Who are the Internet Psychos?

  I have seen a growing and stupiud trend in the underground, mostly Juggalo, fan base lately.  That is to post surveys like "If you were on a psycho killing spree what song would you be playing?" or "Do you prefer knife, hatchet, or gun?"  Here is my take on any and every single person who posts or answers these surveys, if confronted with the possibility of actually killing someone a vast majority (98+ %) would not have the guts to do it.  I am sick and tired of these people thinking you have to act or claim to be a psycho killer because you listen to our music!  If you listen to the music and dig it, that is great.  But if you honestly think any of the lyrics that ICP, Twiztid, etc have in a song is actually anything they have ever done you are a complete moron!  Their music is entertainment.  Nothing more and nothing less.

 For me the music is a way to release certain emotions that I have no other outlet for.  It helps me battle anger and depression.  It has helped me through so much and these kinds of displays do nothing but devalue the music and what it helps people through.  It also helps the outside world to say "See they are all degenerates."  That is why when we have shows and Gatherings the cops are always there and in some cases shut it down.  In life peoples first impression can make or break what they think of an entire group of people.  Why would we as a fringe group want to further push that negative image?

  ICP and Psychopathic have done a lot recently to help change that perception.  With toy drives and other charity events they are showing us what we need to do to help fix the FBI and gang label problem.  Why is it that they get mocked and made fun of for doing it?  People say they are getting soft or bitching out, I disagree.  They couldn't be any better an example for the fans to follow.  There is nothing wrong with being a socially responsible person in society.  People will never look at our fan base any differently unless we give them something different to look at. 

  Don't get me wrong there are a ton of groups in local communities that are doing good work and trying to make positive changes.  But if you go on Facebook and browse through Juggalo groups you will find a large population of these "Internet Psychos" and that is what some people see first.  I personally try very hard to change peoples ideas when I am in public.  I don't flip off cops and yell fuck the police.  I wear the hatchet proud while acting like a productive citizen.  You know how many times I have been harassed or arrested for wearing the clothes or chain?  Not once.  The cops have so many other things to be concerned with that what someone is wearing or listening to on their iPod makes no difference.  If you do the things I said then you more than likely will get hassled.  If you draw attention to yourself no matter what you have on you will be harassed, period.

  When it comes down to it the fact is we are the ones making us look bad.  We are the ones continuing to make people think negative of us.  We are the ones who can ultimately change these things.  As a united group we need to do the right things, act like productive citizens, and try our best to improve our communities.  Until we do those things all anyone will see is a bunch of "Internet Psychos."


MMFWFL,

Juggalotus

Juggalo Family?

So this is my first post of 2014.  The reason behind this is simple, I have been busy working music reviews over at Faygoluvers!  I have tried to post at least one per week and for the most part have done well with it.  Now lets get to the crux of this post and why now is the time for it to get posted, Juggalo family.

For those who don't know I was introduced to ICP back in 1997 shortly after Milenko was pulled from the shelves.  I knew from the first track I heard that I was a Juggalo.  It wasnt something I learned, became, took a test for, or any of that.  When I heard the songs I knew I had been a Juggalo all along.  I felt a sense of belonging.  I found a group of people just like me.  We don't fit in with other people.  We are outcasts.  We don't apologize for who we are.  When I would go to shows I would feel like I was home.  Everyone treated everyone else with respect.  Regardless of our social class or background, if you had any merch on, or anything.  We didn't need a list of rules.  We didn't call ourselves gang bangers.  We didn't cause havoc, tag shit, or destroy property.  We managed to go to shows and have a blast without cops harassing us.  We could hold a Gathering every year without worry of people dying, FBI showing up, or someone getting robbed.  Well things have changed greatly in the past 17 years.

I am a member of quite a few groups on Facebook that contain "old school" and "Kid" Juggalos.  More and more I am seeing a division in our group.  Things are popping up like the 13 Juggalo Commandments, Juggalo code, etc.  A lot of people think unless you know these by heart and follow them religiously you are not a Juggalo and thus not Family.  This is complete crap.  There is also a group of people that believe we are in a gang because of songs like Gang Related and groups like Psychopathic Rydas.  These people also miss the point.  The music we listen to is ENTERTAINMENT!  Nothing more, nothing less.  The Psychopathic Rydas are a group that rips off other rappers beats and puts their own lyrics on them.  Once again, entertainment. 

