On Tuesday, February 21, 2012 at 3:30 PM CST, that Klusterfuk that you know and love, Tech N9ne was on the air to take your calls and answer your questions.

With the Klusterfuk EP on the way, a world-record setting tour about to kick off, and a video on 106 And Park‘s rotation, there was a lot to talk about!

Here were some of the many highlights of the interview:

Klusterfuk

• Tech reveals that he recorded the entire EP in four days, a total of seven tracks, one intro and six songs.
• The EP features a lot of storytelling from Tech (as has already been displayed in the pre-release song “Blur”) and also many sung choruses from Tech, who revealed that he sings on four choruses. Some of the titles revealed were “Awkward”, “Can’t Stand Me”, and “DKNY (Different Kind of Nigga You)”, which Tech said was his favorite song and closes out the EP.

Tour

• For the Hostile Takeover 2012 tour, Tech reveals that he is switching up the set a lot, pulling out a lot of old songs, many which he had to remove from the final set list due to time constraints (one verses on classics such as “Imma Tell” and “Planet Rock 2K”).
• Tech reveals that he will be performing his verse from “Unfair” on the new tour.
• Tech says that the “drinking section” is the best it has ever been, with new additions such as “Hard Liquor”, “I Need A Drink”, and “KC Tea”.
• On Machine Gun Kelly, co-headliner for Hostile Takeover 2012: “It’s going to be wild to have somebody that wild on tour with me and bring that much energy to the stage….MY fucking crowd is going to LOVE MGK. I’ve seen it. This motherfucker is rock and roll, punk, hip hop–everything.”

Next Album

• Tech reveals he’s headed to Los Angeles to collaborate for his next album: “What I’m about to do in LA is going to fuck everybody up.” Who is he collaborating with in LA? Only time will tell.
• Tech reveals that he’s highly interested in working with rock and roll bands for his next album and that it is going to be something totally different from anything he’s ever done.
• The phrase he’s using to guide Seven during the beatmaking process is “Bigger. Bigger than All 6′s and 7′s, bigger than Welcome to Strangeland.” Seven has already submitted a beat for the next album and that fits the bill. Tech described it as “humungous.”

LISTEN BELOW

Let us know in the comments section below!

Fans may not have to wait much longer to hear the long awaited K.A.B.O.S.H. album from Tech N9ne, Krizz Kaliko, and Dirty Wormz.  After months of speculation and publicity, new information has been revealed about the project.  Smackola of Dirty Wormz recently uploaded a voicemail message from Tech N9ne regarding work on the project.  During the message, Tech not only confirms that he wants to begin work on the album soon, but also discusses the possibility of heading down to Austin, TX in order to complete the project.  The news is sure to fuel the anticipation that has already built for nearly six years.  This may finally be the year fans get what they have been waiting for.

Click here to listen or scroll down below.

Click here to pre-order Welcome To Strangeland.

What do you think about Tech’s message?  Do you think we will finally get K.A.B.O.S.H.?  Leave your thoughts below!

Strange Music’s own ¡MAYDAY! has been busy in the studio recording their new album and their contributions for Welcome To Strangeland.  While taking a moment away from the booth, we recently caught up with ¡MAYDAY!’s Wrekonize to discuss his work on Welcome To Strangeland.  Speaking the process, Wrekonize revealed new information regarding the album and the role that ¡MAYDAY! played in the production of the new Collabos entry.  As Wrek would tell us, Tech N9ne may just be on a new level with Welcome To Strangeland.

It seems like you’ve been spending a lot of time in the studio. What exactly have you been working on?

At the same time as recording for the album, we did the Strangeland records.  Bernz and I are on three of them, and Plex produced two of them.  The third one is produced by Seven, I think it features a few other people, I know it features Jay Rock and I didn’t get the full feature list on it yet, but that one is going to be super dope.  Plex produced two tracks and then me and Bernz are featured on two vocally.  The two that we produced, one is called “The Noose” and the other one I believe is called “Retrogression”, but I’m not 100% sure if that’s the final title that Tech chose.  I believe for now the working title was “Retrogression”.

What kind of experience have you had working on Welcome To Strangeland?

