Money Jay didnt say much when he walked in. He comes off as the type that lets his presence speak for him. Slightly intimidating at first, Konvict's Decatur bread rapper after a few questions warmed up to be a pretty cool dude. I got the chance to chat with him about his real life street cred, his road to Konvict, and how he feels about his label mates! Check the full interview below.
KayKi- Money Jay..you are definitely creating..well I dont want to say a buzz because a buzz is minimal to me, but theres hype. How long has this road been for you?
Money Jay- Im 25 right now. I started seriously when I was like 20. Thats when I started dropping mixtapes. Ive always had a home fan base in Decatur. Just my streets. My streets- Candler Road, Glenwood, Wesley Chapel- all that. Every time I dropped a tape theyd be waiting on it. I just started branching out. I started taking it real seriously when me and Akon got together.
KayKi- I hear that Akon had to do some pulling to get you on his team?! Is that true that you were not really trying to get on?
Money Jay- Nah nah let me tell you what it was, I was trying. I was trying but I was doing other things also. It was stuff that was effecting me, now I coulda did a lot more, but I was trying. Put it like this, when I started I paid for everything myself. Im still paying for stuff now, but I paid for everything myself. All the money I made from hustling I put into my music. I printed out my own cd's. I went & did a whole mixtape..I was always pushin. Id go record for 3 months & take 3 months off. I was always working, it just wasnt paying the bills so I had to do other stuff.
KayKi- From my understanding wasnt it a situation where Kon kept coming back to you trying to get you to come get on w/ him?
Money Jay- Yea yea, lol he did.
KayKi- Thats crazy, because for Akon to have to ask you a couple of times..that says a lot about what he saw in your music.
Money Jay- Yea he told me to leave that street shit alone. He said he wasnt pushing no music or anything like that till I did.
KayKi- Thats whats up. Is that a hard thing though because I know a lot of times street cred is expected as a rapper. A lot of people talk about coming from that life but they really didnt. Was it a hard transition for you being that you really did?
Money Jay- I still do what I do...everything is music though. Whats happening is, I know Im never gonna work a regular job Im just never gonna do that. Im either gonna rap or Im gonna have my own business, or both. Its not really hard, money is money. You just have to do what pays your bills.
KayKi- Right! So what separates you from the rest? I dig your delivery. Its very deliberate..
Money Jay- See w/my music I dont sugar coat nothing. Whatever comes to my head I say it. & my music is what I went through. So when I say shit like I had a pound in my partner's daughter diaper bag, I really did. When I say I like red girls with long weave I was liking them at the moment. Get what Im saying? Really I feel like my music is different because Im not making nothing up.
KayKi- Its real life basically
Money Jay- Yea
KayKi- So your record Death Row is a salute to the Death Row movement & label. What did you appreciate about them?
Money Jay- You know DR..I just admired the fact that they made a real statement in the music game. They just took shit over. You know I like just taking shit over. Just move outta the way. LOL
KayKi- Hahaa This whole convict collaboration.. not just with you but all of the artists he's introducing are extremely talented. All of yall have records that are hitting! What do you think your contribution is gonna be to the game?
Money Jay- We got all bases covered. I mean we got the West Coast w/ YB. I mean, he's going hard. I was just listening to his new mixtape. That thing was going crazy. Then you know Billy Blue.. Billy Blue a real nigga. He get respect everywhere he go, we both alike. then we got Verse Simmonds, on his R & B shit you know, for the ladies. We gotta have yall covered. Then Swift..Swift just a young player you know. So basically we gonna contribute to music very well. We have everything on lock.
KayKi- I just spoke to YB.. he's dope..that is fact lol.. one thing I asked him & Im real interested in knowing from artists.. what do you think of the game right now?
Money Jay- See you just gotta know what to listen to. You cant listen to some of this metro sexual shit. Everything aint terrible. I mean, the radio hit you with what they wanna hit you with. You just gotta know what you like.
KayKi- Hahahaa! Ok Ok.. well who are you listening to!?
Money Jay- Well Im gonna be real, right now its instrumentals. I was bumping Tity Boi last mixtape...I eff w/ Boosie & Young Gotti & my team. Thats about it honestly. I dont mess with too much other stuff. Boosie is actually on some of my shit.
KayKi- So thats it right now? No other artists you messing w/?
Money Jay- I dont do the R&B
KayKi- No?..Never?
Money Jay- I'll do some reggae.. some Wycleff or something. You know that Jamaican shit I eff w/ that.
