Fishgrease Jenkins: Fresh Out The Frying Pan

Fishgrease Jenkins, a 25 year old up and coming Hip-Hop artist from East New York is not your average rapper. Born and raised in the gritty Boulevard Houses, he migrated south after graduating from South Shore High School, and attended the prestigious HBCU, Clark Atlanta University in Atlanta, Georgia. After getting his feet wet on the Hip-Hop scene during his formative years in East New York, the knowledge and perspective he gained at CAU solidified his belief that music was his calling. With intelligence, wit, talent, and perseverance, Fishgrease is poised to take the Hip-Hop world by storm, while shedding light on the perilous conditions of his beloved East New York.

Birthplace Magazine had a chance to sit down and talk with Fishgrease on NY Hip-Hop, socio-political games in America, and why it’s ‘Fuck the 75th Precinct’.

A Birthplace Exclusive

Birthplace Magazine: First, we have to know, how did you come up with the name Fishgrease Jenkins? It’s unusual to say the least!

Fishgrease: *laughing* Honestly, me and a few of my boys were on the way to the club in Atlanta riding down I-85, and one of them asked me what was I going to tell the girls my name was. I said the first thing that came to me, Fishgrease Jenkins. They said that should be your stage name! So I ran with it. It means I’m hot, poppin’! Also, in East New York, when a party or block is hot, and niggas getting money, we say, ‘It’s jenkin.’ So I put the two together.

BM: How was it for you growing up in Boulevard Houses?

FJ: Growing up, it was all fun and games because it’s all I knew. It’s wasn’t until I got to Clark Atlanta, and gained some perspective that I realized I was lucky to make it out. In 1993 alone, 129 murders occurred in my precinct. That’s when I realized that it wasn’t fun and games; it’s a fuckin’ war zone.

BM: There’s been some controversy surrounding your song, ‘I’m From East New York.’ What’s the deal?

FJ: There were a couple of murders over in Brownsville, and the video for that song was already on YouTube…since May. The cops in the 75th precinct had already been sending detectives over to the Boulevard rolling up on people that know me, that were in the video, looking for me because I said, ‘Fuck the 75th precinct in the song.’ So when the murders happened, I became a scapegoat. That’s like blaming somebody in Alabama for some murders that occurred in Atlanta. They didn’t even listen to the song. I’m not promoting negativity; I’m just speaking on where I’m from honestly.

They want to make me a scapegoat for the violence because they don’t want to talk about the real reasons. They don’t want to talk about the lack of jobs; they don’t want to talk about the single parent homes. Let’s talk about the condos they’re building across from the projects. People in the hood can’t afford to stay there, who are they building them for? That’s why there’s violence. But they don’t want to talk about that. When I talked to the detectives, they were expecting me to be ignorant, violent; but when I came with that, it was a surprise to them. Music opens up dialogue, and that’s necessary.

How many times did Daffy Duck get his beak blown off? Kids watch that all the time, and you have to explain to them that it’s not a game. If you shoot somebody there’s no more Christmas, no more nothing. The problem isn’t the music, it’s the lack of dialogue.

And it’s the same all over the world, not just NY. You go to Atlanta, they’re moving black people out to the suburbs. No cops, no public transportation, and making it too expensive to move back to the city. So instead of killing each other in the city, we’re killing each other in the suburbs. Cats in Harlem are moving to New Jersey because rent is too expensive, and then they can’t afford to pay the toll tax to get back into the city, so what happens? They killing each other now in Jersey. Things aren’t getting better, just a change of location. That’s what we need to be talking about.

BM: Speaking on the music, you lived in Atlanta for a few years. What’s the difference in the music scene in NY and the South?

FJ: It’s too much haterism in New York. Everyone’s a critic. In Atlanta, my song is already getting play in the club, and it’s still not playing in clubs in NY. Why? Too much hate. Everyone knows someone that spits, so it’s an attitude of ‘Why should I listen to you?’

People here tend to think that life revolves around NY. I know a lot of people that think that Down South music is garbage. But you got to appreciate what it is. When I came back from Atlanta, I was putting niggas on to Jeezy, and Gucci Mane, and Lil’ Wayne, but they weren’t trying to hear me. Now these niggas are blowing up. You got to appreciate that. How can you hate on people that’s bringing light to the game that you’re trying to get cheddar in? I feel like this, if Wayne can sell 3 mil, then maybe I can sell half a mil from the gate. You can’t hate on the hustle.

And that’s the problem in NY, people hate on the hustle. Everybody’s a critic. I’m not asking people to like my music, just to give it a chance. If you don’t like it, throw it out the window, it costs nothing but your time. But don’t knock me because ‘your man spits too.’ I didn’t ask all that. It’s room for everybody.

BM: Some people say that NY has lost its title as the premier spot for Hip-Hop, do you agree?

FJ: Yes and No.

No, because I represent New York. At the end of the day, NY will always have the best lyricists, it is what it is. But you have to have a beat people can dance to, a vibe people can feel, a hook they can sing, and that’s where NY falls. We don’t support our own artists, and that alienates us from the world.

BP: What do you bring different to Hip-Hop? Why should people go and cop a Fishgrease joint?

FJ: A song is like an essay. The verses are like the paragraphs, and the hook is the central theme, and you got to stay on message. That’s the key, and that’s what I bring.

I’m a breath of fresh air. I’m a new nigga. I’m not just a Hip-Hop artist, I’m an entertainer. I just recorded a reggae joint, I might sing on a record. Niggas might laugh, but you can’t stay monotonous, you got to switch lanes, keep people entertained, then you can hit them with some real knowledge, like an Aesop fable. I’m not the most positive person, I’m not the most negative person, but I keep it 100 always. I represent my people first, then my hood, then anyone that feels me is welcome to jump on.

Contact Info:
fishgreasejenkins@helloworld.com
www.myspace.com/fishgreasehotpoppoppop

Fishgrease Jenkins: I’m From East New York
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dwiRrK4lGzQ)