How are you doing man?

Witchdoctor: What's happening dog?

First off, how'd you get the name Witchdoctor?

Witchdoctor: To make a long story short and make sure you put that in, "To make a long story short." [laughs]. I got the name from a reggae group called Steel Pulse. That's where I first heard the name. Part of the name also came from a dream I had when I started calling myself Witchdoctor. I was going to change my name but I had this dream and in this dream God told me not to change my name. It's kind of like that, to make a long story short.

How'd you hook up with Adult Swim's Williams Street label?

Witchdoctor: Being an unsigned artist and being underground for a lot of years, I took my new music and albums to the internet. Myspace was really key with that. On Myspace I have like five albums I'm selling. I had released a book in 2004 and I put everything on my Myspace page. I just started getting a real good response over the internet and Williams Street saw a copy of the King of the Beasts album. Once they bought the King of the Beasts album they sent me an email and told me they wanted to sit down with me, and the rest is kind of like history.

Can you tell us more about this book you authored?

Witchdoctor: It's called Diary of the American Witchdoctor. I released it in 2004 and it's seven chapters. One chapter is called Politicking, that's all the poetry that's political. You might hear George Bush's name, you might hear Al Sharpton. There's another section in the book called Headbustin and that's pretty much for the MC's. Another section is called the Sister section, one called Spirituality where I go through the different attributes of God in poetry. It's a real competitive book and actually once I signed to Williams Street, they thought it would be a good idea to title the new album along with the book. It's a good deal man, a good little move.

You've been releasing material under your own Dezonly1 label, so why'd you decide to switch it up for this project?

Witchdoctor: Dezonly1. It's a word in Ebonics and it means God. If you keep saying it, Dez-Only-1, you keep saying it and it will sound like God's name. There was no one before him, he's the only one. There's only one you, he made you and there will only be one you. Williams street is the new machine. It's like Jay-Z. Say Jay-z wants to come out with a new album, well his deal is through def jam, so when Jay-z says he's coming out with an album Def Jam is his machine. Def Jam is the one who's going to put his videos on TV, they're the ones who put the articles in the magazine. So Williams Streets represents my machine right now. I'm still Dezonly1 but it's Williams Street right now. Williams Street was responsible for putting me on tour with Ghostface Killah. Williams Street is responsible for my new commercial on Adult Swim. So it's a partnership. I'm the musician and I'm going to handle the music and they are going to be the machine behind it, we're like a team, know what I'm saying? That's what every artist wants to do, get that major company behind them. That's how our relationship started and we're a team now.   

You went with your own label after releasing your debut on Interscope Records. Did you have bad experiences with them?

Witchdoctor: Nah I didn't have a bad experience with Interscope. I would say it's a stepping stone. Rap music is a guerilla business with a million rappers now and like seven different major label companies. That means its a rough business to be in. When I got hooked up with Interscope and Organized Noize that was like a blessing to me. It was a way for me to get my feet wet. People had never heard of Witchdoctor so instead of making money I basically got my name solidified for years to come. I was probably able to get a deal now because people were familiar with my name and my work. Being with Interscope I did make a lot of money but it's one of the top record companies as far as rap goes, so being with them boosted my credibility. I got a lot of experience being on the same label that has 50 cent, Eminem and Dr. Dre. That gives me a lot of confidence.

Are you a fan of Adult Swim or is it strictly a business move?

Witchdoctor: To be honest with you I didn't even watch Adult Swim until they reached out to me. As soon as they reached out to me, I watch that shit almost every night dog. I'm a big fan now. I'm a big advocate for Adult Swim, my commercial comes on before the Boondocks so I'm on it and I'm probably one of their biggest fans right now.

How was the reception on the Adult Swim tour with Ghost Face Killah?

Witchdoctor: Man that was probably the best tour I've been on. It was nobody but Witchdoctor and Ghostface. I feel like it was a stepping stone to my new arrival back in the game. I felt that it was a good match putting me with Ghostface. Ghostface is going to attract an MC crowd so that's exactly what I need, you know? I would love to get out there with them again. I'm really looking forward to it.

What do you think of college audiences as opposed to regular Hip Hop shows?

Witchdoctor: Well they both are kind of similar. A college show is just people who are in college that are Hip Hop, know what I'm saying? I think that's one of the best kinds of crowds that you want to play is the College crowd rather than a straight rap crowd. If they aren't familiar with a song or didn't hear it on the radio they aren't going to wild out, they are going to be listening to what you're saying. A college crowd might be liver, by them being in college they might not get as many rap shows that comes to the college so when they do get a good rap show they are really going to be appreciative. A college crowd is similar to a all Hip Hop crowds except in a college crowd you'll get more inquisitive people.

How would you describe the Witchdoctor stage show for anyone that has yet to see you?

Witchdoctor: You're going to see a lot of energy, expect to see a lot of energy and a veteran. You'll probably see me on stage as somebody you underestimated. If you have any Witchdoctor material you'll see I'm used to rapping with the singer. So you'll get an artist on stage that is definitely not a monkey see monkey do. When you see Witchdoctor you're not going to see a Jay-Z look-a-like, a Nas look-a-like or a 50 CENT look-a-like. You're going to see a veteran and someone who knows what he's doing.