It’s been dope, it’s been super dope.  We really didn’t know what to expect.  Tech chose the beats while we were on the tour.  We were on the bus and we were playing him a bunch stuff and he chose those two joints.  We were like alright, and he was like ,”I’m going to work on them and I’ll send you what I got, and I’ll get verses from you guys.”  One of the tracks was just a beat that was clean, it didn’t have anything on it.  The other track, I had a verse on it and I had a hook on it already.  He just built up off of that.  It’s been dope, just sending the files back and forth, collaborating from Miami to KC, it’s been dope.  I’m super happy, I’m really looking forward to how those songs play out amongst the whole album.

You mentioned working with a Seven production. How was that in comparison to working over your own production?

It’s dope.  The track is super fresh. He showed it to us on the road while he was working on it.  When he played it, he was like, “I really want ya’ll to get on this.”  Then, we didn’t hear anything about it for a while, the whole time I’m like, “Damn, that Seven beat he showed us was super fresh.”  I was hoping that he still wanted us to get on it.  I liked the vibe of it a lot.  It wasn’t really too different, it was definitely something that was up our alley.  It wasn’t too much of a stretch, style wise, for us to get on that.  In the end, the record ended up being dedicated to EMJ.  A song, for EMJ, which made it even better.

Have you heard any part of the album?

The only track that I’ve heard is the one they released, the one with Kaliko, “Beautiful Music”.  That’s the only one I’ve heard.

How do you think Welcome To Strangeland will differ from past Collabos albums?

I think he’s hit such a stride as of recently, with All 6’s And 7’s.  Also because it’s all internal and it’s all artists that are under his imprint, I think he has more control over the general sound of it than maybe Collabo albums in the past.  I feel like he had a real specific focus and a vibe that came off of All 6’s And 7’s and then working with everyone who’s already on the label as well, I feel like it kind of made it more internal which I think in the end the music is going to shine just that extra bit brighter.  I don’t know, I feel like the vibe from hearing him talking about it, he’s super focused on this one.  I think the overall result will be real good.

Fans can hear more from Wrekonize and ¡MAYDAY! on Tech N9ne Collabos Welcome To Strangeland.  Be sure to follow Wrekonize on his official Twitter: @Wrekonize

Click here to pre-order Welcome To Strangeland.

-Victor Sandoval, Assistant Editor Strange Music

Follow Victor on Twitter: @VicMSandoval

It feels like, in your career, you’re at the edge of something and at the beginning of something else.  Do you feel that way?

The whole Strangeland theme of the album is, a star fell years ago after signing a deal with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis in 93, after signing a deal with Quincy Jones in 97, after doing a deal with JCOR/Interscope in 98 or something like that.  A star fell from where they had me all the way under underground, six feet under six feet, and that’s why I started creating Strangeland with all my fans.  Ever since then I’ve been shooting for the stars, but now with All 6’s And 7’s we’re right here by the stars, the awareness.  We’re about to shoot past the stars into god status.  What I mean by that is like, me and Krizz, we see our faces on people’s bodies for life.  Our signatures for life.  Our faces, like, guys and girls have our faces.  We have a responsibility to uphold to them, you know, to where people won’t have to get them erased.  Over this last tour, it’s all we been hearing, “You guys are like Gods. Gods of music.”  When you’re no longer a star, there’s no other place to go but up, they say you go down.  The whole theme of Strangeland is Welcome To Strangeland, it goes up, it’s vertical.  We’re shooting past the stars man.  That’s where I feel like it’s about to start something up, start from a higher plateau man.  The world is catching on right now.  The stars are getting a whiff of it, all the stars know.  Now the people are about to know because the stars are speaking about Tech N9ne.  They’re sprinkling.  Wayne did a big fucking shower.  Not just sprinkling people, putting me on Tha Carter IV, that’s like showering motherfuckers.  Millions of motherfuckers at once.

