Rhymefest Takes Will Smith's Spot, Talks New Kanye TV Show

[bigted]

SOHH Exclusive: Rhymfest Takes Will Smith's Spot, Talks New Kanye TV Show

Friday - July 6, 2007 by Anthony Roberts

Rhymfest doesn't just have two new albums on the way, he recently revealed to SOHH that he and Kanye West are working a TV show, and he wonders why former production head Mark Ronson is acting "brand new."

Apparently, Blue Collar wasn't just the name of Rhymefest's 2006 debut. The Windy City wordsmith has been hard at work since releasing his first disc and plans to flood the streets with two albums dropping only months apart -a collaboration with DJ Jazzy Jeff entitled I'm The DJ, He's The Rapper, and his sophomore set, El Che.

"With Jazzy Jeff, you're working with a real producer," he told SOHH. "Whenever I get in the studio with a real producer who just loves music, it's like the chemistry and the sparks fly, you know? It's like he sets up the face and I put the eyes and the smile and frown and paint the picture. He said to me that I'm the closest he's been to with any rapper, like working with Will Smith again. So, you take the run that somebody like Will Smith and Jazzy Jeff has had and you get that same person saying that this is the closest since, that means something great is about to happen."

Hoping to release the nostalgic, light hearted collaboration with Jazzy Jeff in December, the Grammy award-winning MC will follow it up with his more aggressive, sophomore J Records release El Che in April 2008. El Che features the Lil Jon produced "Angry Black Man On A Elevator," of which he shot a comical "Making of" video which takes viewers into the studio as the pair crafts the single. Fest is also quick to point out that this album will not be a sequel to Blue Collar.

"The people who already know about Rhymefest will be like, 'Damn, this is what I've been waiting for him to do. This is Rhymefest grown up, this is the maturity of my favorite artist and I'm glad I'm here to witness it,'" Fest said. "The people who may not know me that well are going to hear this album and be like 'Oh my God, I didn't know.' And it's going to give all the people who did know a chance to finally say, 'I told you.' It's going to be another wake up call that says you can do authentic hip-hop and still be successful."

While he's keeping a tight lip on which MC's will be joining him on the record, he did confirm Cool & Dre, Animal House, Lil Jon and Kanye West, who he is currently working with on a new show for Comedy Central, will be lending beats to the album.

"Yeah, Kanye and I are working on a pilot for a TV show," he said. "Right now we really don't have a name for it. It's like 'In Living Color' meets the 'Muppet Show.' So it's like a sketch comedy involving puppets but we involve the live guests and they'll interact with the puppets. We're about to go to LA and start working on the pilot in about a month," he continued. "I know it's concerning TV, but I don't know how much outside of music [the show] is because the characters are going to be heavily music based and I'm going to be writing rhymes for a lot of the characters."

With several collaborations on the horizon, one person that Fest won't be working with is former producer Mark Ronson.

"Mark is doing, like, Amy Winehouse and he has some other artists and it was kinda like, after Blue Collar, Mark disappeared," Fest said. "When I was trying to get DJ's to play my stuff and trying to really make it pop, I couldn't find him. I wanted to do some stuff with him on this album and he's got a manager and his manager was calling my manager like 'we'll schedule some days' and it never happened."

"He kind of bailed on me," Fest continued. "At the end of the day, every man gotta take care of himself as a man and I don't expect no man to take care of me so I ain't tripping but...it kinda threw me off. If anybody out there sees Mark Ronson, tell him to give me a call, my number ain't changed."

[Hero1]

interesting.. I could have thought of a 100 emcees i'd like jeff to do an album with before rhymefest..

[bart5]

interesting.. I could have thought of a 100 emcees i'd like jeff to do an album with before rhymefest..

I don't think Rhymefest is that bad. He has some good material and seems to atleast have some postive things about his music. Plus Jeff seems to really connect with him and we all know that Jeff makes pure, dope hip hop. As long as JJ continues to make music, I'll be happy with it.

Edited July 7, 2007 by bart5

[JumpinJack AJ]

I hate the title of the album. It's 2 tightly associated with JJ+FP. I feel he's tainting it by naming the album that. I'm just not cool with that. And like Tim, if Jazzy waz gonna collaborate with an emcee for a full album that wasn't the 'Prince, i'd list like 200 before Rhymefest.

I'm not dissing Rhymefest. I think he is a stand out talent, not that other artists are making that hard. I got his album and thought it waz good but i honestly haven't listened 2 it since the 1st month i got it. I don't know, i just thought it waz average. Compared 2 what i saw on Nick Cannon's Wildin' Out, i just expected more of a personality from him. I'll give it another listen 2nite tho.' If i had a choice of emcees 2 work with for a full album, names like Pauly Yamz, CL Smooth, J-Live, Oddisee, Baby Blak, PMD, Rakim, LL Cool J, Chubb Rock, Black Eyed Peas, MC Lyte, Common Sense, Guru, etc would all come way before him.

I respect he's droppin' more stuff and i'll be sure 2 peep it. I'll most likely support it 2 since it sounds like he's been growing since the 1st album.

The TV show sounds schetchy tho.'

[Jin]

I agree with statements of Hero and AJ (The title bothers at most)! Rhymefest is an talented MC, but he is no one who could take Will's spot!

In the current state of hip hop chicago is the capitol...and even there he is on an MC level in the 3rd place and in general on 4th if you count Kanye, too.

(Kanye West/Producer)>Common>Lupe Fiasco>Rhymefest>Gemini

[fresh_from_sofia]

yeah no doubt , and i prefer Jeff to work with someone like Common , Guru , CL Smooth but that's the where it is and i am just glad Jeff is continues so far to make music even with Rhymefest which is not that bad and what Jeff is saying .so ... (:

thanx for posting