Together with production partner DJ Paul, Juicy J played an important role in the South’s rise to prominence within the once East- and West Coast-dominated rap industry. Behind the duo’s leadership, Three 6 Mafia rose from an underground phenomenon in Memphis to a nationally recognized rap empire, spinning off numerous solo albums for the collective’s many members in the mid- to late ’90s. Like his production partner, Juicy J specialized in dark, eerie tracks driven by bass-heavy beats and haunting sounds. He also raps as a member of Three 6 Mafia and contributes rhymes to most of the albums he produces for such artists as his brother Project Pat, Gangsta Boo, La Chat, and Tear da Club Up Thugs. Moreover, Juicy J ventured into filmmaking with Choices (2001), a straight-to-video film starring most of the Three 6 Mafia collective.
Juicy J (born Jordan Houston) and DJ Paul (Paul Beauregard) first came together at the dawn of the ’90s, when they worked as DJs in the Memphis area. The two soon began producing their own tracks and invited numerous Memphis rappers to rap over the beats. They released the resulting tracks locally as Triple 6 Mafia; years later these recordings would resurface as re-releases. In 1995, the loose collective changed its name to Three 6 Mafia and self-released its debut album, Mystic Stylez. The album became an underground success, and Three 6 Mafia, in turn, signed a distribution deal with Relativity for its Hypnotized Minds imprint. Throughout the late ’90s, Juicy J and DJ Paul produced numerous albums a year for Hypnotized Minds and capitalized on the lucrative distribution deal. By the end of the decade, the two producers were at the helm of an empire, having extended their brand to alarming lengths, culminating with their commercial breakthrough album, When the Smoke Clears (2000), which debuted at number six on Billboard’s album chart.
He launched his solo career during a break in Three 6 Mafia’s usually busy recording schedule, releasing the hardcore effort Chronicles of the Juice Man: Underground Album in 2002. Gucci Mane, Gorilla Zoe, and Webbie all appeared on the 2009 follow-up, Hustle Till I Die. Two years later, Juicy signed with Wiz Khalifa’s Taylor Gang and released “Bandz a Make Her Dance” on the label in 2012. The single landed on his third solo album, the 2013 release Stay Trippy. ~ Jason Birchmeier, Rovi
The members of Southern Rock quintet Blackberry Smoke are no strangers to hard work. Playing up to 250 dates each year, the guys are on the road more often than not, and they’ve seen tangible results of their labor. The band has toured with and befriended idols such as The Marshall Tucker Band, ZZ Top, Lynyrd Skynyrd and George Jones. The band was even asked to play for Jones on his 80th birthday, not long after the country legend turned in a guest appearance on the band’s sophomore album. They’ve toured Europe thrice over, and had their songs featured in video games, as well.
Mixing elements of gospel, bluegrass, arena rock, soul and more than a touch of outlaw country, Blackberry Smoke has earned a passionate fanbase that continues to grow as the band itself evolves. The band is as blue collar as the bandanas its members wear.
“Our fanbase is as organic as you can get,” says drummer Brit Turner. “Each fan has been won by live performance or good old word of mouth.”
One of the most prolific and original groups in hip hop, the infamous Mobb Deep are still a very active force in today’s music industry with twenty years of experience. The group has appeared on records that have sold over 40 million copies. Aiming from the Queensbridge neighborhood of NYC, the duo has been responsible for delivering some of the most popular and forever current anthems in rap music. . Tracks like “Survival Of The Fittest’” “Shook Ones Part II” and “Quiet Storm RMX” have remained significant and still move crowds from NY to Tokyo. Mobb Deep’s ability to perfectly describe their gritty surroundings and lifestyle always made them a first choice for music writers and critics across the board. Mobb Deep have graduated to the role of cult group; today, they are followed by a new wave of cutting edge music listeners, as well as their original core foundation of hip hop aficionados.
