Published: Wednesday - May 11, 2005
Words by Mark Lelinwalla
Grafh (Photo: Blackhand Ent)
And the Hip-Hop Daily Double... this MC came from the same highly contested recruiting class as 50 Cent, Cassidy, Juelz Santana and Jae Millz. Sporting a complex witty rhyme style delivery, he generated intense buzz throughout New York City. And that buzz, helped place him in a heated major label bidding war with 50 Cent.
With time 50, of course signed with Dr. Dre's Aftermath, put out an album called Get Rich Or Die Trying, and the rest is history. This fellow Queens MC on the other hand, signed with Sony's Epic label, and never quite saw the full fruition that he worked hard for and deserved. In addition, he had to bare witness to the other members of the recruiting class enjoying heavy radio rotation along with videos on MTV and BET.
Who is...Grafh!? Yes, his name's Grafh ya'll and the last time Ballerstatus.com had a one-on-one with the Blackhand artist, he was telling us about his situation with Epic and how excited he was to be dropping his album, Autografh.
Fast forward a year later, and things have managed to change, but yet stay the same. Still not caring, he is primed to drop his Autografh album, but he just won't be doing it with Sony. See, since his situation at Sony just didn't work out, Grafh had to move on to work with someone who he felt could market his music more aptly. Able to sell water to a well, Damon Dash became that person.
In effect, Grafh is currently working with the Damon Dash Music Group, and has The Preview Mixtape slated for a May 31st release, while his debut LP, Autografh, is tentatively expected to hit stores soon thereafter.
The G-R-A-F-H himself says that he's the last MC to evoke deep emotion since Tupac. We here at Ballerstatus tend to think the man is history ahead of his time. We caught up with Grafh live and direct at Kwebo Studios in Midtown Manhattan, and once the questions and cameras got rolling, Grafh got rolling.
BallerStatus.com: The streets are talking man and people, especially in New York, want to know your situation. Who are you signed with?
Grafh: Right now I'm f---ing with my man Dame Dash; you already know. He's got the new Damon Dash Music Group that separated himself from Roc-A-Fella. I was going to go over [to Roc-A-Fella] first with Dame, but it didn't really matter because I'm f---ing with Dame and he sees what I see. Before I was on Sony, and they didn't know what the f--- was going on. Them n----s were a little soft inside; a little doughnut-ish inside. They wanted some B2K sh-- and unfortunately, I don't do that. I do it for the hood, so I had to leave that situation and get up out of [Sony]. Oh and not to mention I spent $500,000 at Sony, f---ing sh-- up and didn't pay them nothing -- that's Blackhand [Entertainment]. Now we f--- with our man Dame Dash and it's a real beautiful thing. Look for the album summertime. I mean you can probably look for the album when ever you like, but it's going to come out summertime. So, pay attention and look out for that.
BallerStatus.com: So you got hooked up through Dame by his film company?
Grafh: Nah, we got hooked up by Dame by f---ing with Jay-Z at the beginning.
BallerStatus.com: Yea, you did that remix for "Stuck In This Life" with him.
Grafh: But even before, you got to remember that Blackhand isn't the average rap label. We street n----s man. We the dudes that everyone comes to for... security. Not to say Dame because he doesn't fall in the soft category, but we know a lot of industry n----s that when they get robbed and need their jewelry back, they come see us. And, if you don't know that, you can do your f---ing research. The only way you wouldn't know that is if you're not street enough; that's on you. Keep your head to the street and you're straight n----.
Well basically, we got at Dame... I don't know how we got at Dame, but we got a movie coming out called "Inside Out", and it's coming out on Roc-A-Fella films. It's based on the life of a CEO named Chaz. If you don't know who he is, he's a street n---- that's highly respected across the whole country -- he did an article in the power issue of The Source -- but his life is crazy: bank robbery, extortion, broke out of prison and yada yada yada...crazy sh--! That movie is coming out, if not the end of this year, the top of next. Considering we already had the movie over there, it only made sense to bring the music to the table. Plus considering Dash wanted us to do the deal from the beginning.
BallerStatus.com: So, this has been something that's been in the works for a while?
