Fade
The Beat Strangler
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Inglorious Basterds are Nick Dagger and Mickey Blue Eyes of the villainous Raw Nature crew. They've been building together for years and are the main force behind Raw Nature's music. With tons of experience in the Hip Hop game, this duo is getting ready to drop their free EP very soon on IllMuzik Records, as well as a full length album due out early next year. They took a time out from the studio to give us an interview.
So first off, what's with the name Inglorious Basterds? Are you guys big fans of Tarantino or Brad Pitt?
MBE (Mickey Blue Eyes): LOL. Great movie. Tarantino is a great director. Every one of his movies are a good watch. Brad Pitt on the other hand has good and bad movies.
ND (Nick Dagger): We were tossing name ideas around for a good 2 weeks. Shit, who isn't a Tarantino fan? And Pitt is a great actor. But the name just popped up and it fit. It was the only name that we both instantly felt that "yup!" feeling. Plus I've personally always been a fan of crossing over movies and music, so yea.
You've both been in the game for a long time, when did you first collaborate together and what was it for?
MBE: Hah, well back around 2003 I linked up with a former member of Raw Nature and I met Nick Dagger through Raw Nature. I would always hear "yo every song is dope they make". Years went by and I linked up again and met the whole Raw Nature crew. Besides great emcees, they were all great people. We always said we were gonna work on something together. After "The Direction" was released, Nick Dagger and I linked up. We made a master plan to take over the underground Hip Hop scene!
ND: Mickey was friends with an ex Rx member (see what I did there?). He was a younger dude and I remember him coming around to chill. He always would bring a shit load of beats and they were always hardcore, heavy on the drums with ill samples. The type that make you look at the person next to you with the stank face as you nod to the beat. That shit is right up my alley. We started tossing the idea around of forming a duo with us producing and pushing our shit out there as a team. After the first Raw Nature album we felt it was time to make it happen.
From what I'm seeing, New Jersey has some unbelievable talent, almost like a second coming of New York talent - does NJ get a lot of comparisons to NY?
MBE: Growing up in NY 15 years of my life, there isn't anything like NY! NJ doesn't get the respect it deserves and we plan to represent the great state!
ND: I personally have always felt that we never get our due respect being so close to NY. We've always had talent. Fucking Redman was first emcee to really put Jersey on the radar. But music has changed so much since then. Now, it don't matter where you're from. NY and NJ have dope dope artists, I know many on a personal level. But that shit can come from anywhere on the globe now with technology and the ease of getting your hand on beatmaking programs. But I digress.... NJ isn't a second coming cuz we've always been here.
Looking at it from a music fan's perspective: what do you think of New Jersey's hip hop scene?
MBE: It's very wide ranged. You have your "Conscious" Hip Hop, your "Cameras, Actions Glammers Glitters and Gold" Hip Hop and you have Real Underground Hip Hop. Most of the dopest artists have somewhat of a buzz or no buzz at all. You just have to look for them.
ND: There has never really been a solid Hip Hop scene in NJ - and I'm speaking about actual real good Hip Hop. Everybody everywhere is a rapper now and that bad "music" is very easy to find. This should put it into perspective: Raw Nature did a ton of shows from 2009 thru 2010 and I'd say 90% were in BK/NYC.
Describe how everything ties in because I'm a bit confused. Cleverwon, Order 66, Raw Nature, Inglorious Basterds - is it all tied together somehow?
MBE: Raw Nature is the group, Inglorious Basterds are part of Raw Nature and are the producers of the Villanous Group!
ND: Yea I know it's confusing to outsiders. Cleverwon is P.A.'s nickname. He and Tito Fuerte started Raw Nature. Order 66 was and old group that some of the members were in back in the day. Inglorious Basterds are Raw Nature's producers. Everyone else except for P are emcees.
I'm still confused! You guys should make a timeline chart. What about P.A.? Is he a part of the group or more like a mascot?
MBE: P is scholar and a poet. LOL.
ND: HA! P is a cool guy. He's helping us with this project and yea he's a mascot, he's like the black lion in Voltron. He's part of Inglorious Basterds the same way the entire Raw Nature is.
