Charlie Mizza Raises Eyebrows

By Brady Bredell
Contributing Writer

When most people think of local rap/hip-hop, they think of poor quality recordings that simply don’t feel authentic. So it’s always a surprise when a talented artist like Charlie Mizza is discovered. From start to finish, his latest release “Always Free Little King” is among the best hip-hop albums released thus far in the valley. At HPR, we were compelled by this artist/producer and wanted to learn more.

HIGH PLAINS READER: Your latest release, “Always Free Little King,” is quite impressive-to say the least. What inspired you to take your solo career in this direction?

CHARLIE MIZZA: I hadn’t planned on a solo move, it just kind of happened. I was in a group called 701 Klik first. We got a lot of attention regionally. We were actually the first local act of any genre to land airplay on Y94, although there are some other artists around here who staunchly deny it. But after that happened, my other half wanted to go one musical direction, and I wanted to dig deeper lyrically and substantially. There were other personal conflicts that we both had with each other as well, and after a display of what I felt was unprofessional behavior from him at a M.I.M.S concert we performed at in Mandan, N.D., I decided to go my own way - but at the time I wasn’t even thinking of continuing on…but it was an itch I eventually needed to scratch.

HPR: While most rap/hip-hop artists strategically plaster pictures of themselves on their album covers, you didn’t. Can you explain your unconventional approach?

CM: That’s my son on the cover. He was only like 10 days old in that photo. The album’s title is actually the biblical translation of my first and middle name respectively. To me this album is a rebirth, a reformation. Kind of like I hit the “reset” button artistically. I think it works because when he was a newborn he looks exactly like I did when I was that age. I had designed a cover before too, but after I saw that photo I knew that was the one. No text, just him. Gotta give a shoutout to Gabe Haney for that photo!

HPR: How has fatherhood changed your approach to writing music/lyrics?

CM: Big time! Being a father has been beautiful, joyful, and scary as hell all rolled into one. When he was born I was about halfway done with the album. After he got here, it changed my world and my outlook on life so much, and of course that’s trickled down in the creative process, musically and lyrically. He loves Hip Hop too! He’s 18 months old now, and he bobs his head to a good beat when we’re in the car. I only expose him to the intelligent stuff though.

HPR: The production on “Always Free Little King” is phenomenal. Did you produce this record?

CM: I appreciate that. Yeah I did all the beats, mixing, and even mastering. That’s how it’s been since day one, back in the 701 Klik days. That’s a part of music that I really enjoy more than anything. When I started out it sounded horrible, but after a lot of trial and error, and reaching out to other producers in the game I’ve learned how to mix a record down properly, everything from EQ to compression, limiting, reverb, etc. I always make a point to get it as ‘industry-standard’ as possible, and over the past couple of years I’ve saved up and bought the high-fidelity gear used in major studios necessary to get that level of quality. I do produce for hire too.

HPR: I was surprised to see an appearance from Bizarre of D12 on your album. How did you manage to recruit such a huge star?

CM: That credit goes to my boy Koz. He’s ben my ‘ride or die’ homie in this music since day one. He had a radio segment on KNDS a while back and he was getting interviews from a lot of big-name artists. I can’t remember how exactly it all went down, but he had hooked it up with
Bizarre’s management for two full verses on whatever I had. So I sent him a beat, he recorded it at some studio in Detroit, and emailed it back. It’s a big deal for me cuz I am a HUGE D12/Eminem fan - both Koz and I are. I still have the other verse too, I just haven’t found the
right track for it yet, but I will eventually.

HPR: Fargo-Moorhead is a difficult community to market local rap/hip-hop artists to. You’ve managed to break through these barriers. What’s your secret?

CM: I keep it real. I think a lot of people are turned off by the same old “drugs, guns, money, hoes, cars, clubs” rap. It’s hard for the majority of people today to relate to that on a personal level.  Plus 90 percent of what they’re saying in those songs are lies, or fantasies. A lot of the time up and coming rappers will mimic their favorite rapper’s content, or style, and I guess that’s natural in some aspects, but how many ways can you say the exact same thing? I personally love gangsta rap, but it’d be pretty fake of me to try to come off all hard like I’m gangbanging when I’m born and raised in Fargo. I like “club bangers” too, but that just isn’t me. I like some
of what Rhymesayers puts out, and that seems to be a popular label of indie rap around here, but I’m not out to follow trends, ya know? The majority of my songs are about some real-life things, whether it’s about drug addiction in my song “Falling Down,” or having a love for hip hop in the face of ridicule like in “Daydreamin,” I come correct.

HPR: What’s the biggest challenge you face as a local hip-hop artist?

CM: There’s always hurdles and roadblocks in the music business. I think a big one would be knowing who to trust and who not to trust. In a big box full of talented people trying to do the same things, you get snakes, frauds, and haters of course. I’ve even had people send death threats at me on youtube. It gets to me sometimes, but then it motivates me even more. But that being said I’ve met some very genuine people as well. Some of my best friends I have, I have because of Hip Hop. But As far as the local scene goes I’d like to see all-ages shows come back how they used to be. Fargo used to have a good music/concert scene, and people under the age of 21 had something to do. Nowdays it kind of seems like the music scene has been swallowed by the bar scene in a lot of ways. A lot of my fans, and fans of other bands/groups in the area aren’t 21. I get emails and Facebook messages on a regular basis from my under-21 fans asking about all-ages shows on a regular basis, and it’s frustrating sometimes. That’s the biggest challenge I guess. As far as ‘local’ goes, I’m trying to get out in other cities more like Minneapolis, Sioux Falls, L.A…..

HPR: As you continue to mature as an artist, what can we expect from Charlie Mizza in the future?

CM: As of right now I’m taking a much-needed ‘breather’ for a minute to spend some quality time with family, and to regroup. I have something in the works coming sooner than later. I’m going to be working with more national artists on a new project. I also just found out that there will be a “Charlie Mizza Radio” on Pandora very soon, which I’m very excited about! Other than that, it’s uncharted territory.

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IF YOU GO:
WHAT: Charlie Mizza album
WHERE TO BUY: Mother’s, Orange Records
COST: $14.99

http://www.charliemizza.com

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Charlie-Mizza/196820527924

http://www.reverbnaiton.com/charliemizza