Untitled - Janna Carter

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44
Features
42 Lil’ Scrappy
Back to Life
44 Haitians in Hip-Hop
By Robert “Boogie Down” Rosario
Time to Shine
48Fabolous
By B.Boy Omega
Breathe Again
By Jonathan “Gotti” Bonanno
48
Departments
16 Voice Mail
22 Ear to the Street
36 Off the Radar
38 Mic Check
82 Record Report
94 Coast 2 Coast
Columns
32Cash Rules
Home Sweet Home
34Hip-Hop 101
By Catherine Inniss
Black to the Point
By Brian Coleman
52Hip-Hop Behind Bars 3:
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Trail and Error
53 Flesh N Bone
When Thugs Cry
By George Skoutakis
56 Mysonne
Redemption
By Bill Heinzelman
58 Royce Da 5’9
Ink is my Drink
By Jerry L. Barrow
60 Where are they now?
By The Mind Squad
Hip-Hop Behind Bars 3
Hip-Hop Behind Bars 3:
Trial and Error
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Yes, this package is back, but we wish it
wasn’t. It’s not fun witnessing and chronicling some of Hip-Hop’s brightest going to
prison, yet it is a reality that can’t be ignored.
Though we highlight some notable cases of
rappers getting locked-up or cases still being
reviewed, there are still some bright spots (see
Royce Da 5’9, Flesh N Bone and Mysonne).
However, for every couple of rappers that get a
break or get release due social and banking
status, there are tens of thousands of faceless
young man and women who enter the criminal
justice system with little hope of being freed
from its social and legal shackle. And when
you read the first-hand accounts from prisoner,
Omar Broadway, and his courageous archival
footage of the inhumane conditions suffered
by general population, it will literally “scare
you straight.”
So submerge that ego and open
your eyes to the real.
When Thugs Cry
It’s been six years since Bone Thugs N
Harmony member Flesh N Bone has seen
freedom. In this exclusive interview with
The Source, Flesh shares his new outlook on
life, the lessons he learned… and his urge to
get back in the booth.
By George Skoutakis
www.TheSource.com
Six feet by nine feet by 10 years. Six years
deep, Flesh N Bone has spent the better part
of the new millennium with his body, and his
words, locked away in this tiny cell.
On September 22, 2000 Stanley “Flesh N
Bone” Howse was sentenced to ten years in
prison for assault with an AK-47 rifle and
possessing a gun. The judge called it a lenient
sentence, claiming Flesh’s upbringing was the
worst case of child abuse she had heard
about since becoming a judge. Since his
incarceration numerous publications, including The Source, have run a number of articles
chronicling other rappers’ journeys in and
out of prison. For reasons unknown, Flesh’s
story has yet to be told.
Now the Cleveland-born rapper has found
inner peace. He’s come to grips with what
he’s done and is poised to take a second run
at life.
As member of the multi-platinum group
Bone Thugs N Harmony, Flesh was able to
touch millions worldwide with his music.
Like his Bone brethren, his clever street
tales mixed perfectly with his harmonic
delivery – leaving fans wondering exactly
what made this mysterious rapper tick.
Unfortunately for them, Flesh’s words have
been locked up, along with his physical
being since the turn of the century.
Now, Stanley Howse’s words have broken
through the walls of his California penitentiary.
“As of right now I have about 15 months left
before I parole. If there is ever anything good to
receive or benefit out of doing prison time, then
I truly have attained that plus more,” says
Flesh in a letter. “The caliber of man I am today
is running circles around that dude I was
before my incarceration.”
When writing to The Source, it was
obvious Flesh has come a long way since the
day he was sentenced. His words are carefully
crafted and his vocabulary is impressive. As
he explains, this was hardly the case over
six years ago. “It was a complete emotional
hell,” he writes. “I was really trying hard to
keep my composure… my mind and heart
was plagued with anxiety.”
One thing that made it especially tough
for Flesh to deal with was the fact he was
only two weeks away from being off parole
from his previous offence when he caught
another case. In essence, a matter of two
weeks cost the rapper years behind bars. “I
did that and it placed me in a whole other
world of shit,” says Flesh. “Just when
greater blessings were coming my way, I
fucked them up and let myself, my family,
my friends and my fans down.”
At the time, Flesh was not only dealing
with the guilt of disappointing those close to
him, he was also battling a drug addiction
that knocked him chemically off balance.
Due to the drugs, Flesh was rendered
psychologically unstable. Through it all, he
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Hip-Hop Behind Bars 3
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was still able to remain positive. “I always has been there through every one of his
remained optimistic that the doors of oppor- brother’s cases. “It was like the world was
tunity are always open,” he explains. “My coming to an end, I lost my better half,” says
faith in God grew stronger and I believed Layzie. “When they took my brother, that
then he would allow me to redeem was like taking a piece of me, that day was
myself and rise even higher than anyone devastating for my whole family.” Layzie
could ever imagine.”
Nobody knows more
about Flesh’s struggles There were some times I would just fall completely
than his brother, fellow out of focus. I put [Bone] through a lot of shit
Bone Thugs N Harmony because I would experience my problems mentally
member, Layzie Bone.
