The Lyrical Venom Cleveland, OH

Welcome to our first interview. The Openmic Crew would like to congratulate The Lyrical Venom for being the winner of the first lyrical tournament.

Goldmic: First, introduce yourself to everyone.

The Lyrical Venom: Well, I'm The Lyrical Venom and i will like to thank everyone who made this possible.

Goldmic: When did you start, why did you start, and how long have you been emceeing?

The Lyrical Venom: I started about 3 years ago. My cousins were into hip-hop and rapping alot and i just picked it up from them. I've been emceeing on the net for about a year and a half and i love it.

Goldmic: How long has L.A.W.W. been around? How many members does it have and how was it formed? Give us the story behind it.

The Lyrical Venom: LAWW has been around for about 10 months to a year. We have 15 members and we are starting to dominate.
LAWW was first put together by me and Prah Phit. We fell apart and Prah Phit left. But i stayed as LAWW. I rebuilt LAWW by picking up people like Tru Skillz, Sol Blaz, and eVyL. We weren't finished, we picked Prah Phit back up and recruited Source, Insular, Poet, Franchise and Chope. As happy as we were we still picked up 3 amazing emcee's, Scoonay, Mad Steez, and Big Shoq. I didn't pick myself to be the leader but they make and call me the leader.

Goldmic: How active is L.A.W.W. as a group? Does it get involved in crew battles or performances?

The Lyrical Venom: LAWW is pretty active as a group, we got a couple collabo's out there and we are happy. We do get into crew battles, as were getting ready for a crew battle against another crew called 3rd Eye Revolution, which is gonna be a good battle.

Goldmic: Is L.A.W.W still recruiting? If yes, how are new members selected?

The Lyrical Venom: LAWW at this present time are not recruiting, but i can't say we won't recruit again. We mostly look for people who are active, have good skills and talent.

Goldmic: We have heard there has been tension between L.A.W.W and the War Gods. Have they ever battled? How would you feel about an audio battle between them on Openmic?

The Lyrical Venom: LAWW and the War Gods, must be a rumor. We never battled them but if they want to take it that way we can do so, text or audio.

Goldmic: Besides actually emceeing, how do you improve your skills? How do you focus on and develop the different elements like flow, lyrics, creativity, etc.?

The Lyrical Venom: I improve my skills by reading magazines, books, and watching TV, also listening to other rappers music. You get ideas and it helps you mentally with vocab and creativity.

Goldmic: What do you feel are the most important elements in becoming a talented emcee? Are there any you feel are more important than the rest?

The Lyrical Venom: The most important element has to be talent. If you have no talent in music at all, then it's going to be very hard for you to succeed. I'm not saying you can't succeed, but that it's going to be hard.

Goldmic: How do you feel about emceeing online as opposed to performing in front of a crowd? Can it hinder/improve your skills? How so?

The Lyrical Venom: I think emceeing online is much harder then infront of the crowd. You have to come extra sharp. No one wants to read junk, they want to read something thats entertaining. When your in front of a crowd you can do various things that can get attention, online you can't.
It could improve your skills to, it shows you whats right and wrong with your lyrics. It helped me, because when i first started, i sucked.

Goldmic: How would you characterize your style?

The Lyrical Venom: I would have to say my style is hardcore. I like to just bring it, raw, nothing more. I like to make people say "damn!", or "wow!". I like to make my style scary and aggressive.

Goldmic: Every emcee has their "writer's block" moments or occasionally suffer from lack of motivation. Where do you pick up your influences/inspirations?

The Lyrical Venom: I listen to my CD's and other rappers songs. I read books, and magazines and i atleast try to write something or freestyle. thats how i get out of it. If you let it, writer's block will come to yo alot, there for you should always keep you skills sharp by freestyling and writing something alot.

Goldmic: Describe your involment with emceeing outside the net? Do you ever battle/perform in front of an audience or get involved in recording?

The Lyrical Venom: I always perform in front of people. I do record at this studio called The Street Disciples Layer. They can produce and make some good beats. they have nice skills, but with them i see myself going nowhere, but it's good enough for the time being.

Goldmic: In the near future, in what direction do you see yourself taking in terms of emceeing? How serious/dedicated are you?

The Lyrical Venom: I see myself taking it to an higher level of underground. Actually coming out in mix albums, and underground albums. I'm pretty dedicated, but with a girlfriend, work and college all at the same time, it slows you down a little.

Goldmic: Openmic is relatively new and is growing quickly. What do you think about the site and its current members so far?

The Lyrical Venom: I think OM is probably the best site on the net. The members hear are great, not to mention the administration. Members here have skills, some members are good, some need some work, but it's still good.

Goldmic: You will need to defend your title against the winner of the 2nd lyrical tournament. Do you see any worthy opponents with the ability to challenge your supremacy?

The Lyrical Venom: I see worthy opponents in my own crew, Chop and Shoq, but then you have thumbsdown, and Selfless who can still do it. It's going be a good match, but i'm never going doubt myself.

Goldmic: Any closing remarks?

The Lyrical Venom: I will like to thank my crew LAWW for having love and giving me support. I will like to thank the members of this site for keeping it hot and going. And i will like to thank Open Mic for setting this whole thing up, not just for me, but for others on the net.

Goldmic: Thank you and good luck battling!