Month: January 2006

« And if that mockingbird don’t sing and that ring don’t shine
I’mma break that birdies neck
I’d go back to the jeweler who sold it to ya
And make him eat every carat don’t fuck with dad (haha) »
Eminem, Mockingbird
First of all, congratulations to Marshall and Kim! I wish them both best luck from the bottom of my heart.
Eminem’s publicist from Interscope Records, Dennis Dennehy, confirmed it: since yesterday, 5 pm, Em and his ex wife Kim are now married- for the second time.
Many people wondered why Eminem decided to remarry Kim after he dissed her on his records. I’d strongly advice people who keep asking this question to read my Kim Mathers archive, which will certainly help them to understand the context in which Eminem’s songs were written and the background for the couple’s rocky relationship.
Marshall and Kim’s story goes back to their teenage years. Debbie Mathers took Kim- who was running away from an alcoholics’ home with her twin sister Dawn- into her house and raised her as her own daughter.
Marshall and Kim first fought against each other as foster brother and sister, but when Marshall was around 16, it turned into love and Marshall started dating Kim.
Marshall’s relationship with Kim has always been a complicated mixture of love and hate, a relationship during which both kept hurting each other.
I have always had this impression that one could describe Marshall and Kim as the couple who could not live with each other, but who could not leave without each other either. It has always been passionate and left deep wounded hearts on both sides.
On the one hand, Marshall’s relationship with Kim has always been stormy.
When Hailie was born, Kim often used her daughter as a weapon against Marshall to obtain what she wanted.
The couple has alternated periods where the relationship was off and on.
Sometimes suffering hardly from the separation from Hailie and also longing for Kim, Marshall used his evil Slim Shady persona to diss Kim.
Many Eminem fans have misinterpreted Marshall’s intentions that were revealed to the public in his Angry Blonde book as desperate SOS calls to get Kim back.
Also, Marshall had real difficulties coping with the Hot Rocks Café incident. He felt humiliated when he discovered that Kim had kissed John Guerra in the parking lot.
I was quite difficult for him either to know that Kim got pregnant from another man, just six months after the couple’s divorce in 2001.
On the other hand, Kim had to deal with Marshall’s fame and the huge inconvenient of it. All of a sudden, Kim saw intimate details of her life displayed in the media. Many people might not be conscious of it, but it is rather humiliating for a wife to see your husband beat up a « Kim doll » on stage-even for fun.
Kim was exasperated with the media’s exposure and it was quite a heavy burden for her to share her husband with the whole world.
All those mental pressures probably combined with the couple’s numerous arguments, lead Kim to suicide. In July 2000, Kim tried to slit her wrists in presence of her mom (who called 911) and of Eminem’s younger brother Nathan.
Problems of cocaine addiction and other private problems didn’t simplify Kim’s every day life.
The couple was eventually divorced in 2001.
Marshall felt devastated at this time of his life and his statements about a further marriage were quite clear in 2002: Marshall didn’t want to get married again.
Marshall and Kim seemed to had parted their ways when Kim was into her relationship with Eric Harrter in 2001, the father of her second child Whitney who was born in May 2002, and Marshall was into a long term relationship with 8 Mile star Brittany Murphy and had a several months affair with Mariah Carey.
However, people were really surprised after scandal author JR Watkins revealed that she had written a book revealing some dirty details about Marshall, Kim and their whole family, spoiling his 31st birthday.
Just a while after Eminem, Kim and Kim’s scandalous cousin had spoken out on Mojo in the morning, Eminem and Kim went back together.
Eminem was even ready to take care of Kim’s second child Whitney and had to face some legal battles against Mary Hartter, Eric Hartter’s mom who battled for Whitney’s custody.
In 2003, Eminem expressed the wish to remarry Kim. Unfortunately, while Eminem was touring in Europe in June 2003, Kim was arrested for cocaine possession and dark clouds were hanging over the couple’s wish to remarry. Back in Detroit, Marshall who was very angry against Kim, asked the Court for Hailie’s full custody.
The months that would follow would be living hell on earth for Marshall. Kim did not appear at Court’s arraignments and went AWOL several times. She also failed in her promise to pursue a rehabilitation program and suddenly disappeared, leaving Marshall alone with three little girls: Hailie, Alaina and Whitney.
Whitney was probably too young to realize what was happening in her life, but Hailie and Alaina (who had been adopted legally by the couple several years ago) probably went through a real drama, not knowing why they didn’t get any news from Kim.
