Neo, rapper, member of Original Label-- P.C.G
2.27.2022 Zoom meeting+ Wechat call
Pan：先介绍一下你自己吧
Please introduce yourself.
Neo： 我现在还在上学，是大四学生，因为疫情在国内上网课，就读于Connecticut state university的电子商务专业（digital marketing）。接触说唱是从高中开始，已经快五年了。
You can call me Neo. I am a senior undergraduate student majoring in digital marketing at Connecticut state university. I am in China due to the pandemic. It has been five years since I first learned hip-hop and rap music from high school.
Pan：是不是在说唱不是很火的时候你就已经在接触了
So you have been into rap music before it is known by most people?
Neo：是的
Yes.
Pan：那你是怎么接触到说唱的？
So what is the opportunity that introduces you to hip-hop?
Neo：从小一直在听。之前一直听的是M&M这类的美国说唱音乐，也觉得他们很酷，但是到了高一高二的时候，国内的说唱渐渐开始火了。我就发现原来我们自己也可以做自己的说唱，所以我就开始摸索着做音乐了。
My family listens to a wide range of music. That’s when I learn hip-hop. I used to listen to many M&M and think they were very cool. From my first or second year in high school, hip-hop music became wildly known in China. I discovered that I could make my hip-hop music, too.
Pan： 你就是一直自己在琢磨，对吗？包括开始写歌也是自己在做，也没有特别找什么老师？
Did you have a teacher, or did you figure it out all by yourself?
Neo：没有没有，都是就自己的感觉。因为像对于我而言的话，我会喜欢hip hop是因为他的歌词比较真实，比起别的类型的音乐的话，更能直接的去表达自己的想法。比如说别的歌可能会需要写的隐晦一点啊或者怎么样，但是rap，尤其是lyrical style的，也是我自己比较喜欢的风格，他就是很直接。
I figure it all by myself. I like hip-hop because its lyrics are authentic compared to other kinds of music. I can be more explicit in expressing myself using my favorite lyrical rap style.
Pan: 你提到了说唱的直白。其实说唱文化的一个部分就是被用做表达反抗以及反应社会问题的，你有用你的音乐表达过吗？
You mentioned the explicitness of hip-hop music. Since a part of hip-hop culture is to show the spirit of protest, using hip-hop music as a weapon to fight against social problems, I want to know if you have similar experience in expressing these in your music?
Neo：有过的，之前和朋友一起，在河南发洪水的时候，有和朋友一起写歌。但是我不喜欢去抨击因为我会觉得很像骂街，相反我的词都是偏正能量，鼓励，inspire大家的。
Yes. A few years ago, when Henan expressed flood, my friend and I wrote a song for the people. You can find it on Weibo. However, I don’t like to be very hostile when confronting social problems and fustigate the situation. Instead, my lyrics choose the perspective of supporting the victims by a positive and inspirative attitude.
Pan： 那你是怎么认识这个厂牌的呢？感觉会很专业？
How did you join the label? It sounds very professional.
Neo： 其实现在中国的厂牌文化还不能算是严格意义上的厂牌。像在北美这样说唱文化比较完善的体系下，厂牌一般都有一套自己比较完善的流程。艺人会和公司挂钩，公司会负责培养和帮助艺人的音乐发行。但是中国的厂牌可能更多代表是一个crew，或者是一个组合。我之前是在无锡认识了几个一起做音乐的好朋友。大家的都很酷，意见也都差不多，所以我们自己就组建了自己的厂牌。但是在无锡做了几年之后觉得无锡的说唱氛围不是很好，没有人爱听，所以现在就回到了上海。目前为止的话，我还是自己在做音乐，solo，而不是以厂牌的形式出现。厂牌对我来说是一个圈子，大家互相鼓励，人多力量大。
The hip-hop label culture in China is still in the beginning of its development. Hip-hop labels in North American have relatively complete systems and a thorough process of cultivating and helping their artists with music production, music distribution, and marketing. In China, a label can be understand as a crew or a team. I used to live in Wuxi for years and met many good friends with similar thoughts and msuic goals, so we decide to create our own label, or team. However, I don’t like the hip-hop phenomenon in Wuxi. Since not a lot of people really enjoy rap music, I moved back to Shanghai. For now, I am still a member of the label, but more most of the time, I solo. The label is more of a friend group for me, the friends would support each other.
Pan: 你们大家都在上学么？一边上学一边做音乐和演出？
Is everyone in your label still studying at school?
Neo： 是的，厂牌的朋友都还在上学。疫情前的演出比较多，有大型的音乐节或者livehouse的邀请，也有自己办的演出，感觉还是小有名气的。
Yes, we all are. Before the epidemic, there were many performances, including invitations from large-scale music festivals or livehouses, as well as performances organized by ourselves. I feel that I am relatively famous at the time.
Pan: 那你们很厉害啊，一切都是自己在做，背后也没有公司的支持。
Amazing. So you did everything by yourself, and there is no support from the company behind it.
