Dr. Dre, Atlantic and Def Jam are interested. He's managed by Sha Money XL and is building a 50 Cent like street buzz. Meet Harlem's own RIZ.

RIZ: "I really don’t believe in diss records...I mean make a good record if you want people to recognize you."

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Jay Rose: So you’re coming out of Harlem right?

Riz: Yea coming out of Harlem.

JR: What were you doing before rap?

Riz: Well I mean before rap basically you know I was in the streets just like any other kid out here...just trying to be an entrepreneur. That’s always been my mind, to have my own situation. And that’s what Self Made is about.

JR: Yea I noticed Self Made in the video for Red Light Green Light. Is that going to be a clothing line you're gonna start up?

Riz: Yes that actually is going to be my clothing line called Self Made. I got up with Sha money, before I got up with Diamond District Entertainment. I had started my own company. I've been putting out my own seeds with my own money. So I basically built up to this point developing myself as an artist as opposed to having somebody else, a label or anybody else develop me as an artist. I’ve just developed myself as an artist.

JR: Are you working on any other projects outside of Rap?

Riz: Well we working on the clothing company right now and you know that rap thing. Eventually do a label situation depending on how well I’m received because I have my own artist that I’ve been developing in the process that I’ve been developing myself. That’s like another avenue that we’re gonna go down. And I been doing a lot of writing for a lot artists. That’s another thing that I’m into as well writing records for other artists.

JR: Do you write all your own shit?

Riz: Yea I write my own shit. The only thing that happens with me is somebody sends the beat, I sit back, I listen to it, build a record, and go record it. All of the thoughts are my thoughts and my ideas.

JR: You're managed by Sha Money XL, right?

Ris: Yea Money Management Group with his partner Will The Boss, who is my everyday manager. They both basically just come together and manage the whole situation. But it’s under Money Management Group.

JR: How’d you catch Sha Money’s Attention?

Riz: I used to always go around video shoots and things of that nature. Like 50 cent may have a video, Lloyd banks may have a video and I would just go by the video with Dave the Jewler. We’d go by and these guys would just always see me around, but I’m so humble. You know I don’t speak, I don’t try to be loud and try to intervene with what they doing and I guess that just caught his attention because I was just so humble and I already looked like I had a record deal. You know the chain that I had. By the way that I carried myself it was looking like that’s why I was already out there. So he was in the studio mixing down Young Buck's album (the last one that he just put out). Dave and I went by the studio and put the music in and when he heard the music he was just like yo I wanna work with this kid. Like this is the next kid. Ever since then we just been working. We just rocked with that. Like he seen me around so much, but he never really knew what I was into or what I felt like. So when he finally got a chance to put the music to the face he just knew it was going to work and that’s what we’ve been doing. We’ve just been putting it all together.

JR: Working with Sha Money everyone is going to label you the next 50 Cent. How do you feel about that?

Riz: I mean… I take that well because at the end of the day for somebody to say that of a 24 year old kid from Harlem that doesn’t have Dr. Dre, that doesn’t have Eminem it speaks in volumes you know what I’m saying. It’s like I don’t have the same people around me that he had around him to make his situation the way that it is today. So for them to be saying that I’m going to be the next star or anything close to that sounds good to me

JR: Yea sounds like a bright future.

Riz: Yea all that sounds like to me is I may not sell 11 million records and things of that nature, but I may be successful and that’s basically what that’s saying. People see me as being successful. And I could take that. You know I can take that over them seeing I’m going to be the worst rapper out.

JR: True. Do you know anything about Sha money's situation with G-Unit?

Riz: I really don’t know too much about the situation that transpired between Sha Money and G-Unit, but what I’m hearing is everything’s all good over there now. Everybody is a happy family. And everybody is just moving forward. They doing they thing again you know.

JR: Will you work with G-Unit in the future?

Riz: Actually I just recorded a song with Young Buck last night. I recorded a record with Lloyd Banks a few months ago. It’s called "Go Hard or Go Home" for this NBA basketball game for the computer that Sha Money had produced the whole soundtrack for. I actually got the lead song. There’s really no bad blood between Sha and G-Unit. And that’s another thing I really like about the whole situation because they just allowing me to be an up and coming artist. Like minus the negative press, minus the diss records I’m just making music ya understand?

JR: That's what's up. So you have no beef in the game then?

Riz: I really feel as if it’s unnecessary for me to beef in hip hop. I’m in the hood man. If I really want to beef I’ll stay in the hood and beef with these guys out here. Like if you trying to get into this business you should want to change. Na mean you don’t just want to leave the same environments and bring yourself back into that environment you were trying to leave. I really don’t believe in diss records for publicity and things of that nature. I mean make a good record if you want people to recognize you. I mean be a good person. Be humble. Be respectful. Do everything to get people to talk about you. And that will take you far. You’ll have more longevity. Otherwise everytime you come out you gotta beef.

JR: Yea hip hop definitely needs more of that.

Riz: That’s basically what people are trying to rely on. Start up a beef. Get people talking. I’m not going that route.

JR: How did you come up with the concept for the "Red Light, Green Light" track?

Riz: Sha Money had actually sent me a bunch of tracks and that was just one of the tracks I was developing and I was just sitting in the living room with a few of my friends. The beat is just playing and I’m listening to the melodies because all our songs is based behind the melodies within the music. Like I never make a record unless I hear the melody. It’s sorta like the music talks to me. So I was just hearing it and it was like “red light”, like that’s just what the beat was sayin to me, “green light, homie, don’t you move.” If you listen to the beat without the words and you listen to those instruments you will hear exactly where it landed on top of and I just went with it. Then I just followed it up with the concept. Like red light green light. Basically the red light you gotta chill. The green light you can’t chill because I already told you that and I can’t stop my friends from getting you up off me. That’s basically the concept of the record.