Gary Owen is a fast rising star in comedy today. He has appeared in movies Think Like a Man, Ride Along and will reprise his role as Bennett in this summer’s Think Like a Man Too. He has appeared as a regular on Tyler Perry’sHouse of Payne. His comedy special Gary Owen: True Story is one of the most popular on Netflix. He has been a part of some of the best comedy tours going today and now he is coming to Raleigh.
Gary Owen is coming to Raleigh, along with the rest of the Top Shelf Comedy Tour, to the Duke Energy Center on January 31st.
MAS – For your show that is coming up, what kind of new material do you have in store for us?
Gary Owen – It is all new material, nothing that is on the internet. I just finished some of my new hour special back in November. Once you do an hour special you try to put that material to bed and you start working on a new album. The thing about it is nobody in Raleigh has seen it because the album isn’t out yet. So, it will be all new material that’s for sure.
MAS – How has the tour been for you? I know with all your work on TV and in film being on a tour like this has to be different, how is it going for you?
Gary Owen – The tour is actually a little easier than doing comedy clubs. It’s just one a night, you’re in and out. Usually we are doing two cities a week, it’s like you leave home Friday and you are back home Sunday. It gives you all week if you want to film something, if you are on a TV show or you’re filming a movie. It easier to work around your schedule; the tour is the easiest to me.
MAS – Putting the paycheck aside, what would you prefer to do the most; Movies, TV, Touring, Clubs?
Gary Owen – The comedy club is like your gym. That is where you work out all your new stuff, get your timing down, move a joke from the beginning to the end of your set to see where it goes. The big theater shows, like when I come to Raleigh; that’s our game day, like if you were an athlete. That’s when people are getting their hair done and they got their clothes in the cleaners; you know you gotta look good. You gotta give them a good performance because the probably paid a little more than they would in the comedy club. But you are also getting four headliners, instead of one. I think it all works hand-in-hand. One hand feeds the other. It is not like you like one better than the other it is just… With movies and TV, it builds your fan base a lot faster than hitting the road. That is really what, in the end, dictates how many people pay to see you.
MAS – I saw Think Like a Man and loved you in it, you were hilarious. When I saw that all you guys were back together to make Think Like a Man Too, I was like “cool”.
Gary Owen – The sequel, we filmed it all last summer in Vegas. I think it is coming out June 20, that’s the tentative release date. In the sequel, you get to meet my wife, finally. A lot of people have been asking about that. My wife is Wendi McLendon-Covey who is from Bridesmaids; she is on The Goldbergs right now. She also used to be on Reno! 911; that is who my wife is. Our chemistry, on set, is crazy; as a couple. You know, Bennett is kind of like the homebody and you wonder where he gets that from. It’s just funny to see… You are always curious to see what his home life is like, because he is always going home to his wife. You don’t really know what to expect. I don’t want to give too much away, but we are just a very funny couple.
MAS – In doing some looking at it on IMDB, I was scrolling through the cast list and it looks like this has quite the cast assembled. This could be one of those “sleeper” movies of the year.
Gary Owen – The thing about it is, if you get a summer release as a comedy the studio is thinking two things. Either they are very unhappy with it or they have huge expectations. For them to give us a summer release; that’s when all the blockbusters come out; they are expecting big things from the movie. I’m excited, I can’t wait. Every day we came on set you had no idea who was going to be there. There are some cast members that are not announced that I’m not allowed to say, they are under wraps.
MAS – I get that feeling, Ndamukong Suh, lineman from the Detroit Lions and running back Steven Jackson makes an appearance. That is a little interesting.
Gary Owen – There is a lot more of that, and not just in football. There is some huge entertainers, let me put it that way.
MAS – You have another movie out, Ride Along. Tell me about that one.
Gary Owen – Kevin is gonna get engaged to Ice Cube’s sister. Ice Cube goes, “You wanna be a cop, I’m gonna take you on a ride along”. It’s like a play on Training Day, with Denzel and Ethan Hawke. It’s like a comedic version of it. So he takes him on a ride along and shows him all these scenarios during the day. Basically, what happens is I have a grocery store held hostage and Ice Cube tells Kevin, “You need to go arrest this guy. This guy doesn’t have a gun, you can handle this one.” Kevin doesn’t handle me very well. To anybody that doesn’t like Kevin Hart, you are going to enjoy my character; I beat the shit out of him.