What can you tell us about the new album Diary of an American Witchdoctor?

Witchdoctor: Out of the top five albums that come out this year, it'll be there. Go out and buy the top best MC's out there albums' and buy the Witchdoctor. Ride to them and compare them and make your decision then. 

The album features some older tracks as well as new, why'd you decide to re-release the older joints?

Witchdoctor: Williams Street thought it would be a good idea. When they first signed me they were going to release the King of the Beasts album so they thought it would be a good idea to take all of the best songs and put them on an album and call it the Diary. I thought that was a better move then just dropping the King of the Beasts album. So we put songs on this that wouldn't have been on the album. It's kind of better for the consumer.

You've also released a book of poetry.  Have you always written poetry and does it allow you to express different things that the music may not let you?

Witchdoctor: Nah.that was in 2003 and 2004. I was an unsigned artist when I was doing it so I looked at getting publishing like I was getting a record deal. So when I released it I released it like I was selling a CD. That how I looked at it, like "Oh nobody's fucking with Witchdoctor?" Ok on the book side I got a publishing deal so this is my album coming out right now. I haven't made a lot of money from the book but what it does is make me look more universal as an artist than someone just rapping on a track. Witch ain't just no rapper, he's an artist, he's an author, etc. I feel that it just adds to Witchdoctor.

Are you planning to release any more books?

Witchdoctor: Yeah I actually did a three book deal with Publish America. This book is Diary of an American Witchdoctor, the next one will be the Expiration of God. In that book I'll go into the attributes of God. I'm doing it different than what pastors and preachers are doing right now. So the next book will be a real spiritual book.

What are you working on next after Diary of an American Witchdoctor, and what label will it be released on?

Witchdoctor: I signed a two album deal with Williams Street. If you click on my Myspace page I have a couple album titles up there. One album is called Mary Magdalene; another is called Global Warning, then The Invisible Man and Escape From New York. Those four are the titles Williams Street can pick from if they want to go with Escape from New York then I'll turn in that album. If they want to go with Mary Magdalene or Global Warning, I got four album titles they can choose from so it will be either one of those. So Global Warning, The Invisible man, Mary Magdalene and Escape from New York. One of those four titles will be the next album. Whichever one is more marketable for them.

You have an appearance on "Yellow Lines" from the new Cunninlynguists album. What do you think of them? They seem to be a throwback to the early Dungeon Family days.

Witchdoctor: I met them over the internet and they hit me up to do a couple of songs. I really don't know them personally. I heard the song "Yellow Lines" and a couple other songs that's on it. Sounds pretty good you know? Like I said, most of the people on the album I met over the internet through Myspace. I tried to look out for a lot of underground people that needed some air time. That's kind of what I wanted to do with this album. I only got one Dungeon Family member on this album but everybody else just people that are trying to get out there. I showed a lot of love as far as this album is going. I feel it's still a classic album.

Speaking of the Dungeon Family, are you working on any new projects from the crew?

Witchdoctor: Not as we speak. Cee-Lo and Khujo got a solo album out. It seems to me everyone pretty much got solo things going on. I don't think there will be a dungeon family project soon. From what I'm hearing everyone is doing the solo thing now.

You had a major label deal at a time when that was rare for solo MC's in the south.

Witchdoctor: Being one of the only artists to ink a major solo deal, during that time I felt like us being from Atlanta were still trying to prove to New York and California that we can hold our own weight as far as being MC's. You know New York and California repped that excellent. We in the South for years and we aren't necessarily the railroad. So during that time I looked at that album and that deal as we are breaking ground now. We didn't make no money then but we got our respect from New York and California. I feel like that's what my album did for Atlanta. I feel like when people mention Atlanta they mention Outkast, Goodie Mob and I never hear my name or contributions. I feel with these albums I'm about to kick some shit up. As far as the top ten MC's I feel like I belong now. I am not going to do too much talking,  I'm just going to let the music and work prove itself.

What do you think of the southern explosion since then and are you satisfied with the music from down there?

Witchdoctor: I can only speak for myself in the music and I really can't speak of other Atlanta artists. What I can say is our radio station needs to revamp. A lot of people come from other places and you hear certain songs on the radio and think everyone in Atlanta talks like that or makes that kind of music. I feel like our radio DJ's and personalities are responsible for that. I feel like we need variety for what they are playing in Atlanta as far as people who are originally from Atlanta. Sometimes people on these radio stations aren't from Atlanta so they are up there playing certain kind of music all day long and everyone is thinking we all talk the same, we are all on the same intelligence level, see what I'm saying? That's caused by the people at the radio stations and the type of stuff they are playing.

Anything else you'd like to add?

Witchdoctor: If you want to check out Witchdoctor, see where my head is at, what I'm thinking or want to get some of the new music, the best place to go is my Myspace. I'm on 24 hours, I'm on it everyday. I usually got blogs, the fan mail, I talk to most of the artists on there. You might click on it one day and hear a song and click on it the next and hear something else. My Myspace page is the best way to deal with me. If you want a show booked with witchdoctor you can go to my Myspace page and holler at me. I run it myself. www.myspace.com/ejthewithdoctor


Drew & Andy