Keith Murray is beautiful.  His verbal wordplay, clever rhymes, metaphoric images, and wicked delivery have always set him apart as one of hip-hop’s most talented lyricists.  Despite such lyrical beauty and his iconic status in the game, Keith remains somewhat slept on by a younger generation of hip-hop fans.  Too bad for them, since they’re likely to miss out on his smokin’ new mixtape album, Intellectual Violence.

The twenty-five tracks deep, mixtape album features cameos from Def Squad cohorts Erick Sermon and Redman.  For old-school heads there’s even  a track entitled, “Don’t Hate Me Cause I’m Beautiful,” an ode to his 1994 classic, “The Most Beautifullest Thing in the World.”  It doesn’t get any prettier than this, folks.

Sixshot caught up with Keith for a candid discussion on his new release, why the real world is tougher than jail, anger management classes, why he has love for Britney Spears, why he believes he world is coming to an end, his need to be isolated, why he remains single, hints of a possible retirement, and more.    

In the past there have usually been 2-3 year gaps between your releases, but this mixtape album comes almost a year after the release of last year’s album, Rap-Mur-Pho bia.  Why the fast turn around on this project?

That’s the politics of the industry.  It might be a certain time the label wasn’t ready for it to come out and you gotta wait another 6-8 months.  A lot of people don’t understand the politics of the industry.

Were you happy with the success of your last album?

No, but what artist is really happy?  Of course I wanted to do much better on a broad scale—things of that nature.  But I understand the situation.

You wanted more record sales or radio play?  What exactly were you disappointed with?

Well I’m not saying that I’m disappointed.  I look at the situation like, “Yo, you’re on an independent distribution label company.  This is the experience that you get.”  I make the money in the back end.  Every interviewer so far asked me, “Are you happy with the success?”  My album was put out on an independent distribution company.  That’s nowhere near major.  They [major labels] put millions, but they [independent labels] put much less to make their money in the back end.  You get a minimum amount of promotion and then they move on to the next project.  This is how they make their music.  Majors put major money—that’s why it's called major and independent is independent money.

Was that last project profitable for you?

Yeah, most definitely.  They put you out on the road and give you exposure.

The mixtape is not being released on Koch.  Why is that the case?

‘Cause Koch they wanna promote an album that I do with them.  I've done this tape by myself and created it on my imprint.

On the mixtape album you touch on your time behind bars with the track, “Pen Life.”  Often when hip-hoppers discuss the jail experience they don’t go into the real truth about life behind bars.  How would you describe that scene?

Jail is a hostile thunder dome—a shelter.  It’s full of people that don’t got nowhere to go. There are shakedowns, police raid your living quarters—I talk about the hidden issues that I've seen with my own two eyes.

What's the most shocking thing about jail?

Being outside in the world is worse than jail.

In what way?

It’s more coming at you and more holding you down.  The shock in jail is the way individuals are savages.  Men don’t have a conscious and they do things and do savagery.  The ignorance—the mind state is so blown that it’s just crazy.  Half of them can’t even hold a normal conversation.  It weighs you down.

But a minute ago you said that the real word is tougher—

S*** out here?! Motherf****** is more crazier!

In what way?

Mentally, spiritually, whatever.  You see the news?

Yeah.

S***!  Now they’re saying [Barack] Obama is the great white hope and now black preachers are attacking him.  Is that sick? That’s sick. 

Some might read your comment about the real world being tougher than jail and think that you’d prefer jail. 

Yeah, you know why?  ‘Cause that’s what an ignorant person would think.  We got ignorant people out there that swing toward the negative instead of the positive.

[Laughs]  When you were in jail for assault did your anger management classes help you?

Yeah, I became a counselor and I really learned how to rationalize.  That’s why this album is called Intellectual Violence.

You became a counselor?

I was an aide—when you step up from tier one you’re a participant.  I became a counselor’s aide.

Do you continue that work in helping other manage their anger?

No I never have the opportunity.  The only chance I get is through the music.  Intellectually, if you look at it is better than physical violence or any other violence.  That’s my form of violence ‘cause my music is aggressive.

Britney Spears once supported you some years ago during a campaign to get your name cleared following an incident at a Connecticut nightclub.  Since she helped you out, have you been in-touch with her during her recent troubles?

No, it looks like she’s getting better.  I never personally met her.  We used to have the same lawyer at the time.  She gave a statement and God bless Britney Spears!  All she needs now is a black man and the world will really go crazy.  [Laughs]

You have a track that references your classic song “The Most Beautifullest Thing in the World.”  That track is entitled,  “Don’t Hate Me ‘Cause I'm Beautiful.”  Do you feel like you have many haters?

I believe everything in the world is dualistically designed and composed of positives and negatives.  The world cannot exist without the other.  You gotta have that.  Everybody ain't gonna like everything.  People are frustrated and they can’t see that the world is coming to an end.

So you truly believe the word is ending?

Man, the world been coming to an end.  We probably won’t live to see it but times is changing even more and more.  It’s getting crazier and crazier.

What concerns you most about the world?

People don’t have compassion for each other anymore.  They don’t have understanding and no one strives to even achieve understanding.  It’s so pessimistic out here but I’m optimistic, so I understand.

I read that you visit Africa sometimes.  Is that your favorite get-away spot?

No.

What is?

Just isolation—that’s my favorite get-away spot.

To just be alone with your thoughts?

Yeah, when I can just sit down and relax and don’t be interrupted by nobody asking me no questions.

I can take a hint.  I will finish up soon.  [Laughs]  So, you’ve never discussed your love life in interviews.  What kind of woman does Keith Murray go for?

I like an intelligent woman that keeps an open mind and knows how to dress.  I can't stand no lazy broad that wants to party all night like its Mardi-Gras.

Are you dating now?

You know my busy schedule and everything—I can’t really be too swayed with that energy.

So you’re living the single life happily?

If that’s what you wanna call it.

What more do you hope to accomplish?

I love doing shows and performing for people.  So I’m gonna do shows and I'm gonna move on and let my little brother, Fish Grease, get his shine.  He’s 25 years-old and he’s been around.  He’s ready.  So I see that as me moving over to the executive level and letting him rock. 

For more information please visit:
http://www.myspace.com/keithmurray