back because he definitely had hits before that moment. Even just until that point, that was 25 years ago. Like, he’s done so much, and inspired so many. It still sounds fresh, even when you listen to him now. He’s not dated, but he still sounds fresh. I would also lean more toward Nas, looking at how he has maintained through it all.
Penny Shaw: Listen man. 25 years. I heard that artists are lucky if they get to two major albums.
U.G. Digital Mag: Definitely, because tapping back to the independent side, there’s a lot that you know because of your independent status, and most artists have someone doing those things for them. So when it comes down to sales being low, or people not knowing what they’re doing, or the labels don’t stay behind them, it results in them falling off. Keeping it real, many don’t get past the first album. For the time you’ve been here, and looking at careers of artists like Nas and Jay, it says a lot to be here and have that longevity. It’s hard out here artistically, especially as an independent because you’re fronting the money before you get any money. It takes time to put it together, and promote it, and it’s not cheap.
Penny Shaw: Right. It takes money to make money.
U.G. Digital Mag: So where do you see things moving? You’ve had a number of projects out. You get a lot of accolades for Ill City Blues.
Penny Shaw: We put it out in March, and we kinda just let it run. Then August and September I was basically doing shows in the Northeast. We did a few shows in New York. We went up to Boston and opened for Ras Kass, and I was able to go to D.C. and do this huge music festival they have called the H Street Music Festival, which brings thousands out. During that time, we’re filming all these videos. We just launched the first video, Questions, a few days ago. We haven’t even started our run for Ill City Blues yet. It’s just the first of many visuals we’re putting out. This weekend, I’m actually having my own pop-up shop in New York because we’re launching some merchandise to further my brand a little bit. So at the end of the year, I’ll have my own pop-up shop in Harlem. We’ll launch the merchandise and I’ll do some performances. I just want to expand the brand a lot more and promote a lot of this music, and give people