AllHipHop.com: Around what year was your first beef with Trae; why’d y’all get into it?
Z-Ro: Well, s***, it ain’t never really been no beef; so, I really can’t say beef. Well the first, I’d say, falling out, was whenever Big Moe’s City of Syrup record came out. Big Moe put out “City of Syrup” I was ghostwriting for Moe and D-Gotti was ghostwriting for Moe. That time was when our first misunderstanding came about. I want to say was around ’00 or ’99; like right around that time when Screw was going into the ground and s***.
AllHipHop.com: They say that blood is thicker than water. Along with your cousin, Trae, y’all formed A.B.N.; how do you prevent the business/creative relationship from negatively affecting the family relationship that you have with Trae?
Z-Ro: Well s***, obviously we didn’t. Because, the God’s honest truth is, we are not related at all. Ain’t none of us [are]. Doug is not my brother, Trae is not my cousin, and you know; but, Jay’Ton and Trae are really brothers. But I mean, you know, wasn’t none of us in the Guerilla Maab immediately related, or in the first A.B.N. So, I really look at it like it really couldn’t be no real love there to be fam; because, if it really was, then it would have probably ended up being on some different s***. When we did come together to do a record, we’d come together to do a record and just stay cool long enough to get a record out, and then it’s back to, you know, f*** him, f*** me.
“Rain”
AllHipHop.com: Right now, there’s no plan for future collaborations?
Z-Ro: I don’t know what he would have in mind. But as far as that goes, that’s a closed chapter in my life that’ll never be reopened. Well, you know, I’m focusing on Z-Ro’s career. I’m not real crazy about doing too many records with muthaf***as other than Z-Ro, unless Farris tells me otherwise, or some s*** like that. Nah, that’s some s*** that got too personal. There’s no bad blood between us now; but, we’re both going to hold a grudge until we take our last breath. There are two things in my life that I’m positive about. Number one is I will die one day. And, no, I will never do music with Trae again.
AllHipHop.com: Never is a long time.
Z-Ro: Yeah, it’s a long time; but, bulls*** been happening for a long time. At the end of the day I can really say 75% of the bulls*** didn’t come from him or me. I just probably, you know, woke up a littler earlier than he woke up. It comes a time in your life where you got to stop listening to what the next man is saying. Because, ultimately Trae is a force and Z-Ro is a force. We are hurricanes in this s***; all these other rap n****s are like drizzle storms.
For us to be together is they worst muthaf***ing fear. They really loathe and despise the fact that if ‘Ro and Trae get together, they’re dead again. So, these muthaf***as in our ears; they love when we’re focused on beefing and not making good music. They love it so they can slide in right beneath the both of us and try to take that position from us. But you know, if we really got the talent muthaf***as can’t take the following that we got. The both of us, we got like a cult following. Add A.B.N. together, shit, that’s all his fans and all my fans. S***, that’s like a multitude.
These muthaf***as fear that. They fear the togetherness. So, they’ll come around me like, ‘Say, man, ‘Ro, I heard that n**** Trae said f*** you, he the king of the ghetto.’ And then go around him and be like, ‘Say, Trae, I heard that n**** ‘Ro say f**k you! He the king of the streets.’ And nan one of us said none of that s***. It’s these muthaf***as delivering the messages that’s trying to break the whole situation down, simply so they can eat. Basically, what it is, I’m selling crack, he’s selling crack and these muthaf***as selling some bulls*** crack, and they want to come through and drop dimes on us. Get us to go to jail and get us to kill each other. So when you look up the next month these muthaf***as living in our houses selling the same crack. That’s what all this s*** is about. I just peeped the s*** before he peeped it. That’s why I showed some humility in the situation and I backed all the way off the s***.
“Ain’t no such thing as friends only associates.” - Z-Ro.
http://allhiphop.com/stories/features/archive/2010/12/03/22516353.aspx
Z-Ro: Well, s***, it ain’t never really been no beef; so, I really can’t say beef. Well the first, I’d say, falling out, was whenever Big Moe’s City of Syrup record came out. Big Moe put out “City of Syrup” I was ghostwriting for Moe and D-Gotti was ghostwriting for Moe. That time was when our first misunderstanding came about. I want to say was around ’00 or ’99; like right around that time when Screw was going into the ground and s***.
AllHipHop.com: They say that blood is thicker than water. Along with your cousin, Trae, y’all formed A.B.N.; how do you prevent the business/creative relationship from negatively affecting the family relationship that you have with Trae?
Z-Ro: Well s***, obviously we didn’t. Because, the God’s honest truth is, we are not related at all. Ain’t none of us [are]. Doug is not my brother, Trae is not my cousin, and you know; but, Jay’Ton and Trae are really brothers. But I mean, you know, wasn’t none of us in the Guerilla Maab immediately related, or in the first A.B.N. So, I really look at it like it really couldn’t be no real love there to be fam; because, if it really was, then it would have probably ended up being on some different s***. When we did come together to do a record, we’d come together to do a record and just stay cool long enough to get a record out, and then it’s back to, you know, f*** him, f*** me.
“Rain”
AllHipHop.com: Right now, there’s no plan for future collaborations?
Z-Ro: I don’t know what he would have in mind. But as far as that goes, that’s a closed chapter in my life that’ll never be reopened. Well, you know, I’m focusing on Z-Ro’s career. I’m not real crazy about doing too many records with muthaf***as other than Z-Ro, unless Farris tells me otherwise, or some s*** like that. Nah, that’s some s*** that got too personal. There’s no bad blood between us now; but, we’re both going to hold a grudge until we take our last breath. There are two things in my life that I’m positive about. Number one is I will die one day. And, no, I will never do music with Trae again.
AllHipHop.com: Never is a long time.
Z-Ro: Yeah, it’s a long time; but, bulls*** been happening for a long time. At the end of the day I can really say 75% of the bulls*** didn’t come from him or me. I just probably, you know, woke up a littler earlier than he woke up. It comes a time in your life where you got to stop listening to what the next man is saying. Because, ultimately Trae is a force and Z-Ro is a force. We are hurricanes in this s***; all these other rap n****s are like drizzle storms.
For us to be together is they worst muthaf***ing fear. They really loathe and despise the fact that if ‘Ro and Trae get together, they’re dead again. So, these muthaf***as in our ears; they love when we’re focused on beefing and not making good music. They love it so they can slide in right beneath the both of us and try to take that position from us. But you know, if we really got the talent muthaf***as can’t take the following that we got. The both of us, we got like a cult following. Add A.B.N. together, shit, that’s all his fans and all my fans. S***, that’s like a multitude.
These muthaf***as fear that. They fear the togetherness. So, they’ll come around me like, ‘Say, man, ‘Ro, I heard that n**** Trae said f*** you, he the king of the ghetto.’ And then go around him and be like, ‘Say, Trae, I heard that n**** ‘Ro say f**k you! He the king of the streets.’ And nan one of us said none of that s***. It’s these muthaf***as delivering the messages that’s trying to break the whole situation down, simply so they can eat. Basically, what it is, I’m selling crack, he’s selling crack and these muthaf***as selling some bulls*** crack, and they want to come through and drop dimes on us. Get us to go to jail and get us to kill each other. So when you look up the next month these muthaf***as living in our houses selling the same crack. That’s what all this s*** is about. I just peeped the s*** before he peeped it. That’s why I showed some humility in the situation and I backed all the way off the s***.
“Ain’t no such thing as friends only associates.” - Z-Ro.
http://allhiphop.com/stories/features/archive/2010/12/03/22516353.aspx