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The Situation checks up on Bizarre during a recent trip to London as the shower-capped ‘rockstar’ gets ready to step away from the security of D12 and follow Marshall Mathers’ footsteps on the road to solo stardom.
The
role of an image in the world of music is fast growing; Nelly’s
got the looks, Kanye’s
got the charisma, 50’s
got the gangsta thing going on… then steps in Bizarre.
He has an image, that’s for sure – but a slightly different
one to the norm. With obsessions including shower caps, midgets and rubbing
his nipples, Bizarre is ready to step away from the D12
limelight with his first solo LP, ‘Hannicap Circus’. Sitting
on his hotel room couch drinking a glass of Red Bull, Bizarre talks to
us about the new album, D12 and “just being crazy”.
Bizarre, better known to his mama as Rufus Johnson, grew up in Detroit, and hooked up with Eminem, Proof, Kuniva, Kon Artis and Bugz (the latter of which was unfortunately shot dead, being replaced by Swifty, on his request pre-murder). These six guys formed D12, but how and when did Biz first consider rapping a potential career? “I was about your age, like 10.” He bursts into laughter. It’s an obvious joke aimed towards my young age (not 10, might I add), and the fact he was expecting someone older. Well, in his latest hit, ‘Rockstar’, he does sing about girls “13 to 18”, so you know, he can’t laugh too much. “I started off when I was like 10,” he continues after the humour has died down. “My music teacher encouraged me to rap and do it, so I did. I started early, about 10 or 11, writing raps on my own.” Everyone takes their inspirations from somewhere, and Bizarre is no different. “Ghetto Boyz, LL Cool J, EPMD and NWA, Dr. Dre definitely.”
To some of D12 and Bizarre’s newly recruited fans, it may be news that Bizzy actually had a solo EP out back in 1998 called ‘Attack of the Weirdos’. In those seven long hard years since that release, Bizarre says, “I’ve just grew up a little bit more. Seen a lot more. I’m more business-wise, a lot more smart, business-wise.”
‘D12 World’ – the follow-up to 2001’s ‘Devil’s Night’ – saw the light of day back in April last year, so, after that release, Bizarre felt it the perfect time to get working on his own material. In fact, Bizarre isn’t the only D12 member attempting solo success; apart from the obvious Eminem, Proof also has an album out next month. “Proof is a solo artist within a group, and I’m a solo artist within a group,” Bizarre says. “We just wanted to wait until it was the right time. I just decided after the second D12 album to put a record out.” D12 fans never fear though, the six men, plus their six alter-egos (putting the ‘12’ in ‘D12’), plan to record again very soon. Bizarre says the third instalment of the D12 phenomenon should be out “late this winter”. He adds, “We ain’t started working on it yet. We’ll start working on it after the Anger Management tour.”
One of D12’s biggest hits to date was last year’s ‘My Band’. The often-misinterpreted ‘lead singer’ of D12, Eminem, created this song to correct people’s misjudgements: “Em just wanted everyone to realise we were rapping the same amount of time, we had the same skills, the same abilities. He didn’t want it to be just this little group he put out, but that we actually could rap.” ‘Rockstar’ is almost the follow-up single from ‘My Band’, which sees Bizarre, having rid himself from Eminem, living up the rockstar lifestyle. Still, Bizarre has only good words about Marshall Mathers, saying if he had to put all the rappers in a talent hierarchy, Em would be “definitely top five”, alongside “Nas, Biggie, 2Pac, Jay-Z, all the greats”.
Of course Bizzy’s known as the piss-about, doesn’t-take-life-seriously sorta guy in D12. Not surprising, really, considering some of his best lyrics consist of: “Shut your mouth you dirty slut/ You know you want it in your butt/ I’ll put it in your c*nt”. On the new album, he goes as far as hilariously parodying Ice Cube’s ‘It Was A Bad Day’, rapping, “Just waking up in the morning gotta thank God/ got my ass cheeks stuck to a fishing rod… I found out my best friend was gay/ Today was a bad day.”