MAS – You know, comedy seems to go in cycles. Ten years ago, Chappelle was the thing, before that you had Jeff Foxworthy as the thing. Today, guys like Kevin Hart are becoming the thing. That cycle seems to keep comedy getting better and better and more dynamic. Do you think you would be as successful as you are now, 10-15 years ago?
Gary Owen – Here’s the thing about this business, you never know when your number gets called. Just have to be ready. That is what I tell comics, be ready. What I always tell up and coming comics, the best way to make it in this business as an up and coming comic is be on time for the show and do your time while you are that show. Which means, if you are scheduled to do 15 minutes, do 15. Don’t do 25 or 30, do 15. Then the other comics will be like, “Oh ok, you know, I wanna work with him. He does what he’s told.”
You had the Kings of Comedy there for a minute. It went from them to Mike Epps. You know Mike Epps has really sustained for the last 10 years. It kinda went Chappelle and then Katt for a second and then now it is Kevin, probably. You just never know. I’m being funny of course, but it’s like an email goes out to the country saying “this is who we’re going to go see now.” Some unknown email gets sent to everyone in the country, “Alright, this is the comic right now, this is who we are all going to go see.”
MAS – In your touring history, you have obviously been through North Carolina before. Where all have you been?
Gary Owen – I’ve been to Charlotte, to the BoJangles Arena. I’ve done that a few times. Me and Mike Epps were on tour last year, so we hit every major market. Raleigh, obviously I have done Charlie Goodnight’s numerous times. I’ve done all the colleges in Raleigh, every single one. I think I’ve done the two-year school; I’ve done some many schools in Raleigh. The Shaq tour came there a year and a half ago. I like Raleigh; I like it a lot. It’s a clean city.
MAS – As far as the crowds go from city to city how do your audiences change or are they pretty consistent everywhere you go.
Gary Owen – Well I make the joke that I have to be the only comic in the history of comedy that has to crossover into my own race. Black people know me; it’s the white people that are finally getting to know me now. It’s funny, at the airport or malls when black people see me and they ask for a picture, you see the white people going, “well who is it?”
MAS – That’s something else too about you that I think is truly funny. Watching your standup, I’m watching the audience go nuts laughing. Then they will do the camera shots of the one or two white guys in the audience that are afraid to laugh. They are like, “He can get away with, but can I get away with that?”
Gary Owen – I don’t think that it is they are afraid to laugh, I think they are in shock that the crowd is in such hysterics over a white dude. They are like, “I never thought I’d see this.” A lot of the time, if you look at the crowd, the white guys or white girls are looking at the audience members. They are like “Whoa!” It’s almost like seeing a Johnny Manziel play or seeing a white guy win a 100 meter dash at the Olympics. You are not expecting it, so when you see it you are like, “Whoa, did I just see that?”
It is changing, especially over the last year. A lot of it can be attributed to Think Like a Man and me being on Netflix. Now they are getting familiar with me. Now you are getting lots of people paying to see me and they don’t care who else is out there. In the past the black people were paying to see me and the white people might be coming just to see a comedy show just to go to get a night out.
MAS – Every comedian is good for a stinker or two during their careers, you haven’t had one yet. How have you kept you material at such a high quality?
Gary Owen – It’s odd; I don’t have a lot of joke jokes like with setups, middles and punchlines. A lot of them have just been stories about my life. Honestly, my act is my life on HGH and steroids. It is really my life; I am just adding stuff into it to be funnier.
That’s why it is always important to hit the comedy clubs because that’s where you really work out your material. There’s jokes like my Black and White Church joke, when I first wrote that joke it was a one-liner that I used on a Sunday night where I said, “Glad you guys made it out of church because I barely made it here.” The crowd went into hysterics and I was like ‘whoa, there is something here’. I took down a note that just said, “Black Church.” Let me keep working on this.