The stars, Rick Ross gave me accolades last night, felt so good.  He said, ‘From one boss to another, I really dig what ya’ll doing, you and Travis‘, he pointed at Travis.  I had my son right there with me, he said, “Man, you doing it the right way man.  I pay attention to ya’ll.”  I can’t remember everything he was saying, but I said, “This is my son, sixteen.”  Rick Ross said to my son, “How does it feel to have a boss like that as your daddy?”  My son said, “It feels good.”  That’s coming from Rick Ross man, THE boss.  I got a lot of respect for Rick.  His flow is so wonderful man, a lot of people I hear lately sound exactly like him.  He did it. “Say I’m Big Meech/ Larry Hoover”, know what I’m saying. It’s like, I hear a lot of people trying to duplicate that.  That means he did something wonderful.  When I first heard him on “Everyday I’m Hustlin”, it was just immediate.  Ever since then, his flow just got better and better and better.  I been paying attention to him, mixtapes and everything.  Then the Teflon Don [Explicit] hit and it was like BAM, that’s a fucking impeccable album dude . He gave me accolades like that holmes.  Brought my son into it, it’s a big thing Rick, I appreciate it.  The stars are sprinkling, telling people about me.  So now, it’s time to go into God status. Last song on Strangeland will be a song called “Gods”.  It’s not going to be pompous or anything like that, it’s just going to be like we’re Gods lyrically. We move these people.  They trust me enough to recite The Pledge that I created in Strangeland. People say, “Why would you have a pledge?”  Ok, the United Stated have a pledge, I created this land, why shouldn’t I? My fans love me, and they follow that and they tattoo their bodies with my face and my label, Strange Music. Everything that I say, I see girls that have lyrics on there.  The small of they back and their ribs and stuff like that.  That puts us beyond the stars.  I was listening to Watch The Throne, Jay-Z and Kanye, and I love what they’re doing. It’s like brothers of the same mind.  They got this song with Beyonce, they say, “take it to the moon, take it to the stars/ how many people you know can take it this far/ I’m super charged, we gon’ take this whole thing to Mars”  I’m like yeah, take it to Mars that’s tight . Dwayne is already a martian, Andre 3000 is already an alien.  Beyond that are Gods.  That’s me and Krizz Kaliko on this album.

There’s two way to get success, you can visualize this light at the end of the tunnel, this ultimate goal, or you just handle whatever is front of you the best you can.  Which one do you think you follow more?  Did you ever see this at the beginning?

I’ll let you know when we’re at the light at the end of the tunnel.  Not there yet, I keep telling people.  I always said in interviews, they said, “Are you surprised at your success?”  I’m like, “No, I been planning this all my life.”  The people that signed me are moguls.  Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, did work and still do work I’m sure for Janet Jackson.  This is in the Jackson circle.  Quincy Jones signed me, in the Jackson circle.  They signed me man, they saw this star in me. The people they had working for them didn’t know what to do with it.  I think about it all the time and I’m like, wow, these are the people that signed me.  Quincy done called me the Michael Jackson of rap and all that kind of thing.  This is not it, this is just what was planned to happen . It’s always blowing my mind though, because you never know if it’s going to play out that way, the way you planned.  It’s never written in blood that you’re going to survive to see the light at the end of the tunnel.  I’m going to be Carol Anne one day, I’m already at the end of the light. “Look into the light and come back Carol Anne, you’re too far gone.”  I’ma be somewhere in the “further” man, that’s how far I’m trying to go.  If you’ve never seen Insidious, you don’t know what the “further” is.  It’s like a dream state, you’re in a coma at home, but your body is somewhere else.

I’m trying to take it God status, Gods of music.  You know, the Gods of music like Led Zeppelin and shit like that.  Ronnie James Dio, you know who it is.  It’s just that rap wise, I think of Jay-Z as the hip hop President.  Kanye is like Vice-President.  Big guys. This motherfucker Jay-Z can go to Madison Square Garden and sell it out.  That’s fucking insanity, that’s the hip hop President. He’s like the Obama of rap.  When I seen him, I was on tour with him, he had so many people around him and I’d be back stage.  I would just see him from across the way and I just put my fist up, and he’d put it up, right back at me.  He’s just this monstrous figure.  When I say God status, I’m not talking about, I’ll make a billion dollars and that makes me a God.  What I give, spiritually, through my music puts me beyond everybody. I’m starting to accept it.  Like, ok, how do I become a God of music?  I listen to All 6’s And 7’s, and I’m like, “Wow, it’s coming.  It’s coming, I can feel it.”  On Strangeland we’re going to really try and get it across.  This is what we mean by Gods.  Above all, spiritually and lyrically.  That’s pretty pompous, but we give so much. That’s what puts me beyond everybody, and the stars are starting to feel it.  Thank God for somebody like Dwayne Carter for even recognizing it and wanting to showcase it to people who might not know.  He didn’t have to do that at all.

