Tre Hardson has truly evolved and has been liberated. Formally known as Slim Kid Tre from the extremely successful group The Pharcyde, Tre has music ranging from wild and psychedelic to soulful and introspective. After 3 LPs with The Pharcyde, Tre has been liberated. He has started his own label (Flying Baboon) and has just put out his debut solo album ‘Liberation’ on Imusic. Like many other rappers, Tre has found himself singing instead of rapping on many songs.

T.JONES: “Why did you begin singing more than just rapping?”
TRE: “I think it was just the nature of music in general, you know. When you do what you do, it just comes as it is. It’s not like I chose one or the other. It’s musical fun. It’s an instrument.”

T.JONES: “The new album is called ‘Liberation’. Tell us about it. Who is on it? Why did you call it that?”
TRE: “’Liberation’ is a tale of what we go through in life. People think that we are a certain way. Kids that grow up want to be doctors and they don’t know why they want to be doctors. They just feel it. Maybe their father wants them to be one. You have to tare down barriers to find out who you are. Many people are doing different things thinking that this is what makes them who they are. I try to hold up a persona but really, I am just me as you see me, whenever you see me. Lauryn Hill talks about that a lot. We are forever changing and evolving. It’s hard enough sometimes, just to be you. When you’re feeling mad or happy sometimes, that’s just you. Be accepting of that. It’s what ‘Liberation’ is all about.”

T.JONES: “You didn’t use any of the Pharcyde producers. You did some production but who else did the production?”
TRE: “One producer is this guy Printz Board, who played keys and trumpet with Black Eye Peas and Nikka Costa. We’re good friends. That’s how I pick producers. We did things from a family perspective. Other producers are really, really expensive and sometimes, I don’t feel like people deserve what they are getting paid on one end. Some people are really good at what they do but for the most part, I don’t think a record has to cost so much on one degree…. Because it’s music, you know.”

T.JONES: “What is your favorite song on ‘Liberation’?
TRE: “Yeah. ‘Something To Live For.’”

T.JONES: “Will you make a music video?”
TRE: “Probably a little later though. We’re putting the record out and letting build. Then, we’ll put the money where we need to put it. There will be videos made for sure. I love making videos.”

T.JONES: “I always loved the Pharcyde’s ‘Drop’ video.”
TRE: “I loved it, man! It was cool!”

T.JONES: “How did you hook up with The Pharcyde? How did you four (Imani, Booty Brown, Fatlip, Slim Kid Tre) meet and how did you start?”
TRE: “Well me and Imani would hang out together dancing. We would battle other people dance-wise. Romi (aka Bootie Brown) and Derek (Fatlip) were in a separate dance crew. Imani and Romi were the dopest dances in L.A. They were phenomenal. Our circle was no joke.”

T.JONES: “Will The Pharcyde ever work together as all 4 of you?”
TRE: “We’ll have to let the future pull that one through. It would be nice. I would love to get together and do some stuff again. I did a song with Fatlip on the new Prince Paul’s album that didn’t come out yet. I don’t know what it’s called but we definitely finished the song already. It was really cool. It was before the Sept. 11th attack happened and Fatlip and me were talking about the state of the world. It was really a trip on how that sh*t happened.”

T.JONES: “What happened to Fatlip? Why was he not with the Pharcyde in the later years? Have you spoken to him recently? The press made it look like you guys kicked him out.”
TRE: “We did kick him out. A lot of time has passed since then. That was years ago. It was mainly myself that didn’t really get along with Fatlip the most. We just didn’t click anymore..But, he’s an amazing writer.”

T.JONES: “Fatlip's verse on ‘She Said’ is a classic.”
TRE: “Yeah, it’s pretty awesome.”

T.JONES: “Were you satisfied with the 3 Pharcyde albums? Out of the 3, which one do you like most? The least?”
TRE: “I love all of my children! I don’t separate or show favoritism towards my kids! (Laughs).”

T.JONES: “How did you get into music?”
TRE: “I guess I was born to do it. When I was younger, I sang in the choir. I played the violin when I was in the 3rd grade, played the trumpet when I was in 4th grade and the drums too. I loved it man! Music is incredible. You’re either born to do it or you’re not.”

T.JONES: “What are some of your major influences in music?”
TRE: “Bob Marley! Definitely, Bob Marley. When I was little, he was my major inspiration. That was it. The things that he stood for… I used to draw a lot of pictures of Bob Marley.  Parliament, Steely Dan, Jimi Hendrix, L.L. Cool J., Krs-One, Earth, Wind & Fire. Newbirth. I have so many influences…”

T.JONES: “What were your parents like?”
TRE: “Pretty cool. My dad was a trash man… a definitely hard working guy. My stepfather was the one I was raised with. He thought he was Jimi Hendrix. He played the guitar and looked exactly like Jimi. It was awesome. He gave me his guitar."