A magazine had published a pic of Marshall looking lost, tears rolling on his checks. This picture probably gave an idea of what Marshall was going through to the readers.
When Kim was found by the police, she would be sentenced to jail and she had to pursue a rehab program for several months.
Back home, Kim reconciled with Marshall. Marshall had to face his own addiction demons in 2005 and disappointed fans all over Europe saw the cancellation of the European Anger Management Tour in August 2005.
Last December, Eminem announced his plans to remarry Kim on Mojo In The Morning.
Some nosey tabloids added to the superstar’s stress and Em has been very discrete about the place of his wedding that occurred yesterday at Meadow Brook Hall, Michigan.
Some of you said: « he first said « ‘Bleed bitch’ and now he ties the knot for the second time? »
To those of you who share that point of view, you should definitely make a difference between Eminem as an artist and as a person.
You all know Eminem, but you have a distorted image of Marshall Mathers as a person. He is very much family oriented and his intentions to give his couple a second chance honor him.
I have been reproached many times to have some insights about Eminem’s life. As a biographer of his, I find his life very much interesting and the numerous details about Marshall’s life help the listener to understand his music better, because of the numerous autobiographical details it contains.
My role as a writer for my different places is also to help my readers to make a real difference between Eminem’s personas and Marshall as a regular family father and husband.
Feel free to comment on this article. However, as a fair warning groupie alike comments such as: « Eminem can do better than Kim, Kim is a slut, he’s mine » will be automatically deleted. I won’t tolerate anything demeaning towards the Mathers family to whom I wish all the best for the future.

January 14, 2006
Email this Print this BY BRIAN McCOLLUM
FREE PRESS POP MUSIC WRITER
In vivid contrast to all the fanfare of recent weeks, all the breathless chatter and speculation, the Saturday wedding of Eminem and his longtime sweetheart turned out to be a quietly dignified occasion.
One guest at the late-afternoon ceremony at Rochester Hills’ Meadow Brook Hall said Marshall Mathers and his bride, ex-wife Kimberly Mathers, appeared genuinely radiant and happy at what another attendee called “a real classy, intimate affair.”
Both guests spoke who spoke to the Free Press asked not to be named because of sensitivity to the privacy of the event.
One described the ceremony as “a surprisingly mellow but very touching” event, as the bride and groom exchanged vows and rings before about 85 guests in the lower area of the popular wedding venue’s main hall. Eminem’s processional up the aisle was accompanied by the tranquil piano line of his song “Mockingbird,” performed by Luis Resto, the Detroit instrumentalist who has cowritten several of the rapper’s biggest hits.
The bride wore a traditional, tasteful white gown, said an observer, while Eminem —spotted earlier in the afternoon with a red baseball cap when he arrived by limousine — was dressed in a crisp black suit.
Saturday’s affair was the second wedding for the Mathers, whose sometimes rocky relationship has been famously chronicled and dramatized by Eminem on his platinum-selling albums. Their romance began 17 years ago, when they were teenagers, and the couple had a daughter, Hailie Jade, in 1995. Four years later, they married in a then-secret ceremony, but divorced in 2001 amid ongoing legal problems for both.
Saturday’s guests enjoyed a dinner of steak and lobster in an adjacent banquet room, where a family-oriented reception stretched into late Saturday night. Eminem’s best man, Detroit rapper Proof, gave a brief, amiable speech in which he noted the couple’s apparent happiness and offered well-wishes.
The nearby dance floor was occupied mostly by children, including 10-year-old Hailie, as a DJ spun contemporary rap and top 40 hits.
The guest list was comprised mostly of family members, though several key figures were either not invited or chose not to attend, including Marshall Mathers’ mother, his maternal grandmother, and Kimberly Mathers’ twin sister, Dawn Scott.
The scant few celebrities in attendance were all from Eminem’s hip-hop circle, including rapper 50 Cent and members of Detroit group D12, whose over-the-top stage personas were muted for the night, said one guest.
“The sensibility was appropriate for the night,” said the guest. “In a lot of ways, it felt like an utterly ordinary wedding,”
The modest atmosphere was a refreshing change of pace from the frenzy of press attention and family drama that had accompanied the lead-up to the wedding, said a source. Saturday afternoon, along an entry road to Meadow Brook Hall on the Oakland University campus, news helicopters buzzed overhead, and dozens of reporters, photographers and fans were kept in check by police and private guards as guests’ vehicles drove through.
Once inside the hall’s doors, the source said, the security presence was unobtrusive.
“I think much of the reception staff seemed surprised at how unassuming it all was,” the guest said.
