thaFormula.com - Last time we spoke, you and Black were about to get started on the "Caltroit" project, how did it feel to get that first track "Caltroit" out the way?

Bishop Lamont - Well you know what, actually we had worked on a record before because I always worked with RJ anyway. We was in Detroit for Proof's funeral. It was actually the day before the funeral, we went to the viewing and we just felt like doing something and I was sick at the time on Nyquil so RJ went through some beats, Black came with some stuff and we put down a record and that was actually the first record for the Cali meets Detroit situation. So once we got here to really start on something for it, it was like just like "this is what we already been doing, but now more people are gonna know that we connected" and it's bigger then what people think it is and its realer then what people think it is so it's just fun.

thaFormula.com - Now speaking to Black earlier, he was feeling the fact that a lot of people felt that the "Caltroit" track was a different type of track for him, that it had more of a West Coast feel to it. How are you planning on approaching this project yourself?

Bishop Lamont - The same way he made that beat. We didn't even attempt for that beat to be for "Caltroit." See that's the ignorance of people when they are listening to the records and they expect everything to be dusty and everything to have the popcorn sound of the vinyl and shit. It's like no, Black made that beat before I even had an idea for "Caltroit" and there it is. So it's not about it sounding West Coast or sounding East Coast. The Lady of Rage just stepped through the door, oh boy put that in the interview! She's from "Caltroit" too, haha. But that's the problem, cats are like "oh it sounds like this," I'm like "no, Black Milk is a dope producer. That's just a banging track." Now with me on it and being from the West Coast, okay there it goes, but even how I rhyme and how we get down, it has nothing to do with the territory. It's about what you got in you and your talent.

thaFormula.com - So break down how things are going with the "Caltroit" project so far for you?

Bishop Lamont - We almost finished. It's just a few surprises. I can't really say much but it's an all-star cast from all heights and all levels. There's different producers because it's also about showcasing Black as an artist as far as an MC as far as production. So I want him to be able to relax and just focus on the bars. He's also on the beats, but I want him to focus more on just them bars. So people can receive him on that side too and know that he is a double or triple threat.

thaFormula.com - Now I know originally it was supposed to be a mix tape but Black is telling me that you guys have decided to release it as an actual album, what brought that decision about for you?

Bishop Lamont - I mean it's the same thing with "N*gger Noize," it really isn't a mix tape, its a street album. Niggaz done burnt mix tapes out. Everybody and their grandmother got a mix tape. What's really gonna bring them into wanting to be involved in that and to listen to that and give that 5 minutes of time or whatever when everybody and their mama got the same beats. So it's another album and at the same time it got so big that we decided we gonna have the album and we are gonna have the "Caltroit Metropolis" because there are so many MC's and artists that came to the table once they heard about it. It got so big it was like we can't have this many records on one album so there is two projects coming. There is the "Caltroit" album and then "Caltroit Metropolis." It's like "Jaylib" meets "Welcome to Detroit" in a sense.

thaFormula.com - Were you surprised at the amount of support and calls you got from people trying to get on the project?

Bishop Lamont - Hell Yeah. I mean we know a lot of people but at the same time everybody got their day to day and everybody's got they albums or got they projects they are working on. So to get that kind of camaraderie and that kind of support and that kind of interest you know it really made it even more of a special thing and a fresh thing to really spearhead and really go hard in the paint for.

thaFormula.com - Now on to your recent "N*gger Noize" album you dropped, it was a surprise because it was just a great album that wasn't an East, West or South type of album. It was just good Hip-Hop…

Bishop Lamont - It's just music, it's just Hip-Hop. People are gonna interpret or judge it at whatever capacity but there is other cats that have been dropping dope albums. Like Trek Life got like 3 or 4 albums he done dropped and people are not checking for the freshest shit. Aloe Blacc put some shit out, Mykestro put some shit out and you know Crooked I put some shit out. So its like when you get that Dr. Dre push and you got that buzz people pay attention more. If I didn't have that people wouldn't pay attention to the shit I've been doing for years. But I appreciate it yet still because it sets up a forum for the rest of these fly niggaz to keep doing their thing.

thaFormula.com - And since you dropped the "N*gger Noize" album, what has the reaction been like?

Bishop Lamont - It's been crazy. It's one of the most downloaded mix tapes ever. We got so much attention from it and we are still getting attention from it, we are still getting interviews off of it. You know the FBI and the government came in and tried to cease the CD's. Bill O' Reilly ran his mouth about it and it was a lot of stuff that added momentum to it and it's still growing actually as we speak. I mean it's getting all over the world. Cats in Europe showing it love, Japan, New Zealand, Africa, I mean you name it. It's poppin' so that's a blessing.

thaFormula.com - Did it surpass your hope and expectations on what it could do for you?

Bishop Lamont - Yeah because I was just getting the ghost out the skulls and it was really for Black History Month. It was really just something that was supposed to come out in February but I got behind in doing stuff for the album and other stuff. You know then the Don Imus thing happened and then thing with Kramer so everything just kind of fell in place for get that jump it needed.

thaFormula.com - How much time did you actually spend on this Bishop and what percentage of Bishop did they just get with this album?

Bishop Lamont - They got 100 percent of what's possible with Bishop but they still didn't get all of Bishop because "The Reformation" is really gonna explain that with the album. I made sure to go hard in the paint and with "N*gger Noize" I went the totally kind of like conscious, dealing with social issues and still having fun.

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