For the longest time I was not willing to call out these new school family.  I was hoping they would fade away when the novelty of being a "Juggalo" wore off.  Unfortunately that is not happening.  There are people out there that think old school los and lettes have a mandatory requirement to train the new school on how to be a Juggalo.  This also is crap.  No one ever told me how to be a Juggalo.  I never had to learn rules and follow trends.  When I heard the music I knew I had been a Juggalo all along.  For anyone who has called someone a Juggahoe for not knowing all the lyrics to every song, not wearing all the merch, or not paining up for the shows let me clarify something.  You are the one who is wrong.  Being a Juggalo isn't about all of that.  It is about knowing no matter where you go there will be people looking out for you.  When you go to a show you don't have to worry about being robbed, beaten, or killed.  We have a sense of right and wrong and we always look out for each other. 

Family is Family, period.  No matter how "down" someone is or isn't if they support the movement they are family in my book. 

We need to stop the in fighting.  The world hates us enough without us making it worse.  When we go to the Gathering we should not destroy everything we touch.  We should take care of the site, each other, and the towns that welcome us (Because they are getting fewer every year).  We saw this years Gathering have to be moved after it was announced because the community didn't want "Gang members" in their town.  The same town that welcomes Hells Angels every year didn't want Juggalos.  Let that sink in.  The Hells Angels.  A murderous biker gang.  Notorious for murder, rape, and many other things is more welcome than us.  Why is that?  Simple, they respect other people and try to make positive changes in communities that welcome them in.  Why can't we be the same way?  One reason, the new school has embraced the gang tag, cause problems, and make no effort to improve anything. 

Instead of us against the world and us against us we should embrace positivity.  Make positive changes.  Make an effort to change our community and help them understand we are just fans of a certain type of music.  Nothing more.  We need to stop destroying shit.  Stop saying Fuck the police every time you see a cop roll by.  Stop trying to make a statement.  Once we embrace the positive we will see positive in return.  In the most recent interview on Faygoluvers with ICP Joe Bruce said "When Twiztid left that was the end of the family era."  I couldn't agree more. 

I do expect a ton of hate for this post and I welcome any discussion you want to throw at me.  I love the Juggalo Family.  I want my kids and grand kids to bump the wicked shit if they choose.  I want to see Gatherings happening when I am an old man.  I do think without change we will become a dying breed.

MMFWFL,

Juggalotus

The fine line between business and friendship

Anyone in this business knows that we all take our steps into this business with friends usually.  We find our lifelong friends or people we grow to know as friends and make our way into music together.  Most of the time the line between friendship and business is hard to distinguish.  Most people are unable to separate the decisions made for the benefit of the group or business from personal feelings if things don't work out.  This is the case for Black Project and I today. 

I am not going to dive into great detail but will say that some business I had outside of the group has been rough.  I had trusted friends to let me vent when things were not going the best.  Due to this my friend felt the need to approach the other party in that other business.  I talked with that party last night and let them know I wasn't happy my friend took it upon himself to write and get into business that wasn't his own, even though I understood he was just trying to look out for me as a friend.  This whole series of events led to a huge disagreement between them.  I refused to take sides and in the end Black Project felt by me not taking sides I was not taking their side.  Then made the decision to not keep me as their manager.

While I did not want that to happen I cannot stop them from making that decision.  So I made a public announcement stating that they were released from Wicked Butterfly Entertainment due to professional disagreements, because to me that is what it is.  I have nothing but respect for Black Project and wish them the best in all they do in the future.  I have at every turn put my own money up to pay for studio time, demo pressing, and other expenses and allowed them to pay me back at their leisure.  I never pressed them to get me the money back immediately as I understood their circumstances.  I have taken a lot of my time, energy, and finances to help them be successful.  In return today one of them went on a twenty minute rant saying I did nothing for them, held them back, and hurt their career.  I am really sorry he feels this way as this is the first time I have heard they were not happy.  Our management contract was a six month contract the ended officially at the beginning of January and I have not pressed them to renew it, so I have been providing my services for nothing but our friendship.  I have put up my own funds in this time to mix and master tracks for them to have for shows they had coming up.

I cannot change how anyone feels but I can say that I have acted in a professional manner in the best interest of Black Project for over a year.  I have gained absolutely nothing for myself financially.  At this point I have lost money I have put into the group. 

I will not ever attack them personally as I have no issue with them on the personal side of things.  Business wise I am upset they feel like I screwed them over but once again I will not say anything negative about them.  Part of being in business is understanding that not every bad thing that happens is personal.  Sometimes people are mad because that line gets crossed.  Sometimes people involve themselves in dealing that they have no involvement in except to be a friend to one or more of the parties.

