The Clean Up Man is expected to bring home the team’s success before him, culminating into the ultimate grand slam. Since Young Buck has been with G-Unit, he has been known and considered as the realest and most outreaching member through both his music and manhood. Young Buck now finds himself in an unfamiliar space sort of like Alex Rodriguez, the “Clean Up Man” from the New York Yankees. Although everyone knows his MVP potential he still receives some criticism from the “home team”.
HHNLive.com writer St. James sits down with Young Buck to discuss growing apart from his G-Unit team, why he has no problem working with The Game, T.I., his beef with Lil’ Wayne, his rapid rise to stardom and much more.
Young Buck on Lil’ Wayne: “God Bless him man!…We need a Lil Wayne. That lil ni**a is on fire.”
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St. James: Young Buck!!! Clean up man!!! How you feeling?
Young Buck: I’m getting to it. I ain’t really been doing too much just really focused on this album I got coming out April 1st called “Product of the South”. I just signed Outlawz to my label, Cashville Records, I just signed C-Bo from the West Coast. I have my own crew called 615 and then I have my solo artist named Sosa. He’s the sh*t brah, he’s going to be really interesting to watch and do his thang. I just been hustlin’ man. I got my clothing line, my watches. Mad sh*t man.
SJ: I see you man! You damn near answered all the next questions I was gonna ask! LOL
YB: LOL
SJ: So you have the new label, Cashville Records. Tell the audience about the new label; update us on who’s on the roster and the direction of the label.
YB: At the end of the day, my artists are people that make those records that you can hear on the radio and the club records, but I think they speak more to those in the struggle and those that made it out of the struggle. So you get that focus coming from Cashville Records. And my whole thing is to bring a whole new thing, a whole new sound, and a whole new label. Something totally different from what you got out of me from G-Unit. I just wanted to have a fresh beginning and a fresh new everything.
SJ: Do you think a lot of people underestimate, David Brown, the business man?
YB: I mean at the end of the day, David Brown has to show himself. I think that’s how it is in the business world. You have an artist and then once that artist takes that direction of being a businessman it puts him in that bucket. Sort of like a Jay-Z or 50 Cent, or Eminem. So it’s just about me getting out here and making my best move my next move and be cautious about the moves I’m making. That speaks for itself as to how far I go as a businessman. Just me branching off and trying other things such as the David Brown clothing line and the Ten-a-key Time Pieces. The fact we even here to do these things, I feel like I have a lot of goals to accomplish for sure.
SJ: I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone ask you this, tell the people how you got the name Young Buck.
YB: It comes to me from the streets. I used to have a homeboy and I was one of the youngest ones out there in my hood really toeing the line and pushing in the streets and really getting that money. Hustlin’ anything that was illegal. You know I had to go through the stage where the older dudes used to run the lil’ dudes off the block and it just got to a point where they would be like “Get your lil’ young buck a** outta here”. You know from hanging around the spots and they are like “lil young buck you got to ride my ni**a”. “Some big sh*t is about to go down”. It got to a point where my mother called me young buck. So it wasn’t a situation where I woke up and decided to call myself this. Nah the ni**as named me this sh*t when I was a child.
SJ: You have the new album coming this year “Product of the South”. Tell us a little about the album.
YB: I mean it’s crazy bruh. Like I said it’s all new and different from anything you heard me on, on G-Unit. A whole different direction. There are a few features on the album, you got Young Jeezy on there. Plies is on there. Devin the Dude is on there. Yo Gotti. Brotha Lynch Hung from the West coast. You understand I got a few other artists. It’s a world wide thing. I think a lot of people have the understanding of the type of solo albums I bring. It’s a world wide feel with me being a Southern artist. I am delivering records that are personalized for the west coast or personalized for the east coast. I think it gives me the extra love from these coasts, if I personalize the music to them than just being a southern artist. Knowing where I am and where I come from if I can get in your world and make you understand me by coming into your world…..also with this album it’s a stepping stone for my artists to go into their solo projects. C-Bo solo album. 615 solo album. Sosa’s solo album as well as the Outlawz. So it’s a good look and a hell of a record.
SJ: Who did the production? Features?