While “controversy, making a point and being crazy” are all important when Bizarre is writing rhymes, on ‘Hannicap Circus’, he does intend to show a side of himself that’s not often displayed: “There’s a different variety of songs on there. I got serious songs. Like, ‘Hip Hop’ is telling my life story and ‘One Chance’ is about this being my one chance in the music business. ‘Coming Home’ with Raphael Saadiq is about being on the road for a long time, missing the family.” Yet, he’s quick to downplay any over-sentimental images people might be tentatively generating, adding, “I like to be able to laugh. I think that’s what everyone’s missing right now. Everybody wants to be so serious… you listen to my album and you’ll see the serious songs, but the serious songs aren’t as serious as on a regular record.” So he raps about ‘coming home’ on his new album, but what about ‘being’ at home? To prove his light-hearted nature, he says, without a hint of sarcasm, “I spike my wife with vodka.”
On almost all media appearances/interviews/videos, Bizarre is never without his gimmick shower cap. “It started in Milwaukee, at a show called Lyricists Loud,” he says as he explains the origins of the attractive attire. “I just threw it on to be different ’cos I had nothing to wear on stage. That’s how it started and then after that people started getting me shower caps.” And so far, Bizarre’s done well to keep up this tradition, today donning a sexy black one with cartoon eyes and a red heart shaped nose.
In today’s world of hip hop, beef plays a major role. Whether it’s 50 vs Jada, 50 vs Joey Crack, 50 vs Nas (in short, 50 vs everyone), beef is big. D12 themselves have had their fair share of industry arguments, one major one involving Royce Da 5’9. Now that this has died down, Bizarre says he doesn’t want to concentrate on beef too much, even if it’s all his Shady camp friend Fiddy thinks about: “I hope they [50 and Game] can work it out. Game has a problem, with it [the situation] or himself.” However, there is one group who have their own problems with old Bizzy – 5150. If you don’t know about 5150, they were a group who were once cool with D12, and especially Bugz before his premature death. However, it’s rumoured Bizarre broke promises to let them perform at shows and failed to give them verses for their album, and they are now they’re dissing him. When questioned, he acts guiltless, laughs and answers, “Who? I’ve never heard of them.” Even after a bit of persuasion, all he says is: “They’re clowns, that’s all I’m saying.” Looks like Bizarre knows he’s done them wrong…
Apart from a solo LP, a third group release and everything else that’s going on with D12 and the crazy world of Bizarre, he’s still got time to set up his own record label: “I got my own label called ‘Red Head Records’. I don’t know why it’s called ‘Red Head’,” he says. Sitting on the sofa with his hair dyed red obviously has nothing to do with it. “I got a rapper called Young Minds on there. I got a rock band coming out,” he continues, displaying his diversity and interest in a genre other than hip hop. “I like System Of A Down, their new single’s crazy… Greenday, I like Greenday. I like a lot of bands.”
Since Bizarre’s been hanging out in the UK these past few days, it’s only right I check up on his knowledge of the urban scene over here: “There’s this guy called 2Much that opened up for me [at the show in Cargo] last night. He’s a battle rapper. He’s been to the US a couple of times and never lost. I’ve heard of Dizzee Rascal, I like him. And there’s this female rapper. She has beef. I have DVDs, this girl’s kinda big…” he says, trying to remember her name. “Fury! Her name’s Lady Fury. She had beef with some other UK rapper [Shystie]. There was this diss song on Tim Westwood.” When questioned whether he likes Westwood himself, Bizarre laughs at my attempt at controversy and replies, “He’s cool, he’s cool.”
Looking down the line three months from now sees the Anger Management Tour reaching out to good ol’ England this September. There are dates in Milton Keynes, Manchester, and Edinburgh, but as yet, no specific date for Londoners. “We are doing a London date,” Bizarre protests. “Milton Keynes… well that’s where all the London kids come to.” Bizarre says to expect “a lot of craziness”. “All of our [D12] set is altogether, but I will be doing my single ‘Rockstar’,” he adds. “There’s gonna be a lot of energy in the show. We wild.” Tours are perfect times for stalkers and groupies alike to flourish. Bizarre relives one experience he once had with an obsessed fan: “I had a fan standing in front of the bus, that wanted my autograph, and wouldn’t move out the middle of the street. We nearly ran over him. He was like, ‘I want to see Bizarre.’ Police came, he still wouldn’t move… I just said ‘Hi’. He seemed too crazy to talk to.” Well Bizarre, you are a rockstar.
While some hip hop heads might be sceptical in giving Bizarre a chance because of the image he’s created for himself, having now listened to the album, I see Bizarre as a very original lyricist. The album’s fresh, it’s humorous, it’s different, the production is banging, and hell, I’m not afraid to say it’s better than Eminem’s ‘Encore’.
‘Hannicap Circus’ is available now from all
good record stores.