Something else about that joke in particular. People would want me to do that joke and I don’t really do it anymore. So what I did was, in my newest hour special, which we filmed back in November in Atlanta, I’m gonna open that special with the church skit. Like I really turned the joke into a skit now, it’s going to be me going into the black church; you see me reacting. I did it at a real black church and I hired real church members; I didn’t hire actors and actresses. It came out so funny; I can’t wait for everybody to see it.
MAS – I know it is a really old joke too, but your “Boy Bands” routine… It has the funny words, but then the physicality that you put into it just put it over the top. You would do very well in an improv type thing.
Gary Owen – A lot of times I do that. A lot of times when I am at The Improv or Funny Bones I will close my show and just say, “What do you guys want to talk about?” I’ll get jokes out of that as folks yell stuff out. It’ not me attacking the audience, it’s me having fun with them.
MAS – One of my buddies sent me a YouTube clip of you handling some heckler named “Dusty”…
Gary Owen – Aww crap, yeah!
There’s some backstory to that. I was getting ready to do the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson. I live in Cincinnati, so I drove up to the Dayton Funny Bone because I wanted to work on my 5 minute set. It was open-mic night, so they were going to have me close the show.
So this guy, named Dusty, had heckled all the open-micers and they were getting ready to kick him out. I said, “Don’t kick him out, put me up next. Don’t kick him out, I’ll handle him.” So I was standing up for the young guys that couldn’t. So they put me up about half-way through the show instead of closing it and that’s when I just attacked the dude; he ended up leaving. They only showed about 5 minutes on YouTube, I went at him for about 45. He was done.
It’s funny, there was only about 100 people in Dayton Funny Bone that night but you would think there was thousands. I get it all the time, “Dude, I saw you handle Dusty” and I’m like, “No you didn’t there was like 100 people in the room that night.”
MAS – I admit, it was on YouTube for me because I don’t live anywhere near there… When you broke out “The Whistle” joke on him…
Gary Owen – <Laughing Hard> I don’t know where that came from. I hadn’t told that joke before and I haven’t old it since.
MAS – You were in the Navy and decided to pursue comedy afterwards. You won Funniest Black Comedian in San Diego. I think that is hilarious on its own. You were the one and only white guy to ever host BET’s Comic View. What do you attribute that crossover success to? It can’t just be because of being in an inter-racial relationship; I’ve done that and got nowhere near the level of acceptance you have.
Gary Owen – Dave Chappelle said it a long time ago that most comics start comedy because they have always wanted to do it, and they want to try it. Before you start thinking about it as a business or money. Another reason comics go into comedy is to pick up girls, you find out girls like you.
For some reason, I don’t know what it is, I always liked black girls. I don’t know why. I always say it was like being gay. Gay guys know they are gay but they don’t want to come out the closet because they are scared of the backlash they will get. It was the same way with me growing up. I was like, “I really find black girls attractive” but I don’t want to say anything because it wasn’t always cool.
The reason that I am accepted, and white, is because I am the same guy onstage and off. I’m not a character onstage; my pants aren’t sagging I’m not using black lingo to get the jokes across. When I first got on scene some black comics were kind of standoffish because they were like, “Let me see what he’s about.” Since then, I’ve been accepted in the black community, especially with black comics, because, “Ok, he’s being genuine with this stuff. He’s really married to a black girl; he really does have mixed kids.”
I think a lot of times when the only black comedy you know is the Apollo or Def Jam you don’t give black audiences enough credit. With me, I’m just myself and that’s all they have wanted. They don’t want you to be a character, just be yourself.
I think a lot of white comics don’t take that chance with black audiences; they don’t market themselves toward it. Just because of that fact, “I don’t want to get booed.”
His show is one long verbally articulated stream of comedic consciousness.
There are several different ways that you can approach comedy and be successful. We have all see performers that do hilarious impressions like Frank Caliendo. We have truly successful ventriloquists like Jeff Dunham. There is also the tried and true method of finding a societal subject or stereotype to focus in on like Jeff Foxworthy and so many others have done to create a routine.
