runnin.de: who are you (for the unknowing readers), how are you, where are you?

fat jon: My name is fat jon. I’m chillin. I’ve been feeling ok lately. Right now, I’m in berlin.

runnin.de: how ’s life in berlin? tell us something about the differences between cincinnati and berlin.

fat jon: life in berlin is pretty interesting for me. One of the most interesting things is that it’s not that different from where I’m from. Once you get past the language barrier, things are very similar. On the other other hand, cincinnati is a very conservative place. Berlin is not. Cincinnati has no nightlife. Downtown cincinnati shuts down at 6pm and the clubs close at 4am. It can be boring at times.

runnin.de: how is the relationship between you and your fellows in Cincinnati?

fat jon: me and my crew have known each other for a ridiculous amount of years. We’re friends that have seen each other at our best and worst. I would say we are pretty cool with each other.

runnin.de: where did you produce and record the Kinkynasti LP?

fat jon: I produced the kinkynast album in cincinnati and berlin and recorded in both places. It was fun.

runnin.de: isn’t it difficult to manage those things (recording, producing, promotion…) with an ocean between you and the rest of the deez?

fat jon: it would seem that it would be hard to do all of those things but the technology exists to bridge the gap. We stay in touch more than we did when I lived in the states, it’s funny.

runnin.de: do you use the internet to change beats and lyircs?

fat jon: we use the internet to talk, write, exchange ideas, music, lyrics and anything else. It’s quite easy.

runnin.de: do you produce in a public / record company owned studio or do you have all your equipment at home?

fat jon: I’ve always produced from my own studio. It’s more comfortable for me to be able work when I need to and not when it’s convenient for someone else.

runnin.de: what kind of equipment do you use? give us some names please…

fat jon: I use an akai mpc 2000, a roland jp8000 synth, technics turntables, vestax 06pro mixer, outboard effects by lexicon and alesis, outboard eq’s by dbx and aleseis, dbx compressors and a mac.

runnin.de: what instruments do you play in addition to the flute?

fat jon: I play the flute, piano, tuba and the trombone. I also play percussion.

runnin.de: what’s your way to produce a track? do you start with the beats or with the lyrics? do you start with a sample or with the drums?

fat jon: a track can get made in any number of ways. Sometimes it’s a sample 1st or the beat 1st. sometimes it’s lyrics that inspire the music and vice versa. It’s funny how it all comes together sometimes.

runnin.de: do your prefer mcing, procucing or djing?

fat jon: I like to do all those things equally. They all take time to perfect and develop. I devoted my time and my talent to make hip hop music so since I quit breakin back in the day and since I can’t paint, I decided to do everything else I could do. I like them all equally. I have a different appreciation for each one.

runnin.de: are the lyrics in “look at you” (on 3582 “situational ethics”) based on a real story?

fat jon: yeah, look at you is true as hell. It’s something people would never make a song about but talk about it in everyday life. I wanted to make it fun even though it’s a little bit sad and sarcastic.

runnin.de: what can we expect from fat jon in 2004? a new maurice LP? any five deez or 3582 releases? dj tour, 5 deez tour (in europe)

fat jon: you can expect to hear from my new groups, “rebel clique” and “rainwalk”. These are both projects I’ve been working on with amazing artists. You can catch 3582 touring europe in april and five deez will be working on our new album. There are also a few surprises I’ll leave out for effect!!!!!

runnin.de: let’s get to 3582… how do you work with 2 producers in one studio and how originated this collaboration? did you visit rawls in the us, or did he come to berlin to produce “situational ethics”?

fat jon: me and rawls always make our records together. We’re like brothers. We like to be in the studio and come up with ideas together and record them on the spot. We recorded in cincinnati and berlin. We met many years ago and made a song together the day we met. We had mutual friends who introduced us to each other.

runnin.de: is there an artist with whom you’d like to do a track / LP with? and why? and what kind of music / style?

fat jon: no not really. I’m really happy to be in the group I’m in. Every project I’m a part of has very talented people involved.

runnin.de: what are your top 5 LPs in 2003?

fat jon: - kinkynasti - kinkynasti - kinkynasti - kinkynasti - kinkynasti

runnin.de: flash statements - just write some words down about the given topics/names

fat jon: cincinnati-sucks
george bush-crack head
madlib- dope music, nice guy
berlin hiphop-dirty
beatles- fly like a bird
consumption of drugs by (hiphop) artists in public -played out
crowd usa <-> europe-gleich

thank you for the interview and 1-love

Just Dope - runnin.de