JR: What other rappers have you worked with since getting in the game?

Riz: Did a record with Papoose. Did a record with Prodigy from Mobb Deep. Did a record with Yo Gotti from Tennessee. Did a record with John Legend last night, Kanye produced the track, John Legend on the hook. Did a song with Nate Dogg last night produced by Dre, Nate Dogg on the hook. I’ve done records with a lot of high profile people, but we just putting stuff together for my album. I haven’t really worked with too many artists on the album because I really don’t think it’s necessary when you’re putting something out to over shadow yourself with names. You know what I mean I just want people to respect me for what I’m doing. I put out a mixtape last weekend called the Re-Up. DJ Envy had hosted it. It was just like more of me and what I was doing with my people and that’s really what’s important

JR: When are you planning on dropping the album?

Riz: Well actually we in the process of going to some labels, well not too many labels because right now we acting as an independent label. We don’t have no budget. We basically want to do everything ourselves so they can see that what we’re doing is quality and worth spending their money on. These labels are all research labels. Like they don’t develop no buzz. They just like to come in when everything is already set and done. But we made like 2 label runs so far.

JR: Which labels?

Riz: Atlantic Records and Def Jam. We got some great responses. I actually think we about to get in the middle of a bidding war so a lot of other people are starting to get involved. You know as far as Aftermath over there with Dr. Dre. We got some VP’s from Interscope that’s actually interested.

JR: What rappers would you say have had a big influence on your music?

Riz: Well the first rap song I ever listened to was “The Milk is Chillin”, that was like the first rap song I ever paid attention to. The first rapper that I really paid attention to was also V-Light. But who influenced me to make the music that I’m making now? I would have to say 50 cent, Eminem, and Dr. Dre. That whole sound that they brought to the game. With the melodic hooks, with the simple words but good flow. Like I really think they made me into the way that I’m going now with music. Because it’s a winning formula you know what I’m saying.

JR: So you’re kinda aiming for those club hits?

Riz: Yea and I’m also going to touch all angles as far as music goes because I think people limit themselves to the sound of where it’s from. Like you may hear Red Light Green light, but then you might hear Brand New Cadillac they sound like they in 2 different worlds, but it’s supposed to be like that because you got people in the south that only like the music that cater to them, people on the west coast that dig the music that cater to them and people on the east that dig the music that cater to them. When you put all that together on let's say a 16 track album and do 4-4-4-4 you can perform a whole set in the south, west, east. So basically you’re not missing nothing. That’s basically what me and Sha Money are trying to put together right now and the album is coming out great man.

JR: You've met Dr. Dre?

Rizz: No I’ve never actually met Dre personally, but Sha Money and Dre are really good friends. And basically everything that’s going on with me basically is through Sha Money. I kind of like it better this way so when it's time for these guys to really get down and talk to me, they got the music, then they’ll get the personality, and they’ll actually get to see the type of person I am and they’ll want to talk to me more.

JR: Who do you think are the top 5 rappers in the game?

Riz: Lyrically I still think jay-z is a top notch rapper hands down, you got 50. I like Weezy, but it’s just certain times I don’t follow him. Like when he’s sitting down and making them certain concept songs I can follow him. But I can’t follow him like on the freestyle stuff that he does. He’s all over the place. But I definitely think he’s one of the top rappers out today. It would be disrespectful not to say that because he’s all over the place. Evidently somebody likes him. So you got Weezy. But you know it’s rough man. There’s really not too many rappers that I really think is in the top 5 right now. Well actually I like what T.I’s doing and I like what Ludacris is doing. Can’t take nothing from Luda.

JR: Do you think Hip-Hop is dying in a way?

Riz: No I don’t think it’s dying. I had an interesting conversation with Zack Cats. Rogur Ice. They from the west coast or whatever. He actually said that hip hop is dead. I don’t think hip hop is dead I just think that's how they make the business now. Before they developed artists and they helped artists become artists. Now they want you to be already made and I think it's stunting the growth of the business because the average person can’t spend 200 dollars for and hour of studio time. They can’t pay 20,000 dollars for record spins. So I think that’s really what’s making the business suffer. They not looking for new talent. There’s talented people out here. You just don’t hear about them because talent is being over shadowed by the politics of the business. Every DJ you know has an artist. So why would they play another artist? That’s a conflict of interest. They could be potentially better then their artist and that’s a problem I’m having in New York. Every DJ has an artist. You’re obligated to somebody.

JR: How did you get on the scene so quick?

Riz: I mean like I said basically the whole self made mentality. Born alone, die alone, hold your own, and get paid. That’s my motto. Like I never wait for nobody to put the work in. I put my own work in. I make my own noise. Like I made noise on the streets because I’m in the streets. Anything these people in the streets identify with success, I had. I had a car. I had jewellery. I had money. Like these things people see as a successful person. So that’s easy to get people to talk about. Then I came with my own. I made noise and I'm grinding. People respect my hustle. People say you can’t do this you cant do that. I just kept going. And that’s basically what people see in my neighborhood. I’m not a terrorist. People love me in my neighborhood. They see me, they speak to me, the little kids love me, they want my t-shirts, wanna know when I’m bringing my music, they want my videos. I’m just a quality guy man and at the end of the day that’s what I really want to be known for, just being a quality guy.

JR: That’s humble. Any last comments?

Riz: Yea I just want to say thanks obviously to ya'll (hhnlive.com) for allowing me to be interviewed, thanks to Sha Money, Will the Boss, the whole Money management group, diamond district Ent, the whole self made, and Harlem and new York as a whole man. Keep yea eyes and ears open because we coming.