Demonstration (dem-on-stra-tion) n. – the act or process of showing the existence or truth of something by giving proof or evidence.

 

When you think of a person who “demonstrates”, first thing that comes to mind is a person who has something to prove.  In music, proving that you are the best can be quite the task if you lack real talent. For rappers, it’s even harder if you lack swag too.  But, the city of Atlanta is known to breed the best when it comes to emcees with the total package: swag, charisma, and talent.  Well, the city may have just bred their next demonstrator.  Meet CTE World’s signee, Scrilla.

 

Hailing from Zone 4, Scrilla cleverly emodies all of those charactertistics mentioned above. After listening to his debut mixtape, The Demonstration, I could tell he was out to prove something. Not only to the cats he grew up with off Campbellton Road, but also to his boss Young Jeezy, his label mates, and any other doubter out there.  His rap style and content clearly signifies that he wants this [fame & fortune] real bad. Ask any rapper who’s been spitting rhymes since the age of 11 and just now receiving his chance at the spotlight. Oh, he’s definitely ready to “demonstrate”.

 

On Saturday, STACKS Magazine got the opportunity to chat it up with him during a pre-show interview at Vinyl.  That evening, Scrilla was headlining his own show. Before he ripped the stage, we touched on his start in rap, his respect for Young Jeezy, The Demonstration mixtape series Part I and II, and why he feels he represents the real Atlanta.

 

Interview + Performance of “Everythang” (10:00 mark)

For our readers, who don’t know who Scrilla is, can you give a brief history of where you come from, how long you been rapping, etc…

I’m from Atlanta, GA. Campbellton Road [Zone 4]…signed with Young Jeezy. CTE (the label) and No Line Gang Ent. You already know what it is. I started writing my own lyrics when I was around 11 or 12 years old. I’ve been interested in music all my life. But, I started writing my own music around 11 or 12 years old. Dreams do come true. If you work hard, dreams do come true.

 

Did you have it set out to join CTE? I read that you were performing in a club and Jeezy saw you and heard a song (and that’s how the link came about). But, I’m assuming that you had already seen the movement with CTE. It’s apparent, since you’re on CTE, that you said, “OK I can be down with this clique.”

You know I always respected his music. I’ve always been a Jeezy fan. When a person makes good music, I want to be a part of that too. I want to be what he is right now, a legend. I’m not trying to be here for one hit and then gone. But, when a person makes good music and you can vibe to it, you want to be a part of something or you gone venture off and try to be bigger than that sometimes. Basically, he gave me a chance. So I’m here to take my chance right now and show the world what I got.

 

‘The Demonstration’…

That’s my first mixtape on CTE. I put a lot of work in there. ‘The Demonstration’ was really easy because it was so much hype built around it, with me just being signed and all that. Like when I did ‘The Demonstration’, I was recording in my own basement. I had my own studio. So, I finished that whole mixtape on my own. Freestyling…not even writing nothing or anything. It came out to be really big, minus a setback, it came out really big for my first debut mixtape on CTE. I got a lot of features from CTE World.

 

The most recent song/video is “Movie On”. That’s a hot song. As far as any other songs on the mixtape, ‘The Demonstration’, what are the ones that are special to you? Or ones you feel as though will really penetrate the streets?

When you talking about streets, like club joints, we going to go with “Ask About Me”. That’s a joint with me and Jeezy on there. The songs that mean the most to me on the mixtape, they’re not street bangers. It’s something that I’m really talking about my life. “Like See What The Fame Do” and “No More”…and “My Life”, those are the songs. I can make club music all day because I be in the clubs. That’s easy to make that. But when you’re sitting down and you’re talking about your life, you have to take the time and tell the people who you really are. So those are the tracks that mean something to me. Those three tracks “See What The Fame Do”, “My Life”, and “No More” …yeah I got to say them are my favorite tracks.

 

One thing you speak about is storytelling. I know that Young Jeezy is good at storytelling. When it comes to storytelling, were there any other rappers like Nas (who has perfected the art of storytelling) that you look up to?

Well, all of them did (i.e. Outkast, Jay-Z) all of them. I really couldn’t see where some of them were coming from because I’m not from there. What Jeezy was talking about, he was talking the streets where we come from, the South. We had Outkast do it. They perfected the art of storytelling (if you want to say) talking about stuff. But, at a street level, it was him [Jeezy] that put that whole movement behind the whole streets in the “A”. Him, Tip and a couple of other artists (i.e. Rocko) that talk about stuff I can relate to…everyday, because I see it and I’m around it and live it.

 

So the next project is part II [‘The Demonstration’], is it like a continuation? Is it something new? Will you be speaking on new topics? Or diving more into more personal things?

‘The Demonstration II’ is really showing you more talent from me from all levels. Demonstration I was street, club,… tell you the story. Now, you about to see the talent of what I really can do behind these beats. Even though it’s finish, I got 86 songs I can pick from. So, I will take time and pick out the right ones and give the fans what they want. Now, you got the right production. Now everybody wants to mess with you. You have other big producers that want to come in and give you tracks. Or you get more features on the Demonstration II. On the Demonstration I, which is a couple dudes I knew from the streets and my CTE family.

 

Bels – Now they know what you can do!

 

But, now we about to touch a whole other crowd. We’re trying to take all this F-k shit that folks be talking about. We don’t want to hear that shit. We want to know what’s really going on out there and that’s what I’m about to give you. People have seen what we did in the club. I don’t know about everybody else. People know what No Line Gang is. I can’t speak on nobody else because I haven’t seen it. I’m sorry. When it comes down, I’m about to give you the street side and I’m about to be more business minded about the whole situation. I’m bringing out everything. I’m hitting them with everything.

 

Any major features that will be on there?

Ain’t going to speak too soon. I got Jeezy back on there. I got Cap. I got Freddie Gibbs. I got Quan Rich (a new artist out there). I’m not even gone tell who all I got on there yet because it ain’t been official. But I got some surprises for y’all. I got Jackie Chan on there. Linking up with Don Trip. I ain’t even gone… [laughs]

 

So when do you plan on releasing that project?

Soon. We ain’t really put a date on it. It’s going to come by the end of this year or the first of the year. I’m not gone keep people waiting.

 

What do want your fans and our readers of STACKS Magazine to know about Scrilla? What does Scrilla represent?

I represent keeping it real (being real with yourself and never falling for bullshit). I stand for something. I stand for my hood Zone 4. I stand for Atlanta. I don’t know what other people thought Atlanta was. I don’t do all that other bullshit that other people be kicking. But, I just want them to know I stand for myself. I speak for my clique. I speak for CTE World, It’s the World. So that’s what I stand for. I stand for the world: a young average nigga that make money and talk about it and be free. I’m just a cool ass nigga. See me out I’ll say what’s up. I’m not arrogant. I might be arrogant sometimes. Catch me on a bad day I might flip. I’m a Gemini. But, I’m not going take it out on everybody. I take it on that certain person. If it’s that m-f, I’m talking to your m-f ass. But, just me, I’m just cool ask anybody in Atlanta. Other people got their opinions, f-k ‘em. At the end of the day, I stand for Atlanta. I stand for the world. It’s the world, CTE World. Zone 4 Campbellton Rd.

 

 

To stay updated on Scrilla’s world, check out his website at www.scrillaworld.com. Also follow him on Twitter @Scrilla !!

 

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