“It’s both, it’s a place where you can rehabilitate but it’s also a warehouse. Because mind you, that place is there for a reason. You got real live monsters that deserve to be there that committed crimes that are absolutely heinous. They are never gonna see the light of day and they are there forever and for a reason.”
Bone Thugs-N-Harmony is gearing to release their long awaited unified front, Uni5: The World’s Enemy, which will be dropping on December 22nd. Speaking with Hip-Hop Wired, Krayzie spoke on the conception of their latest album saying,
“Flesh was locked up for ten years, he just came home. As everybody knows Bizzy Bone was away from us for a while. Flesh came home and we just felt the need…it was going to happen regardless. We felt the need to come back together and give the world that Bone magic that we brought to the world years earlier. It was like a must. The whole concept of the album, Uni5: The World’s Enemy… the unifying came from us being back unified and the world enemy concept came from we always felt like we was always outcasts. Being apart from whatever was going on in the world or what everybody else was doing. It also has a spiritual meaning, being no part of the world. It’s a lot of different meanings of it.”
Flesh-N-Bone also spoke about his prison stint and how the process was getting back into the mix with his brothers.
“It was something that while I was away I was avail to the resources that we had in there. I was never out of the loop with respect to my artistry, being creative. I was able to do music, write music, write the beats and be active for the most part and develop my craft. I had a lot of time to sit and develop me, work on, what I consider…what I’m on this earth to do. I was able to concentrate a whole lot on that so the transition from the pen to out here was fairly simple, because my cell was my booth, literally.
I had my own cell hooked up like a studio. And it was like that for the whole time I was down so when I came home and got in the studio it was like I never left. No problem whatsoever. It wasn’t about trying to find nothing, it was already there. The only thing that I had to develop was me and the guys being back together collaborating and getting used to each other’s energies and our vibes again.”
Flesh also spoke about what his time in jail, after serving close to ten years for assault with a deadly weapon, will bring to his music and subject matter as well.
“It informed, it fueled, it gave me insight because I was really able to study Hip-Hop, study music appreciation. I was able to advance and broaden my own awareness to the craft. We pretty much, bring to it the whole essence of the artistry. It’s about the art and when you dealing with art and society you got a vast stream of conditions that have to be addressed and talked about. From having fun to partying to the drugs to drug addiction… Overcoming a drug addiction, incarceration. Human development on so many plateaus that gives us the longevity that we have. Really implementing what it means to be an artist. It’s a huge responsibility and yes being in the penal system kind of gave me experiences to add to the melting pot.”
Keeping it all the way real, Flesh put a different light on the holding pen that many MCs glorify and made it clear that it’s no place he wants to return to. When asked if he thinks that the penal system rehabilitates or if it’s just a warehouse for people that have made certain choices in their lives, he responded,
“It’s both, it’s a place where you can rehabilitate but it’s also a warehouse. Because mind you, that place is there for a reason. You got real live monsters that deserve to be there that committed crimes that are absolutely heinous. They are never gonna see the light of day and they are there forever and for a reason. That’s why they got that place and unfortunately I had to mingle amongst these monsters and survive amongst these monsters. The main thing they covet the most is having a release date and only 40% of the people in there got a release date.
The other 60%, that’s their home. They also created programs to where even those people that are there, the people that have a release date, if they choose to, the only way you’re going to rehabilitate is if you put the foot forward and you get it yourself. Other than that they’re just there to waste their time and do their time and just get on so it goes both ways, yes and no.”
Wish Bone also summed up the album declaring that Uni5 will inspire those that will listen. He added,
“We don’t rap about cars, broads and chains. Our music is a message. We look at ourselves as messengers for the Lord. We always speak on what’s going on in the world and what’s happening right now instead of just the glimmer and the shine. Since we a voice of power, we have to send out that message to let people know what’s really going on. If you’re blessed with a gift to be heard, you definitely have a responsibility to give truth and spread light on real life situations through the music.”
In related Bone Thugs-N-Harmony news, the trendsetters who put Cleveland, Ohio on the Hip-Hop map also spoke on their mentor Eazy-E about his alleged death of AIDS with Angela Yee on Sirius’s Shade 45 radio program. Sparing no words on, Layzie stated,
“It might be allegedly the way he picked the Shyte (AIDS) up. I got my own theories. It was crazy because we were here in New York in December (1994) and E bought us coats. We went out that night and n*ggas got a little sick with the weather change. Went back to hot L.A. He went in (to the Dr.) for the common cold, pneumonia, or whatever it was which was in January…he had the common cold and then diagnosed with pneumonia. In February, diagnosed H.I.V. positive and March full blown AIDS… Dead.
So it happened kind of fast so I’m kind of thinking who the Fawk’s doctor did he go to. I think it was Jerry Heller’s doctor (Eazy’s former business partner) that he went to and he had just got fired so I’m like this looks…Conspiracy”
Krayzie also chimed in, saying,
“We all done seen people with full blown AIDS and when they’re about to die and how they look. Dude had full blown AIDs and still had his weight, still cocky and still looking like a regular dude and it just came about all of a sudden.”
Layzie also pointed out,
“He was wrestling with Big Wish… so the dude was strong, cocky and built like a lil’ tank so it’s just theories. After we learned about the whole AIDS thing and learned that it could be possible (looking healthy with H.I.V.) but…”
“It still gotta be a downhill process and it just happened too fast to me,” Wish added.
Stay tuned to Hip-Hop Wired for our upcoming featuring with Hip-Hop’s Fab 5. Check out their latest single below “See Me Shine” as well as the video of the speaking on Eazy-E.
“See Me Shine”
