept is the same. Five dudes with five different styles. We’ve got five distinct personalities, five different angles. The comparison is valid but it’s 2004 and we’re coming with our own thing.
How did you all meet each other and form the group?
G.O.D.: Myself, Fast, and D.G. are family, so we been around each other our whole lives. Devious is from around the way in Bushwick, so we knew him for years even though he wasn’t with us. He had his own crew, with his cousin Juice and another clique called NBC (Nothin’ But Criminals). I was a solo artist at the time, and Fast and D.G. were just dibblin’ and dabblin’ in the art. They used to write their rhymes and I would coach them and help them develop their own styles. In 1994, our group started with our first manager, Roberto, and we got a bunch of MCs together to do a single just to see how it would do. It wasn’t a group yet, it was just individuals together having fun with it. After we made the first two songs, we developed a chemistry and realized we had a good thing going. At that time it was Fast, D.G., me, and Zakee, who we met through our first manager. Then we went out looking for Devious and we found him. We snatched him up and we’ve been rolling with him ever since.
How did growing up in Brooklyn prepare you for your careers?
D.G.: What better way to be prepared than growing up in Brooklyn? New York is the heart of hip-hop, where it all started. So, to live within the five boroughs is great training. Everything moves fast for us in the city; we absorb things so fast and spit it out, so by the time other people catch it, we onto something else. By growing up in NY, we are children of the original era of hip-hop. And we were taught by the greats. We grew up watching the greats, from as far back as we could remember. It’s a great thing being from BK, the home of Biggie and Jay-Z.
Your first single, “It’s all Real,” was produced by DJ Premiere, and has a distinct feel to it. How did the collabo with him come about?
Fast: We used to work with a producer named Rich Black, formerly of the Beat Minerz, and we used to work out of D&D. We worked in the A room and Premiere worked in the B room. So, one day we were recording, and Rich Black passed the tape to Premiere. He heard it and was like, “I’m feelin’ these dudes.” He wanted to work with us, but at the time he was real busy working with Big and Jay. When he got around to us, we did the damn thing, and he was like, “I wanna hit y’all with another one.” We collab’d with Foxy Brown on the second one. He did two joints on our album. Peace to Premiere and the whole GangStarr.
D.G.: It was definitely a beautiful experience. We hope to continue working with Premiere throughout our career, because he’s one of the greatest. He came and laid the beat, we wrote the lyrics, spit on the spot, and it was magic.
In your opinion, is hip-hop being lost? Is the art draining away?
G.O.D.: In some ways, the art is draining. It’s big business. Whenever you mix art and big business, you’re always going to clash. An artist does what comes from their vision, mind, heart, and soul. A corporation don’t give a damn about none of that. They looking at their bottom line, trying to make cake. When you’re in situation like that, they’ll try and fit you into whatever the marketplace demands at the time. You become mainstream, and they make millions off you. The artists are not being themselves because they think they have to fit into that mold to get somewhere. It’s hard because people stop being themselves and they become carbon copies. Pitch Black doesn’t want to do that.
What were your goals with your album, Pitch Black Law?
G.O.D.: We wanted to remind people that this is still hip-hop. For this era, where hip-hop is getting weak again, we want to remind people about what real hip-hop is.
Who else worked on the album?
G.O.D.: Premiere, Swiss Beatz, Teddy Riley, Young Lords, and several other producers. The guests on the album are Foxy Brown, Busta Rhymes, and St. Juste, an up-and-coming singer.
Brooklyn, Queens, and Harlem have a lot of artists coming out. Has that been an obstacle for you?
G.O.D.: Yes. It’s very saturated. We just stick to our guns, and our sound is unique. We just wanted to come across naturally.
Growing up, who influenced you?
G.O.D.: Too numerous to name. We love all the greats. We were raised on old-school soul music, hip-hop, R&B, funk, disco, everything. Black music influences us as a whole. We’ve been influenced by everyone from Jam Master Flash to Jay-Z, and everyone that was great in between. All of them are our influences. Even the whack artists influenced us, because they showed us what not to do. You learn from everybody.
What does your name mean?
G.O.D.: My name means Greatest Oratorical Delivery. As far as Pitch Black, the name represents the struggle, the human struggle. Pitch Black represents integrity in the music. The name comes from an old verse I had where I was locked up in a concentration camp. The guards were sleeping on the job and I made my way through the underground railroad. In the underground railroad, I couldn’t see. It was just roaches and rats. It was “pitch black.” Somehow I got out through the light that God shone on me. That represents what the name means, Pitch Black is the light that came through and shone on everybody.
Every group has an outspoken member – who is it in your group?
G.O.D.: Everybody in the group is outspoken. If you want to know who says the dumb shit out of nowhere (laughing), we all have our days.
D.G.: I’m partially to blame, I speak my mind in pretty much everything I say. If you hear me quiet, I’m trying to be good.
What will keep your group together when you face a tough time?
D.G.: I don’t know if we can answer that. Right now we’re going through a tough time. Belief in ourselves and in God kept us going through this whole thing. Plus, we’re family, so we can’t escape each other. We keep it going because this is our live. This is what we’ve always wanted to do.
Who have been your mentors, and what have you learned from them?
D.G.: We’ve worked with Wyclef, Busta, all the greats. They sat down with us and we take in what they’re dishing out, ‘cause it can be beneficial to our careers and our lives in general. Throughout my life, people have come to me when I was in dire need, and them saying a good word and patting me on the back prevented me from quitting. God always seems to bring someone or something in your life to make something happen. - Rohit Loomba, ctpros@arcaneproductioncompany.com