It is a hard lesson for people to learn or see happen and I wish nothing but the best for my homies in Black Project.  I am always here if they need advice or to vent as unlikely as that may be.

Keep business as business and friends as friends.  Make sure you don't blur the lines and think business decisions are anything but just that.

MMFWFL,

Juggalotus

What would you do?

  I recently reviewed the newest CD released by Kansas City rapper Irv Da Phenom for Faygoluvers.  The review was favorable and quite different from any other CD I have reviewed up til now.  For those that don't know Irv Da Phenom is a more mainstream rapper who recently went out on the road with Horrorcore legend Mars from California.  He has done a lot of work with many artists such as Tech N9ne, Krizz Kaliko, and Kutt Calhoun.  His album was very well written and lyrically on top of the game.  So I posted the review and sent the links to all the Facebook pages I am a part of and also posted it to Irv's Facebook page and ensured he got the link as well.  Yesterday he posted this on his page:

"Hey! The guys over at Faygoluvers reviewed Irv Da Phenom's new album ‎Los Kangeles.

Leave your thoughts in the comments below.

Do you agree with this review? Do you disagree? With everything leaking early now days & being streamed before release do you even feel album reviews are still important?"


Shortly after it was posted someone responded with this:

"With a site called "FaygoLuvers" and a reviewer named "Juggalotus", I can't take any of this seriously."

I found this response odd for two reasons.  First if an artist I liked took the time to post a review of their album I wouldn't really care what the name of the site or reviewer was I would go check it out and answer the original question asked by the artist "Do you agree with this review? Do you disagree? With everything leaking early now days & being streamed before release do you even feel album reviews are still important?"

Second, why would someone choose to not only ignore the review but then criticize the reviewer without seeing if the guy knew what he was talking about based simply on the name of the site or reviewer?

So I guess this blog is asking all of you who read this blog this question Would you go read the review if a favorite artist of yours posted it?  Would you not go to the link based solely on the site name or reviewer name?  And I would also like to know your thoughts on Irv's original question are album reviews still important?

I personally would go check out any album review posted by a favorite artist of mine because I welcome all opinions and feel they can broaden my perspective on music.  I would never not go to a site based on the name or reviewer name.  and yes I do think album reviews are important not only for the fans but also the musicians.  Musicians can take the positives and the negatives and improve what they do.

So this is a short post but I would really like to get some feedback from you guys!

MMFWFL,

Juggalotus

Friends are friends and Business is business

  Over the past few days I have had a few conversations that bring this point to light.  The first was with one of my friends.  We had a disagreement about how some business should be handled.  While discussing business we both got annoyed and aggrivated with the other person.  This led to us not discussing the problem but getting into stuff that had little to do with the actual issues.  After some time I made the point that he is my homie but business is business.  That made something click in my head.

  Then a day or so later another friend of mine was discussing some concerns he had about a member of their group.  The basics are this, his life is falling apart.  His girl left him, he lost his job, etc.  The problem is that this group has a lot of offers on the table which do not include this member.  My friend was having a hard time cutting him out and I completely understand this.  He didn't want to make the guys life worse but if he didn't let him out of the group the whole group would suffer.  My advice was simple, friends are friends and business is business, you have to do whats best for the group and have concern for your friend outside of that.

So why am I dedicating an enitre blog to such a simple concept?  Well most people have a very difficult time making that distinction and it leads to a lot of hate, animosity, and ill feelings.  I also got an awesome shout out on twitter for this blog and feel like maybe some people in the business are listening to me and agreeing with some of what I am putting out there.  That being said I have experiences I am trying to share to make the underground movement better and want to reach as many people as I can.

With my military background we were trained to make the seperation of work and personal.  In this business that distinction is not always so clear.  Most rappers grew up with the guys they work with.  Most know all of the dirty laundry of the other and vice versa.  Most cannot seperate their personal crap from the business.  And that is what this is a business.  Not a hobby.  Not something to do in your spare time.  Not something you can commit to half heartedly.  This is a business and is here to make money.  Once you let personal feelings get involved in business you fail.  Because at that point you spend more time and energy spreading crap online, in venues, to other people than you do on your product.  A lot of guys find themselves getting arrested and put in jail cause they cannot stop the hate toward the other person, even if it means they lose money and freedom to do it.  BUt in the end their point may be proven but their talents go to waste.

Most of us know what happened to Wicked Wayz.  That is a prime example of what I am talking about.  The personal feelings caused us to lose a talented rapper to gun violence and another to prison.  Not the way any of them wanted it to turn out.

