Proe
by Daniel Robert Epstein for SuicideGirls (http://suicidegirls.com/)

Proe is another underground hip-hop artist that’s doing things that people like Jay-Z and Ja Rule would never dream of. With his latest album, Perfect, Proe has really advanced his wild style. I got a chance to talk to Proe while he was on a break from his life of touring.

Check out the official website for Proe

Daniel Robert Epstein: What inspired this album?

Proe: I just wanted to make an album kind of about what I was feeling at the time. I was kind of being fucked up and it is an in-depth look at myself and my surroundings and shit like that.

DRE: So you don’t want to be perfect?

Proe: Oh fuck no. I don’t think it’s possible.

DRE: What’s perfect that’s in your life?

Proe: Nothing and that’s the inspiration right there.

DRE: One journalist called you a rock rapper. I don’t know if I bought that.

Proe: That’s cool though. I definitely needed to sample more rock, and use different musicians and get the old-school hip-hop heads and shit like that. At least they notice.

DRE: How did such a young guy get all these influences?

Proe: I listen to so much different music and I think that it all influences me. My favorite artist is Tom Waits so from a hip-hop standpoint that’s kind of weird.

DRE: Not with your hip-hop.

Proe: I just want to incorporate all the different things. I don’t really want to follow anyone else’s formula.

DRE: When did you first hear of Tom Waits?

Proe: Shit…my first memory of Tom Waits was in elementary school and my dad was playing When the Earth Died Screaming and I thought it was the strangest thing ever.

DRE: Did you record this album with Audible Treats?

Proe: I did it all myself.

DRE: How did you get to Audible Treats?

Proe: My manager, who’s also like a friend of mine, mentioned this publicist, and then they were helping out with the album and then we started with them?

DRE: How did you record it?

Proe: Since I produced the whole thing by myself, so I got like a pre-production studio that I built. When I found some time I sat in my little room and just dorked out with my equipment

DRE: What equipment did you use?

Proe: I’ve got an Akai MPC sampler. I do a lot of sampling of old records and I’ve got a synth so I just put it all together.

DRE: How have you played much live?

Proe: Yeah, but nothing too big. I’m about to go on tour across the United States and we’ll see how that goes, but for right now I’ll just perform anywhere I can

DRE: What is the stage show like?

Proe: With my particular set it’s me and I’ve got a buddy that I do music with and he’s going to go on tour with me so it’s usually two people.

DRE: How are people reacting to it?

Proe: It’s got a really good response. I knew before putting it out, like, it would get a lot of mixed reviews being that it’s a little different. But so far the people that really count really have embraced it and the people that don’t, really don’t give a shit either way.

DRE: Are you already working on the next one

Proe: Yeah I’m always trying to make more music but I’m not really working on an album. I’m just kind of kicking around ideas.

DRE: Where are you going on your next tour?

Proe: We’re going pretty much from California, and we’re going to either to Philadelphia or New York. Also we’ve got dates in New Mexico, Arizona, Texas, and Chicago. Then a lot of the Midwest.

DRE: Who is Pea Soup?

Proe: That’s one of my friends, producer and a fellow musician.

DRE: What have you heard about SuicideGirls?

Proe: I’ve always been a fan for obvious reasons. But also think it’s like the women I date. I’ve got a bunch of tattoos and when I found out about it I thought it was the coolest thing I’d ever heard of.

DRE: What does the name Proe mean besides what it sounds like?

Proe: The funny thing is, it doesn’t mean anything. It’s such a dumb story. I used to go by a bunch of other names when I was really young. I thought about the name Prolific but that was way too pompous. Then my buddy was like “Why don’t you just be pro with an e at the end?”


DRE: What do you think about the hip-hop that comes out in the mainstream?

Proe: I like it. You can’t have your independent stuff without the mainstream stuff.

DRE: But you don’t buy any of it?

Proe: Not really. It’s fun to listen to on the radio.

by Daniel Robert Epstein

SG Username: AndersWolleck

web address: http://suicidegirls.com/interviews/Proe/