KayKi- Ok, I get it lol. So your record Death Row you working on right now? Hows that process going?
Money Jay- Yea the album its coming along. It take me about 30-45 minutes to make a song. I dont write nothing down. I just get to the beat. So I just been goin in & tellin my story. Its coming along.
KayKi- Oh really, so youre one of those that dont write your rhymes down?
Money Jay- Yea.. see I had got a lil bad vision.. so I couldnt be reading off the phone..
KayKi- I was just about to say b/c I write on my phone all of the time!
Money Jay- You write on your phone!? LOL See they dont use pen & paper in the studio no more. Everybody got they phones out.
KayKi- Its convenient!
Money Jay- I guess so. You got all yo verses on there?
KayKi- I do lol
Money Jay- You a real artist then
KayKi- Naw.. not going that route! Wait this is your interview! haha You mentioned Boosie on the album any other collaborations?
Money Jay- Nah its just Boosie right now.
KayKi- Big on features? Not big on features?
Money Jay- Nah Im not.
KayKi- I understand that.
Money Jay- I got a mixtape coming out w/ Greg Street called Me, Money, & Irene. Then I got that Second Hand Smoke dropping, but Im not huge on features like that.
KayKi- Thats cool, sounds like youre just banging them all out though.
Money Jay- Yea Im getting to it. Its that time.
KayKi- So youre not really big on features, but any local producers working w/ you? Youre from here you rep Decatur..any locals on your record?
Money Jay- I got Mr. Beats, thats my producer. Then I got Sunny Digital. Then I got a lil nigga named Prince. Yall aint heard of him, but he got my 2nd single.
KayKi- Wow..ok! Back when you were hustlin did you know you'd be here now?
Money Jay- I dont wanna sound arrogant, but I knew. I knew I had the juice..
KayKi- haha absolutely..
Money Jay- I was putting in work. All the industry A & Rs knew about me. I was going hard. Even though I was taking breaks. I was going broke & shit putting in work. So I was paying dues. & When I wasnt working on the music..I was hustlin
KayKi- Stackin..
Money Jay- Yea.. absolutely.
KayKi- I think when you come from a hustling back ground.. not even a hustling back ground, but just a back that required you to work hard for whatever you got. That ethic definitely converts well into the music industry, so thats the good in it.
Money Jay- Plus when I was coming up.. I saw the Hot Boys coming up. Master P nem' coming up. Shit it looked like it was millions to be made. I didnt mind grinding for that. Even if they was faking it-thats what it looked like.
KayKi- Right.. something to work towards. So you spoke of a few artists earlier, but any rappers you have a lot of respect for??
Money Jay- Anybody who's doing their thing and making it sound good..I got respect for. I mean, I eff w/ Jada Kiss..Im tryna get him & Styles P on that Death Row.
KayKi- Thats gonna be hard. Now you know the rap game is like the gateway business for other moves. Any other ventures in the works?
Money Jay- Not that I wanna speak on, but absolutely. I got my eyes on some other businesses.
KayKi- Im sure you do! Now do you have any advice for people out there grinding to get to where you are..?
Money Jay- You dont work.. you dont eat! I mean its people working out here & still aint eatin, which is unfortunate, but you still gotta try. If you dont try nothing you'll always be stuck. Most of the time, when youre trying to do something.. you gotta go all out..till you fail. You know what I mean? If you dont go all out, you'll never know if you couldve done it.
KayKi- Truth! You just said a lot! Thats real. So back to your album, what are the Money Jay records we should be listening out for!? You have any you really feeling more than others?
Money Jay- I feel all of em'. But I do have a record called Blowin' thats goin hard though.
KayKi- So the album.. is there a projected date?
Money Jay- We pushing for January 2012. We have a few more singles to push out, but thats the projected date. I got Outta There which is also hittin. Oh I also have something yall need to listen out for, a Tupac remake of that What You Wont Do for Love. Akon is on the hook. You know Kon can sing like a mutha effa. He got them killa hooks! So, thats gonna be nice.
KayKi- I agree 100% w/ that statement! Akon goes. & I love that he has such a distinct sound! Thats what I think is crazy about Akon.
Money Jay- Yea..he does, but most importantly he's a cool dude. He just a real dude.
KayKi- Thats what he seems like! Well thats my time. Thanks for hangin with ya girl for a bit.
Money Jay- Its been real cool.. real cool.
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