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Revenge was a dish that fed well for Chamillionaire last year when “The Sound Of Revenge” hit stores and turned out the instant classic “Ridin’ Dirty.” The hit single went on to spawn a host of national and international remixes as well as becoming the top selling ringtone of all time. It was even parodied by Weird Al. That’s when you know you’ve made a great song. This time around, he’s looking to proclaim his victory. Having gotten the taste for revenge out of his mouth, will he still display the same hunger and creativity that made “Sound of Revenge” such a commercial and cultural success? With his new album “Ultimate Victory” slated to hit stores in mid-September, Chamillitary is making sure to keep his name in our mouths until that time arrives. He’s been blazing a red hot trail on the remix circuit and is looking to jump back into the mixtape scene as well. In this interview with HHNLIVE.com’s Derek Phifer, Chamillionaire discusses Slick Rick, The Mixtape Messiah, ringtones over Hip Hop, and more. Take a ride into the heart of Texas as we prepare to look into the mind of one of the brightest young stars in Hip Hop.

Derek Phifer: What’s up man?

Chamillionaire: What up Derek?

DP: Yea, congrats on that Grammy man.

Cham: Yeeeaaaa, good piece of metal to have.

DP: So what’s the name of the new album man?

Cham: The name of the new album is called “Ultimate Victory.” It drops September 18th, and uhh yup.

DP: So is that title meant for anybody in particular?

Cham: Umm, the “Victory” title is just more a continuation you know what I’m sayin’? The last time I got the revenge, this time it’s just about the victory, but the victory this time is realizing what’s important ya nah mean? On my last run everybody was all congratulating me for gettin’ revenge, but really that’s like a bad thing to want, revenge, ya know what I mean, so now you just get to a point where you just start focusing on what’s important, not the nonsense and then that’s when you really win. So that’s why I call it the “Victory.”

DP: Your single “Hip Hop Police,” with Slick Rick, that joint’s crazy. I listened to that today. How’d y’all two end up getting together?

Cham: With Slick it was more like, people was tellin’ me that I wasn’t gonna be able to get him on a song, cause he hasn’t been on no songs and I guess a lot of people was tryin’ to get at him and he just wasn’t doin’ them. That kind of just made me up for the challenge to try to get him ya know what I’m sayin’, because it’s easy for me to do a song and be like, let’s pick whoever’s the hottest person now and just do it like everybody else is doin’, but it’s a whole different thing when you get somebody that ain’t and just create something that’s authentic ya know what I mean? That was my thing when I was talkin’ to him and tryin’ to convince him that I ain’t tryin’ to make him come and do no snap song or no southern type Rap or nothing like that. I want him to do him on the song and I’mma do me and that way it’ll be a perfect match like that. It ended up coming out, I think we executed it well ya know what I’m sayin’ and it’s a conceptual song and when it comes to the art of storytelling, he like one of the pioneers of that, so that’s why I reached out to him and that’s why we did that concept song, but actually my whole album is put together like a concept, like a motion picture from beginning to end and that’s just like a piece to the puzzle ya know?

DP: Right. So who else is on the joint besides Slick Rick?

Cham: On the album we got Slick Rick, we got Lil’ Wayne, we got Pimp C, Devin The Dude, Krayzie Bone, it’s another song with Krayzie Bone again. I actually tried to get all of Bone, but it ended up bein’ just me and Krayzie Bone again and the same producers that produced “Ridin’” last time, so I think people gon’ like that one. I got Lloyd also, and my artist Famous, that’ll be his debut on my album.

DP: I read somewhere that you put out “Hip Hop Police” because y’all didn’t like the reception that “Not A Criminal” got. Is that true?

Cham: Nah, nah, that’s not true. This the first time I’ve actually been done with my album. I’ve never been done with the album before that. When “Not A Criminal” came out, I was probably, not even halfway into the album. At that time I hadn’t even done the R. Kelly joint yet. I think I hadn’t had no features yet or nothing like that, so it’s something like to stay visual I guess, ya know what I’m sayin’? Actually another reason why I dropped this “Mixtape Messiah Part 3” is because people forget about you. If you stay disappeared for a little bit man, their attention spans are so short that they forget about you real quick and then they think about other people, so it’s just to remind them and just stay in they face until September 18, because I know that’s a while away ya know what I’m sayin’?

DP: Yea. So on the DVD, is it just going be you, or are you going to be giving some other dudes some shine, or what?

Cham: Nah, the DVD is really a lot of backstage footage, ya know, it’s just showing a lot of crazy fan stuff, like I got fans that got tattoos with my name on it, on their bodies and stuff like that, crazy shows and behind the scenes footage, studio, just letting the fans get closer to me, because I think nowadays artists got to make a connection with the fans and that‘s the best way. Like, people come up to me in the airport and feel like they know me when they see me. I think it’s because of stuff like that ya know what I’m sayin’, I just give em that, and I’m not even gonna make em pay for it. I’mma give it to em for free online, everywhere, the mixtape and the DVD. The mixtape will be just a whole bunch of freestyles and the DVD will be just the visual.

DP: Right, so do you have any remixes lined up for “Hip Hop Police,” or something? I can easily see Snoop on that track.

