Interview Questions
LMF: Why don't we start off with you introducing yourself?
C: Aite. I'm Chepo a.k.a. The 93 an emcee out of the Bay Area California, originally from Lathrop, better known as L-Town.
LMF: What made you become a Rapper?
C: Man, I really don't know. I remember messing around when I was little making songs and such, but it wasn't until the winter of '95 that I started getting into writing and such. It was one of those things that my friends were into. I had all the equipment at my house, so they would come over to make freestyle tapes. I couldn't help but get caught into it.
LMF: When was your first performance?
C: My first performace ever was in kindergarten as the caboose on a train singing something. Professionally, as a solo artist, it was in Providence, Rhode Island for Radio Disney.
LMF: How would you describe your music?
C: Real Hip Hop. Too much of what you hear on the radio that's labled as "hip hop", is NOT hip hop. Its Rap music. Its cool, I listen to it and like dancing to it at the clubs, but its not what the culture is about. I try to take it back to the essence of what hip hop really is, with a taste of the old skool. I like to say, " I got underground lyrics over mainstream beats."
LMF: If you could do a duet with any artist out there right now, who would it be and why?
C: Wow, thats so tough. I think Eminem, just because he's ultimate as far as mainstream hip hop/rap music goes. On a more creative level, I think Missy Elliot would be extremely fun. Locally, just for the hometown folks, San Quinn and the Heiroglyphics crew, just to show the world what the Bay is really about.
LMF: Describe a day for you, from waking up to going to bed.
C: I try not to get up any later than 10 a.m. I usually click on ESPN to watch Sports Center if its on. Once I'm caught up, of course I fix myself up (shower, teeth, shave, etc.). Hop into the car and make the hour long trip from San Francisco to Lathrop. On the way I just play an instrumental and practice, whether making up new lyrics or reciting unrecorded ones. I'll always try to stop off at my parents house first to say hi, then off to the studio to record. Get done around 8-9 p.m. and head back to the Bay. If anythings crackin, meet up with my friends, if not, grab a bite to eat and head home. Watch the late edition of Sports Center and go to bed around midnight.
LMF: What is the one thing you can eat 24/7?
C: Clam Chowder. San Francisco has the best in the world. In a bread bowl at Fisherman's Warf for $4.65. Its just so filling and you can eat the bowl!
LMF: Where do you see yourself in five years from now?
C: I would love to say rocking a stage of 60,000 people and selling multiplatinum records, but I don't know. Regardless, 60,000 or not, I'll still just be making good music, and that's all that matters to me. Signed or unsigned, it doesn't really make a difference, as long as someone is feeling my music and I continue to enjoy doing it.
LMF: How do you react when someone wants your autograph?
C: I'm so used to it now! Thats the sad thing about doing this so long and having sucess, is that you sort of lose those feelings. When I first started it really used to bug me out like, "Wow, someone thinks I'm that important." I think I get more shocked when people recognize me away from my shows, around town. It's pretty cool when your hanging out with your friends and someone randomly asks for your autograph. You get to kinda look at your friends and be like, "Pretty cool huh?"
LMF: Do you ever get nervous or stage fright?
C: I always get nervous, it's natural. I think if you don't get nervous, something is wrong. You never know how a crowd is gonna react or if you'll forget your lyrics, so it's a little nerve racking. I used to not be able to eat the whole day until after I performed because my stomach would get weak.
LMF: If you could open up for any artist out there right now, who would it be?
C: By far Heiroglyphics. Not a lot of people know about them in the mainstream, but they are the best underground hip hop crew alive. They got a worldwide fan base that reaches all the way over to Japan. And they've been doing it for over a decade. They came to my campus (San Francisco State) and just rocked the entire school with a free concert one year. I missed class just to watch them. It was well worth it.
LMF: What C.D. would we find in your C.D. player right now?
C: Jay-Z, "The Black Album" & Tupac "Rap Phenomenom 2". I listen to everything though from pop to country.
LMF: If you weren't rapping, is there something else you could see yourself doing for a career?
C: Broadcasting. Either a DJ on the radio or a sportscaster, which is what I wanted to do growing up. I'm a sports fanatic. I know much more than someone my age should know. Its what I went to college for.
LMF: Last one, What message would you like to send out to your fans?
C: Thank you. They're the ones that let me know what works and what doesn't, and they decide the level of your success in this business. On a personal note, practice makes perfect. Hehehehehhe. It's so true though. No one would have ever thought that the scrawny Puerto Rican boy that hung out with all the Filipinos, would become a successful emcee. I was horrible when I started, but I was persistent. Fans always ask me how to get started in the business, and it's always the same answer, "Follow your heart." Do what your heart tells you and have fun doing it, because if you don't enjoy it, it's not worth doing.
