KEMO
(The Blaxican) Formerly of Delinquint Habits
Interviewed by: Guero Loco

How long have you been rapping?
Wow I guess it’s been about 14 years as looking at it as a business.

What was it like growing up in Los Angeles being mixed between Black and Mexican?
To tell you the truth, it was cool. I was fortunate enough to be surrounded by people that accepted me as I was. I don't know if it was because of the Spanish language, but people accepted me. I've always been somebody that can relate to people in general. I was able to fit in and assimilate and play my role. Honestly I never caught a lot of drama from it. I am very proud of both of my cultures. Being bi-racial and bilingual has been a blessing. I grew up with my mom who was born in Mexico and came over here at a real young age.

Growing up in the barrio who did you feel more connected to?
I was more connected to my Mexican culture by the way I came up. My folks didn’t stay together. Growing up with my mom it so happened that I was more linked to my Mexican side. Everything I know and a lot of my traditions and cultures are on the Mexican side.

What were some of your influences growing up?
Man too many to count: Mariachi of course, a lot of Oldies and Mexican Baladas a lot of KRLA. Then my step dad came in and exposed me to a whole new level of Mexican music, he was from Guadalajara.

How'd you get your start in the game?
One day I was pumping some weights and listening to NWA and I was like damn I want to jump on something of my own. So I found a producer with a 3 for $300 deal then I hooked up with SenDog from Cypress Hill because I worked at that Bally's in Norwalk, The same gym I hooked up with Ives at. It seems like a lot of musicians came out of that gym. I slipped SenDog a demo and he gave me some positive critiques about what he liked and what he didn’t but he let me know that I had talent and potential.

How did the formation of Delinquent Habits come about?
Like I said I met him at the gym, he and OG Style were already doing their thing. They were recording their tracks and I really felt a vibe with them. OG always had the talent to make those beats and Ives was always a skilled emcee. I came in and filled in where it needed to be. I was like the utility man, the clean up guy. Once we hooked up we decided we had some chemistry and we decided to make a group of it. One thing that I didn't want to do was come with some generic Spanish rhymes; I wanted to come with the real. I never wanted or tried to be the upfront guy with DH, I did what I needed to do to help the group.

What happened after that?
We got signed, got dropped, got signed, got dropped, and then got signed again and dropped our first album, Tres Delinquentes and I've been busy ever since. We were lucky and blessed when "Tres Delinquentes" hit the world. I felt that we were really making a contribution.

Whose decision was it to flow Spanish?
I was already spitting bilingual a little bit and after some homies suggested it, the Guero started to mix it up a little bit in Spanish, too. Making it bilingual enabled us to broaden things and speak to a whole other audience. Though some were already spitting in Spanish nobody had tapped into that Latin blend with the Spanish and Mariachi and the Trumpets. Ives had some skills spitting in Spanish, of course growing up with Mexicanos he had it in him to be able to take it on. As far as lyrically that's where the Blaxicano had to step in.

What about the Mariachi?
Honestly, OG Style produced ALL of the Delinquent Habits albums he was always coming with heat and fresh ideas. I can't say what exactly sparked it though. He came with the mariachi and provided me with a platform to do my thing.

Do you feel that what you did with the fusion of Mariachi and Hip Hop was ahead of its time?
I definitely feel that we were way ahead of our time. For the industry it was ahead of its time especially but for the people and the street it was just right. The perfect fusion. We added a little twist to the game. There were other Latinos doing their thing. Mellow Man Ace, Cypress, Frost, Lighter Shade of Brown and Proper Dos, we were all pioneers. All in all, world wide, our (DH) numbers are well over a million in sales.

With all of its success why did you go away from the Mariachi with the album Freedom Band?
(Pause) That's a good point. I don't know really. I think sometimes artists pigeonhole themselves with one distinct sound. I feel that there is definitely a Latin feel to it but its a more alternative sound for sure. The Latin flavor was still there and OG Style once again came through on the beats, as always, you can't deny that. But I can admit that I definitely spit less Spanish on that album than I did on Merry Go Round.

