ILL FLOW: I refer to myself as "The Dictator" because it’s a reality. You got a lot of "kings" in rap and "princes" of hip hop, and all of this stuff. So, you know, my entity is to fill a space. "The Dictator" was really just dictators on each coast; I was gonna have one on each coast, so that’s where the whole thing came from.
S.T.I.L.L.: YOU HAVE TWO (2) TRACKS ON YOUR MYSPACE WITH MORE THAN 1.7 MILLION PLAYS, WHICH IS VERY IMPRESSIVE. ONE OF THEM IS "PROJECT X IS A GO"; WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO DO THAT TRACK?
ILL FLOW: I was in the studio with Kool Keith, and I just shot the idea to him, like why don’t ya’ll do a "Project X" mixtape? That track really set the tone for the "Project X Mixtape". It was the first track that I’ve ever been on with Tim Dog and Kool Keith together. Tim dog laid his verse, and I was like, ‘Damn, what I’ma say’? But, the influence was those two, basically.
S.T.I.L.L.: NOW YOUR TRACK, "PROVIDER"; WHAT WAS YOUR MINDSET WHEN YOU WENT IN THE STUDIO TO LAY THAT TRACK?
ILL FLOW: It was a jokin’ track, and it turned out to be a real good track. (Chuckles) That was a Tim Dog and Ice-T influenced track. It was like the ‘pimpin’ thing that was big, that was not to downgrade women, but have the tone that could reach the streets. It was just a creative side of me that I wanted to bring out.
S.T.I.L.L.: HOW DID YOU HOOK UP WITH HIP HOP LEGENDS "TIM-DOG" "KOOL KEITH" AND "MARC LIVE" FOR THE "PROJECT X" MIXTAPE?
ILL FLOW: I met them in Atlanta when I was in the streets selling mixtapes. I was out their grindin’, and they were down there shooting the video for their project "Iconic". I was on my way out of Atlanta that day, and I sold them one of the copies of my mixtape, and they listened to it while there was some down time on the video set. So, Tim Dog started directing the video after the director walked off the set, but the rap chemistry was good, and they picked me up right there. Tim Dog set me up real nice, and we were like family after that.
S.T.I.L.L.: YOU MENTION ON YOUR MYSPACE PAGE THAT "TREACH" (NAUGHTY BY NATURE) AND "50 CENT" ARE AMONG YOUR MUSICAL INFLUENCES. WHAT IS IT ABOUT THESE TWO ARTISTS THAT YOU DREW FROM WHEN CREATING YOUR OWN STYLE?
ILL FLOW: For Treach, because he’s from New Jersey, that’s the biggest influence of all. Their styles…I take the reality of their styles, and I liked 50 when he was underground. I like how he went from mixtapes to where he is now with the company and all. As far as Treach, I admire his longevity because anybody that can be in the rap game for more than 10 years and still be relevant is good. (Laughs)
S.T.I.L.L.: TELL ME A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT "AMERICAN GANGSTAZ".
ILL FLOW: "American Gangstaz" is a group with Tim Dog, Ill Flow, and Lace Stone (a female rapper). We came together and put together a really good album and mixtape, so that was a project we were working on. We come through collectively and put that together. The album and the mixtape are both done, but we don’t have a release date for it right now.
S.T.I.L.L.: HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN IN THE RAP GAME?
ILL FLOW: I’ve been rapping since I was eight years old. I was scribbling little things, and it developed into something really good. I also write R&B, Gospel, and Rock ‘n Roll; I do a lot of writing because I’m really talented on the writing side.
S.T.I.L.L.: SO, YOU'RE SIGNED TO RAP LEGACY RECORDINGS THROUGH EMI. HOW DID YOUR MUSIC GET INTO THE HANDS OF EMI?
ILL FLOW: Tim Dog! (Laughs) Tim Dog is, basically, in control of the projects that I was doing and my recordings. Rap Legacy is Tim Dog’s record label through EMI for distribution. I toured with them to Finland, Germany, and several countries, and we did about 15 cities on the "Project X" tour alone. So, we did about 12 countries, and that’s how EMI got to hear me.
S.T.I.L.L.: ON LUDACRIS' LAST ALBUM, HE HAS A TRACK CALLED "I DO IT FOR HIP HOP" FEATURING NAS AND JAY-Z. WHAT WOULD YOU SAY IS YOUR DRIVE AND INSPIRATION FOR BEING IN THIS RAP GAME?
ILL FLOW: My drive is to keep hip hop going. That’s a record I need to hear, and that’s crazy because I never expected Jay-Z and Nas to be on the same record. (Laughs) But, uh, my drive is just rapping for as many years as possible. New artists might look at Nas and Jay-Z like "they’re old". I ain’t here to destroy hip hop, and I know that a lot of negativity might come from my name being "The Dictator" because people don’t like the theme or plot, but when I explain it to them, they understand what I’m saying and tend to agree.
S.T.I.L.L.: DO YOU HAVE AN ALBUM OUT RIGHT NOW THAT FANS CAN GET THEIR HANDS ON, OR ARE YOU IN THE STUDIO WORKING ON SOMETHING NEW?
ILL FLOW: Right now, nah. Right now, my catalogue’s been snatched, and I’m surprised that the stuff on MySpace is still up there. But, I have over 1,000 songs recorded, and a lot of songs written. Music is my life, and a lot of people say that, but I’m really into it. I work with a lot of artists, and I collab with a lot of artists.
S.T.I.L.L.: IF YOU COULD DO A COLLABO WITH ANY OTHER HIP HOP ARTIST IN THE INDUSTRY RIGHT NOW, WHO WOULD YOU MOST LIKE THE OPPORTUNITY TO WORK WITH ON A TRACK?
ILL FLOW: On a track…It’s so many people! (Chuckles) I like to try new things, so I wouldn’t want to work with anybody that has my style of music. I really don’t even know what my style of rap is because it’s mine, but to pick one artist…(Pauses) I think Eminem. I would like to do a song with Eminem just for the lyricism and the lyrical challenge.
S.T.I.L.L.: YOU MENTIONED SEVERAL RUN-INS WITH THE LAW AND SPENDING A BIT OF TIME IN PRISON. HOW HAS FOCUSING ON YOUR MUSIC BEEN A POSITIVE FORCE IN YOUR LIFE THAT HELPS YOU STAY OUT OF TROUBLE?
ILL FLOW: Music keeps you moving. Music is energy, music doesn’t keep you in one place. So, it’s like, I can make a call and be in Atlanta in two hours. It’s about where you’re from, and Jersey City is where I’m from, and when you have too much "free time", that’s when you get into stuff. So, I come straight to the studio. But, the music allows you to travel a lot and see things that you’re not used to seeing every day, and it makes you wanna see and do more. And after I left the country, it gave me a whole new look on life. Doing my music makes me want more for myself and out of life.