Grafh: Yea, this has been in the works for a while, but I went to Sony because they were talking this million dollar talk, and I was in a bidding war. I ended up going to Sony because they talked the most money, and a big ass production deal, and (demonstrates a bomb exploding with hands). So I went there, not knowing they were a bunch of cock heads. Plus at the time, Dame had Freeway and all them other n----s he was working with, and I didn't want to wait. I was like I want to sign and come out now. F--- waiting.
BallerStatus.com: Ok, so it was a timing thing. But now, you're with Dame, he's world renowned and it may be a stupid question to ask, but why is it a good situation for Blackhand to be with Damon Dash?
Grafh: Basically, because he understands where I come from because he comes from the same environment. He understands what I'm talking about on my records, and knows how to market it because he's answering to the same fans that we grew up with it. I do music for the world, but essentially my music is from the hood. It's coming from the place of a n---- from the hood. If you can't understand what I'm talking about, you can't market it. When I was on Sony, I did "Bang Out." It wasn't even a single at first. I just did it, and threw it out to the streets and n----s loved that sh--, but the record was strong in the hoods. I swear to God, that Sony was so commercial that they hardly had any street reps in any urban area; no hood out here. Posters and flyers were all up in the bourgeois clubs. Then the hood in Brooklyn -- where they banging the record -- they don't even have the vinyl. It's like what are you doing!? Take it to the fans. You can't have a guy in a shirt, suit and tie telling you what to do because they have no idea on how to market it or what to do. Dame understands how to market, push it and sell it. He knows what it is. Everyone knows what it is, and it's f---ing beautiful fo' sho.
BallerStatus.com: You have one of the craziest stories as an artist getting into the game strong. Do you think in this day and age an MC could sell without having a crazy story and background to him or her?
Grafh: Yea, it can, but it depends on what you're talking about. If you have talked some street sh--, you better have lived it or else you're a fag. If you're talking street sh--, about flipping keys and never lived it...nah, but then again there's rappers that do that all the time. They talk about flipping keys and bodying n----s and I'm like, "N----, you grew up and went to prep school." I never heard you on the block anywhere, nobody knows you, you're unlisted and you're talking about flipping keys. Yea, some can make it without a story, but I prefer an artist to be real with the public. Tell them who you f---ing are. I'm the first one on television or radio to say I've never caught a body, never flipped a f---ing brick, but I been through all kinds of sh-- and I've seen a lot. I'm not going to sugarcoat sh--. A lot of your favorite rappers may [dry snitch]; get on a record and dry snitch about certain O.G.'s that are trying to get out, but I can't do that because it would make me look like an asshole. I'm going to get other n----s in trouble. What the f--- do I look like, Lil Cease!? Do I look like a punk to you? I don't get down like that.
BallerStatus.com: You touched upon what you seen and people that read the initial Grafh interview on Ballerstatus may already know, but for those that don't, tell them what you seen; your personal story.
Grafh: My personal story...I grew up in the hood with just my moms; no father figure, like everyone else in the hood. My first real rolemodel that took me under the wing was an O.G. n---- from the hood. He taught me the code -- what was right or wrong on the street. He used to tell me about things and he was the only n---- that I got close to or at least close to the point that I felt I had someone there for me. He got murdered right in front of me. A n---- blew his f---ing brains on me, so I was like 14-years-old and that kind of f---ed me up at the time. You could take that one of two ways: you could lose your f---ing mind and wile out on the streets, or you could try to stay on the straight and narrow. I tried to stay straight, went to school and tried to get good grades, but I was mixed up with n----s that I grew up with and they would run around the hood and do wrong sh--, so I would do wrong sh--. I tried to keep straight and narrow, but I was raising myself into a man basically. I didn't have any male influences in my life, so then my father came back in my life when I was 16, 17. We tried to do the daddy and son thing, but it didn't really go that way because I already felt like I was a grown ass man. I was working since I was 13 years old. I tried to get close to him and we had our little something. But at our closest point, he got shot across the street from where I was standing at. I seen him get murdered, and his man got shot in the back. [My father's friend] saw the burner and tried to run, but boom. Rest in peace.