YB: I got some producers like Drumma Boy, who’s really been doing his thing this year. Beethoven on there. I got Apex, a cat doing some hot sh*t. He did the “I Get Money” with Fif. And Salaam who is off the fu*king meat rack! I’m not biased to a producer. I actually like to get a CD with no name on it. I tell my manager you keep track of the names just give me the music. I like the tracks for the music not the producer because of who he is. So if it’s a Timbaland track on the CD I pick, more power to you, come get this paper. If it happen to be lil’ Ronnie off the block whoever he is, come get this paper. So I actually look for the music unless it’s a certain cat I want to work with. That’s pretty much how I run it.
SJ: You’ve called yourself the “Clean Up Man” when it comes to G-Unit. I see the statements and it just seems that you are starting to venture away from that situation. At the end of the day, what is it really Buck?
YB: At the end of the day, I’m going to be real about the situation and say it’s not that I’m venturing away, Buck is just becoming more focused on Buck. You understand? I’m realizing that 50 Cent is focusing more on 50 Cent and I’m a grown as* man. The older I get, you know as humans we don’t get to become younger. So the older I get, the wiser I become. It’s just me realizing that 50 is a businessman and really focused in on 50. I have to focus on Buck. I can’t sit around and wait on 50, and wait till he come back and grab my hand and tell me when to go. If I see that open door or lane then I’ll get the ok from 50 then I’m gone. I gotta do what I gotta do. So I honestly will say the communication level isn’t as strong as it was. For whatever reason I don’t know. I put it off on the fact of 50 being a businessman as he is and having as much sh*t on his shoulders as he does. So I started to focus in on me. I don’t question our relationship because I figure if it’s a problem then he’s man enough to call me and vice versa. I just have to say the communication isn’t as strong as it was and I’m just doing me.
SJ: I’ve often felt that you were probably one of the realer members of G-Unit from what you speak about and the way you approach situations. Now you are saying that you will work with 50’s so called “enemies”. What’s good with that?
YB: The only thing is the situation, if I make a record with Game or whatever, ni**as will say oh “he said this and that about Buck” well I’ve said this and that about that ni**a too. All the sh*t is words. It’s beef in a sense but it’s not the type of beef that I have gotten down with. When your life is on the line, shooting at a ni**a from 9 to 5. Straight up and down, Monday through Sunday, 24/7. That’s how it is where I come from when you yell beef. And I don’t care how much you think ni**as ask for these situations, we aren’t going to win as much as we could with this sh*t. So I realize at the end of the day I have other people’s lives I’m dealing with such as the Outlawz and C-Bo. C-Bo is from the West Coast and I don’t want to put these ni**as in a situation where they are in some sh*t dealing with me. It’s a situation to the world but I don’t consider it a situation and I was at least man enough to reach out to my man and be like “if it’s a way it can be resolved”….and 50 was always against that. He always thought it was a waste of time. Fuel to the fire. He said “he’ll be back in two days talking about you on a record” and he did. He did that sh*t, so I bumped my head. And I was like you were right. The difference is I will fall but I get back up. I’m the type of ni**a where I don’t want nobody living off of a lie so I’m going to give them the real. Sometimes the truth hurts so he made up lies to cover the truth and didn’t tell the kids what it is. So I put it out there the way it is and however it comes back I can deal with it. It’s obvious I’m not with G-Unit as strong as I was, you won’t catch Buck in the new video or any of the tour sh*t overseas that went down. But none of this is because of Buck. That’s what I be wanting the world to know. Like I say 50 is my boss when it comes to G-Unit. So when it comes to G-Unit, 50 has the say so on what the f*ck goes on, who’s around and everything else. If he says “Buck be here for that” and I’m there. Even if he doesn’t tell me to do something, and I feel like my life is threatened then I’ve showed the world how I get down from that end. So I’m just a loyal ni**a and what I did was take myself off the front lines like I was. I’m a real loyal street ni**a man and my report card is out there for anybody to get. So I expect the same and if it’s not, I’m not going to sit there and try to figure out why it’s not. I take it all with the syrup.
SJ: I spoke to Sha Money a couple of weeks ago and he explained to me how him and Fif sat down had a man to man and decided it was best they go in different directions. Is that conversation on the horizon for Young Buck?
YB: I mean at the end of the day man, I don’t know. I leave it all in 50 Cent hands at this point being that he’s the one in control of my career pretty much. And I just want the support out of 50 with the same support that I give him with everything I do. Because I’m willing to deal with whatever he chooses to do. Period, point blank. I’ll deal with it.
YB: How is your relationship with Banks, Yayo, Mobb Deep, etc.?
