Part 2.......
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DX: Do you ever look back and regret any of the paths you have taken, or do you think that it has made you a stronger emcee?
Royce Da 5’9: It just made me stronger. There were times in my life where I looked back and felt like, "Damn, I wish I hadn't have done that," and, "I wish I had done this differently." However, now that things are the way that they are I'm pretty happy with where I am and where things are going, as well as the possibility of where things can go. So it kinda makes me feel like all of those things happened for a reason. If I had taken any of those things off of the table things might be different now. It makes me now a firm believer that things do in fact happen for a reason. It's just about bouncing back from mistakes, you know? I pride myself on the way I bounce back from mistakes.
DX: We briefly mentioned that The Neptunes had a lot to do with Rock City 2.0. What's your relationship like with Pharrell these days being that you haven't really worked together since then, and that was 2002?
Royce Da 5’9: You know what? I bump in to Pharrell every now and then. There have been a couple festival shows that I did with Em where I bumped in to him. We spoke about working together. The relationship is the same. I'm the type of person where if we have a tight relationship but then for whatever reason both get busy, if you bump in to me two, three, or even 10 years later, our relationship in my mind is gonna be exactly the same as it was the last time I saw you. Nothing changes in my mind as long as we part ways on good terms. Me and Pharrell have always been cool. So I guess I can say our relationship is pretty much the same as it was.
DX: Another producer who you have formed a great friendship with over the years is DJ Premier. He's not only given you some of your biggest underground hits – “Boom” and “Hip Hop”, he also stood by you while you were in prison and has since continued to work with you. How did you guys form the relationship and what's it like being a part of the Premier family which also consists of the likes of Skyzoo, Termanology, and REKS?
Royce Da 5’9: It's definitely an honor to be a part of the [DJ] Premier circle. It's an honor to be his friend. I definitely love and appreciate him. We met… shit; I don't even remember what year it was. We met a long time ago. If you've been in Hip Hop 10, 11, or even 12 years then you've been in the studio with a lot of producers. So what happens is that you get in there with them, you do work with them, you meet them, some of them you end up being friends with, some of them you remain associates, some of them you don't care where they are. It's just the art of meeting people. Premo just happened to be one of those people who ended up being one of my friends. When you can work with somebody, make great music, and end up gaining a friend at the same time it's just a plus. He's a real nigga. I'm a real nigga. We just connected like that.
DX: Over the years it's fair to say that you've had your fair share of lyrical beefs - D12, Mistah F.A.B, Joe Budden, and more recently Canibus, why do you think these guys come after you, and do you think trouble follows you?
Royce Da 5’9: I don't think trouble follows me anymore. There might have been a point in my career where it felt like it did, but I think Canibus is trouble. He has his own problems and he's angry. He's more angry with me than I am with him. He does these things out of nowhere. For the record, I never went back and forth on a record with Canibus. I said what I wanted to say about him, and then there was a long gap in time. Now here he comes with all these records consecutively expecting me to respond to them, but I didn't respond to any of them. I'd roast him if I felt like it. It would only take 50-100 bars to wreck his whole movement. I'm trying to keep away from doing that. When I ignore Canibus, I'm just trying to treat him with the respect that he deserves for being a legend in the game. If I had to give him any advice it would be to just stay away from me. This is not what he wants.
DX: Many fans claim that your style is one that inspires confidence, and maybe the way you spit sometimes confuses people in to thinking that you're dissin' them. You even cleared up the fact you weren't dissin' Drake on your “Forever” freestyle on the Bar Exam 3 mixtape. Would you agree?
Royce Da 5’9: Yeah, I think that people think everything that comes out of my mouth is some type of subliminal or diss to somebody. I've never been subliminal. It's hard for me to be subliminal. I've never been much of a subliminal dude. I've always been a blunt and direct brut force say-your-name kinda guy. I shoot straight from the hip. When people accuse me of sneak dissin' it's rather offensive to me because why do I have to sneak and diss you when if I want to diss you then I'm gonna diss you? But if I'm not dissin' you and I respect you, in the same token I'm gonna make that bluntly known – “I respect this person and I would never diss this person,” exactly like I did with Drake. There are a lot of bitter emcees out there who sit around hating on the younger guys. I've never been one of those guys. I love to see these younger guys coming up and doing their thing. I still have my same movement. I have nothing to be bitter about. So when people accuse me of that, they're thinking of the Canibuses of the world, the guys that are sat around mad at everybody because shit didn't go how they wanted it to go for themselves.
DX: As a part of Slaughterhouse, you guys are now being considered the realest rap group of today’s music listening generation, which in turn has personally allowed you to feature on a load of tracks as guest emcee – Elzhi, Pharoahe Monch, and Travis Barker to name just a few. How’s the spotlight treating you?
Royce Da 5’9: You know what? So far so good. I’m real busy, which is what I always aspired to be. When I’m busy I stay out of trouble. In terms of the spotlight, it’s good. It has its pros and its cons just like anything else. I just deal with it accordingly. I look at it as a blessing and I’ll worry about it when it stops.
DX: During your career you’ve done everything from ghost writing for P. Diddy and Dr. Dre to having a track – “Renegade,” taken by Jay-Z and used for his own album, so some believe there’s no question you deserve your success. What does the future hold for Royce Da 5’9?
Royce Da 5’9: A lot of great things hopefully, and a lot of positive things. I’m going to stay on my positive path, keep doing what I’ve been doing, and not let any negativity sway me from what I’m supposed to be doing. I got the Slaughterhouse album in the pipeline; it’s coming along very well. The guys are in great shape. Morale is high, they’re at the top of their game. They’re pushing me and inspiring me to be at the top of my game. Em is very excited about it. I’ve got my next solo album, which I don’t know where it’s gonna be, but the fact that I’m a free agent after the release of Success Is Certain is exciting. It’s like a whole new career for me. Sky is the limit right now.
http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/inter...ersonal-growth-trend-setting-ignoring-canibus
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