SuburbanHorror: In your current project, Juice and the Machine, it seems like you’ve got an amazing collection of talent. Aaron Getsug, your Saxophonist, was named one of the top five jazz musicians in Chicago by the Tribune; Russoul, backup singer, won the Chicago Idol competition. How did all of you get together?

Juice: Well, we ended up meeting... we were gonna do a party. We were just gonna do one party, and that party ended up turning into this group. We certainly didn’t know each other; we did two rehearsals, but somehow we pulled off a really cool performance at this party, and along with Bandit, we put together a DVD of the party. And people seemed to be feeling it and we were like, “Wow, we haven’t even refined the product yet.” There was just an inherent synergy with all the musicians. I was like, “You guys pick up music so fast, it’s like a machine,” and I then I thought, “Man, that would be a really cool name.” After the party, I was like, yeah, this is something we should go with, hence “Juice and the Machine.”

SH: How does playing with a live band as opposed to a DJ alter your performance?

J: At first I thought it would be more constricting, but I think it adds a little bit more space, because, you know these bands have the ability to improvise, and a lot of people know me for my ability to freestyle. With a band, should anything go off-kilter or off cue, should we need a spark of energy, the band is right there and they’re, like, an additional improvisational piece. As opposed to, with a DJ, you can’t necessarily create energy. You can play records people like, adjust tempo, but with a band, you can actually create energy, and I think that, to me, is the great difference between the live musicianship instead of a DJ.

SH: So having a live band complements your strengths as a freestyle artist?

J: Definitely. I mean, if I need to do it, they’re there. There’s always a different tempo, there’s always a different groove, and we have the ability to create grooves that are indigenous to us right on the spot. We can create a new song whenever we want, as opposed to having to follow the mode of whatever we’re playing and listening to with a DJ. But eventually my plan is to incorporate a DJ as well, so we can have that other element in there, but those are the main differences that I can see.

SH: Some have commented that this is a risky move, that mainstream audiences might not embrace a fusion between hip-hop and jazz. How do you respond to that?

J: I think it is risky. I think the biggest risk involved is classifying ourselves as such. It’s more risky to be put in that box than for the actual project to be done. I’ve seen that the response we’ve gotten from the four or five shows that we’ve done has been overwhelming, so I don’t necessarily know that it’s that risky from a live venue standpoint. You know it broadens the horizons for big, big live venue shows, but I think to refine the product and get it ready for a national and international level from a Best Buy standpoint, there’s a lot of work to do. Truly it’s risky, because I don’t believe there’s ever really been a precedent set for it, but assuming we can capture the live people that we need, we can do similar to Dave Matthews. And then at that point, we’ll know exactly what our recorded music will be. So I don’t think it’s that risky; it’s only risky if we’re defined as a fusion between Jazz and hip-hop.

SH: In an interview with the Chicago Reader, you expressed the opinion that audiences have been duped by the mainstream media outlets into accepting a “dumbed-down version of hip-hop.” What do you see as pure hip-hop, and how is the mainstream failing to provide it?

J: I think there are a few examples of pure hip-hop, but I don’t necessarily believe there’s a big influx of it. I think somebody like Lupe Fiasco is an example of pure hip-hop. I think Common was pure hip-hop, but I think he got that right-on-time infusion of beat that mainstream America would want to conform to. It’s just not happening at a large scale, so to me, pure hip-hop just involves those ridiculous elements, it involves being able to write, being able to be a lyricist. You know, not “that... hat...cat...fat,” but actual syllables. You know, and once you have that, being able to incorporate that into some cohesive music that people really like, and being able to tell stories. That’s the element that I’m not really seeing in hip-hop. These albums that I listen to are a lot of singles and not a lot of music, and it’s so quick with these first week numbers, like Hollywood with movies. So everything becomes a single. There’s thirteen singles on an album, but by the time you listen to it, you’re really not learning anything about the artist; you’re just sort of like, “Well, okay, all of these songs are really good, but where’s the meat?” So I think the meat of those projects is missing. Because labels saturate the market with that, and fans see it, then that’s what they come to expect. And that’s why they really feel that our group is a breath of fresh air. Now I’m not saying we’re not, I’m just saying that in an era where everyone was being as creative as they could be, we’d just be one of many groups. Like, if Tribe Called Quest and Leaders of the New School were out, we’d just be another one of the groups that people expected to be different cause that’s what it was. I think we’re getting a lot of kudos for being so different, and as of now, there’s nothing else like it.