YB: I mean we really don’t speak too much. I really don’t hear from them on the regular. You know me and Banks we holla, but me and Banks ain’t been hollerin’ that much lately. Pretty much since they went out on tour I haven’t heard from any of them. Since they went overseas, I haven’t heard from Banks, Yayo, nobody. I hear from ni**as because I call ni**as. I ain’t really getting to many phone calls from nobody, I can’t lie to you. But if I call a ni**a then I’ll get him on the line and sh*t. But yeah I ain’t really hollered at everybody.
SJ: G-Unit came about so fast, do you think some of that early success has raised the bar “too high” for anyone affiliated with the name?
YB: Well I think that we won so much so quick that it brought a lot of hatred. Outside of the hatred we already had from the natural beef issues. The fact that we won so much, it ain’t many crews, I don’t think ever that’s been as successful as G-Unit, with 3 Gold artists, at least gold or platinum, from my project, to Yayo’s project, to Banks’ project. So like I say we got so big so quick, it caused a lot of hate and we had a lot of issues with a lot of individuals. It made a lot of business people and DJs and people have to choose sides. When you have so many issues with so many different muthaf*ckas, it outweighs. Sometimes when you do that and the way you deal with people it’ll outweigh you. You have to be careful how many situations you have. If you creating those situations. In our situations it’s like it’s just out of hatred and then the Ja Rule sh*t dealing with 50. I’m not naturally…I’ve always been able to accept the situations of my crew from day one. Whether it’s the Ja Rule situation, or the Fat Joe situation, or the situation with the Lox or with the Game. All of these situations were stimulated from 50 Cent but I’m down with 50 so that makes me part of the situations. Individually these is not no Young Buck situations. Straight up and down. I think I display my character and let the world see and know my character as far as the loyalty goes, they’ll feel like if Buck has a problem with something, it’s a problem. If Buck has a problem then you know because that’s the type of ni**a Buck is. From the streets to the music to anything, I’m that good and that loyal of a ni**a. It ain’t no ni**as, go get my enemies. Go get Game. And I’ll guarantee you it ain’t two things a ni**a can say about a ni**a like me. That’s how 100% my sh*t is out here. Go get Jadakiss. Or the only one that may say something who don’t know me is Fat Joe. I ain’t never met him or none of that sh*t. But any of these ni**as that I’ve known, and I didn’t know Ja Rule either but Jada or Game or any of those situations they know what it is with me. I was 100% before this sh*t. I’m just down with those that’s down with me. I’m going into ’08 focusing. I got G’s my ni**a. I’m just down with those that’s down with me.
SJ: What are your motivations in this business??
YB: I mean my motivations is…honestly I came into the game loving music and loving rap. And always knowing that I wanted to use rap to get into other things like movies, like the clothing and the watch thing. My motivation as far as waking up everyday is my kids. Straight up and down. Everyday I’m feeling like I’m living for somebody else. That’s the way you feel when you have kids. So that’s my motivation is to keep seeing my little girls smile and keep providing for my family and those that don’t have it. This ain’t just me getting rich. This is that truth you getting. And I’m one of the type of ni**as where if I get it then others will be able to get it through me. I tell my ni**as that all the time. It’s good to have one ni**a in the picture ballin’. You know that one ni**a sitting there with all the money. It’s a good look to have one ni**a standing there with all the money in that picture. But do you know how that picture looks when you got EVERBODY out there getting money? So I’ve always focused on that. I’ve always been that type of ni**a. If I eat everybody eat type of ni**a. And that’s what keeps me surviving.
SJ: Are you satisfied with the current state of the industry? The big record labels?
YB: Times is hard and I don’t blame the record labels for the sales and sh*t when you got George Bush in office charging muthaf*ckas $3.00 and some change for gas. You got people sitting at home on the internet sitting there and downloading sh*t like that’s a job. He feels like he’s sitting there making an honest job out of downloading your sh*t. So I’m feeling like time changes and you have to change with the times. I don’t hold grudges, I don’t even hold my losses. I take it and put a band aid on the sh*t. So it is what it is, it’ll heal on it’s own, I just have to continue to do what I have to do. That sh* bounces off a ni**a. Where I feel like hip hop is today it’s at a place where the only ones that’s going to be able to survive in hip hop is those that have a story and is talking about something. Those that have direction, because you can have a hit record and not sell anything. Look at the roster last year. A lot of these dudes got thousands and thousands of spins on the radio and look at my album. I got the least amount spins on the radio but debuted with the #1 rap album in the world. Doing a 100 and change as well as the following week and what not. But I know that I have a true fanbase and it comes from me being that individual that I am. And the music speaks through it too. I put my heart in it. I deal with my emotions on the mic, I deal with a lot of different emotions and situations when I’m in the booth. I have to let the sh*t out because it’s no other option for me. It’s that deep. I come from the gut. It’s all I got almost. I gave up the streets for sh*t. So if I’m going to give up the gut, I was eating but I wasn’t living like I wanted to live and how I’m living now. So I’m going to work this as hard as I worked that gut. And that gut is the block ni**a. If I gave up the block and I was a go hard ni**a on the block, then I’m going to go even harder on these ni**as in the industry. BUCK IS BECOMING A MAN. Put that in big letters. Watch out muthaf*ckas. Because it’s Young Buck. I’m bout to take the Young off and make it Buck. I’m 26 years old and getting older my ni**a. And I’m not going to be failed upon or going into living my second childhood. Especially with no B.S.
