Words and interview by jabberwalkey

Declaration to the game or Our Testimony at Head-On records

Sharing the common ground or bond of “this is for the love of music” would explain there getting into the Hip-Hop game. Also seeing aspiring Artistry in a Downward Decline or shit spiral and then growing up in the digital era where music is stolen almost freely will change your perspective on wanting to get signed by any major. The industry jerk offs have taken the bulls by the horns or Mics from the rappers for far to long per say and its time to bring it back to the pure essence of it all. Now you need Hard street hustle, real time with fans, and an intense internet work out plain that shows your face value to anyone with just a simple click. For those reasons alone you can understand why every single person in your team or immediate surroundings has to offer that little something extra special to the table or key ingredient. Significantly speaking out for anyone at Head-On they will tell you these things directly in a song, while rocking a show, flowing, or basically anyplace a real voice can be heard. Considering sales are down overall for this ending decade as a fan you probably already know there's not a lot of room for an artist to be an artist in these not so golden days.  Now that the United States has lost half its value or global money market the times have changed seriously, as we know it in all terms of business. But with that being said we also know that’s when you have to focus the most and not fall short like the others around you. Its simple here the motto slogan history start-up catch phrase is "Habitual Energy astonishes Desire and Oneiric Notions that others can’t do like us”.

We are all separately building the craft or climbing the Arc so to say, but it is equal in the label’s eyes, Head-On and their artists were born to be an unmovable object in the record game. Staking our claim earnestly or manning-up to the musical responsibility in this rap community is reserving the art form and that is what we are here for. The 90's raised them, the millennium made them, and now the 2. 10’s are coming into play; a murky atmosphere has been astray. Here’s the shine buzz hype or Newest set being typed in a keyboard near you. The world of web heads better be ready for Apostle, Veterneye, and Nique these are people behind the scenes of Head-On records. Declaring great contagious music in a Multi-global or Dueling identities fashion is what being head on in anything is what were about.

Emerging Cross continent strategies or crashing the scene everywhere with our labels consistent vehicle of hip-hop is what can expect, a real long-term relationship to the people is what you’ll get in return. Opening for Slick Rick, Common, Warren G, Gza of Wu-tang, or Talib Kweli are some greats they’ve shared mics with in the past. Some of the Venues were House of blues, Knitting factory, or The Roxy in the Hollywood, CA...

Veteran Eye:

Having a tight snipers eye and battle ground experience will make you ready for an emcee’s lyrical war.  Being a soldier means knowing your band of real brothers and recognizing the fakes out there to destroy your career. Some people try to play both sides.  This Greensboro, NC native is now a Lost Angel transplant and will tell you “I’m proud to say I write." His rhymes are indeed a calm collective and uplifting, just as a person who’s been on a few tours of duty should be. He knows the enemies face well and will show you this by the scars of his life through music. Positioning himself close to the heart of entertainment and the pinnacle of game would explain his entrance, as we know it.  A man of many words and statements, you’ll hear lots of topics about current events. Having a don’t mistake coincidence for fate type outlook, along with a limitless personal portrayal will help you find the path or tracks laid down by this rapper.  Vet
sees himself as a big brother or a young uncle to hip-hop and it’s surrounding peers. With longevity connecting to the streets and underground scene you’ll hear a familiar story, it will just be in a better than average voice with a kings view of things.   Stealing fans and grabbing mics in North Carolina or North Cairo, as the locals call it sums up his rappers roots. He solidified his path as an emcee and in the eyes of advisories he is a speaker of real life not make believe to sound better to a corporate ear. .  With a huge college community in Carolina, they bring diversity to the normal path being taken by the norms or Microphone device holding robots.  He has a real therapeutic flow, with a cups half full not empty mentality.  A genuine writers’ writer when it comes to looking through his word glass. The yeast effect mixtape dropped this summer of ‘09 you can expect all the beautiful people to come once and for all.

APOSTLE

Traveling the seven seas many times over on 24 hour flights visiting many worldly places, I’m sure you can imagine it would give you time to stop and look at the horizon ahead.

He’s defiantly not a slum dog but he does have a Millionaires mentality all the way, and it just so happens his heritage is Indian.  Coming from a family of pro tennis players, you can understand why competing is a natural thing for him. With an athletic background comes discipline and strength, and his work ethic is astounding for someone in there very early 20’s. He once said being on stage is biggest high you’ll ever get in life. He believes that the real life synergy of everyday melting pot people staring you in the face while chanting your lyrics, is something truly wonderful. The code of the streets in Los Angeles will eat you up, but this emcee has the fangs and roots to withstand.  Bringing a 110% percent to the table is what listeners should expect from this budding artist. His secret garden of psalms and scripts are starting to branch out through the nation of ears leaving true heads eagerly waiting.

