"10 Shots with Biz Markie" Exclusive Interview with Flo Dirt

I ntroducing a man who needs no introduction. He's world famous for his classic hits, most notably "He's Just a Friend" and "The Vapors". Who is it? It's Biz Markie cuz. You main man, Flo Dirt, had the gracious opportunity to catch up with Biz last Thursday and conversate with one of Hip Hop's most legendary mcs (and regular funny man I might add) about what's going on his world including his part in the new comedy series spear headed by Martin Lawrence called "1st Amendment Stand-up" which will aire on the Starz channel on April 18th. Peep Game and take notes for this latest selection of "10 Shots with Flo Dirt"...

Flo Dirt: Biz, it is a pleasure and an honor for me to even be speaking with you right now. If it wasn’t for the Juice Crew, I wouldn’t be where I am today. Thank you!

Biz Markie: Thank you, bruh!

Flo Dirt: Thank you for your time with us today… 1. What is your role in the 1st Amendment Stand-Up and how did that come about for you?

Biz Markie: Well, I did a couple of parties for Martin and I’ve known Martin for a long time. So he called the office and asked if I wanted to DJ. I said it’s a no-brainer. Martin is my peoples so I just did it!

Flo Dirt: 2. You’ve always managed to stay relevant and stay working. What’s the secret to your success?

Biz Markie: I have a love for the gme itself, whether it’s rappin or DJin. No matter what it is, just having straight love. Treat the game as a hobby instead of straight work. I do it as a hobby. I love to DJ, I love to rap, I love to beatbox, I love to do ALL of it! Once you have love for it… Once you fall out of love, that’s when things don’t go nowhere!

Flo Dirt: 3. Obama or Clinton on ’08?

Biz Markie: That’s a HAAARD one! I met Hillary and she was cool but Obama is my man though. I’m gonna have to go with Obama.

Flo Dirt: 4. How did you and Redman hook up for “Walk In Gutta” on Red Gone Wild and what was that like?

Biz Markie: It was cool but I’ve known Redman since he was younger. I used to bring him around with me. Redman was a shy kind of guy. I told him, the way you get your name is to go around these neighborhoods and get your name up. I used to have him with me. He asked me to work on his project and I said it was a no-brainer. That’s my boy, so…

Flo Dirt: 5. How important is comedy to your own career, on the tables or on the mic?

Biz Markie: Comedy is very important because I’m not a serious… I can’t be serious. I’m always funny. Comedy is important because if you’re serious you’re too tight. If you got comedy, you’re loosened up already.

Flo Dirt: 6. Who is the funniest person you know and who inspires you to be funny?

Biz Markie: A lot of funny people! Different people inspire me: Martin Lawrence, Benny Hill, Redd Foxx. I like Seinfeld. I like different types of people that are funny.

Flo Dirt: 7. You’ve seen a lot of rappers come and go and like I said, you’re a legend and I know I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for Biz Markie and the Juice Crew. Tell me who your Top 5 emcees of all time are.

Biz Markie: To me?

Flo Dirt: Yeah! I want to know what the legend thinks.

Biz Markie: To me, my Top 5 are… And they ain’t in no order… Grandmaster Caz, Jay-Z, Rakim, Melle Mel… I need more than 5!!

Flo Dirt:All right man. Go ahead!

Biz Markie: Kane, LL. I can’t! It’s hard… (laughs) Slick Rick, Rodney C from the Funky 4. How many more? I got 2 more right?

Flo Dirt:You can have as many as you want, Biz!

Biz Markie: KRS-1, and they ain’t in order either! That’s hard!! Kool Moe Dee. I know people get mad when you don’t say Biggie and 2Pac. The thing with them is that they never had the chance to live out their lives.

Flo Dirt: To be honest, I haven’t interviewed anyone who includes Biggie or Pac on their Top 5.

Biz Markie: First of all, with Biggie. Biggie was great, I’m not saying he wasn’t great. But by the same token, he only made two albums and second of all he had an engine to make him what he is. Where Slick Rick was hot before he got on record. With “La Di Da Di” and all that he used to go around and he was hot. And he changed rap a little bit. Another person was Pac. Pac made a lot of albums, Pac made a lot of records. He had a cult following. But, what words did he use that nobody else used? When you heard of Rakim.

Flo Dirt:That’s my favorite right there!

Biz Markie: When you heard of Rakim, keep it real son!! You know you was like, “WHOA! He came out the streets, man!” Every battle that Kris had to have, he’s fought. LL! Every day he went through all types of rain, snow, sleet and he still came out. Man and Biggie and 2Pac, they was good, but they had the marketing. Puffy was a marketing genius. Death Row and other people was marketing geniuses.

Flo Dirt:I appreciate that Biz. That was an incredible list.

Flo Dirt: 8. What impact does Myspace have on your career, if at all, and how seriously do you take it? Meaning, who do you respond to if anyone?

Biz Markie: I use it to respond but usually Myspace… People try to look me up that I’ve known for a long time. I use it to trade tapes with different people. That’s what Myspace does for me.

Flo Dirt: 9. What are you listening to when nobody’s watching?

Biz Markie: Old school rap from 76-80!

Flo Dirt: 10. If Marley Marl called tomorrow and said he wanted to bring the Crew back out in 07, are you in?

Biz Markie: Stop! Don’t even ask me that! Funny thing is that me and Marley talked at the Super Bowl. Whatever was squashed was squashed. It wouldn’t be that much to put together but it depends on the situation and how lucrative it was.

Flo Dirt: Side question, I know that Marley and Kris are working on an album together. What do you think about that?

Biz Markie: I think it’s good. I wasn’t like Kris and Marley had crazy beef with each other anyway. That’s cold. If we was going against crew… If someone dissed ME like that, I wouldn’t do it but you know they buried the hatchet. I guess it’s more business than what it was. He did it with LL? LL was beefing with Shan. They made classic records, LL and Marley.

Flo Dirt: Yeah!

Flo Dirt: Biz, thanks for your time and good luck out there.

Biz Markie: Thank you, bruh.

Biz you're the coolest...

For all questions and inquiries for Flo, hit him up at this link or visit his myspace page.