Interview was conducted by Down-South.com

Down-South: Whats Paul Wall been up to lately?

Paul Wall: On the grind, been DJing on the xm radio. I got my own show on xm 66raw. I been on the road DJing with T.I., I tour with him a little bit, doin these mix cd's and of course dropped the Chick Magnet. Then I got my all flows cd comin out, really thats comin out first, it should be comin out around February 10 called How to be a Player, thats my all flows cd. Michael Watts choppin it up and we just puttin these albums out back to back then I got another all flows cd and then my other album called The People's Champ and a DVD called Paul Wall TV.

Down-South: Off top, why'd you leave the Color Changin Click?

Paul Wall: Well, thats just the way it worked out ya know what I'm sayin. My contract came up with Paid in Full and when my contract came up with Paid in Full I didn't re-sign. Chamillion, he also didn't re-sign so I signed with the Swisha House as a record label and then of course the business was just there, it was the atmosphere I was lookin for. It's like everybody has their own keys to success, everybody has their own pieces to the puzzle and me being with the Swisha House is the pieces to the puzzle that fit.

Down-South: No hard feelings?

Paul Wall: Naw, no hard feelings, ain't no beef or nothin like that ya know, its just what is best for me.

Down-South: The clip on the intro to your site isn't all on the ballin stuff it shows you can spit some deep stuff too.

Paul Wall: Oh yeah, there's more to me, I definitely stepped my game up from when I first was rappin bout cartoons and thangs like that. I matured in the rap game like I matured in my life ya know what I'm sayin. Of course there are a lot of things in my life that I don't rap about, I take this rappin very seriously, it's more than just entertainment, it's actually a job, it's a career. But, people tend to get caught up in the rappin and forget about their real lives. They either talk about thangs they don't got or talk about thangs they ain't did, things of that nature. But I on the other hand, do the opposite. There's things that I've done that I don't talk about, it's things that I been through that I don't rap about. I definitely stepped my game up, got on a whole nother level on the rappin ya know what I'm sayin, I really advanced a whole lot in a short period of time, just keep with the team know what I'm sayin. I'm really showin a lot of diversity lately, more than just the balla type stuff.

Down-South: Whats the production team and who are the features on the Chick Magnet?

Paul Wall: Mobetta Groove which is Pretty Todd and Calvin Earl, they produced the bulk of the album. Also another guy Drathoven, he did a bunch of beats on there. As far as features go, I got the Grit Boys, Slim Thug the Boss, my boy Gu-U, then I got Trae from the Guerilla Maab, I also got Big Shasta and Young Redd, Lew Hawk is on there. There's a group out of San Antonio called 3rd Degree they on there, Kyle Lee and Marky G, Big Hawk, Bun B, I got so many songs on the cd I don't even remember. Killer Mike is on there, there's a bunch of stuff on there.

Down-South: What's up with the new click?

Paul Wall: Well it's deeper than that, I roll with a lot of people know what I'm sayin so I show love to everybody I'm down with. The Grit Boys are some of the people I been down with and we got a movement goin on, The New South Movement which is bigger than Houston, its the whole south know what I'm sayin. We represent all the sections of the south, Houston in general. So that's why we called the new movement of the south the 713. It's not like a click or nothin like that, we all rap and we all stand for the same things and all stand for the same principles so we naturally hooked up and started makin moves together and makin money together. But other than than that, the click I roll with the Swisha House and of course my boys in Atlanta the Pimp Squad Click through T.I. as far as that.

Down-South: How would you say your new album is different from Get Ya Mind Correct?

Paul Wall: The majority of Get Ya Mind Correct had a lot of baller influence on it. It was real fly, real ballerific. This album, it shows a whole new side of me. People might say my rap style has changed, it did change in the fact that I grew and matured, but on top of that, I'm just showin em my diversity. There's more to life than ballin, money and cars and those types of things.

Down-South: Are you hopin to shop this album around a little bit?

Paul Wall: Oh yeah, ya know the main goal is to always make it to the pros ya know what I'm sayin, to make it to the big leagues. It's like there still be major labels callin, but the right one hasn't come around yet. For me to do somethin, it's gotta be the right label at the right time and the right money. You gotta play chess moves in this game it's not checkers, it ain't just one step moves, you gotta think five steps ahead. It's gotta be at the right time with the right people havin the right offer. But then to, you can be patient, but sometimes people lose track and miss their opportunity so you gotta play it real careful ya know what I'm sayin. Of course we always lookin to shop a deal, but this album will be dropped under Paid in Full, but as I said my contract is up with Paid in full and I am now a Swisha House artist. Ya neva know whats gonna go down baby.

Down-South: What was the closest you or you and Chamillion came to signing?