T.JONES: “What was it like growing up in South Central Los Angeles?”
TRE: “It was beautiful. In the 80’s, it was a little rough but I’m glad that cycle got turned away. A lot of people got really f*cked up. It was okay. I was telling my publicist that when you grow up in places, you are not afraid to be there since that is where you grew up at. You’re immune to it. I can’t say it was really bad though. It was just… boys growing up. I’m sure it was kind of like that everywhere. It is what the media makes of it that makes South Central so important or not. But, I love it. I was just there this morning and it was really peaceful just being away from Hollywood. Hollywood is so weird, so pretentious but South Central is just real.”

T.JONES: “Evolution is a word I think describes you. The Pharcyde has evolved with each release and you, as an artist, have evolved too. You certainly are not the same emcee on ‘Yo Mama’. How did this evolution take place? How have people been dealing with it?”
TRE: “Fans grow with you… if they are your fans. If they are just a fly-by-night, then they are going to keep flying. The evolution musically just happens with every experience. When we made ‘Bizarre Ride’, it was based upon what we did in our general area. When we were able to see the world, that opened up other things. Like, the whole ‘Bling-Bling’ thing is kind of crazy because in Sierra Leon, they are cutting people’s hands off for diamonds. It’s kind of f*cked up. In Germany and Amsterdam, the taxicabs are Mercedes Benzes. People out here used to get killed for them. It’s really silly. So, it’s like what are we really talking about here?”

T.JONES: “Between ‘Bizarre Ride II The Pharcyde’ and ‘Labcabincalifornia’, I think there was the biggest change. Would you agree and why?”
TRE: “That’s a huge change. In the year apart that they were, we had to change within that time. We were kooky and goofy on ‘Bizarre Ride’ but we went through some growing up. We were dealing with the record label, dealing with our girlfriends, dealing with all these different things. The pressure made us speak on different topics. Getting your ass kicked will make you speak on different topics as well. You want to keep it real. I don’t talk about sh*t that I don’t know about. For one, I won’t remember it. Something that I lived and done, I’m going to remember that.”

T.JONES: “Jay Dee (of Slum Village) is a very well respected producer these days. Pharcyde was one of the first groups to hook up with him on ‘Labcabincalifornia’. How did you hook up with him and what was that experience like?”
TRE: “Nobody knew him at the time but I must say, Jay Dee was working with incredible people. He was working with Busta Rhymes, De La Soul and Tribe Called Quest at the time. Q-Tip actually told us about Jay Dee. When he told us about him, we didn’t believe that Jay Dee existed. We thought Q-tip was making it up like Jay Dee was his alias because his name is J.D. to some degree. It was funny but Jay Dee did show up and the music was incredible. His beats were so incredible. I couldn’t believe it. I was so blessed to have him be apart of our record.”

T.JONES: “You always have been a spiritual person. Do you practice a specific religion? If so, which one?”
TRE: “I don’t believe in religion at all now. I believe in God theory. I believe in the all… All of us being God and Goddesses, mother / father being God. The chi. I’m not into organized religion at all. It doesn’t help anything.”

T.JONES: “Do you look at it as mind control?”
TRE: “Oh, totally! Once you remove that, than you don’t control the people. Then, they can’t make their money and they feel powerless once you find out that the true power is inside of you. They don’t want people to know that the power is inside of them. They want people to breastfeed off of a silicone titty. (Laughs)”

T.JONES: “There seem to be many rappers who have started to sing more and more. For example, John Forte, Wyclef, Q-Tip. Why do you think this is happening?”
TRE: “I just think that we shouldn’t be limited. We looked at hip-hop as being one thing and it grew. Now, we didn’t know what to do because it grew past us. We have to expand as well so we can make room to love music again.”

T.JONES: “Could you explain the Phoenix EP?”
TRE: “Phoenix was something I was going through. The phoenix is a mythological bird that died in a fire, turned into flames, and turned into ashes. Then, it was born again through those ashes. With that said, every one of us has died and are born again.”

T.JONES: “What are some brand new songs or artists that you are feeling?"
TRE: “That’s a good one because I don’t like too many people. There hasn’t been too much that has inspired me. I on the latest freight of all… Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin. I listen to their lyrics and what they are talking about and it’s kind of where I’m at right now in a lot of ways. Ozzy was talking about some political stuff and it’s the same stuff, the same issues that are going on right now. I really love Led Zeppelin. I don’t know songs by titles but I know super-energy when I feel it. I know what moves me. John Lennon, The Beatles. Nothing has really moved me now. Oh! Saul Williams! He f*cking moves me! He is incredible! He’s on my album. He’s really incredible. I just went to his poetry recital and he’s f*cking incredible, dude. I just connected with him there. Lauryn Hill moves me too. It’s kind of like where I’m at too. What she’s going through, I feel like I’ve been there. When I was in my Saturn returns cycle, it was just some crazy sh*t! Bark at the moon sh*t…”

T.JONES: “Do you have a drug of choice?" 
TRE: “I would say mushrooms.. to be on the safe side. Also, Ecstasy... if it didn’t have a bad effect on you, I’d be chewing on them right now. I did too much. I can’t do it anymore. I had a dark side to that which wasn’t really pretty so I was like ‘Oh, I can’t do that anymore’. Great parties, but bad effect.”

