On July 30th, The Waterford Music Fest had its debut at the RSC with a star studded line up. One of the acts on the bill was Venem, a socially connected, unsigned rapper from Virginia, who spits raw and real lyrics about modern life and truth. I caught up with him back stage after finishing his set to get his perspective on the scene as an unsigned artist, staying “real” and the workflow and dedication needed to achieve in today’s game.
When did you start rapping and first get into the game ?
I first started rapping when I was little, probably about 7th grade, just messing around free-styling, making up funny rhymes, stuff like that. Then I met a few people in high school who actually really rap and really tried to put something down and that drove me to start trying to really rap and make serious rhymes so i’d say high school about 9th grade.
At 14, you moved from Philly to Virginia. Did you notice a big difference in style- especially in rhymes and did that change your own style as-well ?
Ya it’s totally different. It kinda did, when I was in Philly, they’re kinda more close to New York and they’re all about lyrics, lyrics, lyrics. So when I first started rapping it was all kinda like battle raps, stuff like that. Then when I moved down to Virginia, they’re more slower paced and they like to dance, it’s more to the South, so.. I kinda mix that together. Like if you hear my stuff, I do some party tracks and I do some you know, real lyrics, but I try to mix ’em up together.
You released your first album Unsigned Hype, which you produced, mixed and engineered yourself. Do you still do any of these aspects on your records ?
I still do about 80 percent, I mean I don’t do the production, I have a few producers who send me beats but I still do the most, like hit the record button, di,di,di,di,do… run into the booth.
Your an unsigned artist, how hard is it to stay on your grind and keep at it when you have to do it all yourself ?
I ain’t gonna lie to you, sometimes it’s hard when you doin’ it by yourself, like I really don’t even have a real team around me – like go put up posters, go hand out CD’s, I do it all myself. But somedays you’re just like.. man I don’t feel like doin’ this, but you gotta do it. If you put the love into it, then it all comes back to you.
Have you had any interest from any labels ?
A few local labels, independent labels from around the area want to pick me up but I’m really just waiting for that right deal, somewhere I feel comfortable. I want them to come to me, I don’t want to go over to them and be like.. here come on.. I want them say wow he’s great, we need to get that guy.
That’s good though, at least it shows that your focused on what you do and not just going to take some quick cash and settle for any deal….
Ya, ya those dudes end up…you don’t see em no more. Somewhere, broke somewhere, they took all your money.. haha
Your lyrics are “real” and you keep your lyrics about who you are and what you’ve seen. Do you find it hard to keep that realness when the game is so full of commercial rhymes about money, cars, women, etc. ?
I pride myself that I can say, you can pick out any line of any song and I’ll tell you exactly what I meant and exactly where it came from. But then it’s like, so many people just fake it, fake it till they make it, just lie about ‘aww I got this’ and they’re riding around in rented cars or rented house and you kinda wanna say man if i did that I could blow up. Thats why I make dance music, I make stuff that everybody can relate to, like if I make a dance song it’s not gonna talk about money, its gon talk about you’re in the club, you’re buying a drink, its not a $400 drink, but its a drink, so if your rich or poor you’ve been to the club and bought a drink.
Do you ever think if I did flip I might get a better break, are you ever tempted to just say f**k it ? Do you find it hard to stay that real when everyone else is cashing in ?
I really don’t. If someone was to say ‘ok what makes you different’, the first thing that I’d say is I don’t lie on any records, I don’t make up a bunch of make believe. If I do, I’m telling a story and I’ll say this happened to this guy or something like that but I’ll never put myself like I’m running the street, im selling 400 keys an I’m in a Lambo. I don’t even get tempted to do it cos that just makes me feel like a liar hahaha it don’t make me feel right.
When you’re recording do you work right there in the studio with the producer or would you send the tracks/vocals back and forth via the net ?
Normally they’ll send me the tracks and I just do ’em there. I do like to work with the person even if it’s just we’re doing a feature and its me and another rapper. I like to work with the person in the studio, thats the first thing that I like to do cos I want to get that vibe you know, we think we should do it like this, do like that, cos we’re working together. But if they’re too far and we can’t make it happen, ya i’ll do it over the internet, like send me them songs.
With the festival here, how did that come about that you got on the line-up ?
Came out here in like ’09, met a few people stayed in contact with them, Facebook, online, stayed in contact real cool. I met like two DJ’s over here and I just kept sending them music and they kept playing it, kept playing it. Then a friend of mine, her father, I think her father is the one who was putting this whole thing together, she said ‘you know I really like your music’ and she just put it on. I guess it was just like a love thing, like this is good music let me do it, let me help you out.
How good does that feel to you ? Like over in the States you are an unsigned artist and then you get invited way across the water to perform at this festival here ?
That feels great haha I can’t even lie, that feels so great. I mean like I’m not even signed, everybody who doesn’t even know me. But I’m here and then after this I just booked two more shows, I’ll be performing tonight and I’ll be performing tomorrow nite at Harvey’s, tonight at the after party and then ah 21, Dublin, club 21. I’ll be out there tomorrow nite for another set. It’s really like a good feeling to know, like I didn’t have to do it with a gimmick. It’s like people say it feels better when you work for it. Ya, and not like cheat the system and just pay somebody to let me on here or just lie my way into it.
Hip-Hop at the moment; is there anybody you admire for keeping it real or just lyrical talent ? And I know it’s a big question…
People are not gonna really think about it, but I always respected Jay-Z for that same reason, cos he’s got money so he talks about, like you listen to his lyrics nowadays he’s not sitting there like ya I’m still moving keys, I’m still doing this, he’s talking about money. People go aw, he sold out, but that’s his life right now, he gives it to you, his life you know. Kanye kinda does that too, where he puts his feelings into it, he be like I tell you aw, I love this girl or this hurt me or something like that, I respect people like that. There’s so many artists, Sean Price is another one, I could go on and on for days. Eminem still sellin’ alotta records, he’s another person I really respect. He’ll talk some crazy shit but really you can’t name a rapper who sells as many records as him that still talks about you know, oh my mom did this, oh my girl, you know really put it like, your real life into that. You get some people get to a point and then they just stop talking about real life and just start talking bout what they think people want to hear.
So in the States, would you have much of a following at home ?
It’s alright, it’s not really nationwide but i’d say up and down the east coast people know who I am.
So you be connected still out in Philly…
Ya ya and there probably like three or four states away so that whole strip up and down DC, Maryland Virginia, Pennsylvania, New York, Jersey; I’m usually all through there with a butt load a CD’s. Ya you gotta grind hard gotta get outta your area.
What’s the plans for the future or what’s next in store for Venem ?
I’m about to drop another album, I got a whole album done, No Antidote, I just really got get my cover design. That will probably be done the next few weeks so that should be out like August. It’s got Turn It Up on this one, Call Me Daddy is on there. This is a real, real album with all original production. I’ve got another album to follow that one right up, I’m about six or seven songs in. I pretty much gave ya’ll a preview, cos Won’t Lose is on there, Heartache is on there, man there’s so many tracks. Basically I got two more albums ’bout to come out before the end of this year, so I’ma drop two more. No Antidote definitely by the end of August, it will be in stores on iTunes, Amazon, anywhere online just search for No Antidote. Dark Origin is a real dark album so I want to kinda release it in the Winter time when everybody’s not ready to party and have fun. This is going to be something I really want people to listen to.
Check out PA to Va mixtape HERE courtesy of DatPiff.com
Follow Venem @ Twitter (The Real Venem) Facebook (Venem Music)
Rap Ireland would like to thank Venem for his time and input, and will keep readers updated on his future releases.