For Marshall and Kim Mathers, Saturday’s wedding capped a reconciliation that began about a year ago. As the Free Press reported in July, Kim Mathers moved in to the rapper’s 15,000-square-foot mansion, a $4.8-million Oakland Township home he purchased after their divorce. There, the couple have been tending to their daughter Hailie and 3-year-old Whitney, Kim Mathers’ daughter from a former relationship, whom Eminem has legally adopted.
The remarriage is also the latest step by Eminem in an ongoing series of moves to focus on his family and personal affairs while backing away from the breakneck pace of life as a pop star.
“It was one of the most peaceful weddings I’ve ever been to,” said one of the guests. “This is exactly what Marshall has been looking for.”
Contact BRIAN McCOLLUM at 313-223-4450, or at bmccollum@freepress.com. Free Press music writer Kelley L. Carter contributed to this report.
Many thanks to Adrienne, a fellow fan, for this wedding pic:

Cast T.R.O.Y started rhyming in 1994, but emceeing became a real passion for him in 1997:
« I started writing in 1994, but didn’t take it seriously until 1997. Every since, the kid been on his grind. I started sticking my hand in the production racket, picking up little techniques on the low. »
The solo artist has exposed some of his tracks on his my space account.
The little excerpts of his music he exposed on his account made me hungry for more, because Cast T.R.O.Y has some obvious qualities as an emcee.
First of all, he can flow and I really enjoyed his three song snippets.
Rocking It has a little bit of soul and R’n’B flavor combined with Cast Troy’s dark voice and good lyrical ability.
Deep Cutz is a beautiful example of what Cast T.R.O.Y can do: lyrically, this song is worth your interest. It also combines a soft melody and rougher elements from an emcee who spits with confidence. Enjoy his wordplays and let the music guide you into his world.
Also, I advice you to check Bangerz, a gangsta track aimed at fake thugs.
Hopefully, I will be able to hear more from this artist in a near future. In the meantime, check out Cast T.R.O.Y

Cast T.R.O.Y.
Coming from Laurinburg, North Carolina, this artist is certainly worth a look…stay tuned:)

BY BRIAN McCOLLUM
FREE PRESS POP MUSIC WRITER
On a June afternoon in 1999, Marshall Mathers married Kimberly Scott in a small ceremony kept painstakingly private, an attempt at showbiz image control as the rapper aimed for fame.
At 5 p.m. Saturday in Rochester Hills, the couple plan to remarry in another small ceremony, again painstakingly private, this time because Eminem’s global fame demands it.
There will be a few differences between that quiet wedding in St. Joseph, Mo., and this evening’s nuptials, which a source with close knowledge of the wedding planning says will take place at the venerable Meadow Brook Hall on the Oakland University campus.
There was no army of security manning the perimeter the first time, no high-tech floodlights illuminating hundreds of surrounding acres to deter would-be interlopers. Nobody had to sign the strictly worded confidentiality agreements required of the caterers and valets and servers on call Saturday.
In ’99, with Eminem’s first album selling steadily, about three people watched the former teen sweethearts exchange vows.
Saturday night, more than 50 million sales later, the intimate guest list of about 80 — mostly family — includes rapper 50 Cent and members of his G-Unit hip-hop crew.
Detroit rapper Proof, Eminem’s right-hand man onstage for years, will be aside him tonight as best man.
Hailie Jade Mathers, the couple’s 10-year-old daughter, will stroll down the aisle as flower girl. Eminem’s mother, whom he has battled in court and in song, was not invited, a source close the wedding said Friday.
Before Eminem and Kim Mathers became one of the most storied couples in entertainment — with the tabloids lapping up their famously rocky romance and 2001 divorce — the couple agreed to hide the news of their first wedding in his grandmother’s hometown of St. Joseph, Mo., figuring it was best for his budding public career.
Saturday’s event, which follows the rapper’s December announcement that the couple had reconciled and would remarry, has been kept so secret that even many of Detroit’s music power players were clueless about the details.
Reporters and photographers from a host of national media, including People magazine and the Star gossip tabloid, dug furiously around metro Detroit for details — mostly coming up short as the Eminem camp maintained a tight grip on wedding information.
Contact BRIAN McCOLLUM at 313-223-4450 or mccollum@freepress.com.

With his awaited solo album release that is due to release sometime in January 2006, D12’s Swifty is making the headlines. He is featured on More Hip Hip Dot Com.
