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AFTER
JACKING HOLLYWOOD, PROJECT PAT IS A ”WALKIN BANK ROLL”
 After winning the Academy Award
for Best Song (“Hard Out Here for a Pimp”) in 2006, hardcore Memphis rap group
Three-6 Mafia unlocked the door to commercial success. DJ Paul and Juicy
J, the rappers/producers who make up the Three-6 duo, currently star in a hit
MTV reality show called “Adventures in Hollywood”. Project Pat, the
brother of Juicy J and a longtime Three 6 co-defendant, has become one of the
show’s most popular “characters” with his outrageous sense of humor and
colorful slang.
Although new crop of mainstream
fans have unearthed him, Project Pat has long paid his dues to the hip-hop
nation; Pat has been featured on many classic Three-6 Mafia albums such as
“When the Smoke Clears”, “The End” and “Chapter 2: World Domination”.
While staying true to his massive underground following, Pat’s memorable guest
appearance on Three 6 Mafia’s runaway hit “Sippin’ on Some Syrup” introduced
him to many new listeners. Not to mention the fact that Project Pat has
released four solo albums, one of which (the platinum-selling “Mista Don’t
Play” in 2001) spawned his best-known record, “Chickenhead”. His debut
LP, the street-saturated “Ghetty Green”, went gold.
Basking in the post-Oscar glow of
his Three 6 brethren, Project Pat will release his latest album, “Walkin Bank
Roll”, on October 30th. With Paul and Juicy providing the
exceptional, crunk-as-hell beats they’re known for, the album also contains the
hit single “Don’t Call Me No Mo”, which has also charted as a top-selling ring
tone.
Naturally I’ve always liked
Project Pat’s music, ‘cause I gravitate to hardcore, gangsta rap. “Mista
Don’t Play” stayed in heavy rotation when my cousin Snake and I cruised up
& down I-95, making our rounds to South Carolina and back to NY. So
when I got the opportunity to interview the man who made sick joints like “Ski
Mask”, “Cheese & Dope” and “Gorilla Pimp”, I couldn’t wait to make it
happen.
Dirty Angel: What’s “Walkin Bank Roll” going to add to your legacy?
Project Pat: “Walkin Bank Roll”… that’s the name of the new album
with the hit song “Don’t Call Me No Mo, Don’t Text Me No Mo”, the
number one ring tone in the United States of America.
Angel: No doubt. And what’s this album going to add to your catalog, ‘cause you’ve got a long catalog of hits.
Pat: As far as what it means to me or how many (units sold)?
Angel: As far as what it means to you.
Pat: Man, look, I’mma tell you something (laughs). You know, down
south we just in it for the money (laughs). If you want me to keep it
real with you, we just in it for the loot. And you know, just
something for the people… something to please the people.
Angel: How did Project Pat become a “Walking Bank Roll”?
Pat: Man, I’mma tell you something, man. Just paying my tithes and
offerings and staying blessed out here through the man upstairs.
Angel: Hollywood is so fake; it’s kind of a plastic place.
But you a real n***a. How do you deal with being out there in
Hollywood? How do you keep it so gully (for the slang-impaired… that means “real” or “gutter”) out there?
Pat: Well, man, there’s one thing… I’m from North Memphis, man. You
know what I’m sayin’? And we down south, we don’t flip no scripts.
Either you get with our program or scram, you know? So, when I go out
there to Hollywood, it’s the same way. You know, the thing about
Hollywood, they was looking for urban. They wanted (an) urban (reality
show) on the MTV TV (station). So that’s what we gave them, we gave
them urban, know what I’m sayin’? We gave ‘em urban on the MTV TV.
That’s what we did for them.
Angel: Three-6 Mafia, ya’all always did your thing, man. Could you ever see yourself and your crew winning an Oscar award?
Pat: No, that was a blessing all by itself.
Angel: You’ve been locked up for some real s**t (His
entire rap sheet’s too long to list here, but Pat did 4 years in
Federal prison for possession of a firearm while on parole. That’s
po-po’s story). A lot of rappers, they get locked up and wyle out (translation for the slang-impaired: “act crazy”)
for publicity and things of that nature. What would you say to a fake
dude that might be thinking about getting locked up for publicity?