One of the less often used methods to find a laugh is the style that is used by Myq Kaplan. When you listen to Myq perform, it is almost better if you are able to NOT laugh at his jokes. He delivers one-liner after one-liner in such fast succession; you will often miss a follow-up joke because you are still laughing a previous joke. I would describe his style as automatic rifle comedy; once the trigger is pulled you no longer have control of the number jokes you are going to get.
During our conversation, I tried to pin Myq down to learn how he developed his routine. What I got was very enlightening; from Myq, “Stylistically, in the beginning it was just a joke then another joke, a joke, see if it works, another joke see if it works. A few years later I had chunks of jokes that were still one line things. But now here were all the lines I had about being a vegetarian. Here are all the lines I have about certain movies, TV shows, books, relationships, sex, religion, or whatever; so, little topic chunks started forming.”
Every comedian has jokes that don’t always work, when Myq talked about his experience with dud jokes, he showed me how is used it to get better. “It is possible that it was out of insecurity, initially, that I wasn’t comfortable with the silence. It would often accompany a joke not working so, ‘Oh there is silence there; move on to the next joke, move on to the next one. When the jokes started working a lot I still had that ‘Oh that jokes over, move on to the next one’. I was packing more punch lines in the setups.”
As we continued to talk about his development Myq let me in on some not-so -secret, secrets of comedy as it relates to joke writing and connecting with the audience,“When most people start out doing comedy, if you know anything at all, you know that, probably, you are not good at it or are not going to be any good at it for a while… I never wanted to just write something that an audience would like, I wanted to write something that I enjoy and see what the audience likes.” He continued, “In the beginning it was more passive like ‘is this funny’ and then see if they said yes. Now it’s more, ‘this IS funny’. Over the course of time, I gained more confidence in some of the jokes by sheer volume. Some of them started working more than others.”
As Myq continues to talk, I learned that he really is machine-like with his comedy, “I don’t necessarily use that information to craft new things, but I get more confidence in myself and in those jokes in general and become a better performer. I can then go back and those jokes that didn’t work in the past, I do actually like them and now I am a better comedian and can use them better.”
Myq succinctly sums up his style in saying, “What I have done is not necessarily actively to pursue anything specific other than to talk about what I think is funny.”
This weekend, we have the opportunity to see this unique comedy style in person at Goodnight’s Comedy Club in Raleigh. Myq Kaplan will be performing a series of 4 shows on Friday and Saturday night. Be sure you take this chance to see a truly unique comedian.
This weekend (Jan 9-11) Raleigh, NC will get hit by the bus that is the ever controversial, always opinionated, American Degenerate that is Jim Norton.
Fresh off of his hit Epix comedy special, Jim will be at Goodnight’s in Raleigh performing 5 shows. You can get tickets HERE
A couple of weeks ago, I was given the chance to speak with Jim about his upcoming show. I decided that instead of talking about his show, I would talk to him about his take on issues of the world today. What I got out of the experience is a new found respect for the man and an item I can look back on and say, “wow, that was cool”.
MAS – I am online and I see that A&E has suspended Phil Robertson. What is the first thing that comes to mind for you?
Jim Norton – It’s one of these things that I jump all over on Twitter. I like to know that I live in a country where we care what one hillbilly asshole thinks about homosexuals. It is mind-boggling that anyone cares what this guy thinks, but he has done nothing wrong by expressing his opinions. I am very pro-gay marriage, I am very pro-gay, and I still have to defend the guy.
MAS – I couldn’t agree with you more. Me personally, everybody lives their own life; do what they want to do. I may not agree with it, but I am going to stay out of it. I grew up Catholic in the south and there are two groups that are going to face a lot of harassment here, Blacks and Catholics. As a result, I grew up to be very tolerant.
What I have seen over my 35 years; I have seen tolerance go to an extreme. I have seen tolerance become codling. What do you see there?
