Disclaimer 1: I'm putting up the interview without links because we're late already. I'll update when I have time today and remove this note.
Disclaimer 2: Alright everyone, apologies for being a couple of days late with this. This was totally not my fault and I didn't start the whole thing late, it's just that, uhm... Tyrant had too much work to do. BUUUUUT that's all behind us now so let's enjoy this piece. Keep in my everything took just over a week, we address ScopeY as a staffer and as a mod, and Action Bronson as a thing to happen and a thing that happened.
StillAtIt (S in the interview): Alright, the thing that’s drawn a lot of attention to it is the resurfacing of Pusha vs. Drake/Michael vs Stephen in streetlight’s recent interview. Could you give us your opinion on the following statement:
What makes Drake better than Pusha T? Absolutely nothing. Pusha T is better on many levels – from flows to lyrical content to overall cohesiveness in his albums. On top of that, he’s much more diverse
Tyrant (T in the interview): I think you quoted that incorrectly. This is what @streetlights actually said—the interviewer edited it out:
What makes Drake better than Pusha T? Absolutely nothing. Pusha T is the greatest rapper of all time. He famously ended the careers of Lil Wayne on “Exodus 23:1” and Drake on “Don’t f*ck With Me.” To be honest with you, I haven’t listened to Drake’s music since.
S: Ah, diss records.. They bring a decent amount of hype, no matter who is the author or who’s the target – as a rap-first community staffer you should be familiar with a lot of them. So, before we get into any personal discussion, what are some of your favorite diss tracks/lines and more importantly do you think Kendrick is about to go full steam ahead at Drake after untitled unmastered subliminals or what?
T: I love diss tracks. They’re part of the reason why I fell in love with hip hop. Since I’m such a competitive person, seeing two MC’s go back and fourth (especially long running beefs) perks my ears up.
To be #controversial—I like “Ether” more than “Takeover.” So my favorite diss tracks are Nas – “Ether”, 50 Cent – “Back Down”, Royce Da 5'9 “Over (Freestyle)”, Pusha T “Exodus 23:1”, and more recently I came to appreciate Ice Cube’s “No Vaseline” after cleaning up the song page.
On Kendrick/Drake: the beef (I wouldn’t even call it a beef, more like compeition) is in Drake’s hands. Kendrick’s just waiting for Drake to give him an excuse. We’ll see what Drizzy says on Views.
S: No Eminem songs on the list?
So, let's dive into the core of the interview -- Michael, not Tyrant. How separable are the two? What's the story behind Michael, and what's the story behind Tyrant?
T: Eminem’s got a couple of classic diss records but they’re not necessarily my favorite. I do really enjoy the Eminem x 50 Cent x Busta Rhymes “Hail Mary” diss aimed at Ja Rule though. Busta snapped.
Good question. Right now, Michael and Tyrant are definitely the same person—Tyrant’s just my game face, but when I was first dubbed “Tyrant,” things were a little different. The Tyrant persona fit the description—it was basically my way or the highway. This was good in some regards (I got sh*t done) but I definitely went too far sometimes. I won’t elaborate on that ;)
The name “Tyrant” was dubbed by the O.G Algeron in rap chat one night (yes, I was once a regular chatter). I think Piozon was there too. I’d de-editored 3 users in quick succession and Algeron commented “MHealx (my name at the time) acting like a Tyrant right now.” The name stuck. I became TyrantMHealx, TyrantX, XTyrant (like No Malice), then just Tyrant.
S: As you’re an OG on the site, ScopeY’s your comrade as both a community member and a staffer. Unfortunately for all of us, he’s decided to pursue bigger things and that’s sure to leave a mark on Genius – how do you think we’ll look and more importantly, what’s a ScopeY memory you’d like to single out?
T: The site will persist beyond ScopeY, but we’ll never forget him. My only regret is not meeting him in person. I’ll make sure to visit Norway one day to have a beer. Does ScopeY even drink beer? I feel like he’d be a great person to drink with.
A ScopeY memory…so many freestyles to choose from. Did you know he ghostwrote “I Am A God?”
#TBT, O.G chat screenie:
S: ScopeY’s username was MBalls? That’s a surprise…
One thing that I’ve been dying to hear more about is your Genius internship. I’ve heard stories of Kanye’s discography being on repeat (s/o streetlights), but I’m sure there’s a lot of things that happened that not everybody knows of. Drop a few cool moments on us
T: Not his username, his MC name. Rather than YEAHTIM, he was known as MBalls.
Interesting question. This might be a long answer. So way back in 2013, I left Australia and travelled to Europe (s/o all my UK/European fam) and spent 6 months partying/casually logging onto Genius. Just as I got back to London and began looking for a job, Genius (then Rap Genius) hit me up about an internship they were hosting in L.A that they wanted me to attend. It’s important to note: Genius was still in the “Rap Genius” days. The company was in a completely different place to what it is now.
Anyway, I spent six weeks in L.A working on the site, met all the O.G’s – Niday, Baous, Brock, Fanahova, Magnitude901, Maximus1 to name a few, and had a blast. Some of us went to a listening session for Childish Gambino’s because the internet and watched him perform the album live at a house he was renting, chilled with Isaiah Rashad at a different party, and went to a hockey game.