Anything you’d say to somebody like that?
Pat: He’s a fool (laughs). I don’t know, man. I’d tell him don’t
do it (laughs). It ain’t even the way to go, man. The thing is to be
out here and be free so you can promote yourself. It’s about
promotion, and you can’t really promote yourself in jail. I mean, the
only way you could bust a move like that… you’d have to be almost
there. If you ain’t handling your business out here, man, your business ain’t gonna get handled.
Angel: So how has being locked affected your career? Do you feel it’s affected the way you write rhymes or anything like that?
Pat: Getting locked up? Yeah, it just gave me more in-depth
(insight) about the Fed game. ‘Cause you know, I really didn’t know
too much about that game. Like… I knew about it, but… I had been
locked up in the state (penitentiary), in the county and all that
before, but… I never had did time in no Fed. Not that I wanted to,
‘cause I promise you I didn’t but… I didn’t really know in-depth about
the Feds; like the snitchin’ and all that. So when I got locked up I
was like, ‘Man…’ I’m talking (about) a lot of guys that was supposed
to have been those types of (gangster) guys in my neighborhood who was
really just a bunch of snitches… bunch of snitchin’ dudes, man. A lot
of these guys out here in these streets ain’t real. They can’t be
‘cause it’s too much, you know what I’m sayin’? It’s too much out
here. You’re not gonna be sitting up here, man, you doing this (dirt)
and shinin’ and all that, then… when them Feds come up there to clip
you, and they come up there hard (with) all them thousand years they
trying to give you… it’s all about, is you really gonna take the hit?
There’s a lot of guys out there that’s real that took that hit, but you
got a whole bunch that was phony, that wasn’t trying to take that hit.
Angel: True indeed. Three-6 Mafia had a lot of members at
one point (fan favorites Lord Infamous, Gangsta Boo, Koopsta Knicca,
Crunchy Black). There were a lot of artists in the Hypnotize Minds
camp at one point, but you’re pretty much the last man standing from
that original bunch. What separates you from everybody else?
Pat: Well… a lot of them guys that were with us… We still got guys,
we still got Frayser Boy, Lil’ Wyte and we just signed a new guy out of
Memphis called Young D. He got a real hot, strong underground backing
in the city and throughout the south. Lil’ Chrome still with us, he’s
out of Memphis. He’s a young guy that’s with Hypnotize Minds. All
them other guys that was with us, man, they took a gamble; you know
what I’m sayin’? They took a gamble on, “I’mma make it on my own… do it
on my own”, and when they took that gamble, I mean… you say that’s what
you gonna do, (then) that’s what you got to do. Now, they not making
no moves like they thought they was. I guess at the time, they thought
it was the best move. So they let their next move be their best move,
and their next move was really their worst move. But, I mean… God
bless ‘em all, I’m not talking down on them. I wish them the best in
life, period. You know what I’m sayin’? I mean, hey, they made their
choices and I’m making mine. I’m staying right here. ‘Cause one thing
about this game, I’ll tell you this right here, it’s so shady. ‘Cause
it’s so much crookedness in it that… I’ve seen a lot of guys, like even
out of Atlanta… that went through a lot of hell, and still is, with a
lot of lil’ different companies and producers and managers and stuff.
Whereas, we being from North Memphis; not just me, but guys from
Memphis period; we don’t play like that. You ain’t puttin’ my song out
there like that and you ain’t gonna pay me no money. We gonna get in
green or we gonna get it in blood. I mean, that’s how we roll down
here in Memphis. I mean, that’s nothing to talk about, but you know
me. To avoid all the foolishness, rather than get caught up in
foolishness, I just say well, since my brother Juicy J and DJ Paul and
them was doing what they was doing, I said I’mma go on and roll with
them. And I’mma stick with them ‘cause ain’t no sense in me jumping no
ships around here. ‘Cause the people who were jumping ships who
started with us… they were just being greedy and thinking they was
going to get more money out of a “by theyself”-type of situation. This
rap game is so shady, man, and so many crooks… aw, man. It’s just like
the streets. So I just thank God I’m in a blessed situation with mines
and I’m staying right here. I’m the type of person that if it ain’t
broke why am I gonna try and fix it? I ain’t trying to fix it if it
ain’t broke. I don’t even know why people do that, man. They leave a
good management company. A lot of times leave their managers ‘cause
it’s personal differences. And the majority of people that was with
us, it was on some personal (stuff). It wasn’t no business; they can
lie and try to say Paul and them didn’t pay them and all that… that’s
all a lie, man. They know it’s a lie. I don’t even know why they say
no lies like that, ‘cause that makes them look phony. And that’s not
being real, you know. And that’s a part of being real in these streets
and in this world period. People always talking ‘bout they real and
all that, but if you gonna be real tell the truth. Be honest with
yourself, don’t sit there (saying) “they didn’t pay me”. They know
it’s lies.
