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Big Duke of The Psycho Realm | Interview Part II
Sick Jacken, Big Duke, and Cynic Location: FatBeats in Los Angeles Photo: Sal Rojas
Big Duke of The Psycho Realm | Interview Part I | Both interviews conducted by LatinaBeatz
Lets talk about SickSide Street Music, What is this project about?
Big Duke - Sickside Street Music is a production company that I came up with because I didn’t think that everybody was capable of affording and rocking a Drug Lab track. We set it up to give
up-and-coming artists an opportunity to get their hands on a dope track. The main difference is that on a Sickside Street track we add instruments to the track ourselves (Big Duke, Frankie Knuckles), and on
a Drug Lab track we hire outside musicians to play over the track. Both styles of production are dope. If you want to get a track from some well respected producers, email me at sicksidestreet@yahoo.com and
come out with a BANG.
What is your involvement in the Drug Lab?
Big Duke - I’m one of the producers for the Drug Lab. The other Drug Lab producers are Sick Jacken, Cynic, Crow,DJ FM, and St. Louis. All different styles of production, all sick in their own way.
What other projects do you have in the works?
Big Duke - We’re about to get into Sick Jacken’s Spanish record and a Street Platoon or Cynic solo album. Me personally, I have a couple of projects up my sleeve. One is set to drop around the end of
this year, and the other one is a milestone. I might decide to pick the mic up and rock the fuck out of it real soon.
Do you have any plans to work with B-Real again?
Big Duke - Nah, I don’t have any plans to work with B-Real again. I have a gang of respect for him as an artist, and hope that he can come out with another hit record.
Frankie Knuckles and Big Duke Location: LRC Hollywood 2007 Photo: Sal Rojas
What do you think the outcome of Psycho Realm been without your presence?
Big Duke - The Psycho Realm name is alive and stronger than ever. Aside from working on their own projects, Sick Jacken, Cynic, Crow, and DJ FM have worked hard as hell to keep the name out there and
in people’s faces while I’ve been in hiatus. Our soldiers are some of the most loyal, if not the most loyal. The S.S. Army isn’t going to die out because one of the Generals goes down. But there is no Psycho
Realm without Big Duke and Sick Jacken rocking tracks together, so the Psycho Realm is at a stand still as far as musically, but not for long.
Do you feel your music has had any influence on Hip Hop, especially for Latino emcees?
Big Duke - I can see our influence on a few groups out there, especially in their lyrical content and style of music they choose. I hope that we can influence groups to develop on the business side
of the music, too. Street promotion, merchandising, starting and running your own label, all that shit.
Is there any tracks of you that have never been released or heard? or Collabortations with other artists?
Big Duke - I never really wanted to record with any artists outside of the Sick Symphonies camp because I knew that they weren’t on our level of thinking. Every song that we recorded since we started
recording the self-titled album we’ve put out, so you’ve heard almost every song I’ve dropped vocals on. We’re working on a full length Unreleased album right now, so there might be a few songs on there that
you might not have heard. Stay tuned for that...
When you first started writing, what was some of your influences, like musical or social surroundings?
Big Duke - Some of my early influences were Audio Two, Special Ed, Brand Nubian, Public Enemy, Funkdoobiest, Cypress Hill, EPMD, Gang Starr, NWA, X-Clan, just to name a few. I always wanted to let
people know about the corruption, violence, drug abuse, and clashes with authority that we had to deal with in the neighborhood where we were raised.
What is your opinion on the state of Hip-Hop today?
Big Duke - Personally, I think that artists today are scared to be original. It seems like every rap song that I hear nowadays, I’ve heard done by a different artist using the same lyrical content
and track. I recently went to a showcase at the LRC (Latin Rap Conference) and 70% of the groups there sounded real similar to each other. I saw some raw talent in a few of those groups, but it looked like
they were holding back or something. If they would take the time to really try to be original and different, hip-hop done by artists of Latin descent would be on a whole other level.
You and Sick Jack are considered kings of not only the L.A. Underground but also respectively noted in Hip-Hop, Did you ever think when you first started out that you guys would leave such a huge
impact?
Big Duke - It’s an honor for me to be considered kings of the L.A. Underground, but it doesn’t come as a surprise to me. Me, Jacken, and the rest of Sick Symphonies always strive to bring the dopest
and most original styles and concepts into every project we get involved with. It just feels good to see that you muthafuckas understand and can relate to what we talk about in our music.
What would you want to do other than music?
Big Duke - I would’ve wanted to be a Firefighter if I wasn’t making music.
With so many emcees out there trying to get their start, what advice do you have for them?
Big Duke - Always try to be the dopest group when you perform at a show. Be original with your lyrics, beats, and flows. Try not to sound like anyone else out there, they’ll get you confused with the
other group. Don’t ever put less than 100% into your music- if you half-ass a song, your fans and everybody else will know it. Do a lot of shows, but don’t get played out. When you do a show, rock your three
hardest songs and get off the fucken stage. You don’t want to bore the crowd. But the most important thing I can say is rap over dope beats. If you don’t have a dope track, anything you try to rhyme on it is
going to be a waste of time. If you need a dope track, you can hit me up at sicksidestreet@yahoo.com and I’ll slang you one. If you know my lyrical style, you can imagine how I get down with the music. The
Drug Lab and Sickside Street Music, you got two dope styles to choose from. Let’s make it happen. Stay down... Big Duke of The Psycho Realm
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