So I will end this post by saying quite simply Friends are Friends and business is business.  If you cannot make that seperation you might want to look at working with other people and leaving your homies out of the business.  Please take time to show love to your friends and respect to the business.  It will benefit us all in the end.

MMFWFL,

Juggalotus

Hottest rapper in the city of.......

  The underground rap world is flooded with different cliques, different cities, and different views of "how" this game is played.  This has become an epidemic that is eventually going to kill our movement.  As a group we all should understand that we should be united against those trying to shut down what we are doing.  The "Mainstream" is never going to understand what we are doing.  Should that make us hate them?  Should that make us take focus off of what we are doing to "make a statement?"  If you answered no, congratulations you got the right answer.  If you did answer no then why should what anyone else is doing in the underground affect what we do as musicians, producers, and promoters?  You might be asking why I am dedicating an entire blog to something that should be common sense.  Well the answer is simple, I see a problem and if someone doesn't speak up then we all will fail.

Here is the problem:  We are so busy fighting amongst ourselves and fighting against the mainstream we are failing to protect ourselves from being taken advantage of.  By this I mean in most cities you have two groups, the underground rappers and the mainstream rappers.  Both of these groups proclaim to be the greatest thing in the game in their perspective city.  Both claim the other side is horrible.  Both claim to be "Making it" yet neither is.  Both sides are so focused on the next diss track, the next thing to point their finger at and say look how horrible they are, and the next way to prove how great they are.

My solution is simple, stop focusing on everyone else and focus on what is important, the music!  Sound easy enough?  Then why is it not happening?  Well I am going to break down each part of our industry Rappers, Managers, Promoters, and Producers.

Rappers:  If you fall into this category you should be focused on making the best music you possibly can, period.  From writing to recording, to performing you are the face of your brand.  If your focus is on managing, merch, setting up shows, etc. you are going to fail.  No one can do all of that and still make great music.  You should hire a manager you trust.  Someone who can take those responsibilities and make decisions that are best for you as a solo or group act.  By "hiring" the right person you can focus entirely on making your music better.  Yes it will cost you between 8-12% in most cases (if they take more than that you are getting ripped off)  But hiring the right person will make you more money in the long run because the more money you make the more money they make.  The next thing you need to focus on is recording.  There is no shame in going to a professional studio to record or mix and master your music.  The money you put into your product will directly reflect the benefits you get back.  If you invest nothing and record in your basement your product is not good enough to make people want to buy your product.  Believe me when I say I have worked with many people who found this out because I required them to go to a pro studio.  Yes I found a place where cost vs quality was a great deal, thats what a good manager does.

Managers:  Your focus should be on making deals that benefit your acts, not yourself.  If you focus entirely on you then your acts suffer.  You should be dedicating your time to finding better costs for recording, finding more shows to showcase their talent outside of your city, sending out demos to labels and businesses for promotion and/or contracts and reaching out to other artists for collabs.  All of these things will expose your act to a broader audience and gain them noteriety in a much larger base.  Once the deals come in you will start making money.  The one thing you shouldn't do is rape your artists finances.  Yes they are responsible to pay the costs for recording, travel and merch at first, but working this right can allow them to get paid in time and have those costs covered by other companies who sponsor your groups.  The last two things any great manager should have is integrity and honesty.  These two things will make you a valuable asset to any rapper.

Promoters:  If you follow my blog you will know that this section of the business pisses me off more than any other.  This is due to my experience with these people.  The main problem I see in this field is charging artists for timeslots on shows.  I see no problem with requiring an artist to say purchase a certain number of tickets from you directly and then in turn when they sell them they get their money back.  Doing this it does not hurt you in any way.  You are still getting money for the tickets and the responsibility to get them sold falls onto the artist.  You should not be charging $250-400 to someone who is strapped for cash to lock in a 12-15 min slot on your show.  This has been a huge epidemic in our industry.  Artists think that they have to pay these fees to play, this is WRONG.  I do understand you have to make money and have people at your shows.  By giving the artist a cut of the ticket sales they become motivated to sell more tickets.  If they can just pay $200 for a slot what is their motivation to get people in the door?  This now becomes your problem.  They don't care if people are there or not.  By making them invest in the show they will fell more responsible if no one shows up.  They will lose money that they could have made.  This is huge motivation that will improve the attendance in your show.

