WHAT'S POPPIN' PEOPLE?
BEFORE YOU LISTEN TO THIS OVER 16 YEAR OLD ALBUM, I'D LIKE TO TYPE A FEW WORDS AT YOU IF YOU DON'T MIND. FIRST OFF TO ANYONE READING THIS, ALLOW ME TO SAY THANKS FOR THE SUPPORT AND INTEREST. A LOT OF PEOPLE HAVE BEEN ASKING ME WHEN I WILL GET BACK TO MAKING NEW MUSIC AND HOPEFULLY THAT WILL HAPPEN SOMEDAY SOON, NO PROMISES THO.

UNTIL THEN LETS GO BACK, WAY BACK. BACK TO WHERE IT ALL STARTED-
OVER 300 SONGS. 10 ALBUMS. MANY MIXTAPES DOZENS OF FEATURES AND A MILLION IDEAS AGO. BACK TO THE FIRST PROJECT THAT I EVER STARTED WORKING ON. BEFORE THIS, ALL I HAD EVER DONE WAS FREESTYLE RAP, BATTLE IN THE PIT, AND MAKE A FEW TAPES OF ME RAPPING OVER INSTRUMENTALS ON A KARAOKE MACHINE.
THIS WAS BEFORE EVERYONE HAD A HOME STUDIO. CD BURNERS COST THOUSANDS AND BLANK CD'S WERE RARE. THIS WAS BEFORE I EVER STEPPED ON A STAGE, ALTHOUGH THIS ALBUM WOULD SOON PUT ME IN THE STUDIO AND ON THE STAGE.

THE YEAR IS 2000.WELL, SOME OF 1999 TOO, BUT ALL OF Y2K. THE YEAR EVERYTHING AND NOTHING HAPPENED...

I USED TO LIVE DOWN THE STREET FROM DONALD BROWN JR AKA MI$TA ENZ, SON OF A JAZZ MUSIC LEGEND WHO HAD A SMALL RECORDING STUDIO IN HIS BASEMENT AND INSTRUMENTS ALL OVER THE REST OF THE HOUSE. HIS ENTIRE FAMILY PLAYED AN ASSORMENT OF MUSIC ON A DAILY BASIS. HE WAS YOUNGER THAN ME BUT QUICKLY GAINING NOTORIETY AS A LOCAL PRODUCER AND RAPPER. THE WHOLE FAMILY WAS TALENTED, IT WAS AMAZING TO BE IN THAT HOUSE!

I USED TO RAP AND FREESTYLE IN SCHOOL AND SOMETIMES WE WOULD GET LUCKY ENOUGH THAT WE COULD USE THE STUDIO AT HIS HOUSE AFTER SCHOOL TO RECORD OUR RAP SONGS ON AN OLD 4 TRACK. THEN I DROPPED OUT OF SCHOOL AND THINGS GOT MORE SERIOUS IN REAL LIFE, AND MUSICALLY TOO. DURING MY DROPOUT STAGE, ENZ AND HIS BROTHERS HAD INVESTED IN EQUIPMENT, BUILT THEM A STUDIO AND NAMED IT OZONE STUDIOS.
IT WOULD BECOME MY GO-TO STUDIO FOR YEARS.
(SIDENOTE: IT WOULD ALSO BE THE REASON THAT I GOT MY OWN STUDIO IN THE FUTURE)

I MET ERIC GRAY AKA TALLSON AROUND THAT YEAR, IN AN APARTMENT COMPLEX ON THE WEST SIDE. HE WAS FROM MIDDLE TENNESSEE AND NEW TO THE TOWN. I STARTED RUNNING AROUND THE APARTMENTS WITH A MEMBER OF HIS WIFE'S FAMILY THAT WAS LIVING WITH THEM TEMPORARILY.THAT'S HOW WE CROSSED PATHS- HIS WIFE'S FAM INTRODUCED US AND TOLD HIM I COULD RAP. HE WAS OLDER THAN I WAS. ONE DAY WE STARTED RAPPING VERSES BACK AND FORTH. HE SEEMED TO THINK I WAS DECENT AND I WAS EVEN NERVOUS GOING BAR FOR BAR WITH THIS 6 FOOT 6 DREADLOCKED BEHEMOTH- HENCE THE NAME- TALLSON. IT SOON EVOVLED INTO US WRITING SONGS AND EVENTUALLY MAKING THIS ALBUM TOGETHER. HE BECAME SOMEWHAT OF A MENTOR TO ME, ALWAYS REASSURING ME THAT I COULD DO THIS. HIS WIFE ONCE TOLD ME SHE HONESTLY THOUGHT I WAS BETTER THAN EMINEM! I FELT 6 FOOT 6 AFTER THAT LOL.

ANYWHO,
TALLSON AND MENACE
(WHICH WAS MY RAP NAME UNTIL SON CONVINCED ME TO CHANGE IT TO CANNON - WE WERE ALREADY MIDWAY THROUGH THE ALBUM TOO LOL!)
BECAME THE TERRIBLY NAMED AND EQUALLY TERRIBLY SPELLED DUO "DEZPERADOZ" AND TOOK OUR SONGS TO ENZ CRIB TO TRY AND RECORD THE PROJECT. TALLSON WOULD GO ON TO DO MANY MORE PROJECTS WITH MI$TA ENZ OVER THE YEARS, UNTIL HE RITIRED FROM RAP COMPLETELY.
(SIDENOTE: IT IS SAID THAT MAYBE TALLSON WOULD NOT KNOW AN ESTIMATED 75% OF THE PEOPLE HE KNOWS IN KNOXVILLE IF HE HADN'T MET MENACE LMAO)

ANYWAY.
THIS ALBUM IS AN AMALGAMATION OF THESE THINGS.

DON'T EXPECT GREATNESS.
I WAS 17 YEARS YOUNG WITH RAW TALENT. -E.G. WAS FRESH OUT AND I DON'T THINK HE HAD EVER RECORDED BEFORE. WE DIDN'T KNOW WHAT WE WERE DOING, BUT WE DID IT ANYWAY.
THE QUALITY IS ROUGH AND ALL OVER THE PLACE. THERE ARE MANY TECHNICAL ERRORS. THERE ARE PLENTY OF GLARING MISTAKES. THERE ARE BEATS THAT DON'T MAKE SENSE, HELL, THERE ARE WORDS THAT AREN'T EVEN REAL WORDS ON HERE.
THE BOTTOM LINE IS: IT'S NOT NEAR PERFECT.
IT'S NOT EVEN THE FINISHED PRODUCT WE WANTED, BUT IT'S WHAT WE ENDED UP WITH, AND TO THIS DAY IN MY MIND I'D LIKE TO THINK IT IS CONSIDERED A VALIANT EFFORT, MAYBE EVEN A LOCAL CLASSIC.
ALTHOUGH I DON'T THINK IT HAS WITHSTOOD THE TEST OF TIME, AND NO DOUBT I'VE MADE MANY ALBUMS IN MY CAREER THAT ARE WAY BETTER THAN THIS...

NONE OF THEM WERE MY FIRST.
ON SOME HISTORIC SHIT TAKE THIS TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANE WITH ME.

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CANNON