Cham: Yea, yea, people have actually said that to me before too. Yea I kind of got things stuck in my mind, but like I said man, this time I'm trying to do something non-traditional, ya know, because people stick to formulas so much man, it’s just like some stuff that you can do a little bit different so this time I’m gonna try and tweak it up when I do this remix thing. I think now, with every record, you expect the record and you expect the remix with the same 3 or 4 people on there ya know what I’m sayin’? So I kind of got some ideas of something that I’m gonna do a little different, but I’mma release that when it’s time.

DP: So you’ve pretty much been killin’ it on everybody’s remix and songs that I’ve been hearing you on lately. Is that your plan for ‘07, to become the king of the remix or something?

Cham: You know what? I try not to get caught up in that type of stuff man. I just try to give people what they ask for if they come get me on the track. I want people to know that Chamillionaire ain’t gonna do nothin’ weak ya know what I’m sayin’? Like, I’ll take it personal if I send a verse to somebody and they just didn’t like it, I’d wanna do it over, but that hasn’t happened yet. I want them to be happy with it and I want the public to be happy with it, especially somebody that’s comin’ to pay me for a remix, cause a lot of times it’s just about songs I like. If I’m really feelin’ the song, it just comes out like that know what I’m sayin’?

DP: Yea. So a lot of rappers now are bragging about the ringtone sales. Is it actually possible for your album to flop, but you’ve got the top selling ringtone? Can you stay alive like that or what?

Cham: Yea, that’s the new hustle right now. There’s some people on the internet that’ll be like, so and so flopped, cause he sold whatever. Man, it depends on what ringtones they sell man. They might be cakin’ more than a lot of these other people ya know what I’m sayin’? Like me, I made a lot of money off of ringtones. To this day, I think “Ridin’ Dirty” is still the biggest selling ringtone. Not 1 song has sold more ringtones than that record, ya understand?

DP: Do you purposely design any of the tracks on your album to sell them as ringtones?

Cham: Ummm, nah, nah. I think what the strength of that record “Ridin’” was is that it was already a big record, but I did so much extra to make that record go the extra distance. People think you talkin’ about the East Coast, West Coast remixes, but I did way more remixes than that. I did international remixes. I had 1 for France, I had 1 for the UK, I had 1 for everywhere ya understand? I had all these different remixes, so I did a lot of stuff to stretch that record out and then that’s why that record became so big ringtone wise and everything ya know? The same thing with this album, whatever records I put out I’m just gonna take em the distance ya know what I’m sayin’? At the time, people was tired of “Ridin’,” but we still kept takin’ it further, and then on top of that Weird Al did a parody to it, like man it just went too far you know what I’m sayin’?

DP: Yea, so who’s the best kept secret in Texas right now? Who’s the next to blow out of there?

Cham: In Texas, I’ma say the next to blow is my artist Famous. I signed a kid from San Antonio named Famous and I’ma give it to him know what I’m sayin’, because it’s one thing to be able to just spit a punch line. You also gotta have a machine, you gotta have a plan, and it’s a lot of people that’s just signed that’s independent and don’t really know how to get into the game man, but business is a big part of this industry right now man. People gotta realize there’s a lot of people that are independent or unsigned and they like complaining because the people on TV, they better than them, but some people just be on they business, they have their business straight. That can do a lot for a person and then if you got talent on top of it, then it’s a wrap. I feel like he got his business straight and he got talent, so people will hear about him soon and he’s on my album “Ultimate Victory” so, September 18th better get that man.

DP: For the people that don’t know, what is Screw music and why do y’all Chop and Screw your stuff down there in Texas?

Cham: Screw music is a culture that started out here in Houston man, DJ Screw created Chopped and Screwed music, and that’s when he kind of takes the music and slows it down, changes the pitch and the tempo. A lot of people would be like, not really understanding it, but um it’s kind of like an acquired taste and out here it’s a way of life, just like Hyphy is in The Bay. All these different forms of music though, I think now it kind of got to where everybody knows about it then you have a choice to like it or not know what I’m sayin’, but people out here in Texas still do.

DP: Excluding your sales numbers and all that, how would you rate yourself on a scale of 1-10 as a lyricist?

Cham: I’d probably say an 8.

DP: Is there any one rapper that’s a 10 or higher?

Cham: Uhh…I say, Jay-Z is probably a 10. Yea I think Jay-Z is a 10. I think Lil’ Wayne right now is a 9 or a 10. I’d say right now they really killin’ it. I know I came from the mixtape, so I know what it takes to get people talking, and punch lines, and get em’ to say all that stuff, but that ain’t really my focus. I’m trying to get people to know that I’m a good song writer. If I wanted to be known as the dopest lyricist, I would release a million mixtapes so people be like man this dude sick, cause some people seen my old work and know what I’m capable of, but I honestly don’t be on that type of stuff. I’m on some grown man stuff tryin’ to show people that I can be here for longevity. The little punch line rappers and stuff man, they don’t make it, because they don’t know how to make no songs. That’s what I’m tryin’ to show people right now you know?

DP: Anything left to say to the people before we wrap up the interview?

Cham: “Ultimate Victory” September 18th, go get it. It’s a very conceptual album, put together like a movie. It’s different, people will love it you know.

Source: HHNLive

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"Cool As AC Cuz The Heat Secure Me"- Bank$ aka The PLK