T.JONES: “You were on a couple of episodes of MTV’s ‘The Real World’. Did you think you were portrayed the way you wanted to be portrayed? Overall, was it a positive or negative experience? Do you still speak to that woman?”
TRE: “I would have to say they did a good job editing me in a good way. The power of the editor is a dangerous thing. I must thank them for editing it so I don’t look like some sh*t-head. I already knew when I was there being filmed, I thought to myself ‘Watch what you say, watch what you do. This ain’t that type of party. Be careful.’”

T.JONES: “Do you still speak to that woman you met on Mtv’s The Real World?”
TRE: “Yeah, Kia’s cool, man.”

T.JONES: “How did you hook up with Brian Austin Green? What was that like?"
TRE: “Brian Austin Green is actually my best friend in the whole world. We’ve been best friends since the day I did his record. I hooked up with him through my friend Ija Kamora. She was telling me that Brian was doing a record and we went over to the studio and he was working with Jon B. Myself and my partner at the time, L.A. Jay, tried to bring him more into a different world so the record would not sound too poppy and real cohesive. So, we put something nice together for him. That’s what happened. We’ve been friends ever since. I love him. That’s my boy.”

T.JONES: “What was your favorite collaboration with another artist?”
TRE: “I would say Peepshow. It’s not something that’s out now but they were really fun. I’m always having fun. I always have fun working with the people I work with.”

T.JONES: “How did you hook up with N’dea Davinport  (formally of The Brand New Heavies) on ‘Life Is Love’?”
TRE: “We were label mates on Delicious (Vinyl) and we went on tour with The Brand New Heavies. N’dea has always been a beautiful person. She has always gotten extra work for me like on the Headhunters album. She’s cool to work with too. She’s very particular about things while we’re recording and that made me step up my game. As a producer, you definitely have to be considerate of how to work and deal with people. She’s an amazing singer.”

T.JONES: “How did you hook up with MC Lyte on ‘Roots, Love & Culture’ and what was that collaboration like?”
TRE: “She’s beautiful too. She’s very down to earth. My manager, Tatiana, knew MC Lyte for quite a while. She took me over to Lyte’s studio. I gave her a couple of beats and she liked one. We didn’t end up using the beat that she picked because we lost the track. So, we remixed it and took it over to her. She’s a real down-to-earth person.”

T.JONES: “What was the last incident of racism you encountered?”
TRE: “I don’t know, I don’t remember.”

T.JONES: “Where were you during the Sept. 11th World Trade Center Terrorist Attack and how do you think it will affect hip-hop?”
TRE: “More so than hip hop, I think it will affect the world. It was definitely a wake up call. I was in California. I was sleeping on my manager’s couch and we got a phone call from Kim Hill and she said, ‘Do you know what’s going on in your world right now?’ I turned on the TV and saw the plane crash in the building. It was just a still day. How can we forget it? They played it everyday for several months. There’s no way that we can forget anything like that. It was very hardcore but it was a wake up call. In other countries, that stuff happens everyday. It doesn’t happen like that here. It seems like it takes something real drastic or tragic for people to come together and say ‘Good morning. How was your day? How are you today?’”

T.JONES: “Abortion: Pro-life or pro-choice?”
TRE: “That’s one of those tricky questions. I feel that… my opinion is, a person should do whatever they feel. It’s their choice. It’s not for me to say. I have a different perspective on how to look at life and death anyway.”

T.JONES: “What would you say is the biggest mistake you have made in your career?”
TRE: “I’ve never made a mistake in my life. Everything is as it is suppose to be. There are no mistakes. I’m just living out the script for this particular movie. (Laughs).”

T.JONES: “The last track is called ‘Everything’ where you sing ‘everything is everything / that’s how it seems to me…’ What does that phrase ‘Everything is everything’ mean to you?”
TRE: “It means that we are a small part of a big picture. We’re a small part of the painting. You can try to alter it but no matter what you do, it is what it is. After you finish trying to alter everything in your life, you realize that I’m so tired trying to make things look the way I want them to look. It just what it is. It is what it is and there’s nothing you can do about it. There are many degrees to the definition. Be in the moment. Always be in the moment is what ‘Everything’ means. You can’t control it. Everything is beautiful as it is.”