Paul Wall: We came close a couple times but it wasn't real real close. They flew us up to New York, around the country. They used to come down to talk to us, go on the road with us to shows to see what we were all about. We had a couple of good offers, but for whatever reason we didn't sign. When you got so many people that were tryin to make the decision, its kinda hard for us to all compromise and negotiate. It wasn't just like one person makin the decision, it was a bunch of us and everybody has to be in favor of it for us to do it. If we ain't got an unanimous vote then its not gonna happen, its hard to please everybody.

Down-South: What are some of the other projects you got goin on right now?

Paul Wall: Yeah, me and Bubba Sparxx got an underground comin, we got another one with Killer Mike comin called, From the 713 to the 404. Me and Mike Jones got one, we callin it The Future, we got an underground and an album comin. A bunch of things, hookin up with my boy DJ Drama out in Atlanta finna start screwin & choppin, he put out his mix tapes, The Gangsta Grill and I'm gonna be screwin & choppin them. Of course I screwed & chopped the Down-South.com cd. So it's been a lot of people I been in the lab with, The Pimp Squad Click and T.I.

Down-South: Whats that like, you goin on the road with T.I. for his shows and stuff?

Paul Wall: Yeah, it's hard cause me bein an artist and a DJ, it's hard to make time for both of em, so, I gotta balance out the two. If I were to go out on the road with him, usually it be on off days when I go with him, and I do my shows on the weekends and sometimes we hook up and might do the same show ya know what I'm sayin, it be whateva.

Down-South: You, 3-2, and Tim Smooth just hooked up on that new C-Los album, do you have any plans in the future of working with anymore New Orleans artists?

Paul Wall: Oh yeah, I hooked up with Krazy, formerly of No Limit, I did some stuff with him. Me and lil Turk got some stuff we been talkin about doin. A bunch of people man, of course I'm gonna work with whatever is hot, me and Choppa did a song together before. It's not out yet, but I'm down to work with anybody ya know what I'm sayin.

Down-South: Are there any collabs you would like to hook up?

Paul Wall: Yeah, Yung Buck from the G Unit, he's real hot right now. There's a bunch of people, of course people like Lil Jon...actually we did some stuff in the past before and we got some new stuff comin too for the People's Champ, he got a song on there. Me him and Mike Jones. We got a lot of stuff comin, you see I did a song with Lil Keke on the Day Hell Broke Loose part 2, that was real. I hooked up with Bun B, I did some stuff with Bun B for the Mddl Fngz album and then I did some stuff with him on my album. But who I would like to work with, Yung Buck and Pimp C when he get out of jail. Other than that it's whatever.

Paul Wall: Well, it definitely brought the attention to me, ya know what I'm sayin. That's what is usually hard when you first start is to get attention brought to you. It gave me the spotlight I should say, me bein white put the spotlight on me and then it was all about me, I gotta step up to the plate. Either I was gonna strike out or hit the homerun, if I strike out, I just gotta wait til my turn again and try again ya know what I'm sayin. I ain't gonna say I hit no homerun, but I hit a couple doubles and I done made some things happen. It ain't hard on me cause I'm me regardless. I'm gonna rap the same whether I'm white, black, or hispanic, I'm still gonna be me. I got criticized a lot at first, it was hard, bein criticized because people don't take you seriously. But, Eminem changed all that when he came in the game. It was all good but like I say, it put the spotlight on me, but it's all about if I step up to the plate. If I'ma hit the homerun or I'ma strike out, it was all up to me. The door was open, all I had to do was to walk through it, ya know what I'm sayin. A lot of times it is tough to get that door open, so its whatever, ya feel me.

Down-South: You have your hands in some other business ventures, you wanna speak on any of those?

Paul Wall: Yeah I got the gold grills goin, I done a bunch of grills for a bunch of people, a lot of celebrities. There's a shop in Sharpstown mall called TV2 Jewelry 832-661-5664, its an Asian dude named John hit him up. The clubs, I got ventures in a few clubs and promote a few clubs. The Blue Flame in Houston Texas, its a gentlemen's club on Cullen and Holmes road, right in the heart of South Park, it be goin down. There's another group lately I been workin with called Velvet Ice, they are an R&B hip-hop female group and they are real hot. They are outta Houston and they been on tour with Nelly and doin a lot of shows and stuff. Matter of fact, they got a website called velveticeonline.com.

Down-South: When's your website gonna be fully up?

Paul Wall: You know, that's a good question, I got my boy Tosin workin on it, him and my boy bbk, they been helpin me out a whole lot on that. It's real hard to shovel and juggle all these ventures at once. The main focus of the website though is to give people a chance to order cds and I definitely want to give the people more of me. I want them to see pictures updated on a regular basis, to get show footage, all types of stuff like that where people get to see the real me. I'm a real personable person, I'm real sociable. I'm not just an artist, I'm a real person, I want people to really know the real me ya know what I'm sayin, I ain't no front or nothin like that. Down-south.com is a way bigger website than my site is ever gonna be, ya know, with the interviews and all everything like that. I'm glad there is a down-south.com because without ya'll, our website would just be pictures with no one to look at em.

Down-South: What are some of your thoughts on the screwed & chopped controversy?