The video for "Uh Huh" is pure dopeness. Awesome video with comedy thrown in as well. Who produced the track, what MC's are on it, who did the video, an also, what was the video about?
MBE: No doubt! Yea it was our first video. The beat is produced by "Inglorious Basterds" which is Dagger and I. The emcees on it are Tito Fuerte and Fizix who are a HUGE part of Raw Nature. Mike Sgroi, formally known as "Mike Classic" did the video. Great person and definitely has a career in directing/movies/videos. The video was just all around fun to make. Me and Dagger have a "confidential" folder that only Tito and Fizix can open. We meet up in a discreet location not knowing they were trailed by a solo FBI agent. We give them the folder then they get tracked by the agent. They go around marking their territory with the "Rx" stickers that are in the folder. At the end the FBI agent realizes what is in the folder and gets pissed. He thought it was something else. Tito and Fizix toss him in the trunk and drive off.
ND: Yea Mickey pretty much summed it up. This was our first official track released under the name Inglorious Basterds.
How would you describe the style of the group?
MBE: Villianous and Grimey! UnderGround Hip Hop at its best.
ND: Hardcore real Rap. We make the music that we like. You'll hear versatility, ridiculous lyrics and pure originality. I'm excited about the stuff we're doing and can't wait to get this stuff out there.
Tell us about your setup. Where does all the magic happen and what do you use?
MBE: I've used Reason for years. We record everything at 223 Studios, Raw Nature's headquarters.
ND: I'm a Maschine/Reason head. I have a small MIDI controller and big synth keyboard.
Do you have any interesting moments from the studio to share with us?
MBE: Funny moments? Hell yea hah. We are all jokers in our own way. Funny skits and classic verses. P.A. has a little bottle of liquid that looks like eye drops. It's actually something that smells like pure asshole lol. We say it's something else to new comers and then they smell it and start to gag. Funny reactions by all of them.
ND: Yo you have no idea the shit that happens in that lab. Yea P has this liquid ass in a bottle and gets EVERYBODY that's there for the first time to smell that nasty ass shit. Everyone else knows what's happening and we all watch the victim's reaction, LOL. Pure comedy every time. Dude also has fake cockroaches and fucks with new people. You'll learn pretty fast to keep your guard up at the lab. Nothing is ever what it seems. Raw Nature as a whole are bugged out dudes so the conversations are always entertaining too. We have fun.
If Kanye West walked in on a session and offered to give his input on your music, how would you react?
MBE: Excited!! Good or bad input! I respect Kanye West as a producer! Not so much as an emcee and his views on certain topics. Other then that I would definitely build with him!
ND: Kanye the rapper or Kanye the producer? Kanye the rapper can sit in as long as he keeps his mouth shut. Kanye the producer I would love to get his input. But it would have to be Kanye from the Rocafella days. Never been much of a fan and definitely not a fan of the stuff he's done since '05. But beat-wise the dude is incredible.
You've just been added to the IllMuzik Records label roster, and you have a free EP coming out soon. What can we expect?
MBE: You can expect a taste of hard work and great music in this upcoming EP.
ND: The free EP is gonna be CRACK. Not even bragging, it just is. It's not gonna be a bunch of throwaways songs, we're putting our best shit on there. We are trying to get our name out there and that's not gonna happen by holding back the best stuff. Everything we put out will be better than the last.
What's in the future for the Inglorious Basterds?
MBE: Tony Montana said it the best : "The World Chico".
ND: After the EP, you'll see an album mid-2013. You'll see more Raw Nature music whether an album or solo projects. We are strong arming our way into this shit. It doesn't fall into your lap, you need to create your opportunity and that's what we've done.
Thanks for taking the time to do this interview. Any shout outs you'd like to give?
MBE: Thank you! I can't wait for the next one. Yea I wanna give a shout out to people supporting us in every way. Shout out to Mike Sgori for the Music Videos, my man Drew keep ya head up, you have been an inspiration. Also, shout out to my brotha Nick Dagger! Oh, and also... peace to all the sharks!
ND: Thanks for this interview! Shout out to my dude Mickey Blue Eyes, P from Raw Nature, the entire Raw Nature fam. Also my dude Tito Fuerte from Raw Nature, be on the lookout for his side project with DJ Ari Why "Original Text".
