IT'S MEDICATION ADMINISTRATION TIME WITH A HEALTHY DOSE OF PROZAK!!

The "Something Else" tour made a much anticipated stop in Portland, OR on Thursday September 26th and Portland was ready to rage. Prozak's set was epic in proportions and the fans were left wanting more. Click Here for an exclusive look at the Portland pit for Prozak's Mosh Pit song. 

After the show I got a chance to do an exclusive interview with Prozak in the downstairs bar of the Roseland Theater. 


Lettey: Tell me about your new album and what the album represents to you. 

Prozak:  The album is called "We All Fall Down" and it released 9/17/13. People may say the album is Political, but I don’t like that word. This album talks about reality. I think of hip hop that doesn't relay a message as "Fiction." The album talks about the state of the country right now and relays a message, through the songs, about how I view the world. Look at the state of Detroit, the actual state recently tried to declare bankruptcy, the whole state. That says a lot about the country we live in. This is a state that was the head of the auto industry, and now it’s filing for bankruptcy. ,  It doesn't talk about how many women I slept with last night, how much money I have, or where I’ve been. Its about what’s really going on in my town and the world.

Lettey: What is your favorite song on the album?

Prozak: That's a hard one. I would have to say "We All Fall Down" and "Audio Barricade." 

Lettey: What song on the album was the hardest to write?

Prozak: That's a good question. I'd have to say the first song, the intro "Divided We Stand" I wanted to incorporate the album art and really tie in the album.

Lettey: There are many young, talented people out there today thriving on art, music, and creative abilities. The schools are slowly taking away these programs and it is becoming more difficult for kids to learn the arts. What would you say to these young people to keep them moving forward?

Prozak: :  Really stick to it, network, I’m living proof, there are others, hundreds of thousands of others, and I’m living proof that you really have to do it and stick to it. You have to dedicate everything to it. That’s it.

Prozak's set was more then I could have expected. His art and his voice have improved through the years, and when I say voice I don't mean his singing, I mean his ability to say so much with his songs. Hip Hop was originally meant for people to express and share a statement and a message, and Prozak has been perfecting the art for years now. Listening to his new album, you leave feeling informed, entertained, and more intelligent for the experience. 

 

DARK TAUPE SCHEMATA TO RELEASE IN NOVEMBER!

Marcus recently announced the name of this new project, "Dark Taupe Schemata" to fans over Facebook. 

The project is slated  to release on November 12th 2013. There will be 100 limited copies of the project in vinyl, and the rest available for download via ITunes. 

When asked, Marcus said, " The name fit so well. Taupe color is really the color I imagine when I think of November. It fits well." Marcus is very excited to release this project into the world. 

Many artists compare it to giving birth. As an artist you spend months growing this project, caring for it, protecting it, and then when its birthed into the world, you want everyone to see this amazing thing you created and you are so proud of it.

Stay tuned for more info about the project, upcoming album art, and links to purchase the album. 

MARCUS'S EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW ABOUT HIS NEW PROJECT AND MORE!

Welcome to the World of the new project. Marcus has had so many new avenues open up for him recently, like Reverbnation, Facebook,Twitter, Blogspot, and more to come. He has been working on another avenue for you and is getting ready to release it on the world. Its called his "project", formally the EP. As Marcus was working on the EP, it became so much more then that, turning it into the project. Marcus was gracious enough to give us an exclusive interview about the album and what is coming ahead for his fans and his work. 

Lettey: Tell us Marcus, how is the EP going so far? 

Marcus: It is going great .  I changed it from being an EP to just a project, because I’m in all aspects of it. I’m really like creating almost all of the aspects of putting this product out to people.

Lettey: So you are producing the project as well? 

Marcus: I'm doing production, engineering, and my homie John, he’s painting these 24x24 canvases for the album art. He's really dope. 

Lettey: Who will we be hearing on this album?

Marcus: You'll be hearing County Boi Frizz, Lena Chanel,Jessica Renee, and myself of course. 

Lettey: What has been your inspiration for making this album? 

Marcus: : I was trying to get away from the Internet. Anything not dealing with the Internet was my inspiration. I had to really dig deep into my thoughts and l really had to go out and look for answers. Like going outside and seeing things and taking adventures. Like when I’m going to work or something. That was my inspiration, just seeing everything around me and thinking about how I could make this better or how could I understand this better.

Lettey: Would you say this album was about getting back to the basics for you?

Marcus: Yes it is. I really had to be patient and just really go to the basics of everything. Like certain beats, I didn't want certain beats in the same key. I wanted features to be features  and  I wanted them to be on subject. I want to be sure that the songs fit the subject matter of the album. When I create something I know what I’m looking for.

Lettey: How will this project be available for fans to obtain? 

Marcus: Right now I am looking at getting some vinyl made. It will be a really exclusive deal. I'm only going to print like 100 and that's it. Then it will be available on Itunes for purchase. 

Lettey: Do you have any shows or events planned in the future? 

Marcus:: My home boy B reached out to me about a show on Sept 26^Th but all my focus has been on getting this  project done, cause I’ve been saying I’m been working on this project for a long time and I just have to get this done and then that will open up more shows possibly.

Lettey: Tell me what you think about your cousin's new album "Something Else" and about the song you were featured on "Feels Like Heaven." 