We always felt like we were godly.  I got songs called “Holier Than Thou”, I got songs back on Anghellic called “God Complex”.  It’s always been there, but now you’re about to see me on major stages.  Just when you think that it’s reached its peak, it takes on another life.  I’m just going with it man.  Trying to keep a calm head, I’m excited as fuck. I’m going to become that God of music. I’ma do K.A.B.O.S.H., I’ma do 816 boyz, I’ma keep doing Tech N9ne.  I’ll probably have another solo album out in September. I’m looking for the name, I’m waiting for the name to hit me right now.  Thus far it’s Strangeland, K.A.B.O.S.H., 816 Boyz I get to have fun.  Then I get to see where this Tech N9ne, Strangeland God of music thing will go.  I’ma try to do right by my fans and not try to get too full of myself.  I think the way I am now, I’m going to be this.  This is how I’m going to die, the way I am.  My heart is how it is, my brain is how it is.  It’s a pity that people disappear . The people you think will be around you for the rest of your life, they tend to recede.  Loved ones recede, you know.  Just along the way you think, “Aw damn, I miss those people.”  That’s the only thing that changes, people change while you’re changing.  My job is going to take more of my time.  I have no idea what’s in store for me.  I just try to be careful out here and not get killed.  Try to remain as healthy as I can, I love to eat.  Try to stay healthy for my fans, so I can do this as a long as I can.  I think there’s beautiful things waiting for us out there man.  It’s happening right now, I can feel it . I’m getting in God mode…of Strangeland.

It seems the humility you might have learned or if you’ve always had it, but from not being some overnight success, has actually taken you to a place where you can attain greater success than that would have ever given you. You know?

I wouldn’t change all my blunders for anything.  It taught me.  If I didn’t have blunders, it would not be a Strange Music.  Even if Jim Morrison gave me the idea to do Strange Music while I was on another label, and I was, that was meant to happen.  All those blunders were meant to happen.  Keeping my money and shit like that, that ain’t meant to happen.  Hopefully we get that shit back.  All that shit I wouldn’t change it for the world because it made me who I am. It made me say, “Fuck The Industry.”  It made me say, “The Industry Is Punks”.  It made me say, “I’m going to do something totally different.”  The beauty of this whole Tech N9ne thing is, I didn’t have to compromise my personality or my flow or anything.  I didn’t have to conform to another style to get where I’m going.  This is not where I’m going right, this is not it.  This is getting there, the awareness is still building.  This is not the light at the end of the tunnel.  This is not what I’m talking about, you’ll know what I’m talking about when it happens.  It’s humongous.  It’s Tech is over in Abu Dhabi, and Tech is over in Africa doing some shows.  Tech done fucked around and almost ended the war through music.  You’ll know.

Did he call you and tell you “I’m going to be in town”, or how did that all work out?

I was on tour and somebody told me he was going to be in my town like on the twenty-something.  So I text him, I got his number under a weird name in my phone, I said, “I heard you gonna be in my town on the twenty-something.”  I was on my way to The Gathering Of The Juggalos, that was that Saturday, I was on my way there.  I said, “You wanna hook up? I’ll be in town, I just got off tour, I’ll be in town. You wanna get some Kansas City barbeque?”  He hit me back within two seconds, “HELL YEAH”, in caps.  I said, “Ok, let me know, we gotta touch down”, he said, “Bet.”  So, I guess in St. Louis, the day before the show here, he busted his eye open.  I guess that’s why they had to stay in St. Louis for something, I don’t know.  They got here late yesterday, so they said we couldn’t do the barbeque.  So they were going to stay a day after, on their off day.  So, we can do it today, and we’re going to do it today.

Real dope man, he brought me out on stage, that motherfucker erupted.  It was the loudest, I haven’t heard something like that in a long time.  I could feel shit shaking it was so loud, for a long time.  It was a lot of love in the town, a lot of love.  It was the kind of thing to where people feel like they’ve been raising this baby for so long and now it’s grown up. You know what I’m saying, happy.  It felt like I was winning a Grammy.  It felt like I had just graduated high school, you know what I’m saying.  Something like that and everybody was happy because they knew it was hard for me.

Where are you going to take him?

I think they had Gates last night, so it’s going to be Jack Stack today.  Yeah, it’s going to be Jack Stack because they had Gates.  Keri Hilson had Gates also, they sent the rest of their Gates to my house.  I don’t know how it got my house from Keri Hilson. “Keri Hilson sho look good, taste good too punk.”  So yeah, I think they had Gates yesterday, I know Gates catered something.

Click here to purchase All 6′s And 7′s.