Producers:  It is ok to charge rappers to record and mix and master.  The problem is if your equipment is low end your end product is low end.  Invest in quality mics and software so the product coming out of your studio will be better received and make people want to buy it.  The more quality recordings you send out the more people are going to come to you and spend money.  Much like the rappers I feel like the money you invest in your studio directly impacts the money you get back in profit.

If you have read through all of this please understand I love this business.  That is exactly what this is, a business.  If you don't look at it as a business you will fail. Leave the street tactics out of the business.  If your focus is not entirely on these things you will be spinning your wheels and getting nowhere.  Rappers need to stop worrying about everyone else.  Managers need to be concerned with making their acts money.  Promoters need to stop making all their money back off the opening acts and learn how to properly and honestly make the money.  Producers need to be reasonable in the amount they charge.  If we all focus on these things we will be successful.  And success is the best revenge to those haters we all have.  If you have haters you are doing something right, don't let their crap stop you.

I have nothing but love for the underground and the movement we are a part of.  I am not an expert by any means but all of these things I speak on are from experience.

MMFWFL,

Juggalotus

I guess I should apologize....

  I have heard some very good feedback about this blog I have going.  I have heard things like " bout time somebody can be completely honest bout the fucked up business thats goin on in the area" and "Props to this killaz for always speaking his mind. Whoop! Whoop!" I can tell you it is so nice to hear feedback like that.  But of course there is also the other side of the coin.  I have been told that some people are saying the "things he writes are him trying to start beef with everyone" and other statements along those lines.  So this post is in response to those who feel that way.  Here we go!

First I write the blog for me.  Am I happy other people check it out, for sure.  But first and foremost it is my way of keeping track of all the shows I go to, participate in, and help with.  This allows me as a business owner to make better decisions on who I work with in any city.  This allows me to log an artists growth as I see them perform more often.  I have several artists that I have signed to manage based on these methods of doing business.

Second, I make it a point not to call out venues, promoters, bookers, etc by name as to not drag their name through the mud.  I intentionally leave peoples names out of it because those I am referring to know who they are by the show!  If you are in that category and I have offended you I am not going to apologize, there is no need for that.  I write an honest blog based on what I see happening at the shows.  Of course I don't know how much time anyone has put into the promotion and other things but I have not seen any promo being done outside of certain social media sites.  I have also spoken with some people who have told me things in confidence which I don't include in the blog but definitely take into consideration when writing about these things.

Third is to the artists.  I have absolutely no ill will in writing a negative review of your show.  If you didn't do well take the criticism as just that.  Make changes if you want to.  Don't make changes if you don't want to.  All I can do is give my best most honest review of your performance that night.  As some may have seen then past 2 shows, I criticized 2 Skare in the Kisa show review but the show on Wed got a more favorable review based on his choice of changes.  I appreciate the fact he may have made some of those changes based on my blog.  Much respect to him for that.  And yes the artists do get named because it is their stage performance I am critiquing.  I am hoping that by giving the most honest assessment I can it will make people better.  If I give you a negative review it's not because I have beef with you, it is because I think an artist needs to hear honesty!  I critique the artists signed to my company, Wicked Butterfly Entertainment, just as hard if not harder because they are my guys.  They know it's nothing but feedback to make them better.

Lastly for every artist, promoter, booker, etc. I have absolutely no stake in your success or failure unless you have signed on for my management.  Thus I have no reason to start beef with anyone.  I am only trying to give people an accurate view of a show, album, song, whatever so people can take it and make themselves better.  If we all start to top the underground charts we all put the Southwest on the map.  If you don't want my feedback that's cool too, don't read my blog.  I will never apologize for being honest.  I will never apologize because that honesty hurts your ego.  I love each and every one of you guys out here on the grind.  I hope you can see that and give it back.  I will never "beef" online, never put your name out there, and never turn my back on the truth.

MMFWFL,

Juggalotus

Street Cred and violence

  In rap music there has always been beef.  Weather it was due to a rapper in your city or a rapper from the other side of the country putting out a diss track on you, there has always been beef.  For my generation the most famous beef out there was 2 Pac and Notorious B.I.G. Why is that the one that is most famous?  Because it ended in 2 violent deaths.  The rap world lost 2 great lyricists and rappers because what started as diss tracks escelated into street violence.  Back in the beginning of rap music diss tracks existed too.  The difference being when a rapper put out a diss track it was countered by the other rapper in a diss track.  It was a battle of lyrics not violence.  MC's battled on wax.  That is how arguements and disagreements in rap should be handled.  The idea that jumping someone or even getting more violent to prove you are the better rapper or you hold your city down better is senseless.  Violence stems nothing but more violence.  Going to prison because you commited violent crime trying to "rep" your city does not make you a better lyricist or rapper than anyone else, it makes you a criminal.