Neo：嗯，但是自己做是很难的。因为现在的中国说唱圈的话，大多都还是基于娱乐节目的宣传。包括国内听众的审美也大都偏向于娱乐节目呈现的效果，他们会把那些作为说唱音乐的标准。所以会让很多原本很不错的说唱歌手，因为上不了节目或者没有资源就出不了圈，最终就放弃了。
Thanks, but it's hard to do it yourself. Most of the public's cognition of rap still comes from entertainment programs, which also limited their understanding of hip-hop culture and rappers.Therefore, many rappers who were originally very good will eventually give up because they can't appear on the show and in front of the public.
Pan：去年有一个说唱节目叫少年说唱企划你知道吗？
Do you know the rap fashion show <New Generation of Hip-hop Project> from last year?
Neo： 这些大大小小的说唱节目其实我都面试过，但是，我可能不太符合他们的标准吧。因为毕竟节目是要赚钱的，节目组会从一个人的商业价值去选人。他们在面试你的时候会判断你的最终名次，看你的音乐有没有可能会火。然后很多人在海选的时候，导演就会跟他谈合同，要签为导演旗下的艺人才可以保证他能走到节目的后面，也就是所谓的剧本安排。我有很多好朋友也在那个节目里面。但及时他们上了节目，最终也没有得到什么，因为一个节目肯能真正想捧红的也就那么两三个人而已。
Yes. In fact, I have auditioned more many kinds of rap fasion shows these years. However, I may not have matched their standard. Because after all, the program is to make money. The program team will select people based on your commercial value. When they interview you, they will estimate your final ranking and analyze if your music is likely to be popular. Also, during the audition, the director will negotiate a contract with rappers they see promising and guarantee them the ability to survive in the show only if the artist signed under their company, which is the so-called script arrangement. I have a lot of good friends in that show too. Most people who get on the show would not be known, some don’t even have a scene after the editing.
Pan: 好的。那么你参加了这么多节目和评选，尝试过了这些机会之后，有没有觉得现实会跟你一开始的想法不太一样？你现在对于说唱的想法会不会有一点改变？
OK. After attending these auditions and shows, do you feel that the reality will be different from what you thought at the beginning?
Neo: 会。我和我厂牌的朋友都是，一开始都觉得自己会做歌能唱rap特别的牛，而且都想让别人看到自己。想要火。所以大家就拼命的去钻研各种flow和写歌技巧。但是时间长了，大家现在发现这些好像没什么用，感觉大众不会在乎这些。还是要先想办法做一下大众可以接受的歌，然后有了粉丝基础了之后才能去真正的做表达自己的东西。
I do. In the beginning, my friends in the label and I, we all think that the ability to produce music and rapping is very cool, and we all believe that we can be seen one day. We want to be famous. So we spend a lot of energy, delve into various flow and songwriting techniques. But everyone now finds that these seem to be useless. The public don’t not care about it. We still have to find a way to make a song that is acceptable to the public, and then only after we have a fan base can we really do something that expresses ourselves.
Pan：《To be》 这首歌想表达的是什么？“仿佛国人文化饥荒复制西方”这句话从何来？有在点国内说唱圈的意思吗？
Can we talk about the pieve <To be> you wrote? The lyrics “仿佛国人文化饥荒复制西方” (“we copy the westerners as like the Chinese culture were in famine”) really interests me, I wonder what made you think about that.
Neo: 这首歌是几年前写的，算是我比较早期的作品之一。当时就是很愤世嫉俗，有很多看不惯的事情，然后每每遇到都会去写下歌词阴阳别人。现在的话我会更正能量，呼吁大家一起努力。
This song was written a few years ago and is one of my relatively early works. At that time, I was very cynical, there were a lot of things I couldn’t understand, and every time I encountered it, I would write down the lyrics to assail. I honestly do not remember what is the motivation for that line, but I know that I won’t be talking like that now, rather, I’ll show positive energy and call on everyone to work together.
Pan: 是什么原因导致的你的创作内容和方式的改变呢？
What caused the change in what and how you produce music?
Neo: 还是和文化有关系。美国的rapper用很直白的语言，会让人们觉得很帅很反叛.但是用中文去表达一样的事情，我会觉得很没素质，没内涵。这就是文化差异。中国人的儒家思想推崇的是更peace更humble。所以中国人内心也会更接受这样的表达。
It has to do with the culture. When American rappers use explicit languages, they make the audience listen and respect them. But to express the same thing in Chinese, it sounds more vulgar and scrannel. This is the cultural difference. We got the Chinese Confucianism advocates more peace and humbleness from thousand years ago. Therefore, Chinese people will be more accepting of such humble and peace expressions from the bottom of their hearts.
Pan： 那你以后的目标是什么？
What is your goal in the future.
Neo：梦想的话肯定是想当职业的rapper，但是很难。而且国内绝大部分的rapper也都是有自己的副业的。所以我自己现在也是把说唱当做自己的副业。
I want to be a professional rapper but it is very hard. Now I still treat it as my avocation.