While Tech N9ne’s roots will always be planted underground, he can’t help the inevitable spread of his music into pop culture. It seemed like only yesterday when Lil Wayne single-handedly caused many to wonder “Who is Tech N9ne?” Now, after witnessing Tech N9ne’s performance at the Gathering Of The Juggaloes, Charlie Sheen shared the same admiration for the King of Darkness by giving him a major endorsement on Twitter, telling his followers “do not walk….run” to get Tech N9ne’s All 6′s and 7′s. With a Twitter following of 4.6 million and counting, Charlie Sheen’s endorsement is no small matter.

We talked to Tech N9ne himself to get his take on what it was like to meet America’s Biggest Winner.  Along the way, Tech N9ne also shared what it was like to meet Ron Jeremy and also revealed his eagerness to take on performances at America’s major music festivals.

Did you take the picture with Charlie Sheen before or after you went on stage for the Gathering?

It was right before I went on stage. He actually introduced me. He introduced me and then came to the side of the stage and he said “What’s up man? Nice to meet you.” And they said “Let’s take a picture!” so we all took pictures. Me, him, then Makzilla took one, Kutt took one, and then Krizz Kaliko took one. I was performing and I saw him and his homeboy tripping off the show. “Riot Maker” was on. You know how you look at something and your face is kind of squished up like “Damnnn!” That’s the way he was looking at me the whole time. If someone got some footage of the show, whenever I’m looking to the right of me, rapping, I’m looking at Charlie rapping right at him. That’s why I’m looking over there like “Look what I’m doing nigga! You don’t understand how hard this is, how beautiful this is, what I do!” When I got off stage he was like “This is the kind of shit I need to be listening to when I’m working out! I want the CDs! I want shirts!” We got him the five CDs but they had to get the shirts over at merch so it took awhile. His bus was leaving by the time Cross Eyed Joe got over with the shirts, so they had to drive the cart in front of the bus to stop the bus to give Charlie and them the shirts. They said “Thank you so much! We thought we weren’t going to get the shirts!”

What was the exchange like when you first met him?

It was all smiles. Same thing happened with Ron Jeremy. When I said “My name is Tech N9ne” to Ron Jeremy he doubled-back, he was like “Oh my goodness! How you doing!?” I’m like “Yeah yeah yeah, I gotta go!” and he’s like “I’m here to see your show!” I’m like “How the hell does Ron Jeremy know me?” Same thing with Charlie Sheen–when he saw me his face lit up and his mouth came open like “Hey! How you doing!?” He’s smiling all big and shit like he was waiting to meet me, you know what I’m sizzling? It was funny.

What was your impression of Charlie Sheen?

It was right before I went on stage so my adrenaline was pumping. I was just thinking about Wild Thing in Major League and the role he played when he was young in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, when he was in the police station with Jeanie. I was like “Damn, this is the same dude I’ve been watching for all these years!” It was real quick though because the crowd was intense and he had already said “Give it up for Tech N9ne!” While they were waiting for me to get on stage, Charlie and I were taking the picture. My adrenaline was already pumping so I couldn’t comprehend everything but it went through my head real quick that this was the dude I had been watching all these years and he was pleased to meet me. It’s a wonderful thing. It’s crazy how music travels–you feel me?

How did your impression of him compare to the way he put himself out there this year in the media? Is he as “crazy” as he makes himself out to be?

I don’t know man. I missed all of it. I’m an alien.  I missed the meltdown. I don’t know whether it was a meltdown or not. I never seen it. I had no idea what Tiger’s Blood was until he said it on stage. I hadn’t heard of Two and a Half Men or whatever the hell that’s been on for eight years–I never heard of it or nothing. I’ve never seen it or nothing, so he was the Charlie that I remember.

That’s a real statement. I’m truly an alien. I don’t get to watch TV. I miss a lot of stuff.  I miss BET awards and stuff like that. If I catch it I have to be on my bus or something. So this all missed me. This Charlie Sheen thing that everybody is on, it all missed me. So I’m hearing about it from people since it happened. They call it a meltdown or whatever, some say it wasn’t a meltdown, he was just kicking it. Some say he’s on drugs. I didn’t sense that. I just sensed somebody really happy to meet me and somebody that I was happy to meet because I have been watching him since I was a youngster.

Did you see what he said on Twitter about you?

I saw that man! I thought it was amazing. It just put a big smile on my face that he said “Don’t walk, run to get these guys’ album.” I was like “wowwww.” That was so beautiful man that he still thought about it after he left, you know what I mean?

