A head of his single release ‘H.T.C‘ ethemadassassin caught with HTF for an exclusive interview. E gave us an inside view into the rappers lifestyle whilst also talking about his new music and what he thinks of current music.
HTF: Yo, Thanks for spending some time with us at HTF – how’s it going?
E: Thanks for having me. everything’s cool, just gearing up for my album release.
HTF: So first thing which strikes me is your name, where did it come from and what does the “E” stand for?
E: My name was given to me back in college by an old friend, The One Sun Lion Ra. Back in college, dudes would have multiple, massive, all-day ciphers. dudes would miss class just to get high and drunk and rhyme all day. Ra was always holding court as like THE chief emcee and beatbox. I would sometimes listen, and then eventually I would join in. the name came from the difference between me and the other emcees. The other emcees wanted to just rhyme the entire fucking day and some wouldn’t even want to pass the mic, whereas I would get my chance, pop off, and be out. no goodbyes, no nothing.
Ra used to tell me I was on some assassin shit cause I would come through and shoot once, kill the target, and disappear. the “mad” part just came from the times. Most people walked around with a screwface, and I did too. the “e” is the initial of my first name, which is what everyone actually calls me (“the mad assassin” part is more like a title instead of an actual name) so you have “e…the mad assassin.” I type it in all lower case letters to make it look less inconspicuous regardless of the size the word, and it still sticks out which happens to represent my persona. I decided to push it all together on some hip hop shit cause I liked how it looks and I wanted new listeners to have to decode it when they saw it. so, “ethemadassassin,” all lower cases, no spaces, fix your faces…
HTF: Can you give the readers at home a brief back story of EtheMadAssassin?
E: With me, there’s no such thing as a ‘brief back story,” but “ethemadassassin” actually started out as a young hip hop fan who went by “Easy E” only to have my heartbroken when a group called NWA dropped and changed the face of music and they, of course, had a member known as “Eazy E” so I was forced to changed my name to “E-Money.” I would go around battling dudes with my man Paydaye. Eventually, I went to college and instead of taking school seriously, I took rap more seriously and became “ethemadassassin.”
In ’97 I got my first record on local radio, “The Bar Scene, Pt. 1” with my man DL, as the group Circle Of Steel. We did some more records and eventually joined back up with Paydaye and my other man Bashir to extend the Circle Of Steel. We eventually parted ways, and I ended up going solo and dropping my first album, “Proverbs” in 2004. my second LP, “Tomorrow Never Comes” dropped in 2008. I joined with Veteran Eye in 2010 and along with The Fakehunters we dropped “Veteran Assassins.” In 2012, along with SciFi Stu we dropped the second Veteran Assassins LP, “Paint The Town Red.” I’m dropping my 3rd solo LP Sept. 17th, “Soul On Fire.” Believe it or not, this is as brief as I could make this story. everything else, I cover in my music, so please check that out…
HTF: If we want to know what EtheMadAssassin is all about which 3 songs of yours should we listen to?
E: Probably ‘Thoughts Of an Assassin‘ off my ‘Proverbs‘ album, then ‘The Life I Know‘ off my ‘Tomorrow Never Comes‘ album, and then ‘Letter To Mommy’ off the upcoming ‘Soul On Fire‘ album. they’re all on iTunes, so check em out….they pretty much wrap me up in a nutshell.
HTF: Tell us about your brand new track ‘H.T.G.’?
E: “H.T.G” stands for “Hustler/Thug/Gangster”. it’s a song to inform people who are unfortunately bamboozled by some rap music into thinking that hustlers, thugs, and gangsters are the same and to show them that there really are different levels in those lifestyles.
HTF: The track has an old school feel with a mix of modern sounds. Whats your take on modern Hip Hop/Rap and where do you think its going?
E: I love where hip hop is going now. I don’t like where the industry is trying to take it. hip hop is and will always be an evolving means of expression for artists. unfortunately, the industry will always try to find a way to take the most “popular” or most “marketable” sound and pimp it and its creators to make a buck and shit on everybody involved, which in turns creates artists who are out to just make that buck and don’t care about the quality of their music or the retarded shit they’re saying. its been going on since the first recorded records.
HTF: What should your fans expect next from you?
E: I’m currently working on the 3rd Veteran Assassins album, “G.O.L.D.” which should be released in early 2014. i’m also working on an EP with SciFi Stu. so far as the “Soul On Fire” album, i’m going to shoot at least 2 more videos. I might even shoot a throwback video for a song off my 2008 album. we’re also gearing up to tour in 2014.
HTF: Stepping away from music, what would be classed as a normal 24 hours as EtheMadAssassin?
E: I wake up around 7 or 8am and check emails, voicemails, and social media, in that order. then I go back to sleep. wake up again, check emails, voicemails, and social media AGAIN and correspond accordingly. That’s the only regular occurrence in my life. after that, whatever I do is because it needs to be done, and that changes on the daily. I make sure I eat a healthy meal or 2 somewhere in the day, and I make sure I shit and shower. Everything else is relative to what needs to be taken care of that day.
HTF: What tracks are you feeling at the moment?
E: There’s no one track I can mention, but I can mention projects. I like Action Bronson’s “Saab Stories.” I like Ka’s “Night Gambit.” anything from Roc Marciano. I’m digging DuRag Dynasty. oh yeah, the new 50 Cent record “I’m Hood.” That’s my shit…
HTF: Where do you see yourself in 5 years time?
E: In 5 years, I see myself touring heavy in between shooting video. I got my degree in broadcast production, and having had a hand in my own videos, I plan on doing that full-time.i have people telling me I should really aim for being in front of the camera, but I can see myself being behind a lot of cameras.
HTF: Where do you see yourself in 50 years time?
E: Lifetime achievement award from every society that has one. and probably the coolest old dude on the planet. Melvin Van Peebles style.
HTF: And finally, was there anything you would like to plug or tell the readers?
E: Sept. 17th, Soul On Fire is on iTunes. Check all our videos on Youtube. Follow me on Twitter and instagram @ethemadassassin. and seek out your own hip hop, don’t let people tell you what’s dope…decide for your self….