J: Tell us about your style and what you're about.

Vet: “It’s all about my individual life experiences, but some might say I’m conscience though. I really don’t like boxing myself into any particular category really, but most often people compare me to Common, his topics are broad like my own. I feel like my music has more mood over all, but were both going through the struggles of an everyday man and that seeps out in the work.  I really try to animate my words on stage while doing a lot of hand gestures or act like I'm painting a picture.  I’m very theatrical some say, seeing my raw energy is believing so check it out.  I was B-Boying at 6, got my Run DMC record and LL Cool J at 5, I was in kindergarten growing with the spirit of hip-hop. In the teens I started freestyling, hanging out doing ciphers. I was not really writing or taking it seriously. But then from '92-'94 hip-hop started getting really good and hitting me in the right places, like enter the stage by Black Moon.

I always felt like I was the better one in my group or circle of peers when rhyming, we were messing with instrumentals, smoking, just having a good time.  That’s when I started stepping away from sports, growing up next to the court in North Carolina is nothing new there‘s a lot of sports heads out there. The same rec center when I got older supplied the drugs and street life for my community and my involvement was getting heavier as I grew older. What made me really want to be an emcee was the Common single "I Use to Love Her." I had a family member at the time that was promoting they were going up and down the coast getting the radio to play it.  There were always boxes of cd's around so I grabbed one and it was love at first listen.  That’s when I said this is what I want to do permanently. Right after high school I started doing shows around Greensboro and recording, after that I just Started learning a lot about how it all works underground, mainstream, now I'm just trying to meet as many people as I can or go to as many places as possible with my music. I want my stuff to be in more hands, I have a lot to say.”

J: What can we expect from Apostle and what does the name represent?

Apostle: "My Mission statement is to represent the game strong like an apostle in the Bible. I come from a  Roman Catholic background to be exact, and I wanted people to know I do have something important to say. I want my people to have faith in me and the music again, just as an apostle spreads the gospel. In a street heat, urbanite manner that’s all.  With that playing into my persona I’ve always felt like I’m follower of certain things that are important to your inner-core, but in the same perspective you have to be leader to yourself always.  I want to give the word and rally people for the cause of true hip-Hop that we have come to love and admire. The term hip-hop itself is getting muddled and that’s because the suits are getting their way as usual.  There's No cookie cutter perspective here that I love the radio's attitude.  There’s no people pretending with us, were taking the rap game by storm and were building our futures for ourselves. Being a label/brand like how the 90's were is what we thrive for, we've had a tight camp since day one, we did not want any more bullshit music for our culture. Period. The bigwigs shut artists down everyday, and you have to do this track with this guy because he's with so and so on. But I’m here to shed a different light on the subjects we know and love.”

J: Why the name Veteran eye? Do you have FAM in the military?

Vet: “Nope.  No FAM in the military man. Originally it was JI or Jay Eye. The 'Eye' is significant to the way I seem to see things different than average.  Jay Eye the Veteran became a later attachment for one, due to my longevity in the Hip Hop Game even on the underground/local scene.  And for two, because I am a veteran to the street game. Man I've done it all, sold it all, etc. You know the also familiar story, but I'm one of the true soldiers of the streets who live to spit it on the M.I.C. device.”

J:  How would you compare your first EP, (Mind of a Prophet) to your first full-length album The Chronicles and what should we expect in the years to come?

Apostle: “I’m exploring more with my vocal range now, and thinking outside the box with production. No same old same old here, I’m thinking of new word hustles every second and minute of everyday.  No times wasted in 2009.  I’m a little more radical now with the whole thing on what I choose to do and that’s making me grow as an artist.  I’m defiantly more aware of how people listen to my music.  I’m always evolving with the flow and rhyme scheme of things itself on every track, they all have a deep meaning or place to take you.  You know the ride should feel like a good roller coaster.  Bringing a live ass stage show is really important though, people can tell if you're fronting.  Living in LA my whole life makes you understand it don’t matter where you from, but more so if you really believe what the fuck you saying. It definitely comes out through your voice and how you say it. I really like to provide imagery or imagination when rapping whether it’s a track, a show, a cipher.  It's you and your words bottom line.” 

J: How did you hook up with Head-On anyway, and how’s the scene in NC?  Why the transplant to LA anyway, the scoop please. 