Marcus: Man, I love the whole process of "Something Else." He was working on "Something Else" when I had come back from college, I believe. He's been working on it for a long time. Ya, I love that whole album. The song "Feels Like Heaven" that I did with him, is like crazy you know? I think I just really love the verse that I wrote and the verse that Aaron (Tech) wrote. It was just like, amazing, and we just came together as Aaron Yates and Marcus Yates to just share our imagination with people. It was just all love on that track. It was like the theme of everything was perfect. It was perfect and I was really proud to be a Yates when that came out. 

Lettey: There will be a featured Fan Blog, were your fans can tell how your music has changed their lives. What do you think about that? 

Marcus: I think that's amazing. Cause when I create I'm only creating with my brain and my heart. It's just crazy how something that comes from me, like from my imagination, can effect other people. That is just mind boggling to me. I mean, I am thankful, but it's just mind boggling how it can touch somebody. 

 

Lettey: Did you watch the VMA's and hear about the controversy with an artist? Do you think that artists have a duty to act a certain way in public as role models to people? 

Marcus:I didn't even watch the VMA's. You can just follow your Twitter feed and see what happened and what Miley did and the pictures of her butt. All I got was Twitter quotes, messages, and Tweets about the VMA's. I didn't watch at all. What Miley did and what she wore, she wanted to do that. So she did what she did, and there will be backlash for anything you do. Especially when you are in the limelight like that. You can say you love God and people will still say you are bad or something. I don't know, I don't get into it. Especially being it seems like everyone is judging. Every one's gonna judge anyway so hey, what the heck. Turn the T.V. off! I could be creating instead of looking at the comments and opinions. 

Lettey: What is your plan after the alum release? 

Marcus: I’m taking everything a day at a time and creating deadlines and everything. I really don’t know. I know I will be creatively drained after everything goes out, because of my role and everything in the project. Cause a lot of people don’t mix their own project and create their own beats and write and record, a lot of people don’t do that. So ya I’ll take some time out and just promote this and probably get a couple of videos done. That will be an easy thing to do, sit in front of a camera and act. Be innovative. I’m trying to do something really hip and get people hip to the different dimensions of how people watch videos.

Lettey: Are you interesting in signing to a label, or are you staying independent? 

Marcus: The best thing to do is to stay independent. I have not gotten any offers from anybody yet, unfortunately. Would I sign? It depends. If they grant me money to get my imagination out more, then yes I would. If they wanted to loan me money to get my imagination out, then no. It looks good on the outside with their gold chains and such. But then you find out that is all they really have and it's different when you meet them. 

Lettey: When is the project set to release? 

Marcus: November 12th 2013

Lettey: All your Facebook fans are dying to know, are you single or off the market?

Marcus: I am dating. That's about it. 

 

Well I know I can speak for many of his fans when I say we are all anxiously awaiting the release of "the project". We will have more updates to come as we move closer to November and don't forget to post this blog and get the word out. Till next time this is Lettey saying Goodnight and don't forget to drink your oval-tine! haha.  

 

MARCUS'S FANS TELL ALL!

We hear lots of stories online about how a certain artist or musical genre changes a person's life.So we are going to take a little time and get the info straight from the fans. I asked Marcus's Facebook fans to tell me what inspired them about his music and how it has changed their lives. This is what they had to say.

Christopher Fulton

"Well I started listening to Marcus through Tech N9ne and Krizz Kaliko. Most notably the song "Gumbo".   I loved how he sounded. He fit right into the world of Strange Music. The music he wrote actually had meaning and depth and with him being so close to my age, it inspires me that this generation has talent instead of the popular trash on the radio.I would always send messages to my favorite artists on Facebook hoping to talk to them and tell them how much I respect them. Marcus was the first one to respond. Within a few days too. He seems so down to earth and I can not wait to see what he has in store for his album. I am a lifelong fan."

                                                                       Megan Pickens

"I remember when I first got a listen at Marcus Yates' style.  It was in "I Love Music" when he rapped "Music ain't a hobby, it's an organ, of my body, that the creator provided back in January of '92.  So don't you dare say that music skipped my generation."  His lines fit perfect and spoke against the crowds of people saying "Hip Hop is dead."  Hip Hop was never dead.  Too many clowns have been given the spot light leaving real artists in the dark.  I was excited to hear more.  Later, I fell in love with Krizz Kaliko's "Gumbo" and heard his familiar voice.  I ended up buying a ticket to the SOS tour and got to see Marcus live.  He really put on a show and his style goes unmatched.  He has this feel good/relaxed vibe that really gets you lost in his music.  I can't wait to hear more from this dude and definitely can't wait 'til the day one of his CD's is in a big box store."

                     Ben Beal
"I'll be looking out for your EP and buying it when it comes out."

These are just a few of the amazing fans that have had their lives touched in some way or another by Marcus's music. He is so humbled by this outreach of fans and will keep bringing great music to everyone til his last breath. When I asked Marcus what he thought of all this, he said "It's great. It's amazing. Just wow." He told me its a wonderful thing when you can make music for yourself and it moves over into another person's life and reaches out to them in the way it did to you. Check out more comments and fan dialogue at www.facebook.com/marcusiyates and stay tuned this weekend to an exclusive interview with Marcus about the new album, formally an EP.