What happened with the break up of Delinquent Habits? On the real?
For me, I feel that my stay with the group had reached it's plateau. It wasn't an easy decision at all, but it was a step that I chose to take. Basically I had reached a point in my life and career where I felt that I had grown as much as I was going to grow with Delinquent Habits and I needed a platform for me to express myself as a solo artist. I walked away from a lot, a tight ass studio, a bomb producer and another tight emcee. It was tough. I had some great experiences with DH touring all over Europe and Asia and South America as well as the US and Mexico. There were also a lot of creative and business differences. There was some shadiness; you really get to know people after so many years. There was so much negativity and I wasn't trying to be around it. Nothing will ever change what we accomplished but things had reached the point where it was time for me to go. I called up Ives and said we need to talk and I brought a bottle of Vodka over and just had a conversation.

What was his reaction?
He was definitely shocked. It was December 2003. He didn't want to believe it and tried to talk me out of it. He said lets do one more album together, maybe you can write some Spanish lyrics for me, but I had already made up my mind as a man and there was no turning back. For me it was better to just say no and move on.

At this point, is there any chance of another "Return of the Tres"?
At this point it’s not anything I would be looking at considering, so I have to say No.

How do you feel about the name of DH's new album, "New and Improved"? Do you take that personally and Are They Improved?
Of course I take that personally, It's very obvious, but I take it lightly. I haven't heard the new album but my guess is No they're not improved. Some people thrive on bringing the other man down and that’s how they pump themselves up, I've never been that way though. I never acted like I was more than what I was with Delinquent Habits I was just a member I played the back role all of those years. I jumped in where I fit in never looked at it more than that. I don't have any animosity towards them at all. We had great chemistry but over the years that just faded away. You know Guero it's almost like breaking up with a girlfriend and they don't want to let go and once they know they can't have you back they attack you however they can, especially if they're bitter. That's how I see it with these cats. My decisions weren't personal decisions they were decisions I made as a businessman and for my family. But the fans will tell. I wish them the best, I didn't set out to dismantle the group or stop them from growing. New, Yes. Improved, they better bring in some killers on the mic to replace me.

What do you think about the state of the game right now with Latinos in hip-hop and Spanish rap in particular?
It's evolved now to a state where it's global. In every Spanish speaking country there are rappers. Now we've evolved and have so many different branches: Latin Hip Hop, Chicano Rap, Urban Regional, and Reggaeton. Right now Reggaeton has stepped up to get a lot of radio play and club spins. I think that is nothing but good for all Latinos in the game. But aside from the secondary names we're just hip-hop. The one beautiful thing is that there are so many different styles and ways Latinos come with it. We're in a time right now where we are really able to show our diversity. Once the majors really open up then you're going to see an infiltration of some top-notch Spanish emcees. They can't deny the numbers anymore. I think all Latin Hip Hop needs to be showcased to show our talent from East to West and South of the border. I remember back in 1996 at a press conference in Mexico City and one of the questions was, "How can you consider what you do as music, when you don't sing and you don't use instruments." To me that was a shock because of course to me it was music but just to see how the mentalidad was there it made me think. I love what is happening now; Hip Hop is a vehicle to be able to express yourself. I think that Blacks, Whites and Mexicans should all have the same opportunity to succeed in hip-hop. The radio stations and the programming all across the country have to change, because somebody is going to come along with the right formula and snatch all the listeners. LA is a huge melting pot; it's time our radio starts to reflect that. Stop trying to put a cap on us, stop being afraid. Accept the fact that we are here and we're not going anywhere but up. From the Federal government on down to the radio stations and the consumers.

What projects do you got going right now how is life after DH?
Right now I got all my projects in order. My album Simple Plan is available and is by far my best work to date. I have all kinds of styles on it, from Funk to Samba to Jazz to Salsa feels. Its tight and lyrically on point through out. I’m also in studio working on Dead Silence artist’s Sicko, Most and Monica, while Jehunikos album is finally about to drop, get ready for that. Joint Clothing is thriving on a worldwide level now. You can find it in here of course on the streets on Los Angeles, Denver, Florida, El Paso Texas, Canada, Japan, Estonia, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Russia and more to come. My days are mad busy and I like the pace of things. Life after DH is in high gear, It was like cutting away dead weight and leaving all the BS behind

Who you bumping in your ride right now?
Immortal Technique, Los Tumbados, and Malverde- I really like where he's coming from. There are a few songs from Games record that I'm feeling. Every now and then I throw that Chingo Bling in there and crack up and trip out, homeboy's crazy.