Were you the headlining act of that night?

I was second-to-last. Twizted from Psychopathic Records were the last act. Right after I got off stage it started raining. I’m like “Wowww.” So a lot of people I guess left because of the rain. It would appear that probably I was the headlining act because of the rain. We performed so hard that we made it rain motherfucker! But Twizted is the homies though you know what I’m saying?

So how does it feel though? This guy, Charlie Sheen, he was the quickest to a million followers on Twitter, he’s all over the media. You talk about when Lil Wayne kind of blasted you. This would almost be put in the same category as far as someone really popular saying your name like that. How does that make you feel and what do you think is to come from that?

I think I retweeted it and everything. It just makes me feel good that it touches everybody. Good music touches everybody and it’s just getting to Hollywood like that. We’re in for a treat. We’re in for a longer roller coaster ride than we thought because people are catching on constantly, and now Charlie Sheen is on. That’s a beautiful feeling man. It’s a beautiful feeling that after all these years it’s still catching on and people are still catching on. On TMZ they saw Billy Dee Williams wearing a Tech N9ne shirt. That felt great. Somebody told me they saw Paris Hilton walking somewhere in LA with one on. It’s just spreading, you know what I’m sizzling? When I got there to the Gathering, George Clinton’s guitar player had on a Strange Music shirt. That’s beautiful! I got to see that, you know what I mean? It’s catching on like a forest fire, like I always said. Now, Charlie Sheen, if you take that back to his world, what you said he is, he’s going to love that shit and it’s going to spread. We gave him All 6′s and 7′s, five of them. All of his people wanted one. If they truly pop that shit in…it’s over!

One more thing: your name is starting to get out there, especially with someone like Charlie Sheen talking about you, and I know that the fans love you doing festivals that are very underground-oriented, but do you see yourself playing festivals like a Lollapalooza?

Yeah, man! I see myself doing a Lollapalooza, I see myself doing a Bonnaroo. I see myself doing all those major things man. I see myself all over that shit man.

I think it would be great to see the look on all these people’s faces who might not have heard of you.

Me too man, me too. It’s going to be insanity and I’m ready. I remember back in the Killer days I said I was tired and maybe I should quit–I’m ready man. I’m ready. I’ve been doing these Strangeland tracks since I’ve been back man and I’m super-ready man. I’m listening to these lyrics over and over and over and it’s getting better and better. I’m ready dude.

What does your mom mean to you?

My mom means the world to me man. She’s been tormented all her life. She’s the reason why I love, she’s the reason why I respect. She’s everything. I wish I saw her more than I do. Without my mama–of course it’s self-explanatory–I wouldn’t be here. I wouldn’t be the wonderful dude I am–I think I’m a wonderful dude, I got motherfuckers that’ll agree with me, I just aint on my own dick. My mom made me the pleasant dude I am.

Anything good in you, you would attribute to your mom?

Anything good I would attribute to my mom all day man. She is Jesus Christ. If there ever was the greater good, she would be it. When I look at her, that’s where I see Christ. If that’s supposed to mean the greater good and heavenly, that would be my Jesus Christ.

What would you say to people out there wondering what to do for their mom on Mother’s Day?

Just call her and say you love her, even if you’re not near her. Call her and talk to her. Last time I saw my mom she couldn’t even talk–she was in the hospital and she was mumbling. She said “I wish I had a soda…” I’m like “No, mama you don’t need no soda, that’s why you sick!” They said she had diabetes, you know what I’m sizzling? She couldn’t really talk. I tell my people: talk to your mama, if you can.

Tune into MTV2 Sucker Free and MTV Jams this Sunday at 11AM and 11PM EST to catch the premiere of Tech N9ne’s “Mama Nem” music video!  Check your local listings.

Click here to pre-order your copy of All 6′s and 7′s featuring “Mama Nem”.

Click here to listen to the full interview.

Click here to pre-order All 6′s And 7′s.

You’re in the studio, still recording All 6′s and 7′s. What does this album mean to you? Is it just another album or does it represent a new stage in your career?