Swifty speaks out about his projects, local Detroit rappers, Obie Trice’s health condition…the interview is definitely worth your interest…
Swifty McVay
Interview by Stefanie Philippou
1) MH2- What have you been doing since the D12 world album and the AM3 tour, are you currently working on anything?
“Yeah, I’ve been in the studio working with my production team, called, The Fyre Dapartment, you know what I’m saying, I’ve been in the studio everyday recording the songs getting touch-ups with my solo project, got a couple of projects coming out, we got an album called, Forest Fyre, that’s dropping the end of this month which, is just me and my production team, and we just trying to keep the ball rolling we are going to go and do a D12 album this year too. Ever since this tour ended I’ve been in the studio all fall and all winter going to put it down for all ya’ll.”
2) MH2- What inspires you when you are writing lyrics to your beats?
“My people that surround me, my production team, I pretty much grew up with them, and we got a chemistry so strong, and they understand me, all around, when they play beats, I catch on to the mood, and then I take it from there, the spirit of hip hop is on me, I hear one of them tracks I get busy.”
3) MH2- Is your solo album coming under Shady Records?
“No its not coming under Shady, this project is coming under the Fyre Dapartment productions, its independent, hopefully in the future I’ll put something out with Shady, but right now we are concentrating on the D12 album, up under Shady, and this one is going to be under the Fyre Dapartment Productions.”
4) MH2- So tell us a little bit about the album?
“Well the Fyre Dapartment they are cats, from Detroit that I grew up with, we got the Fyre Marshall, we got the Fyre Battalion, and we got the Fyre Inspector, we also got the Fyre Dispatcher, we all came up together, way before the D12 days and when ever there was time for us to get a break and work on our solo projects, I just came back to the hood and scooped them, and formulated this formula, and put it together, they always knew my style since day one, so they ride with me on this solo line.”
Fan Questions
1) What do you think about other local Detroit artist getting national deals like Trick, Trick and Hush?
“I think its beautiful, they try to call Detroit the new ghost town, way back in the days ever since King Gordy, and them left and all them cats I see them come up and make things happen in the D, so for them to go in a get that push that gets me more motivated, more pump to see them.”
2) You appeared on Hush’s album Bulletproof, how did it feel collabing with an old friend, you guys did a track together back in 97′.
“Oh yeah, yeah it was like second nature, like I said I’ve seen Hush perform, he has seen me perform, I have recorded with him back in the days and to do that it felt like old times, everything came together real smoothe, we had fun we had laughs, and we just came together like butter.”
3) Many artist don’t get along do you have any beef with anyone in the industry?
“Well right now I don’t have any beef with any artists; I’m just focused on doing my thing man, trying to stay in tune.”
4) I recently saw a picture of Proof and Royce Da 5’9,” does that mean you guys are cool now?
“Well you know we squashed the beef between Royce Da 5’9”, me and Royce we don’t talk we don’t hang we don’t see each other all I know is we squashed the beef from over the past and he is doing his thing and I am doing my thing.”
5) A lot of artist they go from the music business, to the movie business, would you ever consider going into the movies?
“Oh, yeah man I’m working on a movie right now. Its called “7 days on 7 mile,” it’s a film that’s coming out late this year, I’ve been working on that movie for about 7 or 8 months, I’m about to get everything on the ball, its not a deep hip hop movie it’s a movie about a cat that needs a donor, cause he caught leukemia, it’s a real serious movie. I just doing a lot of auditions for other things, you know other than working on my album, cause that was one thing I always wanted to do, to get in the movies, so I am definitely am in affect with that too.”
6) Obie got shot how is he feeling?
“Damn, he is feeling real good right now, the lord definitely blessed him I went to check him out, and he was laughing, walking around, moving, like nothing happened which is a good thing.”
7) Is there anyone that you would like to work with that you currently haven’t worked with already?
“Yeah, I’d love to work with Ludacris, I’d like to work with Busta Rhymes, I’d love to work with Missy, I’d love to work with Rakim, I’d love to work with KRS-One, there’s a lot of cats, I like listening to them cats, I like a lot of artist but them cats got so much energy lyrically, they just get me pumped I’d like to work with them.”

Two gifted Detroit underground rappers, P.A.C.E (Fullklipp group‘s producer and lyricist) and King James 3, have complained about jealousy and hatred among their fellow Detroit rappers.
King James 3 has even dedicated his haters a brand new song, « Internet Fags » that is available on his my space account.
No matter if you call them « Internet Fags » like King James or « Low key haters » like P.A.C.E, those angry and bitter people who keep attacking their fellow emcees are the ones who destroy the rap game.