SH: So you played the Green Apple Fest last Thursday. How was that?

J: It was great. I loved it.

SH: Who were you sharing the stage with?

J: That was with MC Lyte. She’s a legend. She was there, and there was a band named Naje that was there, and they were playing with her, and it was really incredible to see someone like her. She was in her forties, and she still had the ability to rock the crowd, and she just showed me what it could be like. I mean, I want that on a bigger scale; I want to play venues that are bigger than 1,000 people, but if I was relegated to doing that, I would be happy knowing that these were my real fans and I really apply to them, instead of people who were with me just for hype. So it was like... she really gave me a lot of hope just looking at what it could be like, still performing. She sounds great, she looks as good as ever, she just murdered it. It was an honor to be on stage with her, and the band was just... that was a show where we were missing two key members, and we really got to explore the improvisational side of the band, and I think it turned out good. People thought that everything was scripted, from my late entry walking into the show, to being on stage making up a song; they thought that was part of the act, so I really thought it turned out well.

SH: Are there any plans for a national tour to support the album?

J: There are. We have a really, really big show coming up on April 20, it’s gonna be at the Double Door. And 4/20 is that day. Everybody who knows what I mean, it’s that day, but it’s also an “Earth Day” type celebration for a cleaner environment. There’s a lot of bands booked throughout the city that day, and particularly this day is important because Jam Productions is going to be scrutinizing the show and seeing what kind of crowd we bring. And I’m pretty sure that, if we can pull out the type of performance we did at Metro, and we can pack the place, we can definitely find a place on tours. We definitely fit into a lot of demographics, and we fit amongst a broad cross-section of people. So I’m hoping that we fill the place... let’s say that’s a prerequisite, and we provide the performance... that’s a prerequisite, and let’s say that Jam sees it and they like it, then I think we’ll instantly be elevated to another status as far as live venues are concerned.

SH: Just to give my readers some background, I wanted to bring up Scribblejam 1997. You faced down a then-unknown Eminem for the championship in a freestyle competition. Give us the details.

J: Juice was the well-known battle person; Eminem was well-known in his region. He knew who I was; I didn’t know who he was. He approached me; he was very cocky; he was very brash. It was really cool. He was arrogant, but in a cool way. He was like real confident, sort of like John Brown on a white rapper show. He was confident that what he had was what nobody else had, and he was, like, “Are you Juice?” and I’m like “Yeah,” and he’s like “My names Eminem.” And I’m like, “Oh. And?” “Well I rap. I just want you to know, I’m from Detroit, and if we battle later, it’s gonna be nasty.” And I was just like, “Man, buy this dude a beer. You’re Eminem? Buy him two beers if he’s Eminem.” You know what I mean? So the mind-games started right there, and we went six rounds, and it just ended up that, that night, I had the hook-shot to win the game. But I always likened it unto the Magic Johnson and Larry bird rivalry where, on any given day, he might have hit the three-pointer to win it, but that just happened to be my day. I’m still cool with him; I don’t see him a lot. He’s going through a lot, but if he does read this, he’s needs to get at me and call me, because he shouldn’t be depressed right now; he should be very happy with what he did for hip-hop.

SH: All right, thanks a lot.

J: Any time, man. And when we’re doing something, please come through; we just appreciate the support. I’m hoping this band can take this hip-hop thing to a new level and expose it to people who don’t understand it yet.

-Joe Hemmerling