  Why am I bringing this up you might be asking?  Well the simple answer is this, here in Amarillo, TX we have 2 groups that have been long time friends and partners for shows and music.  There is a huge 2nd Annual Gathering taking place in the city in Sept.  Last year the same people were involved and it went off great.  Everyone benefited from the show.  This year however things are different.  I have been watching over the past few weeks as these 2 groups devolved from a dispute to a verbal fight to threats of violence.  One side says they got kicked off the show for various reasons the other says they refused to give the group what they wanted and they walked away from the show.  The next thing that happened was the event page was deleted by the side that was no longer involved which caused the verbal battle to happen via Facebook.  Of course a lot of other people on that page started a discussion on the new event page.  Then the side that deleted the first page got on and started throwing verbal blows due to anger.  This led to some people from Albuquerque, NM to start throwing jabs back.  It also led to other folks in Amarillo getting mad and threatening violence.  I don't know how it all ended because I do not live in that city.  But I do know what I was reading and I can tell you  that both sides are wrong.

  The one thing this Juggalo movement was started for was to unite the underground not divide it.  Both of these parties claim to be Juggalo family.  Both of them claim to hold it down for the underground.  Both of them claim to have Much Family Love.  But both of them are missing the point of all of it.  If they truely believe what they say they should be lifting each other up.  Supporting each other.  Even if they disagree on things they shouldn't wish harm against anyone on the other side.  We are all trying to make it in this business.  If someone hurts your feelings make a diss track!  Let them respond.  This gets you both exposure and allows a healthier outlet for your feelings.  Threatening or commiting violence will do nothing to further your career. 

  I try to promote everyone in the underground I feel is good enough to make it.  If I don't think someone has the skills or abilities I wont diss them I just wont promote them.  This family we are in is splintered here in West Texas and we need to do something about it before it is to late.  I have seen talented rappers lost because of egos and hurt feelings.  It is time to leave the hood mentality behind and grow into artists and business people.  Until we do that a lot of talent is going to go to waste.  We want the gang label to get removed we need to stop acting like thugs!

MMFWCL,

Juggalotus

The Underground and Family

  As many of you know I have been a Juggalo for a long time.  I have noticed a lot of changes in the fanbase and the mentality of the fans.  Which is one of the major reasons I created this blog.  I wanted to remind the Family why we are all Juggalos.  All of us are drawn to the underground for a lot of different reasons.  Some for the sense of community.  Some for the love of the music.  Some just because they don't fit anywhere else.  When I found the music it changed me.  I have found a lot of comfort in the music, sense of community, and overall love I have experienced.  I found a place where everyone who comes in is welcomed.  Where it dsoesn't really matter where you came from, who your parents are, or why you are down.  All that matters is that you are who you are.  No expectations.  You wanna wear paint, do it.  You don't wanna wear paint, don't.  You wanna buy the merch go ahead.  This community allows you to be yourself, whatever you might be.
  In the past few years things have changed, and not for the better.  We now are classified as a gang.  Why you might ask, well because a few people who don't embrace the family or the message of the music have done a lot of really bad crap in the name of Juggalos everywhere.  Now a few bad apples will spoil any bunch but instead of the family bonding together and changing the opinions of the masses there is a growing population of rebellious teen/20 somethings that have decided to act out against the tag negatively instead of handling it right.  Now not all young fans are that way but I am seeing this growing trend and feel it is my place as a veteran Juggalo to say something.  Instead of screaming "Fuck the police" and flipping off the world we need to do the right things to make people see us in a different light.  Psychopathic records has made this effort and we need to follow their example.  Last Christmas they had a toy drive and a month ago they had Juggalo day and performed at a homeless shelter.  They did these things not because they were getting paid to do it but becuse they wanted the"real" world to see us in a good light.  They are showing us the right way to change peoples minds about out Family.

  I try everyday to make sure I do things that are going to make us as Juggalos and Juggalettes look good.  I don't throw up gang signs, flip people off for looking at my hatchet, scream obscenities for no reason, etc.  I don't do drugs, drink, or smoke but those are personal choices.  If you do those things you have the right and I think you can do those things, although drugs are illegal at this time.  By wearing the hatchet we have a bullseye on us from the jump, why would we do anything to further the BS that we are all losers or gang bangers by doing stupid stuff?  If you do positive things and still rep the hatchet then we all look good.  The more positive things that happen while people rep our Family crest the better we will all be. 