After that, I really didn't have value for human life -- not mine. I cared about my own life, and it wasn't like I was on some suicidal sh--, but I definitely didn't care about yours. I just did it the way I wanted to, and I grew up poor, but not poor to the point where we didn't have food on the table. I helped out with working to put food on the table. My mother was a strong woman herself. She got her own crib, and I had to make money or we would have lost that. But no matter what I had, I didn't have enough of what I wanted. I couldn't buy Tims or Nikes and all that. Not to say I didn't have clothes, but I had fake Adidas with four stripes and sh--.
I went and got what I needed to get. I bought my car at 17, paid for school, paid for all the fly clothes. That was when Iceberg was first hot. I bought every sweater they ever made. I had a big ass chain, big ass earrings and all that sh--. My mom was like, "Where'd you get all this money from!?" I was like, "Nah this is fake; nothing but Snapple bottle glass." That's how I was living.
Then at that point, that's where Chaz comes in and he kind of put a tamer on the situation. He told me, you don't got to do things that way; you can do them this way. He came in and gave me more direction 'cause I really didn't give a f---. The funny thing about Chaz and I is that the story is we grew up around where that n---- was at, and he was doing the Blackhand thing. I was cool with Blackhand, but I wasn't really doing music with them at that point. I got a buzz in the hood. Everyone was saying Grafh is fire and kids were telling him listen to this kid Grafh. He was like, "Ok, I'm going to listen to him and see what he's working with." He listened to the music, and agreed with the kids. He said Grafh was fire, and asked people to bring me to him. My real name is Phil, and he didn't know me as Grafh. So he was like, "Grafh is fire," not knowing Grafh was me. So, boom my man brought me to the office and I'm sitting there chilling and [Chaz] is like, "Damn, this n---- Grafh is late." I'm sitting there laughing. Then my man is like, "Yo, Grafh" and Chaz is like, "What the f---!?" That's when he found out I was Grafh, and the rest is history in the making. It's kind of like it was meant to be.
BallerStatus.com: You said Blackhand isn't the average rap labels. Can you speak about the Mike Tyson post-fight parties ya'll used to do?
Grafh: Yea, Chaz used to do all the hottest parties in the city. We used to do the Tyson parties when he was the champ.
BallerStatus.com: When he was Iron Mike.
Grafh: Yea, Iron Mike. Yea when he was the champ, before the kryptonite. We were doing all after-parties on the strip, we had teams in the Rucker -- we did all types of sh--. We were the first n----s to bring Snoop Dogg to the city. We did a party there, and brought him there. We used to throw the hottest parties in the city, and that was back then when n----s were really getting into furs and gators and all that sh--. We were spending the kind of money that P. Diddy spent in rap, but we were spending it in a different way. It was crazy back then. Then because of the parties, we did the music. Since the parties were so big there were always a lot of industry n----s there. But since we didn't give a f--- about them, we would be real selective at the door. I mean, we shut down some major n----s at the door just because we could. So say, you're in the city and a celebrity may come dressed in sweats and sneakers...
BallerStatus.com: Whatever he wants...
Grafh: Yea, whatever he wants, but there may be a dress code and if there was, we deaded you. N----s are there in furs and gators, and Wesley Snipes may show up in some Reeboks and sweats and he'll be like, "Yo, I got 15 with me." We would be like, "No you don't! Get in back of the line buddy!" We deaded a lot of stars.
BallerStatus.com: Can you name some?
Grafh: A lot of people or it would be like, "You're good, but your man has to pay." It's beautiful from where we came from, and how we elevated. Blackhand was founded in the federal prison system, and this sh-- has been around before I was f---ing born. Blackhand didn't just rise on some music sh--. It's not just about music. Blackhand was a strong click in the jails. It was strong and together before everyone in this room was born. It has history to it. I think it got popping and real strong around 1975, '76 in the federal jails. They got so strong that they didn't want all these n----s in the jails together because what would happen is a n---- would get moved to another jail, but spread the set. A strong n---- is going to be influential, and spread the set wherever he's at.