Angel: From what I see, you really don’t do many
collaborations with people outside of your crew. You mainly keep it in
your family.
Pat: Well you know… my thing is this right here, man. I do
collaborations, but what I do is… a lot of people be wanting me on
their stuff. So I get on it and then we’ll get a verse or something
from them and we might throw them on somebody else’s album or
something. I don’t have no problems working with anybody. I work with
whoever, whatever, where you from, it don’t make no difference to me.
Sometimes I don’t want to get into all that, I know people be busy.
There’s a few people I tried to get up with but I know they be busy. I
understand how the game is. So if I got a deadline, if I ask you to do
something (and you don’t do it), I don’t trip I just say, “Well maybe
he didn’t get around to it”. I look at the best of the situation, but
I got to keep it moving. There’s a few people that I reach out to that
I be diggin’. I do have my preferences. I would love to do a song
with people that’s into a lot of pop singing or whatever. I ain’t got
a problem with it, but it would have to be kind of street cause…
(laughs) A lot of people try to cross over and I ain’t into that. I
mean, if I make a song that cross over, well good. But the thing it
would have to be a gutter song that’s gonna cross over ‘cause see… me
personally, I just ain’t gonna get out here and try to make no
crossover song ‘cause I ain’t no crossover dude. I done it before when
“Chickenhead” crossed over, but I didn’t make it for that, I just made
it. That’s the best way to do the game, I think. As long as you doing
it like that right there, people will look at it like, “Well, at least
he is staying true to his fan base.” ‘Cause if you try to cross over,
a lot of guys do this… they try to cross over. Then when
they miss, they lost their fan base; they’re not getting the crossover
fans, now they ain’t got nobody. A lot of (artists) on BET right now,
they tried to bust that move. They know who they is; I ain’t never
gonna point fingers. But my thing is, I seen the mistakes they made
and I said, “Naw, I ain’t gonna do that”. Uh uh. (I’d work) with some
real street n****s like Jeezy. I’d have to holla at them. Some of
these guys I just can’t (work with). You can’t do that, ‘cause man,
your affiliations can mess you up. I’ll (work) with Pimp C, UGK or
something. No offense to nobody else, but I’m not fixin’ to just go
out and grab this dude with a pop fan base… mix him with me… and I’m
talking ‘bout bustin’ pistols and he’s (singing) about love… he talking
about his love for girls, and I’m talking ‘bout smacking them across
the head and snatching something up out their purse… that ain’t gonna
go. (laughs) N****s gonna be like, “Dang, what was that?” (laughs)
They’ll say, “I definitely can’t have him on no hook”. I’ll be honest
with you, I could make something to appeal with that and keep it street
at the same time, but when he take it back to his (record label) people
his people ain’t gonna want to put it out (laughs). They ain’t call
me for it ‘cause they know better.
Angel: You’re very selective with the collaborations.
Pat: You got to be. I mean, Michael Jackson, I’d like for him to
get me on a song ‘cause I think it would be a good look. But I mean,
he’s not gonna do that. Even if he liked the music the people that’s
putting him out are gonna say (in a upper-crusty voice), “That Project
Pat… he’s too ghetto. So we’re not going to do that.” It would mess
his image up. And I would tell him. I would ask him, “Do you really
want me to get this song ‘cause after this right here there’s no
turning back”. It’s like, when I’m riding up in this car and I got the
AK (machine-gun) in the backseat and I got the mask and I’m like, “Man,
you sure you want to get in this car ‘cause it ain’t no turning back”
(laughs) Same thing.
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