Tech N9ne is crazy. And, just for clarification, this is not the funny, Martin Lawrence, “you so crazy,” type of crazy. It’s closer to the Britney Spears, shaving her head without any panties on, type of crazy. At least, that’s what Tech wants you to think. It seems like the only logical way to explain the bright, red hair, the straight jacket and the frequent use of the words “psycho” and, yes, “crazy.”

Over the course of 11 albums, Tech N9ne has put his entire life on wax. He openly pens gut-wrenching lyrics about his own insecurity, infidelity, drug use and vanity. The global fan response is undeniable, and with his latest effort, Killer, debuting at number 12 on the Billboard 200, Tech will likely become the first Hip Hop artist to sell a million albums independently. A more globalized economy and the impending implosion of the recording industry could bring the mainstream recognition that Tech N9ne has been craving for decades. Any emcee in a similar position would have to be certifiably crazy to even think about quitting at this point, right? Of course.

HipHopDX: You say you wrote this entire album during a 30 day tour, so you must’ve had a lot on your mind.
Tech N9ne: I did all those songs in like a month, man. Once I stopped doing that Ecstasy, it opened up a whole new world. I swear to God I almost died. I took like 15 pills in one night. I’ve been clean for about a year or so. Since I stopped that, it’s like a whole new ballgame opened up in my brain. I have different subject matter and everything now.

It’s insanity. I thought with Everready, I had said everything—with “The Rain/Welcome Back/Party Hard” [click to read] and my little girl and everything. I had “My World” with Brotha Lynch Hung [click to read], and I thought it couldn’t get any better than that. But, I was still on that drug then. You know what I’m sizzlin’? I’m not saying that held me back or nothing, because a lot of beautiful material came out of that. Now look what a clean me brought. There are titles like “Hope For A Higher Power,” “Cry Baby,” “Can’t Shake It” and “Why You Ain’t Call Me.” This is stuff I’ve never addressed before. It’s shit that I’ve been wanting to say to Jay-Z [click to read], Nelly, Ludacris [click to read] and all these cats that I’ve toured with. There’s shit that I had wanted to say, and it finally came out.

DX: Early in your career Quincy Jones told you, “Rap what you know and people will forever feel you.” Is this Killer album cover a way of paying homage to him?
Tech N9ne: Yes I am. It’s for Quincy and Michael [Jackson], because I’m affiliated with Quincy. They used to always call me "the Michael Jackson of rap" back when I was signed with Qwest and Warner. They called me that because they thought I was lyrically elite—one of the top [emcees], if not the top, even if the whole world doesn’t know it yet. I had the idea to do that for a long time and now I think I have the mind and spirit to carry that out. Killer is what came out of that.

DX: Thriller moved over 30 million units and you’re on the verge of moving one million independently. What’s you mind state as you approach that milestone?
TN: I’ve got high hopes, man. I’ve been having high hopes. It’s like the Jim Carrey syndrome, when he got that first role in Batman [Forever] playing The Riddler. They asked him in one interview if he was ecstatic or surprised that they offered him $25 million, and he was like, “No. I’ve been waiting on this my whole life.”

I’ve been planning this all my life, so I have high hopes for this. That’s why the album has a chip on its shoulder, because I have been doing elite music since I started. But, only a handful of motherfuckers get it. I feel like I’m making music for the world. Being independent is a hard task. You don’t see me on TV or hear me on the radio, yet I have all of these fans. My fans are the world. I want to be global and that’s why the album has a chip on its shoulder. That’s why I’m like, “This is my last album and y’all don’t get it. You niggas don’t get it.” That’s why the album kind of feels like that…well, not kind of. It hella feels like that, because that’s how I hella feel. Quincy said, “Rap what you know and people will forever feel you.” This is what I know. I know that I’m frustrated. I know that this shit is elite.

DX: You can chill with Quincy Jones or Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, you have fans with your face tattooed on them and you’ve got money. Are just you frustrated because you feel your peers don’t recognize?
TN: Yeah. A lot of these cats don’t know me because they don’t see me on TV. That’s where everybody gets discovered. Kid Rock got discovered at the MTV Awards. Everybody saw Motown 25 when Michael Jackson did “Billy Jean” and the Moonwalk. It’s that dummy tube. We ain’t on it, but look what we’ve built without that. We’re still chasing it. They better not let me get on that TV, Omar. If they do, I’m taking it all—their women and everything else. Continued on page 2 »