SJ: How do you feel about the whole Hip Hop vs. America feud that seems to be taking shape?
YB: I really respect T.I., he’s a real stand up dude and he talks good sense and has direction the way he spoke up there on behalf of the south. I want to complement T.I. I felt like he really represented, him and Nelly pretty much everyone that was on that stage outside of the ones that was speaking negative about rap music. They represented themselves and they represented hip hop well at that point in time. In particular T.I., who made some points that I understood and one of them was T.I. told old buddy that if we can show the images about how women are portrayed well we are only giving you what BET want. What’s going to sell. If we are turning in videos and all the women are dressed like secretaries BET will be like get that out of here we can’t do anything with that. And that was real. If you are going to speak say something. If I’m going to listen at least give me some direction or a sense of who you are. And my prayers go out to him for that situation he’s going through too. We need people like that, that’s strong enough to deal with individuals who want to challenge why we do things. If they put me on that show I would double the f*cking ratings! I would give them people hell. I would breathe all down those peoples’ neck. Boys got knowledge and that’s why I’m able to move a little bit quicker and make smarter moves and sign veteran acts like the Outlawz. As an individual I’ve learned that just being yourself will take you farther than any amount of dollar would. It’s just about being focused man.
SJ: Where does Young Buck see himself in the next year and a half?
YB: I mean through the grace of God, I see myself having success with the Cashville Records. I hope that me and 50 will be somewhere enjoying the success of what I’ve done and still be able to have success together. That’s what I hope. My little girl is getting ready to graduate, I would love to see that. I’m just focused man.
SJ: Lil’ Wayne just recently got hit by the DEA on drug charges for the 3rd time in about a year. I know you don’t really like him but do you think he and others are being targeted?
YB: God Bless him man! I just f*cked it up at a time. Like I said, I deal emotions and I have said some sh*t at lil dude and sh*t. But like I said I’ve never lied on him or none of that that sh*t. I’ve been emotional about saying things, about certain things. Like look this is what it is. Because sometimes ni**as get out of line on they end. But the truth hurts ni**a. But at the end of the day I don’t put no bag on nobody. We need a Lil Wayne. That lil ni**a is on fire, he’s talented. You can’t take that from him. So as far as seeing a ni**a locked up or going through situations, I give them my love you know what I’m saying? Keep ya head up and I’m sure you know how it go. Sometimes they make it’s something that it’s not. But however it goes, keep ya head up. They got a lot of money over there at Cash Money so they probably have it to go get one of those bomb a** lawyers like me. And spend some of that damn money you got and get that sh*t handled ya know.
At the end of the day we are being targeted. And you have to be smarter and make your next move the best move. We can carry these weapons we have gun permits. Every lil ni**a around me that doesn’t have a felony I make him go take that class. So I find myself with too many damn guns around me. We are running around this muthaf*cka like an army right now. But they are legal. LOL so it’s just about playing that game. They give you the rope but you have to be smart and only the strong survive. So I give him my love and if there’s anything I can do holla at me. That go for Lil Wayne, T.I., pretty much any of these ni**as. I’m open to f*ck with who wants to f*ck with me.
SJ: How do you feel about a cat like Soulja Boy going at GZA, telling him he was born in ’66 and he’s not even relevant? Do you think this lack of respect for pioneers is something that affects hip hop??
YB: I ain’t even commenting on that sh*t! I’m leaving that alone!
SJ: Who do you admire in the game right now??
YB: Who do I admire? Eminem, Jay-Z, Dr. Dre.