  I have begun booking and promoting shows here in West Texas.  Since starting this process I have found another disturbing trend among our Family, Family ripping off Family.  I am currently working with T.O.N.E-Z and MARS to do a show in Lubbock on April 21.  When I began to book the openers I kept getting asked how much money I was going to charge them for a 20 min set.  I was stunned.  Why on Earth would I charge a local underground act any money to fill a 20 min set I need to have booked.  Perhaps if it was a major record label name or more mainstream I might consider it, but even then it would be unlikely.  By filling that 20 min slot in the show they are helping me out.  On top of that if they promote the hell out of the show and sell a ton of tickets I make sure they get a cut of the profits, thus they are getting paid to fill a slot.  All of those people that emailed seemed to think it was normal and ok that so-called Family was charging them to play a show.  Promoter/bookers should never make their profit off openers, those acts have enough costs in just making the music that charging them is just low. 

  When I put out my flyer for the show I did not realize that one of my openers had been working on being a part of another show the same day.  But because I had all my stuff already confirmed they chose my show.  The other promoter and their friends took to facebook and any other social media they could to basically say I was stepping on their turf, stealing their openers, and taking money out of their pocket.  The biggest problem is they didn't even know who I was.  They thought one of my openers was booking/promoting the show and due to prior problems decided to rip the show apart without knowing who was actually promoting it.  We are all trying to get the underground noticed and there is no reason that anyone should bad mouth another show.  There is enough shows coming through any city that more than one promoter can work there.  There just has to be COMMUNICATION between these promoters to make sure that openers are not double booked, venues are not being fought over, and the shows are all successful. 

  These issues have all been resolved once I was communicating with the people involved.  My point in this whole blog is that as a community and Family we need to look out for each other.  No one else is going to do it for us.  If you know of a show in your area promote it!  If you want to hel with a show ask the promoter/booker.  There is a ton of cost involved in these projects and all help is most definitely appreciated. 
 
  Lets keep our group in the positive.  There is no reason to commit crimes, tag buildings, rob people, etc and then claim the hatchet like a badge of honor.  Lets do all we can to change the idea people have of juggalos.  Only we can change that perception.

MMFWCL,

Juggalotus

Low Down and Dirty Tour

  So tomorrow my friends and I are going to the Low Down and Dirty tour in Lubbock, TX!  This is headlined by Boondox and Mars.  The most awesome part is Mars has agreed to sit down after the show and do an interview for my little blog here.  To say I am excited would be an understatement.  So the plan is to go see the show, and of course you guys will get a nice review of the trip, and then after hit up Mars for an interview.  I think I am most looking forward to having the ability to get his take on the music/movies/video games make people do bad things debate.  I watched his interview on CBS about the Syko Sam killings and am fairly certain I know his position but it will be a good chance to ask other related questions from a non-anti-horrocore perspective.  I also have several other groups that have agreed to interviews, but I will keep their names hidden until they are done and ready to be posted. 

  I am still waiting on T.O.N.E.-Z to get back to me about his interview but know I have not forgotten you guys want it!  Any underground or up and coming artists in the West Texas/New Mexico region, heck anywhere for that matter, that would like to hit me up for an interview feel free.  I love being able to help you guys get your name out there.  I also love promoting the genre and all the bands/groups making it happen.  I want this blog to become what it should be, a positive place for promoting Horrorcore fans and artists and changing the image the mainstream media and law enforcement has of us.  We can make a difference and we can change things.  We may never be "accepted" by those people but we should not be outcast by them either.

  I will get my review of the tour and the interview up hopefully Monday or Tuesday.


MMFWCL,


Juggalotus

FBI and Juggalos

So a new story has been released that has taken me a week to process my feelings on.  The FBI has decided to label Juggalos as an official gang in their latest gang threat assessment.  Here is what they say about Juggalos:
 "The Juggalos, a loosely-organized hybrid gang, are rapidly expanding into many US communities. Although recognized as a gang in only four states, many Juggalos subsets exhibit gang-like behavior and engage in criminal activity and violence. Law enforcement officials in at least 21 states have identified criminal Juggalo sub-sets, according to NGIC reporting."

  They go on to describe the crimes committed by Juggalos as this:

 "Most crimes committed by Juggalos are sporadic, disorganized, individualistic, and often involve simple assault, personal drug use and possession, petty theft, and vandalism. However, open source reporting suggests that a small number of Juggalos are forming more organized subsets and engaging in more gang-like criminal activity, such as felony assaults, thefts, robberies, and drug sales. Social networking websites are a popular conveyance for Juggalo sub-culture to communicate and expand."