We were eventually in different parts of the country and we became national. We became a movement. We're like 10,000 deep right now and n----s ain't stopping us right now. The five fingers of Blackhand (puts his hand up) rep the five regions of this country: North, South, East, West and Midwest. We got a f---ing boss in every city. We like to think of ourselves as the closest thing to the Black Mafia. Like the [laughs] black "Sopranos" n----. I should have my own motherf---in' TV show or something.
BallerStatus.com: You're giving me the perfect segue because I checked out the Preview [Mixtape] DVD, and the thing that struck me is you have connects in hip-hop from every geographic location from, Scarface to Diddy. I want to know how you got Diddy on there too, obviously a lot of grinding, but how exactly did you build up all these relations?
Grafh: I don't know if people know how serious we are. Blackhand...we are security. Like my man used to hold Diddy down. Like he's with Blackhand, but could do security because he's so thorough. He was there with Diddy through the whole Bad Boy/Death Row sh--. He was the n---- with the ratchet out and arm around Puff when Big got shot. My whole team is really like that; I'm not just talking. I made a lot of my own relationships just based on music. Like Scarface, he heard the f---ing music and was like he want to work with son. My n---- Bun-B, I go down there and f--- with son. Lil Flip -- I'm on his album; he's a good n----. That's based on music, but I meet these n----s, and they think like me -- I f--- with an artist, when I feel who he is as a person. Your music could be hot, but if I meet you and you're a f---ing fag or you ain't what I thought you were when I heard your music and your image is different...I'm not f---ing with you.
BallerStatus.com: Has that happened to you?
Grafh: Oh, all the time. It's been very few times that I meet someone who is who they are on their record. Most of the time, I meet an artist and it's like you're a fag. You're portraying an image that you're not. I can't f--- with that. These n----s are not real; they're putty inside. So like Face, Bun-B... these n----s are really who they are on their records. That's them to the T. They're real people. F--- rap, they're people that do records. That's what I am too. I'm a hood n---- that raps. You see the DVD, but I'm not really outside the industry. I'm not in the clubs schmoozing and drinking smoothies with these n----s. A lot of industry n----s, I don't f--- with. Not to diss them, but I don't know them. I don't be around those parties; I'm just with my n---- in the hood or studio. That's how I operate. Cut me a check for a 16 and I'll be your friend. I don't f--- with industry n----s because I don't have to. I'm f---ing with cats like Shalone. Man, holla at these people. This is Shalone from Queens.
Shalone: Road dog, you see him, you see me. If you f--- with him, you f--- with me. Got problems with him, got them with me.
Grafh: He's in a big bidding war right now.
Shalone: But I'm not calling no names, till I see the right numbers. Send the right numbers!
Grafh: They're close though. You heard him on "Borderline" and "21 Gun Salute," "I Don't Care." He's fire. As a matter of fact his website will be on my relationship page.
BallerStatus.com: Tell everyone about your website.
Grafh: Oh, Grafh.com; you already know. It's straight thunder; very multimedia and as it grows and grows, I'm going to have a membership page, where I do special sh-- for members. I'm talking about songs for members, videos that are unreleased. They're going to be yours on the web, and boom -- visuals and all that. I f--- with people that f--- with me. Live online web feeds; I want to talk to you; I want to talk to the people. I'm not one of these n----s that come through in the middle with madd security around them and ask, "Are they still here?"
BallerStatus.com: Kay Slay, the Drama King has been a real big supporter of your stuff, and he's hosting The Preview Mixtape. Now that comes out May 31. Tell me about it.
Grafh: Yea, May 31. It's fire. I wish it was coming out sooner so n----s can have that sh--, but don't worry I'll put the bootleg out. Nah, I'm just f---ing with you. It will be out real soon man. I'm going to leave a little bit of records on my radio show, and I didn't mention that. I got a radio show on XM Radio, it's called Blackhand Radio Uncut. It comes on every Thursday 6-7 p.m. and I will be running pieces of the radio show on my website, but I just don't feel like it now. I'm gonna put pieces of it on mixtapes, so ya'll will know what's going on. The show has me and Chaz. I don't give a f---, but to a certain extent, but Chaz...he really doesn't give a f---. He's not a rapper, so he sh--s on everyone.