Detroit is full of gifted emcees with an original sound and some hot lyrics. However, Detroit rap is so much underestimated, unknown and even sometimes hated within the USA. You might ask yourselves why. Part of the answer lies in people who, instead of helping the game and working together on the common goal of putting the D on the map, spend their whole time in spreading demeaning and hateful comments about their rap rivals.
I’d like to address to those haters today: you are the main threat for Detroit rap. You are dividers, you ain’t no positive contribution, since you are trying to constantly demean people who are trying to make it- just like you.
You won’t reach the top that way. If you think so, you are totally wrong. The best way to reach the top is to remain humble and to always remember where you come from. If you really think your fellow emcees are not that good and that you are better, then why not collaborate with them and help them to improve their technical or lyrical skills?
Generally speaking haters and bitter people who prompt to criticize you (I am not against criticism when it is done in a constructive way and when it helps people to go forward) have a bigger problem then they think you might have. I have been told about the different places I have been working on for years: « Anybody can do this! »
-« Ok, if anybody can do this, so why don’t you do it? » was my response.
I silenced them bitter people in one second, because they found no reply to my ironical question.
When you are angry, jealous or uncomfortable about a person, you should definitely take an attentive look at yourself: are you uncomfortable with your own person? Probably yes.
Only people who feel unsure and who are bitter about their own failures spit much venom and try to destroy people who are trying to build up something. Heal yourselves from your bitterness and jealousy by trying to give a sense to your own lives until your envy eats you up literally.

It’s a mild, 60-degree November day and D12 member Swifty McVay is drinking hot tea the way a 10-year-old might drink grape Kool-Aid.
Tea?
“I ain’t got the flu or nothing,” Swifty says. “I’ve just been on this tea-drinking kick for the last few weeks.
What’s more, the emcee’s stocky build, clear complexion, black T-shirt and jogging pants make him look more like a member of the UAW than of the most notorious rap group ever to come out of Detroit.
Later, he scurries up a narrow stairway to a room that’s converted into a recording studio. It’s cluttered with instruments, computers and speakers. Swifty’s new production team, Da Fyre Dapartment — Mark Fenton, who owns the East Side bungalow he’s in, Marlin Benson and Teresa Creggett — are busy tweaking tracks, smoking squares and watching football. There’s warmth here. It could be a family barbecue.
Swifty can’t hold back the jokes, and he grins constantly, between sips of tea. He has good reason to be happy. He spent many months of 2005 touring with D12 on Eminem’s Anger Management Tour, has two quadruple platinum plaques under his belt and his mixtape, Forrest Fyres, drops in January.
“I’m just trying to keep on making music. That’s all I’ve ever been about,” Swifty says.
It’s true, the rapper’s long journey in and up through the hip-hop biz is admirable. Born Ondre Moore in 1975, Swifty grew up on Detroit’s West Side and was into gymnastics. He graduated from Mumford High School in 1993 and was a mainstay at the fabled Hip-Hop Shop. There were run-ins with cops, and Swifty even did jail time. “I sold weed, been locked up for buying stolen vehicles, but hip hop was always my comfort zone,” he says.
In the meantime, Swifty was in a host of local hip-hop groups, including the Sinbad Boys, the Narcotic Clan, Outcast, and Rabies — the only crew to make noise before D12. Rabies, whose inspiration was Onyx and Redman, landed a BMG deal in 1997 and released a single, “If the Beat Don’t Stop,” before getting booted from the label.
“We had a single with an option of an album deal, which means the label has the option not to put yo’ album out,” Swifty says, laughing.
In early 1999, storied Motor City rapper Proof was putting together an all-star lineup of local emcees (including Eminem) to form a group called D12. Swifty, who had Rabies going and wasn’t asked to join, says he supported D12 from the beginning. “I always had love for them cats,” he says, in a tone that’s nostalgic like a major leaguer reminiscing on his first childhood home run. “One day Bugz [an early D12 member] thought it would be good if I joined the group.” So Swifty joined D12 in 1999.
Three weeks later Bugz committed suicide.
“Bugz’ death was hard for all of us, but we dealt with it,” Swifty says, ruefully.
“Adding Swifty to the six-man group was the last request of our fallen member, Bugz,” Proof says in a separate interview. He goes on to say that Swifty is D12’s “mood-setter; whenever he’s around there’s a lot of grenade pins on the floor. [He’s] our pinch hitter.”
