Published: Monday - December 3, 2007
Words by La'Juanda Knight
Beanie Sigel (Photo: Roc-A-Fella)
Beans is back! After interviewing Beanie Siegel it is obvious that they have let the beast out its cage. After a stint in jail and dealing with the usual hip-hop drama and rigamoro that comes with the territory, Beans is back with his new album.
One can tell from conversating with Beans that he has experienced a lot and has opinions on everything. From his comments on Kanye and Pharrell to his opinion on the beef between Gillie Da Kidd and Cassidy, and who he feels the real king of Philly truly is; he has advice for all the rap cats. Still he says he doesn't have beef with anybody.
Just know Beans is back! Who in the hell left the gate open?
BallerStatus.com: Since you did your time in jail, do you feel like you changed or grew at all from that experience?
Beanie Sigel: I think it made me pump my brakes a little bit. It gave me time out. I been running every since I got into the music business. I haven't had time out or nothing. I got a lot of rest and I cleared my head.
BallerStatus.com: You had a choice to make at one point. What made you decide to stay with Roc-A-Fella instead of making a move with Dame Dash?
Beanie Sigel: I mean, I didn't want to choose between my friends. When I came back... It was like I was already a Roc-A-Fella artist. I never really left. It was just me making a decision about who am I gonna rock with. With Def Jam, Jay is still the President over there. So, nothing really was to change so Roc-A-Fella for life. I couldn't see myself going to another label. Dealing with new people...
BallerStatus.com: You're comfortable there.
Beanie Sigel: Yeah man, I got my shoes off right now! (laughs)
BallerStatus.com: (laughs) Now the people wanna know. You made some comments about Kanye and Pharrell...
Beanie Sigel: I'm leaving that alone. No comment. I don't got no beef with nobody.
BallerStatus.com: So for the record you don't have any beef with anyone. You are straight?
Beanie Sigel: I don't want no trouble. I don't want no trouble...
BallerStatus.com: Okay, the new album, The Solution. What made you decide to title it that?
Beanie Sigel:The Solution... To me it was like The Solution to a lot of people as far as problems with hip-hop. I used to get a lot of "Yo, when you coming out with another album? We need that real sh--." I'm tired of hearing this that and the third, so I mean Mac is back. Not only for my fans, but for myself. I want to be able to put out an album where people can listen to real music from front to back without having to skip through the album. A lot of music today, I believe is a hook with a catchy dance to it. That's cool. I like some of those songs when I'm in the club, but that's when I'm in the club. I'm only in the club maybe two times a week if that -- for only a couple of hours. So I mean it's a lot of time during the course of 24 hours. I got 22 hours left to my day.
BallerStatus.com: Do you feel like your music is more of a representation of real life?
Beanie Sigel: Definitely. The songs that I make... I can only make songs about things that I know. I'm a real passionate person as far as life. So, put that passion into my music. I think that's what people want to hear. Everybody not partying, its people out here suffering and struggling. You got young girls with babies, girls with girls, homosexuals. Society is off the hook. It's crazy out here. We living in the last days and revelation is definitely in effect.
BallerStatus.com: I feel like you always brought that to all of your albums. Your previous albums you talked about real sh-- in life. So, what do you think is going to make this album different from the previous ones?
Beanie Sigel: The world is different. As the world turns, we got one life to live. I ain't trying to lay up in no general hospital with all my children. This ain't no soap opera and I ain't trying to lay up in no "General Hospital." The world is different, so my music is different. My outlook is different. I'm growing and becoming more mature.
BallerStatus.com: What are some of your opinions about hip-hop? You into anybody or are you not feeling anyone too much right now?
Beanie Sigel: I mean I think that hip-hop is about fun right now. It's fun. Ain't nothing wrong with that. But I still think that I'm relevant in the rap game because it's not fun all the time. Souljah Boy, he super soaking that hoe, kids out there having fun, the partying. But, it's only so much you can do that. You can have fun and party, but you can't lose perspective on real life. I think that it's not enough of that in music. A lot of people turn to music for medication. That's the healing for a lot of people. You know, how ya'll get when a dude stress ya'll out? You go in the house and you put on that Mary J. Blige or that Lauryn Hill.
BallerStatus.com: Music lets you escape.
Beanie Sigel: Yeah, it lets you escape from a lot of things. Right now if you stressed out where you gonna escape to? The club? That's where they heading for. That's probably the same place where your problems started off. You wanna hear that somebody else is going through it just as much as you.
BallerStatus.com: I feel you. On another note, what is your opinion about the beef between Gillie Da Kidd and Cassidy and the whole king of Philly thing? If you could sit them both down, what would be your advice for them?
Beanie Sigel: Stop acting like I'm dead. That would be my advice to them.
BallerStatus.com: (laughs)
Beanie Sigel: They both disrespectful with that. I mean I don't get into it, but they disrespectful.
BallerStatus.com: Do you feel like you're not being acknowledged?
Beanie Sigel: I feel like the step-pop who raised a child all his life. That's not his child, but he been taking care of it since he was a baby and then they get grown and sh-- on a n----. They tripping though. Like Beanie Sigel not relevant? I'm not tripping though, they can have that. I take my name on tour and on the road.
BallerStatus.com: What would be your advice for them personally then?
Beanie Sigel: My advice would be don't get caught up with that King of Philly thing because Philly is real small. You want to be the best at something then don't just restrict yourself in a box. Don't just say Philly. If you trying to be the best at something then be the best at it overall.
BallerStatus.com: So in a way you feel like they limiting themselves?
Beanie Sigel: It's bigger than Philly. Philly can love you today and hate you tomorrow.
BallerStatus.com: You also recently auditioned for the B.I.G. movie. What made you decide to do that?
Beanie Sigel: Well, you know I got the n---- Puff call... Nah I'm playing. I felt as thought that would be a good role for me. I think I could pull it off. I would put 200 percent into whatever I'm being asked to do. To make people believe, when they see that movie, they think they seeing B.I.G.
BallerStatus.com: You got your own persona. Beans and Biggie are two different characters. How do you think you can make that shift?
Beanie Sigel: I would study; the voice, the body language. I [would] have to talk to his personal people who knew him or [his] childhood friends. I need to know everything about B.I.G. The things people don't know about him, so that I can make that distinction between Beanie Siegel and Biggie Smalls. Who else could play that part?
BallerStatus.com: Well you know Sean Kingston auditioned for the role also.
Beanie Sigel: Like I said who else can play that part?
BallerStatus.com: (laughs)
Beanie Sigel: Come on man... That might be suicidal. (singing)
BallerStatus.com: You seem real confident. Did the audition go well?
Beanie Sigel: You know Hollywood, they say don't call us we will call you. I got called back twice for a reading. I read in front of B.I.G.'s mom and everything. I think I did pretty well.
BallerStatus.com: How you going about promoting this album? I know the last one didn't get much promotion because of what was going on in your personal life.
Beanie Sigel: You need to talk to L.A. Reid and Jay-Z about it. My job is to build the car. I build the best car that's out. I built a car that's better than the Maybach and the Phantom. Now the company's job is to sell the car. I made the best album and best music. They behind it, so we gonna see.
BallerStatus.com: How soon are we going to see a video or hear a single?
Beanie Sigel: The first video is a song that I did with R. Kelly called "All The Above." Soon as I get the final edited we gonna take that thing to "106 & Park" and let that thing blow from there.
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