Vet: “Hip Hop is universal as you know.  It’s pretty much the same worldwide. We got underground (artists, radio, venues, fans, etc.) and we have wanna get rich quick commercial artists and the venues, radio, and fans that support that. We have B-Boys/B-Girls and we have the local Soldier Boy wanna be's and the high school jerk team.  As far as styles, we are one of the more diverse and well-rounded barrels or pillars of Hip Hop. This being mostly due to, NC being located in the center of the east coast. So we call it North Cairo, The Middle East. (Laughs) Along with the fact that it’s a huge college community, it’s the crossroads of the East Coast, so we've become very diverse.  A lot of southern rappers, a lot of mid-90 style east coast rap, a lot underground lyricism, i.e. Little Brother, Petey Pablo, myself.  I must say, I think we consistently have the Best Emcees (Smiles).  To be honest with you in ‘07 there was just a lot of bullshit
going on for me in the NC, and I felt like something was really holding me back artistically so I came away from everything I had ever known.  There was a lot tying me down stopping me from being able totally concentrate on my craft, so I decided to move.  Los angels is the Mecca, so here I am.  The first 6 months were just a vacation relaxing from a tense situation, and then the artist in me after some months was ready to get down.  I looked on the Internet for live venues to go rock at one day and found the Hip-Hop cafe at the Hollywood Bar and Grill on Sunset.  The first time I went, it was the promoter’s birthday party so I bought him a couple of drinks and freestyled some at the end of night.  He booked me but then kept putting me off then I hit him with a CD and finally then he called he and booked me for party with a date.  That same night Apostle was performing, and out of 6 or 7 emcees me and him vibed the most.  I had an appreciation for him, and it was Vice versa so Nique approached me and I gave him my CD. The click away from the promoter really started getting closer and working harder towards getting our music out there.  A great show for me was at the House of Blues on sunset, opening up for Talib Kweli.  Apostle really hooked up that show it was a sold out crowd, smoking green in the green room was very cool.  It was our first time couple of times rocking together and the crowd really showed us love.  The chemistry was really there with us. Then we did a Humboldt County tour on 4/20.  It was a week in the car so we really got to know each other.  Seeing the landmarks all over the coast was really an eye opener for me.  Sharing each other’s vision, and wanting the same goals long term so we decided to really putting things together.  Merging my own theme with Head-On is what I’m about. I had tried to be too much for too long, I needed to step back and just be an artist and Head-On wanting to take on the responsibility.  We have been working really strong for a solid year planting seeds, now it’s time to harvest after the summer. I have a lot of projects coming out in the months to follow so be on the look out. You can download the Yeast Effect for free.  Stay tuned. The Veteran has been anointed to take the thrown. And look for the 'Corona' album as well as the 'Veteran Assassins' album feat himself and ethemadassassin, produced by the FakeHunters out of France. The new website coming also, eyerockmics.com, and Head-On Records is going strong.”

J: “The Chronicles” , your first album is what really laid the foundation for Head-On Records.  Why did you name it “The Chronicles” and what's it’s message?

Apostle: “That album was done in our home based studio while I was school.  Nique was hustling WB, grabbing my own personal 9th wonder our main producer DJ Dahlia.  He really shined on my album and dropped plenty of jewels. Vet had some verses on there, check it.  I really wanted ‘The Chronicles’ to be the first part of a series of albums where I go off on different themes.  I like to tell story’s presenting the situation in a whole, but I wanted them to read it like a book. Every chapter is just as important as the next just in a song method. I'm really into the writing aspect.  There’s a moral to everything or different approach for every thing being done.  As Hip-Hop fans, what’s real to you might not be real to me and I want the same value of music we had in the 80’s 90’s.  I’m here to bring that same feel and standard you can expect from the hard workers of back in the day when it started. Like Mic One and Two, what is this? I
think you know dear

J:  Tell us about your style and/or background.  What do you have to say overall as an emcee and what got you into Hip-Hop originally?

Apostle: “My older brother got me into hip-hop with that Warren G CD in ‘94.  It was really nuts to me.  Gangster and old school, it really showed me the blues side  when Regulators came out. All that great west coast shit back in the day NWA, you know Ice Cube, The Chronic was our fire out here. I was a poet at first, always writing since middle school and in high school. Then All Eyes On Me came out by Tupac. That had a big effect on me overall.  He didn’t have the baddest flow, but what he had to say was something so real that anyone could feel or listen to over and over again it stuck in your head. That’s when I wanted to be an emcee listening to his spirit really opened me up to lyricism in hip-hop, so I decided to take all my work and start writing songs and then start plat forming everything collectively.”