What did you think when Akwid came along in the game and were labeled the first to successfully fuse regional Mexican music with hip-hop?
Hmm....Sometimes the media gets things wrong, it's been a minute since Tres Delinquentes were really out so maybe some of the writers didn't do their research maybe hip hop is a bit new to them. But peeps that have followed the game they know who's who and who did what. If they're just talking about Banda then yeah but if you're talking about Regional Mexicano I believe we did it prior. I think what Akwid did was a positive thing for the industry, it's another evolution. I'm not the type that if I don't feel somebody's music that I hate and talk down on them.

Right now the big thing is trying to bring together East and West Coast Latin Hip Hop, what are your thoughts on that?
Touring, we have to get together and start exposing other Latin cultures to our music and vice versa. I don't think that we are that far away. We as Delinquent Habits had hooked up with the late great Big Pun and the Beatnuts. It's unfortunate that more artists haven't done that. The main thing that we have in common is the language and some of the rhythms. The language transcends boundaries. There are a lot of similarities and a lot of differences. We're all a cultural people and a tribal people we need to get together and do this. It's hard enough for a West Coast artist to get play on the West Coast just imagine what some of the West Coast Latino rappers have to go through on the East Coast. It seems like it goes in cycles, it’s like every couple years "Let's go find us a Latino poster boy to promote and rock on radio." I feel blessed that we were able to get love all around. I feel for other artists that really deserve it and don't get spun.

Tell me about Dead Silence records and your purpose with forming your own label?
Dead Silence is the reverse of how it sounds: If your silent you're dead, if you're dead you're silent. It's like saying if you don't speak and voice yourself it’s like being dead, you're not going to accomplish your goals. But also its like saying I don't need to talk to make noise, I make moves without talking about it. It's a brand new label that I created after leaving Delinquent Habits. If you like what I did with DH you're going to like what I did on this album, The Simple Plan. Being independent, the dollar has to stretch a lot farther. Also, there's an unreleased song with Sick Jacken and I from Psycho Realm that's all Spanish. I'm going to press up the vinyl so any DJ's need to hit me up to get it.

New Artists?
Jehuniko, Sicko, Mostro my younger brother is still a work in progress, he's dope he's got the talent but it's all on him y Monica Ortiz, the female singer on my album. They're all featured on my album, "Simple Plan". Jehuniko is the next in line. He’s extremely lyrical and he's going to hit some cats from the left. A lot of metaphors and an amazing ability to paint pictures with his rhymes. Sicko formerly from Psycho Sequel and Dos Rivales out of El Paso is another amazing MC and hopefully Krazy the other half from those groups will get some things done with my label. Dead Silence Records is definitely going to have some success; I have some top-notch lyricists for sure,

Krazy from Denver that's my girl, my mentor Padrino's homegirl reppin D-Town?
Yeah Krazy hopefully is going to come with it. Her and Sicko aren't together as a group any more but we're all still connected and I would really like to work with her in the future.

What's up with Joint Clothing?
I wanted to start a clothing line to rep everyone. Latin, Alternative and Hip Hop. Obviously I'm in the realm of Hip Hop but that doesn't mean I don't expose myself to other genres. Joint has a lil something for everybody.

When we going to hook up and collab, you want to jump on a Reggaeton?
What? You got Reggaeton, get at me, right now I'm doing a lot of collabs with a lot of artists. Hit me up, let's do this. I just got myself the new Triton Xtreme, we can do some things.

You got anything else for the fans?
Yeah the WWE hit me up to do a joint for a group called Mexicool. I tailored the song for what they asked for. I kind of had to take myself out of my realm. It took me a minute to kind of get in their mind and come with it how they asked for it. Also people can check out my website, www.kemotheblaxican.com The music video is up and is getting played on MTV en Español for the song, La Receta. We got the clothing site on there too, www.jointclothing.com. Shout outs to my Dead Silence Family, my boy Brooklyn and all my family, especially to my wife. Man you have to have a good woman by your side to really make in life and she has been great. Thanks to Indie Street Latino and to you the Midwest Gueroloco, the only Guero that still wants to be my homeboy, haha.