© LMFANZINE.com
LMF: Why don't we start off with you introducing yourself?
C: Aite. I'm Chepo a.k.a. The 93 an emcee out of the Bay Area California, originally from Lathrop, better known as L-Town.
LMF: What made you become a Rapper?
C: Man, I really don't know. I remember messing around when I was little making songs and such, but it wasn't until the winter of '95 that I started getting into writing and such. It was one of those things that my friends were into. I had all the equipment at my house, so they would come over to make freestyle tapes. I couldn't help but get caught into it.
LMF: When was your first performance?
C: My first performace ever was in kindergarten as the caboose on a train singing something. Professionally, as a solo artist, it was in Providence, Rhode Island for Radio Disney.
LMF: How would you describe your music?
C: Real Hip Hop. Too much of what you hear on the radio that's labled as "hip hop", is NOT hip hop. Its Rap music. Its cool, I listen to it and like dancing to it at the clubs, but its not what the culture is about. I try to take it back to the essence of what hip hop really is, with a taste of the old skool. I like to say, " I got underground lyrics over mainstream beats."
LMF: If you could do a duet with any artist out there right now, who would it be and why?
C: Wow, thats so tough. I think Eminem, just because he's ultimate as far as mainstream hip hop/rap music goes. On a more creative level, I think Missy Elliot would be extremely fun. Locally, just for the hometown folks, San Quinn and the Heiroglyphics crew, just to show the world what the Bay is really about.
LMF: Describe a day for you, from waking up to going to bed.
C: I try not to get up any later than 10 a.m. I usually click on ESPN to watch Sports Center if its on. Once I'm caught up, of course I fix myself up (shower, teeth, shave, etc.). Hop into the car and make the hour long trip from San Francisco to Lathrop. On the way I just play an instrumental and practice, whether making up new lyrics or reciting unrecorded ones. I'll always try to stop off at my parents house first to say hi, then off to the studio to record. Get done around 8-9 p.m. and head back to the Bay. If anythings crackin, meet up with my friends, if not, grab a bite to eat and head home. Watch the late edition of Sports Center and go to bed around midnight.
LMF: What is the one thing you can eat 24/7?
C: Clam Chowder. San Francisco has the best in the world. In a bread bowl at Fisherman's Warf for $4.65. Its just so filling and you can eat the bowl!
LMF: Where do you see yourself in five years from now?
C: I would love to say rocking a stage of 60,000 people and selling multiplatinum records, but I don't know. Regardless, 60,000 or not, I'll still just be making good music, and that's all that matters to me. Signed or unsigned, it doesn't really make a difference, as long as someone is feeling my music and I continue to enjoy doing it.
LMF: How do you react when someone wants your autograph?
C: I'm so used to it now! Thats the sad thing about doing this so long and having sucess, is that you sort of lose those feelings. When I first started it really used to bug me out like, "Wow, someone thinks I'm that important." I think I get more shocked when people recognize me away from my shows, around town. It's pretty cool when your hanging out with your friends and someone randomly asks for your autograph. You get to kinda look at your friends and be like, "Pretty cool huh?"
LMF: Do you ever get nervous or stage fright?
C: I always get nervous, it's natural. I think if you don't get nervous, something is wrong. You never know how a crowd is gonna react or if you'll forget your lyrics, so it's a little nerve racking. I used to not be able to eat the whole day until after I performed because my stomach would get weak.
LMF: If you could open up for any artist out there right now, who would it be?
C: By far Heiroglyphics. Not a lot of people know about them in the mainstream, but they are the best underground hip hop crew alive. They got a worldwide fan base that reaches all the way over to Japan. And they've been doing it for over a decade. They came to my campus (San Francisco State) and just rocked the entire school with a free concert one year. I missed class just to watch them. It was well worth it.
LMF: What C.D. would we find in your C.D. player right now?
C: Jay-Z, "The Black Album" & Tupac "Rap Phenomenom 2". I listen to everything though from pop to country.
LMF: If you weren't rapping, is there something else you could see yourself doing for a career?
C: Broadcasting. Either a DJ on the radio or a sportscaster, which is what I wanted to do growing up. I'm a sports fanatic. I know much more than someone my age should know. Its what I went to college for.
LMF: Last one, What message would you like to send out to your fans?
C: Thank you. They're the ones that let me know what works and what doesn't, and they decide the level of your success in this business. On a personal note, practice makes perfect. Hehehehehhe. It's so true though. No one would have ever thought that the scrawny Puerto Rican boy that hung out with all the Filipinos, would become a successful emcee. I was horrible when I started, but I was persistent. Fans always ask me how to get started in the business, and it's always the same answer, "Follow your heart." Do what your heart tells you and have fun doing it, because if you don't enjoy it, it's not worth doing.
© LMFANZINE.com