While some rappers have pipe dreams of being on the cover of every magazine, having their video play on MTV constantly, and dating the hottest R&B chick in the game, some prefer to keep it independent. Controlling their careers, keeping creative control, and ultimately determining their own fate seem more appealing to this breed of MC.

Mac Lethal is one of the latter and few can do it better. From becoming an underground mainstay to winning Scribble Jam,  Mac Lethal has made sure that his name constantly rings bells in the hip-hop scene. Whether he’s pouring his lyrics out on record, producing tracks, or hosting his radio show, he always manages to stay busy.

Sixshot.com caught up with Mac Lethal to discuss why winning Scribble Jam was a gift and a curse, making it as a rapper in Kansas City, and learning why there’s more money out there for independent artists than most might know.

You’re the first person I’ve ever interviewed from Kansas City. What is the hip-hop scene like out there?

I don’t know man; I don’t really think there is a scene. I don’t really know how to define a scene anymore because I go to cities like New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, or Seattle and there’s DJ’s, rappers, fans, street teams, festivals, and stuff like that. There’s a lot of togetherness even though there’s a lot of b itterness and jealousy. It seems like there’s always something crackin’ in those cities but that doesn’t happen in Kansas City. We don’t have a unified conglomerate of groups. When I have a show down here I promote it myself and I bring my fans. We do not have that. After all the years of traveling around I realized we don’t have that togetherness. There is no Kansas City hip-hop scene. There are a lot of artists but this isn’t a unified front.

You won Scribble Jam in 2002. Would you say that kind of put you on the map?

Yeah, in certain respects it definitely did. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with saying that. I would say what it did for me more than anything is put me in contact with Sage Francis, Atmosphere, and the cats that I started touring with and getting my music out there. I definitely garner more attention and some negative attention which is fine, that’s gonna happen with anything. It really helped me network with the people I wanted to network with.

What kind of negative attention?

Well, some people will pigeonhole you as a battle rapper. Some people pigeonhole Scribble Jam as this whole preppy, white kid, and backpack thing. I don’t really know if that’s true or not. Some people judge your artistry by how you battle but I battle a lot different from how I make music. On the other hand people will see me at shows and tell me they thought I was hot as Scribble Jam. There was good and bad about it I’d say.

You tour a lot, how is it constantly moving from city to city for shows?

It becomes like an addiction of sorts. You just fall in love with being on the road all the time.

Do you expect different types of crowds and reactions from your shows in different cities?

The demographic of the market that you’re in definitely affects the reaction that you’re gonna get. You’ll be in Milwaukee and it’s a bunch of wild ass cats ready to party and drink beer then you’ll go to a place like Los Angeles and people will be a lot more standoffish and less enthusiastic about it even though they may enjoy it. The overall energy level absolutely depends on what town you’re playing in.

You also have a radio show. How do you manage to fit that in with your rapping, producing, and constant touring?

It’s difficult man; it’s not always easy. Sometimes it’s kind of a pain in the ass but you don’t have a choice. You don’t really get a choice in the stuff that just is the way it is. Today I had to do the radio show then come home and do some stuff and work on some new songs. It’s tough man but the longer I do this I just realize that it comes with the territory. You get more responsibility.

With the major label system doing so poorly a lot of people believe this is a great time for independent artists. What do you think?

Oh yeah, sure. This is when independent is pretty much gonna take over. I know major labels are still desperately trying to find artists that they can sell and stuff but nobody gives a shit about major labels anymore. You don’t need a major label to get exposure anymore. There are some big, corporate type radio outlets that you would need a major label for but I see artists blowing up on the radio and it isn’t translating into record sales. Everybody is on their own right now. You gotta figure out how to do it yourself and there is a lot of money to be made.

A lot of people are worried that there are gonna be too many artists but that’s bullshit, there is a lot of money to be made out there. Everybody can go make money off music right now if they want to. It depends on how hard you work. In a lot of cases people think that just because their music is good that everything should be handed to them. That’s a pattern you see a lot. You gotta get out there and put work behind it. You gotta get out there and make sacrifices.

I was always curious. You’re like the epitome of a successful independent artist. How does a guy like you feel about a major label success like say a 50 Cent?

I’ll tell you thin, I have learned a lot from 50 Cent. He’s an easy target. He’s big, he’s popular, he makes music that some people might not give a shit about and some might. His business ethic is insane. He signed that huge Vitamin Water deal worth like half a billion dollars. He’s very corporate. He’s very good at business at that’s inspiring to me. I don’t necessarily like his music. I liked Get Rich Or Die Tryin’. I don’t necessarily like his other shit. I don’t really support what he does musically, not that I’m any better at being positive, but like some of his mindless gangster shit.

The guy says some great stuff. I respect the shit out of his business ethic and I don’t know how you feel about him but that guy has some very, very fucking funny lines in some of his records. I don’t know why people sleep on him as a rapper because he says some very clever shit. He’s a giant so he’s an easy target for people.

You produce and rap. Are they like two different beasts for you or do you approach them similarly?

No definitely not. I decided a while ago that my production would definitely take a back seat. I’m not as skilled as some of my contemporaries are at beat making. There are a lot of things I don’t know how to do that I wish I would have taken the time to learn how to do. As far as my lyrics go, that’s like breathing for me. It’s like the most on point shit for me. I make sure I don’t sit around and think about it all day; I get it out when I feel it. I gotta make sure it’s genuine and honest and I don’t hold back or worry about what people are going to think about it and that’s a struggle. My lyrics are a huge challenge for me. My production isn’t really like a beast it’s more like a little mean dog. 

So what’s next for Mac Lethal?

Basically I’m getting ready to go on my first headlining tour. I have 23 shows in 24 days. We’re going all over the place. I also have my label Black Clover Records and we’re getting ready to put out some artists. There’s a whole lot of shows and merchandise and just keeping it moving.

Anything you wanna say to all your fans?

As far as my fans are concerned I just wanna say thank you. I don’t mean that like thanks for the money I mean like thanks for everything. It’s been a fun ride and I look at it more like friends and family and shit. If you relate to me that means we have things in common so we’re friends. I wanna just give them a big fucking enthusiastic, thank you!