Then they further go on to say that:

 "Juggalos’ disorganization and lack of structure within their groups, coupled with their transient nature, makes it difficult to classify them and identify their members and migration patterns. Many criminal Juggalo sub-sets are comprised of transient or homeless individuals"

  So looking at their assessment it is safe to assume that all Juggalos are Transient, drug using, who engage in such horrific criminal activity that we cannot be trusted.  Now anyone who knows a Juggalo/Juggalette will be the first to tell you we are nothing like the FBI has made us out to be.  As a general population we are peaceful outcasts who want nothing more than to fit in.  That is what the "family" gives us.  A good example is the Gathering.  In 2010 Tila Tequila was invited to the Gathering and proceeded to get a lot of crap thrown at her, everything from rocks, to trash, to feces (supposedly).  So this year the media ascended on the Gathering in hopes of having a violent story to tell the world about how terrible we are.  The problem was that after 4 days they had nothing to report on.  No fights, arrests, deaths, fires, violence, etc.  They had nothing to talk about except how nice the event was.  How peaceful we were.  How they were welcomed even though for the most part Juggalos hate the way the media reports on us.  That speaks volumes in my opinion.


  I would ask the FBI or any law enforcement agency to gather thousands of actual gang members, aka Bloods, Crips, MS13, etc. in one location for 4 days and see how much violence and other things actually occur.  Then maybe they would have a better perspective of who we are.  Do I feel we are all innocent, hell no.  But there are bad apples in every bunch.  Every group has a few people that do not believe the same things or do the same things.  That is what makes every group unique.  Every subset in music has bad people.  Every genre of music has fans that do not do the right things.  This alone has never made the FBI classify them as gang members.  But for Juggalos the few bad seeds have tainted our image permanently.  Why is that?  Why must we be singled out? 


  I wrote a blog earlier this year about other bands with rabid fans that states my opinions about this topic.  Unfortunately this blog is only my opinions.  I am actively trying to make a difference and maybe change the perception of the family.  But until the entire family adopts this mentality I feel like we will never change the image.  That alone will not stop me from doing the right things while wearing the hatchet proudly.  Through actions we can change perceptions.  Through deeds we can change lives.  Just because we are outcasts does not mean we need to exclude others from the family.  Welcome everyone and love them as your brothers and sisters.  This is a positive movement and we can change the world. 


MMWCL,
  Juggalotus

ICP IPPV, DMA's, Haters

So Juggalos/Juggalettes I have found a few articles online that concern the fam and I am also finding nothing but hate!  First this Sat ICP will be hosting a JCW Event at The Rave.  Cool thing is if you cant make it to the show live you can hook it up on iPPV.  Whats iPPV you ask well it's internet Pay per view!  So you can be at the show from the comforts of your own living room.  Last cool thing about this is that the show online is only $3.99!  Thats right 4 bucks for hot JCW action.  Here are the links to check it out:

http://www.411mania.com/wrestling/news/179517/Insane-Clown-Posses-Juggalo-Championship-Wrestling-Gets-First-Internet-PPV.htm

www.theravelive.com

www.InsaneClownPosse.com


Second and almost as fresh ICP will be headlining the DMA's!  Thats right Detroits infamous will be headlining the Detroit music awards.  How fresh is that Juggalos!  ICP was up for an award last year if I remember right but this year they are the F'n Show!  Wish I could be there but not so much luck in my life.  Here is what was put out by the DMA promoter:

DMAs unveil headliners

Dennis Coffey, Mayer Hawthorne and Insane Clown Posse will be the headlining acts at this year's Detroit Music Awards, organizers have announced.


That is tight as hell.  Anyway if you go to the first link on the page it goes to a site called www.411mania.com  Pretty much a site which updates movies, music, wrestling, etc.  The hate I spoke of in the beginning is in the comments section.  I mean ICP and Juggalos take a lot of crap from people.  But here is my feeling, if you don't like the music, group, movie, etc. Don't open and read the freaking article!  I mean I don't care for country music but I do not spend my time going to all the music sites promoting the next big country album and trash the guy or group!  I think Ice T said it best in his twitter not long ago:


 "If ppl ain't hating on you, you're doing something wrong"


and


"A person hates u for 1 of 3 reasons. 1.They wanna be you 2.They hate themselves 3.They see you as a threat."


Much love family.  Keep it real and show love not hate!


Juggalotus