Jim Norton – America is a very phony place when it comes to tolerance and freedom of thoughts and diversity in ideas. It has just gone the other way now. I don’t know why we’re pretending to be surprised. We have never really been a place where we allow for ideas that we don’t agree with. Today, it just seems like we have people that are willing to get in trouble for saying something we find disagreeable.
MAS – The idea of something being off-limits because it has a violent connotation. I agreed with your stance where, “If an actor can portray the role, why can’t a comedian make the joke?” Where do you think we need to go as a society in order to overcome that mentality?
Jim Norton – Individuals are self-righteous, social networking allows us to be self-righteous in a group. Rape victim’s pain is very real, and I think that rapists should be castrated. But, the pain of a rape victim is just as real as the pain of a 9/11 victim, the same as an AIDS patient the same as a molestation victim. Look within the Catholic Church. Look at all the molesting priest jokes; there are a million of them. A, Catholicism has brought that upon themselves by protecting those pigs. B, are you going to tell me that the pain of these kids who are molested is not real? Of course it is! Everyone’s pain is real. You can’t look at any of it as off-limits; otherwise you are going to be talking about balloons and puppies. Do you want comedy that is only making fun of sour milk? I mean, there are social issues that we should make fun of. The fact that there is a real pain associated with that shouldn’t negate the ability to make fun of it.
MAS – Let me put things into context for you, in the last week I have interviewed four stand-up comedians. In order; you, yesterday I spoke with Gary Gulman. Before him, Tracy Morgan and last week I spoke with Natasha Leggero. One of those four does not belong.
Jim Norton – Wow, you could take any one of them. You have a woman, a black guy and a Jew so you could say it is any one of them. Or do you mean by what they have said?
MAS – No, you went exactly where I was going. Why is it that you can have four different comedians that are totally different in every possible way all making jokes that go against social norms, yet you and Tracy are the ones that seem to get blasted the most.
Jim Norton – You know, it is really weird. I haven’t gotten it. People have come after me on Twitter, but no one has threatened my job. I have never had that happen because of what I have said. Tracy got it because he had a network gig and that is why Tash got in trouble. When you have a network gig, there is a lot of money at stake, and the networks come after you. So the comedians will just say, “The hell with it, fuck it, let’s just say we are sorry and move along.” I think that is why they went after Tracy because he had a network gig so they pressured him that way. Believe me, I wish I had that problem. I don’t have any type of network affiliation; I am only a moderately successful guy so I have a little more freedom.
MAS – As a fan, putting aside the whole media side, I have a lot of respect for people that will speak their minds and challenge the societal norms. I hate to say it, I almost hope you don’t get a network deal so that I can keep hearing you just let it go.
Jim Norton – Thank you man. You know on the Opie and Anthony Show, that I am on every day, I have had tremendous freedom there. I have my CDs and my DVDs; I have a lot of freedom, I can pretty much say any opinion that I want. I have been very fortunate in my career and I have chosen that path. You might take a little bit less network accessibility for it, but I really like what I do on stage.
In American Degenerate, I blasted the press. It felt great to blast them, and there is nothing they can do about it. Not that they want to do anything, but nobody can do a fucking thing about it. My job as a comedian is to be, hopefully, funny and honest; I don’t always have to be right. I think I am like every other scumbag in this country; half the time I’m right, half the time I’m wrong. I’m just like Fox news, just like CNN, just like everybody else.
MAS – I watched both of your most recent stand-up DVDs and even dug up your old HBO special. In one of them, you lay into Al Sharpton. He has, sort of, dropped out of relevance. People can now see him for what he really is. Who do you think personifies what is wrong today?
Jim Norton – Great Question… You are right; Sharpton is a lot mellower than he used to be.