BallerStatus.com: So ya'll drop names on there all the time?
Grafh: WHAT!? All day son. Ya'll gotta hear the show. I'm going to leave a lot of the show to the mixtapes because a lot of motherf---ers don't have XM Radio. Sheeit, I don't have XM Radio. But now I'm on it, so I know what's coming out next [laughs]. It's crazy though.
BallerStatus.com: When is your album due to drop man?
Grafh: Actually, I was discussing it with Dame and -- big shot out to Damon Dash -- we were at Club NV partying and popping off and he asked me, "How do you feel about summer?" I said, "N----, how do you feel about summer!?" He's heard the mixtapes, seen the DVD and he said, "This sh-- is way past ready." I did the album like three times over, and I got like 50 f---ing songs -- straight bangers. That's why I'm not giving up the bangers for the mixtapes. I'm waiting to get on that national sh--, but I'll still be tearing up the mixtapes. On the mixtapes, all you're going to be getting are freestyles and mixtape songs, but the bangers are for the album, the radio, the country -- the whole f---ing world. I'm gonna leak like five records on the website. The rest of the tracks I'm juggling with. I'm gonna throw some on the web, some to the streets, and sell some to your favorite rappers. By the way, all you rappers, I do ghostwrite. I got a call right now. Who's this, who's this!? Jay-Z, damn son I just sold you [laughs]...Nah let me stop. That's what I do man, I f---ing make records.
Shalone: But if you're late on your checks, we're going to start mentioning names.
Grafh: Ohh, he f---ing ghostwrites! See, I ghostwrite for girls, and guys that can't rap. And for the ones that can rap, I still ghostwrite for them. Need a hit, holla at your boy. But this n---- Shalone writes for everything: hip-hop, R&B. As a matter of fact they came to him for a gospel record!
BallerStatus.com: Your official album, are you still going to call it, Autografh?
Grafh: Yea, I'm going to call it Autografh. They don't own that sh--. F--- them, f--- you (refering to Sony Music). The thing is, if I put out an album that goes platinum with Dame, they'll put out stuff from me. They did it to Michael Jackson, and I'm not bigger than Michael Jackson. I know, I know it's hard to believe, but I'm not bigger than Michael Jackson. They put that n----s' sh-- out; the Best of Michael Jackson Number Ones. But they own the sh--, so they'll do it. They're greaseballs. I can't front, they're hustlers. I'd do it too.
BallerStatus.com: What do you think about the hip-hop police force set up in New York City?
Grafh: F--- New York City, they're across the country. They're serious. They don't play no games. They follow me in the white hummer; they patrol my block. Two n----s got bodied in the hood, and they're on my block all the time, pulling me over like I know something. Man, I don't know nuttin (In Jamaican accent). I heard about the bodies. I don't know nuttin. Leave me alone.
Shalone: Plus, when 50 did that sh--, and not to take anything from the homeboy, but the hip-hop police came on stronger. If n----s would bring that real sh--, imagine the type of sh-- that would go down. But n----s don't really need that sh-- right now. We're trying to get the hip-hop police the f--- away from us.
Grafh: As a matter of fact, I'm going to tell you why they're so f---ed up. When they lock you up, they release your information to the public. We got a stack of everybody's rap sheet. Every rapper or anyone that's involved in hip-hop that got arrested, they have records of and I have it.
BallerStatus.com: How did you get them?
Grafh: Well, that's Blackhand man. I have copies of all your rap sheets. I have your rap sheets. I seen Cam, Diddy when he got locked up, n----s in Murder Inc -- everybody.
BallerStatus.com: So how many rappers are lying in their rhymes about the time they did?
Grafh: It's thick, like the rap sheet bible. Like a textbook with this many papers (shows length with hands). A lot of n----s are gassing. A lot didn't do the time they said.
BallerStatus.com: Give me a percentage scale of how many are telling the truth and how many are lying.