It’s totally something new man. It’s all about now. “All 6′s and 7′s” is a term that comes from playing craps. When they say you’re “All 6′s and 7′s” or “at 6′s and 7′s”, it’s that you gotta be confused to put all that money on one thing. You gotta be confused to roll like you do or crazy to place that kind of bet, you know what I’m saying? The actual meaning of the term, it means in a state of confusion or disarray. Me, I’ve always been confused spiritually and the whole world is in disarray right now when you look at it. So, it’s all about now, you know what I’m sizzlin? So, All 6′s and 7′s: totally confused and disarrayed. This album is doing everything, you know what I mean? It’s doing everything at once.

Musically, it’s represented that way?

Totally, that’s what I mean. The music is doing everything, you know what I’m saying? I don’t really want to give it away but with saying All 6′s and 7′s meaning is confused, I can do anything and everything. I can do any style and everything within that style. With this album I actually had a different type of canvas. I didn’t follow a pattern. I didn’t follow a pattern at all. If I wanted to put someone at the very end of a song, if I wanted somebody for two bars, I did it. If I wanted somebody on four bars I did it, or a sixteen bar verse. I just used this canvas to do whatever my dreams told me to do and with the title All 6′s and 7′s it allows me to do that.  I don’t have to have a pattern. It’s just everything: it’s just a clusterfuck like it’s always been but to the 20th pattern.

Tell me about the album artwork: who’s idea was that and what does it mean to you?

The artwork was my idea. I had an idea before that which is why I got a personal trainer because I originally wanted to be on the cover naked with some kind of 6 and 7 thing over my dick so you couldn’t see it and some black boots. All my partners out in LA told us that if I did that and one person complained that they would take the albums off the shelf.  So I said “okay, have me in a Mike Tyson towel,” one of those towels you cut the hole in and put over you so it can expose my chest and my arms to see me branding myself, because when I was naked I was still going to be branding myself, I was going to be all 6′s on one side and then all 7′s on the other side, naked. I just kind of covered myself with the Mike Tyson towel and the brands. We freaked it out, the Strange Music towel, and it’s beautiful to me. All of my fans are saying it looks like a Mortal Kombat character. I’m like “Hell yeah,” that’s what I wanted.

This is an old topic, a dead horse, but I want to revisit it from a new angle. Of course you’re still probably getting people saying you’re going mainstream and stuff but the way I want to revisit this is I want to ask: what does the “Fuck The Industry” slogan mean to you and do you still stand behind F.T.I.?

I still stand on F.T.I. all day, all night. Strange Music is one big Fuck The Industry because we let people know that we can do it our way and we didn’t need a major label to succeed. We did this: we sold over a million copies independently, we still doing it, we’re selling out our tours. Strange Music in itself is one big Fuck The Industry. When you look at the song I did with T-Pain and Wayne called “Fuck Food”: I got two of the biggest artists in the rap game, put them on a song called “Fuck Food”. We’re cursing all through it, we’re doing music. We doing what we felt, not putting these niggas on the album to fucking sell records. It’s just like I heard these niggas on these records and we did it and I didn’t do it to put on the radio or nothing like that. That’s a big Fuck The Industry. We can do what we want to do and that’s what makes us number one and that’s what makes us one-hundred, because we can actually say “Fuck what ya’ll doin, this is what we doing and we’re succeeding at it!” That’s one big fuck the industry! Tech N9ne is one big Fuck The Industry because I’m letting people know that you can do it other ways and still succeed.

With your loyal fanbase and to the extent that they’re dedicated to your music and your message, it has some people calling you a cult leader. How do you feel about that?

Cult leader? (Laughs)

Yeah they’re comparing you to Jim Jones or David Koresh.

You know that’s real fucked up to compare me to Jim Jones or David Koresh. Those were not people that were for the greater good. If they’re trying to say that I’m going to feed my fans electric Kool-Aid, that got me fucked up. If they’re saying that I’m telling all my fans that we’re going to kill ourselves to go to heaven, that got me fucked up. If they’re saying I’m going to tell my fans that we’re going to shoot motherfuckers who penetrate our love…maybe! Now, I don’t know if that’s what David Koresh did but I do believe that at the end of all this we have to protect our loved ones so if you’re in my compound or if you’re in my house and we have to protect ourselves with ammunition, best believe I’m going protect myself from the evils that may be outside that door. So if they’re saying that, yeah, but that aint got nothing to do with my music as of now. If they’re saying the Techn9cians remind them of something of a cult, I haven’t turned nobody on. I haven’t said we gotta get these people on or turn these people against you. All our shit’s about love and if you’re shit’s not about love–if you’re shit’s about evil then you might have a problem with me and the Techn9cians but other than that they’re just a fanbase to me.