I don’t know if you can find any one particular person, I think it is the umbrella in which special interest groups operate because they always target people for speech. Then again, they don’t make the firings, the networks do the firing. Then again, the networks don’t WANT to do the firing, they only do it because the advertisers are upset. Then again, the advertisers are only upset because they think they are going to lose sales because the average person, like you or I, don’t push back. It is very hard to find one person that personifies what’s wrong because it is a very weird cyclical thing. We, the population, could end it immediately. Take right now; there is a Facebook page for the people of Duck Dynasty about “Don’t watch A&E until that guy is back on.” They are supporting him. In a few hours they have gotten a half a million “Likes”. A&E is absolutely going to back-pedal on this because they are going to lose a lot more. Society, that is usually very quiet, decides it is not offended and is instead really pissed off and is standing up to push back. So, I bet you that A&E will, fucking, back-pedal on this.
It is a great question; I don’t want to bring just one person. Because, oh yeah, Jessie Jackson is an annoying asshole, but again Jessie Jackson doesn’t fire people. It is not Jessie who fires people; it is the cowardly executives who fire people. So Jessie is annoying, but I think that these executives who stand up for nothing are even worse. The public in general who fucking, just sits there and takes special interest dick, we are all at fault for not speaking up and not defending each other; for not defending each other and our right to say stupid things and our right to say unpopular shit.
MAS – I am going to disagree with several people, an example will be that “church” out in Westboro. Even though I absolutely abhor everything they say and do, I also have to defend them for having the guts to stand up and say what they believe.
Jim Norton – That is exactly right. I mean, I hate the fact that they do it. I have issues with them, simply because they go to these funerals… there is almost something dishonest about them. They remind me of little children standing on the porch yelling the “F word” knowing that mommy is right behind them to protect them. If they had real courage and they really had faith in God they wouldn’t need to get permits to march, they would just show up without police protection. If they really thought God was protecting them, they would just show up without police watching.
But, you are right. I believe in their right to do what they do. I think they are a great statement as to what we will tolerate in this country. They are just a great image. The whole country thinks that they are just fucking pigs, which they are. However, they have the right to say something so reprehensible. It is just a great statement about our country and what we can and do tolerate at times.
They have really hurt themselves by using such inflammatory rhetoric. Their rhetoric is so inflammatory and so childish and they say things like “God hates fags.” Even people who may be inclined to agree with them have turned against them, even people who are religious and don’t really like homosexuals. They are using such babyish, child terms that people look at them and say, “These people are just absolute assholes.” All the younger members of their congregation are leaving; they have backed themselves into a corner and bitten their own asshole out which is really great to see.
MAS – Hopefully we will see a day when that type of attitude will go away and be replaced by real tolerance, real understanding and real compassion.
Jim Norton – My opinion is, I think that people who do not like homosexuals are lousy. I think that if you do not like gay people, then you are kind of a shitty person. I think that is an ignorant point of view. But I think that if you don’t like gay people, but you still want them to be able to get married and have all the rights you do I think you are a shitty person, but a great American because you realize your personal views shouldn’t interfere with someone elses life liberty or the pursuit of happiness.
I don’t care if people hate gays or hate blacks, that is within your right and you should be able to feel that way. Just don’t ask for your rights to be one iota more than theirs.
MAS – I am in North Carolina; I am going to live up to the southern stereotype on guns. I am one of those “gun toting lunatics” that gun control advocates talk about. I also believe in responsibility, I believe in doing what is right for society and what is right in general. I can’t help but get offended when I get lumped into the same category as the guy in Colorado, that nutcase in Connecticut. It sends me into orbit that I am seen as a pariah because I own a weapon.
Jim Norton – There are many opinions that I hear that find offensive or vile. The difference is, it is okay to be offended or upset by something someone says, but I don’t want them penalized for it. People are always coming up to me, “don’t you ever get offended?” Sure I do! But I understand that is the price you pay for living in a free society. Some people are going to say things that I find shitty, some people are going to have opinions that I find dumb, or retarded or vile. There are people that are going to hate my guts, it is what it is.
The problem is that we want each other penalized for it; we are a country of hall monitors
MAS – I am finally going to ask you about your show… What can we expect as material?
Jim Norton – I talk about Anthony Weiner, I talk about technology, Paula Dean and you can bet I will be talking about Duck Dynasty, plus my use of prostitutes and addiction. I promise to be funny, it is a new set and completely different from my stuff on American Degenerate. I promise it is good.