Grafh: Wow, I haven't even read them all. The sh-- is so thick, but I would estimate 45 percent is lying. But it's hard to do that because I didn't read them all. I just see the faces like, "Holy sh--!" I got n----s addresses to my disposal. On some unity sh--, if all rappers wanted to come together to stop them, I would be there. The first day I bought the Hummer, I was in that sh-- for 20 minutes and they locked me up. I was sh--ing on them n----s. I said, "Nothing is in the car, smell the brand new leather assholes." The funny thing was I was popping madd sh--, but my n---- Mike, his mouth is crazy and we know you can't talk about a cop's salary because that's a touchy situation for them. So Mike was like, "Yo officer, you only make 20 grand a year...Be Eaaaaaasy." He was like, "What!!! Get out the vehicle." I was like, "Whatever, no." Next second we're being dragged out, and instead of letting them tow my vehicle, they drove it.
BallerStatus.com: They drove the Hummer!?
Grafh: They drove my sh--! I was so vexed. I lost my voice screaming on them. What was so real, was while they were driving my sh--, bitches were still throwing their number through the back like, "Call me." But I didn't do anything. I got a legal hustle; I sell music, 16 bars. I don't got an ounce of weed, I don't even smoke. I drink, but I buy liquor from the liquor store. That's legal.
What do you want from me officer? They're picking on me, I must be hot. You know what's funny? I am my own harshest critic. I'm very critical of my own sh--. I look at all my music, all my interviews and everything I do. I hate on Grafh more than anybody. I'm like, "I'm not feeling him right there. That song is just aight." But when I say this is hot and co-sign it, it's hot because I have good taste. My bar of success is madd high. I don't like at least 40 percent of my sh--. The "I Don't Care" record, I don't like that. I think "Bang Out" is mediocre. Grafh.net is trash to me. There's nothing wrong with the website. I just don't like it. Aesthetically it's not my sh--; it's just regular. When you hear my sh--, it's going to bring back memories and you're going to feel a certain way. It's going to evoke emotion and you're going to say, "Wow, this n---- is deep. I'm f--- with him." I think I'm the last one to do this sh-- since Pac.
BallerStatus.com: You came from the same recruiting class as 50, Cassidy, Jewelz Santana, but yet they came out (mainstream) before you. How did it make you feel to see them on television first, before you?
Grafh: It made me mad at Sony, and bitter at the overall game. Me and 50 at the time had the hottest buzz in the city. We were in a bidding war. He went to Aftermath/Shady and blew up, and I went to Sony and did bullsh--. I made records to please them. Even, "I Don't Care," I made that to please them because that's the sound they're used to, and that's the sound they can put out. I was giving them hits, and it's not that the music is way before its time, but it's way before it's time compared to and based on the music out at the time and right now. There's nothing like it; it's the future.
The music I make is what n----s are going to bite, and sound like two years from now. Everybody is going to follow that. It's not about me aiming to be different -- no. I'm going to do it by default. Everyone else sucks. They spit stiff like this, and I'm different. They talk about sh-- they never done, and they're liars. They're liars. I'm going to talk about street sh-- too because I live it, and I have seen it. So I could talk about what I seen, but I also talk about what I didn't see. It's my responsibility to be real with the public and say, "This is what I have seen; this is what I haven't." And I just rap better.
BallerStatus.com: You talk about MCs lacking credibility, but when it comes to lyrical ability and flow, what do you see out there that isn't moving you?
Grafh: I'm bored. I don't like the same old sh-- or the way they rap. I'm just bored. I want to see a n---- play with his flows, use big words and combine words like I do. That's why I like Eminem. He plays with his word patterns and says different sh--. He says things you don't hear every day. I want to hear, and feel something different. With rap, you buy into the artist. Like Jay has his confidence up, and he can say he can drop an album, and everyone will buy it without him saying anything. That's the same thing with me and my fans. I could put a mixtape out tomorrow, not say anything, and my fans will still buy it.
BallerStatus.com: Any last words?
Grafh:Autografh dropping whenever you like it. Dame Dash says it comes out in the summer, and we'll see what's good. The Preview Mixtape out May 31. Also get on your computer, with your little mouse, peruse the Internet and go to Grafh.com. I found out some sh-- about me, I didn't even know! F--- with somebody real! Whatever you want in life, go get it; I did it. Even if you're garbage, go for it. Just don't ask; go for it! Blackhand the label!
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