Showboat Blastoff – Q&A Interview
Tell us a little about yourself. Where you are from? How long have you been making Hip Hop?
Hello UGGH! I’m a DIY weirdo/hiphop audiophile/Chicago Northsider (Logan Square). I had a sound in my head that could only be brought to life by building my own all out studio 8 years ago. I locked myself in and didn’t come out til I had it all worked out. Ive always been into HipHop since the early 80s. My dad brought me Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five when it first came out and I never looked back. I would dumb out with my blaster and cardboard, in my backyard, dreaming of doing it myself one day. 8 years ago I decided that I waited long enough and went all out.
What influences you in making Hip Hop?
I go in the studio with no plans and just goof around until things start shaping up. Mostly I get my ideas from 80s B movies and extreme Asian cinema. That shit just grabs me and I have to run to the lair and go berserk. Movies have a huge influence on my writing. I feel like every track should be a cinematic journey in its own way.
Describe your music, and what separates you from other MCs?
I like to think of myself as a cross between Kool Keith and MC Chris, with a touch of Weird Al. I love all styles of music and try to incorporate it into my albums. I think what separates me from other MCs is my melodic sensibility. Even though its HipHop doesn’t mean it can’t have melody in the verses.
Who have you collaborated with? Who would you like to collab with in the near future?
I collaborated on this record with Drummer Peter Touching from Touching and Learning and producers Talkboy and Manny Sanchez (Fall Out Boy/Psy/Umphrees McGee,etc.) I Work great with all three and plan on doing more with them. If we are talking about a dream lineup, I would have to say Kool Keith and MC Chris would be heaven for me. I love their levels of insanity.
Your definition of “Underground Hip Hop”?
To me HipHop is the ultimate, since it literally has no rules. Anything that has a mesmerizing beat to transport you away from the everyday doldrums, is hiphop. It was a total rebellion to the rock and dance in the late 80s. Sampling records, making live beats, sometimes voice for the whole beat, NO RULES! I like that. You can do whatever and if its dope, then its DOPE!
Production wise, who are your influences? Who does your production? And who would you like to work with?
Production wise, I’ve always loved Rick Rubin. He is the true embodiment of no rules. A huge amount of my desert island list records were masterminded by him.
I have been working with Manny Sanchez since 2003 or something like that. He really gets my insanity. We started working together at CRC in chicago back in the day and I followed him to Gravity Studios all the way to his new flagship studio IV Lab. I do my own production in my Beat Dojo Studio in Logan Square, but always give Manny the finals to mix. He takes it to the next level.
Any current or future projects you are promoting?
I am just trying to knock out some more vids for the Something About Larry record, then I’m onto finishing my follow-up record. I have a vault full of finished songs and beats.
Can you give us a brief description of the creative process of Bizarre Tony Music Video?
Bizarre Tony is my alter ego. In the vid Bizarre Tony and Showboat have differing views on getting massages from a Giant HotDog (played by Picasso Dular of Shades of Fiction/CrashPoet). I am DIY to the extreme, so I had to do my own vid too. lol. I went to UIC Film and Video school for college. I got the bug there and decided to break out the old cameras and go to town. This vid I decided to make a plan but refused to storyboard so the vid could be as spastic as the track. Green screen to me is hilarious, so I had to go town on it.
Where can we find your music and info?
Something About Larry is available on iTunes, Spotify, DatPiff, Soundcloud, and basically all digital services.
Any shout outs?
Id like to shout out all the people in their basements tearing it up for the sake of hiphop! DO THAT SHIT!
