You Sold Out, R.A.

Wow. I did my first fuckin’ blog for XXL yesterday and already I'm getting swarmed by complaints. Haha. I got heads hittin’ me up, telling me blogging for XXL is a sell out move.

Here is one quote out of many "You're trying to promote your shit 2 much, You're getting famous now like some bullshit Kanye West shit. You're underground don't fall off. "

Here is another: "R.A., dude? XXL? next thing we'll see you holding hands with Elton John at the Grammys. Stop while your ahead"

You people are too simple and don't understand what underground music is. It doesn’t mean you can't promote your own shit or can’t be heard. Musically Wu-Tang Clan's first album, 36 Chambers, is one of the most underground records of all time. You could hear the mic's distorting, the mixes sounded like they was out of RZA's basement. And just because they were marketed to a larger audience in no way did the Wu conform to any music industry structure with that record.

You idiots need to look at the bright side of shit, You ain’t reading some blog from one of these cornball non-lyrical cats, like 98 percent of the rappers being endorsed in the game, so this is a positive thing.

Maybe ya’ll are still just feeling hurt and shitted on by so many other rappers who became industry puppets and went from making legit music to strictly trying to sell shit to 8-year-old children. But trust me, I'm here for you mo'fuckas...’til the day I'm dead this music shit is about the art and the culture and advancing my skills and that’s it for me, nothing else. And if there are outlets willing to let me spread the word and my music for free with no industry strings attached I'm hoppin’ on that shit. You think if Oprah's fat ass asked me to go sit on her fuckin’ couch and promote my shit I wouldn’t? That's not selling out, that’s smart.

In fact I would love it if artists like Hell Razah, Kool G Rap, and Sean Price were getting exposure over acts like Kid Cudi and Lady GaGa, as long as they wasn't switching up their shit. If you conform, purposely make horrible pop garbage, lessen the quality of hip-hop, sell wack shit to the world and make hip-hop look like its some nursery school shit, that hurts hip-hop. What we do, helps it. Here's a little video I did explaining some of this:

Any way enough venting and back to regular bloggin'. First stop today I gotta slide through Def Jam to meet with L.A. Reid's people. Nah, Rugged Man ain’t jumping ship with a major, my man, who is an incredible singer/songwriter, is interested in going that route and since I been in the game so many fuckin' years he asked me to come through and watch his back.

Then I gotta go check my new t-shirt design by MissEng. As an indie artist merchandise is important, you could make $30 grand in a few weeks on tour just selling some bullshit ass T-shirts or a mix CD.

Then after I knock out phone interviews this Hungarian Jewish chick been telling me my business skills is wack. She wants to introduce me to some people and get the Rugged Man store/website started online.

Hip-Hop quotes of the day: "You wanna be a conscious rapper, right? hit you in the head, make you an unconscious rapper". - Killah Priest/2009

OK, I'm out, but before I bounce I gotta plug shit. Legendary Classics Vol. 1 hits stores Today.. Run out and support the authentic. Here's a no-budget, ghetto ass, street video they shot right before Tragedy Khadafi got locked. "Free Trag"…This is one of many classic joints that's gunna be on Legendary Classics Vol. 1 in stores now.