It is the early 1980s in Colorado, three boys; Todd Park Mohr, Brian Nevin and Rob Squires are at Columbine High School dreaming about hitting it big in music. Fast forward, a little bit, to 1986 and change the setting to The University of Colorado and those three same boys, now grown men, begin touring the college scene performing a jazz and blues inspired set as Big Head Todd and the Monsters. In 1989 they take their work to another level and form Big Records and release their first album, Another Mayberry. It is now 1993 and Big Head Todd and the Monsters are set to release their third album, Sister Sweetly, under new label Giant Records. Sister Sweetly is widely critically acclaimed and goes on to sell well into Platinum status. From that point on, Big Head Todd and The Monsters would always consider themselves, and be considered by many to be, a truly successful band.
On February 4, 2014 the band will release Black Beehive which will be their 14th album. Throughout their careers and their large catalog of music the band has stayed true to their roots of being a blues based rock band. They were not concerned with fame or with being the “next big thing”; they just wanted to make music.
Rob Squires, the bassist and a founding member of the group, took some time recently to answer a few questions about their music, their upcoming show at the Lincoln Theatre in Raleigh and the new album.
MAS – You guys will perform at the Lincoln Theatre in Raleigh, NC on Friday, January 31. What can we expect from the show, a mix of old and new or mostly material from the upcoming album?
Rob Squires – With our new CD coming out I’m sure we’ll focus on some of the new material as well as older crowd favorites. We’ll have special guests Ronnie Baker Brooks and Hazel Miller joining us for the tour so that will allow us to present some really cool and different things as well.
MAS – Everywhere I look I read that the 1993 release ‘Sister Sweetly’ should have made you all superstars. It sold over a million copies and was consistently ranked in the Billboard Top 200. In an interview you did a few years back with MusicPix.net it was said that you were just not ready for all that came with that type of success. Now, here you are 20 years after the release of that album, do you have any regrets about pulling back on the reigns? What would you have done differently?
Rob Squires – We are very happy with our career and have no regrets. We have always stayed true to what we believe in musically and have been rewarded by our fans with a very successful 27 year and counting career.
MAS – Since the early 90’s you all have produced 13 or 14 albums all with varying degrees of success. Your musical style in those albums has been described as “a little bit of everything.” With your interests and abilities being so diverse, how do you assemble all of those styles into the identity that is Big Head Todd and the Monsters?
Rob Squires – Even with the differing styles in CDs I think you can find a common thread and that’s the sound of the band and the underlying influence of the blues. Blues spawned so many varieties of music but everything can be traced back to those basics.
MAS – You guys are a true success story in music, three buddies from high-school that decided to make music; and keep it working for over 20 years. How do you make it work in the age of “creative differences” breaking up groups every day?
Rob Squires – We have always been good friends and supportive of each other’s ideas. Also, it certainly doesn’t hurt to have Todd who is such an incredible songwriter.
MAS – Your soon to be released studio album, Black Beehive, sounds like some of your very best work. Tell me about the development of the album. What was the inspiration? Who developed the overall concept? Is there anything noteworthy about this album as compared to your others?
Rob Squires – Todd came up with an incredibly strong batch of songs and we were fortunate enough to connect with Steve Jordan as a producer. Steve is one of the most musically talented people on the planet and has worked with a who’s who of legends. Steve really focused the project and brought great sounds and vibe to the recording. We recorded fairly live in a one room studio and it really captures the essence and the sound of our band.
MAS – In looking through the current Billboard Hot 100, blues music or even blues inspired music is barely represented if at all. The charts are dominated by the likes of Katy Perry, One Direction, Miley Cyrus and others like them. Does that make you feel challenged or pressured to pursue a more pop style of music too?
Rob Squires – Not at all. We’ve never chased trends. We make music that we love and we’ve been blessed that enough people love it too.
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MichaelSmithNC
Melissa Anne Cain
Eastern Carolina Style 