Born just 18 months during that time.
after Flesh, Layzie
was expecting a lengthy sentence for Flesh
back in 2000, but what he wasn’t expecting
was the rush of emotions he was going to
experience when the judge ruled.
Layzie looks back to 1994, the year Bone
Thugs N Harmony burst onto the national
scene, as the beginning of Flesh’s serious
troubles. While the rest of the group was
enjoying their new found superstar status,
Flesh kept to himself, letting the pressure of
fame, and his run-ins with the law build up.
“He probably wasn’t as open as everybody
else because he was dealing with more
things back then,” says Layzie. “He was
catching case after case and dealing with
that pressure of fame.”
“There were some times I would just fall
completely out of focus,” write Flesh
acknowledging the fact that all the pressure
became too much for him to handle mentally.
“I put [Bone] through a lot of shit because I
would experience my problems mentally
during that time.”
With Flesh spending a good part of the
‘90s in and out of jail, fans mostly knew
Bone Thugs as a four-man unit. Although
Flesh wasn’t always around for video and
photo shoots, his brother Layzie says his
value to the group was immeasurable. “He
could always talk to everybody and had the
words to keep everyone together, you could
say he was the glue,” says Layzie. “He was
more authoritative than everyone else. It
was just a respect level for Flesh because he
always handled his business.” The new
millennium would prove just how valuable
Flesh really was as the group, including
Bizzy Bone, never really was able to stay
together for long.
With all the turmoil and uncertainty
surrounding the group, Bone found them-
selves in the toughest position of the careers.
After the group released the 2002 album
Thug World Order, they were free to leave
Ruthless Records and find another hoe.
BTNH was expecting major labels to line up
and sign the multi-platinum selling group,
but according to long time manager Steve
Lobel, that was hardly the case. “Their
reputation as a group has gotten so terrible
that nobody wanted to deal with them,” says
Lobel. “That was a rude awakening.”
For the next few years BTNH was
essentially left out in the cold for the first time
in over a decade. Lobel aimed to help change
the perception of the crew, taking them on the
road as a touring group in hopes of proving they
could again be a reliable asset.
Since his incarceration, Flesh has kept up
wit the dealings of Bone Thugs and agrees
with his brother’s assessment, both on a
personal and professional level. “I’m what
you can call Bone Thugs N Harmony’s older
and bigger brother,” says Flesh. “I have a
special and unique relationship with each and
every one of them. Even in the face of my own
personal problems, I tried real damn hard to
keep Bone focused on being professional like a
big brother is supposed to.”
Group member Krayzie Bone also witnessed
Flesh’s story and the group unfold. Krazyie
acknowledges the importance of the group
coming together as a five, but says since its
impossible right now, it’s up to the remaining
three members to keep the Bone brand
strong. “We’re all hopeful we can all come
back together one day,” says Krayzie. “We all
go way back and this music shouldn’t come
between that.”
A New Day
www.TheSource.com
One of Flesh’s main goals when he
is released is to get Bone Thugs back,
completely. “The thing is now mental
problems are not an issue with me, thank
God,” conveys Flesh. “I’m better prepared to
work and fight real hard to keep Bone Thugs
N Harmony a five man unit. Now why
shouldn’t that be the case?”
It was then that one of Hip-Hop’s hottest
producers stepped up to breathe new life
into the group. After a 4 a.m. meeting with
Lobel, Swizz Beats decided he wanted to
hear what the group had left in the tank.
Krayzie, Wish and Layzie immediately
began laying down vocals, and in a matter of
days, eight tracts had been completed.
Initially Swizz hoped former member Bizzy
Bone would be a part of the project, but his
constant absence led the group to keep moving
forward without the eccentric rapper.
According to Swizz, Flesh will be featured
on Bone’s new album Strength and Loyalty.
He also made it clear Flesh is welcome to
join the situation they have created at Full
Surface Records once he’s released. The
producer fully expects the rapper to be at the
top of his game once he hits the studio.
“When people come out of jail they want it so
bad, and want to prove to the world they
haven’t lost it,” says Swizz. “I believe Flesh
is going to do just that.”
Flesh intends on showing not only Swizz,
but the rest of the rap world, what they’ve
been missing. “Today’s Flesh N Bone makes
the old Flesh look like an amateur,” he says
of himself. “Not only have I not missed a
beat, I have stepped my game up while being
in here. I can’t wait until you all can behold
a dose of what I’m making.”
With Flesh’s time behind bars winding
down, he has been moved to another prison,
and his plans for when he’s released have
been put into overdrive. He’s got about 15
months before he can walk the world a free
man once again. Although his rapping is of
primary concern to his fans, Flesh has a few
more pressing issues he would like to take
care of before he gets back into the studio. “I
want to get my children together and take
them some place nice,” he says. “It’s going to
be a brand new life for us.”
Layzie Bone has envisioned the day he
and his brother would be re-united for ears.
“Whatever’s the hottest shit out, Maybach or
Double R, we’re going to be right there to
pick him up,” says an excited Layzie. “He’s
going to have his own studio to go into right
after I take him to the new mansion. He’s going
to touch down to the finest of the finest.”
With a solid team behind him, and a
major label release on the horizon, there is
no doubt Flesh will have every material good he’ll
need when he’s released. More importantly, he
will return home with something much more
valuable, peace of mind and a second chance
at life.t
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