Do you think you have the best fans in the world?

I think I have wonderful fans. I don’t know what the other fans are outside of my fans so it’s hard for me to say until I go and see other fans. I’m expanding everyday but what I have right here, I’m totally happy with.

Why do you think people are looking at you and calling you a cult leader?

I think because of the tattoos my fans put on themselves of me, I think it’s because of the pledge I came up with, I think it’s  a number of things but I believe in togetherness. If we’re going to be doing this music, make it mean something, make people feel something to want to come together so if we’re ever in trouble together we’ll go together, we’ll go at that evil together. I believe in teamwork. If all that whole team is believing in love and love is what we got and we’re going to fight evil with love, shit there’s no way we’re going to lose I don’t think, unless they got bigger guns than us, or they got bigger bombs than us, or whatever. We gotta make money. We gotta make money for war. That’s what Pac said: “You can’t go to war if you aint got your money right, now I got my money right, now we can go to war.”

Tell me about The Pledge of a Techn9cian. Where were you? How did that happen? How did you come up with that?

I was at my house. I was thinking that it was time. It’s like Lil Wayne said my name and it started turning a lot of people on to me and I appreciate it. It started making a lot of people look my way. But my people over hear that I was already with, I didn’t ever want them to think I would alienate them to get other fans to do anything, to get other fans, to continue to do what I do to get other fans. What Wayne did helped a whole bunch but I kept doing me though, I aint doing nobody else so I wanted to let my fans know: “Okay, all these fans about to come in so we’re about to clique up right here together. I’m going to have our pledge and we’re going to put the pledge on them. If they want to be a part of us, they gotta know the pledge. When I say “one, two, three spit it” they’re supposed to be able to say it to me. So I had to make a pledge for the existing fans, the core fans, to say “Okay, this is what we’re going to have, and when the newbies come in we’re going to teach them.” We’re going to spread and keep spreading. So I had to make us real clique-y real quick before it gets out of hand because it’s about to get out of hand.

You think it’s about to get out of hand?

Yes, I know for a fact: it was written.

Why do you think your fans are so dedicated to your music, does it go back to what Quincy Jones told you almost 20 years ago?

Yeah, “Rap what you know and people will forever feel you.” They feel that I give all of me: I’m inside out, and when you do that…Dead Prez said “But then if you a liar-liar, pants on fire /Wolf-cry agent with a wire / I’m gon’ know it when I play it.” When they listen to my music they know that shit aint fake,  I’m talking about my life. So the next nigga that say “I don’t listen to that Tech N9ne, that shit aint real.” Their reality is different. Their reality might be selling dope everyday so want to hear a dope dealer speak, and that’s cool. My life is something different, I’m aint no motherfucking dope dealer I deal dope music. I aint cooking shit up in the kitchen. If that nigga respect good music and good lyricism, then maybe he’ll love Tech N9ne, I’m just saying that my fans see that that shit aint fake, and I can’t see the next nigga saying that because I don’t do what they do then it’s fake. No, I think everyone’s reality is different, and my fans connect with my reality.

How much longer do you want to do this for?

As long as I’m breathing I guess. I keep getting younger man. As I’m getting older I feel like I’m getting younger. My bones are getting stronger instead of weaker, my dick is getting bigger, I’m starting to breath a lot better. Ahh…it just feels like…I’m getting gray hair on my balls and everything but I shaved that shit off, it’s great! Other than that I’m getting younger. When you see me on that stage man I look like a young boy you know what I’m saying? I think I got time in this shit. I really don’t know. I’m torn because I’m ready to go, I’m ready to go, It’s time to go! I’m ready to go with this music. This new wave has hit me, boom! I’m ready to go, but at the same time I still do want to kick it with my children. I miss a lot of time so I’m torn. Yes, I’m going to go and provide my kids with whatever the fuck they need. I feel like I’ve got time in this shit. I’ll know when it’s time to stop. My fans will let me know. I’m thinking they’ll let me know…I can’t say.

Anything you want to say to the fans before we close this out?

Together we are a powerful force,
As one mind, body and soul.
Let no evil enter nor attempt
To reduce us because of the beliefs we hold.
And with this love combined with our strength,
We ward off pain and stress.
Technician I am wholeheartedly in life and in death!

Tech Talks Stolen Livestrong Bracelet by StrangeMusicInc