T.JONES: “What artist would you like to work with that you haven’t worked with yet?”
TRE: “Foo Fighters. I love the Foo Fighters.”

T.JONES: “Do you go into the studio with pre-written lyrics and pre-produced beats or do you do a majority of the work in the studio itself in a spontaneous way?”
TRE: “Sometimes, I have a beat that someone gave me and I write lyrics to it. By the time I get to the studio, I throw those lyrics away and come up with something else fresh and on the spot. It’s just how it is. I have to write 10 rhymes to one verse just to see what’s best. I guess I should just let it flow.”

T.JONES: “What happened with Delicious Vinyl?”
TRE: “It just didn’t work out. I love Mike Ross and Rick Ross. They’re cool but it just didn’t work out.”

T.JONES: “How did you hook up with IMusic and what is Flying Baboon?”
TRE: “Well, Flying Baboon is my own label. That came to me in a dream. I hooked up with Imusic through this guy named The Captain, who is a very, very special man who is over at Artist Direct. We were looking for a distribution deal and they were ready and able to facilitate our needs.”

T.JONES: “What do you think hip hop needs in these times?”
TRE: “I think hip hop needs an enema. (Laughs). Get all the sh*t out and start finding something new. It’s kind of like input for output. I think we need NOT to have corporations telling us how music is suppose to be. It is putting a black void on everything. That’s why people aren’t feeling sh*t because no one is truly allowed to be who they are. Everybody thinks that they are tough. A few of them may be but there are a lot of them who aren’t.”

T.JONES: “With The Pharcyde, did Delicious Vinyl try to make you something that you were not?”
TRE: “At our label, nobody make us anything except the first f*cking album. ‘We want more of Bizarre Ride!’”

T.JONES: “So… Do you not go by the name of Slim Kid Tre anymore?
TRE: “No, I sure don’t. I’m not a kid anymore. I’m just me now, I’m just Tre.”

T.JONES: “Word association time. I’m going to say a name of a group or artist and you tell me the first word that pops in your head. For example, if I say ‘Chuck D’, you may say ‘Revolutionary’…. Okay?”
TRE: “Okay.”
T.JONES: “Jurassic 5”
TRE: “Futuristic Old School”
T.JONES: “Kool Keith”
TRE: “Wild & Crazy”
T.JONES: “The Coup”
TRE: “Political”
T.JONES: “Ol’ Dirty Bastard”
TRE: “Nuts.”
T.JONES: “Del The Funky Homosapian”
TRE: “Spacey”
T.JONES: “Eminem”
TRE: “Incredible lyricist”
T.JONES: “Q-Tip”
TRE: “Love power”
T.JONES: “Phife Dawg”
TRE: “Freestyle king”
T.JONES: “Gil Scott-Heron”
TRE: “Revolutionary”

T.JONES: “What’s going on with Pharcyde & Souls Of Mischief? I heard they are forming a group called The Almighty Mighty Pythons. Are you involved in that project?”
TRE: “I just did one song with them. I don’t know if that’s going to be on the record. I left before they came together. Pharcyde is just Romi and Imani. They’re doing their thing. I just say ‘Support’! Continue to support them. It’s music. They did that sh*t for me. If it wasn’t for a few people jumping on board, they would try to keep shoving me under the rug.”

T.JONES: “Did you leave The Pharcyde on your own or were you kicked out?”
TRE: “I just left on my own. I was trying to get the record label off  (Flying Baboon). The Phoenix EP was online and came out at around the same time as ‘Plain Rap’.”

T.JONES: “What are some of the biggest misconceptions do you think people have of you?”
TRE: “People come up to me and say ‘Yo! You wanna smoke a bowl?’ and I quit smoking weed a long time ago. I was more of a shroomer. Shrooms were the thing to do for me.”

T.JONES: “I used to love shroom tea.”
TRE: “Yeah, man! We used to make a lot of shroom tea, me and Imani. Well, everybody.”

T.JONES: “Looking back on The Pharcyde, what would you have done differently?”
TRE: “Absolutely nothing. I can’t dwell on the past. Everything is an experience.”

T.JONES: “What can the fans expect of Tre Hardson in the future?”
TRE: “More evolution. More life, more soul. More live soul.”

T.JONES: “What do you want on your epitaph (your gravestone)?”
TRE: “I want to be cremated. I don’t want a gravestone.”

T.JONES: “Where do you want your ashes spread?”
TRE: “Ah, it doesn’t matter. Actually, the ocean. I’d like to return to the water. Return to yimmiya.”

T.JONES: “Do you have any last words for the people reading this?”
TRE: “Peace & blessings!”

You can check out TRE HARDSON at:
http://www.imusic.com
http://www.flyingbaboon.com

“Liberation’ comes out August 20th on Imusic.

THANK YOU TRE HARDSON!!!

-Todd E. Jones aka The New Jeru Poet