While Swifty is thankful to have joined D12, resentment festered in certain Detroit rap circles — some thought themselves more deserving of the coveted D12 slot. Swifty’s explanation: “A lot of cats turned Proof down when he asked them to be a part of D12. Don’t hate; ya’ll know who ya’ll are.”
D12 and Em’ know as much about “hatin’” as Lil’ Kim does about implants and nose jobs. Beefs with such locals as Champtown, 5ELA, Royce, DJ Spudd and Esham, and with such nationally known heavyweights as Ja Rule, Benzino and David Mayes have filled many column inches in Metro Times and around the world. Through the drama — which no doubt raised D12’s public profile — Swifty has often been the group’s de facto peacekeeper.
“See, I don’t put a lot of people in my circle and I don’t talk bad about nobody,” Swifty says. Then he stands and reaches for more tea. His voice rises: “But if somebody wanna talk about my dogs on wax, I’m gonna go at ’em, rap on the track first, or swing first. You can’t hate on my crew; I don’t stay neutral.”
In a much-talked-about February 2004 article in the Source magazine, Detroit emcee Champtown called D12 “houseniggas” and implied that since Em’ didn’t originally sign D12 to his Shady Records, he wasn’t financially looking out for his group the way 50 Cent was looking out for his G-Unit crew.
Swifty doesn’t see it that way: “He [50 Cent] passed the ball to his boys a certain way, and Em’ passed it to us a certain way. Both ways worked; it was our job to dunk the ball. Eminem worked hard for his and looked out for us; being in the background ain’t bothered us. We know how to play our positions.”
Contrary to street talk that suggested Em’ kept most of D12’s royalties, Swifty’s doing well financially. “All of us were able to get the chips we wanted to get. I went from Hanes to Joe Boxers, my socks changed, my ride changed, my zip-code changed and my family hasn’t wanted for nothing since I’ve been signed,” Swifty says, getting almost defensive.
The rapper does acknowledge that contractual errors cost the group, which he chalks up to youthful naïveté. “When you got a 70-page contract, you’re bound to miss something,” he says. “But when you’re new, it ain’t really nothing you can do anyway. You gotta take it or leave it.”
Swifty swills more tea and begins telling D12 road stories involving Proof getting lost while crowd-surfing in Japan, and fans storming the Madison Square Garden stage. Songs from Forrest Fyres spill from the studio monitors. Raw lyrics ride atop strident baselines and beats. Swifty’s latest is similar, in a good way, to D12.
“The music is no different, it’s still me,” he says. “But in D12, I brought a lot of the Swift out. In my solo [recordings], I’m bringing out Swifty McVay, which is a little bit more crazy.”
Along with the Fyre crew, D12 DJ Kareem Hicks and Eminem are assisting in Forrest Fyres’ production. Hence, Swifty’s betting that his solo album will fly. And why not? His Fyre Dapartment is charged, and he’s got the D12 cred and associations. But there are snags: It’s nearing the release date for his album, and the label and distribution details are still being worked out. Swifty might put the album out under his Fyre Dapartment moniker.
It wouldn’t be the first time Swifty put on a label hat. In 2003, he started Rabbit Entertainment and signed longtime friends, Raw Collection. But after a solid street buzz, the relationship dissolved. “They felt the pace I was going on wasn’t fast enough, so they choose to venture off and do their own thing,” Swifty says.
Vibe magazine suggested in the current issue that the lack of interest in albums from D12’s Proof and Bizarre might “finally convince them to just be happy living off Eminem.”
Is Swifty concerned with the lukewarm commercial and critical response to Proof and Bizarre’s 2005 solo records?
“I don’t sit back and wonder, I hope this don’t happen to me. I believe in myself and in what they [Proof and Bizarre] are doing too.”
And of D12?
Swifty says the group is doing another record in 2006. Em’s greatest hits collection is out this week, and the superstar is working on Obie Trice’s new album as well.
Then Swifty talks about the importance of local camaraderie: “Detroit lost its identity when Berry Gordy took the music away. Now we got a lot of new labels and artists, and the people are starting to support again.”
Support or no, Swifty’s well aware that without major-label backing, getting Forrest Fyres to D12-adoring kids won’t be easy — at least not without a bit of swift divine intervention.
“If it’s meant to work,” he says, “God will make it so.”

Listen to his hot track Y’all Gone Remember Me and vote for him at Detroit hip hop dot com! Make him king of the mic…

The guy who first battled B Rabbit in 8 Mile, Detroit underground rapper Strike aka Lickety Split has a website. Check it out!
It will be added to the useful hip hop links of the Eminem blog asap:)