Paul Wall: Bein that I was always a screwhead and a big fan of DJ Screw, and then bein that I live on the southside, I see it from both sides of the picture. One side of the mirror is of course, naw, DJ Screw is the only one who can say screwed & chopped. But, the other side is the bigger picture where it's like, well this is an art form of music. It's a form of music that just took over. People in Alaska and Japan listen to this, people in England literally, people from England, not just military people are listenin to this ya know what I'm sayin. When they refer to the music, are they gonna refer to it as slowed down music? I don't feel it would be right to refer to it as slowed down music, cause that's takin away from DJ Screw and what he started ya know what I'm sayin. And when Michael Watts or me refer to it as screwed music, we're not tryin to sell it as DJ Screw. We're not tryin to take away from DJ Screw, from his props or nothin like that. The bigger picture is when people refer to the music, I feel when they call it screw music, they are payin homage to Screw and givin him his props. Of course I respect it either way it go, I never try to claim DJ Screw like that's me, like I was down with DJ Screw or nothin like that, we aren't tryin to capitalize off the name, it's just showin homage to the creator ya know what I'm sayin.

Down-South: You see yourself growin and gettin in the major publications now, whats it feel like watchin yourself grow and grow?

Paul Wall: It definitely feels good, the respect is the main thing ya know what I'm sayin. The people showin us respect for what we are doin or showin me respect for what I'm doin. It's like I'm livin my dream day by day. So either I can wake up and it be all over with, or I can keep dreamin and livin this dream. So, sometimes people see their face in a magazine or hear about theirselves in a magazine and they think they done made it and thats it and all they gotta do and they done made it. But, it's constant work, the work don't stop. When the work stops the success stops. The love from the fans is what is great, the real people. I ain't no vip dude, I'm an in the club dude ya know what I'm sayin, I'm not an in the vip type dude, I'm an at the bar dude ya know what I'm sayin. I don't ever get full of myself or nothin like that, it's constant work. It's definitely a blessing though and it feels good cause it shows the people are respectin what I'm doin. It's hard to break out of that local mind frame where people just thinkin your a local dude. This whole past 6 months I been on the road from everywhere, from Cleveland to Indianapolis to Atlanta, Florida, St. Louis, California, everywhere, just back and forth everyday. And I been in Atlanta a whole lot showin love to the people in Atlanta and gettin love in return. It's crazy cause the people in Houston look at me as a local artist, but they didn't know that I go to other cities and they treat me like a god ya know what I'm sayin. It's times I go to Dallas or Fort Worth and they will treat me better than they would 50 Cent, they show me more love than they would show 50 Cent or Jay-Z and they are runnin the rap game. People in Houston at first saw me as just a local rapper and they wouldn't understand how big it's gotten. So bein in a magazine makes them respect the work ya know what I'm sayin. Like "Damn, you in the Source?" And then when other artists come to town and show me love, it's real. And then the song I did with R. Kelly, Step in the Name of Love remix, that put it on a whole notha level too.

Down-South: Who ya gotta go with, Kenyon Martin or TJ Ford?

Paul Wall: Shoot, they two different type of ball players, but I gotta say my boy Ken cause he is a knock-out artist ya know what I'm sayin. But the boy TJ Ford, he the chess player, he will sit back, move slow, and creep up on ya. It's hard to say on that one. There are a bunch of ball players I'm down with though, like my boy Steven Jackson, he used to play with the Spurs last year when they won the championship and now he's with the Hawks. Rashard Lewis with the Seattle Supersonics and my boy Reggie Evans from the Supersonics too. It's a few players and a bunch of NFL players, they represent for me and I represent for them.

Down-South: Too clear rumors or clear up the real, people had an idea an altercation between you and Young Ro was a reason that led to your departure from the CCC?

Paul Wall: Naw, it wasn't like that. I seen that stuff but it wasn't nothin like that where we got into it or nothin like that. Bein when you workin with people you ain't always gonna get along and not just me and him, but me and everybody and everybody and everybody. There's always gonna be times when you don't agree on things, sometimes we might be on the road and I want to eat at Jack n the Box and they might want to eat at Mcdonalds. So an argument might start out, "Man ya'll always eatin at Mcdonalds," "Well you always try to go to Jack n the Box" ya know what I'm sayin. Nothin always gonna be perfect ya know what I'm sayin, but Ro is a cool dude, he gotta career and he real cool. I seen him the other day and its nothin but love. I'm not gonna say none of us ever got into any arguments, we would get in arguments all the time, but its all come along with it. Ain't no problems at all though man.

Down-South: That was all I really had, anything I didn't touch on you wanted to say?

Paul Wall: Go to the DJPaulWall.com website and catch the new video we shootin for Still Tippin with me, Mike Jones, and Slim Thug. And you can see me in some other videos the Rubbaband Man video with T.I. and the new David Banner video, Crank it Up. Ya know what I'm talkin bout.