I found a rare photo at the hockey—left to right: Maxiumus1, Tyrant, Baous, Fanahova, Brock, Magnitude901.
S: Sounds like dream land, I’d do anything to have a week or two like that and I know everyone else would.
Now that you’ve mentioned Gambino and Rashad, as a humble follower of yours on instagram I couldn’t fail to notice you’re really active when it comes to going to concerts. I think Rocky was the last big name, but what are some of the favorite concerts you’ve attended?
T: Yeah it’s still the craziest six weeks of my life.
Live shows are the best. I went to A$AP Rocky a few weeks ago and Pusha T earlier in the year. My first show was when I was 13. I went to see Lloyd Banks perform in Sydney—he’s still one of my favorite rappers!
Off the top of my head I’ve seen Banks a few times, 50 Cent three times, Fabolous, Big Sean, Ludacris, Missy Elliot, Lupe Fiasco, Ice Cube, Eminem, Slaughterhouse, Gambino twice, Odd Future as a collective, Tyler twice, Earl at a solo show, 2 Chainz (I saw 2 Chainz with Niday. Weird things happened.) and last but not least, Kanye twice. I actually saw the rare MBDTF set he did at Coachella (but at a festival in Sydney). He didn’t tour for that album and only did a handful of shows.
That being said, my favorite show is the Yeezus Tour in 2014. I was front row, Pusha T was supporting (they did Runaway LIVE #rare). He did BOTL 3 times, NIP 3 times. Death circles. Insanity.
This may change though. I’m seeing Kendrick in two weeks. I’ll be sure to keep the ‘gram updated.
S: Ok that’s a lot more than I expected. I’m yet to see a live show of an act I enjoy so the jealousy is pretty big now. And yeah, please keep the ‘gram updated.
The last part of your answer comes as no surprise – we all know you as a Kanye stan (like many more of us are). I rank you pretty high on my list of Disciples, but you fall behind Niday here. Is it something that bothers you, and what are your thoughts on “6 lines and 3 albums a year”
T: ‘Gram updated from Action Bronson last night!
Please, Niday’s a fake stan. Nah but for real, us Kanye stans gotta stick together. Niday and I became friends over our mutual love of Kanye.
6 clothing lines and 3 albums is AMBITIOUS. Like dude has only just caught up and put out one of each, how’s he gonna turn around and do all this? My theory is he’s got years worth of sh*t in the vault—clothing and music. I mean, the “No More Parties in L.A” beat/concept is six years old, how many more songs like that does he have?
S: Yeah I think we all undervalue the vault. I'd much rather take one great album every 2 years than this tbh.
Now that you've mentioned befriending Niday, a thing that absolutely blew my mind was url>irl thing you Aussies did. Does Ben really looks as fit and strong as I percept him to be?
T: You didn’t like TLOP? I loved it but thought it was too long. Cut Max B, cut “Facts,” cut “Low Lights,” make “Father Stretch My Hands” one song, cut “Feedback”, cut “Waves,” cut “I Love Kanye” and bring back the old “Wolves."
Yeah it was super fun! Hoping to do another one soon. Waiting for goodkidkevcity to get back in the country ;)
Ben looks like an athlete. In fact, he is an athlete. Dude told me he cycles like 40kms every few days and does a bunch of other stuff. No idea how he finds the time when he’s killing it on Genius too.
S: If "loved it" means cutting half the album and modifying it, then yeah, I loved it
I'm running out of Genius-related questions so let's go url>irl now. How's Michael doing, what's Michael reading and what occupies his day outside of url?
T: Aside from being really busy on Genius, I just finished House of Cards season 4. It was f*cking awesome. I should change my Genius name to Frank Underwood. Basedgator wouldn’t be happy about that…
Aside from watching Netflix (and not chilling), I’ve been spending my spare time in beer gardens, rooftop bars, tropical islands and waterfalls. We’ve had a bit of an Indian summer here, so I’m trying to enjoy the sunshine while it lasts.
S: Tfw your summer is actually in winter… How “cold” does it get in winter there anyway?
Excited for GoT season 6?
T: Lol. In Sydney probably lows of 12 degrees celsius during the day and 4 overnight.
Yes! Daredevil Season 2 starts this Friday too. I’m also watching Vikings.
S: And you’re wondering how Ben finds time for Genius? Watching stuff is much more time consuming in my opinion.
OK let’s have a quick rapid fire: One single favorite lyric?
T: “Keys open doors”
S: Song?
T: “Christian Dior Denim Flow”
S: Album?
T: Hell Hath No Fury
S: Piece of clothing?
T: My A.P.C boots.
S: Own any Yeezys?
T: Nope.
S: Favorite trip abroad?
T: Europe.
S: Any foreign languages you speak?
T: Nope.
S: Have you gotten used to seeing ScopeY’s name purple already?
T: He’s a dank meme now.
S: Alright, that should be enough for the millions waiting for the interview. Any final words?
T: I wanted to use my final word to give the community a shoutout. We’re only 3 months into 2016 and y'all are already killing it. I’m looking forward to see what we can accomplish in the next 9 months. Let’s get it.